HiFiMAN HE-500

daerron

500+ Head-Fier
Pros: Neutral, bass response and impact, smooth and detailed midrange, value for money
Cons: Heavy, Flimsy velour pads and cable, amp requirements.
My HE-500 review
Source: Audiolab M-DAC (USB output). First impressions based on Asus Essence STX.
Headphone Amp: Lehmann Audio Black Cube Linear
 
DSC00739.jpg
 

 
On first listening to the HE-500 I found a lot that reminded me of the Sennheiser HD580 which I still regard as my reference in terms of what a neutral headphone should sound like. On first listen to the HE-500 you will immediately notice the exceptionally clean and clear sound you get with an orthodynamic transducer which Hifiman are masters of. Switching between the HD580 and HE-500, the HD580 (which I thought up till then to be pretty good in the clarity stakes) to be much grainier by comparison, especially in the treble regions.
 
Bass: (Excellent)
The HE-500 has excellent bass in my view with nice slam and impact. Visceral would be an apt description and it is particularly good at picking out bass notes. This is particularly enjoyable with rock and metal music with bass guitars and also gives orchestral music some body and scale which I found lacking with my dynamic headphones. I really enjoyed going through all my old rock/alternative albums again and found myself listening to albums I haven't listened to in years totally enjoying how different they sounded. There is no boominess and flabbiness to the bass and doesn't dominate the treble or midrange like a lot of other headphones would.
 
Mid-Range: (Excellent)
The mid-range on the HE-500 is musical, nicely detailed and involving, but not forward in your face like a Grado headphone would be. It is slightly more forward compared to the HD580, but does not detract from the overall balance. Violins and piano sound really great and the tonality seems pretty good. With rock music I managed to pick out quite a few extra instruments in songs I thought I knew pretty much inside out. It trashes out tons of detail on guitars. The HE-500 is fantastic with female vocals. The mid-range on this headphone is really excellent and in my opinion its stand out feature.
 
Treble: (Good)
The treble has a slight bit of air to it which most likely has got to do with the sizeable drivers and ear cups.The treble is very clean. I can't really comment on extension as my hearing isn't particularly great in the upper treble regions. The headphone changed quite significantly in the treble during the burn-in period, from being a bit hot to noticeably more mellow after about 50 - 100 hours of burn in. It does have a slight peak around the 10kHz region which seem to give the treble a bit of sparkle which I quite like. The treble is nicely balanced with the rest of the audio spectrum and while not perfect, definitely nothing there to put anyone off.
 
Sound staging and Imaging: (Good)
The HE-500 projects a nicely detailed soundstage, but does lack that last ounce of information. In my view this makes this headphone slightly more suited to rock/pop type music than to large classical works. Imaging is also decent, but not as good as my Grado RS1i's. So whilst I reckon that there are other headphones out there that excel in either of these categories the HE-500 makes up for this by not having any notable weaknesses in either of these categories and by virtue of its excellent sound quality. This also makes the HE-500 a good contender for a wide variety of music.

- Comfort. (Good)
In the beginning the headphone had quite a bit of clamping force. This appears to have reduced somewhat after owning this headphone for some period now. It is a very heavy headphone and you do need to take a break once in a while to give my neck a breather. My neck appears to have gotten used to weight of the headphone after about 6 months. I can now wear the headphone for quite long periods of time without any obvious discomfort. The headband has more than enough padding and the headband pressure is spread out nicely by using memory foam. I prefer the velour pads over the leather pads, though the leather pads are more comfortable in my view. The velour pads add a bit more sparkle to the sound. Hifiman appear to aim this headphone at people with normal to large size heads. I wear the HE-500 on their smallest setting. On the HD580 I have the headband set to 4 clicks down for comparative purposes.
 
- Noise isolation. (Poor)
Leak monster. My wife has complained about the HE-500 quite often and I would put it down as a negative. Not a good option for late night listening in a bedroom. If you have your own listening studio then this isn't a problem. Your listening environment also needs to be pretty well isolated as the HE-500 also lets in a lot of sound from external sources of noise.
 
- Amplication. (Average)
Very dependent on good amplification and matching. With my desktop amplifier the sound is noticeably full and with lots of impact. When under driven the dynamics and bass are lacklustre. I haven't managed to properly power these from a notebook, portable player, AVR or portable headphone amplifier. I will eventually look at upgrading to a more powerful amplifier as I think there are still gains to be made over the Lehmann Black Cube Linear that I'm currently using. The HE-500 also scales nicely with better DACs. I recently upgraded to the Audiolab M-DAC and this provided a noticeable step of improvement in sound staging, detail retrieval and clarity over the Asus Essence STX I used initially for this review.
 
