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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Style
    2. Comfort
    3. Controls
    4. Breathability
    5. Portability
    6. Case
    7. Build Quality
    8. Stability
    9. Headshots 1
    10. Headshots 2
    11. Top
    12. In The Box
  5. Sound
    1. Sound Profile
    2. Frequency Response Consistency
    3. Raw Frequency Response
    4. Bass Profile: Target Compliance
    5. Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance
    6. Treble Profile: Target Compliance
    7. Peaks/Dips
    8. Imaging
    9. Passive Soundstage
    10. Virtual Soundstage
    11. Weighted Harmonic Distortion
    12. Test Settings
  6. Isolation
    1. Noise Isolation - Full Range
    2. Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios
    3. Noise Isolation - Voice Handling
    4. ANC Wind Handling
    5. Leakage
  7. Microphone
    1. Microphone Style
    2. Recording Quality
    3. Noise Handling
  8. Active Features
    1. Battery
    2. App Support
  9. Connectivity
    1. Wired Connection
    2. Bluetooth Connection
    3. Wireless Connection (Dongle)
    4. PC Compatibility
    5. PlayStation Compatibility
    6. Xbox Compatibility
    7. Base/Dock
  10. Comments

Superlux HD 668B vs Superlux HD 681

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Superlux HD 668B
Superlux HD 681

Tested using Methodology v1.5

Updated Apr 26, 2022 08:51 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v1.8

Updated Dec 09, 2024 07:16 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Superlux HD 668B Picture
Superlux HD 681 Picture
  1. Recommended in 2 articles:
  2. Open-Back
  3. Under $50

Variants

  • HD 668B
  • HD 681

Our Verdict

Superlux HD 668B

Superlux HD 681

The Superlux HD 668B and the Superlux HD 681 are both very good headphones if you like a balanced sound. While they both can sound quite harsh and sharp, the HD 668B feature a slightly bassier default sound. While both have a similarly disappointing build quality, the HD 681 are a fair bit more comfortable to wear.

0

Check Price

Standard
HD 668B
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Standard
HD 681
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Standard
HD 668B
SEE PRICE
Walmart.com
Standard
HD 681
SEE PRICE
B&H
Standard
HD 668B
B&H
Standard
HD 681
SEE PRICE
Walmart.com
Standard
HD 668B
BestBuy.com
Standard
HD 681
BestBuy.com

Notice: Two or more of the products selected have been tested with different test methodologies, so some of the results below aren't directly comparable. Learn how our test benches and scoring system work, and read more about the latest changes to our headphones test methodology.

Main Differences for

Threshold 

0.10

Neutral Sound 

8.1
7.9

Bass Accuracy 
 

7.9
7.4

Full Comparison

Design

Style  

Design Picture 2  

Superlux HD 668B Design Picture 2
Superlux HD 681 Design Picture 2

Type  

Over-ear
Over-ear

Enclosure  

Semi-Open
Semi-Open

Wireless  

No
No

Transducer  

Dynamic
Dynamic

Show text

Comfort 
 

6.0
7.5

Comfort Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Comfort Picture
Superlux HD 681 Comfort Picture

Weight  

0.51 lbs
0.5 lbs

Clamping Force 
 

1.2 lbs
0.9 lbs

Show text

Controls 
 

0.0
0.0

Controls Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Controls Picture
Superlux HD 681 Controls Picture

OS Compatibility 
 

No Controls
No Controls

Ease Of Use  

No Controls
No Controls

Feedback  

No Controls
No Controls

Call/Music Control  

No
No

Volume Control  

No
No

Microphone Control  

No
No

Channel Mixing 
 

No
No

Noise Cancelling Control  

No
No

Talk-Through 
 

No
No

Additional Controls  

No
No

Breathability 
 

6.8
6.8

Breathability After Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Breathability After Picture
Superlux HD 681 Breathability After Picture

Avg.Temp.Difference  

4.8 °C
4.8 °C

Show text

Portability 
 

5.2
5.4

Portability Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Portability Picture
Superlux HD 681 Portability Picture

 

9.0" (22.9 cm)
8.0" (20.3 cm)

 

7.1" (18.0 cm)
7.2" (18.3 cm)

 

4.1" (10.4 cm)
3.5" (8.9 cm)

Volume  

262.00 in³ (4,293.39 cm³)
201.00 in³ (3,293.79 cm³)

Transmitter Required  

No
No

Show text

Case 
 

5.5
5.5

Case Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Case Picture
Superlux HD 681 Case Picture

Type  

Pouch
No case

 

N/A
N/A

 

N/A
N/A

 

N/A
N/A

Volume  

N/A
N/A

Show text

Build Quality 
 

5.5
5.5

Build Quality Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Build Quality Picture
Superlux HD 681 Build Quality Picture

Show text

Stability 
 

6.5
6.0

Stability Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Stability Picture
Superlux HD 681 Stability Picture

Show text

Headshots 1  

Angled Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Angled Picture
Superlux HD 681 Angled Picture

Side Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Side Picture
Superlux HD 681 Side Picture

