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发表于 2012-2-26 08:56:36
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The Sennheiser HD700 Journal (Work In Progress)
February 24, 2012 | by Mike | $500-$1000, Full Size | Sennheiser
When Sennheiser introduced the HD800 three years ago, the resolution of its 58mm ring-radiator driver is mind blowing. However, there were two things about the HD800 that prevented it from getting public acceptance: First, it wasn’t voiced quite the right way (treble issues, bass issues, et cetera). Second, the competition from Beyerdynamic with the T1, Hifiman with the HE-6, and Audez’e with the LCD-2, were quite advanced with their own offerings. And for many people, they had a more “correct” voicing than the HD800 is. Especially the planar based drivers was winning a lot of fans around the world with their fast and accurate transients. Even though the planars don’t scale up as well as the HD800 on high-end set ups, it wasn’t relevant because the HD800 simply didn’t have the sound that they were looking for (and I agree, it was a hard headphone to enjoy).
And the fact is this:
Ten years after the release of the HD650 (2003), people are still yearning for something that sounds like the HD650 but a little more advanced in technicalities. Certainly, the HD800 was missing something important, and that is musicality.
I can imagine a hypothetical situation where the engineers at Sennheiser started the blueprint on creating the best headphone they are capable of. All the years of technological know how was poured into the design, and the result is what we know as the HD800. With the HD700, however, it was different. A different design team was gathered, and this time I would imagine they actually gathered a lot of feedback from users (especially the Head-Fi guys) and listened intensively to the planars from Hifiman and Audez’e to examine what is it about them that made them so successful.
We know for sure that Sennheiser is listening to the market, and that the HD700 should be a more musically involving headphone than the HD800 was. When the HD700 was finally unveiled, I am guessing that the headphone is going to sound a lot closer to the HD650 — the ultimate representation of the classic Sennheiser sound. Now that I have listened to the HD700, while it is mostly a darker sounding headphone than the HD800, it was completely different than what I had imagined. It was radically different and unlike anything else I’ve ever heard with a dynamic driver. It was not simply a re-tuned or a scaled down HD800 as the HE-500 is to the HE-6, the LCD-2 Rev 2 is to the Rev 1, or the Beyerdynamic T5p is to the T1.
I was awestruck. The design team, which is apparently a different team from the HD800, has pulled off something brilliant. Out of this world. Genius. I wish my HD800 sounded like the HD700. I really do. I wish Sennheiser would give me an HD700 sound, with a build quality like the HD800, and label it as the new HD800. It wasn’t simply a downgraded HD800 with a darker tonality. It was revolutionary and I’ve never heard anything like this being done with a dynamic driver.
I wish my HD800 sounds like the HD700
When the HD800 was launched 3 years ago, I received an invitation to audition it in Singapore in a private Sennheiser event. The system that we were listening to was nothing short of high end. They had that German high end audio brand T+A CD player that has this uncanny transients, paired with the highly transparent Lehmann Black Cube linear amp. They gave us private listening sessions in private rooms. They had audiophile recorded CDs that you can choose from, or a CD of your own if you happen to have one.
I though it was an impressive headphone technically, but I had mixed feelings about it. Impressive technicalities, but it was not one of those “I had to have one of these”.
I eventually bought an HD800 because I knew that it is the reference by which other headphones would be compared to. Over the years of doing reviews for Headfonia, I learned a lot about the HD800′s characteristics: what makes it work and not work, how you should build a set up around it, what makes it so painful at times, and what makes it sublime when the set up is right. And I still tell my friends today with their $3,000-$5,000 tube amps that the HD800 is the only headphone that will let them hear every single penny they’ve spent on their amps. It had the highest scalability factor, period. But once again, there is something missing with the HD800.
What I Thought The HD700 Would Sound Like
Through writing reviews for Headfonia, I have learned how certain design aspects of a headphone would lead to a certain sound characteristics. We all know how different driver types have their own sound signature. Where vintage drivers tend to fall short to modern drivers. How the design of the housing and pads materials contribute to the overall sound. Why you should never mix different type of drivers in one headphone. It’s like with cars: Design parameters like wheelbase, chassis width, overhang, or engine placement would tell you roughly about how the car would handle. Planars would excel in transients and have a superb black background, but weak in soundstage image. Electrostats suck when it comes to bass impact. Dynamics are always good with soundstage imaging and low level detail, but usually always have this grain in their sound (the Ultrasones are among the exception, but for everybody else Senn, Beyer, AKG, Audio Technica and so on, you would hear grain in the sound).
