HD 555

I have some HD555s as well, had them since 2010 I think. Use them everyday for work!

I’ve had the same pair of Sennheiser HD555’s since 2006. Buy a quality product and take care of it and they last.

Hi I have the sennheiser 555, money is not that much of problem, just a normal one and I can put a little more on that. Anyone have a suggestion?

I consider discontinued HD330 (later HD465 I think) as the best on-ears I've heard, but they are pain to refurbish - no direct replacement for earpads or rubber/silicone headband strap (straps can still be in good condition though). There is a higher model HD340 / HD475 which I haven't tried, nor anything Grado. I consider the above to be better than 60Ohm Koss (not a comparison really), or the very popular HD480 Classic II, or some more current lower-mid level over-ears like HD559, but not as good as say HD555/558/579. I might pick them over HD599 though, just because I don't like the bloated tonality of HD599. So all in all, it is still not the level of hundreds of dollars, but very usable.

I disagree, try using like Creative Aurvana Live SE and you will only be able to tell the 4 cardinal directions, and with Koss Porta Pro any remote explosion will sound like right on you. I can't count the times I was accused of wallhack because I used HD555, and likewise, cant count times I have won because I had them. Good headphones won't make you automatically good, but all things equal, if players know how to play by the sound (that is also a skill), there can be surprisingly big difference. It can be the difference between hearing the enemy is in the next room, and actually rushing in and prefiring the exact spot.

User made frequency response measurement of MMX 330 Pro, DT900 Pro X and DT990 Pro X [https://gadgetrytech.squig.link/headsets/?share=beyerdynamic\_MMX\_330\_Pro,beyerdynamic\_DT\_900\_Pro\_X,beyerdynamic\_DT\_990\_Pro\_X](https://gadgetrytech.squig.link/headsets/?share=beyerdynamic_MMX_330_Pro,beyerdynamic_DT_900_Pro_X,beyerdynamic_DT_990_Pro_X) DT990 Pro X seem to be likely the sharpest. DT900 Pro X seem a bit more sharp than MMX 330 Pro due to peak around 7kHz, but also thicker from mids down. Depending to what part you adjust your loudness level it might differ a bit between those headphones, but even if you align treble peak and bass, then MMX 330 Pro has just more in the presence area. Again, can't really say anything without hearing, but if I was to order without trying, and with the idea of returning them if they aren't good, I might try MMX 330 Pro out of the three. That said I'm Sennheiser person, and only play comptetitive fps on neutral signature open backs (unfortunately I'm not up to speed with all the newly released models). When I tried DT770 Pro 80Ohm, it felt like it is more of a competition to $50 Philips SHP9500 (actually friend who owns those DT770, bought SHP9500 after we made a comparison) :P

You don't really have to worry about impedance unless you would want to use some super low impedance IEMs. I've checked the spec, but I can't find power output of your player, that is a weird thing to omit when they output impedance and even IMD listed. Since it is based on CS43198, it should be able to get 2Vrms from unbalanced and 4Vrms from balanced into high impedance loads, but if there is more or what is the output into low impedance is unknown. Given the price of the device I would mail/call their support and demand exact information about output power. Anyway if the 250Ohm recommendation you got was DT770/880/990 then, that would not be a very good one as those headphones work only with unbalanced connection and their 250Ohm variant needs 2.5Vrms to reach 110dB SPL (loudness). So among Beyerdynamics models an 80Ohm variants (so only DT770/990, as there is no 80Ohm DT880) would be much better pick since they only require 1.4Vrms for that. You should be fine with anything from Sennheiser from 500 series, so HD560S/505/550, including possibly HD58X from american Drop store, and also HD490 Pro. I would not recommend going for 600 series which will work fine, but in their case I would advise getting balanced cable for those and if balanced output in your player is limited to 4Vrms, I would say 600 series can get better with more. Aside those you might want to take a look at planars like FiiO FT1 Pro and Hifiman headphones, but I do lack experience with those so can't tell much. Spec wise FT1 Pro should run fine even from 3.5mm unbalanced, while Hifimans can vary a lot depending on the exact model. Be warned though, Hifiman is kind of known for poor reliability (but also for not making problems with warranty claims and just replacing faulty units).

I compared personally with second hand HD555. https://b23.tv/rzpbhVW. I don't know what op wants but it's better to know how bad would these sound

If you have heavy headphone usage, you don't mind a bit of bulk, need a wider soundstage with actually good ANC, and need it to last, save up for over-the-ears. I have never had an over-the-ear headphone die, even though the earcups and wires (if going wired) may. This is afyer extremely rough usage. They have the best battery life too, so that's also a factor. Earpads and wires are replaceable in most though. Bose QC 35 for 8 years (replaced only because a plastic part broke and I was due for an upgrade anyways). Before that, Sennheiser HD555s for 6 years (replaced because Bluetooth and closed backs for libraries). Before that, some Razor over-the-ears headphones that also lasted for 5 years. I have a sales job and I currently travel with my QC Ultras everywhere. They don't add a lot of bulk, don't need to babied.  Sennheiser HD 350BTs at 4k seems like a steal. While I don't have personal experience with them, over-the-ears over everything.

It's rare that electronics fall into the "buy it for life" category but Sennheiser's are just fantastic.