Sennheiser HD 700 Headphone – Black
Sennheiser HD 700 Headphone – Black
- Open, circumaural dynamic stereo headphones for maximum wearing comfort
- Outstanding soundstage with a warm and balanced audio reproduction
- Specially-tuned, highly efficient drivers capable of delivering high sound pressure levels and a flat frequency response
- Highly optimized ventilated magnet system minimizes air turbulence and harmonic, intermodulation distortion
- Open-back ear cups facilitate transparent sound while showcasing cutting-edge industrial design
If the HD 700 headphones were a music group, it would be equally gifted in every style. Whether classic, jazz or rock, it would have sound mastery of each genre. Regardless of what song it’s currently playing, its timbre is always warm and emotional. With its exceptional and unique range, reproduction of the lowest and highest tones that the human ear cannot consciously perceive is now achievable. This is a true maestro and an unforgettable listening experience suited for every musical taste.
List Price: $ 501.25
Price:
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Warmth and elegance characterize Sennheiser’s penultimate top of the line headphones,
Designed to fill the gap between the HD 650s and the flagship HD 800s, the new HD 700s essentially share the status of flagship top-of-the-line headphones with the 800s. The open 800s are superb dynamic headphones featuring spatial accuracy and unparalleled imaging. Their innovative design uses a large “ring radiator” driver that is positioned a bit forward of the ears and then angled slightly backwards so that they deliver a more planar wave front. That modified acoustic wave front is the source of the 800s improved imaging as it more closely mimics the way we actually perceive sound. Listening to orchestral music, for example, produces an often uncanny sound stage of depth and breadth that enables you to position each instrument with impressive accuracy as to spatial location. The timbre of each instrument is likewise accurately reproduced, making the 800s the headphone of choice for recording purposes if accuracy is the major criterion. But all of this spatial and acoustic accuracy comes with a price. Some listeners find the 800s to be overly accurate, too acoustically detailed, too “analytical” in its approach. There is a slight increase in frequency response at 7khz during the otherwise nearly perfect treble roll-off, which may be the source of that perceived aggressive accuracy which some have found fatiguing. My listening experience has not found them problematic but nearly perfect in their ability to reproduce any given recording. The 800s are well engineered for reproducing instrumental and vocal music recorded with “passive” techniques, that is without the added distortion, compression, coloring, bass or brightness of many current popular music recordings. Headphones like the Audeze LCD-2 with their potent bass and fast response may be more attuned to this variety of popular music.
The reaction of some to the 800s may be why the new HD 700s were created. They have a slightly warmer, more gemutlich (congenial) sonic approach. Their spatial imaging is nearly as well focused as the 800s but with an acoustic signature that sounds less analytical, more “analog” in comparison to the 800’s slightly more “digital” quality. What some perceive as the 800’s incrementally brighter treble seems to have been modified a bit, creating a more rounded and even plumper (in a good way) upper range. To my ears the HD 700s sound less aggressively realistic and more “relaxed” in reproducing treble. Their musical accuracy remains excellent. Listening to Mozart, for example, their sonic quality matches the elegance of the music note for note. Mozart’s transparent orchestration for the Piano Concerto No.17 is reproduced by the 700s with comparable transparency. The qualities that struck me while listening were their transparency, elegance and musical warmth. To my ears, they possess the best attributes of a cross between the older HD 600s, with their natural and relaxed presentation, and the HD 800s, with their superlative imaging and generous sound stage. My guess is that the slight rise in frequency response at 7 khz, found in the 800s, was significantly reduced while engineering the HD 700s.
The bottom line is that the HD 700s boast nearly the same spatial accuracy and imaging capability as the flagship HD 800s. With good source material the 700s create a palpable sense of true-to-life acoustic presence. Bass reproduction is crisp and punchy. Mid-range is vibrant and clear. Treble is crystalline and sharp without a hint of auditory fatigue after hours of very comfortable listening. These headphones are superbly musical. In my experience, only the much more expensive Audeze LCD-3’s approach them (amongst non-electrostatic headphones) in reproducing the richness and life of the musical spectrum. As with all of Sennheiser’s top of the line dynamic headphones, you’ll need a headphone amplifier in order to realize their full potential. Without an amp to drive them the 700s sound slightly anemic and generic. With an amp they seem to bloom like the desert after a rain storm, coming alive and adding a sense of urgency to the music. Even if you already own a pair of the 800s, you may still want to audition the 700s. Their “relaxed” upper range mitigates what a small minority of listeners have occasionally found tiring in the HD 800s: their relentlessly accurate and analytical acoustic approach. The HD 700s reproduce music with a natural, burnished warmth and non-aggressive clarity. Their substantially lower price than the 800s make them a bit more enticing when considering value. The Sennheiser HD 700s are a solid choice amongst many available options. They are not better headphones than the HD 800s, just different with an appealingly natural approach to music. The two models make an interesting complementary pair at the peak of Sennheiser’s price range. The HD 700s will definitely appeal to audiophiles.
