Sennheiser HD 599 Special Edition Wired, Over The Ear Audiophile Headphones with E.A.R. Technology for Wide Sound Field, Open-Back Earcups, Detachable Cable (Black) Without Mic

Well after falling in all the hype about combining a capable enough dsp dac amp with an open back headphone a person is propelled into a world of blissful surround sounds i decided to try this hands down once and for all.After about half an hour of burning the headphones in with some 24bit Flac songs i went ahead to test it.Played multiple songs and movies via the Walkman , X3 amp , Note 9 phone.First impressions:Build : The build quality is excellent, it's all plastic that seems like it is made to last and keep it light for comfort. The mechanism also feels reliable.So 5/5Comfort:Very good , not fatigued after 1 hour , No unwarranted peaks in any frequencies.Its winters here in the north so it also doubled up as a scarf insulating my ears from the peircing cold.Sound isolation:Well what would one expect from an open back , it's terrible.But it is what it is.You have to be alone and in a quite environment to listen to these.Sound will leak both ways.Package contents:Well the box that comes with it is unimpressive, it is a waste like soft cardboard box which is labeled as "frustration free" packaging, it's all nonsense.If it was a good quality box one would use it to keep the headphones after use safely,and won't throw it away.No i will have to purchase a headphone case adding more to the environmental damage.You get two cables one being a 6mm and one 3.5mm with a 6mm to3.5mm converter plug.Sennheiser took good care in that area.Sound :Well i come from using the following in order of magnitudeMost vintage models of Sony tape walkman headphones and earphonesMdr xb 60exMdr xb500Mdr xb 90exMdr xb 75ap ( Skull rattler )Mdr ex220Asus rog headsetXba H3 ( My personal favorite in all areas )Shure se 846 ( Skull breaker , My almost perfect set but gets beaten in High frequency department)As you can see there is only two over the ear headphones.Now i have always been disappointed by the music of over the head headphones due to lack of proper Isolation and driver limitations.Being my first open back This HD559 is no different to closed back in music department.Music coming out of it is unimpressive , you get almost no proper bass rumbles in the tracks that have them but maybe it's my fault.(more on that later).The soundstage although quite good does not impress you enough to warrant the sacrifice in sound isolation and lower frequencies.Sometimes some songs get tinny and empty, sometimes they come out good but never great.Apart from that i maybe wrong with my eqs and settings i will update after a week of listening.Movies : WTFThis has blown all my in ear headphones far away , nothing comes close to the immersive theater like experience while pairing it with the X3 amp and switching on the xfi.You are instantly placed in a premium position of a proper dts tuned theater seat.All the action is all around you and dialog of the actors are clear and crisp even during intense explosions and gunfire.Things are properly imaged bodies dropping to the ground , bullets whirring past you thunders in the sky everything is represented perfectly.Imaging is more vertical than horizontal.Now the bass : While the music had no bass on it , on movies while on xfi turned on the bass reaches skull rattling levels without getting distorted or overlapping any other frequencies.It is unreal and brings a huge smile on your face and the only reason i did not return these back.The explosions shake you bullets fired seem real , thunders are near to being real.For movies this is the ultimate solution for me the END GAME so to say.Haven't tested it yet on games but have heard quite a praise for them in that regard.Conclusion:These mysterious headphones struggle to pump up the proper bass notes on music but will pummel your head in movies.Maybe i am doing something wrong on my amp but i have tried to bring it on the music by various ways.The world shattering bass is there waiting to be unleashed but with mysterious ways.The mids are perfect for both Male and females all the frequencies are present and quite powerful.The highs are a bit laid back and roll off at the highest levels quite quickly , whenever you will need them desperately they will bail out on you.But overall they are fine.Is it worth the money ?.For movies absolutely. 100%For music MaybeFor games , haven't tested yet but i am confident they will excel in that department.Very good product.Highly satisfied.

I have owned several sennheiser headphones and IEMs, including open back headphones like HD238 and HD560s, i can clearly say that these HD599 SE are better than both of them in terms of mids performance. Listening to vocals on these is an absolute treat. Although these do fall behind HD560s in terms of overall soundstage and instrument separation, but they are still far more enjoyable than the reference grade HD560s because of their mids emphasised sound profile unlike the relatively neutral profile of the HD560s.HD599SE pros:- warm and smooth mids(vocals)- nice sound imaging- sennheiser natural timber- decent and clear treble- can be easily driven by my iphone12- awesome comfortHD599SE cons:- bass rolls off a bit too much- lower mids region feels blending with bass at times- build quality could have been betterOverall its a great value headphone with true sennheiser sound.

Short version: If you're looking for a headphone with amazing comfort that never gets hard to listen to no matter what song you play through them, get these. These are a treat for your ears.Now for the detailed point-by-point review:Aesthetic - I thought these would look cheap because of the all plastic build, but boy was I wrong. These absolutely look better in person than in the photos. Their profile is sleek and elegant, with just enough silver highlights to spice up the matte black colorway. However, I do miss the burled accents and more subtle styling on the older HD598SE a little bit.Build - Extremely lightweight and fairly plasticky, but sturdy enough to handle long-term use. The leatherette headband feels plush and luxurious. The earpads will wear out over time and need replacing, but that is the nature of soft earpads. Try not to drop these or shove them in a backpack - these are NOT meant to be handled roughly, and are for home listening only. The 1m cable provided is a little thin and flimsy compared to the HD598SE but still feels durable enough.Comfort - Simply amazing. There is almost no clamp force, the earcups are extremely roomy, and once the pads soften up you can easily forget they're on your head when you're not luxuriating in how pillowy they are. My mom nearly fell asleep listening to some ghazals on these.Isolation - Zero. These are open-back headphones and were not designed to block out sounds from the outside world. Conversely, everyone else will be able to hear whatever you're listening to if they're close enough.Sound quality - In a word, blissful. These headphones were made, above all things, for comfort listening. The sound signature is extremely warm, with a slight bass emphasis that smooths over imperfections in the music and makes vocals sound velvety and rich. This approach is excellent for vocal-forward types of music and bassy genres like hip hop and EDM (I cannot help but get lost in the music when listening to that stuff through these), but it does not work for genres like heavy metal or orchestral music, because they sacrifice detail for smoothness. Make no mistake, there IS detail in there - podcasts will sound crisp and clear through these - but instrumental detail is sometimes blurred out by that lovely smooth bass. So if you're listening to songs that require an aggressive, impactful sound signature that makes you feel the kick drum and the bite of an electric guitar, don't go for these. They will blunt the edge of music like that completely because they're trying so hard to never displease your ears with anything fatiguing.Also, the soundstage is really wide. The music feels very spacious through these, which when combined with the warm sound signature, makes the overall presentation damnably immersive.So if you're chilling in bed on a weekend evening with some nice dim lights and want some music to set the mood, put these on. You'll be transported to a different place. The experience is incredible - and for the price of Rs. 8990, an absolute steal. While I will still stick to my Audio Technica ATH-MSR7b's for daily use, I will likely use these whenever I want to escape reality for a while :)