- Construction. (Average)
The headphone itself looks to be solidly constructed and the headband is nice and comfortable. I'm a bit nervous about the assembly mechanism that attaches the ear cups to the headband, but so far no problems. I received the twisted copper cable with my headphone which I think was shipped with the second batch of HE-500 before Hifiman switched over to the silver cable and I quite like the sound, but construction does come across as flimsy and I suspect that the connector or wire might break one day. At least there are a lot of 3rd party cable options out there as well as replacements available from Hifiman. I also received the old velour pads with my headphone which use a flimsy method of attaching to the ear cups. The new attachment mechanism as on my leather pads are a big improvement.
 
- Summary: (Excellent)
I really enjoyed these headphones with all kinds of music, from rock to classic rock, metal, jazz, country and classical music. All in all a superb set of headphones and a terrific all-rounder. After owning this headphone for about 9 months now I find that my other headphones seldom get any listening time. In light of this I reckon the HE-500 is an excellent candidate for people who want to own one single high end headphone that does pretty much everything well. I am hoping to still have the opportunity to listen other high end headphones in order to place the HE-500 in better perspective, but to my ears this is a really fantastic bit of kit will hopefully give me years of listening pleasure.
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Il Mostro
Il Mostro
Well done -- thank you.
BleaK
BleaK
Nice review!
daerron
daerron
Review updated to add some more thoughts on the headphone after about 9 months of use. Recently upgraded to a better DAC and this resulted in quite a jump in performance with the HE-500.

.Sup

Headphoneus Supremus
Pros: well balanced, with perfect treble/mids
Cons: very uncomfortable and heavy with an inflexible cable
 
When I first heard the HE-500 I thought: »man these have the most natural sound I have ever heard.« And I still think so. These are also the first pair of headphones I didn't have to get used to the sound signature and liked them straight out of the box. Maybe because these are a loaner and were already burned in when I got them.
 
They are very well balanced when it comes to different tones. Treble is not bright, mids are there only the bass is kind of on the low side. I thought my HE-4 were the bassier headphones but when I did A/B comparrison between them I discovered they have the same amount of bass but the presentation is sligtly different. HE-500 is fuller or thicker while HE-4 bass is shalower and thinner but because HE-4 doesn't have as much mids, bass seems better defined and stronger. Because the lack of mids on HE-4 they also sound hollower between treble and bass, lots of full, unused air.
 
I compared these two headphones because I find them very similar actually. Most of the sonic differences I already mentioned above and of course HE-4 is the brighter headphone. HE-500 has a very relaxed smooth sound but the interesting thing is I could never fully relax when listening to them. And its not the fault of their sound signature but the comfort level. When I got these the headband was perfectly set for my head and the clamping wasn't too bad. HE-4 clamps harder while HE-300 is like air. I always thought the weight of 0.5kg would be a big problem but its not. It does bother me a bit because I am used to lighter headphones and I would certainly wish these were 150g lighter but I don't have any neck or back pains. I did however experinced some pain on top of my scul and my initial thought was that these need a headband like the Sony SA series so a wider one.
 
The real issue was the shallow space between my head and the capsule. My ears aren't Mickey mouse's ears but are rather small and are very close to my head. Still there wasn't enough space for them. I especially felt pain in my left ear as I have an ear ring in my upper part of the ear. I never imagined just touching the inner part of the capsule would hurt so much until I read these is a metal bar running across the capsule in the middle which I didn't noticed before. This is what is causing the pain. I have since got a bit acustomed to the disscomfort but still this puts me off enough to say I will never get these, unfortuneately as the sound signature is almost perfect. I would prefer slightly more bass but then I might be unable to hear mids so well. Something will suffer and I'm glad the mids and treble don't. I guess you can't have it all.
 
I will shortly touch the cable topic. I have the HE-6 v1 cable (heatshrink, thinner wires), HE-6 current cable, HE-4 cable+the HE-4 portable cable reterminated with unbalanced Neutrik connector, HE-300 speaker cable which I used to compare HE-4 directly with the HE-500 with the same speaker cable just terminated with a full ¼ jack. Interesting that when I first swapped HE-4 cable with the HE-6 cable I noticed the treble wen't down a bit. A very welcome change for bright headphones. Now its the other way around. One of my theories is the headphone was new and so was the stock cable while the HE-6 cable was used and therefore burned in. I didn't noticed any difference between HE-6 v1 or v2 cables except the newer one was slightly microphonic due to its thicker wire but the heatshink on the v1 was so long it was sometimes touching my shoulders. Sound signature is the same and in bass department comparable to HE-4 cable but brighter. So HE-4 cables is less bright, HE-6 is the bightest I have, Canare speaker cable that comes with HE-300/500 has increased the bass but the biggest surprise was the thin HE-4 portable cable which is of the thickness or RE earphones. Has just as much bass as the Canare speaker cable and tammed the treble a bit but it was slightly less detailed.
 
