Changes at the upper end of the high-end line of Sennheiser don’t happen often, with the HD 650 and the HD 600 attesting to that. Launched in 2003 and 1997 respectively, both headphones are still very popular with audiophiles. The Sennheiser HD800 is not an exception – it is another impressive offering from the company, featuring an all new design that outshines earlier Sennheiser headphones. Of course, it will cost you a bit; priced at $1,400, the Sennheiser HD800 can cost more than your regular pair of headphones.
Sennheiser HD800:Design and Features
The Sennheiser HD800 has a design that sets it apart from every headphone model on the market. The large ear cups are engineered to position the drivers slightly to the front of the wearer’s ears which is a bit impossible in smaller designs. The ear cups of the Sennheiser HD800 feel luxurious with a wonderful combination of metal, plastic and microfiber. The weight of the Sennheiser HD800 is perfectly distributed on the head, and the padding on the ear gives a pressure that just feels right. In terms of comfort, the Sennheiser HD800 checks the mark and more.
The Sennheiser HD800 is designed with a doughnut-shaped transducer that measures 56 millimeters across. According to Sennheiser, it is the largest transducer found in modern headphones. The vibrating part of the diaphragm is not the circular interior, but its outer ring. With this design, less distortion is expected than other conventional drivers.
The unit also comes with a 10-foot, cloth-covered Y cable that has a silver-plated, oxygen-free, copper wiring. The Sennheiser HD800 is also reinforced with Kevlar for added durability and performance. The cable of the Sennheiser HD800 is removable and carries with it features that are patented and proprietary. If you need to use an audio source with a standard 3.5 millimeter headphone jack, you may need to provide your own adapter. The Sennheiser HD800 is handmade or hand-assembled and tested in Germany, and the finished product is packed in a beautiful casing.
Sennheiser HD800 Performance
Great headphones are not just based on heavy bass, more resolution, more detail, etc. From an audiophile point of view, the best and high-end headphones offer a finely tuned sonic balance. With the Sennheiser HD800, they blend in or disappear more than any non-electrostatic headphones in the market. Put simply, wearing the Sennheiser HD800 makes a listener a feeling of having a direct connection to the music.
The sound quality of the Sennheiser HD800 is really impressive and a pleasure to the ears. In fact, it sounds less like headphones and more like high-end speakers that can even level up to the very expensive AKG K1000. The Sennheiser HD800 works through audio reproduction by making sound appear to come from the front, rather than the sides, which is what most headphone products offer. Keep in mind though that if you need a pair of headphones built for noise isolation, the Sennheiser HD800 does not offer the technology to provide solutions for that.
Sennheiser HD800: Soundstage Benchmark
Sennheiser is known to be one of the best luxury brands when it comes to headphones and ear accessories. When it comes to sound precision, the Sennheiser HD800 offers one of the most detailed quality with a collaboration of a multidimensional landscape. A consumer can make out different layers and positions of an instrument in a single recording.
The landscape of the Sennheiser HD800 is also very expansive. Once users experience the wonderfully excellent soundstage of the Sennheiser HD800, shifting to a traditional or average pair of headphones will make the latter sound crammed and condensed.
Sennheiser HD800 Styling
The aesthetic image of the Sennheiser HD800 is quite like the other Sennheisers in the market – color black with a steel effect. However, knowing that they are Sennheisers, you would expect that they have powerful functional components that can gift your ears an amazing listening experience.
Sennheiser HD800 Sound Leakage
With the Sennheiser HD800, you can clearly observe that these were engineered with performance in mind. It is worth noting though, that the Sennheiser HD800 needs to be approached carefully if you want to keep your musical enjoyment private, because sound can leak from this device.
The open-backed Sennheiser don’t really leak sound into the room as much as other regular headphones in the market, but the Sennheiser HD800 can still cause enough sound spillage that can be heard by another person in the same room with you.You might want to keep this in mind if you are planning to watch your favorite TV shows or listen to your favorite music with someone who needs to sleep or concentrate in the same room because if the volume is at high levels, you might end up unintentionally sharing your listening experience to others.
Is the Sennheiser HD800 worth its hefty price tag?
Let’s be real here, the Sennheiser HD800 costs quite a lot, compared to standard headphones, more so with budget headphones. However, when it comes to its overall build and performance, from amplification, construction and design, innovation, acoustic transparency, soundstage, etc., we’re confident to say that it’s worth the price.
The amplification of the Sennheiser HD800 is really like no other. In fact, you may tend to ignore your existing speakers for a while because these cans can surely bring such great amplification to the table. It’s also no wonder that the Sennheiser HD800 is one of the best sellers in the high-end market. With its superb sound quality which is beautifully balanced across the range, add to that it’s impressive detail and comfort and you surely have one solid pair of headphones that can get you through extended listening sessions.