Superlux HD-330

widitruth

New Head-Fier
Pros: Price. Sound quality. Good bass. Separation. Clarity.
Cons: Appearance doesn't look expensive, but plastic. Mids could be improved a bit with detail (for female voice)
After burn in and use several weeks, this 330 shows their true nature. Good controlled but powerful bass. Good separation and clarity, not very wide soundstage than Sennheiser HD 800 but just enough for music. Mid is recessed a bit at first become better and I use equalizer to enhance female voice around 200 hz. Treble is harsh and has a metallic edge at first but after some time it settled to a very interesting treble. I like this type of treble. High and crisp like sounds of nature. I bought velour for HD668 and fit perfectly. Now this cheap and rugged thing become my favorite for any music. Would like to buy another from them or China.

zareliman

100+ Head-Fier
Pros: Very balanced sound signature, great build quality, nice clamp, sweetspot impedance and sensitivity for high and low power device
Cons: The stock pads are better suited for a demonic head torture device, non-removable coiled cable
First you unbox the thing and you find a plastic "case" (if anything is just like another box really) and the headphones are inside with a WARNING SIGN !
The warning just states High SPL for some reason and the specs are inside. Not sure why should I be so worried, the sensitivity is nothing out of this world.
I will just mention this headphones are 150 ohm which I consider a very good number because it's low enough to still be powered by a decent DAP (by decent I mean something like a Fiio X1) but high enough to work properly with a strong amplifier. The build quality is just like a DT770 with slightly lower quality headband, everything else looks as durable as the Beyers.

At first you try the headphones and they're unwearable because the stock pads probably were never meant for human ears on the first place. They ruin the sound because they crush your ears and they're don't allow the proper distance between driver and your ears for this particular headphone to sound good. Get some DT770/880/990 pads or HifiMan pads or any 10cm pads velour or pleather it doesn't really matter, just make sure the aperture and the depth are enough to fit your ears properly.
Another thing to keep in mind is the cable. I personally like this particular coiled cable, it's like long enough for a dap on your pocket, yet it will protect it from falling to the floor. However it's still a negative because it's non-removable, coiled/short should be always an option but not the stock.
 
Once the pads are ok everything turns to nonsense. You can confirm your new pads are working by pushing the headphones to your head, you will notice how the sound becomes garbage when they're too close, then let the pads restore the distance and enjoy. I don't know how this is possible but this headphones sound like a very flat and well balanced closed monitors on the highs and mids, but this doesn't come at the expense of lows, the bass is nowhere as anemic as the regular flat-ish headphones/speakers that start to rolloff at 70 Hz.
There's a lot of definition that doesn't come at the expense of soundstage, the since they're technically semi-open I would say they're around 6.5/10 open.
They don't really leak much sound but you can hear people talking to you and they definitively don't have the seashell/cavern resonance color of closed headphones.
I can't say much more about the sound than they're my new "reference" headphones, what I hear from them seems to be the truest to the source. They don't really shine in any category other than having a signature that doesn't really emphasize any particular frequency over the rest and having a good balance between soundstage and definition. They don't seem to have much problems with speed/decay but they're nothing amazing really, obviously you will need to spend more money to get headphones that are good in this category (because it requires more research/development).
 
Overall this headphones are my favorites under $100. I reckon the pads and the cable are a terrible downfall but once you get past that (they say the cable mod is very easy) this headphones are very enjoyable and useful for critical listening. If anything this headphones are my Jack of All Trades, Master of None, I could go portable, I could listen at home, I could monitor some tunes, they won't fail.

UPDATE: The pads you chose actually influence the sound and by a lot. The DT990 pads I'm using now remove some of the bass boomyness muddyness, the DT770 pads will increase it a little bit. There's more you can try with AKG pleather pads and others. So far the DT990 pads I like the best because they sound refined and the bass looses all the resonance and unwanted boomyness. You end up with bass so true you can even taste it.

audiophilefan

100+ Head-Fier
Pros: Masterful bass, forward mids with great body, exceptional high end sparkle, great imaging, depth and height, durability, very comfortable
Cons: Small wires protruding from the driver, plasticy pad cushions
BACKGROUND

I needed a pair of headphones for office use so I won’t need to bring my JVC HA-RX700 every day going to work. They take a lot of bag space and inconvenient to carry around when commuting. Secondly, I wanted to own a pair of open back headphones. Or at least semi-open ones. I read a lot about the sonic advantages of an open back and of course the isolation advantages of a closed headphone so owning a semi-open one looked like the best option since it may provide the best of both worlds – an open sound and some amount of isolation. Given the budget I’m willing to work with (less than $100), I had several options, including the venerable Shure SRH440 (not open but one of the options for portability) and one of the world’s best, a legend in the making, the Grado SR80e. All things considered, and more importantly, the price they sell for, I went with the Superlux HD330 as I felt they are the best value overall.