As much as I like the overall very good presentation of the Canare speaker cable with HE-500 and how it improves the bass quantity I have to say adding this cable in the package is »running from the problem rather than solving it«. The cable is way too heavy, thick and inflexible for a headphone. If the goal with it was increasing bass then the changes should be done to the driver rather than to cable choice. HE-6 cable is in many ways a very good cable and personally I could live with slightly less bass than with a significatly thicker and heavier cable.
 
Build quality is the same as the older and younger brother and sister (with the exception there are less visible marks around the connector on the HE-4 cup) the HE-4 and HE-300. The best thing I like on the Hifiman headphones is the sturdy build. When I hold HD800s in my hands I'm affraid they will break but these bring some confidence back. The pads on the loaner were alrady squashed a bit when I got them but they must be of the same thickness as the HE-300 as they also have the same level of softness while the HE-4 pads are several milimeters thicker and sturdier. The box HE-500s came in is the same as the HE-4 box covered with pleather with the exception of silver letters and lock opposed to golden colour on the HE-4 box.
 
My impressions are a bit different, I like to compare and since I know many members here have headphones of the lower Hifiman tier I decided I would use this opportunity to compare the models from Hifiman that I own. I have mentioned most of the differences above but I will summarize again and throw the HE-300 into the basket. HE-4 is the brightest headphone, it has a very well defined bass, in fact the best bass out of the three in my opinion. But it doesn't have much mids and there is where the HE-500 comes in. Reduce treble and add more mids. Perfect amount of everything, I would prefer slightly more bass but I am pushing it now. Mids are very liquid even from solid state amplifier. I first tried these from a speaker amp's headphone output which has more bass but it was poorly defined and I couldn't believe the bass is so poor. Then I tried it out of the Auditor which is a reference class SS amplifier. HE-500 has less bass out of it but its so much better defined. I also tried it with HM-602 and it was a very nice match. Not bright but very musical and involving and it didn't need much power, the volume was set at »2,5«. Overall HE-500 doesn't need that much power, on my Auditor the volume pot was set around 9 o'clock (more info on the photos). I must also add that the HE-4 sounded a bit more distant and so HE-500 were slightly more involving. HE-300 are the headphones with most mids. Exagerating with mids but after a while you get high with those mids. Bass is slightly more »bloaty« than the two more expensive headphones. No brightness at all and are the most comfortable headphones (even more than HD555 & HD800). If I compare these three with peaches the HE4 would be the sligtly green and harder peach, not quite matured but some like it that way, the HE-500 would be the perfect matured peach most people like, very sweet, and lastly the HE-300 would be the overmatured soft and mushy peach. All are likable, some prefer it this way, some the other way.
 
HE-500 has the almost perfect combo of everything but when you look from outside the box with the cable as thick and heavy as a power cable, less bass without the speaker cable, 0,5km weight on your head and the metal bar that causes quite the discomfort plus the high price tag you have to ask yourself if all that is worth it. Personally to me comfort is almost as import as the sound signature, I will always be looking for new headphone if the current one is causing me pain. Of course this is subjective and it may not bother everyone. Personally I'm very happy with HE-4 and HE-300 as they are completely different and bright some variety into my listening sesions. HE-500 is an upgrade to the HE-4 that I am certain of but the upgrade in sound signature is not as obvious as is the weight and discomfort difference. In the whole time of listening to HE-500 not for a moment I could fully relax, my ears just hurt too much. Maybe I am overly sensitive but I believe there is a lot of room for improvement for this headphone. Starting with reducing weight. That means one magnet on each side, consequently there will be no metal bar hurting ears and also the price will be lower. This of course is my opinion, opinion of someone who is not a headphone engineer just a man who likes to listen to music and enjoys it while doing it. At the end it came down to a single metal bar that decided that these headphones are not for me even though they had the most pleasing amount of everything I have heard so far.
 
Below is a link to some photos I have taken with, unfortunately, a poor quality camera lend to me by my best friend as I have lend my better camera to my sister who wen't to Barcelona.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sups_photos/sets/72157627758409166/
 
A huge thanks for this opportunity to Hifiman/Head Direct and Mr. Sieveking for bringing this loaner out to the public and organizing it. I hope I am also considered for a similar program in the future as I am becoming quite a fan boy of Hifiman products (4 and counting) and would love to taste a bit of what is in the owen in the future.
 
