[Slazyel]

Hi guys, i know they are two completely different headphones, but, the two are with reduced prices where i live and i need to decide which one to buy. Which one would you say it's a better deal for the price right now? My mainly uses, if this helps, are going to be gaming and listening to Rock/Metal songs.

Hifiman Ananda for $508 (no warranty)

Sennheiser HD 800S for $1258 (2 year warranty)

 

[gimmeheadroom]

800S for rock and metal is not going to be a good match. I have not heard the Ananda.

 

[Old Dirty Puppy]

I haven't heard the Ananda but would probably pick a good HifiMan planner over the HD800S. Unless you EQ the hell out of the HD800S, you will probably not like them for your musical taste. The have a pretty weak low end so things like bass drums, low toms, and bass guitar are going to suffer. Also the HD800S are pretty bright, so the high ping in some drum cymbals will annoy you. If you can I would really listen to an HD800S before you buy and make sure you like that sound signature. But if FPS competitive gaming is your main interest the HD800S might be the better choice because of their great soundstage and imaging.

 

[sebek]

I bought Ananda about 20 days ago and I listen to a lot of Rock and Extreme Metal.

It's a great headphone and for me it works perfectly with Metal. Fast, clear, detailed, great soundstage, not tiring.

Arguably the 800S can offer even more in terms of clarity and soundstage, but it may have less impact and be more tiring to listen to without EQ.

PS. If you want an Ananda under warranty paying just a little more you can contact Hifiman directly, they have open boxes that are practically new - customer service told me they are boxes only opened by customs for checks - at great price.

I paid my € 550, with shipping and 1 year warranty.

 

[MSA1133]

You’d definitely want a warranty with a Hifiman. My Anandas came with a bad drivers imbalance. And congratulations on your purchase!

 

[Deolum]

Out of all Hifiman models i held in the hand the Ananda was the one i would be the most confident with buying it used without warranty.

 

[hxs80]

Having the hd800 with the sdr mod which is supposedly very close to the hd800s, I would also go with the planars.

You are going to miss the body and thump required for rock if you go with the hd800s. Yes, you can eq but it's not the same in my opinion.

 

[tomb]

HD800s is the better buy. You'll have a decent re-sale value if you decide to sell it, not so with HiFiMan. Read between the lines in the posts above: no warranty, definitely want a warranty, most confident buying it used without a warranty [only the Ananda from HiFiMan], Anandas came with a driver imbalance, etc., etc.

Ever heard all of this stuff about a Sennheiser? That's why a Senn is a better investment and re-sale value.

With the right amplifier, the Sennheiser can rock with the best of them. Despite the negatives you hear about the sound, it's still the MOST prevalent top-of-the-line headphone in the market, most sales, most owners, most seen at meets (when's the last time we had one of those?), etc., etc. The supposedly weak bass on the Sennheiser is a symptom of the amplifier. It's also the most ridiculously easy headphone to equalize. Finally, it has one of the finest soundstages available. That's something that can't be modded or equalized into any headphone that doesn't have it inherently through the fundamental design.