Customer Rating:      Summary: Aural dessert Comment: These headphones are like being in a warm waterfall of sound. I listen mostly to jazz and classical and you hear the players taking breaths while blowing their horns. If there are better sounding headphones, I'm not interested because after years with my 580s they still send me and never disappoint. They create a precise, gorgeous aural world that you can just drift away in.
Customer Rating:      Summary: The best (and a word to the wise) Comment: Before I actually tell you how I like these, a hint to any frustrated users out there: Having connection problems from the cable to the cans? Try plugging them in. Seriously. This suggestion solves around 50% of problems people have with their computers, and I can virtually guarantee that it will solve your problems here. The design is such that the cords can be plugged in mechanically well enough not to fall out, but not nearly well enough to be properly (electrically) plugged in. In such a case you can push the connectors in quite a bit further, until they are well-recessed in their openings, and you won't get the crackling anymore.
Now for the review:
I've had these for years now. Bought a pair in graduate school in the late 90s, complete with Sennheiser's DSP/amplifier unit (novelty item, but with shameful sound quality) for a very good price. Since then, I've probably listened to them an average of 30 or so hours a week, mostly while at work. A conservative estimate would put them over 10000 hours of use. They never fatigue my ears, even after several hours of constant use, and remain comfortable on my head for as long as I listen.
The replaceable cable is a great thing, and when I managed to trash mine after the first five or six years of heavy usage, Sennheiser sent me a replacement for fifteen or twenty bucks. Well worth it. Dropping more money on aftermarket cable "upgrades" is absurd, of course. If that's your bag, just spend the cable money on fancier headphones in the first place.
I also own the Grado SR60 and Etymotic ER6i, and of course neither of these really compare in terms of sound quality. I've also spent some time listening to the Sennheiser HD600 and Grado RS2; the former isn't noticeably better (or even much different) and the latter just didn't really impress me, especially for the price. Grados all sound artifical to me, although admittedly punchy.
Keep in mind that the HD580 has approximately zero noise isolation with its wide open design, and as others have noted, a crummy source like an iPod or most computer sound cards will have trouble driving it.
Customer Rating:      Summary: Amazing cans! Comment: I'm using these straight out of either my iPod or my Logitech X-230's satellite speakers. Even with an unamped signal the sound from these headphones is just terrific! Great dynamic range and very crisp sound. They're also extremely comfortable both on the head and ears.
Soon I'll be purchasing a Headroom Total BitHead amp from Headphones.com to plug these in to. I can hardly wait to hear what these cans will sound like then!
Customer Rating:      Summary: Great headphones!!!! Comment: I did a lot of research trying to find the best ones and i am very happy with the 580's. It was down to these or the grado 125's and from what I understand they are both great. The fact that the padding goes around your ear instead of resting on it makes them so comfortable! Highly recommended, great quality...just gotta get a headphone amp now to make them even better :)
Customer Rating:      Summary: Going to lengths to get my pair fixed Comment: A guy a block away had an audio store, so I always like it when he has a garage sale. I had a sense this was a quality set of headphones and plunked down $10 for them...I did try them, but his speakers were on externally so didn't grok that the left ear didn't come through. Rats...I took them back and he said I should get a replacement set of the earphone cables. For about $25. So much for a bargain! Finally got around to doing some research on these...I could tell from the one working side that it was a quality unit, so have spent hours, literally, online researching these headphones.
I found a set of cables online and found it was NOT the cable that was broken...or that was not the main problem. I just can't throw them out...I took a chance that the headphone would snap apart, and they did. The little speaker is held in a plastic enclosure, with an extention that goes to where the spring plug part is. Between the speaker and the little springy plug socket are the THINNEST WIREs you can imagine...half a hair...On mine, one of them is broken. The Sennheiser USA site has an online repair request form, so I'm asking if I can buy just the speaker thingy....or maybe someone can do a micro solder repair...
I can imagine that if one of your headphones has stopped working, check out those wires....There are some pretty pricey replacement cables from other mfgs...costing $100-$150 and more...shows how much people appreciate the headphones.
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