Thanks again,
[size=11.0pt]kindest regards, Peter[/size]
manzana
manzana
Nice review, nice pictures. I have the hm602 to amp the he400s, I use to set volume around 7 ( (mine has 0-10 scale) on high gain. You said 2,5 for he500, is it ok?? I think it's to low for 400s at least.
 
have a nice day!
.Sup
.Sup
I have to add that I have since purchased the HE-500. Comfort has been improved by a huge margin with the new thick pads and I cannot feel the metal bar anymore. Phenomenal organic headphone that complements HD800 extremely well.
senorx12562
senorx12562
Nice review,.Sup. I have the same comfort issue with my he500s. What are these new thick pads you refer to? I'm gonna try the focus pads from the he560. I'd like to be able to do more than a couple hours cause i love the sound. I have the same issue with my lcd2.2 with my ears touching the fazor elements. I guess life is a series of trade-offs.

plin

100+ Head-Fier
Pros: Clear sound, creamy mids, more prominent lows and highs
Cons: comfort
 
I had the opportunity to hear HE-500 under the EU loaner program organized by the EU importer (thank you SievekingSound). I am not really an audiophile (I don’t usually hear critically or do I notice small details in soundstage, etc) but I do enjoy good sound. I have, also, very limited sound experience, both with live music and high end equipment, so please keep this in mind when reading the below and use a fair amount of grain of salt.
 
I have compared HE-500 sound with Sennheiser HD-650 (‘new’ version) which is the only HQ headphone I own. I used mostly European jazz, folk and classical music for evaluating and comparing the two.
DAC/AMP used are CEntrance DACmini  and Qables iQube V2. I used a laptop win7 computer as a source with Lilith audio player.
 
1. Comfort
HE-500 is heavier than HD-650 and clamps more. Its pads are more stiff. Its cable is also more stiff and more heavy (personally, I believe that this cable is a joke and should be replaced with a lighter and more flexible one). All these contribute to a significant less comfortable headphone. Its sound, also, unequalized (see below, paragraph 2.2), has much more volume on highs. Although these highs are not harsh or sibilant, they tend to tire my hearing system more easily, but this easily changed with the help of proper equalisation.
There is something else, also, that was fatiguing me with HE-500, but I couldn’t pinpoint it. Maybe it is a kind of resonance, something in the sound which I couldn’t really define causing me a slight fatigue (even after equalising the sound - see 2.2 below). Fortunately this fatigue was very slight, and I believe that, if it is truly some kind of resonance, I could pinpoint it and eliminate it with proper equalisation if I had enough time.
 
2. Sonic impressions
 
2.1 Smooth, clear sound
The first thing that stroke me upon hearing HE-500 is its clear, free sound. I cannot really describe it, it is like you are hearing less distortion (but, of course, HD-650 has already low distortion). I do not really know why so big difference in favour of HE-500, probably the different drive technology, but the fact remains: Notes from HE-500 are sooo much clearer, distortion -free, grain free. In comparison HD-650 seems ‘electric’ (I mean it seemed to have a kind of distortion usually associated with electric instruments), especially in the voices. Did I say HE-500 has a more clear, free sound?  
smile.gif

 
2.2. More extended at the ends, more low & high frequencies
From the first few minutes it was quite clear that HE-500 have much more bass (although a bit less defined) and treble than HD-650. This was very flattering for the sound of HE-500.
By curiosity, I have compare the frequency response measurements of both headphones, using the data found on Tyll Hertsens InnerFidelity  measurements page. I combined the two frequency responses and it turned out very similar:
 
combinedFR.png
 
 
With yellow and light blue-green is HD-650, with red and dark blue is HE-500. As you can see the FR graphs are very similar indeed, with a bit more bass (about 3dB at  30Hz) and more treble (about 7dB at 9KHz). HD-650 has almost 4dB more output at 2KHz and 3 dB around 200Hz.
This flatters HE-500 sound much. So, based on Tyll’s data I equalize accordingly HE-500 to ameliorate these differences. I do not claim that I completely and successfully make the frequency response of HE-500 exactly the same, that cannot be done by FR graph alone as this paper from Harman Acoustics notes. Resonances in the audio spectrum, even light ones (with low Q and dB) are clearly audible, although they do not really show in frequency response graphs. But the equalisation I used based on Tyll’s measurements helped ameliorate the big flattering of more prominent and extended frequency limits of HE-500, so I was able to compare it more easily with the HD-650, without the need of extended listening sessions.
Unequalized, HE-500 clearly wins HD-650 but it is also a bit more tiresome, because of the more prominent highs.
 