PACKAGING (Update)

The HD330 comes in a decent package that may look ordinary but feels very secure. What you get:

  1. The headphones
  2. 6.3mm screw-on adapter plug (attached to the headphones initially)
  3. A hard case for the headphones (quite large but does an exceptional job in protecting the headphones; the headphones themselves are in a bubble wrap for extra protection)
  4. An octagon-shaped quick-guide that describes the headphones (includes the specs for both the HD330 and HD660)
For the price point, I would say that the packaging looks rather professional, which is very good.

(Update) Here are some pictures:

IMG_20170227_074417.jpg IMG_20170227_074459.jpg IMG_20170227_074624.jpg IMG_20170227_074709.jpg IMG_20170227_075422.jpg


BUILD QUALITY AND COMFORT

I would say very decent. The headband is made of metal that is thick and feels durable as it doesn’t bend very easily. It holds the ear cups by screws (yes, actual screws). This gives them a feel of industrial ruggedness. The ear cups are all plastic but also the thick and durable type. If I have to nitpick regarding the build quality, it’s that the padding on the headband and the ear cups, though adequately thick and very comfortable, are covered with thin and plastic-feeling pleather. I imagine this lasting for quite some time for casual listening but if you intend to use this for professional purposes, it may just wear out easily. Glad to know that these are compatible with Beyerdynamic pads so they can be easily replaced with higher quality ones (like velour pads). Also, the small wires protruding from the drivers may need some extra care. If they get snatched, they can be severed rather easily and may need repair for the drivers to produce sound. Careful-to-normal handling is recommended. The coiled cable is thick and feels very durable with strong strain reliefs on both ends and terminates to a very shiny gold plated 3.5mm jack. It is also easily stretchable but I don’t imagine it stretching to 3 meters as the specs suggest. Maybe a little past 1.5 meters is as far as it will go.

The headphones are very comfortable. For a full-size set, you can easily forget that you have them on, even after hours of listening. Clamping force is just right to give a good seal but doesn’t press on the ears to cause discomfort. Due to the thick headband padding, you won’t really feel the weight over your head. Again, very durable and comfortable headphones.


SOUND

Burn-in: 150+ hours

Set-up used:
  1. Fiio X1 + Fiio E11k (w/ JDS Labs ultra-short interconnect)
  2. The X1’s Line Out (LO) for pure, uncolored sound (I feel that EQing doesn’t show the true character of the headphones)
  3. Mostly flac and 320kbps music files
Lows

Very authoritative. It is definitely enhanced. I would say it’s the maximum quantity of bass for “audiophile” before it crosses the “basshead” level. Anything more then it will be a basshead headphone. The bass, with all its abundance, is never the dominating factor. It nicely complements the rest of the spectrum. It gives more body to the mids and makes the highs really shine by providing a really good contrast of “top versus the bottom end” sonic perception.

For symphonic pieces (e.g. classical verses of symphonic metal bands like Epica and other classical pieces), basslines are really thunderous and alive! Bass notes are all very clear and easily distinguishable. And the bass gives music a very ambient feel (a sense of surround sound or concert hall effect as some might call it).

The quality of the bass is among the best I’ve ever heard. I auditioned an Ibasso DX80 + Chord Mojo + Hifiman HE-400i before and the bass from the HD330 is very close to that level. I imagine that if the HD330 is at the end of that set-up, it will be at that level (since the DX80 + Mojo combo are both darker/richer sources than what I have (X1 + E11k)). Based on what I’ve heard so far, it is at the mid-fi planar magnetic level.

Mids

Forward sounding and with great body. Guitars! My god, electric and acoustic guitars sounded as they should, with all their grunt, sexiness, and communicative emotion! The opening riff in the song Satellite by P.O.D sounds very exciting, almost captivating. Vocals are also forward and intimate but not so intimate that it’s in your face. I’d say it’s the perfect kind of intimate and always free of sibilance and “shoutiness”. It’s clean and natural. The rest of the mid-frequency instruments like piano, percussion, and other strings all sound very clear, and not recessed at all. The song Say Goodbye by Dave Matthews Band, with all its complex percussion and flute arrangements sounded very detailed and so much fun.

I would describe the mids as forward and aggressive but not the Grado type of aggression. It’s more akin to a Grado than anything else. But unlike a Grado, it’s more of a tamed aggression rather than ruthless aggression (I’ve auditioned the SR80e extensively). It gives the same level of engaging experience without the occasional sibilance and katana sharpness of Grado headphones. Don’t get me wrong. If budget is not an issue, I would still get an SR80e as a proud addition to my collection. It remains as one of the world’s best (price to performance wise). For the price they’re sold for though, the HD330 has one of the best mids I’ve ever heard.

