Comfort, open-aire design, natural sound

Long burn-in time needed to sound their best

Well, the "price paid" is GoodCan.com's price for the HD 590, but I actually bought the limited-edition HD 575 (same drivers as HD 590 but in a cheaper shell) for $159.95 with free shipping. I bought them thinking that they were the HD 580's.

When I received them, I was initially disappointed. Big boomy bass, screechy treble... BLEEERAAACH! But then I gave them a 32-hour burn-in (repeat playing of Miles Davis' "Kind Of Blue", Dave Brubeck's "Time Out" and The Beatles' "Revolver" and "Abbey Road" CD's for eight hours each day for four days), and now they sound like a good headphone should... deep smooth bass and clear detailed treble, although the midrange is still a bit laid back due to the circumaural design which places the drivers farther away from my ears than is usual for other circumaural designs.

As for suitability for portable CD players, I found the HD 575/HD 590 better suited than my previous Sennheisers (HD 495), as they can be adequately driven by my Panasonic SL-SW850 and my Sony D-EJ815 (though an amp is recommended for these to reach their full potential).

As for comfort, the HD 575/HD 590 pads are covered in plush velour, so that my ears are less likely to sweat than any of the circumaural Sonys listed above (though I still own the MDR-V6). And the light plastic shell has a detachable cord that attaches to only one earpiece (via a microplug).

Overall the HD 575 and the HD 590 are well worth their price, but make sure you have them properly broken-in before you do some serious listening to them. Happy listening!


P.S.: To the person who said the HD 590 is a pile of crap, either he hadn't demoed a broken-in pair at the store or the amp at the demo display is crappy.

Similar Products Used:

Grado SR-60, Sennheiser HD 495, Sony MDR-V6, Sony MDR-V600, Sony MDR-V900