 
2.3 Midrange
Ah, the midrange is truly remarkable on HE-500. Very much more engaging and ‘creamy’ than HD-650. Both female and male vocals are more palpable, more intimate, lifelike. Even with less than stellar recordings, the midrange magic of HE-500 makes voices very enjoyable.
One thing that I noticed, though, even when I equalized the 4dB difference with HD-650 at 2KHz, is that HE-500 has more low frequency volume in vocals (I believe some resonance about 800-900Hz, I haven’t truly pinpoint it). This makes vocals more ‘creamy’, but I feel it masks some details.
 
 
2.4 Bass
Bass, even after equalised to match the FR of HD-650 has more impact and energy on HE-500, but it is also more slow and not so much controlled. There are more upper bass frequencies (probably a 2 dB resonance around 100Hz with Q around 1, I haven’t exactly pinpoint it). This makes bass ‘thick', but I think maybe contributes to the slowness of bass notes.
 
2.5 Treble
Treble is more prominent and extended, even with the use of equalisation based on Tyll’s data. But they are quite sweet and clear. There is no more sibilance issues than with HD-650.
Some may feel that the unequalized treble is way too much more than HD-650. In the majority of recordings I don’t believe to be so, but on some ‘bright’ recordings, the unequalized treble of HE-500 is indeed too much.
 
2.6 Soundstage
One advantage of HE-500 is the more centre - focused soundstage. Maybe its soundstage is less wide than HD-650, but it is more seamless and more centre focused (HD-640 seems to have three distinct soundstage areas, left, middle and right with less organs in between).
 
2.7 Placement tolerance
With HD-650, even slight changes of the headphone placement on one’s head, effects the frequency response (especially in the highs) and, accordingly, soundstage. This is not the case with HE-500. I found the sound pretty much the same when placed in a logical position on my head.
 
2.8 Sound with less than stellar recordings
That was a concern of mine. I do not want to separate myself from the numerous technically troublesome but excellent artistically recordings I enjoy with HD-650. I found, with much relief, that although the technical flows were a bit more apparent with HE-500, it didn’t distract me from enjoyment because the added midrange creaminess and overall sound clarity counter balanced it.
 
2.9 Amplifiers
I used mainly DACmini for evaluating both headphones. I found DACmini quite capable of driving HE-500, but at least two other members of HeadFi found that a stronger amplifier will drive HE-500 better. Unfortunately, a stronger amplifier was not available to test this.
 
2.9.1 With iQube as source
Just for the sake of it, I used also the portable iQube. Although it’s a portable amplifier with a mere 80mW at 32 Ohms per channel it did drive HE-500 quite well, but with limited volume. Classical music and some jazz / folk with high dynamic range drive iQube to its clipping with HE-500 more easily than HD-650.
Even with iQube, HE-500 was better overall, with clearer sound. It has more coherent and holographic stereo image but a little smaller. The lows were much more extended and maybe a tad more defined. Big difference was on voices, HE-500 presented voices much more intimate, with fluidity and smoothness. Voices on HD-650 seemed ‘electric’ in comparison. Highs were more prominent but quite soft.
 
3. Conclusion
 
Comparing HE-500 with HD-650 which I am familiar with, I found it better overall, with clearer and less distorted sound, ‘creamy’ midrange and more extended and prominent bass and highs, which flatter its sound significantly. Of course, there is a significant price difference between the two, but my personal view is that it is worth it.
 
 
Edit:
Hifiman upgraded the cable and the pads and reduced the price significantly. With the new price, I believe, this phone is, given adequate amplification (Hifiman recomments 1W/ch), a ‘giant killer’.
The cable is now silver. It is thin and light and very comfortable, but I cannot comment on any sound changes (I have only an HE-6 type intermediate cable).
The included pads are new and two pairs. One pair is made of pleather (protein made artificial leather), which is softer and at first more comfortable. But it is also more shallow and you may find, like me, that the outer parts of your ear is touching the inside metal grill (covered by a thin sheet of felt). After a while this gets pretty annoying. These pads make the sound signature somewhat bassier.
The velour pads are updated also, but I cannot comment on these because I have the old ones. 
grizzlybeast
grizzlybeast
the voices on the he-400 seemed electric to me so I was recommended the he-500. I am apprehensive because of experiences with the he-400. Do you think there is a major difference in the mids of the he-400 with the he-500
plin
plin
 Sorry, haven't any experience wiyh HE-400
Mr Rick
Mr Rick
I have the HD 598s and HD650s. I think I'll try a pair of these next. I certainly like the looks and they seem like the next step up from the HD650s.