Headshots 2  

Front Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Front Picture
Superlux HD 681 Front Picture

Rear Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Rear Picture
Superlux HD 681 Rear Picture

Top  

Top Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Top Picture
Superlux HD 681 Top Picture

In The Box  

In The Box Picture  

Superlux HD 668B In The Box Picture
Superlux HD 681 In The Box Picture

Show text

Sound

Sound Profile 
 

Sound Profile  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Normalization Frequency 
 

1,500 Hz

Bass Amount 
 

-1.62 dB
-4.2 dB

Treble Amount 
 

0.34 dB
1.6 dB

Show text

Frequency Response Consistency 
 

7.5
7.8

Consistency L  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Consistency R  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Avg. Std. Deviation 
 

0.49 dB
0.44 dB

Show text

Raw Frequency Response 
 

Raw FR L  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Raw FR R  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Bass Profile: Target Compliance 
 

7.9
7.4

Bass Profile: Target Compliance  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

RMS Deviation From Target 
 

2.86 dB
5.5 dB

Low-Frequency Extension 
 

32.68 Hz
27.29 Hz

Low Bass 
 

-2.72 dB
-7.23 dB

Mid Bass 
 

3 dB
-2.34 dB

High Bass 
 

3.17 dB
-1.53 dB

Show text

Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance 
 

9.1
9.1

Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

RMS Deviation From Target 
 

1.25 dB
1.01 dB

Low Mid 
 

1.47 dB
-1.12 dB

Mid-Mid 
 

0 dB
-0.96 dB

High Mid 
 

0.74 dB
0.38 dB

Show text

Treble Profile: Target Compliance 
 

7.4
6.9

Treble Profile: Target Compliance  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

RMS Deviation From Target 
 

3.93 dB
3.39 dB

Low Treble 
 

0.37 dB
-0.24 dB

Mid Treble 
 

5.18 dB
4.05 dB

High Treble 
 

-0.9 dB
-1.81 dB

Show text

Peaks/Dips 
 

7.4
7.7

Peaks/Dips Graph 
 

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Peaks 
 

1.62 dB
1.1 dB

Dips 
 

1.41 dB
2.39 dB

Show text

Imaging 
 

8.5
8.1

Group Delay  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Phase Response Mismatch  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Weighted Group Delay 
 

0.33
0.26

Weighted Phase Mismatch 
 

9.13
12.02

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch 
 

0.31
0.76

Weighted Frequency Mismatch 
 

1.75
1.71

Show text

Passive Soundstage 
 

7.6
7.8

PRTF  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.) 
 

1.64 dB
1.58 dB

PRTF Size (Avg.) 
 

7.04 dB
6.36 dB

PRTF Distance 
 

11.79 dB
11.68 dB

Openness 
 

9.1
9.2

Acoustic Space Excitation 
 

6.4
6.7

Show text

Virtual Soundstage 
 

0.0
0.0

Virtual Soundstage  

Superlux HD 668B Virtual Soundstage
Superlux HD 681 Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling 
 

No
No

Speaker Modeling 
 

No
No

Room Ambience 
 

No
No

Head Tracking 
 

No
No

Virtual Surround 
 

No App
No App

Weighted Harmonic Distortion 
 

8.0
7.6

Weighted Harmonic Distortion  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

WHD @ 90 
 

0.100
0.145

WHD @ 100 
 

0.189
0.313

Show text

Test Settings 
 

Firmware 
 

No Firmware
No Firmware

Power 
 

Passive
Passive

Connection 
 

Wired
Wired

Codec 
 

PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz
PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz

Test Instrument  

Audio Precision APx517B

EQ 
 

No EQ
No EQ

ANC 
 

No ANC
No ANC

Tip/Pad 
 

Default
Default

Microphone 
 

No Microphone
No Microphone

Show text

Isolation

Noise Isolation - Full Range 
 

2.0
2.6

Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Noise Cancelling  

No
No

Overall Attenuation 
 

-6.69 dB
-5.95 dB

Isolation Audio 
 

Bass 
 

0.16 dB
0.18 dB

Mid 
 

-0.23 dB
-0.14 dB

Treble 
 

-19.73 dB
-19.85 dB

Show text

Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios 
 

2.8

Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph  

See details on graph tool

Airplane Noise Attenuation 
 

-5.04 dB

Airplane Noise Isolation Audio 
 

Office Noise Attenuation 
 

-5.31 dB

Office Noise Isolation Audio 
 

Street Noise Attenuation 
 

-5.59 dB

Street Noise Isolation Audio 
 

Show text

Noise Isolation - Voice Handling 
 

Female Voice 1 
 

Male Voice 1 
 

Female Voice 2 
 

Male Voice 2 
 

ANC Wind Handling 
 

ANC Wind Handling Graph  

Superlux HD 681 ANC Wind Handling Graph

ANC Wind Noise 
 

N/A

Leakage 
 

4.5
4.3

Leakage  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Leakage Audio 
 

Overall Leakage @ 1ft 
 

51.95 dB
52.9 dB

Show text

Microphone

Microphone Style 
 

Integrated 
 

No
No

In-Line 
 

No
No

Boom 
 

No
No

Detachable Boom 
 

No
No

Mic  

No
No

Recording Quality 
 

0.0
0.0

Microphone Frequency Response  

Superlux HD 668B Microphone Frequency Response
Superlux HD 681 Microphone Frequency Response

Recorded Speech 
 

N/A
N/A

LFE 
 

N/A
N/A

FR Std. Dev. 
 

