holderlin
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jun 30, 2001
- Posts
- 46
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- 10
I didn't know exactly where to put this because it discusses both headphones and headphone amps.
I received my order from Headroom yesterday and today had my first audition of the Cosmic and the Sennheiser 600. I can't believe that I haven't listened more to headphones! It's a unique and enthralling experience. When listening to Susan Graham sing "Le Roi de Thule" from Berlioz's La Damnation de Faust, I for the first time in my life had the sense that she and the orchestra were playing in a concert hall for me alone. It was a magical moment.
I compared the Senns with my Grado 125 by listening to "Melodien" on the new Gyorgy Ligeti disc on Teldec (a chamber orchestra piece with solo and small ensemble moments throughout).
Equipment is: the Cosmic amp, Musical Fidelity A220 integrated amp, and Arcam Alpha 5 cdp. Here are my initial (very subjective) impressions.
To listen to the Grados I had the amp turned to between 9:00 and 10:00. To listen to the Senns at an equivalent volume I turned it to 1:00. Comparing the Senn 600 and Grado 125 I was at first disappointed by the Senn's lack of presence. It seemed to miss much of the dynamism (oomph) of the music -- in part I attributed this to a loss of lows. The Grados filled my whole head with sound, whereas the Senns kept the music at a slight distance.
I soon discovered, however, that what I heard as a loss of presence in the Senns was more likely a loss of color. Whereas the Grados coat the various instruments with a smooth, uniform bath of color or darkness the Senns etch out a silence between the instruments. This makes the instruments sound much more distinct and more visually placed on the stage. The Grados tend to substitute clarity for more dynamic power -- this makes instrumental attacks more exciting but separate, overlapping instrumental sounds seem to get lost and it's easier to lose track of individual instrument lines with the Grados.
The Senns are very laid back (perhaps too much, given the loss of instrumental attack). They are not necessarily bright (and certainly not harsh), but I don't get a real strong sense for the lows -- they're there; they just don't draw attention to themselves.
In the end, I like the Senn's detail but I wish the sound was more snappy, less relaxed. I haven't steadily listened to the Senns for an extended period of time, so perhaps the more laid back sound will be less fatiguing in the long run. Anyone have opinions on this?
It's too early for me to make any conclusive decisions regarding my purchase. The Cosmic is the only headphone amp I've listened to and I don't have immediate access to others. There are some things in the Grados that I miss in the Senns but overall I prefer the Senn's detail.
Do people think other headphones or a different headphone amp might be worth trying given my comments? How would the MD Head compare to the Cosmic? I'd like to keep the headphone amp price below $500.
Thanks for any assistance,
Bob
I received my order from Headroom yesterday and today had my first audition of the Cosmic and the Sennheiser 600. I can't believe that I haven't listened more to headphones! It's a unique and enthralling experience. When listening to Susan Graham sing "Le Roi de Thule" from Berlioz's La Damnation de Faust, I for the first time in my life had the sense that she and the orchestra were playing in a concert hall for me alone. It was a magical moment.
I compared the Senns with my Grado 125 by listening to "Melodien" on the new Gyorgy Ligeti disc on Teldec (a chamber orchestra piece with solo and small ensemble moments throughout).
Equipment is: the Cosmic amp, Musical Fidelity A220 integrated amp, and Arcam Alpha 5 cdp. Here are my initial (very subjective) impressions.
To listen to the Grados I had the amp turned to between 9:00 and 10:00. To listen to the Senns at an equivalent volume I turned it to 1:00. Comparing the Senn 600 and Grado 125 I was at first disappointed by the Senn's lack of presence. It seemed to miss much of the dynamism (oomph) of the music -- in part I attributed this to a loss of lows. The Grados filled my whole head with sound, whereas the Senns kept the music at a slight distance.
I soon discovered, however, that what I heard as a loss of presence in the Senns was more likely a loss of color. Whereas the Grados coat the various instruments with a smooth, uniform bath of color or darkness the Senns etch out a silence between the instruments. This makes the instruments sound much more distinct and more visually placed on the stage. The Grados tend to substitute clarity for more dynamic power -- this makes instrumental attacks more exciting but separate, overlapping instrumental sounds seem to get lost and it's easier to lose track of individual instrument lines with the Grados.
The Senns are very laid back (perhaps too much, given the loss of instrumental attack). They are not necessarily bright (and certainly not harsh), but I don't get a real strong sense for the lows -- they're there; they just don't draw attention to themselves.
In the end, I like the Senn's detail but I wish the sound was more snappy, less relaxed. I haven't steadily listened to the Senns for an extended period of time, so perhaps the more laid back sound will be less fatiguing in the long run. Anyone have opinions on this?
It's too early for me to make any conclusive decisions regarding my purchase. The Cosmic is the only headphone amp I've listened to and I don't have immediate access to others. There are some things in the Grados that I miss in the Senns but overall I prefer the Senn's detail.
Do people think other headphones or a different headphone amp might be worth trying given my comments? How would the MD Head compare to the Cosmic? I'd like to keep the headphone amp price below $500.
Thanks for any assistance,
Bob