Philips SHP9600 Wired, Over-Ear, Headphones, Comfort Fit, Open-Back 50 mm Neodymium Drivers (SHP9600/00) - Black

Product Information

Whether or not you’ll actually need a DAC largely depends on how good or bad your phone is, and how good or bad the internal soundcard on your laptop/PC is.

Philips SHP9600 Review: Refining a Classic Budget Headphone

I honestly think it’s a bit of both, and I’ve talked quite a bit about this with folks over the last few months… For those that are familiar with the SHP9500 sound, you know that they're probably better suited for playing games and watching movies than listening to music, mostly thanks to their frankly egregious treble response, though still not as bad as some Beyers. The SHP9600s manage to improve on that, albeit in some parts not by a whole lot.

Sound

i was expecting these headphones to be a significantly better than my KZ ZST earphones but they sound significantly better than my new pair of Philips shp9600. where my impressions of my KZ ZST have a more cleaner bass sound where i can hear and distinguish different instruments clearly and my Philips shp9600 have specific genres that these are better on but the bass are more muddy and i cant distinguish sounds clearly. It’s more subdued and less obnoxious, like your bratty teenage son who’s finally stopped smoking weed and eating Cheetos for breakfast. I'm reviewing these in comparison to my other headphones, no matter what the price difference may be. Also, I've never heard the Philips SHP9500 so I cannot comment at all about those. For example, it's said these have more clamping force than the SHP9500. These are quite loose and comfortable, so I have no idea how the SHP9500 stays on anyone's head.

shp9600 and i dont - Reddit Just bought a pair of Philips shp9600 and i dont - Reddit

Again, the small attention to detail here from Philips is more than admirable, it’s outright amazing that they would adjust and improve the fit. Note: The 9600 actually weighs a bit more than the 9500 (I included this in the about section on the graphic in the video), but was surprised. There isn’t as much air around the instruments, which is something you will clearly hear and feel in relation to the breezier, cooler 9500.As with the 9500, you can easily attach a Boom Pro here and be off to the races in no time. Just get a Creative SoundBlasterX G6. There seems to be a protective measure taken in looking at the greyish-blue cap, a stark contrast to the rubbery, flimsier material inherent in the original 9500. The other difference is that the treble doesn’t have that bite that the 9500 had. Because of this, you can listen to it for longer periods of time without fatigue.

Phillips SHP9600 | Headphone Reviews and Discussion - Head-Fi.org Phillips SHP9600 | Headphone Reviews and Discussion - Head-Fi.org

I’m glad Philips didn’t butcher the headphones with an overly accentuated low end, so don’t get me wrong. The midrange is pretty darn good at the price point. It is a little recessed as indicative of the 1k-5k scoop, but they don't sound hollow at all. Male voices are nicely rendered. The midrange feels much less congested than the HD 650 or LCD-2. Mid-bass doesn't bleed at all into it, which it does in the HD 650, so naturally the mids sound less congested than the HD 650. I'm not going to get into the Sennheiser veil debate at all, but let's just leave it here that the mids on the Philips are more open than the HD 650. They're not as liquid and luscious, either, but they're tastefully done. If you are specifically looking for a V-shape curve, these should be on your list. The fit is snugger like a bug in a rug this time, and even despite the cups being smaller in both length and width, there is still ample room for my big Dumbo-sized ears inside.

You may notice a bit of a dip in the presence regions, but it doesn’t feel scooped out when you’re listening to it. The 9600 will fare a bit better for bass-happier music: Hip-Hop, R&B, EDM, and Indie Pop all sound phenomenal with these. Vocals and instruments still stand out, sounding very lively, intimate, and engaging, but in my opinion, these mids aren’t as good as the 9500.

Philips SHP9500 vs Philips SHP9600 Side-by-Side Headphones

This may just be a matter of them not being as broken in as my 9500, but I feel as though they don’t slide around nearly as much. After being very pleased with the SHP9600 for movies, I decided to plug them into my main headphone rig to evaluate their sound with music. While I am extremely pleased with these for movies, and I highly recommend them for that capacity, the focus of this review is mainly regarding music from my main headphone rig. I make a few comments here and there about their movie performance. Replacing those elements is a single gold ring around the grille, housing the same 50mm neodymium driver.Well, that’s about it for today my friend! I hope you’ve enjoyed this Philips SHP9600 Review and came away with some valuable insight. Both headphones are incredibly comfy, but I feel more secure with a 9600 on my head if that makes sense. While the bass still rolls off quite a bit in the sub-regions, there’s now a gradual rise in the mid-bass by about 5dB, but it’s not a bump. The 9600 mostly still provides the same great experience as the 9500, but it feels a bit more like a bass-oriented sound for sure.