Needing a new pair of headphones, my previous pair being stood on and smashed by a drunken me, I searched on-line and in the shops and decided upon the Sennheiser HD25’s. They were certainly not the cheapest on offer, at the top end of my budget coming in at just under £125 from Superfi about ... Read review
A review by purpleduck on Sennheiser HD 25 February 14th, 2004
Author's product rating:
Sound Quality
Excellent
Comfort
Excellent
Looks & Design
Good
Durability
Excellent
Value for Money
Satisfactory
Advantages:
Comfort, Quality, Availability of spares .
Disadvantages:
Cord a bit short .
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Needing a new pair of headphones, my previous pair being stood on and smashed by a drunken me, I searched on-line and in the shops and decided upon the Sennheiser HD25’s. They were certainly not the cheapest on offer, at the top end of my budget coming in at just under £125 from Superfi about 6 months ago. (I have seen them online now for £99 at Djstore.co.uk)
I am not a DJ, nor do I profess to be, but I selected these since they appear very hard wearing, and offer exceptional hi-fi sound quality with comfort.
Upon removal from the box, I was delighted with the overall professional build quality; ‘made in Ireland’ was silk-screened on the headband, I would have thought they would have been made in Deutschland!
Every part of the headphones appears interchangeable, drive units, pads, cable and headband, certain on-line stores can supply these quite readily making the HD-25 truly user serviceable – ideal for the demands of the professional ear phone wearer.
The headband can be split down the middle, offering great support – these won’t fall of your head will dancing around like a Muppet. The cord is made of steel cable for tensile strength and has a solid cable grip facility on the right hand side, this could be a problem since most people are right handed it could get in the way if used with mixing deck (or they could be just worn back to front). The cord has a right angle 3.5mm jack, supplied with a 1 / 4 “ adapter both are high quality nickel plated , both drive units terminate at the other end with 2 – pin spade connectors for easy cable/drive unit replacement. The cord is a little on the short side at 1.5M for general use, I think it must have been kept deliberately short to avoid entanglement – but this is also great for plugging into your MP3 or MiniDisc player, beware walking round the streets wearing these will get you mugged! The left had pad can be twisted through 180 degrees leaning the left ear naked, I believe this is for DJ monitoring purposes and general posing, I find it useful if trying to engage in a conversation whilst wearing headphones.
The general comfort of the HD-25’s is exceptional, the only problem I had was forgetting I was wearing them and walking off nearly dragging the amp from its shelf. They weigh about 150g, probably less than your average hat; though please don’t quote me on this - also the ear pressure the pads apply to your ears is approx 3N according to some technical data I read, so they won't crush your skull. The soft PVC ear-pads ‘superaural-ear-coupling’ give outstanding attenuation from outside noise-source, put it this way, my next door neighbours are having there house re-pebble dashed, wearing the HD-25’s I can’t hear a thing, and that is without playing anything through them, cant find any -db figures for this, but it must be near industrial ear-protector level.
Now lets get to the important bit, what do they sound like? Well, upon a visit to Superfi, I listened to several types of headphones in the shop, some more expensive, and of ‘domestic type’, some cheaper including the HD-25’s cousin the HD-25-SP, this HD-25 stood out a mile in my opinion. The 70ohm impedance drive units deliver a frequency response of 16-22,000 Hz at the –3db point, this is quite acceptable for my none bat like hearing. In effect to human ear pick up about 20-20,000 Hz, this is before 20 years of abuse like mine have had. The bottom is rich and smooth without ‘boomy-ness’ of some other phones. The top end is crisp without ‘hissy-ness’ mid range is clear a lyrical. Could not get them to noticably distort with amp turned up full. These are indeed true professional monitor headphones, so any distortion/modification of sound would be unacceptable. A word of warning, the extreme comfort is listening and wearing may encourage you to crank up the amp, do this at your own peril; ‘What?’ was my favourite word for a week or two after buying these.
If you do not have the budget for these, go for the cheaper HD-25-sp at half the price have a 3M cable, but reduced frequency response (they are a but ‘boomy’) and lack interchangeability – but still a great headphone.
IN GENERAL: Highly recommended, if only a bit pricey. The only pair of phones you will ever need, for Pro’s and music lovers alike. Top end hi-fi snobs may cock a snoop at these – but don’t believe them.
Advantages: Loud, clear, isolate brilliantly, light, comfy, user replaceable parts. Disadvantages: Expensive, not as good looking as some headphones (as if it matters).
Put simply, the Sennheiser HD25's are the best DJ headphones ever made. Forget Sony's flash but flimsy MDR700's, Pioneer's HD1000's, Ministry/Ixos' 1001's or the Technics 1200 range, Sennheiser have crafted the ideal tool for the DJ, wherever he or she might be playing.
This becomes apparent the instant you try a pair of HD25's. Unbelievably light, at just 140g, they fit any head like a glove, and the cups rest nicely on the ears, although not covering ... ...Sonys and Pioneers, but the Sennheiser HD25's comprehensively outperform these, and just about every other DJ headphone on the market in the areas which matter most to the DJ - sound reproduction, clarity, isolation and comfort. That's why they're the choice of many a top jock, and why I've just ordered a pair. In any case, I don't mind the design, in fact I quite like it - it's simple and effective.
