These were the two closed phones I considered. I read the reviews and selected the Sennheiser which is now called the HD1. But I still wonder if the 550 would have been better and more open sounding. The HD1 has a very smooth treble and powerful bass but seems a little too dark. The 550 appeared to be too bright and not very smooth in the treble. So has anyone listened to both of these? Would love to hear your impressions.
My musical tastes are Classical and Jazz and I favor a smooth treble. Very sensitive to overly bright phones. I love the HD 650.
I have the momentum 2.0 (wireless, but they also can be wired). I don’t have the 550s but I do have the AKG K712PRO. I think the momentum 2.0 is an excellent excellent design and covers a wide range of music and offers excellent performance and long-term listen-ability. You may be just reacting to the closed back headphone dynamic (but they certainly have their advantages). I have the HD600s also (and others). I end up listening to the momentum the most, partly due to convenience (in Wireless mode). Net, net - I think you made the best choice.
Thanks for your reply. I agree that I may be just reacting to the closed headphone feel. Been using open phones for so long the closed feeling takes some getting use to. Also I have found that when using the HD1 the volume setting is critical. Too much and they over emphasize the upper mids. Too low and it’s just dull. It needs to be carefully dialed in for the right sweet spot.
I’ve heard the Momentum 2.0 and the original K550 and K553; you’re right the Momentum 2.0 is incredibly dark. I wasn’t a fan of them. I actually prefer the original Momentum as I feel the bass is slightly cleaner and the midrange isn’t as colored, but I still wouldn’t pay more than the $40 that renewlogic on ebay charges for a used one.
Going to the K550 is a pretty big switch because you actually get treble and upper midrange. There is some grain from what I recall but honestly, it’s probably my most recommended closed headphone in this price range if you can get them to fit right. It’s not perfect by any means but I feel it does the least wrong.
Though if you’re treble sensitive, I’d suggest maybe trying the Beyerdynamic DT770 and swapping the very treble-forward pads for the Shure SRH1540 pads. I normally don’t support pad swaps, but my friend did a DT770 mod that used these pads and some additional internal damping and I thought they were pretty good.
Hello severance! How loud are the Senns. I need some really loud headphones for listening my dance , electronic music!! Can you compare the volume capacity to other brands? Thanks
The Senns, when wired, can go as loud as the device powering them can produce. In wireless mode they can go very loud (certainly ear damaging). Note: “Loud” with headphones is a complicated subject… because it depends on impedance, etc., amplification of source, and the point where the weak link in the chain may introduce distortion.
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