Sennheiser HD820 Review - Can a closed HD800S sound good?

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A review of Sennheiser's flagship closed back headphone, the HD820 and how they compare to the ZMF Verite Closed and DCA Stealth.
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00:00 Introduction
00:45 Glamour video
01:42 Features and specs
06:54 Sound quality
10:02 HD820 vs DCA Stealth
14:05 Final conclusions (plus HD820 vs Verite Closed)
16:43 P.S. HD820 with tubes
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#audiophile #audioreview #headphones

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Опубликовано:

4 июл 2024

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Комментарии : 91

@jackcolo1601 Год назад

6.35, 4pinXLR, 4.4 cable are all stock cable included in the box.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Thanks for confirming, Jack!

@jackcolo1601 Год назад

@@PassionforSound Nice review anyway.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Thanks. The pair I received is well travelled so I had no idea what was stock and what had been thrown in the box for shows etc.

@DirectorsGarage Год назад

We are the only two reviewers who like the HD-820. Cheers, Mate!

@PassionforSound Год назад

Clearly we are the only ones with good taste 😂 🍻

@neilsnyder7915 Год назад

Great Review

@PassionforSound Год назад

Glad you liked it!

@tiffanyflanagan1892 Год назад

I absolutely love the Focal Stellia. It doesn’t sound boxy and has great imaging and dynamics. The sound stage is decent for a closed back as well. It’s probably not as wide as the 820, but it’s still wider than some open backs. I’ve had them for three months and i’m very happy with my purchase. ❤️

@allansh828 Год назад

Stellia sound really open on decent tube amps, as if the soundstage has no bound and changes its shape with the recording.

@Martijn1234 Год назад

I found the Stellia to lack bass a bit too much for my taste. They were one of the most comfortable headphones ever! Detail retrieval was excellent and soundstage was quite impressive for a closed back too. Easy to drive as well. Plenty of good points... I found they didn't like poorer recordings. Give them good recordings though and they were superb. If they had a bit more meat on the bones and were a little more forgiving I might have liked them more. It's all personal preference, of course.

@tiffanyflanagan1892 Год назад

I find their bass really nice. I’m driving them off of a Burson Soloist 3X GT and that helps quite a bit. They sound much more authoritative than they do off of my Topping A90.

@PassionforSound Год назад

I'm yet to try the Stellias. Hopefully one day...

@hartyewh1 Год назад

The stock tuning I find is horrific, but when EQ'd it gets extremely close to the HD800s, but it's not really a closed back since it leaks sound like a semi-open so you pay a lot more for a headphone that is a bit worse than the open counterpart and don't gain any meaningful isolation. A weird product to say the least.

@johnratcliffe6438 Год назад

AudioQuest Night Owl are the same.

@PassionforSound Год назад

I didn't find either headphone to leak sound significantly

@johnratcliffe6438 Год назад

@@PassionforSound I was talking about the NO stock tuning being strange.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Ah, I understand. The NO tuning is a little unusual until your brain accommodates it. I think many closed backs are a bit like that

@SiliDuffa Год назад

Always been interested in how the HD820's sounded. I'll audition one day. Also, my offer for a Denon D9200 is still there if you have the time. Great to see your channel growing! Looking forward to 2023!

@PassionforSound Год назад

Thank you. I don't have a way to track these offers yet so I forget. Where are you in the world?

@SiliDuffa Год назад

@@PassionforSound Local! Just shot you an email.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Thank you! 🙏

@albertguev Год назад

@@PassionforSound I'd be very interested in your review of the D9200 as I love the Foster biodyna drivers!

@PassionforSound Год назад

We've booked it in for 2023 so stay tuned... 🙂

@henningbortne8650 8 месяцев назад

I am a professional mastering engineer at Oslo Mastering. The HD 820 is excellent, The main cause of all the bad reviews are because they need a long eun in time, and they are very picky about the amp and ohm adapt.. and also they need to be put correct on the ear. Huge difference in frequency response if you miss the sweetpoint.

@PassionforSound 8 месяцев назад

I think even heavily run in (as this pair was), they have some colouration that will throw some people off. That said, I agree that they're an excellent headphone.

