Sennheiser HD201 review

2012-08-14

Sennheiser HD201 review


Before starting this blog entry I want to mention that I do not consider myself as an audiophile  in any way though I listen to lots of music. Mostly it’s some kind of online internet radio streams and other lossy format (mp3, aac, ogg) audio files that I have a chance to get my hands on. In order to enjoy listening to my favourite music without interrupting fellow colleagues or disturbing everybody at home I am compelled to use headphones. Up until now I was using model ACME CD-920 just because I was lazy enough not to look for something more decent. Furthermore, these headset suited my needs just fine at that time. Everything changed when last scrap of material covering ear-cup fell of and having bare plastic rubbing against an ear seemed rather uncomfortable. I have found out that price is not the only specification which describes how good this piece of audio equipment really is then.

From the early stages of my quest to find a replacement headphones I only considered something from Sennheiser product line. I did not know how much cash I was eager to spend, but chances that I will buy something above $75 price range were slim. I even was not quite sure what type of headphones should I get - circum or supra-aural, open or closed back or maybe earphones or in-ear. Anyway, I made a decision not to spend more time on choosing cans than actually using them. I had a backup plan of listening music while I work at the office (and buying another, probably more expensive set) in case my pick happened to be not what I was really expecting for. I went with Sennheiser HD201 – entry level, closed back, circumaural type headphones. You can get them for $20-$25 in where I live in and that’s a bargain I must tell you! Some technical specifications are not what you may expect from top notch piece of audio equipment, but HD201s deliver more than you pay for. I will break this review down to basic points that attracted my attention.


Build quality – light, but solid. No annoying squeaking plastic sounds as in some rival sets I had a chance to test. Clamping force to the head is not too excessive even for people with bigger nobs. Pads are large enough to comfortably fit normal sized ears. These are closed back type headphones so be aware that some heat will accumulate while wearing them. I have tried listening to audio, watching my favorite TV series and playing some video games for a bit more than four hours straight and have not stepped over personal comfort threshold.
Cord is long enough to use HD201 with a computer, but seems to be too thin and fragile. Each ear pad has separate thread connected to it and this might get you tangled up at some point. This Sennheiser model is symmetric  and three plastic dots on the left outer side slightly above ear pad will help you put it on correctly in the dimly lit environment.
Sound quality and levels, according to manufacturer, is as near to source’s original as you can get in this price range. I cannot argue on that. Total bassheads might be disappointed, but music is not only about thumping bass anyway. Cans lack precision on very high volume, but it guarantees that costumer uses headphones instead of hearing aids.


All in all, go for Sennheiser HD201 if you do not want to spend insane amount of money. I strongly recommend you start from it and jump to another level only if you really have sharp and sensitive hearing and somehow you feel the deference between them hertzes and whatnots. I give these headphones strong A.

2 comments:

Patrulis said...

atvirai pasakius, tai ausines nevertos tu pinigu, mano 5 metu senumo Technics RP-F350 geriau groja, o jei nori paciu afigieniausiu ausiniu - beats audio pro, nieko geriau neesu girdejes

izmaelis said...

Lažinamės, kad ant aparatūros, prie kurios jungiamos tiek tavo Technics, tiek mano Sennheiser, klausantis pagrinde lossy audio nėra jokio skirtumo? Beje, reikia skirti ausines kiauragalviams bassheadams ir žmonėms, su normalia klausa.