HD6XX and HD600, What's the actual difference? MassDrop vs Sennheiser

For a long time I have wandered what the actual differences are between the Drop HD6XX and the Sennheiser HD600 so I saved up my pennies and got my hands on some to try to figure it out
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[@Yungchris760]

I just recieved my custom uber DT990's. I couldn't be happier. 😲🔥🔥I also never seen a UK postage stamp before😂. Thanks so much for including a threadable 1/4" adapter with my order as well. You sir are a legend!

[@joshbritton3268]

Thanks for doing this. Been so much conjecture on this topic online.

[@CustomCans]

Yes - I found some conflicting info online so thought I would check them out

[@garfycat2227]

This came up at an interesting time - I'm ordering my first pair of HD600 this week!

[@drewmorg.]

How'd you like them?

[@towsifshahriarshovo]

Great review man, enjoy your staffs. Please make a video about 58x. What's the main difference between those??

[@6643bear]

Hi great video, I just fitted your bass mod kit on the 6xx, great mod worjs very well. unfortunately the mass 6xx now don’t come in the nice hinged box , but now comes also 1.8m cable terminated with only 3.5mm jack plug and no 3.5mm to 1/4 “ adapter. The headphone are made in Romania also. Regards mark

[@CustomCans]

Ah.. .They are probably based on the newer HD650 now

[@6643bear]

@@CustomCans hi thanks for your reply, be great if you do the same bass mod on the hd660s now known s1 as sennheiser recently released the 660s2 as now they improved the lower end base response. Regards mark

[@LyK0sa]

That's kinda spooky Jason, I was thinking about picking up a 6XX while they're reduced, specifically to modify, so depending on how much you want for them that might save me a bit of time and effort. Also, if I did buy them, how much extra would you want to paint the headband and frame white?

[@CustomCans]

It would normally cost £80 for paintwork but I can probably do it cheaper on these. Pop an email to [e-mail] with FAO Jason in the title and I can give you a price

[@albertoposenato5931]

Hello, I have a question about the headphones Bayerdinamic amiron wireless. The driver right vibrates at the low frequencies. How can I do? Thank you guys for the answer!

[@CustomCans]

It they are under warranty, get beyer to look at them

[@ryanhostudio]

curious how the 58x vs 660s is, they have similar driver technology and impedance

[@CustomCans]

I think the 660 is similar to the HD700. The 58X looks quite different from the 600 series as far as the driver goes. The HD580 has the same kind of driver as the HD600 but the HD58X looks more like a HD280 driver

[@midisong]

About to watch your video. Can’t wait. But I also have to say that I miss the original Sennheiser’s with the faux marble head band. I have one original and the new generation HD 600s. I do hear a slight difference between those two and the comfort level of the EarPads on the originals were way better for me.

[@CustomCans]

That kind of thing always interests me. Is it that they have changed or is it that the pads soften up over time which slightly changes the sound ;) One interesting fact I found out talking to one of the designers at sennheiser... To get the paint to stick on the marble effect HD600s, they had to use a corona treatment on them. If you have not seen that process, it is like firing high frequency lightning at the surface. That then gives the surface a charge and makes the paint bond to it properly. It was crazy the lengths they went to to get that paint effect on them ;)

[@midisong]

@@CustomCans Extremely fascinating concerning the way they make the marble top. They definitely changed the EarPads material. I’ve already changed them twice in the past year. I use them for about 10 to 12 hours a day. They are not the original ear pads at all from years back. It’s OK. Such is life. Back in the day everything was made with more care and lasted longer. Not to sound negative but it seems like all companies are trying to cut corners to make more of a profit

[@drewmorg.]

@@midisong dang - thats about how much I wear headphones on a daily basis and changing pads twice a year is a lot! After only 3 weeks I'm noticing my 560S have permanent depressions in the pads where my head has shaped them. My ears are now touching the inside in ways that were not happening the first week I owned them. Not very cool!

[@AndreyAzimov]

I tried out a HD 25 copper cable with gold connectors on my HD 6XX headphones (I assume standard HD 6XX 1.8m cable is not copper). And it seemed to enhance the highs a bit (could be placebo too). I don't own a pair of HD 600S, but I'm guessing that this copper cable might change the HD 6XX sound slightly toward HD 600. If you have a chance, could you please give this a try and confirm if HD 25 copper cable can change the sound of HD 6XX? Thank you.

