Sennheiser HD598 Headphones Evaluation Report

HD598 earphone is a heavy product released by Sennheiser in 2010. We are no stranger to the appearance of this product, because in 2010, the digital more just started to evaluate several headphones such as HD650 and K701. The official website of Sennheiser can often see the HD598. Because of its design style, it has changed the traditional image of Sennheiser's dark color. It is easy to give a good first impression. Currently, in Senhai In the official positioning classification of the Searle, HD650 and HD598 are in the same high-end series, positioning high-quality music appreciation. In this series, HD598 price is only lower than HD650, official HD598 price is 2569 yuan [HD650 is 2969 yuan], but parallel channel The price is generally around 1400-1700 yuan.

HD598 can occupy the Sennheiser official website in 2010 for a long-term large-format, which shows that Sennheiser pays attention to this product, and HD598 itself is indeed worth showing off, when you see this appearance in the photo. When it comes to its price and product positioning, it is "high-end atmosphere grade" in today's popular words, and there is no derogatory here.

HD598 is very rare in Sennheiser high-end headphones. It uses soft beige as the main color. The texture of plastic material is softer than in the photo. There is a circle of similar high-grade wood decoration on the outside of the earmuff [plastic material] [both ends There are also the same material decoration], although it is not solid wood material, but the brown delicate and soft transparent texture makes it obviously much more beautiful than the traditional shape. If you like a car friend, you may think that this style is more like some very famous cars. The design [although the car is not necessarily all real wood]. The ear cushion of the HD598 is wrapped with flannel. The texture is similar to that of the HD650, but the thickness of the ear pad is relatively thicker. Its color is consistent with the brown of the imitation wood decoration. However, due to the reflective characteristics of this material, the photo is brighter and more beautiful than the real thing. In fact, the overall style of HD598 is obviously more solemn and restrained.

The inner side of the HD598 headstock is covered with a creamy white leather material. The color style is the same as that of the beige outer casing. Its head width is slightly wider than the HD650, and the overall size is slightly larger than the HD650. It is also relatively loose when worn. Comfort is good in all-in-the-ear headphones.

The HD598 all-inclusive ear size unit looks almost the same size as the HD650. There is no official parameter for the speaker unit. The HD598 uses an open design with single-sided wire access and impedance of 50 ohms [HD650 300 ohms]. The total harmonic distortion is less than 0.1% [at 1 kHz, 100 dB SPL, the HD650 is 0.05% for this parameter and the HD800 is 0.02% for the parameter.) On the Chinese official website, the HD598 is marked with the "No Front End" instructions. It means that this is a relatively easy to drive headset. It has been used by many users or publicity that HD598 is a "out of the street" available headset... There is really nothing wrong with going out, but the standard 6.3mm The plug seems to be a hassle with a portable player [with adapter to 3.5mm].

Although the HD598 parallel price is not high, but we use the same formal channel price as a reference, HD598 is only 300 yuan lower than the 2969 yuan HD650, although the HD598 looks better, but still not everyone can imagine to enter The products of the street fashion line [it seems that Sennheiser's Momentum released in 2013 is this route]. The light color appearance of HD598 still maintains the professional, serious and restrained professional image of Sennheiser, beige and mahogany. The color match is not more youthful, but more solemn. So in general, HD598 is still a high-end earphone that is positioned for music appreciation. As the official introduction, "do not pick the front end" has become its comparison in similar products. A prominent feature. And is it not the case?

This HD598 earphone is provided by the netizenader. Although this earphone has been used for a long time before coming to us, in order to ensure the test conditions are as consistent as possible, we still have 24 hours of uninterrupted time on this headset for more than 20 days. Thanks again, the netizens gave us enough time to complete today's evaluation. In order to verify the "no front end" feature, we chose some of our popular portable audio sources, including vivo Xplay, iPod Classic, iPhone 5 and Colorful. C4 Pro. Of course, in addition to portable audio sources, we will also refer to the integrated sound card output of the Macbook Pro.

In the test, we still use the combination of Lezhi MD11 decoder and HP11 amp, using Fantasia D/A decoder, Serenade HP amp, and Lehman amp and other commonly used equipment. The contrast headphones are mainly Senhai. Searle HD650 for reference, Sennheiser HD580 [early version] and AKG K240 MKII, K702 and other headphones as an auxiliary reference.

