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Massdrop x Sennheiser HD 6XX Headphones
$199
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Massdrop x Sennheiser HD 6XX Headphones
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Customer Reviews
4.8
(7,103 reviews)
5star(6,097)
4star(760)
3star(133)
2star(43)
1star(70)
By Feature
Build Quality
4.5
(435)
Sound
4.8
(434)
Comfort
4.5
(435)
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keyboard_arrow_downmrjr9
0
Jan 25, 2025
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening
Music Genres:Classical, Country, Jazz, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
Nice sound great
sound great seem to be built well
Recommends this product? Yes
stuntinbaron
0
Jan 24, 2025
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening, Gaming
Music Genres:Classical, Electronic, Hip-hop, Pop, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
Amazing audiophile starting point. Easier to drive than I'd been led to believe.
After spending a couple of months trying to figure out what my jumping off point for audiophile headphones should be I chose the 6XX. I did so because -- as someone who didn't have a reference point for what "good" is -- the 6XX is such a widely referenced and respected headphone that I knew it would be a wonderful tool for assessing the quality of my components, recordings, etc. It's absolutely that and more!
I'll also add that I was nervous it would be difficult to drive-- however, I've been able to get it providing great sound from every DAC I've tried it with. (Even an Xbox controller!)
Recommends this product? Yes
LessRiseXX
1
Jan 22, 2025
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening, Gaming, Movies & TV
Music Genres:Classical, Country, Electronic, Hip-hop, Jazz, Metal, Pop, R&B, Rock, World
checkVerified Buyer
A solid pair of open back headphones that can easily be your "Endgame"
The reliability, comfort, and sound quality of the HD 6-- series headphones for a much lower price!
These headphones do not excel in any particular metric, but they also do not do much of anything poorly either. They are a safe but still excellent choice for the money.
Other than a firm clamp force out of the box, which calms down over time, there is not much to complain about in terms of the build and comfort of this headphone. Some may not like the velour ear pads for how they feel, or they could be on the cramped side of things if you have larger ears. As a result, my review will primarily be about the sound quality.
A little caveat. Many say these are identical to the HD 650. This has not been my experience compared to my HD 650 which I previously owned. With both on new pads, this 6XX is sharper in the treble, and leaner in the bass, which is to say, an overall less warm headphone. But the difference is small enough that I can easily it is down to unit variation. You can easily get an HD 650 that sounds more akin to the HD 600, which is a category my particular HD 6XX falls into, and vice versa.
My points below are all my opinion.
What these do well in terms of sound quality:
Rich, thick, full bodied midrange with a good note weight, and very articulate.
Smooth treble that will allow for easy long listening sessions
Detail/Resolution chops that punch into a higher price category, even though the treble rounds the edges of different sounds, those sounds are still clearly heard and well textured. This is especially the case for the midrange and vocals, which can hang with much more expensive headphones in terms of texture and bringing out nuances throughout said midrange.
An intimate sound presentation that can make for a more personal experience, especially with vocals. Which are front and centre. It sounds like you are experiencing a private performance in a room.
Soundstage depth(Forward and backward) and imaging accuracy in the available space are quite good. This allows for good instrument separation/layering, despite how intimate and narrow the overall presentation is.
What these headphones struggle with:
Soundstage width and height, and broader imaging placement as a result are not strong suits of this headphone. At least compared to more open sounding headphones, the narrow presentation results in imaging that is very much on your left-centre-right with not much in between. For many, this can cause a feeling of a claustrophobic or messy sound where sounds are melded together.
Bass, particularly sub-bass is lacking. A bass-head will not like these headphones. While the mid-bass can provide some punch, it is generally a pretty hollow and pillowy sounding thump. With the sub-bass being lost in most modern tracks. While the tones might be heard, you won't feel anything.
"The Sennheiser veil" is a contended topic. I personally don't experience this, unless I switch back to this headphone from a very expensive and treble elevated HiFiMAN, or my HD 800 S after a week or so. But, you quickly re-adjust to the comfortable and inviting smoothness of the 6XX. With that said, many will hear this "Veil" and immediately be put off by the headphone and not wish to listen to it anymore. The treble is subdued compared to most audiophile headphones these days, some might not enjoy this, especially if their hearing is not so great, which can enhance this "Veil" even more.
