Again, I talk more about this in the video but I really love the looks and the build quality is the usual "sennheiser build quality," (whatever that may mean to you). The Sennheiser HD 660S sounds so similar to the HD 58X Jubilee, but costs more than double the Jubilee. you’re almost never going to have an issue with any Amp/DAC paired with a 58X – something that makes it a great first purchase for budding audiophile snobs. Lovers of the Sennheiser HD6 series know this warm-ish and smooth-ish sound (the HD600 maybe not so much, but still).

The other reason for the quick review is IMO the HD58x isn't night-and-day different from other HD6 series models I've owned/tried. The bass extension is actually quite impressive for an open back, as it actually possesses somewhat proper sub bass.Due to the open construction, one cannot speak of an isolation, which makes the HD58X only limited suitable for the public, whether on the street or in the office. If the goal was to simply fix the HD800’s 6kHz peak, I think Drop would’ve gotten something on the same level of near-universal acclaim as their legendary HD6XX. This has always been apparent in 500-line headphones dating back to the earliest iteration, and the 560S, though a subtle upgrade from its older brothers, still mostly sounds exactly as you would expect; a bit dull, a bit boring, a bit. Again, in Sigrid’s “Everybody Knows”, Sigrid’s voice sounds so mellow and soft with the piano in the background playing a dark note with the occasional drum beats, the song was taken to a whole new level! The low-end is actually quite prominent for open-back headphones, making the Jubilee a joy to listen to.

Oh goodness, it changes a lot in value because the original version cost a lot more than this, and this is just a step behind the HD660s, in my opinion. The HD580 gave SENNHEISER a very good reputation in the audiophile world and was, so to speak, the starting signal for the success story. 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”. This becomes extremely apparent on my Heron 5 Solid State from Airist Audio and when I compare these two headphones directly. Yes, I like the way the HD600, 650/6xx and 660s show off their drivers housing, but this is way more refreshing.The HD58x is a bit dry in tonality and lacks sparkle in the treble and a thick, broad sense of bass response of the HD650/HD6xx. I discussed this a bit with regard to a track like Common’s “The Light” , one I’ve heard hundreds (if not thousands) of times since it came out in 2000. Even though I won’t be taking them outside of my apartment, still I will rather have it inside a case than it rolling around on the floor! It still features the “no wow” sound that I had described about the HD6xx (in my review of the Burson Play): no harsh, edgy mids, no nostrils-rumbling bass, no honey-sweet mids and no artificial soundstage.

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. For folks like me, (46 years old, with perfect hearing) just EQ it down a bit in the treble and it's fine.Yeah, the ‘stage with 600 series isn’t as wide as say AKG K7**, and as light, airy sounding either, but they’re decent deal for entry level hi-fi cans when purchased on sale if one enjoys warmed sound. 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. A few weeks ago, I got my ears around the Massdrop HD58x Jubilee and have been in a conundrum of my own ever since. Some people love the "vocals close to your ears" thing that a lot of Sennheisers do and I respect that, but I'm definitely not in that camp.

The HD58X is a bit more ‘dynamic’ and ‘fresher’ and thus do not sound the same but do have some similarities.The other thing is that the 58x is more closed-in sounding than either of these Fidelio headphones, which I find contributes to the fatigue. Now the HD8XX renders instruments in a long corridor (wide staging and all), but a corridor nonetheless.