Sennheiser HD58X Open Back Professional Jubilee Headphones - Black

Product Information

It doesn’t feel like air, but it’s also not that noticeable when it’s sitting on your head. COMFORT SCORE: A BUILD SCORE: A+ The bass in these headphones is one of the best, if not THE best I have heard from any pair of headphones at this price! This review is not intended to be a shootout between the HD6XX and the HD58X. Both have their right to exist. point. Nevertheless the comparison is obvious. The HD58X radiates more energy and also has the slightly better extension in the low frequency range. Due to the clearer focus on the upper mids due to the somewhat restrained lower treble range compared to the HD6XX, the absolute balance gets a bit lost, but still, the HD58X strives for a neutral sound with a slight warmth. In the way of raw fidelity, the HD6xx scales so much with superior gear that it makes it the better overall value for audiophiles. The HD58x is the better value for casual listeners who don’t have an expensive rig.

Disclaimer: The Massdrop x Sennheiser HD 58X Jubilee was sent to us a sample in exchange for our honest opinion and does not have to be returned. We thank Massdrop for this opportunity. With the HD580x, you get a sense of height that is noticeably more prominent than the width factor, which hurts separation of instruments and makes it more of a vocalist’s ideal headphone and not one suited for wide sounding recordings. so if you’re OCD like me or @Metal571, you’ll have to collapse both into their starting positions and then count, sort of like this: Again - the main problem they run into is the greatness of the HD600 for a little more money. Take those out of the equation and these are a no brainer. They also get close to those, but not quite as resolving. It is tight, fast paced, energetic and the best part is it does all that without bleeding into the mids. Plus, the rumble of the bass on these headphones are just incredible! Sennheiser has done an extraordinary job on tuning these headphones.Also, due to this tight fit, the headphones won’t come of your heads like the HD 598SE does! So, you won’t have any type of fit issues like you had with the HD 598SE (where if you even sneezed, the headphones would’ve come flying off of your head!). Neutrality: HD598 > DT990 > HD58X > HD650 (I felt the HD 650 tends to gravitate towards darkness, whereas the HD598 were the most neutral and flat sounding in the bunch with the HD 58X somewhere in the middle with its liveliness in its sound signature) So we don't get much, but the most necessary things, which is also quite sufficient with regard to the price. Here, the headphones themselves are clearly in the foreground, and even without accessories, the price would justify itself for me. The HD58X is even 40 € cheaper than the HD6XX. Midrange: Onto midrange, this is the highlight of these headphones. The midrange is very good on these, in almost every category. Mids and vocals have a fantastic amount of presence. Vocals never sound shouty or overly present, but they have this degree of separation from the rest of the music which allows for them to shine through in a way which is hard to explain with words. If you’ve never heard the midrange of a Sennheiser 6 series, it’s hard to explain. In a way, vocals sound completely clear in every song, but are never harsh or overly in your face. The S and T region of vocals are also never sibilant, as these headphones have a very natural sounding vocal presentation. The timbre is extremely natural and is the closest to a vocal in real life that I’ve heard. The midrange is very slightly more forward overall then the treble response and bass response though, so vocals will be more present then a flat response. In terms of warmth, these are more warm then other headphones, and that applies to most of the midrange, especially vocals. It’s an enjoyable warmth though, and isn’t muddy. For detail and separation in midrange, these do a very good job for the price, but not nearly as good as the 6XX. It is impressive though especially regarding how the treble response is on the darker side. Due to the treble response being darker though, acoustic music as well as orchestral isn’t fantastic on these, but it is passable I’d say. As a whole, the midrange is very impressive, especially for the price, and especially for vocals. Even though it isn’t perfect, it is very impressive, and among the best I’ve heard in a headphone.

