Few audio brands are as well known as Sennheiser, and within its line-up, the HD 600 series is one of its most iconic. The HD 600, HD 650, and HD 6XX have all been staples in the audio world and today we have a new entry: the HD 620S. It features a closed-back design for isolation and portability, a stylish new chassis, and a sound that’s full, rich, and surprisingly spacious. Coming in at $349.95, these headphones are a solid value, especially if you’re already a fan of Sennheiser’s sound.
Specifications
- Current Price: $349.95 (Amazon)
- Ear coupling: Around ear
- Transducer principle (headphones): dynamic, closed
- Frequency response: 6 Hz - 30 kHz
- Nominal impedance: 150 Ohm
- THD, total harmonic distortion: <0,05 % (1kHz/90 db SPL)
- Sound pressure level (SPL): 110 dB / 1 V RMS
- Ear pad material: Artificial leather on Polyurethane basis
- Cable length: 1.8 m
- Package dimensions: 237x191x96mm (LxBxH)
- Weight: 326g
Sennheiser HD 620S - First Impressions and Key Features
The Sennheiser HD 620S has been a long time coming. With the HD 600 series each taking on an open-back design and earning high marks amongst critics and everyday listeners, fans have been asking for a closed-back version for years. The wait is finally over but the final product doesn’t look like anything I expected.
The HD 600 series shares a common design: ovular cups with large grilles, Y-shaped yokes, and dual cable connections. Here, we have something much closer to the HD 560S, a headphone I reviewed back in 2021 and still recommend to this day. The backs are solid, of course, but the cups are tighter and smaller in appearance. The Y-yoke is gone, replaced with a single arm that allows for a small amount of tilt to match different head and face shapes. The cable connection has also been simplified down to a single detachable cable on the left earcup.
I jive far more with this type of design than I do with the more vintage appearance off the extended HD 600 series. In the time before this review, I’ve heard people comment that it doesn’t look like a member of the HD 600 family at all and I can see where they’re coming from. At the same time, products need to evolve and I like this new direction.
The materials are expectedly top-notch. The earcups are made of a mix of metal and plastic. The center portion, where we would usually find a grille, is metal and decorated with an attractive dappling of black gloss. The outer frame and yokes are plastic, but the headband is reinforced with metal for improved durability. With most other brands, I would be more critical of the use of plastic, but Sennheiser has proved the resilience of its products time and again. It also allows this headphone to weigh less, with a mass of only 326 grams.
The ear cushions have been swapped to a more isolating leatherette (which also enhances the bass). The headband is similar in design to the HD 6XX but is also trimmed in matching leather. The cushions do a great job of blocking out the outside world and enhancing the bass presence. If you’d prefer to swap to something more breathable (heat build-up is an issue), they snap on and off easily.
Inside the cups, you’ll find the same dynamic driver used in the rest of the series. Made in Ireland, this driver measures 42mm with a large 38mm diaphragm. Though it’s the same driver, Sennheiser has tuned it to match the closed-back design of the HD 620S. The voice coil driving these drivers offers 150 ohms of resistance, though you don’t necessarily need anything special to drive these. I would recommend a bit more than an Apple Dongle, for example, but my gaming motherboard drove them just fine.
One of the aims of this pair of headphones is to be isolating while also offering a spacious sound signature. Closed backs are traditionally the best choice for portability but you trade spaciousness for that isolation. The HD 620S addresses that by angling the drivers so that sound hits your ear at a more natural angle. The higher impedance of the voice coil also aids in this, allowing the drivers to respond precisely for an improved acoustic image.
Sennheiser HD 620S - Fit and Comfort
The fit and comfort of the HD 620S is good but some listeners may find it to be too tight. To support isolation and its acoustic goals, the clamping force is on the grippy side. It didn’t bother me, and once music is playing, the outside world slips away, so it accomplishes what it sets out to do.
Now that we’re into the summer months, heat build-up is a real concern. These headphones definitely made my ears sweat, so plan on venting intermittently if you’re not climate-controlled.
Like most other entries in the HD 600 line-up, the headband did eventually cause hot-spotting. I am particularly sensitive to this but I had to take breaks every hour or so.
Sennheiser HD 620S - Listening Impressions
Now we come to the most important category: sound. Is it any surprise that the HD 620S sound good? It shouldn’t be. Sennheiser doesn’t often miss when it comes to their tuning and presentation and with the rest of the HD 600 line sounding as good as they do (albeit more neutral than the 620S), it’s fair to have expected the HD 620S to be a competent pair of headphones.
That’s really not a given, though. Other brands have tried it and the results have been mixed, so the fact that the HD 620S sounds as good as it does is a testament to the engineers at Sennheiser.
In the graph above, you can see a comparison between the HD 620S and the original HD 600. If the HD 600 is considered neutral and relatively flat sounding, then you can surmise a lot of what the HD 620S has to offer. The sound signature is noticeably warmer with more powerful and extended bass. Sub-bass rings more powerfully, though not as much as the graph seems to imply.
There’s more rumble here, for sure, but the mid-bass is much more noticeable. It fills out the body of songs in a way that is very mainstream-friendly. Rock, hip-hop, and electronica all sound great on this set. The bass isn’t the most detailed I’ve heard, but it’s no slouch, allowing you to pick out texture in the lows and offering an energetic punch. There’s a softness around the edges, however, that something like the Focal Elex rectifies — albeit for significantly more.
It would be a mistake to consider these bass cannons, however. They smoothly transition into the mids, which are smooth and natural. As you move higher up the spectrum, these come to life and show that there’s sparkle hidden in the drivers. Acoustic guitars sound fantastic, with brightness to the strings that sounds alive.
Heavier music laden with double-kick drums and overdriven guitars is also well represented here. Angel Vivaldi’s Dopamine has a lot going on at all times, but the 620S captures and presents it all with impressive clarity. The tuning also allows percussion elements, like snares and hi-hats to come forward and inject their percussive snap and sizzle into tracks. Compared to the HD 6XX, these offer very similar clarity and detail with a slightly more laid-back presentation.
The soundstage is impressive. While not at the level of an open-back pair of headphones, they do a good job of giving every instrument and sound source their own space. There’s depth and verticality to the listening experience — more depth than width, to my ear — that removes any sense of congestion.
This makes them very good for gaming. You get the bass, the isolation, but also a soundstage that’s accurate enough to use in competitive settings. The imaging and positionality are very good, so you won’t have any trouble discerning the direction of incoming enemies or distant gunfire. These headphones also work great with virtual spatial audio like Windows Sonic and Dolby Atmos.
Overall Impressions and Final Thoughts
Ultimately, the Sennheiser HD 620S, while on the pricey end, is a good buy. It’s a bassier, more mainstream take on the HD 600 series’ formula and one of the best that’s been attempted so far. It’s not the best at this price in any single area, but in this case, the sum of its parts makes up a well-rounded, enjoyable whole for a wide range of music and games. It’s definitely a headphone I will personally be coming back to because there isn’t another headphone that hits all of these notes as collectively well, and that’s a win for Sennheiser.
The product described in this article was provided by the manufacturer for evaluation purposes.
