Sennheiser has launched the HD 505 headphones in India. These are claimed to offer a high-fidelity audio experience with in-house 120 Ohm angled transducers. The headsets flaunt an open-back design and are equipped with a 1.8m cable with a 3.5mm plug and a 6.35mm adapter. In the audiophile community, they are being touted as the spiritual successor to the Sennheiser HD 560S headphones, which the company unveiled a few years back. Do they offer noticeable improvements? Priced at Rs. 27,990, do the latest Sennheiser HD 505 Copper edition headphones deserve your consideration? We shall discuss below.
Sennheiser HD 505 Design and Features: Familiar Furtherance
- Size – 237x191x96mm
- Weight – 237g (without wires)
- Colour – Copper
The Sennheiser HD 505 open-back headphones come with a familiar Sennheiser HD 500 series chassis but with subtle improvements that make these more comfortable than most older models. One of the highlights is the weight of the headsets. At 237g, these are lighter not just than the previous iterations in the lineup, but also most competing devices in the segment. Despite the generic, bulky appearance of most over-ear headphones, they sit almost weightlessly on your head and are comfortable even with continuous, long hours of use.
The copper accents add a premium feel to the look
My childhood doctor, attempting to convince me to wear the newly prescribed glasses all day, told me, “Don’t bother taking them off during sleep, they might also help you dream clearly.” Maybe it was that remark (probably not) or the fact that I just need to see; I cannot go a minute without my glasses since. And since then, most over-ear headphones have been at war with my specs. The battle usually continues till I end up with a headache, with the headsets pressing the stems of the glasses into my face. However, the Sennheiser HD 505 have been a welcome comrade in this unspoken battle.
One parameter that helps with the comfort is the reduced clamp force of the HD 505 compared to the existing Sennheiser headsets, especially the HD 560S. The brand has clearly done something right to strike the optimum balance between a lowered clamp force and a steady enough fit. The headphones do not roll off the head even with considerable movement (read: frantic headbanging to Whole Lotta Love), as long as you adjust the metal sliders adequately.
The headband of the Sennheiser HD 505 comes with faux leather cushioning, which adds to its premium look. The elongated ear cups have a metal mesh grille exterior and are padded inside with thick, synthetic velour cushions, which allow the headset to perch comfortably around the ears. The inside of the ear cups has a more transparent finish than existing models as well. This likely adds to the openness of the audio tuning.
The synthetic velour ear cup padding is quite thick but comfortable
The headsets come in a predominantly black colourway with copper accents around the ear cups and the edges of the headband. The Sennheiser logo on both ear cups is etched in a copper shade as well. The colour is not too loud, and the metallic finish adds to the high-end appearance of the Sennheiser HD 505.
Sennheiser HD 505 Specifications: Classic Consistency
- Impedance – 120 Ohm
- Frequency response range – 12Hz to 38,500Hz
Sennehiser claims to pack 120 Ohm angled in-house transducers, made in the company’s facility in Ireland, into the HD 505 headphones. The latest 500 series headphones are said to offer a wide frequency range of 12Hz to 38.5kHz, which is claimed to provide users with a balanced and rich audio experience. Paired with the open-back design, this helps the headphones provide a more natural, more open sound stage.
Unlike closed-back headphones, the design also allows no noise isolation. Therefore, the sound bleeds out of the headsets and can be heard by neighbouring people aside from the user. You are advised not to use them in a shared or public space unless you are ready to deal with judgments of your playlist or, worse, noise complaints.
The 3.5mm jack is compatible with most PCs
While the open-backed ear cups do not keep sound leaking out, they also do not keep outside noise from seeping in. Unless you are in a relatively quiet spot, you will have to deal with outside disturbances. However, this is a common issue with open-back headsets, and I point it out not as a flaw but more as a reminder. I guess it is safe to assume that we will mostly use these wired headphones in their native space, that is, indoors, where the environmental disturbance or disturbing the environment will not be of much concern.
They are claimed to offer a sound pressure level (SPL) of 107.9dB and are said to provide total harmonic distortion (THD) of less than 0.2 percent. The latter suggests that the headsets offer high-fidelity audio with precise reproduction and minimal distortion. These claims are not unfounded.
Sennheiser HD 505 Performance: Shipshape Sound
- Cable length – 1.8m
- Cable Type – 3.5mm jack; 3.5mm to 6.35mm screw on adapter
Before we break down the audio experience of the Sennheiser HD 505 headphones in granular detail, it is safe to say that we get what we expect from Sennheiser sound, with a few exceptions. We are presented with a largely rounded, warmer, well-balanced sound stage. The bass, as well as some high-pitched sounds, can be too bright for comfort for some of us, but this mostly depends on our subjective sensitivities to certain levels. Personally, the bass was at times a little too punchy for my taste, but nothing that a slight volume adjustment could not fix.
The faux leather cushioning of the headband offers a sleek look
Sennheiser markets the HD 505 for “critical music listening, movies, and gaming,” which makes sense for premium open-backed headphones. The lack of a pressurised chamber behind the dynamic drivers helps offer users a more natural and open sound experience than the closed-back counterparts. The lower registers are clearer, and you get an overall immersive audio exposure. Well, not as immersive as 3D spatial sound arrangements, but as close to real-life arrangements as possible. This is why open-back headsets are popular among mixers or sound engineers. And if you are interested in something similar, or are looking to start exploring premium headphones, these are a good place to start.
The Sennheiser HD 505 are tuned to near perfection. Whether it’s gaming, podcasts, movies, or just good old music playback, there is no avenue where I have had any marked issues with the sound. For instance, I watched Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire with these headsets during the review period, and I was not disappointed. Well, that’s not entirely true. But the headphones cannot riddle us why in an expected “buddy cop” Monsterverse film, we only not see the titular titans together on-screen for about 10 minutes towards the tail end. The headsets allowed me to enjoy the soundscape, including Kong’s pained, toothache-related groans and Mothra’s shrill chirps, with crisp clarity.
From Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence track The Ballade of Puppets by Kenji Kawai to Contre-Temps by Flavien Berger and Bonnie Banane, the Sennheiser HD 505 allows us to delve into the intricate layers of each composition and observe the grittier nuances. Agust D, as a rapper, is known to use his breaths to punctuate and rhyme his verses, especially in a song like People from the D-2 mixtape. With these headsets, each draw and release of said breaths in the song was clearer than I had perceived previously. While the low and high notes are well defined, we hit a bit of a snag with the mids. They can sometimes appear to be slightly muddled than other sounds, but it did not dampen my experience much.
The metal mesh grille covers allow noise to bleed out
Sennheiser HD 505: Verdict
The Sennheiser HD 505 retails in India for Rs. 27,990 and is a safe pick for most audiophiles or studio professionals. They are, however, slightly steeply priced for casual customers. However, if you have the budget and want to explore the niche of high-end headsets, the Sennheiser HD 505 is a good place to start. Keep in mind that with the high-fidelity audio experience, the open-back design will also not offer noise isolation or cancellation. You may run the risk of causing a distraction or being distracted to prompting mild annoyance or being mildly annoyed. I did not have to worry about the same, as I only used them in my personal living space, and my cats did not (read: could not) complain about my music taste.
A closed-back option from Sennheiser, the HD 620S (Review), is also available in the country. They were priced at Rs. 32,990 during launch and offer considerable passive noise isolation support.
