Sennheiser HD700 Open-back Audiophile and Mastering Headphones Reviews

Excellent headphones. Comfortable to wear for extended periods. Very precise and subtle sound with a quality DAC. Superb build quality. Best with lossless audio - you will hear digitization/grain with an MP3.

I never thought I would spend a decent amount of money on headphones, and was content with my $100 pair of Sennheisers. But I wanted to take my audio mixes to a new level of tightness, and so after researching "best" headphones for mixing and mastering, I landed these. And WOW! Listening through these is like Naked Audio. I heard some clicks, pops, and bad frequencies for the first time. All caused by plugins or poor EQ. Light shed on all darkness with no shadow to hide from. These things are amazing, and I now know why they cost what they do. The confidence that they have given me in my mixes is worth every penny. Also, these things are like nothing else in comfort. I still use my $100 Senns to record with, but these babies are reserved only for mixing and mastering.

everything i do on these translates really well to
my Focal twins. really detailed!

The open back design means they are not for everybody. However, for those looking for pristine clarity and wide open sound stage, the HD700 are an excellent choice. They are shockingly light and comfortable. The sound is exemplary. The listening experience is just wonderful. I've been grinning ear-to-ear since I unboxed them. The current price makes these an outstanding value. Highly recommend.

Pros:
These headphones have a level of clarity that is unparalleled. Comparing these to HD598, they have richer and clearer low range while greater clarity in the top end. I have been using these for enjoyment rather than mixing, but I have no doubt they would be useful for mixing. These bring out nuances in the music that you never realized were there (they don't enhance anything, they just articulate everything well and the music has a greater spatial effect). The appear to have a relatively flat response curve.

Cons:
If you are listening to music for enjoyment, you probably want to listen to lossless audio or CDs... lower quality mp3 don't particularly sound great on these. You can hear mistakes in the recording if they are present. These are made of mostly plastic, and although they feel sturdy, only time will tell.

Overall:
Amazing headphones, you won't regret buying these.

These are the best headphones I have had the pleasure of owning. I have owned the AKG K701, AKG K553, Sennheiser HD598, Sennheiser HD600, Beyerdynamic DT1350, among other lower end headphones, and these by far blow all of them away in terms of detail, soundstage, clarity, lack of distortion and ultimate neutrality. They take on the tonality and spatial information from the recordings they are playing back, so be prepared for that. If your recordings sound boxy and odd, the HD700 will sound boxy and odd. If your recordings have the spacial quality of sounding like they are assembled from mono elements to be played back on speakers in a room, they HD700 will sound like you are playing your music on high end audiophile speakers in your room. If your recordings are recorded in a space that is wide open and has giant soundstage, excellent detail and clarity, the HD700 will convey those qualities to their fullest. Also, be prepared to throw out many of your plugins, as only the best ones will survive after scrutinizing them on your HD700s. For example, many reverb plugins will sound artificial, only the best convolution reverbs will pass the HD700 test. Ditto with microphones, many of your dynamic microphones will be exposed as sounding blurry, grainy and void of detail, but your good to excellent quality condenser microphones will be conveyed with the ultimate in clarity and spatial information preserved in playback over the HD700. They are a great analytical tool, but they also sound very musical at the same time. They are neutral, but avoid sounding sterile or clinical. Highly recommended for situations where the utmost in clarity, resolution, and detail are necessary!

Yes, there is only so much detail the human ear can process relative to ultra hi-fidelity sound. "Will I really be able to tell the difference between the HD650 and the HD700?" I asked myself. "Are they worth a few hundred more bucks?" I wondered. A resounding "Yes" and "Yes" were the answers. Wow. I've been searching for the ultimate set of headphones for years and the search is over. The clarity is astounding. The detail is unsurpassed. I record both live instruments and electronic music and the HD700's reproduce both with a quality that I cannot accurately describe. Additionally, they are the most comfortable headphones I've ever worn. At times, I forget they are on my head. Plunking down this kind of money is a decision most people need to sleep on before making. Trust me, you will not lose any sleep once you have put them to use. I am in love with these beauties and, as always, purchasing from Sweetwater is a breeze.

These headphones sound wonderful. I mix a lot on headphones and these allow me to hear new timbres and colors I didn't hear before in my headphone mixes. They are very comfortable and fine for long mixing/listening sessions. I don't own the HD800, so I can't compare.

2 complaints: You would expect a real carrying case for $1,000. It does come with a box with foam contour. However, the box doesn't lock making it useless for travel. I would also expect a lifetime warranty for the price (my cheap Koss headphones come with that).

I couldn't believe how bad these were compared to the HD650 model. Very odd mid-range, a little overemphasized, kind of "boxy" sounding. Not good, I would strongly recommend sticking with the HD650 or picking up the Shure SRH1540 if you're looking for a good closed design.