Sound quality, comfort, looks

...can't seem to think of any...

When considering buying a pair of headphones I did a considerable amount of research and tried many pairs of headphones from a variety of different companies. Being a student I do not have limitless funds but I do own a good quality Arcam based system with AE Evo 3 speakers and so wanted good quality sound as I use cans a lot. In the course of deciding which pair to buy I tried Grado SR125's, Grado SR80's, some Beyerdynamics and a variety of Senn's. The first impressions are very good the cans being well presented the open design apparent from the stylish and well conceived design of the two tone mesh on the outside of the ear-pieces, accompanied by a subtle HD590 badge. On initial wearing the headphones are very comfortable not gripping too tightly but fitting well around the ears and the velour ear pads providing a soft feeling against the skin...and extended periods of wear has shown that these cans seem to remain cool forever. Clearly cans can never replace my Evo 3's but these ones certainly do a more than adequate job providing great detail and realism without ever sounding bright or harsh. The bass is well defined and tight and live performances are well presented - having heard things with these cans that even my speakers struggle to produce. Vocals are clear and I have found new enjoyment from a variety of my albums from heavy 70's prog rock to delicate piano concertos. The soundstage is convincing and placement of instruments is obvious, the attack transience is fast and snappy whilst smooth. A superb pair of cans - kicks the hell out of the opposition given the price...

excellent sound quality price is right @ newegg.com great bass that is not overpowering

leaks alot of higher pitched noise

These are some of the best headphones I have ever tried on, and an excellent value at newegg.com. Thanks to the previous reviewer for the heads up on newegg.com, I was searching for a place to buy these cheaper than Tweeter. I tried them out at Tweeter along with a few other pairs of Sennheisers and Sony. I have also listed to the different pairs of Bose headphones. Let me side track and comment about the Bose headphones first, as it relates to my testing experience. The Bose Triport headphones are great if you need something to listen to in a semi-loud environment and/or want extreme SPL's of bass in your ears. The Quiet Comfort 2's (new version...worth extra $50) are are excellent if you need a pair of headphones for an extremely loud environment. These also produce loud volumes of bass in your ears. Both are acceptable to use in a "library" type environment where it must be quiet. Now back to the Sennheisers. They create a very wide sound stage, great for listening to live music. The bass is excellent on them, they will hit deeper than your home theater sub, I'd bet a million dollars on that one. But the bass is not over powering like it can be on some of the closed ear systems. These headphones also leak a large ammount of high frequency sound into the area around you. It can be distracting to people sitting around you. They are not suitable for a "library" type enviornment. Other than that, I don't know what else I can say about them. Closed headphones are just a totally different experience, if you have the money, I would recommend you buy a pair of each type. I didn't have the $300 to buy the pair of Bose Quiet Comfort 2 headphones, and these sounded great, better in some ways than the Bose, and were half the price. I would not recommend the Sony headphones I tried, I don't remember the model numbers because I put them on and after listening to the others, took them off right away. To conclude this review, if you are looking for a closed system, go with the Bose. But if you are looking for pair of headphones that are a great value and sound like a pair of $5,000 speakers, and don't need to have a quiet environment around where you listen to them, then go with the Sennheisers.

Similar Products Used:

Bose Quiet Comfort 2, Bose Triport, a few Sony models, and Sennheiser HD-570 and HD-580.

Perfect sound Good with lower power amps Stylish Detachable cord on speaker cup Cheap!!!

Non-collapsable for portability?

O baby do these things rock! Forget about how darn comfortable these things are (which they are), the 590s' sound great! High Highs, Low Lows, and excellent mid-range, balance these babies out. And did i mention they're comfortable, and a steal at $150 @ newegg.com.

Similar Products Used:

Sony MDR-V600 Sony MDR-V7000 DJ Grado Labs (I forgot model name)

Light weight! Sound! Comfort! One cord, which is detachable and long! Over all quality!

These are not the "nicest" looking headphones out there. Initial Price.

I have had the HD590's for about 6 months now, and i LOVE THEM... i have NEVER had a problem with them. These surpase anything i have ever heard for such a reasonable price, even compared to Sony, AKG, and Beyerdynamic. They are SOOOOOO comfertable... i sometimes wear them (even without listening to music) because they are so comfertable. I listen to music, movies, and use the Computer for LONG periods of time, and i don't even notice that they are on my head. This is partly because they are open headphones, they do not heat up your ears, and they do not Press upon your ears, they just cup them. They are lightweight, and i love how the cord is detachable, that way if by accident i get the cord stuck, and i move my head, it does not break the headphones, it just simply pull's out the cord (which is a very cheap replacement). As far as sound quality goes, im in heaven. I tend to be an audio enthusiast, and i REALLY like to listen to good music, what ever it comes from. Whether it is from my Denon Amp, or my computer, i love to hear sound the way it should be heard. These headphones can run Very good on low power (Computer), and they work fine with Powerful amps. Right out of the box the sounds are perfect, and every sound sounds just like it should. The only thing these headphones can't do, is take the place of a good Surround system with a GOOD subwoofer, but what can you expect from such a small speaker? I also like how they are open, so as i can hear other things going on. My dad has some Sennheiser HD 280 pros, and they come no where near the HD590's. For the cheap pirce diffrence, get the good ones... Like i said, These headphones will play all ranges of sound, flawlessly. From deap lows, to Pich highs. Don't let the price get you down eaither, If you can make these last, you will be Very pleased. Like i said, i have yet to hear a headphone that "I" can notice any better quality with, and i consider myself and audio enthusiast. If i could die with just one thing, ide take these, for sure. ~Hope this helps

