sennheiser

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Sennheiser's awesome--and rather expensive--HD 800 headphones

If you're someone doesn't like to pay more than $50 for a pair of headphones, look away, now. If you're someone who doesn't mind throwing down $300 for a pair of cans, you should probably look away, too. But if you've got $1,400 to burn on a sweet pair of headphones, read on because that's what Sennheiser's new HD 800 will retail for when they come out in February.

What do you get for $1,400? Well, for starters, the newly designed earcups are finished in Japanese Alcantara, which is a special … Read more

Can $2,000 buy bona fide high-end audio?

You have two grand to spend on a fantastic stereo system. Can your cash get you there? Yes, it can!

In this case, we're talking about a headphone-based system, but I will in the coming months cover speaker-based audiophile-grade systems for less than $3,000.

For the headphone system, I'm recommending the Woo Audio WA6 Special Edition vacuum tube headphone amplifier ($1,050) I reviewed in yesterday's blog, along with Grado RS-1 headphones ($695), and Oppo's DV-981HD SACD/DVD-Audio player ($229). All prices are manufacturer's suggested retail price.

Mind you, the Woo and Grado are … Read more

Feed your head: Listening to the world's best headphones

As we all know high-end speakers are really expensive, some cost as much as a nice car. But high-end headphones, even the very best ones are within reach of anybody who loves great sound.

A while back I tested three of the top contenders for Home Entertainment magazine: AKG's K 701, Grado's RS-1, and Sennheiser's HD 650. Each is, in its own way, remarkable. You can read the complete review here.

The AKG K 701 is a very large over-the ear headphone. Its remarkably open sound will be hugely appealing for those of you who use headphones while watching DVDs. I find the K 701 produces a less in your head, more speaker-like sound than the Grado or Sennheiser. As big as they are, the K 701's creamy soft ear pads are so darn comfy it is easy to forget I'm wearing headphones. No wonder some headphone addicts lauded the K 701 as the best there is. The K 701 will continue, but the K 702 will debut in August.… Read more

My headphones are better than yours

Koss has a bad reputation for manufacturing terrible audio products, but it struck gold back in 1984 with one set of headphones, the PORTAPROS. They're still being produced with continued success after 23 years and are, in my opinion, the most underrated headphones on the market, and here's why:

Price: $35 with free shipping on Amazon. Maybe less on eBay. Sound quality: Best sound I've heard out of sub-$200 cans. Instead of telling you how awesome these are, I'll let these 249 people do the work for me:

CNET Review (Review on its way, but … Read more

High-end headphone mania hits New York

On Sunday, I went to a meet organized by Head-Fi, a national headphone club.

The vibe at the Bayside, New York, event was relaxed as I sampled the mind-expanding sounds of Grado, Sennheiser, AKG, and Stax headphones, driven by awesome headphone amplifiers, some of which were commercial products. Some were one-offs, built by their proud owners.

A few of the amps were portables, and the standout was the superslim MiniBox D ($79) from Head-Direct. This little thing pumps up the power of iPods with amazing gusto, and while listening to Head-Direct's Yuin PK2 earbuds ($79), the sound was remarkably … Read more

Mike placement for rock band recording

Last week I had the opportunity to watch an experienced producer do the initial miking to record a traditional rock band in a more-or-less live setting--two guitars, bass, and drums, recorded simultaneously. (Vocals are almost always overdubbed later, even in this kind of set-up. This band was also adding keyboards later.) I've been on the other side many times as a bass player, but this is the first time the producer asked me for my opinions, then explained why he was placing the mikes where he was.

Now, entire books could be (and have been) filled with advice on … Read more

Ears-on with Sennheiser's CX 400 earphones

Our good friends at Sennheiser gave us a one-to-one demo of the company's new additions to the CX range of earphones yesterday. Our pick of the bunch, which we'll be reviewing shortly, were the CX 400s--a pair of sound-isolating earphones to succeed the impressive CX 300s.

The 400s are pitched with the promise of a balanced sound and convenient features such as a symmetrical earphone cable, detachable extensions, an included carry pouch and various sizes of isolating tips. For 50 pounds (about $101) there's a pleasant bit of kit on offer. But is it worth 50 … Read more

Hands-on with Sennheiser PXC 350 headphones

Cast those brains back to July. Do you remember the PXC 450 noise-canceling headphones from Sennheiser? They were the terrific 'phones that ended up scoring an impressive 8.7 in our tests. Today we're going to give you the lowdown on the brand new PXC 350s--a version of the 450s, but more affordable (about $618 vs. $473).

These new cans are cheaper for a reason: the "Talk-Thru" functionality has been vanquished, removed and incinerated. Talk-Thru is a feature of the 450s that lets you automatically take the volume down by pressing a button on the side of … Read more