I tried these before they came out. Went into Sennheisers shop in Tokyo. They happen to have them there because they had just been at an audio show. I was luckily able to try them before most people could. And I compared them directly to the HD800S. While they were good, they were inferior to the 800S. (understandable due to being closed back) And the real problem is they also cost twice as much as the 800s. So I got the 800s instead.
A very objective comparison! After making several comparisons with some friends, we think that in terms of sound quality the HD820 is on par with the Utopia, LCD-5, HE1000se, the Stealth and others in this category. The scene was larger than the others in most cases although others had a bit more depth. An achievement for Sennheiser to offer these quality at its price.
I am a professional mastering engineer at Oslo Mastering. The HD 820 is excellent, The main cause of all the bad reviews are because they need a long run in time, and they are very picky about the amp and ohm adapt.. and also they need to be put correct on the ear. Huge difference in frequency response if you miss the sweetpoint.
I would like to add that they DO need EQ'd. I Have HD 800 and HD 820s and they both NEED a good DAC+Amp, and both benefit from EQ'ing, but i found that for the 820's they ABSOLUTELY needed EQ'ed in order to bring forward the more tempered ranges, i suspect that it requires it more than the 800 due to the design changes to transform the otherwise extremely balanced 800s into a new form which entails a closed-back nature - i feel like it somewhat hindered the overall internal ecosystem in which the drivers were originally built to exist in.
Great video! thoroughly enjoyed the dream of one day owning any of those headphones! my 8 year old HD600's will still have to be as high as my budget can go!
Great review. I recently tried these at my local dealer Bjorn's. I didn't have enough time or library choice to come to any conclusions but I found them interesting to listen w/. I need to go back w/ my own library after I get an adapter to connect to their dac/amp and really give these a longer listen.
I only had a fairly quick listen to this before and when i tried them, i thought they were quite good. I think the issue a lot of people had with them when it first came out was it was marketed as an HD800 which is closed back. It doesn't sound exactly like an HD800 which disappointed a lot of people on top of it's, at the time, ridiculous price tag. It's a bit cheaper now though and even cheaper if you can find one second-hand and if i had the budget for it, I'd definitely get one.
It's basically a $100 USD difference between the HD 800S and 820 nowadays which has me seriously considering the 820 (noisy neighbors and don't want to acoustically treat my whole room just for listening). Can't audit any of them where I'm at but I'll probably get the 820 when I get the chance.
Finally found a reviewer with a narrower head? Fit is one of my issues with the HD800S. Had to remediate it with thicker pads from Dekoni. Would likely to have similar issues with the HD820.
I recently got a pair of these. I'm happy with them, although I'm looking to get an rme adi 2 to drive them in the future. I'm not running them at full power currently and don't have any issues with them. The mistake people are making is comparing them to open back headphones, open back is usually superior to closed back to begin with. If you're looking for comfortable headphones that sound good at the high end of pricing these are a good option. I use mine for listening, silent guitar playing, and recording and they do a good job. The best way to improve the sound would be to use and equalizer, as the complaint seems to be about the midrange.
I just picked up a pair of these. They sound like for the music I listen too would be right up my alley. Like Polyphia and Plini and other LoFi melodic music. We shall see since Hi Def audio is very user dependent.
I dont know if this is appropriate, and I'm certainly late to the party. Have you ever done a video on which are the most popular sound signatures across the board, hi end to low end. I think it must be that v shaped signature. But is that difficult to do with headphones where money is no object. And also, I'm curious how manufacturers achieve that natural sound out of recordings, which must vary greatly in terms of quality and sound priorities. K- just asking. I love your videos !
Talking about closed back and how hard it is to make them well, what do you think about a replica of the mdr R10? ES labs is making a limited run (not intended, just by design of its material) of MDR R10 with all the same design, zelkova wood and all, it's just they can't find the same biodyna driver anymore thus the claimed 80% there in many of its reviews. Are you at all interested in sourcing a pair for review?
I wouldn't pay $500 for an R10. Years ago, I compared them to the original Audeze LCD-3, and the planar handily beat it. ZMF is doing bio-cellulose driver headphones now, so that is where I'd look personally if you want that kind of headphone. Still, it'd be interesting to see what they come up with.