N/A
N/A

HFE 
 

N/A
N/A

Weighted THD 
 

N/A
N/A

Gain 
 

N/A
N/A

Noise Handling 
 

0.0
0.0

SpNR  

Superlux HD 668B SpNR
Superlux HD 681 SpNR

SpNR 
 

N/A
N/A

Noise Gate 
 

No
No

Speech + Pink Noise Handling 
 

N/A
N/A

Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample  

N/A
N/A

Speech + Subway Noise Handling 
 

N/A
N/A

Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample  

N/A
N/A
Active Features

Battery 
 

0.0
0.0

Battery Type 
 

No Battery
No Battery

Continuous Battery Life 
 

N/A
N/A

Additional Charges 
 

N/A
N/A

Total Battery Life 
 

N/A
N/A

Charge Time 
 

N/A
N/A

Power-Saving Feature 
 

No
No

Audio While Charging 
 

No
No

Passive Playback 
 

Passive Headphone
Passive Headphone

Charging Port  

None
None

App Support 
 

0.0
0.0

App Picture  

Superlux HD 668B App Picture
Superlux HD 681 App Picture

App Name  

No App
No App

iOS  

No
No

Android  

No
No

macOS  

No
No

Windows  

No
No

Equalizer 
 

No
No

ANC Control 
 

No
No

Mic Control  

No
No

Room Effects 
 

No
No

Playback Control 
 

No
No

Button Mapping  

No
No

Surround Support 
 

No
No

Show text

Connectivity

Wired Connection 
 

9.5
9.1

Cable Picture  

Superlux HD 668B Cable Picture
Superlux HD 681 Cable Picture

Analog Audio 
 

Yes
Yes

USB Audio 
 

No
No

Detachable 
 

Yes
No

Length 
 

10.00 ft (3.05 m)
8.00 ft (2.44 m)

Connector 
 

1/8" TRS
1/8" TRS

Latency - Analog 
 

0.2 ms

Latency - USB 
 

0 ms
N/A

Recorded Latency 
 

Recorded Latency Connection  

Analog

Show text

Bluetooth Connection 
 

0.0
0.0

Bluetooth Version 
 

No Bluetooth
No Bluetooth

Multi-Device Pairing 
 

No
No

NFC Pairing 
 

No

Quick Pair (Android) 
 

No

Quick Pair (iOS) 
 

No

Line Of Sight Range 
 

N/A
N/A

Latency - SBC 
 

N/A
N/A

Latency - aptX 
 

N/A
N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality) 
 

N/A

Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency) 
 

N/A

Latency - LDAC 
 

N/A

Recorded Latency 
 

N/A

Recorded Latency Codec  

No Bluetooth Audio

AAC Support 
 

No

PC Latency (aptX HD) 
 

N/A

PC Latency (aptX-LL) 
 

N/A

iOS Latency 
 

N/A

Android Latency 
 

N/A

Wireless Connection (Dongle) 
 

0.0
0.0

Line Of Sight Range 
 

N/A
N/A

Latency - Dongle 
 

N/A
N/A

Recorded Latency 
 

N/A

PC Compatibility 
 

Analog 
 

Audio Only
Audio Only

Wired USB 
 

No
No

Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Show text

PlayStation Compatibility 
 

PS4 Analog 
 

Audio Only
Audio Only

PS4 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PS4 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

PS5 Analog 
 

Audio Only
Audio Only

PS5 Wired USB 
 

No
No

PS5 Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Show text

Xbox Compatibility 
 

Xbox One Analog 
 

Audio Only
Audio Only

Xbox One Wired USB 
 

No
No

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Xbox Series X|S Analog 
 

Audio Only
Audio Only

Xbox Series X|S Wired USB 
 

No
No

Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless 
 

No
No

Show text

Base/Dock 
 

0.0
0.0

Type 
 

No Base/Dock
No Base/Dock

USB Input 
 

No
No

Line In 
 

No
No

Line Out 
 

No
No

Optical Input 
 

No
No

RCA Input 
 

No
No

Dock Charging 
 

No
No

Power Supply 
 

No Base/Dock
No Base/Dock

Check Price

Standard
HD 668B
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Standard
HD 681
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Standard
HD 668B
SEE PRICE
Walmart.com
Standard
HD 681
SEE PRICE
B&H
Standard
HD 668B
B&H
Standard
HD 681
SEE PRICE
Walmart.com
Standard
HD 668B
BestBuy.com
Standard
HD 681
BestBuy.com

Superlux HD 668B

Superlux HD 681

Comments

  1. Comparison

Superlux HD 668B vs Superlux HD 681: Main Discussion

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