Sennheiser HD 700 headphones: Not for the faint of heart

LAS VEGAS--Budget shoppers need not apply

Sennheiser announced today at CES 2012 a new pair of headphones, the HD 700,which are designed to please your ears at the expense of your bank account. At the price of around $1,000, they're not for everybody, obviously.

However, for those who can afford it, Sennheiser said the high-end headphones offer plenty of excitement.

For one, these are fully open dynamic stereo headphones that combine high-end sound with an innovative headphone design. The ear cups, for example, are designed so the sound waves are directed to the ears at a slight angle to offer a natural listening experience. The cups themselves also have an open design with a transparent sound band, which shows the "heart" of the headphones: the 40 mm Duofol transducer. This is a neodymium magnet system that guarantees detailed, lifelike audio reproduction from 10 to 42,000 Hz.

The new headphones come with a unique feature--the special shape of the gauze that continues the curved lines of the diaphragm. This curvature reduces the volume of air beneath the diaphragm, allowing for even more precise control of the diaphragm motion and helps significantly lower total harmonic distortion.

And there's more, the HD 700 come with a small innovation: a ventilated magnet system designed to archive the total harmonic distortion of less than 0.03 percent, making the HD 700 offer clear trebles, precise bass reproduction, and a crystal-clear sound. Dips in the bass level are also suppressed by the multilayer design of the headband.

Now if you audiophiles are sold and have the funds, the new HD 700 will be available for purchase in March of this year.