Sennheiser has always had a special place in my collection and journey into audiophilia. The HE-90 was my first introduction to Hi-Fi headphones back in the late 90s and what started me chasing that perfect sound. It wouldn’t be until 2010 that I would finally take the plunge and buy my first pair of Sennheiser’s, the brand-new flagship HD800, which still remains a favorite going strong over a decade later. At the time the HD650 lacked the wow factor of their little brother and I was left unimpressed, however every time I found myself at the audio store, inevitably I would give them a listen again and again but always left with something else. Eventually I gave in and finally bought the legendary HD6XX three years ago and finally understand why the 600 family is so revered.

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Build and Comfort

The HD6XX is solid plastic through and through and built like an absolute tank, second only to Beyerdynamic. I feel absolutely no hesitation throwing them in a bag or leaving them about, they’ve fallen on the floor from my desk and not a scratch or issue. They may feel cheap to some but they are built to last just like the HD800.

Comfort wise they are fine, the clamping force is night and day compared to the HD800 and feels like its stuck to your ears, but its not past the point into discomfort. The headband is padded well with no hot spots after all day use, and has solid slider mechanism for fine adjustments.

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Packaging and Accessories

The packaging is the epitome of utilitarian, you get a box and a cable and that’s it. However, the box is very nice for the price and is basically just a cost down version of the HD800’s. The cable is fine, it’s a good length for desk use or mobile, but excels at neither.

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Sound

What hasn’t already been said a thousand times about the HD6XX since its release. So, I’m going to take the approach of looking at it from the perspective of what it offers compared to my higher end headphones and why I believe it still deserves a place in my collection. Firstly, for my taste the HD600-HD800 families sound best on tubes with a bit of EQ, for this review I used the RME ADI 2 FS->Woo Audio WA2 as my primary listening setup, however the HD6XX still sounds great on all of my amps and even my apple dongle and before anyone argues about if tubes make a difference, just look at them they are gorgeous, does it change the sound maybe, is it placebo probably, do I care NO. With that out of the way how do they sound, like a Sennheiser. The HD6XX claim to fame is its midrange, which is engaging and full in a way that not even my Focal Clear can really compete with. The only headphones I’ve heard that beat it are the HE-90 and HE-1, that alone makes them worth owning. Bass is lackluster, it’s there but it lacks impact and speed compared to the HD800 EQ’d or something like the CFA Cascade or LCD-2. The highs are ok but I finally understand what people mean about the Sennheiser veil, as a HD800 owner who loves their treble detail I never got why people claimed all Sennheiser are lacking in this area. The HD6XX’s treble extends far enough to enjoy basically any music but is lacking compared to the Clear or HD800. Soundstage is a joke compared to the HD800, if the HD800 is a concert hall then the HD6XX is a tiny cramped closet. However, this is not a bad thing the Clear has only a slightly larger soundstage and as a result they both have an intimate presentation that can make the music feel more engaging. Honestly the HD6XX makes me forget that I’m listening for all these minor nitpicks and I always just end up kicking back enjoying the music.

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Conclusion

Overall, the HD6XX definitely deserves much of the acclaim it has garnered over the years and remains the benchmark that all of Mid-Fi is compared to. It is a headphone that specializes in presenting its midrange to near perfection while doing everything else good enough that you don’t really care. If you go looking you will find faults and get that itch to upgrade to something “better”, but the HD6XX could very well be your first and last headphone purchase and you wouldn’t be missing out on much. At its price it is basically unmatched and by the very fact I’m comparing it to Kilobuck headphones at all should speak volumes. The HD650 is undisputedly a legend within the audiophile community and the HD6XX has become one in it own right in the years since its release. Even though the design is 19 years old at this point it is still something I believe every one should try at least once and is absolutely worth of being part of any collection no matter how much Summit-Fi you already own.