[An addendum added July 1, 2012: Several weeks of further usage have yielded some additional…
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|More Forgiving for my tired ears…,
Which is good for me, frankly, because the treble on the HD800 would tire me out sometimes.
In the sound department, the bass is tighter, though still not anything close to ‘bass-head’ headphones. The soundstage is smaller, which I find better. It’s like being in the front row of a concert, instead of being on the actual stage, which is how I describe the HD800’s.
Build Quality:
The micro-fibre material is soft and luxurious. Sennheiser hasn’t said whether they’re using the same Japanese Alcantra fabric as the HD800’s, but it sure feels the same. The headphones weight in at 14.4 oz, which is heavy, but the light clamping pressure and fabric makes for a comfortable fit where I didn’t notice the weight. You could wear these for a long listening sessions without any discomfort.
These are not portable headphones. There is zero-noise isolation, which helps with the soundstage and openness of the headphones, but wouldn’t make you very popular on the commute. These are designed for the home-audio enthusiast.
Overall, if you want the highest quality headphones possible and liked the HD800’s, but balked at their price, these won’t disappoint. They also don’t require a perfect setup for them to excel. I used a cheap E7 Portable Amp and they sounded just fine.
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|[Revised] Either the HD700 or the HD800 ….,
[Pre-pendum]: I have had the headphones for a year now, and my high opinion has not changed as I have gotten to know them better. I have been wearing them four to five hours, five days a week, usually with the BeyerDynamic A1 as the amplifier.
I have had one problem: the headphone cord broke, developing its fault near the 1/4in phone plug. I received a return authorization from Sennheiser, and sent the cord to them. Perhaps they see it as a wear and tear item, but sadly I have had no reply including to my additional requests for information. I have not had problems with Sennheiser before, and they have reconditioned quite a few of my headphones over the past 15 years.
Fortunately, the cord that Sennheiser sells for their 477 and 497 headphones fits the HD700 just fine. As I mention in the review below, the connection to the headphone is usual sub-mini mono TS phone plug, so these are headphones that you should be able to make a cord for, of wire of your choice, in a length of your choice.
The case is holding up well: I pack the headphones in it five days a week as I head for work.
The ear pads and headband strap are in good shape, and they are easy to keep clean.
The sound seems as fresh and clear as it did the day they arrived. In the past year I have spent as many happy hours with this audio product, and I recommend them highly. They are probably the most satisfying part of the music reproduction chain that I have yet owned, although I hear that David Janszen’s new speakers are a work of art.
— Original Review Follows Unmodified —
My hope is that this review will complement the material in the other reviews, and not be simply another rehash of how great the sound is. Of course the sound is great; it lives up to expectations, and the headphones are worth the price if you listen to headphones several hours a day.
I had owned the HD650s since they came to market some time around 1996 or so. Mine have been refurbished twice, which gives you an idea of what they have been through, and how much I must have liked them. When the HD800s first became available, they went on my wish list. But this year the HD700s were announced at the same time “new headphones” worked their way to the top of the list because upcoming orthopaedic surgery meant I was going to have a lot of time in the recliner.
A friend loaned me his HD800s while he was out of town on a long trip. As a result, I was able to compare the sounds and ergonomics of Sennheiser’s papa, momma, and baby bear headphones over a period of several weeks.
One of the photos above shows the relative size of the earpieces of the three headphones. The HD800s are simply enormous. For whatever reason, I was never able to get them to stay in one place on my head, although at any one moment they were “comfortable.” Aside from its being a little annoying to continually reposition them (particularly following neck surgery), the sound of the HD800s changes slightly as the central axis of the driver moves away from being aligned with the ear canal. This “axial drift” does not cause a huge difference in sound quality, but one of the many reasons I have been a headphone enthusiast throughout my adult years is the complete control and consistency in the listening environment that headphones offer me.
The HD700s have a more traditional fit than the HD800s. The “cups” are a little roomier than the HD650s, and they are big enough that they do not touch my pinnae at all. I have been wearing them about four to six hours a day since their purchase, and have had no cases of listener fatigue or sweaty and itching ears. Likewise the padding on the headband is simply so rich and plush that it distributes the weight and pressure, such as there is of either, completely uniformly. The material in the headband compresses easily and bounces back immediately. Whatever it is, it works as well as one can possibly imagine.
The cord of the HD700s is a rather odd affair. The casing is a synthetic cloth that transmits no vibration or friction from accidental contact. On the other hand, a few weeks have passed and I am still getting the factory folds out of it. A solution that has finally worked is wrapping the cord around a foam ball, and letting the outward pressure of the ball smooth out the odd bends in the fabric.
If you just can’t get along with the cord, and I am nearing that point, replacing it will be simple and cheap. The connections between the headset and the cord are standard mono mini (1/8 inch) phone plugs. Hardly anything could be simpler than making a cord of whatever length is judged to be convenient, and placing these plugs on the business end. At long last there will be consumer choice. I am thinking about making mine with a red insulation jacket so I can easily find it.
— NOTE CORRECTED TEXT —
My iPod lives a rough…
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