The SHL9500 is an ultra-light high end headset from Philips.  With their closed earphone design, they are equipped with 40 mm studio quality speaker drivers.  These headphones are supposed to have the best performances in their category as well as optimal sound reproduction.  Comfortable, light, attractive and with excellent sound quality, Philips is claiming perfection with the SHL9500.  What do we think?

Ergonomics : From an aesthetic point of view, Philips remains realistic.  While being sober and discreet, these headphones have a very pleasant look.  And once on our head, this first good impression isn’t lost ; they are truly light (93g), the foam on the headband is dense and the earpads are comfortable.   There is an included 3.5-6.3 mm adaptor which unfortunately has an elbow jack. However, our only real criticism in this area is the fact that they can be folded.  This isn’t because it’s a bad idea but rather the joint is of poor quality.  Finally, we would have liked to have seen a carry pouch like we find with a number of its competitors.

Audio quality : It was when we started the audio part of the test that we became a bit disenchanted.  The first thing that was immediately noticeable was the omnipresence of basses.  Although the other frequencies are overwhelmed, they were however of excellent quality and it was difficult to saturate the extreme end of the audio profile.  And in fact, before anything else we recommend lowering the gain in this area using the equalizer.   Sound will still lack intensity and quite a bit of precision while highs and high mediums are absent.  Even after making some adjustments, we couldn’t change this strong tendency and sound remains quite heavy. Other than that, for those who like a little "boom" in their music, there is no saturation, basses are deep and music is pleasant overall.