SoundMagic HP200 Stereo Headphone review

Excellent new hi-fi signature headphone:

http://www.hifiheadphones.co.uk/for...magic-hp200-stereo-headphone-review-dale.html

Update: With longer term listening, I'll pick up another headphone occasionally to check out any differences, but I always return to the HP200 now as the most satisfactory listen. The really interesting thing is (and not to name names), my most popular headphone from the various reviews is the one I go to least often, and it costs $100 more than the HP200 in the U.S. The biggest thing for me, at least in recent listening, has been the character of the bass response. I don't know if it's the hardest thing to get right, or if it's just a subtle thing that creeps up on me over time, but the HP200's bass is as perfect as I've heard. The Sennheiser HD800 and its sonic cousins the Shure 940/1440/1840 have a pleasant bass, but they're like a mate who's home only on weekends, and then mostly on the cellphone. You get close, but satisfaction is fleeting. The Grado PS500 has a fairly narrow hump in the upper bass which impressed me mainly as a coloration, and when that was EQ'd down somewhat the result was like an improved version of the Senn HD800 and the Shures. The Beyer DT770LE bass is quite seductive, having more power in the lower registers, it grabs you sonically and keeps you stimulated until finally something like the HP200 provides a bit of relief. I'd recommend the DT770LE for indirect listening, i.e. gaming, TV, or outdoor use. The v-moda M100's bass immerses you in a dark world, like swimming under the sea with giant squid and 30-foot sharks. Most impressive. The Senn HD800's tiny offspring, the IE800 IEM, offers the powerful deep bass of an M100 or DT770LE, but with much less upper bass emphasis, and that is very impressive, in sound as well as price. The Sennheiser Momentum has a fairly strong upper bass, but a more normal-strength lower bass that's often masked by the prominent uppers, contributing to a sense of recessed lowers. This is by no means a comprehensive look at bass response for any of these headphones, but it's the best explanation I have for what I hear with the HP200.