Let me start by saying I don't wear headphones around my neck to make a fashion statement. I don't care about bright fluorescent colors to attract attention or giant logos covering the speaker sides to show what brand I'm wearing. I care about sound quality, durability, comfort and nothing else. Like my title says, this is my first time buying Sennheiser, in headphones or earphones. I've used Creative, JVC, Sony, Bose and a few other more random brands. Creative is my go-to brand for earphones, I want to test some Sennheiser earphones to see how they compare, but for now, it's about these beautiful 558s.
I know it's not a major factor, but the box the 558s come in is actually quite nice, very sleek and modern but still classy. The packaging was fantastic, a plastic mold holding the cans with foam padding to protect more important features. I'm actually still using the plastic mold and foam padding to hold the headphones when not in use. Let's get to the headphones.
Design:
The cable is actually 1/4" plug but comes with a 1/8" adapter for standard audio jacks. If you don't know, a 1/4" jack is mainly for stereo systems etc. The cable can also twist off from the headphones themselves if you ever need to replace it, extremely handy. Cable length is about 3m so it goes a fair distance. I read a few complaints about this, but the 558s are meant for home use, not for the casual jog etc (which was the main complaint). The headband doesn't make any cracking sounds or anything on my pair, but I believe this issue was around it's entrance into the market and since then Sennheiser has fixed that issue. The padding on both the headband and earpads is phenomenal and has a very customizable headband. I have never experienced such comfort. I can listen to straight music for hours and never have discomfort. These are an open-air design, so you won't block loud background noise and they will have quite a bit of sound leakage. They are by no means noise-canceling, make sure you don't get the 558s if you're looking for that.
Sound Quality:
Continuing on the open-air design, this provides the crystal clear sound. Nothing sounds muffled or distorted like what happens sometimes with closed-back headphones. The only issue with open-air is of course, the sound leakage but bass isn't as prominent as closed-back. Now, I personally think the bass on the 558s is the perfect range, just enough to hear the heavy bass and feel the rest. That being said, many people prefer the booming bass that overpowers much of the music (dubstep etc). If booming bass is what you're looking for, you may want to steer clear of the 558s. On the opposite end, the treble and mid-ranges are perfection. I'm use to guitars blending a little too much into the music and not being a prominent as I'd like. The earphones/cans I've tried lack the ability to separate the guitar and many times, particularly with my metal collection, the sound starts to distort. So far the 558s have not shown this problem once! My biggest love of these headphones has to be what it does for drums. I'm a drummer myself so naturally I tend to focus greatly on that instrument in music. Cymbals (especially the ride/hi-hats) and snare are crisp, bass drum is just enough punch and the toms, I can't even describe how good toms sound. For once I can hear each individual tom.
I only describe drums and guitar/bass because I really can't think of a way to describe Vocals or Piano. But vocals shine through and piano/keyboard have never sounded better.
I've tested the 558s on a variety of genres; rock based, alternative, punk, ska, blues, reggae, metal (including Gothic metal where the 558s absolutely kill the vocals), Progression based music even Techno. Any genre other than rap, pop/hip-hop and country (sorry to fans of those genres).
I was shocked how much better the 558s performed over the bose headphones which are double the price, not to mention the others. Sennheiser has won me over as a customer almost instantly after I got the 558s. I can't imagine what their advanced headphones can do, like the 700 HDs. My only complaint, but I had a feeling this would be the case when I got them, was sound quality on low quality systems. I would hear a crackling and popping while listening to music on my PC but the stereo (receiver set up) was perfect. At the time my PC had only on-board sound. I was debating between either a headphone amp or a new soundcard anyway since on-board is horrible. I decided to go with the Asus DG Xonar which was specified for gaming but a few reviews said it was audiophile quality and it has a headphone amp built in! Its a cheap card but does it ever change the sound, the crackling etc was fixed and the headphones sounded just as good on my PC as they did on the receiver/stereo. As a bonus, the Xonar came with software to put Equalizer (or EQ) on my system! I now have a perfect EQ that made these 558s even better (if you decide to get the Xonar I slightly tweaked its preset Jazz setting, that is a great EQ just on its own). That card is audiophile quality and is it ever good for gaming too (I also play Guild Wars 2/Battlefield 3 with it using a Turtle Beach headset).