Why not tho? Its not THAT expensive and actually are newly built with support for parts, it's much more of a sensible purchase if it's capable of getting the unique tuning of a headphone in it's time. ES Labs is even offering parts for MDR R10 owners if they want to replace parts of their Sony. I'd say with how often you reference the R10, it's worth the try, being the first one to introduce the replica on TH-cam, heck compare it with current 1-2K headphones to Summit Fi multi thousand usd headphones would be a nice video, no?
@@Currawong the head fi thread for it is just barely a week old as just 1 or 2 people got their sample now, famous R10 owner, Protoss planning to get a pair around next month seeing favorable reviews they got there. I'd say it's a much more interesting attempt at it than what Hifiman even tried with the He-R10 series. That thing, in comparison is just built atrocious ky with no relation at all both in sound and design. Hell having an R10 replica just sitting behind you in all the videos you make would be one heck of a conversation starter, especially for a headphone Channel like this. Certainly is a better convo maker than the MDR Z7.
I wouldn't buy an *original* R10 for $500. I'm interested in the HiFiMan planar though. If someone makes a new one for about ZMF money though, that would be interesting, especially if they essentially reproduce the original headphones.
@@Currawong well it kinda are ZMF money? The ES Labs R10 are 12.900 HKD, about 1.6K usd. And as said, they offer MDR R10 Owners parts if they want to replace something that broke in their Sony so at least physically, it's about the same. The thing that's observed to be different right now are the box, the earpads, and the Biodyna driver that's used.
@@Currawong Thanks you for your feedback. The 820 for me is like looking at music through a microscope. I've had a pair for the last 3 years and have tuned my electronic chain for the 820 to deliver more mid-range , lower frequency and warmth, with no loss of soundstage. After watching your review i see no need for me to replace the 820. Hoping to listen to the top headphones at Can Jam this year for the truth
Thats the thing... When you create something new you have to start from the scratch and not reuse parts like everyone on the market is doing with bad results.
My opinion and feeling after testing these is the following. Mids and treble were good and detail was nice but omg the bass. It gave me a feeling of being in a fish bowl. very unpleasant experience.
I think this is one of the most confusing reviews I’ve ever listened to. Too many numbers, too many comparisons and too much talk with too little objective information about the HD820s. Not many people can afford to try ten different pairs of phones in five different shops in five different locations. More direct information and less chatter needed. I’m an audiophile not a scientist. Sorry this is how I feel.
Timbre: the character or quality of a musical sound or voice, as distinct from its pitch and intensity. EQ only adjusts intensity at various pitches... that's all frequency response is able to measure, the graphs are literally an x-axis of pitch and y-axis of intensity.
They're about as big as AKG's headphones, maybe more compact since they have a D-shape instead of just going fully circular. Same goes for Audio Technica, Audeze, and a few other "full size" headphones. The Stax L300, L500, or L700 are larger I think, or at least more difficult to get a seal with their rectangular shape if you have a short jaw. For me, it wasn't difficult to get a seal with the HD 820... but it did take about 15-20 minutes to realize that I should try an off-centered placement, which immediately filled in the midbass and made it sound much better. Since then, it's been easy for me to find my "sweet spot."
I tried these before they came out. Went into Sennheisers shop in Tokyo. They happen to have them there because they had just been at an audio show. I was luckily able to try them before most people could. And I compared them directly to the HD800S. While they were good, they were inferior to the 800S. (understandable due to being closed back) And the real problem is they also cost twice as much as the 800s. So I got the 800s instead.
A very objective comparison!
After making several comparisons with some friends, we think that in terms of sound quality the HD820 is on par with the Utopia, LCD-5, HE1000se, the Stealth and others in this category. The scene was larger than the others in most cases although others had a bit more depth. An achievement for Sennheiser to offer these quality at its price.
I am a professional mastering engineer at Oslo Mastering. The HD 820 is excellent, The main cause of all the bad reviews are because they need a long run in time, and they are very picky about the amp and ohm adapt.. and also they need to be put correct on the ear. Huge difference in frequency response if you miss the sweetpoint.
Hi pro! Can I ask What amp that you recommend for hd820?
I would like to add that they DO need EQ'd. I Have HD 800 and HD 820s and they both NEED a good DAC+Amp, and both benefit from EQ'ing, but i found that for the 820's they ABSOLUTELY needed EQ'ed in order to bring forward the more tempered ranges, i suspect that it requires it more than the 800 due to the design changes to transform the otherwise extremely balanced 800s into a new form which entails a closed-back nature - i feel like it somewhat hindered the overall internal ecosystem in which the drivers were originally built to exist in.