@JTB-- Год назад

I regret selling my HD800s. One thing that drove me nuts with them was how the HP Cable connected to the ear cups. Nerve-Racking trying to pull the cable out. Asinine Design

@PassionforSound Год назад

I totally agree. Not sure why they've stuck with it for the 800S and 820 after the 800

@shawnswinney8539 Год назад

I have the HD820 and love them. I think they scale well so I wonder if some bad reviews are from using subpar amps and dacs. My priorities in a headphone are a large soundstage with detail, good layering, and bass. Audeze miss the soundstage (LCD-X), and the HD820 doesn’t really have the bass that I want. So right now I use an amp and dac stack that have tone controls allowing me to bring the bass up on the HD820 which they handle really well. I know this is cheating in the audiophile world, but it sounds amazing! Tight and yet more full bass than the Audeze with all the normal benefits from the HD800 series.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Nothing cheating about using tone controls - that's what they're there for. Glad you're enjoying your 820s

@MJ-li7gu Год назад

Shawn- Can you please share what amp and DAC are you using for HD820?

@shawnswinney8539 Год назад

@@MJ-li7gu Hello MJ… happy to. Currently my ‘at home’ setup is using the SMSL SU8 and SH8 in balanced mode. When I am on holiday I use the HD820 with the ifi Hip Dac also in balanced mode. Neither of these are expensive, but they both allow me to bring up the bass. SMSL has tone controls in the settings, and ifi has a bass boost button. This, to me, is key for the HD820. My comment about subpar amps and dacs was from a few things I tried that made the HD820 sound poor. This included an amp/dac combo by Audio GD that sounded overly bright, and a few that I don’t think could power the HD820 properly. I also had the Schiit Modius and Magnius in balanced mode for awhile. I couldn’t distinguish between Schiit and SMSL with many tests so I kept SMSL due to the feature set. I really enjoy how articulate the bass is on these, but it needs something with tone control or a bass boost to pull that up. Also I have tested a few very expensive amp/dac stacks, but found the improvement to but mild compared to the price. So that is my journey so far… hope it helps!

@davidabrams5573 4 месяца назад

It's remarkable how polarizing these headphones are. Some other prominent reviewers have these as "F" tier headphones. Obviously headphone sound quality can be subjective, but I find your Passion for Sound reviews to be the most helpful and accurate out there. Based in part on this review, I just purchased these headphones (open box) and they should arrive early next week. I can't wait to try them.

@PassionforSound 4 месяца назад

I hope you love them! I think, when it comes to sound, there's very little that's truly good or bad so long as it remains within the bounds of what our brain's internal "EQ" can adapt to. It's also important to factor in that all closed back headphones have to compensate for the internal reflections and resonances, etc. In other words, I think the HD820 does a great job of balancing tonal balance in a closed back with enjoyability, etc. I hope you do too!

@davidabrams5573 4 месяца назад

@@PassionforSound I wanted to follow up to say that I received my pair of HD 820's and I love the way they sound! I'll be keeping them. :) This was the upgrade in closed back headphones that I've been searching for. The only other pair of closed backs in this price range that I gave any consideration to keeping were the Sony MDR-Z1R's. The Sony's could at times at sound better to me (Queen - Another One Bites the Dust was sublime with them), but more often than not I felt the HD 820's sounded more natural and had less oddities in their FR. I could also hear details with the HD820 that were not as obvious with the MDR-Z1R's. I needed to EQ both headphones to get a sound I was happy with but the HD 820's just sounded a better to me across a wide range of music genres. I can see others choosing the Sony's - as it probably comes down to individual taste. In any case, I don't think one could go wrong with either of those options.

@hitchslapification Год назад

I find The HD820 to be an acquired taste after the HD8XX and the stock HD800. Trying all three on the RME and ifi iCan Pro combo the HD820 needed major EQ to sound right but one thing is for sure that the driver is very high quality as it took EQ like a champ and the build quality including the glass are top notch. I once thought of selling them but that glass and the quality of the build makes me think this might be Sennheisers swansong.

@PassionforSound Год назад

I doubt it's their swansong, but you never know after the changes. They have quite a different tuning compared to the 800 (and I assume 8xx) so I can understand needing to adjust via EQ or brain accommodation

@aceofspades6667 Год назад

Love my HD800S especially on tubes it just sounds like a grand experience. I'm wondering if the HD800S energizes well with your folkvangr? I have two tube amps (Quicksilver hp amp and Auris HA2 - SE. The 800s just sounds lovely with both and I rolled the right tubes to get good mid bass punch with just a hint of sub-bass.