Windsor

1000+ Head-Fier
Pros: Neutral frequency balance, plenty of frequency extension
Cons: Possibly the price and the weight, some may prefer a darker sound signature.
Intro
 
It’s been an eventful week for me in which I’ve received three pairs of headphones in four days: a new Audio Technica ATH-M50s, a loaner Audez’e LCD-2, and a loaner HiFiMAN HE-500. I got quite intimate with music via the LCD-2 and was rather wowed by it (see here for more on that). I’ve also been sitting with the HE-500, and my first impressions are that it’s another great headphone that shines in many ways.
 
The following impressions are based on listening to music via 320 kbps and Apple Lossless audio format files played via iTunes and fed via an optical cable to a Lavry DA 10 DAC/Amp.
 
Overall, the HiFiMAN HE-500 is a neutral-sounding headphone that presents a high level of detail with a well-balanced sound.
 
Packaging, Looks, and Physical Feel
 
P1000587.jpg
 
After removing the packaging of this loaner HE-500, the black leather-covered HiFiMAN box was revealed to me. It feels solid, robust, and refined, though not as opulent as the case which came with the LCD-2. A few weeks ago, I had some concerns that the HE-500 box may not be ideal for travelling with the HE-500, which some HE-500 owners may like to do, as it may get scuffed and detract from its attractiveness. Though the same could be said of a hardcase, I thought that a more travel-friendly option could be worthwhile, so I suggested that to Fang of HiFiMAN, and he informed me that a travel case for the HE-500 would be available in the near future. That is a great example of HiFiMAN’s continued willingness to improve and update their product line and their openness to customer feedback and suggestions. Well done.
 
P1000588.jpg
 
P1000593.jpg
The supplied Canare cable was fitted with at ¼” Neutrik connector, was more flexible than the stock LCD-2 cable, and less flexible than the stock Sennheiser HD 6x0 series cables. Connecting the Canare cable to the HE-500 requires screwing some small nuts at the end of the cable into the ear cups. Once the cable is connected it stays firmly in place, but I find connecting it to be a bit fiddly and take a little longer than installing a cable with mini-XLR connectors. It has occurred to me a few times that a tool to assist the cable screw-in process could be a worthy inclusion with the HE-500.
 
The HE-500 design reminds me slightly of the Stax SR-40, and the gunmetal grey colour of the HE-500 is attractive to me. I find the HE-500 comfortable to wear, but slightly less so than the lighter Sennheiser HD 6x0 series, which I am used to and often forget I’m wearing. Due to the clamping force of the HE-500 pads, I can be aware that I’m wearing it, but not always (I’m wearing it now and didn’t notice it was on my head until I wrote the last sentence). But overall, to me the HE-500 is a well-made headphone that feels nice to wear and handle.
 
Clarity, Timbre, and Sound Signature
 
The HE-500 clearly reveals all of the details of the recordings I feed it. Mids and treble are presented very well and there’s great qualitative bass extension, but more on that later.
 
There is great PRaT with the HE-500, and though I find that it seems to present the sound of recording upon me with slightly less force and immediacy than the darker-sounding LCD-2 does, I can easily get inside the music with the HE-500, and with it I seem to be in the position of detached observer mode by default, just like I am with the HD 600, to a lesser extent. But the sonic quality is much, much higher with the HE-500. 
 
I really enjoy the soundstage of he HE-500. It is wider than the soundstage of the LCD-2 and HD 600 and narrower than that of the HD 650. I find the HD 650 soundstage very immersive and wide, sometimes too much so for my preference, and for that reason I often prefer the narrower soundstage of the HD 600, which I find places me as if I am sitting further back in the audience or further away from the monitor speakers, situating me at what can sometimes be a more comfortable distance from the music. The openness of HE-500 soundstage is somewhere in between the two Sennheiser models I listed and is really enjoyable to me. I find that I am at enough of a distance from the music and able to immerse myself in it with ease. Though I compared the HE-500 soundstage to that of the HD 600, I just want to clarify that to me the HE-500 soundstage is far more detailed and of a much higher quality. Well done, Fang!
 
Perhaps one of the few caveats of the HE-500 to me is that it sounds a little bit thin or light at times in relation to what I would call natural i.e. what I would hear when observing a live performance, and that thinness is sometimes just enough so to remind me that I’m wearing headphones. But they are headphones, which is after all a different experience from going to a gig of listening to studio monitor playback. However, the HE-500 has a really excellent frequency balance that reveals all the details of the recording being played, and I often find myself enjoyably immersed in the music I'm listening to with HE-500.
 
