Sennheiser HD-485 :: Full review w/ pics (56k warning)

Make: Sennheiser
Model: HD-485

Purchased price: $79.99 + $4.99shipping
Link to item: HD-485's @ Newegg

Hey guys whats up. After my Plantronic .Audio 80's died, I was on the search for a new pair of headphones. Not wanting just another generic pair, I came to you guys. First I was pointed to the HD201's. Disatisfied with the bass and comfort, I looked again. I was told about the HD497's but I wanted cloth pads so I chanced it and went for the HD485's. I've never written a full review and I'm a rather unexperienced audiophile if one at all so I ask that you bear with me . On to the review.

The box that it came in was pretty cool. It split open in the front and the "doors" swung open to reveal a beatiful set of cans that I was very excited to recieve.






Here is a shot of the headphones, cable, and headphone hanger it came with. The cable is nice and thick and is also detechable from the headphones themselves. So if you wanna hang them somewhere the cord doesn't reach, you can just unplug it that way and store it.






Here's a close up of the headphone stand and a pic of it in use. I'm glad it came with one. Now I can put stuff on top of my comp.








Here's a shot of the ear cups. They're SOOOOOO comfy!!!! The moment I put them on, I knew I found what I was looking for. I find them to be a more secure fit and more comfy than my friend's HD555's. The HD555's had a little part that would touch my ear and bend it a little making it slightly sore, but this has to be my odd shaped ears to thank. Even beside the fact my ears are weird, these are incredibly comfortable headphones.








Here's some pics of the HD485's side by side the HD555's for comparison.








Sound evaluation:

Ok ok.....enough boring you with pictures and on to how they sound . This is the part I'm afraid to talk about because sound is subjective and I haven't heard that many headphones. I'm running an Audigy 2 with a Pioneer SA-950 stereo amp. Here we go....


Overall, they simple sound great. Very clear and crisp. At first, the mids were subdued but i was expecting this and sure enough, they started coming through with use and is now good. I personally like the sound of a lower mid range so they're perfect. One of my high priorities in picking a pair of cans was bass. I wanted very pronounced, clean bass and boy do these deliver. The bass goes deep and is very smooth. Distortion is there at high volumes, but I'd never listen at those volumes. Right now I'm listening to the Newboys who have a clear sound and low bass on some songs and it sounds GREAT. The low bass hits come through wonderfully. The treble is fantastic as well. I have yet to here a crackling or any twangy sound like some other headphones. The positioning is really nice. It's much better than those stupid Kinyo 5.1 headphones I tried awhile ago. Compared to the HD555's, they don't sound quite as "full" and the range is obviously not a broad. The bass on either is very close to each other, but the HD555's seemed to have slightly tighter bass. I gave those back to my friend a little while ago so I kinda forgot what the HD555's sounded like. Hope that gives you some idea.


Conclusion :

Coming from a series of cheap headphones, these are a blessing. Amazing all around sound and wonderful, low bass. I can wear these for hours on end and have no problems or sweaty pads thanks to the cloth ear cups. The included headphone hanger is a nice plus and is useful in my case. If you're like me and you want haedphones that are 1. comfortable 2. have lots of bass with no distortion and 3. are under 100 bucks; then I see no reason to get anything else.

Thanks for reading and I hope this helps someone in their decision.

- LunchboX

Nice pictures. You're well on your way to becoming an audiophile with all these headphones you're trying. Personally I love the HD555s. The sound is almost like the 595s for about half the price and the 595s are my favorite cans (that I've tried thus far). Generally speaking, the velour pads are supposed to be the most comfortable, but I guess your ears maybe a little large and hitting the inside of the can (or the spatializer gadget). The 485s look like they have a bit of room inside. That headphone stand looks really cool. I wish Sennheiser would have included it with the HD5xx/6xx series. For the ultimate sound, try playing around with an EQ.

As soon as i started using HD-590s, i loved them and now i swear by them. I call them my "Wall Hacks" for CS, unfourtanetly i play too much with the volume too high and will be needing to send them in b/c they are crackling.