@PassionforSound Год назад

I haven't tried the HD800S with the Vang (don't own a pair anymore), but I expect they'd be a great match

@Joshnor713 Год назад

Love my HD 820, preferred it over the Stellia.

@PassionforSound Год назад

I can understand why. I haven't tried the Stellias yet, but I really respect the HD820

@nike432 Год назад

Excellent review. I agree with the small feeling of boxiness at the beginning. In my case, that sensation disappeared after the first 500 hours of burning. I have been very impressed with the HD820. I feel similar sound quality to the Focal Utopia, HE1000se, CDA Stealth, Final D8000 and other flagships. I think it is an achievement for Sennheiser to offer these performance qualities at this price.

@PassionforSound Год назад

I completely agree. The performance for the price is excellent IMO

@razisn Год назад

One disadvantage often mentioned is that they offer inadequate isolation for a closed back both inwards and outwards. What's the point of getting a closed back, with all the problems closed backs have to deal with vs open backs if these do not offer adequate isolation? How do you feel about this issue? Otherwise a nice review, thanks. I do have the 800S but I have shied away from the 820 due to conflicting reviews.

@PassionforSound Год назад

I think it depends on what you're after in terms of isolation. I didn't find them to be significantly worse than options like the Vérité closed, but some closed backs like the DCA Noires and Beyerdynamic T5 are probably better for isolation

@frederf69 Год назад

Cymbals are generally bright sounding; so its realistic for them to sound so. Good review generally, cheers.

@PassionforSound Год назад

There's bright and then there's unnaturally emphasised bright. That's what I found the 820s to do sometimes. Glad you liked the review overall.

@dododale-ni7bf 11 месяцев назад

HD800S is excellent, i got hd800 & it sound so good, sometimes i prefer hd800 &sometime hd800s!!

@PassionforSound 11 месяцев назад

HD900?

@dododale-ni7bf 11 месяцев назад

@@PassionforSound 8

@matthewhilty4209 Год назад

Woah what a weird graph. I will have to demo these someday. I know I hated the HD700 but that was years ago.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Most closed backs look pretty strange (Beyerdynamic T5.3 and ZMF Verité Closed for examples) due to the issues of closed designs and the internal reflections/resonances. I think the 820s are worth a listen though

@MJ-li7gu Год назад

Which tier would you place HD820 in your tier list for Headphones?

@planewreck4214 Год назад

Hi do you have a review for the focal clear og?

@PassionforSound Год назад

I do. It's an old one now! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-miSSIOwAy5A.html

@donuthole7236 Год назад

I'm curious, not sure to what extent of headphones you have listened to. Can you do a video on, in your opinion of course, what the best headphone you ever evaluated regardless of price? I've seen $50,000 headphones but I'm not sure how that translates to actual listening experience. Again, it's all subjective but it would be interesting to see. Thanks

@PassionforSound Год назад

I've tried a lot of headphones, but the peak I've gone to so far are headphones like Susvara, Meze Elite, etc. My headphone tier list might help: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-uBH0MsbgizY.html

@donuthole7236 Год назад

@@PassionforSound Somehow I missed this video, thanks. Funny seeing the HIFIMan Arya in the S tier. I was planning on buying the Edition XS, then decided to spend the extra money on the Ananda but after watching a few reviews decided to throw common sense to the wind and get the Arya. The review you linked just reinforced that decision, thank you 🙏 As we all know evaluating headphones after a certain point is "subjective". I'm a guy who just "puts on" headphone to enjoy listening to music but I value people who have trained their ear to pick-up on the neuances that a regular Joe like me will miss. I figure I'll spend the $1300 on the Arya when I originally budgeted for $500. But when you consider the years of enjoyment you will get from that investment the extra money spent is well worth it. As the old addage goes with regard to audio equipment "spend the money on the speackers!" I'm backing this-up with a Burson Playmate 2 with Sparko Op Amps which is being housed in my custom made full size tower computer rig. Thank you for all audio equipment reviews they have done a great job helping me make better decisions, without them I would be more or less "on my own" with regard to my purchasing decisions. I also enjoy Z Reviews who has more of a "Bull in the China" perspective and "seemingly" not very refined but is spot on his evaluations and is hysterical in his delivery 🤣 Both you guys seem to complement one another, bravo! I still would like to see you review a pair of $50,000 headphones, if you could get your hands on a set and get your opinion on them. I suspect any owner or company who is willing to let you review them might be a bit reluctant finding out what the extra $48,700 gets you (probably about .5% better sound reproduction LOL) but for some professionals that might matter. SUBCRIBED! 👍