P1000604.jpg
 
Bass, Mids, and Treble
 
Since recently spending a few solid hours with the LCD-2, I am still in admiration of its bass reproduction, and the HE-500 also reproduces bass very well. With the HE-500, I find sudden bass punctuations e.g. when a drummer hits a floor tom, more noticeable to me than against the blacker background of a darker headphone such as the LCD-2, which is a definite plus for the HE-500. I find the bass impact of the LCD-2 more realistic for certain instruments e.g. drums, as it seems to produce a more pointed and weighty bass impact, possibly due to its darker sound, than that of the HE-500, which I find to have a softer than natural impact. But the bass reproduction of the HE-500 is very detailed, extends low, and I find it enjoyable.
 
The mids and treble performance of the HE-500 is excellent and perhaps its best sonic feature. Mids and treble are very clear and vocals are well-represented. A few hours ago, I discovered many new nuances in Frank Sinatra’s ‘Songs For Swingin’ Lovers!,’ and am currently enjoying Michael Jackson ‘rockin’ the night away,’ in ‘Rock With You.’ Though, to my ears, the HE-500 treble has much extension to the point of sounding slightly more forward (or brighter, depending on how you describe it) than natural, I’ve never found it to make recordings harsh or fatiguing, just detailed and revealing in a very musical way.
 
With the Lavry DA 10, I find the HE-500 to audibly shine when listening to much of the music I feed it, and have noticed it to be particularly well-suited to acoustic-based jazz and vocal playback. Whilst some may prefer a bassier headphone with more sonic slam for genres/styles such as Rock and Electronic, the HE-500 will accurately represent what’s on the recordings you play through it in a way that’s true to its nature.  
 
In Closing
 
I find the HiFiMAN HE-500 to be an excellent quality headphone, slightly reminiscent of the Sennheiser HD 600; its neutral and slightly warm yet forward sound make recordings come alive in a revealing way that is very enjoyable. Well done, Fang, and all else at HiFiMAN. 
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Windsor
Windsor
Thanks, Kasper.
I found the HE-500 to be more forward-sounding than natural, and my preference with headphones right now is to achieve as accurate, natural and enjoyable a sound as possible. That said, I find I can can enjoy what I have now though.
The Lavry is very revealing and I admire it's 'truthfulness' and also enjoy it. I may get another amp at some point to preserve the Lavry DAC, and may also switch to a DA 11, but we'll see.
daerron
daerron
Excellent review Windsor, having read your review before getting the HE-500 and now listening afterwards and checking the review out again, this is pretty spot-on. Mine is still burning in, so the treble should probably settle down a bit with more hours.
Xenophon
Xenophon
Very nice review, I agree with your general remarks and found the contrast with the LCD-2 (which I've never heard) very interesting.  What amazes me though is that you describe the 500 as a bit thin/bright on occasions, I find the exact opposite, certainly when comparing them to the HD-500 and the HE-6; to me they're quite a bit warmer.  But they do have a glorious midrange, that's for me their strongest point, excellent with vocals and small ensembles as they bring these forward just a bit.  I listen exclusively to classical and as I said, for strings/chamber music and vocal they're absolutely great, better than the HD-800 and on par with the HE-6.  But when listening to classical I certainly wouldn't go for warmer voiced cans than these so I guess what this means is that the LCD-2 and 3 would be a definite no-go for that genre (for me at least).  For large orchestral works their soundstage and separation is marginal, with those I prefer the HD-800 with a good tube amp or the HE-6, imho the best overall headphone on the market barring perhaps some of the high end electrostats.  Thanks!

Kasper

Head-Fier
Pros: Tonality, smooth grain free unforced stereo perspektive, price
Cons: heavy and low comfort
 
 
[size=medium]Reviewed item: Hifiman HE-500[/size]
[size=medium]Used equipment: [/size]
[size=medium]CD: Rega Saturn[/size]
[size=medium]Amp: Rudistor RPX-33evo8[/size]
[size=medium]Kimber PBJ interconnect, diy powercables and Isotek Orion conditioner[/size]
 
 
[size=medium]Received the he-500 very safely packaged from Jan Sieveking as part of the European loaner-program. [/size]
 
[size=medium]And boy am I glad I signed up for that!!![/size]
 