Highs

The best among anything that I’ve heard. Like the bass, highs are enhanced on these headphones. But they are enhanced nicely. “Enhanced” is the perfect term to use, not “pronounced”. Highs are very detailed, textured, and natural. Cymbal crashes, decay, brushes, quick hits all sound very clear and natural and they never sounded fizzy. These headphones never lack in high end sparkle. It is actually the “sparkliest” headphones I have ever heard. The song You Could Be The One by Brian McKnight with its chime-laden opening sounded spine-tingling. Other songs laden with “bells” will give you the same sensation. High end sparkle is exceptional.

Presentation

Soundstage is not so wide. It would say it’s just right. About as wide as the SR80e and those too are intimate sounding headphones. Though I like a wide sounding headphone, I don’t want it to be abnormally wide as well. At this price point, the sense of depth and height you get from these headphones are more than decent. They are great. There is good space between instruments. Instrument placement or imaging within the soundstage is also very precise. In the song Sunday Bloody Sunday by U2, you clearly have a sonic picture of the drums at the back of the stage and the guitarists and vocalist at the fore front like watching them perform live. The presentation is either “in the venue of recording” or “front row”. The sonic picture is not having the musicians too far away but rather playing in an intimate live/recording venue. It is a very intimate and engaging music experience.


CONCLUSION

I am not sure why it is not ranked higher here in Head-fi or why reviews are not abundant about these headphones and if there are any, it’s mostly reviewed together with its close brothers, the HD440 and HD660. I just feel like it doesn’t give justice to how these headphones perform.

This kind of performance is what makes other audiophiles, beginners or otherwise, not go beyond a certain price point any longer. In my case, this $43 headphone had given me as much sound quality, excitement, and enjoyment as other headphones I have ever tried and auditioned up to the $500 range.

To be fair with this review, I have not tested this with other equipment other than the set-up described above and some occasional laptop listening (direct from Headphone Out w/ Foobar2000, flat EQ). Other headphones may scale more preferably, especially for professional/studio use. Nonetheless, the results are always the same. You do not need to EQ these headphones. They sound as exciting and as fun as a default sound a headphone can give. I did not even note a big difference with the sound out of the box vs the 150-hours burn in mark, aside from the bass being a touch tighter and the mids opening up more.

With this in mind, this might very well be my last review here in Head-Fi (or at least my last review for a very long time). In my quest for audio nirvana, I realized that audio nirvana is a state-of-mind, and not a state-of-equipment. Once you become an audiophile, you actually lose your audio nirvana since you forget to enjoy your music more than you enjoy the sound of your equipment. If a simple audio set-up (like what I have now) brings you back to that same sense of enjoyment, that sense of being one with your music, then you’ve once again regained your audio nirvana. I’ve come to realize that there is no “best at xxx price point” or “best beginner headphones”. There are only the worst, the average, the above average, and the best headphones around. And the Superlux HD330, in my honest and humble opinion, are worthy to be tagged among the best in the headphones world.

See you around audio masters! I’ll always be a fan of your knowledge and expertise (thus “audiophilefan”)! Until my next review (in a long time to come)!

Happy listening everyone!
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Senabuna
Senabuna
Hi there, I know this review is about 4 years in existence but I'm interested to know how they hold up until now, could you perhaps share about it? Thank you.
L
LikeHolborn
nothing like full sound, engaging, deep imaging (instruments a background to vocals), a neutral complementing type bass, non sibilant (notice the Ss) to make a perfect headphone, this one is just decent if not on a plain correct/right fr

benjisun

New Head-Fier
Pros: Compatibility with Beyer parts
Cons: stock cable short for home use, stock pads average
I already wrote a review about this one here
 
http://ftwaudio.wordpress.com/2013/01/07/superlux-hd330-review-and-mod/
http://ftwaudio.wordpress.com/2013/03/15/stock-hd330-vs-ftw-modded-hd330/
 
I own it since november 2012 and I've to say that this headphones are really good for the price.
The sound signature is warm and the bass have a good presence but is still precise.
Medium frequencies are forward and nice to listen to. the treble is a little bit recessed but still present.
The soundstage is average but not the best in the open headphones crew but imaging is not bad (panoramics) 
I think its well suited for pop music, rock, punk styles ...
 
I modded it with a custom cable and Beyer DT770 velour pads wich make it very confortable to wear. 
I would recommend it to anyone who want to try an open headphone its a very good start for this price
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kidcharlemagne
kidcharlemagne
Thanks for the review benjisun; ive been eyeing these over the past week and reading up on them but havent gotten around to pulling the trigger yet :xf_eek:. Did you notice any changes in sound after switching to velour pads?
HyeVltg3
HyeVltg3
Great review so odd to only see one for such great headphones.
 
Do you know if the Beyer DT990 velour pads would fit this? in my region, that would cost me a $48+S&H--mistake if they dont fit.
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