Our Verdict
The Sennheiser HD 598 are great headphones for neutral listening. They're comfortable to use for hours, and they sound excellent with most tracks. They have a balanced bass, mid and treble response and their open design create a spacious soundstage.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Sturdy build.
- Good audio reproduction.
- Poor noise isolation, by design.
- Leaks a lot of sound, by design.
Not designed for commuters. Open design lets the loud ambient noise seep into your audio.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Sturdy build.
- Good audio reproduction.
- Poor noise isolation, by design.
- Leaks a lot of sound, by design.
Not intended for sports use. They're big, bulky and too unstable.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Sturdy build.
- Good audio reproduction.
- Poor noise isolation, by design.
- Leaks a lot of sound, by design.
Poor isolation not designed for office use. They don't block the office chatter and everyone can hear what you're listening to.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Sturdy build.
- Good audio reproduction.
- Poor noise isolation, by design.
- Leaks a lot of sound, by design.
- Lightweight and comfortable design.
- Sturdy build.
- Good audio reproduction.
- Poor noise isolation, by design.
- Leaks a lot of sound, by design.
Changelog
- Updated Nov 05, 2021: Converted to Test Bench 1.5.
- Updated Mar 02, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.4.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.1.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.
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Popular Headphones Comparisons
See our recommendations for the best over-ear headphones, the best wired headphones, and the best audiophile headphones.
The Sennheiser HD 599 are marginally better audiophile headphones than the Sennheiser HD 598, but both are great for neutral sound and you may prefer either. They're nearly identical in terms of comfort and build quality. The HD 599 sound a bit better, with a less underemphasized bass response, but it's a small difference and may not be noticeable for all listeners. The HD 599 also seem to isolate the wearer better than the HD 598, but neither of them isolate you from very much noise since they’re open-back headphones.
The Sennheiser HD 598 are slightly better headphones than the Sennheiser HD 600, mostly due to comfort. The HD 598 have a better over-ear fit that does not clamp your head and feels very comfortable. They also have a slightly more elevated high-bass which some may like since it adds a bit more punchiness than the HD 600, and they come with an additional cable in the box. On the other hand, the HD 600 deliver audio more consistently and won't sound as boomy on some tracks as the HD 598. The HD 600 also have a slightly better build quality which can be advantageous if you plan on using them frequently.
The Beyerdynamic DT 990 PRO are slightly better headphones than the Sennheiser HD 598. They are noticeably better-built headphones and feel sturdier. They also don’t lack sub-bass as much sub-bass as the Sennheiser. However, they might sound a bit sharp for some and are a bit tight on the head. Also, the Sennheiser are more comfortable for long listening sessions, thanks to the nice padding and large cups. We’ve also measured that they were more open-sounding than the Beyerdynamic.
The Sennheiser HD 650 and the Sennheiser HD 598 are very similarly-performing open-back over-ear headphones. The 598 are quite a bit more comfortable, thanks to their better padding, and less tight-fitting design. Both headphones are quite well-balanced and accurate, though the 650 are more accurate in the bass-range, as the 598 are slightly over-emphasized in high-bass. The 650 also feel a bit better-built and durable.
Our How We Test Headphones article takes you behind the scenes in our lab. You'll learn how we choose and purchase products and dive into the details of our review philosophy, from testing and scoring to writing and editing.
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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