Best Headphones
Browse by budget and use
Sennheiser HD 560S

#20 overall · open-back wired · counts updated Oct 2026

Sennheiser HD 560S

Ranked #20 of 31: 35 people recommend it and 36 say they own it. Most repeated praise: Still the default open-back under $200 on Head-Fi; the 2024 thread asked if anything had replaced it and nobody named a clear successor. Most repeated complaint: No microphone, so it fails for people who also want calls.

Recommended as the safe first serious open-back for accurate music listening at home.

AccurateHomeFirst serious pairUnder $200
People who recommend it
35
Say they own it
36
Mentions
384
Posts read
2,677
Check price on Amazon · $180

Price when checked (Sep 2026): $180. Sennheiser's US store listed $279.95 on the check date; Amazon listed $179.99. The Amazon price is used as typical.

What owners love

3
  • Still the default open-back under $200 on Head-Fi; the 2024 thread asked if anything had replaced it and nobody named a clear successor
  • Neutral, accurate sound that works across genres
  • One Steve Hoffman owner calls it the most comfortable audiophile headphone he owns, out of five pairs

The complaints

3
  • No microphone, so it fails for people who also want calls
  • Plain plastic build
  • Neutral tuning can feel unexciting to bass lovers

Where owners disagree

Little disagreement on value; the only pushback is from people who want more bass or a wireless option.

The 18 sources

Every thread and video these notes come from.

Owner = the person says they use it. Recommendation = passed on without saying so. Dates are when the thread or video was posted.

Recommended for

Compared with

The headphones people weigh against this one most often, counted from comments that name both.

Back to the leaderboard