[@CustomCans]

The difference between cables is normally quite subtle. Unfortunatley we have sold out of 6xx now and won't be getting any more in

[@prodspyynz]

almost definitely placebo, better wires will usually just reduce any artifacts or fix unreliable connections, it will not be the cable itself changing the sound if it’s a modern cable

[@proffessasvids]

Pretty sure the aperiodic membrane material is different in the capsule body too. The original 600 driver had a demodulation ring in the centre of the pole piece. Sennheiser said the 650 driver had a new cone material and a heavier grill when they came out first. I wonder if you could weigh the drivers, capsules and grills to find out if there are anymore differences. Obviously manufacturing and materials use has changed over the years and I know measurements differ from unit to unit (even from the same manufacturing run). I have a set of 600 series capsules spare. I was thinking of getting your weight kit and then experimenting with different ppi filter membranes to see how that affects the response xx

[@CustomCans]

Unfortunately, Sennhesier split into two companies, one for consumer products and one for pro. Our contract is with the Pro side and the HD600 is now sold through the consumer side so we can't get hold of the parts any more. If we end up getting a separate contract with the consumer side and start stocking them again, I will do some more tests on the HD600 vs HD650 drivers but it probably won't be until next year

[@proffessasvids]

@CustomCans rgr that. Great vid BTW dude and thanks. I wonder if I can machine some depleted uranium for a driver weight lol. 🤔 xx

[@sunnypatri]

HD 600 Pros : - Very clear and detailed, it feels snappy. - Neutral sound which is why many like this. - Vocal is clear and forward. Cons: - Bass is not impactful as you find in a lots of review. - Soundstage feels definitely narrow and restricted, I could confirm this after hours of usage. - Not as enjoyable for a casual/normal user. That laid back and smoothness is missing. HD 6XX Pros: - Much better based and sounds fuller. - Soundstage is definitely better. - Very smooth and laid back tune that could be used for hours without fatigue. - Vocals are darker and recessed, if you like that. Cons: - Not as clear or detailed as you may feel when compared with HD 650 - Not neutral sound signature as HD 650 As my HD 6xx got damaged I ordered HD 600 after so many wonderful recommendations online but in short it is not as enjoyable and non-fatiguing . So will try now HD 660s or something which is more enjoyable and return HD 600. Considering enjoyability aspect in mind might be Sennheiser sound engineers tuning the subsequent versions of 600 series (650, 660s, 660s2 etc.) - Kudos to them for these wonderful Open-backs.

[@CustomCans]

You should try one of our tuning kits on them ... you can make them a whole lot more fun jfunk.org/wpc/product/hd600-hd650-cnc-copper-mass-loading-mod-diy-kit/

[@donvittoriosierra]

can you check the pads if they are identical. If they are, then the new hd600 is different from the old one with the sharper edged pads. The 6xx has a more rounded edged pad vs the old hd600 pad.

[@CustomCans]

Yes as far as I can tell the HD6XX pads are the same as the ones on the latest HD600 - they did have an update in 2020 so the older ones may have had different pads

[@Terra101]

They are both the new pads, you can see it on the transparent ring on the backside of them 6:39

[@bernaquinonezreveles2952]

The new HD600 has the same driver of the old HD600/580? I saw the new HD600 is 12hz-41khz and old HD600/580 are 12hz-38khz

[@calvinyip364]

Would like to see the hd58x. How does it compare to these 2. Since its newer

[@CustomCans]

Since covid, the cost of getting the drop stuff to the UK is a bit too expensive so we probably won't pay with them

[@puppetpianoanimationgaming8077]

Hey! - Thanks for the video. It's perhaps worth considering that the 6XX/650 drivers and the 600 drivers are not the same. It's not just the foams that make them sound different.

[@CustomCans]

That is not what we have found in our testing - we removed the foam from the HD600 and HD650 they sounded the same and as far as we could tell all the other parts are the same. What differences have you found?

[@CustomCans]

You have me intrigued now. We will do some frequency and waterfall plots on the them and compare them side by side to see if we can find any other differences

[@puppetpianoanimationgaming8077]

@@CustomCans Personally, I can't speak much to it! I only had a few days crossover with the 2 headphones. - & I only experimented with removing the rear foam on my HD650 after the HD600 had gone. That said - I don't see the the HD650 being capable of reproducing the slight shoutyness I heard in the HD600. But this is all anecdotal on my part... You may be the first person I'm aware of to suggest that the 600 and the 650/6XX use the same driver. Sorry to swing the burden of proof back to you (my conclusions are listening based, I may have a had a rogue unit or something)- Have you got any measurements?

[@CustomCans]

No - I may be wrong - I do not have golden ears so may not have just assumed they were the same other than the foam as they sounded very similar but it will be interesting to find out for certain. I will stick it in the mod video for these and try to get it uploaded next week

[@puppetpianoanimationgaming8077]

@@CustomCans They certainly do sound similar! Always intersting to get into the details with this kind of thing - looking forward to the video.

[@informedchoice2249]

Bless you thanks for that. Why didn't you provide a total cost of import duties??? Given the fact that they're $199 rather than £379 in the UK, it still seems like the Massdrop 6xx is massively better value. It would be been good to know how much of that difference was offset by duties.

