HD 25 Basic Edition, Closed Headphone for ENG/DJ use with split headband

I found that the H25s’ went from fairly pants to magical in the first ten or so hours of use. Once run in they are very neutral with a flat frequency response and a tonal accuracy that some may term a little clinical; similar in nature to Grado Headphones (but without the mid-range emphasis). Not as warm and exciting as my AKG 451s’ but overall more musically satisfying. In my opinion far superior to the Sennheiser Momentum 2 that everyone raves about. Not designed as commuter portables, but if you need a small pair of real audiophile quality headphones that afford a reasonable level of sound isolation and real musical satisfaction then definitely try them out. Great monitor level headphones if you are into mixing and recording your own music. Can be critical of poor quality input so better with CD quality or higher resolution input. Bottom line is that I never feel as though they have any significant faults in their presentation and they draw me into the music. Recommended. Pros Sound quality. Lots of portable headphones are designed with low frequency bias. The H25s’ are not and have a very neutral and detailed presentation with a fine tonal accuracy. Every part of the music just sounds well balanced and right. They also have a wide sound-stage for closed cup headphones. If you are not used to this presentation then you may consider them a bit analytical or clinical but persevere and you may start to be absorbed in the detail and musical dynamics and find the H25s’ highly musical. Well made. Very sturdy phones and most parts are replaceable. Limited microphoney from the cable. So if you tap the cable you don’t get a large booming in your ear. Even at the full retail price they are worth it. Reasonable sound isolation. Strangely Comfortable. Initially you are aware of a significant pressure applied by the headband to the ear pads and I expected this to become uncomfortable over time, but it doesn't. You are always aware that you are wearing the headphones but the pads soften quite quickly and you get used to the pressure. For me it never becomes uncomfortable and the ear cups do not move around and cause irritation. Good if you wear glasses. The design means that the ear-pads do not touch the arms of glasses. Cons No carry case or bag supplied. Bulky. The headband and size of ear cup mean that they are not particularly good if you are listening to music whilst lying down. They are not really everyday portable headphones. Make everything sound great, however they really deserve to be used with at least high quality CD resolution music sources. Not stylish but very functional looking.

I won't comment much on the sound quality - plenty of comment elsewhere. They give a well-balanced, neutral sound with adequate bass and nice soundstaging. I find them comfortable to wear and can enjoy listening with them for a few hours without fatigue/discomfort. I bought these primarily for music on the move and for using whilst others are watching the TV. Isolation is very good but not 100% (but I wouldn't expect 100%) - plenty good enough for my purposes and a massive improvement on the bundled earphones you get with most music-players. They are tough headphones that I have no worries about throwing loose into my bag. They have survived being sat on a couple of times (but it is something that I'd rather avoid). They are a little harder to drive than bundled headphones but this is not a problem - I use them with a Sansa Clip+, PC (via Creative headphone socket on speaker volume control), laptop and also plugged into my Rotel amplifier. Sometimes I put the volume on the Sansa to maximum but only when I want the music LOUD and the recording is made at a relatively low level. Everything else is ample when kept well below maximum on all sources. The 'basic' edition model comes with a 1.5m (steel) cable and a right-angle jack - 3.5mm with a screw-on 6.3mm adapter. The cable is a good thickness, 'figure-of-eight' type cross-section and does not tangle or knot easily. As with the 'full' edition - all parts are replaceable. All in all, I'd say that these are good all-round headphones that give good sound-quality and isolation whilst being rugged enough to cope with day-to-day on-the-move 'personal-stereo' use - but are just as 'at home' for use at home.

Sennheiser HD25’s are by no shadow of a doubt - the best headphones you can buy. Just watch any video of a world class DJ who uses over the ear headphones and it will be a pair of these They have one of the greatest and smoothest frequency responses out there - they’re not the most exciting, as they won’t hype up your bass frequencies or boost the airy end of the treble, but they will play your music exactly how it should be heard, no more, no less The isolation is pretty damn good, without feeling underwater, and it means you can listen to music in bed without your partner getting annoyed of the tinny hiss of music leaking from the headphones They’re built solidly too - they feel like pure quality and haven’t needed hidden weights adding to them in order for them to feel more premium (not mentioning names Dr Dre...) and there’s no rattle or wobble in any of the joints They’re also modular too so you can replace any part yourself instead of replacing the entire headphone if something breaks! And finally they are super comfortable, even on my tiny pea head - the cups are soft and don’t get sweaty, the split headband is great and they stay solid on your head without movement but also without crushing your head and giving you headaches. Just buy em. You won’t regret it!

I've had this product for nearly 12 months now, so thought I should write a review. Having used them rather extensively in both club and casual environments, I could not speak higher of a pair of headphones. The isolation is good, levels are relatively balanced (although would not recommend for mastering at all) and they provide a good all-round, multi-purpose pair of headphones. The rotatable ear piece is handy for djing in a club to listen to a monitor easily, although I tend not to use it. The cable is a suitable length, it can get a bit wound up but is no problem to untangle. One of the best features is their durability; they're near impossible to break and having been used for hours and hours, they still work good as new (with the exception of the headband loosening a little). For the price they are an excellent purchase, would particularly recommend for any DJs considering the option - paying a little extra for these compared to the HD-25 SP. Would also vouch for these over the TMA-1s which can be a little heavy on the lows.

