Sennheiser HD 280 Pro

[GMC79]

As My Grado SR 60's have recently developed a slight buzz/rattle in the Right side i have just purchased a pair of the 280 Pro's mainly due to WhatHiFi 5* review and that i found them for £59.99. (RRP £100)
I know they may not be better than the Grados but should be good enough for me. I will mainly use them for 50/50 split of late nite Music or TV/Gaming output from my Rotel amp as i found that to be better than direct into My Marantz CD or SONY TV.
Any views fom people who own or heard these phones?, are they "terrific all rounders" ?

Cheers

GC

[eviljohn2]

I really liked the sound they produced when I was testing a few sets of cans but unfortunately they were out of my price range. The bass is particularly detailed IMO.

Loads has been written about these both here and around the web and in general it's good.

[mattski73]

I tried the 280's in exchange for the Bose Triports (the headband had cracked for the 2nd time) and I was bitterly disappointed with them.

The bass was very recessed the mid and treble overbearing, I hated the sound, and for a Sennheiser product I was disappointed.

The worst problem was after 3 months of use the headband had cracks and stresses fractures. The shop accused me of folding them incorrectly, which was wrong because I never tried to fold them.

I should have gone for a pair of HD555's instead.

Dreadful disappointment overall!

[eviljohn2]

Originally Posted by mattski73

I should have gone for a pair of HD555's instead.

Interestingly, I didn't like the HD555's at all when I heard them. I thought they sounded just as you describe the HD280 Pro to be.

[mattski73]

after 3 months of use the headband had cracks and stresses fractures.

at least the headband would have stayed intact!

the 280's are just too heavy and cumbersome, but at the time i went to exchange my 2nd pair of Triports that was about the best option, so i had to run with it!

[AndrewB]

Originally Posted by mattski73

at least the headband would have stayed intact!

the 280's are just too heavy and cumbersome, but at the time i went to exchange my 2nd pair of Triports that was about the best option, so i had to run with it!

I have Grado SR80s, Senn HD280 Pros and Senn HD600 (and Senn HD25, Ety 6s, etc etc).

I like the 280 Pros very much. They are much comfier than the Grados. They have excellent isolation from ambient sounds. They are a bit rolled off in the bass and treble but still sound good. They are better with a headphone amp than driven direct from an iPod. Not as neutral as the 600s, not as much bass overemphasis as the 25s, not quite as FM rock sound as the SR80s. They are perhaps a bit bulky for travelling (I use the Etys for the train and plane) although they aren't too geeky looking. I prefer them to the more expensive HD25s, although the latter are good on stage for drum monitoring and I also use them for live mixing to check channels since they are pretty much bombproof.

Andrew

[Holden4th]

I bought my HD280s for their isolation properties as the noise cancelling phones I tested just didn't cut it for audio quality.

It's the detail that the 280s provides that really gets me, even in the bass. The bass is quite confusing at first and appears to be weak but this is not actually the case. What you're hearing is super accurate bass. I tested these with a couple of organ records and what had previously appeared to a strong low grumbling from the 32' and 64' pipes was differentiated into actual notes with these phones.

If you want bass that leaves your ears ringing then forget them, but for everything else........ go for it!

[Reano]

Originally Posted by AndrewB

I have Grado SR80s, Senn HD280 Pros and Senn HD600 (and Senn HD25, Ety 6s, etc etc).

I like the 280 Pros very much. They are much comfier than the Grados. They have excellent isolation from ambient sounds. They are a bit rolled off in the bass and treble but still sound good. They are better with a headphone amp than driven direct from an iPod. Not as neutral as the 600s, not as much bass overemphasis as the 25s, not quite as FM rock sound as the SR80s. They are perhaps a bit bulky for travelling (I use the Etys for the train and plane) although they aren't too geeky looking. I prefer them to the more expensive HD25s, although the latter are good on stage for drum monitoring and I also use them for live mixing to check channels since they are pretty much bombproof.

Andrew

Just in case you haven't brought I have a pair and use them for monitoring rather than listening to music playback (I prefer the 'opens' for this) and for that purpose they are very good.

[Trev S-J]

I have a pair of these based permanently in the bedroom (?)for the use of listening to the TV/DVD/DAB.I would agree with other posters that the noise cancelling attributes are an advantage but also the fact that your better half doesn`t have to put up with the "fizzy"sound of open backed phones not allowing her the full 8hrs beauty sleep she so richly deserves!!

By the way,my other phones are the 650`s(Kate Bush`s new album sounds astounding on them.)