The fit is still north of snug (read: it can feel like a vice grip at first), but does open up over time. Treble Response: Wrapping up the frequency response, we have treble. The treble response on these is the weakest performer out of all three aspects in this headphone in my opinion. It’s not bad at all, but considering how much of an all rounder the 58X is, I’d say the treble is the weakest, but this is a matter of opinion as it is still very good. In terms of the brightness of it, it’s on the darker side. It’s not the most energetic treble response due to the fairly large dip in the early to mid treble. This ends up making these very easy to listen to music on, which although is a good thing, also results in these sounding less fun and engaging to listen too. Another important aspect is that the treble response is never sibilant, and when I say never, I genuinely mean never. Unless something is recorded badly, it is never sibilant. Due to how the treble is darker then the midrange, this ends up making these sound very balanced. Sometimes, they can sound slightly boring at times due to the significant neutrality of the sound signature, but this is a matter of personal preference. The treble is also quite detailed even though it’s not particularly bright. It also sounds quite natural most of the time, but there’s this sparkle to it which some people describe as grain in these, but to me personally it doesn’t sound grainy at all, it sounds sparkly and extra detailed at this particular range where this sparkle occurs. It’s mostly noticeable with high hats, and that’s about it. Overall the response is great, I just wish it was slightly brighter and more energetic.Soundstage is one of the most peculiar things about the 58X, and something I was fairly surprised by.

Out of the box, clamping force is very strong so use them for a couple days before returning them (they feel a lot better after a week or so) Now the sound is so detailed I don't really feel like I'm listening on headphones. The only thing that reminds me I'm not hearing full-sized speakers is the soundstage that isn't, of course, as large and deep as real full-sized speakers would provide. But the sound is really amazing. The treble feels identical when using my Shanling M5s DAP by itself and then using the same DAP as a source through my Heron 5. The same test with the HD6xx yields a superior sound quality everywhere when paired with a great amplifier. So if you don’t have a great amp, the HD58x is probably the better choice for you. FidelityThe problem for some is that the direction of said sounds can be a bit hard to pinpoint, but I personally don’t have much of an issue with it. Film There are more examples, of course, but at the end of the day there is very little to argue in favour of the HD8XX’s tonal balance. It has the Hifiman centre-mid dip taken to an almost caricatural level that I’ve never heard in another headphone before, so while meaner fellows like I would brand the HD8XX as a terrible, no-good, very-bad headphone, the nicer amongst you may perhaps call it “unique-sounding”. On lower end gear, the gap between quality overall in bass between these two is not significant at all and sometimes feels too close to call which is objectively cleaner. The HD58x Jubilee has very low to end of moderate levels of bass quantity and doesn’t respond very well to bass boosting. If you are a basshead, grab a set of JVC SZ2000’s, haha! Sennheiser has done a splendid job in the mids' department! After listening to these headphones did I realize my old HD 598SE actually had the classic veil that Sennheiser was known and sometimes despised for. These headphones have much more full-bodied mids than the HD 598SE and even though these have more forward mids than the HD 598SE, they never felt shouty and too much “in your face”.

The mids have a good presence and play clearly and directly. However, I find them a bit demanding in the upper range with a slight shrillness in some songs. But they have the desired energy, which I sometimes miss on HD6XX. Vocals are a bit more in the foreground and have mostly a natural timbre, but are sometimes a bit garish, which can lead to symptoms of fatigue. Qualitatively they are however in sum quite high, both in resolution and tonal. However, you should keep an eye on the volume. This midrange presentation can be a curse and a blessing at the same time, especially if you love vocals. But for me the (upper) mids are still absolutely in the tolerable range. Extra Notes: In terms of EQ, these take EQ extremely well. The driver doesn’t distort at all from my experience, and you can literally put a bass shelf on these with absolutely no issues. These can turn into a v shape headphone if you want, so in terms of EQ, these are absolutely killer. These take treble boosts as well with no issues. Overall they are great in terms of EQ. For music production these are also quite good, as they are very balanced, although the darker treble response is a slight issue with music production. the 560S is almost too correct if that makes sense (read: it can sound kind of dull), while the HD58X adds some coloration to the mix (more on that in a bit). Mids are sharp, very nice to listen to, the lows go really low and the highs are crisp but the overall sound is still non-fatiguing, I can use these headphones for hours without any problem.However, the mids are a bit glaring and not as deep relaxed as on the HD6XX. In return, the HD58X sounds more lively and direct in its response, but I would attest the HD6XX a slightly better resolution, even if it doesn't have the clarity of the HD58X in comparison.