Sennheiser headphone mod

[Manhattan Glutton]

Someone found out that Sennheiser HD555 headphones are exactly the same as HD595, except for the fact the HD555 has thin paper which ever so slightly modifies the frequency response. They have the exact same parts. This paper is worth $200 in price difference (or $70 if you look at the sale prices).

It's pretty easy to do, nearly without any tools at all. Here's a slow tutorial that you should probably fast-forward through.



I highly recommend these headphones for mixing and mastering. And listening. Very comfortable and open air allows you to wear them for hours without the typical headphone fatique. I like them so much, I have three pair (that I bought at sale prices).

[RangerDenni]

oh yay thanks!

[fluffy]

This seems like it shold be in "help & how to." I'd move it but phpBB 3's admin interface has never worked right for me. Oh well.

Does the Sennheiser 5?5 have a better build quality than the HD280? Those headphones were pretty comfortable (and I still use them at work) but the plastic on the headband was very fragile and failure-prone (so I tend to cut myself on them at work). Apparently a lot of people have had the same problem as me, where the headband plastic fractures under the headphones' own internal stress, but that might have also been due to my larger-than-average head causing the band to always be flexed out much more than normal. (I also have trouble finding hats that fit.)

Also how do they compare with the Audio Technica ATH-M45? That's what I currently use in my home studio and I like their sound a lot, but their physical comfort leaves a bit to be desired (oddly enough they're too LOOSE on my head and keep falling off).

[Manhattan Glutton]

I employ both HD280 and HD595s in my home studio. Basically, having the choice, I choose the HD595 for everything except:
* recording vocals (bleed)
* noisy places (mowing the lawn, airplanes)
* traveling

HD280
pros:
- More durable - I haven't seen durability issues you've mentioned
- Folding - easy to pack and travel with
- Closed ear - as close to noise canceling without being active
- Reasonable price for good headphones
cons:
- Muddy bass
- Dull high frequencies
- Annoying to wear for long periods

HD595
pros:
- Excellent frequency response for the price - great for mixing and mastering
- Extremely comfortable - I can wear them all day and not feel discomfort
- Open air - people used to scare the shit out of me at work when I wore the HD280s, but with these I can hear them approach
- Easy to remove/replace parts (in the unlikely event they need servicing)
cons:
- More fragile, not meant for traveling
- Open air - not sound proof - so not for crowded or noisy places

I haven't tried the Audio Technica, so I can't speak for that. I will say that both the 555 and 595 are the most comfortable headphones I've ever used, so if that's a feature you're looking for, I highly recommend them. It's literally just like having a fabric pillow around your ear.

[Billy's Little Trip]

I don't have this brand. Maybe I should consider them on my next headphone purchase. I've been happy with my DT-770 cans.
edit: wait, those are open air? Never mind, that won't work for me. I need sealed phones for mixing.

[fluffy]

Yeah open-air is a dealbreaker. I need something without mic spill. Guess I'm sticking with the ATH-M45 for now; the sound on them is great and the comfort issue isn't that big a deal.

[Manhattan Glutton]

As I stated above, I switch for recording vocals. I'm not sure why Chris needs closed ear for mixing - that's just weird. Anyway, the main point of the thread was in case anyone had 555's out there - you get a free upgrade.

Here's a graph, fluffy. I'm presuming M50 is closest to M45. 598 is revision of 595.

[fluffy]

That response curve is pretty tempting! Maybe I would be fine with getting a pair of 595s just for mixing... I'm just not fond of switching headphones all the time.

[Manhattan Glutton]

Yeh, I guess it depends on your recording workflow. If you do a lot of mixing in between, I can see how it would get annoying. I pretty much only wear the 280s for a solid 2 hours and then go to the clean up/mixing phase.

By all means, my point of the thread was not to push my headphones. I really like them, particularly in comparison with the 280s, but I can't speak for other brands or more expensive Sennheisers.

[Billy's Little Trip]

I meant studio work in general. But the reason I need closed for mixing is because my music space now is a loft without doors to close. Acoustically it's nice, but all sounds effect my household and repeating a measure of the mix 9000 times while mixing can be very grating to those not involved with the process.
I do have standard stereo open air phones I use to test my finished wav/mp3 file. They are intentionally cheap.

[hillbilly]

killing me, really think yall need $500 head phones?

[fluffy]

Says the person who wonders why his mixes don't sound better...

[hillbilly]

Woops, think i should have posted in the drunk thread.