@@Alan-ny5ngDidn't see you answer before now. I highly recommend RME, and i use babyface fs pro as mobile unit.
Great video! thoroughly enjoyed the dream of one day owning any of those headphones! my 8 year old HD600's will still have to be as high as my budget can go!
Best music reproduction =HD600 + otl tube amp. No need to spend more.
@@zzezzobike best music reproduction for this price.
Great review. I recently tried these at my local dealer Bjorn's. I didn't have enough time or library choice to come to any conclusions but I found them interesting to listen w/. I need to go back w/ my own library after I get an adapter to connect to their dac/amp and really give these a longer listen.
Classic Currawong bringing back the "Schhhhweeeeet Jane" in 2022!!! :D
Another 5 star level of well considered review, thanks man.
Much appreciated!
I only had a fairly quick listen to this before and when i tried them, i thought they were quite good. I think the issue a lot of people had with them when it first came out was it was marketed as an HD800 which is closed back. It doesn't sound exactly like an HD800 which disappointed a lot of people on top of it's, at the time, ridiculous price tag. It's a bit cheaper now though and even cheaper if you can find one second-hand and if i had the budget for it, I'd definitely get one.
It's basically a $100 USD difference between the HD 800S and 820 nowadays which has me seriously considering the 820 (noisy neighbors and don't want to acoustically treat my whole room just for listening).
Can't audit any of them where I'm at but I'll probably get the 820 when I get the chance.
Finally found a reviewer with a narrower head? Fit is one of my issues with the HD800S. Had to remediate it with thicker pads from Dekoni. Would likely to have similar issues with the HD820.
I recently got a pair of these. I'm happy with them, although I'm looking to get an rme adi 2 to drive them in the future. I'm not running them at full power currently and don't have any issues with them. The mistake people are making is comparing them to open back headphones, open back is usually superior to closed back to begin with.
If you're looking for comfortable headphones that sound good at the high end of pricing these are a good option. I use mine for listening, silent guitar playing, and recording and they do a good job. The best way to improve the sound would be to use and equalizer, as the complaint seems to be about the midrange.
Thanks for the great review! Curious as to when your DCA Stealth review will be available. I've had mine for some time and enjoy them quite a bit.
Thinking about getting these for listening to music and movies.
Saving up for a pair of these, but I definitely want to try them on first before I drop that much money.
There might be 2 batches of hd820. The launching batch is not very good but the ones that come later seem to be much better.
I just picked up a pair of these. They sound like for the music I listen too would be right up my alley. Like Polyphia and Plini and other LoFi melodic music. We shall see since Hi Def audio is very user dependent.
I think dekoni earpads would definitely fix a lot of the issues with the stock pads
When is the review for the stealth coming?
I dont know if this is appropriate, and I'm certainly late to the party. Have you ever done a video on which are the most popular sound signatures across the board, hi end to low end. I think it must be that v shaped signature. But is that difficult to do with headphones where money is no object. And also, I'm curious how manufacturers achieve that natural sound out of recordings, which must vary greatly in terms of quality and sound priorities. K- just asking. I love your videos !
That’s a nice looking cable you have on the HD820, where can I purchase a cable like that?
Norne Audio.
Talking about closed back and how hard it is to make them well, what do you think about a replica of the mdr R10? ES labs is making a limited run (not intended, just by design of its material) of MDR R10 with all the same design, zelkova wood and all, it's just they can't find the same biodyna driver anymore thus the claimed 80% there in many of its reviews.
Are you at all interested in sourcing a pair for review?
I wouldn't pay $500 for an R10. Years ago, I compared them to the original Audeze LCD-3, and the planar handily beat it. ZMF is doing bio-cellulose driver headphones now, so that is where I'd look personally if you want that kind of headphone. Still, it'd be interesting to see what they come up with.
Why not tho? Its not THAT expensive and actually are newly built with support for parts, it's much more of a sensible purchase if it's capable of getting the unique tuning of a headphone in it's time. ES Labs is even offering parts for MDR R10 owners if they want to replace parts of their Sony.
I'd say with how often you reference the R10, it's worth the try, being the first one to introduce the replica on TH-cam, heck compare it with current 1-2K headphones to Summit Fi multi thousand usd headphones would be a nice video, no?
