Ask an audiophile to recommend a good pair of headphones for listening at home and there’s a good chance the Sennheiser HD 600 series will be included in their list of options. It’s been a staple among discerning listeners for over two decades, after all. The Sennheiser HD 660S2 is the newest addition to the line.
Addressing a common complaint with recent models, the new headphones have been injected with an extended sub bass, ensuring more power at the low-end of the spectrum. In fact, the outfit claims they doubled the sound pressure at the very lowest frequencies, resulting not just in a deeper bass, but more brilliant high frequencies and a richer overall soundstage. Basically, you won’t be left hanging at the low-end the way you could with the last couple of 600 series models.
The Sennheiser HD 660S2 retains the open-back design and lightweight body of previous models, along with the steel-mesh grilles that give you a peek at the tweaked 38mm transducers inside. However, it now has a higher impedance of 300 ohms, twice the 150 ohm of the original HD 660, with a lighter voice coil and surround, creating a higher magnetic force with a heightened speed and lower resonant frequency. According to the outfit, the sub-bass now extends the resonant frequency to 70 Hz from the 110 Hz of its predecessor, while grain has been severely reduced between the treble peaks. A new airflow structure was also implemented, which further minimizes distortion and eliminates any obstructive artifacts.
That new low-range, of course, combines with the warm, inviting signature of the original 660, along with the spatial positioning, musical clarity, and detailed sound that it delivered so well. With the new low-range sound in tow, Sennheiser claims listeners will be able to hear details they never did before from all frequencies, albeit with more presence in the lower registers right down to 8Hz. Just make sure you have similarly fancy DACs, DAPs, and headphone amps to really retain as much of the sound through the signal chain as possible to really squeeze the most out of these things.
The Sennheiser HD 660S2 is a wired pair of headphones, of course, so it’s not likely to be the pair of cans you’ll be wearing on your head when you take the subway or walk a block or so from the parking lot to the office. Plus, it’s open-back, so the sound will definitely be leaking, which people around you may not appreciate in publc. There’s no Bluetooth option, either, so this is strictly for audiophiles who want a good pair of cans for home listening. As such, it comes with a variety of 5.8-foot swappable cables and adapters, allowing it to work with different kinds of audio ports found in modern and vintage sound systems alike. Basically, if you own one of these and read a bit, you can fancy yourself to be some kind of music snob. Or something.
Want a pair? The Sennheiser HD 660S2 comes out February 21st, priced at $599.95.