Will Sennheiser’s latest audiophile headphones become a cult classic?
Over-ear headphones | £499 | whf.cm/HD660S2
There aren’t many headphones with as much heritage and history as the Sennheiser HD 600. The fact that you can still waltz onto the Sennheiser website and buy a pair, despite the model being well over 20 years old, just goes to show that they are still a respected icon and part of the headphone-market furniture.
Over the years, a number of new versions have launched, including the HD 650 and HD 660; and here on test we have the very latest iteration, the Sennheiser HD 660S2.
These headphones cost £499, which puts them in the premium wired headphones category. Their most natural rival would be the Beyerdynamic Amiron (£545), although at this level prices are quite spread out and you can find excellent options if you spend a little more – and even a little less. It really depends on your budget.
Anyone familiar with this series of audiophile headphones will know the formula here. The Sennheiser HD 660S2 have an open-back over-ear design, and this model sports a 38mm driver complete with an ultra-light aluminium voice coil.
Peer through the perforated grille that covers the outer part of the headphones and you can see part of the inner workings behind the driver. The HD 660S2 use a vented magnet system to minimise distortion – Sennheiser has paid a lot of attention to the system used on these particular headphones to optimise the way air flows around the drive unit.
Enveloping comfort
On the earpieces themselves you will find plush, generously sized velour earpads which are easy on your ears – it’s like slipping your feet into a pair of posh (and very comfortable) slippers. During testing, the Sennheisers don’t struggle to envelop our ears and create a solid seal. Along the headband, the padding isn’t quite as generous, but it’s soft and springy, so you don’t feel any unwanted pressure on the top of your head.
At just 260g, the HD 660S2 aren’t exactly heavy (Beyerdynamic’s Amiron headphones are 340g) and they don’t weigh us down during testing. Out of the box, it’s worth noting the clamping weight is a little on the firm side, but there isn’t too much pressure and over time we expect this to relax a little.
To get the earpieces positioned evenly you need to manipulate the left and right sliders – they are a little stiff, but once you get them in the right place you are unlikely to find yourself needing to play around with the positioning.
In the box you get a 1.8m-long headphone cab
