The Philips SHP9500 are entry-level audiophile headphones. They're a great gateway into the world of open-back, audiophile headphones, given their accessible price and angled neodymium drivers. They also have a low impedance of 32 ohms with a sensitivity of 111.9dB SPL, so you can get away without using them paired with an amp if you don't already have one.
Our Verdict
The Philips SHP9500 aren't suitable for sports and fitness. They're audiophile headphones, and their bulky, wired design can easily shift in position and fall off while you're moving. Their cable can also snag on something and yank them off your head. On the upside, their audio cable is detachable.
- Comfortable design.
No amp or DAC required to drive them.
- Bulky and not very stable fit.
Don't block out background noise at all, by design.
- Leak audio, by design.
The Philips SHP 9500 aren't designed with travel in mind. They're bulky and don't block out background noise due to their open-back design, so you'll hear all the low rumbles of bus engines and people talking around you. They also leak audio, so even if you listen to audio at low volumes, others around you can hear it. That said, these cans have a very comfortable fit.
- Comfortable design.
No amp or DAC required to drive them.
- Bulky and not very stable fit.
Don't block out background noise at all, by design.
- Leak audio, by design.
The Philips SHP9500 aren't the best choice for office use. They have an open-back design, which doesn't block out background noise, and leaks a lot of audio, even at moderate volumes. Since they're audiophile headphones, they also lack a mic, so you can't take calls or online meetings with them. On the upside, they have a very comfortable fit suitable for long days at your desk.
- Comfortable design.
No amp or DAC required to drive them.
- Bulky and not very stable fit.
Don't block out background noise at all, by design.
- Leak audio, by design.
The Philips SHP9500 are wired headphones; you can't use them wirelessly.
The Philips SHP9500 are alright for gaming, so long as you have a standalone mic or don't need a mic at all. While their sound is light on bass, which can make explosions less impactful, they produce dialogue clearly, and soundtracks come across as natural-sounding. Their open-back design also creates an immersive listening experience, as if the sound is coming from around you in the room. Because of their lightweight design, they feel comfortable to wear for long periods without feeling fatigued.
- Comfortable design.
- Deliver audio consistently.
No amp or DAC required to drive them.
- Bulky and not very stable fit.
Don't block out background noise at all, by design.
- Leak audio, by design.
The Philips SHP9500 are a good choice for audio reproduction accuracy. Their frequency response follows their flat sound profile well, with only a few peaks and dips in the treble range. While their group delay isn't the best, it mostly impacts bass-range frequencies that aren't properly reproduced by the headphones anyway. Otherwise, these headphones exhibit good driver matching, with no audible distortion or coloration in audio reproduction. While the PRTF response is quite different from that of an angled reference speaker, they're still capable of creating an impression of space and distance.
The Philips SHP9500 have terrible noise isolation, but this is by design, given they're open-back headphones. You'll hear pretty much everything in your surrounding environment, regardless of the frequency range in which these noises fall.
The Philips SHP9500 don't have an integrated microphone, so you'll need to purchase a standalone mic if you need mic capabilities.
The Philips SHP9500 have good frequency response consistency. While there are some minor deviations in the bass and treble range between different reseats and varying facial characteristics, you can minimize their impact by taking the time to ensure a solid fit.
Performance Usages
Changelog
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Updated Aug 08, 2025:
We've updated this review's introduction to reflect the correct sensitivity measurement of 111.9dB SPL.
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Updated Jul 29, 2025:
We've updated the Sound Profile box with a link to a downloadable folder of EQ settings that will help you match these headphones' frequency response to different target curves available in our Graph Tool.
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Updated Jul 14, 2025:
This review has been updated to Test Bench 2.0, which adds the following tests: Stereo Mismatch, Group Delay, Cumulative Spectral Decay, PRTF, Harmonic Distortion, and Electrical Aspects. We've added new performance usages and updated the text throughout the Sound tests and side-by-sides.
- Updated Jul 10, 2025: We've converted this review to Test Bench 2.1, which features minor updates to our sound tests.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Philips SHP9500 come in one color variation: Black. If you encounter another variant of these headphones, please let us know in the comments, and we'll update our review.
Popular Headphones Comparisons
The Philips SHP9500 are wallet-friendly open-back headphones. If you want to get into the audiophile sphere, these cans are a good start, thanks to their flat and neutral sound. Their design allows audio to leave the ear cups and interact with your environment, creating a solid impression of space and distance. They lack a thumpy low bass, which is often the trade-off with open-backs compared to closed-back headphones, like the Audio-Technica ATH-M50x.
Check out our recommendations for the best wired headphones, the best audiophile headphones, and the best open-back headphones.
The Philips SHP9600 are very similar performing open-back headphones to the Philips SHP9500. The SHP9600 have a sleeker, all-black design and leak less audio. Both headphones have very balanced sound profiles that suit a wide range of music genres, though the SHP9500 comply most closely with our target curve with a flatter bass. For greater boom on the bass, the SHP9600 tend to provide more punch on kicks.
The Sennheiser HD 560S and the Philips SHP9500 have different strengths, and you may prefer either. Both models are great open-back headphones for their open and spacious listening experiences, but the Sennheiser are more stable to wear. On the other hand, the Philips are a bit more comfortable, so they can feel less fatiguing to wear for long listening sessions.
The Philips SHP9500 and the Philips Fidelio X2HR are both great open-back headphones for neutral sound listening. The Fidelio X2HR have a sleeker and more premium design, and they look and feel a bit more durable. Their bass range also provides more punch. While the X2HR have an auto-adjusting headband, the SHP9500 are a little bit more comfortable overall, as they don't clamp the head as tightly, and their treble range is a bit more even, but this can depend on your preferences. Both perform very similarly, but the SHP9500 likely represent better value overall.
The Beyerdynamic DT 990 PRO and the Philips SHP9500 are both very good audiophile headphones if you like a balanced sound, but they have slightly different sound profiles. The Beyerdynamic cans have a more robust build meant for professional settings. They also reproduce more bass, but their treble response sounds fairly sharp to some people. The Philips have a significant bass roll-off, but their treble is a bit less sharp, and they have a more open sound. They're also somewhat less fatiguing to wear for long listening sessions since they fit less tightly than the Beyerdynamic.
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You can also discover how we produce recommendations like this one so that you can find the best headphones (or earbuds!) for your needs.
Test Results
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