[@CustomCans]

I am VAT registered so can claim most of it back but normally you would pay 20-30% in taxes and charges when importing something

[@informedchoice2249]

@@CustomCans Thanks. Some people, I've been reading, say often they often get through with no charge. It's luck of the draw to some I think. They certainly seem like a good deal. I was told they don't deliver to the UK and there's a forwarding company. Not sure why that is. An email to Mass Drop should clear that up. It's a minefield in terms of choice. Thanks for the reply 👍

[@PimpmasterMcGooby]

My friend thinks he can turn his HD650s into HD600s by taking the foam out and cutting it in half, then re-inserting it into the spider cage. He won't listen to reason, do you believe this would possibly work for him (his goal is 1:1 HD600 sound from his HD650s)?

[@CustomCans]

Yes.. but no need to cut it. The HD650 have 2 foam disks stacked on top of each other and the HD600 only has one. You would just need to separate them and stick one back in... Or better still, buy one of our mods for them ;)

[@Vokon]

i want to buy the HD600, but the problem is that you showed the new head band, but on amazon US, in the photos it shows the older head band

[@CustomCans]

That sound like a good excuse to support a local business and buy it from a physical shop where you can check which version they have in the flesh ;)

[@Vokon]

@@CustomCans i mean ofcourse if i had a store selling them where i live then i would, but i dont, these are not available where i am, so i have to import them.

[@CustomCans]

@@Vokon Yes, sorry - I forget how convenient it is to live in a tiny, densely packed country. Our houses are small but nothing is too far away ;) Sennheiser have not made the older style ones for over a year so any stock on Amazon should be the new style, they will just not have updated the pictures or if you buy them from a smaller online retailer, you can normally ask them to check the headband for you

[@donnytramp6955]

ye they are now using new molds for the hd 600s and hd 650s cuz the old ones are wearing out, 6xx are still using old molds

[@AuricularesArgentina]

GREAT VIDEOS BUT....I WOULD LOVE TO SEE SOME FREQUENCY MEASUREMENTS WITHOUT THE FOAM, THAT WILL SAY IF THEY SOUND EQUAL AS WELL

[@CustomCans]

Yes, I have taken some and they are very similar. I am waiting for some more to arrive so I can see if there is a genuine difference between the drivers, other then the foam, or the small difference I am seeing is just because every driver has a small variance from every other one

[@CustomCans]

Also... When I read all caps it makes me think the person is shouting.... Not sure if that was what you were going for 😁

[@AuricularesArgentina]

@@CustomCans jajaja sorry about that....

[@AuricularesArgentina]

@@CustomCans excellent, please show them when you can, i make my own headphones measurements with my stand, and i own the 6xx, thats why i would love to see if its worth the upgrade to the 600. check my measurements and reviews in ALEP MUSIC. thanks

[@shoppincreamz7901]

Are the headbands swappable?

[@CustomCans]

Yes, they are interchangable

[@musikus7092]

The difference is that the 6xx is a 650 not a 600

[@CustomCans]

pretty much ;) that is why I did not bother getting those out ;)

[@Terra101]

I believe the HD6xx are supposed to be compared to the HD650's. Said to sound the same etc. EDIT: Just watched the whole vid :)

[@CustomCans]

Yes, after pulling them apart, they are tuned the same as the HD650

[@Terra101]

@@CustomCans So is the tuning between the 600 and 650 only the foam in the back?

[@andrewbergamann7982]

@@Terra101 no.

[@Terra101]

@@andrewbergamann7982 Great, explain

[@mistersurrealist]

They literally ARE the HD 650s with a different paint job. It has been confirmed by Sennheiser themselves. It's even written on the bottom of the HD 6XX's box.

[@johnsmythe4956]

Yea but you should have compared the sound more! you know the most important part of headphones!

[@CustomCans]

I thought there were plenty of reviews and comparisons out there all ready and wanted give an explanation of the physical and technical differences. But I will take that on board for future videos

[@JohnSmith-zl8rz]

per $80 more I prefer the HD600

[@thepinkplushie]

I'm very confused by this comment section because at least in Canada the 6XX is $266, whereas the 600s are $500 and the 650s are $470. I know prices fluctuate but since the HD6XX are functionally just 650s with worse build quality but the same internals and capable of at least reaching the ballpark of 600s, they seem like an unbelievably good deal? For a little over half the price you certainly aren't getting only half the audio fidelity

[@JohnSmith-zl8rz]

@@thepinkplushie I pay $300 for the 600, I'm happy with.

[@jeofthevirtuoussand]

Hd600 every day

[@marcp.1752]

HD 650 every day

[@AA-bh3bz]

Behringer HPM1000 erry day

[@junzhang2087]

HD600 is much much more neutral than HD6xx. HD6xx is very muddy. Don’t know why. May be it’s is new and need break in.