Sennheiser’s latest open-back, wired headphones put a greater emphasis on comfort and premium style, while keeping a relatively budget-friendly price for those who might be taking their first steps into audiophile listening. The copper and black HD 505 ($279) are available starting today on Amazon.
The HD 505 bear a lot of similarities with their Sennheiser HD 500-series cousins like the HD 560s and HD 599 — a sleek, minimalist design is accompanied by metal mesh earcup covers, ultra-soft ear cushions, and a detachable 3.5mm cable.
However, the HD 505 are also a departure in a few areas. Some of the biggest changes are in ergonomics. At 237 grams, they’re now the lightest of the 500-series models. Clamping force has also been reduced. The headband has been reworked with a synthetic leather and new cushioning. In theory, these should all lead to greater comfort. And yet, Sennheiser has also removed the small pressure-relieving cutout that you’ll find on the HD 560s and HD 660S2 headbands, so we’ll have to see how the HD 505 actually feel when worn.
The HD 505 use a revised dynamic driver design. The goal remains the same has the HD 560s and 599: neutral tuning, lots of detail, and “an enormous soundstage,” according to Sennheiser. The official specs suggest that these new drivers aren’t quite on par with the 560s — they exhibit slightly narrower frequency response in the low-end (12 Hz as opposed to 6 Hz) and they create more total harmonic distortion (THD: less that 0.2% versus 0.05%).
Still, Sennheiser says we’re unlikely to perceive these differences when listening. “On our test bench, the HD 505 indeed performs differently than the HD 560S,” Digital Trends was told by a spokesperson, “however the measurement numbers do not wholly dictate the listening experience. We post the measurements with transparency in mind–these differences on paper do not always translate to wide, audible swings in that particular performance category.”
The HD 560s’ 120-ohm impedance has been preserved, which means you should be able to drive them with almost any device that has a 3.5mm output, but you’ll get better results from a discrete headphone amp.
