Welcome to my review of the Sennheiser HD 598 cs headphone.
The Sennheiser HD 598 cs are not the first pair of Sennheiser headphones that I have reviewed or used. In fact I have reviewed the Sennheiser HD 598 SE, HD 518 and Momentum Wireless 2.0. To recap on these reviews – Click HERE.
I have also owned the amazing HD 600 headphones.
I currently own the Sennheiser HD 598 SE headphones which are on open back version. This means sound leaks, so whatever you are listening to, everyone can dance to your tunes as well. So for commuting on public transport these are not ideal as you can also hear everything going on around you. But at home, in private, these are splendid and provide a massive detailed soundstage.
The Sennheiser HD 598 cs are a closed back design. This means you music stays private. I had not heard of this model until Amazon had it available as a Black Friday special deal of £89.99. It seems Amazon got Sennheiser to make a special version of the HD 598 SE (open back) headphones. Except, after a bit of digging it seems that the HD 598 cs could be the new Sennheiser HD 569 closed back headphones in disguise. In the useful links, at the end of this review, I left a link to the HD 569’s. See what you think. They look really similar and have the same ohm and SPL figures.
But there are more differences between the open back and closed back models. From a physical point of view, they look identical. However, the technical specifications are different. The 598 SE have an impedance of 50 ohms, whereas the 598 cs are 23 ohms. The 598 SE SPL is 112db whereas the 598 cs are 115db. These 2 technical specs mean the 598 cs version are considerably easier to drive from a phone, MP3 player, or any device for that matter and go louder faster and easier.
The open back 598 SE have a wider frequency range at 12 – 38,000 Hz. The 598 Cs are 10 – 28,000 Hz. The closed back version have a more punchier bass than the open back version, but these are not bass heavy headphones. I would classify them as bass perfect headphones at their price point.
So from a physical point of view there are differences. The 598 cs use velvet type ear cushions whereas the open back 598 SE use a velour material for the ear cushions. See photos. Also the headband on the 598 cs seems less cushioned (its not) but it doesn’t have the air suspension cushioning as the 598 SE. Also the 598 SE have the name Sennheiser embedded in the headband.
Photo above. 598 cs (closed back on left) and 598 SE (open back on right).
Another small difference is the fact that the 598 cs drivers seem to be slightly angled. Also the ear cups are finished differently. See below.
On the bottom is the 598 SE (open) and the speaker grill is perforated to allow the sound to spill out. On top the 598 cs (closed) has a material like finish.
Specs aside, what matters is how these sound. After 100 hours burn in the Sennheiser HD 598 cs absolutely rock. Because they are easier to drive they sound ace straight out of my iPhone 7+ and MacBook. They are so dynamic, engaging and incredibly musical that you just want to listen to every song you ever owned again and again. The 598 cs also rock out with so much ease and have tons of volume from both my iPhone 7 and MacBook.
In case you are interested, the Sennheiser comes with a HD 598Cs headset/ 1.2m cable with 1-button remote/ 3.5mm straight plug; 3m cable/ 6.3mm straight plug. The HD 598 SE have a 1.2m cable with a 3.5mm plug but without the 1 button remote.
In the title I asked “are these the best headphones made by Sennheiser?”. I am going to say yes in the context of most people will love these and more importantly afford them. You don’t need any fancy equipment, amps or dacs. At 23 ohms and with a sound pressure of 115db these are super efficient. Therefore, all you need is your current phone. You then will get the superb Sennheiser sound across the entire sound spectrum, mid, treble and bass. The headphones are not genre dependant either. They just rock with anything and don’t ruin the music.
Looks like I will be needed my Apple Lightning to 3.5m headphone adapter for a while longer!
These are more than recommended, these are probably the first headphone that is a must buy from me so long as you can cope with a wired connection. Even if these cost £150, they would be worth every penny.
Useful Links
More info on the Sennheiser HD 598 cs and the latest pricing
More information and the latest pricing on the Sennheiser HD 598 SE Open Back
More information and the latest pricing on the Sennheiser HD 569 closed back headphones
Gavin's Gadgets & Photography 
Nice review Gavin!