Transient response(Speed) is not great. It can attribute to how natural everything sounds, but this can cause some bleeding of the bass notes into the midrange depending on the song. I should note, my 650 did this much more than my 6XX. My 600 does not do this.
The vocal forwardness can cause a shouty feeling for some. It can also get in the way of background instruments, which can enhance the "Veil" but this depends on your sensitivity to that region of the frequency response, which is around 1.5-3k.
Now for some comparisons that I think matter. Some might wonder whether to buy this, the HD 600, or something like the HiFiMAN Edition XS. They might also naturally wonder how it compares to Sennheiser's own top of the line offering, the HD 800 S.
Vs the HD 600:
Buy whichever is cheaper, which is likely the 6XX. Unit variation means you could get an identical headphone. The 600 is generally a bit clearer or "Less veiled" in the treble, and has leaner(Less impactful) but perhaps more tactile bass. But again, this was more so the case with my 650, less so with my 6XX, which sounds nye identical to my 600. Except the midrange is very slightly warmer and it is oh so slightly darker in the treble. Bass between my two units is basically the same. As a bonus, while the build of the 6XX isn't as polished, it is more robust feeling than the modern HD 600, as the new revised chassis of the 600 uses thinner plastic. The 6XX uses older molds of the HD 650, but I could be incorrect about this. It still feels more robust either way.
Vs the Edition XS:
The biggest pros of the Edition XS are the superior soundstage performance in every way, if that is your preference, and the much better extended bass, especially the sub-bass. Instrument separation is also noticeably improved due to more space to place those instruments in. Imaging as a result is also more accurate to the source overall, you have nuance in where things are placed.
The biggest cons of the Edition XS are the dip in the upper midrange. This can cause a hollow, thin or sterile presentation to some instruments, the richness and fullness from the 6XX is lost. The treble is elevated over the 6XX which improves clarity, but it can cause sibilance for those sensitive to it. This can of course be mitigated by EQ.
I do not necessarily find the Edition XS to be meaningfully more "Detailed" than the 6XX. Nothing worth mentioning as a point in upgrading or not. If you want the perceived clarity and sharpness of the Edition XS, increase the treble of the 6XX with EQ. Speaking of EQ, when you EQ these headphones to the same target(Such as Harman using Oratory's presets) These headphones become much more similar. The differences become a more open(Yes, EQ closes in the soundstage), airier sound with a bit more bass detail, slightly more bass extension, and treble clarity from the Edition XS.
Lastly, your $200 6XX might still be with you in 2035, that is insanely good value. The Edition XS might not even last you a full year.
When the 6XX is on sale for around $179-$199, the Edition XS is $100 more expensive as of January 2025. I would say the sound quality improvements stock could be appealing enough for some. But with EQ, there is too small of a difference to justify that price difference, in my opinion.
Vs the HD 800 S(This is a dumb comparison, but some may be curious):
The biggest pros of the HD 800 S, similar to the Edition XS are how the soundstage performance is once again better in every single way, except a step up from the Edition XS as well. The bass quality and quantity of the 800 S are also a noticeable improvement. It extends deeper and is more detailed, but it won't be satisfying for bass-heads like the Edition XS might, which still extends deeper than both. But the bass is muddier than the 800 S bass.
Instrument separation is otherworldly. It is so good that I had to speak about it separately. This gives an incredible sense of imaging performance too, everything is so clearly placed in its own position. Both of these are benefits of that soundstage, this is easily the best aspect of the 800 S, by far. It displays busy tracks without breaking a sweat, nothing ever melds together. This to me is a true head and shoulders improvement over the 6XX.
A controversial take: Detail/resolution is improved, but not to the extent some might have you think. It won't blow your mind, I think people hear the absolutely incredible instrument separation and attribute this to better "Detail" as no sound is ever stumbling over another one. There is improved texture to notes, and they are very well articulated, but it's not some insane leap over the 6XX. I truly believe that elevated treble does not mean improved "Detail"
If I throw a 4dB High Shelf filter at 4k on the 6XX, I will hear notes in the treble I did not hear beforehand, and the "Veil" or rounding of notes goes away. The 800 S rarely introduces new sounds to me that I cannot hear on the 6XX. But, there is more texture and note weight like I said.
The biggest con of the 800 S comes from the tonality/timbre. The elevated treble not only can cause sibilance for some, but that, the relatively subdued bass, and the dip around 1.5-2k causes a more lean and sterile/hollow sound signature that I do not think sounds the most natural. The ear gain is also relatively subdued, which can cause certain notes to sound quiet and too distant in some scenarios. It is not very engaging, but it also isn't very natural, like I said. With that said, this can be mitigated by EQ.
