Review on Sennheiser HD 400S: Premium Closed Back Around Ear Headphones with Smart Remote and Detachable Cable by Jody Yarrish

I have owned a significant number of Sennheiser products over the years. HD 201 for $20, HD 600 for $300, and even their aviation headset. They most closely compare to the HD 201 in both configuration and price (under $50 in a sealed case). The materials and build quality are frankly excellent for this price point. They look good, they feel good in your hands. The air pads are a bit small for me, so while they weren't the most comfortable, I never felt uncomfortable with them. The size of the earcups can be a little disappointing as they sit in a very odd middle ground between round and on-ear headphones. I put them on my ears, but they always seemed pushed back half an inch from my head for optimal sound quality. And unfortunately, they fall apart here completely. The highs are actually very good. It's very clear without getting tiring. The bass is boosted, which I have no problem with, but there is a huge resonance around 35Hz that would require extremely granular EQ to get rid of. So this is a big problem, but it might be fixable depending on what hardware you've connected them to. However, the mid-range is also very veiled, which apparently cannot be corrected by the EQ. That's what makes her so disappointing. They come very close to great budget headphones. They look good, are well built, small ergonomic flaws can easily be overlooked at this price point. But what a company like Sennheiser has missed out on so much in the audio quality department is startling.