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Introduction
Hearing the SR-009 and seeing all the high-end e-stat amps at RMAF in October gave me the idea that it would be fun to do comparative listening session for a holiday season post. For most here (and that includes me) this stuff is pretty much unobtanium, so I thought a dreamy little vicarious listening session through my words here might fit in nicely with all the other sugar plum fantasies we get to experience this time of year.

My Christmas present to you lucky few who might actually be thinking of getting…

Focal Spirit One ($279)
Perhaps you've seen this "Letter to Spirit One Owners" from Focal recently posted on Head-Fi. Well, here's the whole story:

This is not going to be an ordinary review...though I'll get around to reviewing the Focal Spirit One by the end of this article. This is more about how a company acts if they're trying to accomplish something difficult---like make a good pair of headphones for the first time---and have a stumble along the way. Companies struggling with product introductions happen all the…

Don't be an Asshole.
I think a responsibility of good journalism is to tell a story well. Simply shouting out, "Hey look, these guys made a mistake!" is not telling much of a story. Much better to tap a smart buncha guys from France on the shoulder and ask them what's up. Makes for a way better conversation, and a way better story in the end. You do have to be patient and wait until the end though. And not be an...well, you get the idea.

I do have a responsibility to my readers, however, so I did drop a couple of succinct and quite straight forward posts about the Spirit One…

Focal Spirit One ($279)
The Spirit One was designed as an around-the-ear, sealed, mobile headphone for use on the move with smartphones.

This is a pretty good looking headphone, but it looks better in pictures than in the flesh where it appears just a bit clunky and plasticy. Looks are deceiving though as this is a pretty nicely designed and well buit headphone from what I can tell. There are a number of metal parts in it's construction, and the materials look very nice. For example the black rubberized earpieces have a good feel and are nicely finished off with a chrome…

Raw frequency response plots show that the Spirit One reliably seals on the head and delivers consistent performance as position changes around the ear. Compensated frequency plots show a headphone with a gentle warm tilt to 1kHz and a mildly uneven response, which is quite common with sealed headphones of this type. The slight wiggle at 90Hz is likely due to ear cushion resonance and is not easily heard. Bass response is slightly elevated---about the right amount, it seems to me---and very well extended.…

Editors Note: These headphones have an interesting history for headphone enthusiasts, but if you're here just to read a review of these headphones, you can safely skip to the next page.

History - They Always Take You for Granted in Your Home Town
There's a rare moment in the life of a headphone fanatic when you put on a pair of headphones and go, "WOW! I never knew it could be this good." Revolutionary, not evolutionary. It's happened to me maybe a half dozen times. The first time was with the Sennheiser HD 580. I…

The Sennheiser HD 580 (no longer available), HD 600 ($399), and HD 650 ($499)
Despite the love/hate relationship the headphone community has had in the past with these headphones, they are widely recognized among enthusiasts as the most important headphone in the world of headphone hobbyists. There are more expensive headphones; there are better sounding headphones; there are far more popular headphones; but the fact remains, the Sennheiser HD 600 is a great sounding headphone, and at it's price, remains one of the best buys today for headphone audiophiles.

To the best of my…

Sound Quality
When first introduced, I remember the HD 580 as a spectacularly good sounding headphone. Headphones of that era were more often then not bass-shy and overly bright, and it was a great relief for me to hear a headphone that was warm and smooth. When the HD 600 came along, I felt it very similar tonally, but more refined and articulate. Comparing the two, it does seem to me that the 580 has a slightly grainier sound, resembling plastic in its character. Tapping on the outside grilles, the 580 is clearly louder with a distinct "tock" sound to it, while the 600 grille yields…

Measurements
Sennheiser HD 650

Sennheiser HD 600

Sennheiser HD 580

As you can see, all three of these headphones measure quite similarly. Raw frequency response measurements show that low frequency response is little changed with headphone position indicating a nicely repeatable seal of the ear pads. In the compensated frequency response, you'll notice bass…

Philips Fidelio X1 ($399)
Man, what a nice, cuddly Teddy Bear of a headphone! Big round velour pads, real leather headband, cushy head pad. Yeah, I like it.

The Philips Fidelio X1 is a full-size, around-the-ear, open headphone designed for home and office use. There's no isolation from outside noise, so walking around town with them wouldn't be a good idea. And their big, black, fuzzy earpads gather dust and lint like nobody's business, so this is a headphone for wonderful occasions where serious listening sessions can…