Sennheiser Sennheiser HD598 Headset - Comparison with Sennheiser HD650 Headphones

Is it the front end? The "front end" is a common saying among enthusiasts. In the earphone system, it can be used as a wide range of audio sources, amps, etc. The phrase "do not pick the front end" is generally considered to be significantly better for portable audio sources and sound cards. Output and other applications. Indeed, there is no good headphone amplifier like K701, HD650, SHP9000, etc. is not good enough.

HD598 impedance is 50 ohms. From the perspective of the sound source platform we used in the above test, it is really easier to drive than the HD650. On the iPod Classic, Xplay or iPhone 5, it can also achieve good enough dynamics. It sounds big enough, and even has some surplus. But the sound style of HD598 determines that it is a particularly sensitive earphone under different front ends. Its sound is loose on the portable sound source, and even the middle and high frequency parts have been There is a tendency to be too loose. In the iPod Classic, Xplay or C4 Pro, the difference between HD598 will be more obvious, the better the driving force, the sound will be more compact. Maybe on the iPhone or the B152F player lower than the iPhone. On the top, I feel that the HD598 is still a type of low-frequency slack, the sound is relatively wide, and the mid-range is full. The C4 Pro has already converge so much that the intermediate frequency will be slightly thin.

Interestingly, when the HD598 is switched to a sound card, decoder or amp platform, the difference in sound becomes less obvious. For example, adjusting the gain and feedback parameters of the HP11 headphone amplifier, although there are differences, However, the difference is much smaller than that of many headphones. Of course, under the sound of the decoder + amp, the performance of HD598 will still be significantly better than the portable audio source. We still use the test of MD11+HP11 amp as the main reference platform, HP11 Set the same in HD650 [Gain=5, Feedback=3; also reduce the feedback to 1], the impact of different parameters on the sound is discussed below. The difference between different sources is also specified below.

High-frequency performance: The overall sound style of HD598 is very similar to that of HD650. The sound is neutral and stable. The overall sound shape is tight. The general evaluation is that the sound field of HD598 is more open than the HD650, and the high frequency is more stretched. Is this not the case? Reason, but we think that the high frequency of HD598 is the biggest "variable" of this earphone, and it is also the biggest problem.

If you listen to HD598 on iPhone or regular MP3, you will not get the conclusion that it is similar to HD650. At this time, its sound is not as compact as HD650, but it shows a "very soft" form. In high frequency, HD598 in the iPhone, B152F and even Xplay, are relatively loose style, and will be a lot more compact on the C4 Pro, it will be more light under HP11, but the sound density and dynamic changes are not small.

The higher the frequency of the HD598 is, the more rough it is on the "lower level" [relatively speaking] sound source. This sounds like a slack sound. The high frequency of the sound field is completely out of one level compared with the AKG K701 and even the K240 series. Its The resolving power is better, but it can only appear to have some "high-end" level when the volume is very small, and the dynamic is slightly larger, the high frequency is completely loose, and this kind of looseness is unscrupulous. In terms of its high-frequency details, the whole sound can be described as rough compared to the HD650, K701 and other headphones. Perhaps some users with less experience will not accept the "rough" argument, indeed, this The sound of the donkey is not sharp and not harsh. It is very advanced "rough", but the whole high frequency that is rarely encountered is "rough". If you have an HD598 in your hand, there is also an HD650, no matter where What kind of sound source contrast, you can understand what is called "clean" sound!

Overall, the high frequency of the HD598 is out of control. At least we have not found a suitable front end to be able to wait for its high frequency. This kind of loss of control makes the HD598's high frequency look "dirty" in most cases. This is very delicate. The burr is very annoying. It not only makes the high frequency almost lose most of the texture in the details, but also greatly affects the density of the sound. Of course, if the HD598 encounters a big dynamic, then the high frequency can't wait like a low frequency...

We also suspect that the HD598 has been "pushed" over the integrated sound card such as the amp or even the Macbook. Unfortunately, on the C4 Pro or other portable audio sources, its sound will be looser and the sound will be "dirty". The trend is only adding a layer of ambiguity to the sensation of hairiness.

The high-frequency performance of the HD598 is extremely disappointing. This high-frequency quality can't be compared with the similarly positioned HD650-class headphones. Even compared with the 200-300 yuan-level headphones, although the resolution is slightly superior, the overall The sense of hearing is also worse than headphones like Aurvana Live!