How do they sound compared to the 555s?

Originally Posted by Svperstar

How do they sound compared to the 555s?

I was waiting for this too after seeing the picture of them both side-by-side.

added a little bit for comparison, but keep in mind that i briefly listened to the HD555's after I got my 485's..............ya, they're that nice

What I'd like is someone posting a head to head comparison with a HD515 and HD497. The HD555 is like $50-70 more than the HD485 so I wouldn't be surprised that it sounded better too.

Another interesting question is how are these for portable use. How much do they improve with an amp vs without?

Thx for taking the time to review and compare for us. I had considered getting a set of hd555's to replace my current secondary set, maybe i'll audition the hd485's at the same time.


Oh yea, couldn't help but notice this statement:

Originally Posted by LunchboX3904

The positioning is really nice. It's much better than those stupid Kinyo 5.1 headphones I tried awhile ago.

QFT, If i've said it once i've said it a thousand times, you don't need 6 speakers taped to your head to get positional audio

heehee

hahaha ya......i learned the hard way atleast I've learned. It's funy to think that no high end audio product makers produce 5.1 headphones......this is why.


About use on a portable:

I used it for a 3-day trip with just my old Magnavox cd player and it works just fine. They got plenty loud and the bass was still there. They distorted above volumes 9 out of 10 or up, but not bad and I'm sure it's the player's fault. They look a little stupid on your head (sticks out some), but they stay on there when you bend over to pick something up. I like to have adjustments that my portables don't have so I won't be using it with them much.

Great review! It almost makes me want to buy some new headphones Although my HD497s should do for a while.

Nice review but it's time as a sticky has ended.
5 veiws in 4 days means it's hit a point where just about every one of the regular visitors to this section has read it.

Congrats to you and your phones for making the [H]ard|OCP front page.

http://www.hardocp.com/image.html?im...NfMV8xX2wuanBn

LMAO.......awesome. I remember seeing a flash, then my friend telling me someone just took a pic of my sign. lol.

thanks for the link......

i picked these up on newegg thanks to your recommendation, just wanted to say that so far i really really like them. they're infinitely better than what i had, which maybe means if i ever get $200 headphones they will be infinitely better than these. even if they're not the best headphones that money can buy, the price was right, i have better places to spend the money at the moment.

Wow I like that Headphone Mounting thing. Anyone see that on sale seperately anywhere?

http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/6055/pics0105gr.jpg

Originally Posted by tim_m

i picked these up on newegg thanks to your recommendation, just wanted to say that so far i really really like them. they're infinitely better than what i had, which maybe means if i ever get $200 headphones they will be infinitely better than these. even if they're not the best headphones that money can buy, the price was right, i have better places to spend the money at the moment.

glad you like em and that i could help out. makes it worth writing the review.

Wow I like that Headphone Mounting thing. Anyone see that on sale seperately anywhere?

I haven't seen em anywhere but in the package. I'd give you mine but I like it too.

What do you guys think are better cans? I was thinking buying these icemats but I stumbled into this thread and now I am considering these 485's. I need some new headphones for music and 5.1 gaming through the XFI soundcard.

http://www.+++++++/JRProductPage.process?Product=4050045


pretty good price on these icemats.

Originally Posted by xxBlackCrossxx

What do you guys think are better cans? I was thinking buying these icemats but I stumbled into this thread and now I am considering these 485's. I need some new headphones for music and 5.1 gaming through the XFI soundcard.

http://www.+++++++/JRProductPage.process?Product=4050045


pretty good price on these icemats.

I don't know anything about Icemats, but I do know that Sennheiser probably makes some of the best heaphones in the world (there are other good companies too though), I would definantly go for the Sennheisers if I were you, and event though they aren't 5.1, they do provide good directional sound (or at least my HD-497's do).

cool thanks for reply. yeah, the icemats are supposedly really good. there are tons of reviews if you google them. but those 485 look great as well.

thanks.

thx for the review op, might be interested in picking 1 up