Sennheiser HD 280 Headphones

The sound quality is also fantastic, when using the HD280's, things will pop out of your music you have never heard before, new instruments, sounds, and somtimes even the band talking after or before songs. It is a completely revolutionary experiance.

The headphones are comfortable to wear for an extended length of time, and are not to heavy. The cable is coiled up, which means it very rarely gets snagged on anything, or tangled up. The ear & head pads, and the cable are all also easily replacable. The headphones also fold in a large variety of different fashions, you should be able to fit them into a bad one way or another!

Overall, a fantastic purchase.


My best gadget.   March 21, 2007
Dr. P. J. A. Wicks (London, England)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful

This, is my best gadget. Seeing as my house has been compared to a mad scientists' laboratory this is no mean feat. I got these headphones as a Christmas present last year and they continue to be my most essential piece of kit. First of all, a description.

These are fairly large over-the-ear headphones, although they do fold down to either go smaller or flat so you can put them in a drawer or briefcase. They are extremely comfortable and don't cause any discomfort; I've worn them for 5 hours at a stretch before with no problems.

Next, the sound quality. The first thing you'll notice if you're using these with an IPod or similar is that you can turn the volume down to half the usual level, because the sound is no longer leaking out to the surrounding environment. If anything this means you should be a bit careful of having these on full blast as they could do some serious damage. In fact when I'm on holiday I just plop these on a lampshade and use them as speakers. They're that good.

Finally, the sound isolation. Wear these on a plane and you don't hear the background chatter and engine noise. Wear them on the Victoria tube line and the screeching of metal on metal won't penetrate your skull. Use them to play computer games at 2am in the morning whilst your partner is sleeping in the next room and she won't hear a thing.

If only everyone who listened to music on a bus or a train had a pair of these we wouldn't be subjected to so much noise pollution. But if you have a pair of these, you won't care.

Best. Gadget. Ever.


Superb sound quality   January 9, 2007
C. Bradford (UK)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

I purchased these headphones after much searching for the best set. Intended use was for my studio where I planned on having these as a second judge for mixing and to also perhaps give the neighbours ears a rest. Their first outing was into my MP3 player, and all I can say is wow..stunning clarity of sound, every minor detail is picked up in a tune, every instrument stands out and the different frequencies are handled so well at even very low volumes. As these are closed back headphones you can enjoy your music even more as it cuts out any reasonable background noise (unless your on a building site!).

I have used them briefly in my studio and no complaints there either, perfect for working in an environment where I can often have distractions like heavy wind and rain (my sound proofing is pretty non existent).


The least impressive Sennheisers headphones I've heard   August 13, 2007
Mr. Christian Hoskins (London, UK)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful

I bought these headphones as an upgrade to my Sennheiser HD270s, which are also closed back headphones. I was hoping that the additional specification of the HD280s would provide better sound quality. However, I have been disappointed to find that the HD280s have poorer bass performance and cloudier sound that the HD270s.

I was also disappointed to find that the connecting cable can't be unplugged, unlike most of the other Sennheisers I've owned. The supplied cable is coiled and is not much longer than a metre, which is too short for most circumstances. It's a nuisance to have to use an extension lead all the time.

Although the HD280s have a stated sound pressure level of 102dB, they are surprisingly sensitive. This is a mixed blessing. It means you can get a lot of volume out of portable devices such as iPods, but it also reveals noise from other equipment, such as mains powered amplifiers, that would otherwise be masked.

On the plus side, the sound isolation is slightly better than the HD270s and the build quality is excellent. But in terms of sound quality, which is the most important thing for me, I find the HD280s disappointing. I've owned more than half a dozen sets of Sennheiser headphones over the years, and these are by far the least impressive.