Using these same sets of “unwritten conventions”, I had made my own little predictions on how the HD700 would sound: It would be darker than the HD800. It would have a smaller soundstage, but better intimacy. It would still have the typical dynamic driver grain (especially Sennheiser drivers are never free of this grain), and so on. In short, it would sound a lot like the HD650, but much improved especially in bass clarity (one of the weaknesses of the HD650).
It turns out that my predictions were far off. And it’s not that I made bad predictions, but
rather because the HD700 pulled off something I have never heard before in a dynamic driver.
I knew that the HD700 had a new technology that is not found on the HD800: “Patent-pending ventilated magnet system manages airflow” as Sennheiser put it. But I didn’t think the effect is going to be so radical. Listening to the HD700 out of the RSA Dark Star amp, with the Halide Design DAC HD and Fidelia as the source, I was blown away. Simply brilliant and mind-blowing. It was had a crisp electrostatic-like transients, but without the typical weaknesses of an electrostatic driver.
Sound Impressions
The HD700 is nothing like previous Sennheiser headphones. The tonality is mostly dark, but very different than the HD650′s dark, instead more like the LCD-2. The biggest difference from the HD650 is in the clarity factor. The HD700′s dark sound simply exudes with clarity, to the extent that the sound coming out of it is clearer than the HD800, the Beyerdynamic T1, the LCD-2, or the Stax O2. No one will be making veiled comments about the HD700 that’s for sure.
It’s like getting the clarity of the Hifiman HE-6, but without the treble, and still with a cleaner sound overall than the HE-6. The background is black and has zero grain. It is not as black as the LCD-2, but more or less like the Stax O2. I think this aspect is the most impressive part of the HD700′s sound: how it manages to pull off such a clear and clean sound while having a dark tonality.
Comparisons to the LCD-2
More comparisons should be drawn to the LCD-2, as it’s the only headphone that I think sound closest to the HD700.
Both have a dark tonality, but the LCD-2 is darker and has a better bass thump. I still love the Revision 1 LCD-2 the best, as I think the frequency response is more linear than the Revision 2. In this aspect, the HD700 maintains a generally linear frequency response throughout most of it’s range, except for a little peak at the high treble region (the HD800′s is at a lower frequency). And though I feel a better extension on the low bass, it doesn’t slam as hard as the LCD-2′s low bass (still king in that aspect). I do hope that since this is a pre-production sample, Sennheiser can still tweak down the top treble peak, though I won’t expect much changes from the bass impact.
The issue with the LCD-2 that a lot of people have is that one it is too dark sounding, and that two it sounds too closed for an open headphone. With the revision 2 they have added some treble to the mix, which helps to alleviate that treble issue and making the headphone to sound more open as well, but in the process losing some smoothness on the treble region.
The HD700 is quite different in this aspect and I think this is due to the nature of the different drivers. The overall sound is significantly clearer than the LCD-2 (again think of the clarity of the HE-6 but without its treble). Clarity level is much higher than the LCD-2 from top to bottom, but it’s especially evident around the midrange area. The bass is not as meaty or as slamming as the LCD-2, but with much better clarity on the bass. The soundstage is a lot more open than the LCD-2′s and the HD700 doesn’t suffer from the reverb issue that plague the LCD-2.
For a long time people have been asking for a headphone that combines the best of the LCD-2 and the HE-6, and I think the HD700 is it. I won’t know for sure, but it’s almost like Sennheiser had a listen to both planars and see what is it about them that make people enjoy them, and went to recreate a version of their own using a dynamic driver. I can see the HD700 to appeal to people who enjoy the HE-6 because it offers the same level of clarity (and even more, in the mids and bass regions), but without the hot treble and a much better soundstage image performance. With the LCD-2, I think the HD700 still can’t quite replicate the LCD-2′s bass, but a lot of people who’s complained about the LCD-2 being too closed and too dark really should check out the HD700.