When EQ'ed to the same target, the differences still remain. This largely improves the 800 S due to fixing the timbre/tonality. The design of the headphone(Likely the angled drivers and distance between the driver and your ears) means that elevating the 1.5k-2k region does not ruin soundstaging/instrument separation performance. It becomes an improvement in basically every single metric over the 6XX. Whereas the 6XX only really gains bass and treble extension/detail(Due to loudness increase relative to the rest of the frequency response)
This is an odd comparison, but I know some will wonder if the 800 S is the next step to take. Know that while it improves upon the 6XX in every single metric(With EQ) it is around 8x more expensive than the 6XX. In my opinion, it is not even 2x better. I can't accurately put a scientific number on it, but using a personal metric, with EQ the overall upgrade is probably a 45-50% improvement. Almost all of that is in imaging, separation of sounds, and soundstage. Everything else is small and not worthwhile enough to include really, and probably makes up 5-10% of that at the most. It gets knocked down to around 30% without EQ, as I am not a fan of the stock tonality/timbre of the 800 S, personally.
Because of this, I think many can be comfortable buying a 6XX and being satisfied for life. Unless they one day crave something with a better soundstage, or better bass extension. Diminishing returns starts around the $150 mark, in my opinion, and the 6XX already punches above its $180-$220 asking price. Diminishing returns meaning you are not getting an improvement equal to the price increase. I didn't include HiFiMAN's more expensive planars as I find they are not meaningfully better than the 800 S or Edition XS.
Recommends this product? Yes
ThaWorlock
1
Jan 22, 2025
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening, Gaming
Music Genres:Classical, Hip-hop, Jazz, Metal, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
Great sound quality
Less bass than HD599 but a whole lot more detail. I love these headphones.
Recommends this product? Yes
hkxx
1
Jan 21, 2025
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening
Music Genres:Metal, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
Good sound quality
It feels like it fills in the lack of bass in the HD600.
Recommends this product? Yes
raffacol
2
Jan 20, 2025
Activities:Critical Listening
Music Genres:Classical, Jazz, Pop
checkVerified Buyer
Great value headphones
I initially approached these headphones with some doubt, expecting them to fall short of the renowned 650s. However, I was pleasantly surprised. While the clamping force might initially feel a bit strong, leading to slight discomfort after extended listening sessions, this tends to improve over time. In terms of sound quality, these headphones deliver an exceptional audio experience at this price point, surpassing any comparable options I've encountered.
Recommends this product? Yes
Am209666
0
Jan 18, 2025
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening, Gaming, Movies & TV
Music Genres:Classical, Country, Electronic, Hip-hop, Jazz, Metal, Pop, R&B, Rock, World
checkVerified Buyer
Great quality and sound
8.5/10 very decent pair of headphones
Recommends this product? Yes
DAX_merchant
1
Jan 14, 2025
Activities:Critical Listening
Music Genres:Classical, Electronic, Hip-hop, Jazz, Rock
checkVerified Buyer
BE CAREFUL
This product shipped with a faulty 3.5 to 1/4 inch adapter. This adapter likely had an internal short and fully destroyed both my Mytek Liberty and Schiit Kara, causing thousands of dollars of damage. It took me a long time to figure it out it was the adapter as I am usually a speaker listener and wanted to get into headphones. This meant I did not have other pairs to test out and honestly I didn't think it could be my adapter until two of my devices had already fell victim to this abomination.
Please be careful when using the adapter!
Recommends this product? No
agx77
0
Jan 6, 2025
Activities:Casual Listening
Music Genres:Pop
checkVerified Buyer
聴き疲れしない素晴らしいヘッドホン
何時間でも聴いてられるヘッドホン
Recommends this product? Yes
Aluminum
0
Jan 4, 2025
Activities:Casual Listening, Critical Listening, Gaming, Movies & TV
Music Genres:Classical, Country, Electronic, Hip-hop, Jazz, Metal, Pop, R&B, Rock, World
checkVerified Buyer
Amazing headphones
These are my first "Audiophile" headphones and they are absolutely a blast, although they sound better with an amp (as do all good headphones) they are still amazing amp-less and a great entry to the audiophile world.
Recommends this product? Yes
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