Over the last couple of weeks, two of our sales guys Benji and Devon have been trialling the new Sennheiser HD400 Pro headphones that were kindly gifted to us. We got the guys first impressions on the headphones and it seems to be a massive hit!
Check out their comments below.
Benji’s Comments
The HD400 PRO is Sennheiser's latest offering in open-back studio headphones. I've been using them in my home studio for the last week and am dreading the day I'm asked to give them back!
At 240g and with soft velour earpads, it's easy to forget that you’re wearing them, which lets you put all of your attention into the details of the mix – and with the HD400 Pros, those details are clearer than ever.
The bass response is wonderfully balanced – deep and punchy, but not exaggerated. It was also refreshing to hear that they don't suffer from the harsh top end that makes many headphones fatiguing for longer mixing sessions.
The soundstage was very precise with a strong centre image that many headphones lack, which made a placement in the stereo field feel like studio monitors.
Despite being open-backed, they offered impressive passive noise cancellation when compared with other open-backed headphones. The HD400 are Sennheiser's premier offering in their PRO lineup, and will surely become commonplace in music studios the world over.
Devon’s Comments
After many years of offering their higher-end open-back headphones, Sennheiser has finally dropped a more price-friendly entry into their range with the HD 400 PRO. With the opportunity to run these headphones through a gauntlet of critical listening of familiar songs as well as some studio projects, I’m pleased to say that Sennheiser has really made a killer pair of cans!
Following on from Benji’s comments on the soundstage and comfort, the HD 400 PRO’s would serve as a great middle-ground between standard closed back reference headphones and studio monitors for those who need to mix on the go or simply can’t make the next leap into monitors for price or space reasons.
The transient response and overall dynamics of these headphones are really pleasant and balanced across the frequency range, with extremely smooth and present high mids giving clarity and life to guitars and vocals whilst being supported by punchy bass that still breathes to avoid ear fatigue and often smeary feeling of cheaper headphones.
At 120 Ohm’s, the HD 400’s on paper seem as though they would be a lot more power-hungry which might rule out use with mobile devices for louder listening but I was surprised that my phone was just as capable of getting juice to these headphones as my Macbook Pro’s built-in headphone amp and my gruntier Audient ID44’s output.
Anyone looking to get into the open-back headphone scene will definitely need to give the HD 400’s a look, as there isn’t a better set of cans available at this price point!