If you decide to go with the 558s and are looking for a replacement to on-board PC sound, give the Xonar a look. It's cheap but very high quality. I also have a review on that card up as well.
Thanks for reading!
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This Item  Sennheiser HD 558 Headphones |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $379.99 | -6% $127.25 Typical price: $134.90 | -23% $154.54 List Price: $199.95 | -13% $199.94 List: $229.25 | $19.88 | -27% $109.00 List: $149.00 |
| Delivery | Get it May 10 - 15 | Get it May 2 - 15 | Get it May 2 - 15 | Get it as soon as Tuesday, Apr 30 | Get it as soon as Tuesday, Apr 30 | Get it as soon as Tuesday, Apr 30 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Sound quality | ||||||
| Noise cancellation | ||||||
| Quality of material | ||||||
| Comfort | ||||||
| Sold By | I.R.N. GROUP LLC | Amazon Japan | Amazon Japan | BrandsWalk | Pranx | HIFIMAN |
| connectivity tech | Wired | Wired | Wireless | Wired | Wireless | Wired |
| headphones form factor | Over Ear | Over Ear | Over Ear | Over Ear | Tri-fold | — |
| connector type | 3 5mm Jack | 3.5mm Jack | 3.5mm Jack | 1/4-inch, 3.5mm Jack | plug-in,wireless | 6.35mm Jack |
| headphones jack | 3.5 mm Jack | 3.5 mm Jack | 3.5 mm Jack | 3.5 mm Jack | — | 3.5 mm Jack |
| cable feature | Detachable | Retractable | Detachable | Detachable | Without Cable, Retractable | Detachable |
| control type | Media Control | — | Volume Control | control | Volume Control | Media Control |
| material | Plastic | プラスチック | Aluminum | Velour | — | — |
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Just how amazing IS the sound from these headphones?
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Sennheiser HD 558 Headphones
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Had many headphones but this is the best up to date
Well I had owned previous Sennhesisser 201HD headphones which sound great but was a bit lacking in bass, also owned phillips shl9560 (good bass but unconfortable, cancels out noice also),shp2500 (great in all aspects, cheap but not suitable for mp3 and portable devices)But getting back to the Sennhessier HD 558: Overall 4 1/2 /5 starsCons: For the price slightly unconfortable (I have a really big head) but having said that they are quite comfortable never the less lots of soft coushins. The uncomfortable part is that they really press against your head, I sort of got used to it but never the less bring it up.The 3.5mm adapter is quite big, therefore the headphone is suitable for home use only.Pros:Really Long cableIdeal for mp3 devices if you want to listen at home.Great for movies is like having a Dolby surround system on your head, you really feel like part of the movie with these. When in rainforest you can hear the birds singing in the forest it feels like your there.Also great to use with skype if you already have a microphone it feels like the person your talking to is in front of you.For music has the right amount of bass that lacks the hd 201, speakers are quite powerfull, sound are very clear and music depends on the quality of the recording. Some radios on the internet transmit Dolby which sound great on these headphones.When I first got them I was a bit dissapointed because they sounded quite a lot of like the hd 201, but once I burnt them in the difference was quite noticable. They are great for all types of music regae, clasical heavy metal and specially for movie soundtracks. Also they are great to listen to dvd videos that have Dolby surround sound included like live concerts.A lot of reviews say they are great headphones for gamers, I have not personally used them for games but I have no doubt they perform well in this type of scenario.They didn't get 5 stars because like I stated previously I have a really big head and are a bit uncomfortable but this is not that bad either.String instruments sound out of this world, and live concert and recorded music sound awoseme.They are built from a strong and flexible plastic, that will last for years to came. Cable can be unplugged from headphones which is good if you have pets in your house which like to chew on things.In summary I feel this was a great purchase it took 2 months to burn them in but once that period passed you will hear that this headphones sound great.
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Reviewed in the United States on September 30, 2012
Product Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States on April 28, 2014
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Top reviews from other countries
Cliente de Amazon
Como pude vivir todo este tiempo usando audífonos "gamers"
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Furanku
Un casque parfait pour l'écoute prolongée
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Blown Away!
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RickS
Eine lange Odyssee hat VORERST ein Ende!
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Josh Walnut
Very nice headphones
Reviewed in Canada on February 5, 2013Product Packaging: Standard PackagingVerified Purchase
