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The Sennheiser HD598's high-gloss burled wood accents, thickly padded headband, and ear cushions all lend a luxurious feel to the design. The tan-and-beige color scheme is a nice alternative to Sennheiser's usual gray or black finishes. In addition to the HD 598 ($330) Sennheiser introduced two less expensive 500 Series models, the HD 558 ($230) and HD 518 ($170). Sennheiser isn't the sort of company that jumps on trends; the goal for its audiophile-oriented designs is to make the most accurate-sounding headphones possible, and the HD 598 is the latest example of such thinking.
The HD 598 is a full-size, over-the-ear (circumaural) headphone. It weighs just 9.5 ounces, but its mostly plastic construction makes it feel even lighter. We found the velvet ear cushions extremely comfortable, even over extended listening sessions. The HD 598 is among the most comfortable Sennheisers we've tested to date.
The HD 598 features Sennheiser's Eargonomic Acoustic Refinement technology, which uses acoustic baffles inclined at a slight angle to guide the sound directly to the ears. The technology appears to be derived from Sennheiser's flagship HD 800 headphone. The HD 598 also features powerful neodymium magnets, Duofol drivers, and lightweight aluminum voice coils.
The headphone has a user-replaceable 10-foot-long cable, terminated with a 6.3-millimeter gold-plated plug, and you also get a gold-plated 3.5mm audio plug. Thanks to the clever attachment connection, the detachable cable isn't likely to accidentally fall out. Other than the color difference and wood accents, the HD 598 is a near cosmetic twin of Sennheiser's highly regarded HD 595 headphones. The HD 598's impedance is rated at 50 ohms.
We listened to the HD 598 with an Onkyo TX-SR805 receiver, a Schiit Audio Asgard headphone amplifier, and an Apple iPod Classic. The headphone's sound is superclean and has a wide-open soundstage. Tonal balance is a little brighter and emits more treble detail than we've heard from previous generations of full-size Sennheisers. Even so, it's a very easy headphone to listen to over long listening sessions.
