El Scorcho 0 Report post Posted April 13, 2003 (edited) NB: Although I am writing purely as a consumer, I am compelled to highlight the fact that I am a retailer of Ultrasone headphones. OK, on to the review! My Ultrasone HFI-650 DVD Edition (DE) came this Friday, and I just finished running it in. The very first time I put it on, I found the press release to be very true: this thing really packs in more where the lower frequencies are concerned, but I found it too boomy for comfort. 24 hours later: The detail and soundstage have opened up quite a bit, but still boomy. I'm getting worried. 48 hours later: Most of the boominess is gone, and the sound seems to have settled nicely into the same level of performance as the HFI-650 Trackmaster ( TM ), except that the bass response is better. Despite Jan Meier's opinion that the gain in bass response results in a lsight loss in detail, I find the same level of detail in both versions of the HFI-650. 72 hours later: The verdict? The difference between the TM and the DE can be likened to the difference between the Grado SR60 and the SR80. Between the two, I like the DE more. The TM is still a very good sounding headphone, but I'd definitely trade it up for the increased bass response from the DE. The boominess is now gone; the bass is perceptibly more pronounced, but tight and controlled. That's not all. The DE also provides a better deal: it comes fixed with a 1/4" jack (more covenient for home users compared to the fixed 1/8" jack for the TM) but a 1/8" adaptor is also provided, together with a 4m long extension cord. And all this for a slight increase in price (compared to the bigger price jump from SR60 to SR80). Also, the light gold hue to the driver housing gives it a slight edge to the gray TM in terms of esthetics. Other than what I have mentioned, both the TM and DE have the same build quality and features. OK, that's it. Happy listening, ya'll. PS: The TM has a flatter, more analytical sound compared to the DE. Those who are drawn to the sound of AKG K501s and Sennheiser 590 will probably still prefer the TM to the DE. Edited April 14, 2003 by El Scorcho Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ablaze 0 Report post Posted April 14, 2003 thanks for the review Scorcho. interesting..hmm.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
