Rating: 
Summary: Great sound for live performance
Review: A great value for $60. Excellent sound reproduction and a good bass response. Perfect for listeners who enjoy powerful rock or pop music and enjoy the atmosphere of a live performance (me!). Compare with my friend's Beyerdynamic DT 831, I feel that the DT831 is a bit thin. The 831 does sound better in other areas, particularly the clear, accurate highs, but it also costs about $180. For $60, I am quite pleased with the 490.
Rating: 
Summary: Very comfortable, but mediocre sound
Review: After breaking these in these headphones still did not sound very good at all. They are, however, very comfortable, but feel like they would fly off my head at the slightest movement. Going back to the sound, in general most of it is pretty clear, but the bass gets distorted, while the mids are muddy and the highs are grainy. It does sound a little better with some acoustic music, but not by a whole lot. Definitely not one of the better offerings by Sennheiser. I give it a 3 mostly for its comfort level, but considering its price, I would say a 1 or 2 for its sound quality.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Sound, Bad Bass
Review: As an avid headphone collector, I haven't really come to trust Sennheiser as a company. These phones don't usually have bad sound, in fact the treble is wonderful. But every time I put a disc or cassette on, it sounds like I've pumped up the bass to the maximum level. I really hate this, because if I try to turn the bass down, it keeps up with the same thumping in the background. These headphones aren't good for much except for solo bass records.
Rating:
Summary: Why the negative reviews?
Review: I am rather surprised at some of the negative reviews of this product, which IMHO is a fine product for the money. I bought them as a birthday gift for my brother (I already own a pair of Sennheiser 570's) and here in the UK the 490's are marketed as the Classic. The HD490 is a relative of the HD500 and HD570, all three of which are a bionetic design - made to ensure maximum comfort, and these are VERY comfortable 'phones. Just like a pair of speakers, headphones need to be "run in" for a while to loosen up the components. OK, so they are not the best headphones on the planet but they do offer a very clean and spatial sound with good dynamics and excellent bass. After I'd run them in for a few hours, I compared them to my old 445's and the 490's were much better. The only real criticism I have is that they are not as neutral as my 570's and seem to push the lower frequencies , resulting in a slightly uneven bass on some material although it has to be said it's entirely dependent on the recording itself. My brother listens to mostly reggae and bassy ghetto music (hip-hop, rap, etc) so these are ideal headphones for that type of music although I tested wth all sorts of music and they sounded fine to me. I listened to RUN DMC's Walk This Way (a typical bass-heavy ghetto track!) and I could hear all sorts of low-level detail which my old 445's simply blur or miss out. Likewise when I played some tracks from Bob Marley's Natural Mystic compilation CD, I ended up enjoying it so much I sat there for hours listening to the CD over and over! Give these 'phones a break you negative reviewers and learn how to use them properly!!! These are really very good headphones for the money but make sure you run them in (at least 24 hours) and, if you want to hear them at their best, use them with your domestic hi-fi amp. I would not recommend using these with portable equipment.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I bought a similar pair 3 years ago from Sennheiser, 4xx?Expression Line and I loved them. Best headphones I ever had! Sound is just awesome. Unfortunately I've abused them so I bought these and wow what a difference. No where near as good as the previous ones I had. Quite a bummer. I'm taking them back to and will try the 495's. Hope they're better.
Rating: 
Summary: BEST Portable Headphones Around... and other advice
Review: I bought this pair of HD490's because of their: low (32 Ohms) impedance, low price, comfort, and sound quality. I would grade these as the best headphones for portable audio. Some recommend against it but I purchased them for that exact reason. They don't even compare with any of my home 'phones. I guess they could be used as a cheap set for those short on dough yet smart enough to throw away those crap sony's. USED ON:
I use them with my nomad jukebox..., my Apple Powerbook G3 ..., and my KOSS CD-Player ... They play loud enough on all. They didn't play well on my friend's 'Classic' CD-MP3 player. I think the player was screwed up -lots of crackling and pops. COMFORT:
Little compared to any of Sennheiser's (closed) monitors. Being open-aire the push against your ears instead of resting on them. At first they feel very comfortable but after a while (~hour) you will want to take them off for a min or two. However, these are the most comfortable headphones compared to other portables like KOSS and Grado. If you can find the 495's get them instead. But, they are rare and almost twice the mullah. I could find ... for the cheapest pair of HD495's -- ... for the cheapest HD490's. Amazon's price is a good one for the quick shopper. I bought a pair of these via Amazon with a ... gift card. home stereo some recommendations: BEST VALUE: I recommend checking out Sennheiser's monitor line for home stereo. They offer truly the best bang for the buck. They are, however, 'flat' and a equalizer is, of course, recommended for finding that 'sweet-spot.' BEST: [Pulling] around 300 Ohms (its impedance) the HD 600's are simply the best. Yet, even some home stereo's have problems putting-out. You won't even get a whisper from portables. You can read other reviews on why these are so great. Price is the obvious problem. Important Notes:
•Any old customers of Sennheiser beware... These are not the headphones of the past. For that quality you should be looking for headphones requiring 64 Ohms impedance at the very least. Most portables pump out 32 (same as HD490).
•While not told by many, breaking in headphones (best-->24hrs of non-stop output at a notch above regular playing volume) is a MUST. Audiophiles will notice a significant increase in quality. This is why most (non-abused) floor demos 'seem better' then just-opened box units.
Rating:
Summary: the more you listen to them, the more you will enjoy
Review: I decided to buy these headphones after reading many reviews. Some were good, other were really hard.
The first time I plugged the Senn's on my portable cd player I was a little bit disappointed, because they didn't sound very loud and sound quality was poor compared to my old Technics RP-F1 closed headphones. But now I can tell why : all of the new generations of portable players don't drive the headphones like years before, because of the sound limitation - like "avls" from Sony to protect the ears from too loud sound. So the headphones don't have enought power too play an acceptable sound. If you plug some headphone above 32ohms in, you will never reach a comfortable volume. Especially on the Sony portable like told before. So the Sennheiser HD490 are not good on todays portable players for that reason. But if you plug them on your hi-fi amp and disconnect the loudness, you will be able to listen them for hours without any fatiguing sensation. You will re-discover your favorite music. Simply let them play some hours to run them in.
It's really worth of it. They are not for hearing loud loud music because of distortions but for enjoying a not coloured sound spectrum. Like I told before : the more you set them on, the more you will appreciate them for their real sound.
Rating:
Summary: Dissapointing
Review: I was quite excited to listen to these headphones, but I was quickly dissapointed. They cannot reach loud volumes without comprimising sound quality. Ever person in the room can hear your music clearly. The sound out of these headphones is good at low volumes, but you can't listen to them very loud. Not a very good value at all. A very poor investment.
Rating:
Summary: superior headphpones for the cost
Review: The other reviewers are certainly correct about these 'phones, they are a touch on the bass heavy side. If it bothers you, that's what the EQ is for... However, compared to headphones from all other manufacturers (with the possible exception of Koss) at the same price point, these headphones are a breath of fresh air. Mate them with a quality output source, and you will not be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Nice sound, good bass, incredible comfort
Review: These are the best sounding headphones i have ever owned. Granted, I havent owned very many headphones, but i still do listen to a lot of music. They are incredibly comfortable, and sound great. They have especially good bass, if you are into that.
| 
