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The HD555 and HD558 are about the same, with the HD558 the newer model. There are a number of articles / YouTube video's about how to upgrade the HD555 to HD595, and the HD558 to HD598. I would suggest you consider making these mods, like I have. My first set of cans was in 1964, and quickly upgraded to Koss Pro4s, then to Koss Pro4aa, then to Sony V6, then to Grados, Audio Technica, HD555 (w/o mods) HD555 (w/ mods), HD558 (w/mods, Bowers and Wilkans P5, and a highly modified pair of HD 650s. I think you can see a trend, a lot of Sennheiser Headphones. And yes I have all of them today and do my comparisons now primarily to the modified HD650's. HD555 Pros - out of the box these have a nice full sound, the bass sounds right (not over pushed), nice mids for voices, and nice clear highs. Very comfortable to wear for long periods of time, they fit nicely over the ears, and I use them primarily at my desk with reading glasses on a lot of the time or reviewing reading materials. Cons - they are open backed Headphones - and that means that people around you can and do hear what you are hearing to some degree. I use the Audio Technica closed back over the ear can when I don't want to share. Also you have to consider how or if you want to use these with a phone mike setup, if you do you can purchase a mic/switch setup from various sources. Now the big question - leave them alone or modify them? Now that I have one of each HD555's - it depends. But I do like the modified versions better. And have compared the modified HD555/558's to the HD595/598 versions - I don't hear a difference once the modifications are made. And the modifications are really easy, but do be careful and read/watch the instructions a few times before beginning them. Quality Headphones are kind of a waste on MP3/ITune material even in the highest bit width rip. Compared to the source you are missing something. But I also have uncompressed media, and they are really worth it then, and vinyl becomes special on a nice clean recording. Compared to other brands of headphones - the Beats, Candy, etc. for your phones are ok, but I find after an hour or so they wear on me. The bass is too much all of the time, and overall sound is not real. I borrowed a pair of over the ear, studio Beats - nicer than the regular models by far, but still not the sound of the Sennheisers. Compared to the Audio Technicas and B&W P5's - this is difficult comparison for the HD555s. Different, but all nice. Comparing the AT/B&W to HD650 - no comparison the Sennheiser's win on every level except they are closed back cans so if privacy is the issue look at other models or brands of headphones. Last con - you have to take care of any brand of headphones you have. They break. All of them in a different way, but once they break they are broken. The drivers can take a pounding but the connection near the ear is the failure point on all of them. If you are going to carry them, get the right model for your headphones. Also - what you care on an airplane can be a test of security so be warned. I carry a pair of noise reduction Sony's that flip and fold into my carry on or into my laptop case. Also purchase a set of various adapters so you can convert the 1/4 inch to mini, extension cords, and 1/4 to mini flex cords (about 6 inches in total length), etc.. You can find these on eBay, online, or at the local box store. Buy two sets one for home and one for on the road. Have fun!Read full review
Dear Reader, I recently purchased a set of Sennheiser HD555 headphones. Having read quite a few favourable reviews I thought for the money they sounded like a very good choice. Being the owner of only one other set of headphones in my life (40 yr old Pioneers) I wasn't sure what I was in for. My old Pioneers were really quite good and I always appreciated the clear, solid bass they provided. Now that I have heard these 555's I must say I'm a little disappionted. Though clean sounding and having an overall good sound stage, I'm really missing the bass of the old '70's made Pioneers. Listening to music on headphones has always been a cool way of hearing things that you just couldn't over loud speakers. I don't know if I can say that with these. If you are a sucker for HiFi you might want to go a little higher end. This review was a result of testing on a Onkyo 805 7.1 receiver and Rotel CD player. Hope this was useful. J.M.Read full review
If you are lazy, just go to the bottom section of the review: After reading a bunch of reviews on headphones. I decided these were the best you could get for the price. I have to say I think I got a lot more for the price. The sound quality is far superior to anything i've ever had, other than my Bose in-ear, which i'd say these are a little bit better. I previously had a Plantronics Gamecom 777 headset, these of course sound way better. They are Very light weight and much smaller than they appear in the pictures. The small light weight nature means the ear cups a smaller, and I have fairly large sized ears, luckily these just fit. Now never having heard or owned the 595's there is a modification you can make to these that supposedly makes it sound very similar to the 595's. Its simple to do these things are made to be able to take apart and replace parts and you simply remove some sticky pads blocking some of the holes, of course these will 'void' the warranty, I say that sarcastically as it would be no trouble to put the pads back in with any suspicion. Anyways I listened to them before the mod and after, it definitely enhances the sound. The mod make the bass a bit better and the other sounds are a bit more crisp. I'd like to also point out I am in no way an audiophile so take that enhances the sound as you may. But if your debating about the price for the sound, just know you can make it a bit better. So here is a list of pros and cons. ----------------------------------- Pros: -Lightweight -Great sound -Comfortable -Replaceable Parts ( Cushions, Mesh, Speaker wire ) -Easily modified for better sound Cons: -Leaks sound like crazy (Open ear, it means your neighbors around you can hear what you are listening to and you can hear them) -Long cable (Not really a con to some, but if you don't need a really long cable this will not provide that) -No inline volume control (I suspect most want to have something else control this but it does mean it lacks the convenience) I did want to note, this thing uses a 1/4 inch (6.4mm) jack, though it comes with an adapter for 1/8 inch (3.55mm) jack (1/8 inch (3.55mm) is the standard jack on mp3 players) Overall there are way too many reasons to get these and not enough not to for the price, assuming you can get these for under 130 USD like I did.Read full review
I purchased these headphones to replace a pair of Sony MDR V600's and the Razer Barracuda HP-1's. Movies and Music - These are not the greatest headphones for this application but they do the job well enough that I can't complain. They do lack a little in the lower frequency (bass) output, but it is still there. I would give these a 7/10 for music. Gaming - These headphones work very well in the gaming department. They way they are designed enables you to pinpoint in game sounds very well. The gunfire has a nice sharp sound and it doesn't mesh with the other sounds in the game. I prefer these over my 5.1 Razer barracuda's 9/10 for gaming. Overall, I am greatly satisfied with my purchase. I have had the headphones for over a week now and they do everything I need them to do. They are tight around your ears, but not too tight. The padding is covered with cloth only so nothing is going to flake off after a lot of use. They seem to very well built.Read full review
This headphone is well worth it's price. I do not know if it was any higher before but as of now, for around 120 USD, its amazing. You can use it out of the box without any use of amp, but it is definitely recommended that you do buy an amp. There is surround sound especially because the cups are huge and will fit even those with big or pointy ears etc, as well as accompany those with smaller ears. The padding is very soft and will not cause you any discomfort except for slight sweat. People with glasses will not complain as much as other companies, the padding is that nice. However, there are some discomforts as well as disavantage to this headphone as well. The jack is very big and seems was made to plug into an amp for sure because my Zune HD cannot bear the weight by itself and therefore must be in my pocket or on the table etc. Also, because its good, you can hear what bitrates your music was ripped on and therefore make you want to buy an amp. That is only a discomfort if you get really irked. The wire is too long and there is no additional accessories to this item. As for the neutral part of the headset, it is open ear, so there is no ANC, but it is more audiophile relevant. Not saying ANC is bad, but I'd say it muddles the quality. Otherwise the headset is amazing.Read full review
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