Sennheiser HD448 Closed Circumaural Hi-Fi Headphone (Discontinued by Manufacturer)

In general, the sound of the Sennheiser HD448 is excellent. The levels have mellowed out some with use, but still keep a small harshness to the sound, but not to the point of distraction when listening to music. The bass is tight for headphones in this price bracket and you do not ever find that they are lacking bass. The sound is satisfying, even for long sessions and you don’t find yourself suffering from listening exhaustion with the Sennheiser HD448 frequently. These cans are becoming a sanctuary for this touring musician. Each of the components are there for reproducing recorded music superbly. Slip them on and the outside sounds slightly go away. Put on the music and the outside noises and distractions are gone, leaving only you and your tunes. The music sounds tight throughout the spectrum. You can use these cans both with and without an amplifier. If you use with an amp, it improves the volume and some key frequencies. The iPod volume has to be pretty near to %90 to have a healthy listening level without the amp. Obviously, the original volume level of the MP4 offers quite a bit to do with the output volume of the iPod. In comparison to the PXC350, the Sennheiser HD448 really blocks much more noise passively; however once you put some batteries and turn on the active cancelling of the PXC350 it much surpasses the HD448, but thats rather obvious. With no batteries however, the HD448 blocks more noise.