Sennheiser HD 560S, Open back reference-grade headphones for audio enthusiasts, Over Ear , Black

As someone who is a casual gamer, enjoys watching movies and listening to music, I wanted a pair of headphones that would provide good sound quality, as well as being comfortable to wear for long periods of time.I had done a lot of research when looking at headphones to buy, the main 2 I saw were the DT990 Pro (Closed Back) and these 560s (Open Back). As someone who had never had open back headphones, I never really understood what it meant by a wider soundstage and feeling airier.After using these for a few months I must say I was blown away, the open back style does give a great feeling that the sound is around you, rather than the sound coming from next to your ears, the headset is comfy to wear, light and well adjustable. There is some clamping at first, but this is to be expected, and they will eventually loosen, or you can rest them on something for a few hours to stretch the headband.Overall, they do everything I need, prodividing good bass, nice treble, and generally being a great pair of headphones for movies, games and music.The price is great, I got mine on sale for £100 but I would argue that even when not on sale they are still worth their money. I have not tried them on a mobile device, but straight to my PC they work well without the need of an AMP.The cable is a decent enough size, the headset itself seem sturdy whilst being lightweight, so it seems to tick all the boxes.If you are planning to purchase these headphones, I would suggest looking at audio software to use to better ehance the sound. There are simple guides online (I use Peace with a preset I found) and it enhances the sound, but straight out of the box they're great sounding.The downside is that being open back if you are in a busy area they will not block out the external sound, but this is not an issue for me but is something to consider.

Wanted to try a good entry level open back headphone to compare to my closed back Sony MDR 1A's.The Sennheiser HD 506S came highly recommended by the Cheapaudio Man on YT. Wasn't sure if they might turn out a bit Bass light. But no problem, not boomboxes by any means but great deep bass extension when it is there. The Sony's are a bit bass enhanced which I do like but being closed there is significant inner pressure with strong bass since there is no where for that air to go being closed. Now the Sony's sound good all round, good mid and pleasant highs. My test pieces are almost anything by Shpongle who can have a very dense sound texture with so many layers of loud and subtle sounds. The HD 506S handle the complexity very well. Deeper sound stage than the Sony's. Also the HD 506S are quiet despite being open back, no sound leak at all, which surprised me. So I am not annoying my partner in bed at night with tunes she may not appreciate. They are well made and very light, the headband a comfy fit. Velour pads compared to the fake leatherette of the Sony's. The HD 506S at £165compare well to the original price of the Sony at around the same price. Only now available s/h which mine were at £90.Downside, the Sony's pads became really tatty after a couple of years, spent a few pounds on replacements which are good but very fiddly to fit. As far as I know there are no aftermarket pads for the HD 506S,so I hope they last better than the Sony pads. Looking at reviews for both these, the Sony only draw mediocre responses while the HD 506S get lots of good reviews. I would say that these are very good entry level Hi-fi headphones well worth the money. Listening to Faure's Requiem jut now and they treat it very well, lots of high choir notes that are challenge to headphones and speakers alike.

I've used a range of headphones for 45 years but never really paid more than £50 for a pair. I knew I was missing out on something and the HD 560S seemed to get consistently good reviews at a price I was willing to go for. Here's the result:As a home recording guy I have always trusted my cheap headphones for a decent balance but nothing so far has given me the full stereo span that I was expecting to hear. The HD 560S's do. I was really pleased with the results of one track proving that I didn't need to keep updating my gear. Just get a decent pair of headphones.I listened to a selection of tracks on my Fiio X5 through a Fiio HD preamp. Here's the results:1. My own recording produced a good bass without too much rumble and a fantastic stereo spread. All instruments were much clearer than on any other headphones I have (beyerdynamic, AKG etc)2. Message In A Bottle - The Police (More treble evident. Really brings out the flaws in the recording)3. We Rock - Dio (Better separation of instruments)4. Hocus Pocus - Focus (sounds better than I've ever heard it. Strange choices of stereo in some places)5. Magnu - Hawkwind (the two drummers are separated in a way I've never really been aware of before and are quickly lost in the mix. The vocals come across too loud on these headphones compared to my Beyerdynamics)6.Ommadawn - Mike Oldfield (I am hearing other instruments I had not noticed before. Very subtle but far more audible than on any of my previous headphones. The classical guitars sound really crisp. The bass parts are deep but not overbearing)I haven't tried these on my Onkyo amplifier yet. One thing I would like to add is that these headphones are quite tight and i have a small head (going from every other pair of headphones I have owned) so these might feel a little tight fitting for some. Although tight they are not uncomfortable. The cable is connected to a 1/4 " jack with an extended 3.5mm adapter. I guess this is a good idea as the connection to a larger plug is more substantial than to a 3.5mm and the adapter is 1/4" socket to 3.5mm with a short length of cable, giving enough flexibility for portable devices such as my Fiio HD preamp. I'm certainly not disappointed and will be looking to spend this kind of money again next time. Thank you Sennheiser.