Comparisons to the HD650
Another comparison that I’d like to make is to the HD650 that we’re all so familiar with. Though both headphones would be categorized as dark sounding, that’s as far as the similarity goes. The HD650 is not exactly known for its clarity, while the HD700 shines at that. The HD650′s bass often is too thick and muddy on anything short of a top-end system. The HD700 from an Ipod’s headphone out still gives me a much better bass clarity than the HD650 on the RSA Dark Star, so it’s not even a close comparison.
The HD650 is often described as smooth, and that’s correct, but more of the lush and tubey smooth kind. The HD700 on the other hand has a smooth sound that sounds more like electrostatic driver smooth. Smooth from the precise transients. The pace, the precision, the speed of the HD700 is so much faster than the HD650, and even the HD800 (it is more comparable to the Beyerdynamic T1).
As you can see, a lot of these descriptions break the usual conventions of the typical character of a Sennheiser, but also the typical character of a dynamic driver. The HD700 is crystal clear and clean, more than any other dynamic headphones I’ve listened to. There is absolutely no grain in the sound. The transients are crisp and fast, and everytime I listen to it, I get an impression that I’m listening to an electrostat-type driver, only this time with better frequency extension than the typical Stax headphones.
One thing that I do lament is how the HD650 still has a much better bass impact than the HD700 is. With the HD650 you just get that addictive, slamming bass, and it’s still the number one reason people stick with the HD650 even now. The HD700 tremendously improves on the bass impact of the HD800, but just not quite a HD650 bass.
Comparisons to the HD800
Of course the obvious comparison is to the HD800, now priced at $1499 which means it’s $500 more than the $999 HD700.
First thing first: The HD700 is in no way going to replace the HD800 as the flagship model. Early in this article I’ve talked about how the HD800 is currently the king of the headphone technology. The HD800 driver just oozes with resolution, micro detail, and three dimensional layering. With the HD800, you hear multiple layers just on the bass region alone. It’s just so rich with information, the driver scales up so much higher, and the build quality is still unmatched. For this reason, I think that the HD800 will still remain the proper flagship for Sennheiser.
The most noticeable difference between the quality of the two driver is on the layering capability. The HD700 is quite below the HD800 especially on the layering capability, and more around the level of the HE-6 and the LCD-2. The soundstage is the next thing that needs a comparison. The HD800 is much wider, but the HD700 is still relatively wide and actually has a better depth than the HD800′s. Center image is also more distinct with the HD700, making for a much better headphone for long term listening sessions. With the HD800 on some system I still like wish I had a good cross feed system. Not so with the HD700, it blends very well both the left and right soundstage areas. Overall the HD700 is very spacious, more than the LCD-2 and the T1.
The issue with the HD800 as we all know is its tonality. It’s highly resolving, but it is very easy to sound dull. It needs an über high-end system to shine. This is why I said “I wish my HD800 sounds like the HD700″. The HD700 has the most likable tonality I’ve ever listened to in any headphone to this day. The wow factor is incredibly high, it’s hard not to be impressed by it, even with a simple DACPort + O2 amp pairing. The clarity coming out of that dark tonality is really a magical combination. The first time I heard the Stax O2, I was impressed simply for the same reason: dark tonality yet still sounding very clear. The thing is, the HD700 is even clearer and also far more spacious than the O2. My jaws dropped when I listened to the HD700 the first time (I was using the RSA Dark Star system). It was just unbelievably good.
On the more practical aspects, I think the HD700 is going to be easier to enjoy due to these three points:
No more glaring low treble. The HD700 is totally smooth on the frequency where the HD800 glare is. There is a top treble peak which pronounces sibilance, but I hope that the production units will be free of this.
Much punchier bass. The HD700′s bass has some real punch. Tight and punchy, focused and fast. Brilliant bass, though not as technically capable as the HD800′s bass.
The PRaT factor is awesome. This is not a laid back headphone. It’s spacious, yet it can deliver an energetic and focused sound. With some fast Rock music, you are getting all that energy, as good as if you were listening from the HD25-1. And that’s remarkable, given the fact that the HD700 is a far more spacious headphone.
It is oh-so-easy to drive. I can listen to it straight from my Ipod.
To-Be-Continued: More Sound Impressions, Genre compatibility, Amplifier Pairings, Ergonomics and Fit
Disclaimier: This is based on a pre-production sample HD700. The final production unit will have a more proper headband fit (this one is a little loose), and that ought to affect the sound a little since I’d expect the pads to seal better then. |
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