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Author Topic: HD518 Measurements and stuff  (Read 9635 times)

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donunus

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #50 on: February 28, 2014, 05:57:47 PM »

Just a few hours cookin and the highs have improved quite a bit like I assumed. For those that like to shout placebo, I assure you it is not. It was like a dt880 out of the box and now the highs are more like regular senns.
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ultrabike

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #51 on: February 28, 2014, 06:44:21 PM »

IMO it's a pretty awesome headphone for $79 (free shipping).
« Last Edit: February 28, 2014, 07:33:24 PM by ultrabike »
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TheCreeper

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #52 on: February 28, 2014, 07:40:57 PM »

Happy new headphone day!  :)p1  headbang
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funkmeister

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #53 on: March 01, 2014, 12:17:10 AM »

Just a few hours cookin and the highs have improved quite a bit like I assumed. For those that like to shout placebo, I assure you it is not. It was like a dt880 out of the box and now the highs are more like regular senns.

Burn in made a noticeable difference on some AKG K272HD's up to about 50 hours. I kept really good notes on it. Bass strengthened and tightened up, and soundstage tamed its weird where's-my-center-now? drift a bit. No discernible tonal change but detail improved. I checked every 8 or so hours comparing them to some well loved K171 Mk II's. Nothing changed between 56 and 64 hours so I quit at that point. On the other hand, burn-in did absolutely nothing so far as I could tell on a set of K142HD's. Weird, 'cause they use the same driver. :-Z

Enjoy the phones. They're definitely worth their price! 8)
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donunus

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #54 on: March 01, 2014, 08:50:53 PM »

I don't have my old 558s anymore but I think I may like these a little more due to the slightly richer upper bass region. The refinement seems to be about the same from how I remember the 558s. Very worthy cans indeed! I would say that these cans are good enough to keep me happy for a long time and being that they sell these for under $100 is an insane value. This is now my top recommendation for cans in this price range or even for double the price.

Neutralitywise, my old favorite, the Beyer dt250-250 may be a little better but these topple those down in terms of fun factor in terms of having better dynamics, presence/aliveness, airyness, and soundstage.
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donunus

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #55 on: March 01, 2014, 09:45:40 PM »

One thing that may be a plus or a minus for these are the fact that they tend to match better with the tonality of remastered albums more than early pressings. I think it is a plus for the intended customers though based on the fact that these are budget audiophile oriented cans. I think the average listener that doesn't nitpick about collecting old pressings of favorite albums from the 60s-90s will most likely have remasters/reissues or new cds/albums with modern mastering.
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Deep Funk

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #56 on: March 02, 2014, 12:34:21 AM »

The HD518, HD558 and HD598 have that warmish and even presentation that makes most music agreeable to listen to. Sennheiser knows how to get that presentation just right.

After short auditions I slightly preferred the HD558 due to a bit more detail for my ears. The retail price for the HD518 is very attractive at the moment.
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donunus

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #57 on: March 02, 2014, 03:51:52 AM »

Somewhere around 3khz the 558 bites a little too much for me. That was actually my major annoyance with them out of the box since I am very sensitive to 3 to 4khz peaks. Ultrabike's measurements got me interested due to the fact that the 518s seem to be free from that peak that the 558 has in that region. It turns out the measurements jive well with my ears. The additional bass is also nice to add punch since these 5xx series of cans aren't all that punchy to begin with.

Thanks Ultrabike for making this thread. It really reminded me that I needed to try them out and now I am a happy camper. Alternative to Classical to Jazz sounds stunning on these. They are raw and ready  headbang

The only thing that could be done to make these cans better is to maybe remove that 1.8khz dip and maybe have slightly less highs... I would pay over $300 just for those changes even though the cans aren't in that price tier when it comes to refinement.
« Last Edit: March 02, 2014, 06:21:30 AM by donunus »
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ultrabike

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #58 on: March 02, 2014, 06:26:42 AM »

Welcome mate! :money: and glad you like them.
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donunus

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Re: HD518 Measurements and stuff
« Reply #59 on: March 08, 2014, 03:55:35 AM »

I just put on some hd595 pads on the 518 and they just went up a level in refinement. The slight midbass boost is gone and the highs dont scream as much and the upper mids went up  up just enough to remove the veil. Perfect! I am not going back to the stock pads unless I want extra V-Boost :D
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