I didn’t know Amazon had specifically requested that Sennheiser make a closed-back version of the 598 & 598 SE. Interesting. But I had noticed a couple weeks ago that the Cs is ONLY available really on Amazon and the Sennheiser website, so I believe it.
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Thanks for comments 🙂
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So if you had to make a choice in term of sound quality, would you chose this one over the 598se ?
I currently got a 598se, I like them but it’s difficult to use them at work because of the sound leaking, so I use a HD K272 instead, I’m thinking about switching to the 598cs
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Yes I would pick the cs version over the open back ones.
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Compared to v moda crossfade lp2, which is bettter?
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Audiotechnicha ath ws770is vs v moda crossfade lp2… Which one should i go for? Or xb950bt or beyerdynamic custom one pro
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What genres of music do you listen to. I will then try and offer a view 😀
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I listen to every henre.. But mostly modern.. Not old…. More new songs.. Bollywood songs.edm, bass heavy musics.,melody,pure voice only music(no instrumental music. Only human voice type) metal.
And also need to watch movies.it is as important as music for me. No serious video editing or anything like that.
I need some bass for sure. More bass with clear mids and highs. I dont need one with bass that causes to not hear the human voice and other thinhs in music.because I listen to edm and other musics too…
My considerations are v moda crossfade lp2, audiotechnica ath ws770is, sony xb950bt, senheiser hd 598closed back(if it has enough bass), or any other you would suggest for 10000 india rupee
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Pls reply for my earlier comment
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Just replied to previous comment.
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Thanks for your concern.. Please check previous comment.. I replied some details on that commment.. Its messy.,bit ithink you can understand, please suggest one for me.. Iam looking to cheaper ones. Not highend. Simply bassy with nice mids and highs.. I think every bass oriented headphones lacks some mids and high.. Bit i need better one.
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I would exclude the Audio Technica as mids/treble not what you are looking for. I personally am not a fan of the V-Moda although the bass is tight, The V-Moda has slightly less bass but better mids/treble. The Sony XB950BT have bass, and in bluetooth mode have an extreme bass mode (its nuts). The Sony XB950BT actually sound much better in wired mode (with cable). The Sennheiser HD598cs are tonally better across the range, so if you wanted more bass you could use an EQ to get it.
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What about beyerdynamic custom one pro
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What are you going to be using them with ?
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Music and movies from mobile and laptop
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They are ok but nothing special.
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Beyerdynamic custom one pro plus have bass slider…
You have any experience with the vmoda crossfade lp2? If you have,tell me how is it. And is it better than custom one peo plus…
Actually custom one pro plus is little out of my budget. Iam from india.. Crossfade lp2 costs 12000 indian rupees (rs). Custome one peo pis 15000rs above. M50x is 10000rs,hd 598cs is 8000 rs
I need bass. I dont need boring sound without bass. I will not do any serious editing. And i dont have any good headphones. Just upgrading from samsung level u and normal samsung and apple earbuds.
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1 doller is almost 70 indian rupees
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There’s different types of quality bass. Some headphones have a tight bass , others a more softer deep bass. Some have bass and speed too. I’m aware of the slider too. Just get whatever works best for you in your budget based on what I’ve said already. If you need more bass you’ll have to use an EQ.
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Is there anything wrong with hd 598 cs(closed back bersion) when compared to v moda crossfade lp2?
How is opentype headphones? They do leak so much sound?
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The 598cs are better quality across the spectrum. The 598 open back are better for jazz and classical. The sound awesome with that. They do leak sound as open back hence why Sennheiser made the cs version.
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Your opinion on crossfade lp2?
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Not my preferred headphone. I think the newer version the v moda XS are better. Not sure about the price.
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Xs are onear i think. Not over ear
How about considering beyerdynamic custom one pro plus which have a 4 level bass selecting switch in sides of earcups. Is it enough with bass compared to lp2? Is it have good mids amd highs? Is it good for bass jevy tracks and for mids amd highs with bass level at low?
