Superlux HD668B Headphones

Product Information

I have on a few occasions heard of Superlux, and that their headphones, despite being low cost, aren't the worst one can buy. The HD-660 comes in a good-sized Superlux box with the standard branding and marketing bumf as many other headphones do, nothing too surprising here. What is different however is that inside this box is a plastic headphone travel case and inside this, you find the headphones, the travel case itself is quite big as the phones do not fold up. The HD-660 are good-looking headphones. They are mirror images of the popular Beyerdynamic DT770 which has classic monitor headphone styling. The build quality of the course is nowhere near that of the Beyers however but that is not to say it is bad. The cups are made from solid feeling plastic and with some metal where the cups swivel. Why, you ask? The answer is simple; Because they feel pretty good! They’re very light but not at all loose or flimsy. Everything feels pretty robust a solid. The overall tone of the Superlux HD668B is Cold and Dry, I find it's presentation to be very Bright and the overall sound signature is a fun neutral. Measurements show that it has a slight v shape to it's frequency response.

The N650 shares a similar treble to the HD668B, which is crisp and airy. Its soundstage is not as wide but it does have more depth and superior imaging. Overall clear sound. Sound stage is fine, somewhere between Grado L cush and G cush, but the veiled mids don't give it a good quality in spatial separation. Any scepticism I had vanished as soon as I heard the first notes coming from the HD668’s transducers. These things sound ridiculously good (in the context of their price). I was greeted with a mildly V-shaped signature with a touch of warmth, along with clarity and detail. I always test these two items with "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" (Live at Long Beach Arena). It's spectacular at minute 1:20 how you can tell with these headphones that the bassist and one of the two guitars are on the right side of the stage and the other guitar is a little to the left with the singer at the center. I can't always capture this detail, and the Superlux surprised me for the better. The HD681 does definitely not really appear weak on the bass at all but the HD668B is the audibly bassier headphone. The HD681 extends slightly better by ca. 3 Hz which is not much and only audible when doing sine sweeps.Mids are a bit forward but nowhere near as much as the highs. I find it okay, some may say it is a bit recessed which could be attributed to the relatively more prominent sub-bass and super elevated highs.Personally i did prefer a little more of the mids hence why i experimented with taking out the dampening foam positioned in front of the driver.

Especially their headphones and also in-ears were very positively received by the audiophile community and headphone lovers for delivering exceptionally good value for the money and sounding good despite being so inexpensive. A large part of this “secret” is the abandonment of large (or any at all?) marketing and ad campaigns and re-using the design of existing products. Deep bass extension on my HD861 is minimally better by ca. 3 Hz, but not much and only audible when performing sine sweeps. I have written a review in danish at the danish head-fi-forum, which is called Hoved-fi.dk, and I'll now do my best to translate it into english: In terms of resolution, the Fostex are ahead, but the gap towards the Superlux is not as gigantic as one may thing. Not at all, in fact, as the latter still perform very reasonably when compared to the former that are ultimately however superior by a good bit in about every aspect regarding resolution. Considering 98dB sensitivity and 56 ohm impedance, I found HD668B to be a little less efficient in comparison to my other headphones, and as a result I had to push the volume a little higher. Also, it’s clear that more expensive headphones have an edge in build quality and material selection.

They come with a short cable and a longer cable, a quarter inch adapter and a nylon (feels like nylon) carrying pouch.

Top end clarity is another pleasurable quality of the HD 668B, high hats, cymbals and the brightest guitar solos all have a wonderful sense of clarity and air. While some may find the treble to be too hot, or too bright, I really do like the shimmer that the HD668B brings, really makes you feel like you're walking on air. I would say I favor them over the Grado SR225i that I owned and loved for a long time. They of course should sound inferior overall to my PS500's that I really love... wait a minute, are PS500's really better? Bass - All of them have good bass but the best for bass would be TDJ1000 and what is best from the HD330? they don't sound like if they are inside a box, they deliver more of a balanced open sound yet still powerful bass.

The HD330Pro’s appearance and handling

I got the Superlux HD668B as a gift from my brother. These were my first better than average headphones, and boy, they are good! On the FA08 the headphones cable passes in front of my chest and disturbs my hands. On the Octapad disturbs me to play the snare drum. Besides the cable being too tight in both cases. If not because of this short cable, then these headphones would be unstoppable.