Similar Products Used:

Sennheiser HD 280 pro

Straight cord, Bass,Awesome sound

Price

I just received my Sennheiser HD590 Friday.I had read the reviews how it was much better to break them in first, So I knew that would be. However I tried them out on my Yamaha and Onkyo Receivers first The sound was very good. However it wasn't as good with my mini cd player. I didn't think they could sound any better than this using my receivers. But I began the break-in process with Jazz, Blues, and Rock. Which I set my changer on the repeat mode for all day and night and it's still going I've picked up the phones several times checking the sound and I was amazed how really awesome the sound had become. Out of the several phones I've had these are The Best, And I'm glad I went for these instead of the Grado which are very good, I just hated to do a minor makeover just to make them comfortable. The HD590 are unbelievable you hardly know they are on your head.I like the straight cord I've had others with the coil cord and hated it. Since I purchased these from Crutchfield I knew returning them would be quick and easy for I've received good service for many years. But the HD590 will stay, What little I've listen to these I didn't realize what I was missing and hated to lay them down for the break-in. I have new floor standing Polk speakers now I realize I should have kept my money and use the HD590 instead.

Similar Products Used:

Koss, Koss Pro Plu, Labtech, and Sony

base,stereo seperation,confort

price

these headphones sound fantasic from the first time i put them on till now [about 7 months].i dont listen to my speakers anymore. they are confortable to wear for long periods,the base is tight and crisp, stereo seperation is good.

Light, comfortable, cxcellent sound quality and warmth, detachable/replaceable cord of ample length.

Price? I thought they were worth the price, but it's still money, right? Beats the heck out of $6,000.00 for new speakers, though!

I almost didn't buy these because I needed something both for my home stereo (Arcam based) and for my Ipod MP3/AIFF player. I was told that the "audiophile" headphones couldn't be powered by the CD players/mp3 players etc. I decided to pick them up anyway, just for use with my Arcam amp. When I connected them to my Ipod I got one heck of a surprise, though! They sound great, and they don't drain the battery all that quickly. I still get 3.5-4 hours of use out of the Ipod with one charge. Now I can walk around the house all day, and outside when I'm shoveling snow etc. and have awesome sound. Now, the sound is obviously a bit weaker on an mp3 player in comparison to a nice amp, but really this is just magic walking around freely with this quality of sound. I love the clarity and warmth of the headphones and especially love the fact that they are comfortable enough to walk around with.

Similar Products Used:

Nothing I have ever used has compared to these in price or quality.

There's no getting away from the fact that the top models from Sennheiser are excellent headphones. Rich sound, especially nice for classical. The single cord is a worthwhile improvement over the 580's arrangement. Comfort is very high.

The plastic contruction of this model strikes me as inferior to the more robust-feeling 580. That model is plastic-laden too, but feels and looks more classy. I'm not able to detect any audible improvement over the 580 so I can't see why anyone would want to "upgrade" to a 590. I hope Sennheiser's next offerings maintain the same sound quality and comfort, but look a whole lot better than this rather ugly effort. I also think the price is far too high for what is basically a cosmetic revamp of a model (the 580) that has been around a very long time.

580 quality in a flashier, cheaper-looking attire.

Similar Products Used:

Sony, Sennheiser, Grado.

First and foremost - they sound unbelievable - for any style of music. Extremely comfortable you can easily forget you got em on. Fairly low impedance.. (120 ohms) means they don't need no headphone amp and they work fine through a good sound card.

The cable was a little on the thin side but Sennheiser have always been like that.. tends to twist and "bend" more easily than AKG's cables. Still, I'm being picky.

In one line: fantastic sound for the fussy individual with a fat wallet. Sound is absolutely fantastic, but you certainly pay for the luxury. Totally agree with prizm: quite expensive. I too live in Australia and work in the industry and purchased at a cool price (<$350 AU). How and ever $500 retail (AU) is a lot to spend on anything let alone a pair of headphones. Still, if you don't wanna compromise then start saving. I listen to a wide range of different musical styles and didn't want to have to upgrade in another 5 years. Heck, me wants these phones to last forever! Certainly much better than the 500's and a great leap up from the 570's. . Yep, these cans are a dream. :-) Finally now I can stop thinking about buying headphones and just enjoy them...

Similar Products Used:

Tried a whole heap of AKG's (particularly K240 DF's); Also tried Sennheiser HD500, HD570; and used a pair of HD25 SP's for a good few years.

Again, great bass and treble. Extremely light and comfortable. Open backs create quite a wide soundstage, much more than with closed backs - it sounds as if you are listening to a room system. Can hear sounds of other things in room, which I prefer due to children and not wanting to be totally out of touch with my environmnt.

If you want the sound to sound like it is only in your skull,(different, but some may prefer)and/or if you want no distracions - closed back maybe better

Wanted a finer headset. Read good review of the 570 model and price was right - $85. But then read review that due to high impedence, they worked poorly, if at all with direct CD player connection or Walkmen. Plus, the 570 is weak at the bass level. So, opted for this even higher rated model. Works very well off of computer CD player, Walkman and with tuner. Great bass and treble.

Similar Products Used:

Koss piece of junk.