@@Currawong the head fi thread for it is just barely a week old as just 1 or 2 people got their sample now, famous R10 owner, Protoss planning to get a pair around next month seeing favorable reviews they got there. I'd say it's a much more interesting attempt at it than what Hifiman even tried with the He-R10 series.
That thing, in comparison is just built atrocious ky with no relation at all both in sound and design.
Hell having an R10 replica just sitting behind you in all the videos you make would be one heck of a conversation starter, especially for a headphone Channel like this.
Certainly is a better convo maker than the MDR Z7.
I wouldn't buy an *original* R10 for $500. I'm interested in the HiFiMan planar though. If someone makes a new one for about ZMF money though, that would be interesting, especially if they essentially reproduce the original headphones.
@@Currawong well it kinda are ZMF money? The ES Labs R10 are 12.900 HKD, about 1.6K usd. And as said, they offer MDR R10 Owners parts if they want to replace something that broke in their Sony so at least physically, it's about the same.
The thing that's observed to be different right now are the box, the earpads, and the Biodyna driver that's used.
So improving the lower frequencies would have made these highly desirable considering the cost of the LCD 5 and dan clark's stealth?
The consistency of them, definitely. Some people have found them to have too much bass. I'm guessing that has to do with head shape.
@@Currawong Thanks you for your feedback. The 820 for me is like looking at music through a microscope. I've had a pair for the last 3 years and have tuned my electronic chain for the 820 to deliver more mid-range , lower frequency and warmth, with no loss of soundstage. After watching your review i see no need for me to replace the 820. Hoping to listen to the top headphones at Can Jam this year for the truth
My HD 800s are very good HP's. But the cable connectors to the headphone cup are the worst/dumbest setup going
More headphone reviews!!
Thats the thing... When you create something new you have to start from the scratch and not reuse parts like everyone on the market is doing with bad results.
Now try the new Diana TC!
1266 sound with the Phi Shell!
What is amplifier name, pleas. Thanks!
Headamp GS-X mini, if you're referring to the blue one.
Where are you from? I find you pronunciation of the "H" sound different than I have heard before.
Australia, but my family are all British.
MAYBE SOME OF US JUST HAVE WEIRD SHAPED HEADS ? LOL We need a more universal headband , is that what you are getting at ? I agree if so
My opinion and feeling after testing these is the following. Mids and treble were good and detail was nice but omg the bass. It gave me a feeling of being in a fish bowl. very unpleasant experience.
もしかして日本在住？ HD820のレビュー動画は少ないので参考になりました。
ありがとうございました。
Im still trying to figure out how these passed the tests in Sennheisers research department with such atrocious frequency response.
TOO MUCH SPACE NOW?? . JEESH
I think this is one of the most confusing reviews I’ve ever listened to.
Too many numbers, too many comparisons and too much talk with too little objective information about the HD820s.
Not many people can afford to try ten different pairs of phones in five different shops in five different locations.
More direct information and less chatter needed.
I’m an audiophile not a scientist.
Sorry this is how I feel.
Thank you for the feedback. What do you consider "objective information"?
Timbre it's all about frequency response. If the timbre isn't right use EQ.
Or buy a better headphone...
So you can EQ a planar timbre to something like HD650 or ZMF dynamics? You can't.
It’s not though. If I try EQ’ing a HD800S to the same FR as a HD650 they will not sound the same.
Timbre: the character or quality of a musical sound or voice, as distinct from its pitch and intensity.
EQ only adjusts intensity at various pitches... that's all frequency response is able to measure, the graphs are literally an x-axis of pitch and y-axis of intensity.
When high resolution is not enough you have to go high definition
These look the biggest headphones i ever seen. Maybe thats why people cant get a seal?
They're about as big as AKG's headphones, maybe more compact since they have a D-shape instead of just going fully circular. Same goes for Audio Technica, Audeze, and a few other "full size" headphones. The Stax L300, L500, or L700 are larger I think, or at least more difficult to get a seal with their rectangular shape if you have a short jaw. For me, it wasn't difficult to get a seal with the HD 820... but it did take about 15-20 minutes to realize that I should try an off-centered placement, which immediately filled in the midbass and made it sound much better. Since then, it's been easy for me to find my "sweet spot."
Long story short:
Hd820 Sound horrible!
HD8xx are a monstrosity.
Do not buy!
Try to listen!
Both hps demonstrate how to ruin a classic