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I don’t think so at all on any of the options. Have you asked the users at head-fi.org?
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Actually the real problem am experiencing is that, i cannot try the headphones. There are no headphone samples in my area. In any stores
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I understand that is an issue. Not easy really. V moda are better suited to rock. Custom Pro will do more genres. Sennheiser will do anything. Especially the HD598cs are they are also much easier to drive and therefore more dynamic.
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How is beyerdynamic dt770 pro 32 ohm
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Ok but nothing special. You need to get the 250 ohm or 600ohm with a proper amp
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Thanks for the sincere concern for my questions.. Its a bery apreciable what you are doimg
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That’s ok. Happy to help as best I can 😀
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Am not done. How about senjeiser urbanite xl.
In other website (people call one man on that website as Stu.) he suggests momentum 2.o over ear. And hd25. I need bass for sure with nice quality of mids and highs. Iam ok with his momentum sugestion.in another website one man rplys in the name 24bit,suggests dt770pro and hee always says stay aaway from v moda. But what about urbanite xl?
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Urbanite are ok. The momentum 2 are better. And better than the dt770
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One thing.. I dont like the shaking bass like from car subwoofer, which is like krrrrrrrrrrrrr krrrrr|rrrrr…. … What is it called distortion or boomy! I dont know.. I need clear bass.
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Sennheiser HD25 or dt770 Pro but not the ones that are lesss than 100 ohms
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The beyer dt770 80 ohms are ok, but the versions at 250 ohms is better sounding.
For tight bass, the Sennheiser HD25 might suit you better. The other Sennheisers do sound warmer.
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Iam gonna use it in mobile directly. And the mkdels with more ohm costs very high. So auggest within budget. You are suggesting dt770 32 ohm otherthan momentum or urbanite xl?
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If using with a mobile phone forget the Beyers. They need an amp as does the HD25. So either get the Sennheiser Momentum 2 or Sennheiser HD598cs. The Urbanite XL are ok too. Older headphones tended to need amping to sound good. The reason the higher ohm Beyers cost more is that they sound much better.
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But don’t buy any model of Beyer you have mentioned if using it mobile.
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Let me resarch for some more time and i will be back again tomorrow
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Actually what i want is m50s mids and higjs with more bass
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Then EQ the m50s to get more bass. Simple.
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In a mobile phone, i think there is no system wide eq. Am using galaxy note 5 and blackberry passport mainly
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Hd 25 is onear😢
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Momentum 2 vs hd 598cs in bass? Which have good bass.. more bass
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Neither. Fairly similar. Momentum 2 will be more dynamic / faster. If the price is right I would select the Momentum 2.
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I think i told you that am upgrading from samsung level u. Am a newbie to good headphones.thats why this much questions. Hope it is not bothering you.
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Nope but there isn’t much else left to discuss probably. The Momentum 2 should be a worthy upgrade. I hope you can get them at a decent price.
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Hd598cs are very cheap rigjt now.. 50%off i think… we get it for 8000 indian rupee. 110$ i think
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Great deal 👍
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M50 vs momentum and hd598 cs
Which have more nice bass?
Which have nice clarity? Or clarity is the same?
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Sennheiser are warmer. M50s more neutral.
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Warmer means? I think neutral means neutral music without emphasiz to any frequency. But m50 has little more bass. Not really neutral. I hope momentum have more bass
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Is there any benefit by buying 598cs over momentum? 598 have more bass?
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Yea. They sound marginally better.
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Thanks a lot
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Researching what’s best to buy is always irritating for me but especially with headphones, it gets even worse because sound is somewhat subjective so some say the HD598CS are not worth 140 euros while others, like you say it’s great…
I just ordered it I’m done with this lol, I’m no audiophile this is in fact my first high end pair of headphones and I don’t own an amp nor a DAC and not planning on buying any, the HD598CS looks nice and seems to be comfortable than the M50x and has a more flat FR curve, I hope I don’t regret this purchase.
Thank you for the review you’ve just ended my hesitation 😀
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Enjoy your new headphones and thanks for your kind comments 😀👍
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