@PassionforSound Год назад

Great choice on the Aryas! They'll serve you well for many years I think. I'd love to try some of those uber level headphones too - maybe one day... Glad you're enjoying the channel and thanks for subscribing! 🙂

@Nuevo_El_Nagual Год назад

When I EQ bass on HD8xx with Mojo2 using Folkwangr tube amp I feel it fatiguing too.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Do you find it fatiguing if you don't EQ?

@Nuevo_El_Nagual Год назад

@@PassionforSound No, stock tuning on HD8xx with Folkwangr is sublime to me. Especially with 7062's.

@PassionforSound Год назад

That's very interesting! I wonder what the cause is?

@allansh828 Год назад

Honestly, I prefer Elegia, which has plenty of issues on its own, over HD820. I'd buy Beyerdynamic T5 3 if I really want that kinda of sound for less than half the cost.

@PassionforSound Год назад

That's a fair point about the T5.3. I think the 820S are a bit better tonally balanced, but at the price difference it's a harder sell perhaps

@peregrinodisastrado Год назад

Great review. Does anybody know how much power they need? Can a chord mojo 2 cut it?

@PassionforSound Год назад

Mojo 2 will drive them easily 🙂

@razisn Год назад

Not only they should be able to drive them well, but they should respond fine to its dsp eq. At least that's my experience with the 800S.

@PassionforSound Год назад

100%

@hilde45 Год назад

Sorry to jump on here with a tangential comment, but Holo audio just released the streamer for about US$800 and it’s possibly a giant killer. I hope you take a listen and tell us what you think.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Interesting! I'll see if I can check

@techmed-rainer Год назад

Danke!

@PassionforSound Год назад

Thank you for the support!

@techmed-rainer Год назад

@Passion for Sound You're welcome! I love both of them, the HD 800S (I've got the 75th Anniversary Edition) and the HD 820.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Nice collection to have both there!

@MeteoraEra Год назад

Its a well known fact that mids and vocals on 820 is dead sounding and hollow. I don't understand how do you put that next to VC which are known to have a lively mids and timbre....

@PassionforSound Год назад

I'd say that's more subjective opinion than fact. Sure, they're different, but that's exactly why I compared them so people can get a sense of the differences

@newsigmundfreud3023 Год назад

Exactly. I just wrote it in a comment. This review is totally lopsided.

@FabioKasper Год назад

I'd pay $1.4k max for this. New.

@masterxyr Год назад

why 'twenty' though.

@PassionforSound Год назад

Why not? 🙂

@razisn Год назад

Yeah, 'thirty' would have been so much better.

@fatdoi003 Год назад

imo there're so much limitations on closed backs.... i'd just get a good pair of iem and use it as closed backs....

@PassionforSound Год назад

That's been kind of my conclusion recently too

@razisn Год назад

There are some people like me who cannot tolerate either iems or earbuds for more than a very short time due to ear discomfort and even pain.

@fatdoi003 Год назад

@@razisn lucky i got big ears....

@PassionforSound Год назад

That's a great point, razisn!

@fatdoi003 Год назад

@@razisn all these new reasonably priced planar iems are giving me great listening sessions....

@newsigmundfreud3023 Год назад

*Wo! Sorry to tell you this review is so sloppy and quite off. One thing to make clear is that the HD800S is so much more than the HD820! Anyways, it’s not worth bothering to explain. You lost me here with this review. Oh, the Verite Closed you dont Have to compare now but you keep mentioning it and comparing it. The VC is so much more for what it does than the HD820 which is a total failure in so many ways. This is a lopsided review and very off. Oh, I said it already before.*

@DJ_BROBOT Год назад

bullsh**. Just because you think his review didnt fit yours doesn't mean it's sloppy and off. Stop being a twat just for kicks. You cant always go somewhere else if you just wanted somebody to agree with you. All of this is subjective. I have many cans that people that are super critical of that I felt were alright with burn in. Things happen because we are all different...so dont be a dump next time. You can disagree without being a bastard.

@newsigmundfreud3023 Год назад

@@DJ_BROBOT Wow! Nice. Now hopefully you are feeling much better.