IF performance: HD598's mid-range is not as thick as the HD650, so tight, especially in the portable audio source, the IF is more soft and full, and the vocal performance shows a relatively delicate style. But this kind of fine control over the details, It's still very difficult to be satisfied. Compared with the HD650, HD598 is of course much easier to drive on portable audio sources. Since the distortion of the intermediate frequency is obviously much smaller than the high frequency, HD598 shows in some fast-paced and big dynamic pop music. A very young and dynamic atmosphere. In popular music, ordinary vocals and other music, the soft style is more pleasing than the HD650.

However, on the sound source that is more powerful than the C4 Pro [including notebook integrated sound card], the HD598's intermediate frequency will be significantly more compact, but the intermediate frequency will appear lighter, and some even have no taste like Sennheiser. In HP11 Under the HD598, the intermediate frequency will be much cleaner, the overall dynamic performance is normal, but the transient details are relatively good. The medium and high frequency is slightly softer than the HD650. When listening to some recording quality, the warmer small compiler music content, HD598 shows Some sounds close to the HD650 level. At this time, the sound of HD598 does not appear loose, but some are floating, lack of dynamics. Even under HP11, set to "heavy taste" parameters, HD598 is basically indifferent.

This basically determines that the HD598 is indeed a loose sound style. Increasing the control of the front end will make it sound compact and clean, but the dynamic performance improvement of the headphones is extremely limited. In the high frequency part, the big dynamic distortion is unforgettable. In the middle frequency part, the dynamic performance is not good, the sound is slightly floating, lack of thickness. Of course, if used to listen to some slow rhythm, small compiled vocals, light music, this lazy style, or a detailed list of styles [ Adding the amp is this style], showing that it really has a more delicate side than the 200-plus headphone.

Low-frequency performance: The HD598's low-frequency style is somewhat similar to that of the HD650. In the portable audio source, the HD650's heavy low-frequency is not displayed. Therefore, the volume is somewhat close. However, the HD598's mid-low frequency is softer, and the HD650 sounds. Still slightly blunt. In some popular music, electronic music and other performances, HD598's low-frequency atmosphere is relatively better, but the performance of HD650 is not bad.

Under the HP11 or sound card source, the HD598's low frequency has obvious convergence, although it still relaxes more than the HD650 in the middle and low frequency parts, but the low frequency dive and volume sense is not as good as the HD650. The overall resolution is obviously not as good as the HD650. HD598 low frequency problem Similar to its IF problem, the mid-low frequency is loose because of the loose sound. Once again, the loose details of the details are loose. If it can be called "dirty" at high frequencies, then the low frequency is a bit of a paste. HD598's low frequency. It is also more difficult to control than the intermediate frequency. There is no strength in the big dynamics. Although the sound of the smashing is not too bad, it is far worse than the HD650 headphones.

Performance under different sound sources: In fact, in the above text, we have interspersed the problems and performances of HD598 under different audio sources. In fact, in the previous similar headphone evaluation, we rarely do this. The reason is very simple. HD598 does not perform well enough. Different sources have a greater impact on it. But overall, because HD598 overall performance is poor... It seems that there is no need to choose any good matching source.

In summary, the lack of control power on the portable audio source, HD598 does show a louder sound than the HD650, slightly better dynamic, more relaxed and relaxed style, vocal performance is also soft, but the sound details are poor The high-frequency level is poor. If compared with the HD650, even if the HD650 is not good with the B152F, it is not recommended to choose the HD598, which is a rough and irritating sound.

On the headphone amplifier, the stronger driving force does not bring about significantly better dynamics, sound density, and the lifting is relatively limited, while the soft and soft style is basically no longer present even on the C4 Pro or integrated sound card. The advantages of the PC HiFi platform are not in the amp, but the level of the sound source is greatly improved, for example, using the MD11 decoder. And we have not encountered a satisfactory amp for the HD598. Its high frequency problem lies in This platform is even magnified, the sound is no longer so loose, but it is so hairy, this is not a simple grainy, glitch problem.

In 2010, Sennheiser introduced the HD598 as a key product. Although its appearance is more beautiful than that of the dark color, the design details are obviously used, but we think its positioning is not too much compared with the traditional HD650 and other products. Big difference. No one will see HD598 feel that it is fashionable and young? The price of HD598 is only slightly lower than that of HD650. The positioning of the HD598 is similar. The HD598 is more like a low-impedance and easy-to-drive high-end earphone. Think it is HD650 low resistance version can not be overemphasized.

However, its sound performance is disappointing. HD598 is almost only at a small volume, very small, very soft music to show its advantage over a few hundred dollars in the resolution of headphones.