At £99 current RRP they may not be cheap, but ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: great lasting quality Disadvantages: the price
These headphones are very light with a good long cord aimed for djing
but also for hifi use!These headphones are quite expensive at £85 pounds but i think there worth it because of the excellent sound quality!They also are very popular and are used by some of the best DJs around.You dont have to turn up the volume on these because of there unique sound!The sennheisers are very comftable to wear as you would expect for the price.They give you great ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
I bought a set of these headphones for primarily using for DJing. They are very expensive compared to your average set of headphones as they cost with little change from £90. The headphones are of industrial standard as every component is replaceable. This means they are very well designed as the headphones cable themselves plug into the speaker units so when a cable connection breaks you can replace just the lead, if a head phone breaks you can ... ...years and they are still going strong. This is excellent, as I seem to break other manufacturers headphones very easily before purchasing this set. The sound quality is reasonable as they are suited to DJing.
The only drawback I find is that the cable always seems to curl up and gets tangled which is a pain when mixing and having to untangle them after a mix. However they are very light and comfortable to use and all these features show that they ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Amazing quality, volume and comfort Disadvantages: not really attractive - but functional, drains battery on portable devices
These headphones are pretty much industry standard for DJ's and sound engineers alike. I've heard from some friends that they're not that great if you're producing/mastering tracks but in terms of listening - they're are the dogs proverbials.
Amazing frequency responce at both ends and incredible volume with no distortion. I've used these at home, at parties and in bars whilst DJing and i've never struggled to hear over a soundsystem with them on.
... ...player and you can forget sound cancelling when you're on the train - these are such a snug fit that all exterior sound is drowned out or blocked. (not safe - look where you're going and wait for the green man before you cross the road).
Generally they dont look that exciting but when u spend £100 on headphones you're probably after quality of the sound than the way they look.
The splitting headband is very comfortable and the adjustable headphones ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: comfortable, excellent frequency response, sound amazing! Disadvantages: cable only one metre long - but it is solid steel!
But don't let my apparent bias turn you off. I dj, so when i listen to music or am cueing up a tune, i want a representation of the sounds that is real. That's exactly what the HD25s do for you. The drivers in these babies accent the bass, mid and treble alike, so well that make whatever you're listening to sound so crystal clear that you will never want to take them off again. They are very comfy to wear, with the ear cups and the split head band ... ...to and not feel bad/get sweaty ears. Everything on these is detachable and replaceable so any wear and tear need not mean the end of your favourite cans. Have had mine for three years of near constant use and the pading round the ear cups has torn a little, but know i can replace them for around 16GBP. The cable isn't one of those nasty coily things thats going to grow into a chaotic ball of knots given time either. It's solid steel, so signal delivery ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Superior Sound at any level Disadvantages: Cable a bit too short; could be a little more comfortable
...I own a pair of Sennheiser headphone that a mate of mine bought off ebay three years ago and they are just amazing. The sound quality is second to none and especially when I'm listening to the latest DVD releases. Just check the bass on these things; it's just as though I'm in the cinema when played on my portable DVD player and the sound is just deafening with no distortion from mid range to high no matter how hard you push them.
Build quality is not flashy, but is durable and small and near impossible to break; just the cable is a bit short but you can get a cable extension lead to fit. IV'e tested these againgst other headphones and they come out tops and for the price, you would have to pay a lot, lot more. Highly recommended...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Good flexibility, excellent quilty Disadvantages: Small Cups
...Iv used many sets of d.j headphones from cheap tacky £8.99 ones right up to the best from Sony and Sennheiser.
Overall I would have to say for the price quality, flexibility and sound from the hd25 sp's they are definitely my headphone of choice and would go as far to say that the sp's are infact a better buy then the hd25's. The hd25's are the more expensive of the pair and are quite hard to use compared with the flexibility of the sp's.
Simple, flexible and not over complicated the hd25 sp's don?t look all that fancy and are quite small in comparison with some of the other pairs of high end headphones in the same price range but they don?t half pack a punch in build and sound quality made in Ireland these are a definite solid and quality buy.
With detachable and adjustable cups the hd25 sps can be bent in shape to any ones...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful
Advantages: Robust, very comfortable, good value Disadvantages: Bass is a bit low, sound isolation is not great
...I originally bought these headphones to travel with as they seemed a cheap option in case something happened to them.
However, I still use them regularly to this day (after 3 years) because they turned out to be much better than I expected. The sound quality is good enough, with fairly clear treble and mids, and sufficient bass, though nowhere near as much bass as many other headphones, even those at the same price.
They are very comfortable to wear, even for long periods at a time. They don't cling to your ears like the SennheiserHD25 headphones but what is lost in sound isolation is more than made up for by the comfort.
They are also robust, and lightweight. Despite having carried them to all sorts of places, they are almost like new, and the cable still functions perfectly despite being dragged through mud and bent around.
One...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
03.11.2004