Bought my first HD 25s back in 1999, and we’re pretty much like Triggers broom; decided to treat myself to a brand-new pair and have my old ones as a backup. Best headphones you can use as a Dj hands down

At the price these should've come standard with an in-line volume control. That, along with the fact that I could not find a Sennheiser product to the job, is my only gripe. The sound is great, a really wide sound and excellent instrument separation. From reading other reviews my main concern was the apparent head-clamping discomfort - I found this to not be the case. The split headband seems to distribute the pressure, I generally use them for an hour at a time and experience no discomfort. One of the main factors in choosing this set was the replaceable cable, it seems to be a massive design flaw in the other 99% of headsets that they don't have this option. Having ripped through 2 sets of Motorhead Bomber headphones (it seems catching a train to work in a bank is more rock n roll than they can withstand) I can say I've owned these for about 6 weeks and no problems.

Hi everyone, I have some time to write a short review (well not a real review, but sharing of my experience) on these headphones and i can say that they sound great! Sound quality is very good, so much clarity in sound and great bass response! ..I had to choose Allen&Heath Xone xd53 over Sennheiser HD 251 MKII .. it was very tough decision to make, and i couldn't make up my mind for three days. I had xd52 and HD25-1 both at the same time, but i had to make a final choice.. So what facts i pushed from to make this choice? NOTE: I'm not a DJ, i just love quality in sound. First of all the cord is a bit too short in HD25, so i had some issues while using those at my office. XD53 has a coiled part of cord which makes it not too short and not too long - adapts on situation (non-detachable which is -). Second when wearing HD25 my LEFT ear (outside part) started to hurt after half an hour of use - but i believe, that this is my personal problem, though both ears looks identical in the mirror))) and i think that happened because i wear glasses. Also 3 of my friends said similar thing, that the pressure is quite strong on your ears when wearing HD25s. On the other hand (if you don't wear glasses and you have normal ears)) HD25 are MUCH lighter than XD53 and i believe that you would be able to wear them for longer periods of time than XD53. HD25 don't bend in anyway, so it is a bit scary to throw them in your back pack, while you can easily bend XD53's + they'll take less space even though they are much bigger. On the other hand you can replace almost any part of HD25 Sound quality - the hardest thing to choose between both.. On iPod: HD25 has a very clear and crisp sound which is really great thing, but sometimes you miss a bit of warmth, and bass feels not that powerful as in XD53's (on iPOD!), while XD53's loose a bit in clarity department, but on iPod XD53's have a better balance and fullness in sound, which made me feel more comfortable. Also XD53s feel a bit more powerful, when i tested this by changing plugs (HD25/XD53 and the other way around)on the same volume level on my iPod. I guess much depends on a custom equalizer settings (which doesn't exist in my iPod) and it should be adjusted to every pair separately to bring out their best (on default iPOD sound settings XD53 win!). I've tested both on my Yamaha amplifier: Again HD25 sound very clear and now i could feel the proper bass power on H25s as well! XD53 lose in clarity a bit, but had a bit warmer feeling and the bass was very powerful too! Thing i've noticed that HD25 showed their best bass on minus 5 volume setting (after that, nothing good), while in XD53 to bring their best bass i had to raise it up to plus 6! This amazed me a bit, because i thought that if you got bigger impedance then you can play them on greater volumes (you don't want to listen to any of them on highest possible volume for a longer time)) (HD25 has more impedance than XD53), but i think that happened because HD25s has smaller drivers, while XD53 has huge 53mm ones. HD25s has greater sound isolation and that's a win against XD53s. To conclude, both are really great headphones for the same price tag, but that makes it is really hard to choose one over another, one compromise over another. My choice of Allen&Heath Xone xd53 was mostly based on my iPod experience and i decided to return Sennheiser HD 251 MKII and it was really hard to say good bye!!.. ;( I guess that in the end it comes down to a personal choices and preferences. Thank you!

One big plus for anyone using the HD 25s in a pro-setting who has a tendency to step on headphone cables is the lack of fixed mounting points for the driver units. They slip on to the headband arms and are held in place by ridges. No screws, or anything permanent. There's been many a time I've stepped on the cable whilst DJing and the driver on the cable side just slips off (or flies off). This avoids ripped cable connectors or snapped parts, so you just push the driver back on the headband and carry on. The drivers can withstand a beating and both of mine still sound identical after 10 years even though one has hit hard floors, hard, more times than I'd like to remember. The industrial-looking bare plastic finish doesn't scratch. I've had no need to replace any other parts beyond renewing the foam. They really are built to last. Even if like me you have your doubts the first time you take them out of the box, as they are rather flexible and don't feel very solid, they are not flimsy and are frankly the most robust pair of headphones I've bought. If you're considering buying them because perhaps a friend told you they are fantastic, and you currently like the sound of your £20 earbuds but fancy an upgrade then you might want to have a listen to them and test them out before buying. They are designed as reference headphones with a flat frequency response and accurate sound - if that's not to your listening taste then you would want to reconsider. Make sure to burn them in first, it makes a difference to the sound quality. The headphones are mostly held in place by the pressure the headband applies to the ear cushions. This is useful when only wearing them with one driver on an ear as they stay put even if they are not balanced on your head. Moving the other driver aside (or down to your neck) doesn't make them fall off as I found some of the heavier circumaural DJ headphones do. For those like me who have a larger head size, they can make your ears a bit tender after a couple of hours wear due to the pressure of the pads against your ear. This did improve after a few months of regular use but it's something to bear in mind if you intend to use these for extended periods of time. I'd say these are definitely worth the price for pro use as I've yet to fault them, the 20yr old design has stood the test of time. If you're buying as a consumer for everyday use then make sure you understand how these differ from regular headphones first otherwise you might be disappointed. They are specifically designed for pro use and listed as such ("for ENG/DJ use" in product title), I'd only give these headphones 3 or 4 stars if they were a consumer model.