Customer Reviews

Sennheiser HD500 Open Fusion Full-Size Headphones (Black)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Note to first reviewer - these headphones sound much better and go much louder when hooked up to a headphone amplifier, their primary intent was not to be run out of a regular headphone jack on a cd player or boom box. The HD490's or 495s would sound a bit better and a lot louder on your boom box, another good choice would be the Grado SR-60 for you.

I have owned my pair of HD500's for about 6 months now, and I have been very pleased with them. While not perfect, they sound much better then what you find in most stores.

These headphones are not bright at all but rather warm, and have a very laid back sound. They also tend to exagerate bass somewhat, which leads to a slightly boomy sound which I do not care for very much. (People who like loud bass read that last sentence as: These headphones do produce a lot of loud, deep bass, particularly when asked to do so) Those sound qualities make them good for electronic music, as they do not sound edgy or harsh, and bass is plentiful. They are not fatiguing to listen to at all, in part due to the laid back sound. (I have had them on for 5 hours straight)They also have excellent sound qualities for computer games too. Explosions have force, and imaging is very good too, so you will hear everything from where it is supposed to be coming from.

That said, these are the most comfortable headphones I have ever worn. If you are more the audiophile vareity I would personally reccomend the Sennheiser HD580s or the 600s, they have a much more neutral sound that colors the music a lot less. They also absoluely require an amplifier to get decent sound out of them.

Recently I had the opportunity to listen to the complete line of Sennheiser Headphones. The only difference between the HD500 through the HD600 is comfort. The more you spend the better comfort you get. The acoustics in the HD500 are outstanding. The HD500 sounded every bit as good as the more expensive line of Sennheiser headphones. For the money the HD500 series offers an outstanding value.

These phones are extremely comfortable, I love Sennheisers new "bionetic" design. However, these headphones are not what I would excpect for [the price]. The only genre I was comfortable listening to on them was Rock, and beyond that I felt the sounds was muddled and not very open. They have a somewhat strange "semi-open aire" design which is not standard. If you can afford them the Sennheiser HD-600's...are outstanding; however, for something nearer this price range, and usability I highly recomend the Grado SR-60's...They are less expensive, and sound much better.

I love these phones after using them for about 2 months. Initially, i was slightly dissapointed because to me they sounded slightly muffled. The reason for this is because i've always owned cheaper headphones that artificially coloured the sound to favour the mid/high frequencies. The HD500 does not do this. In fact, it's very neutral and quite a flat frequency response. As such, the sound doesn't immediately "jump" at you, and people are more likely to be less impressed when listening for the first time (especially those used to headphones that are more "trebley"). However, like the previous reviewer, i find that these headphones are not fatiguing at all. The clarity and frequency extension is wonderful. These are best driven with a headphone amplifier or out of a good receiver/amp. Those wishing to use portables either get an amp or buy the HD400 range of phones.

I bought them and later had to return.
These headphone are comfortable to wear and have all the usual Sennheiser stuff - like one ear detachable cord, easily replaceable parts and so on. They also represent low frequencies quite well, and are not easy to overload. But they TOTALLY suppress high frequencies. Some people believe that they just show you the true, uncolored sound. I think this is a mistake. You can compare the sound with the best headphons out there (like HD580) - and hear the difference. Of course you can use an equalizer to correct this problem - but hay, this is a Sennheiser, it's supposed to sound perfectly without ajustments.
By the way, HD570 have the opposite problem - they emphasize high frequences too much - which many people noticed and it's true.

As others have mentioned, these headphones tend to emphasize the bass and sound too boomy for classical music or acoustic. But, if you're into heavy electronica, this is actually not bad. I got these at a decent bargain, so they were worth that price for the comfort and the decent sound. The Sennheiser SR60s may be a better choice for those who listen to lots of classical over their 'phones. For pop and electronica, I love these for the punch.

There are very few electronics devices I have purchased that deserve more praise than these headphones. I use them for both gaming and music enjoyment. I have a Creative Nomad II and it doesn't have any trouble running them. Best bang for the buck that I've found.

It's a risk buying headphones over the internet because you can't hear the sound or feel the comfort. I had a less than satisfying experence with a set of Aiwa headphones. After reading of few customer reviews I took a chance on the Sennheiser Hd500. These are easily the best mid priced headphones I've tried. For the average listener who likes to crank it up now and then this is what you want. I can't possibly imagine what you get by spending more money. The sound is rich and clear while being very light and comfortable. These make the "old Standard" Koss pro AA pale in comparison.

The sound from these headphones is really nice, especially for the price that amazon.com provided. They do handle everything fed to them. They sound great through my home system and I use them at work with my Sony Walkman CD player. Even though they have 30 ohms resistance, don't let that make you hesitate to use them with portable players. You only have to raise the sound level a little over the regular Sony headphones that come with the CD player. With the bass at half output you will also get plenty of deep bass. Don't be afraid of the plastic construction, either. I am sure they will last as long as you don't go sky-diving with them on!! The ear cushions are very comfortable and the way the earpieces swivel I am sure they will fit any odd-shaped skull. My only complaint and the reason I didn't give these 5 stars is concerning the headband. The padding there feels too firm and I don't have as much hair on top of the ol' cranium these days to give me that extra margin of padding. I will be looking for some softer material to add to the headband cushioning! Try listening to George Benson's "Breezin'" CD for some very nice musical deep bass tones. Even at "half-bass" setting these headphones will put a smile on your face. They do equally well with male or female voices, too.

I read a bunch of reviews about these 'phones before I bought them. To a person the rap was the bass was too strong. BULL. Put them on,plug them in and hear stuff you never heard in your music. Granted I"m an old guy and I grew up on rock and roll.(Thats real music played by real musicians; see bonnie riatt,john hyatt,little feat,led zeppelin,CSNY,STONES) You can put these babies on and just relish in the sound;natural and as it was intended. These are great 'phones. I tried them on my pc(audigy2 sound card) and on my Yamaha home theater receiver. The music was as good or better than I can get from my Klipsch or B&W Loudspeakers. Not at the least bass heavy. If you dont like the bass response then adjust your setup! Ive had Koss and Sony high end headphones and these are much better in their clean reproduction of sound. These are honest. The price was unbelievable ($49) Very comfortableto wear for a good stretch of time. BUY THESE 'PHONES.