 
[size=medium]I have been living for years with my ath-w1000 because I really couldn’t find a suitable alternative. While it is a bit too harsh for my tastes and to bright a have builded a whole system around it to compensate that, because I love the comfort brought by the wing system and comfy pads, and the deeply layered soundstage I get with them. I sold the hd650 because I needed a closed back at the time and because they had to be turned up to loud the rock and gained a harsh treble when I did. My amp is more forgiving of the harsh upper mids of the w1000. Since that I have really tried to be impressed by the hd800 with absolutely no luck. The Grados, Beyers and Akg’s I have heard have all been either too harsh or to boring.[/size]
 
[size=medium]Enter the Hifiman HE-500!!!!![/size]
[size=medium]It sounds very smooth with a very full sound, and yet it never sounds boring or uninvolving. In fact I find myself dusting of rock and pop records I haven’t listened to for years! The decay of notes is amazing and I finally understand what all of you mean by “eargasms”. I used to get those from live concerts when musicians or singers brought so much life to a single note that I could virtually make me cry. These last nights I have had eargasms again – and multiples that is!!![/size]
 
[size=medium]The first couples of listening sessions left me feeling that in spite of the excellent tonality I still missed some of the details and soundstage of the w1000 and wondered if I was condemned to closed back phones forever because I missed the more intimate soundstage of the ath faced by the more diffuse one of open back.[/size]
[size=medium]After a couple of days that is no longer an issue and I marvel in the infinite soundstage coupled with a tonality that simply gives me little room for comments: Right now I can’t find any part of the frequency spectrum that seems recessed or to forward!![/size]
[size=medium]– of course I will find one eventually – Even faced with live sound headfiers will always find some lack in sound that grant future upgrades!! [/size]
 
[size=medium]The w1000 and he-500 are simply so different in sound signature that I quickly gave up the idea of switching back and forth between them on different records and write a comparing review to you guys. Going from the w1000 to he-500 made the latter sound muffled and shut in which it definitely in NOT given time to adjust. Going the other way made the w1000 sound unbearingly bright and made me wonder how I could ever listen to a phone like that.[/size]
 
[size=medium]I could still list a couple of tunes and describe my findings but I simply think I worked wonders on everything I threw at it. That being both newly recorded and very old blues, contemporary pop, driving rock, opera and classical, jazz and the world music that forms the core of my collection.[/size]
 
[size=medium]I will just say that I have never heard reproduced hi-hat sounds being so driving without ever being harsh. Until now I also never heard hand claps from headphones sounding anything like real handclaps! Bass is deep, tight and only there when called for. Ever so slightly warm, but never too much.[/size]
 
[size=medium]So grain free that I - at very first -feared it was boring sounding – Not So!![/size]
[size=medium]I realize that I sound a little to positive, but I have to stress that I have grown into being so positive from a beginning where I was amazed by the tonality but also convinced my search had to go on![/size]
 
[size=medium]And then the down side – it’s not the sound – but ergonomics. It hurts my scull and the pressure from the pads keeps reminding me that the sounds I hear is coming from the cups tree centimeters from my ear and not from the sweet purring singer I imagine in diffuse head space.[/size]
 
[size=medium] How come only ATH have found a really comfy solution that makes you forget you are wearing phones? Ok So no wing system, but at least ad enough padding to the headband. I simply cannot understand why phone producers don’t put too much rather than to little padding. Can’t be the most expensive part of the phone and neither the heaviest.[/size]
[size=medium]Still sound is enough to make me forgive this fault. The pads I am beginning to get used to and it made the soundstage grow because I no longer remember the phone and the headband must call for a diy solution once I get my own pair. And that must be my conclusion – Getting my own pair![/size]
 
[size=medium]I still haven’t heard the T1 and the edition 8, I still would dream of the ldc2 if just for cool looks, but the he-500 simply makes all the sounds I have dreamt for and is by far the cheapest in Denmark. It also seems to make a very good combination with my rudistor amp that gives no impression of being underpowered but sounds extremely assured.[/size]
 
[size=medium]So tomorrow when I send these babies to the next lucky guy on the list - it will not be “Farewell!” but [/size]
 
[size=medium]“Take care – see you soon!”[/size]
 
[size=medium]Edit: After having lived with my own pair for half a year I have edited the star-rating from 4 to 5 stars. Yes they are still heavy, and comfort is nowhere near as good as my ATH-w1000 - But I got used to it at it doesn't bother me at all, and at the same time the sound is even better than I thought at first! So at this price a phone that competes with the very best soundwise should earn 5 stars even if if the comfort could be better![/size]
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smpie
smpie
Nice review :wink:I’m rather new in the world of headphones.And just ordered my first pair of high-end headphones . The Beyerdynamic T5p.They still need to be deliverd..(4weeks and waiting). I got these because I wanted a set of closed headphones but did not want to sacrifice to much of the soundstage and SQ.Still I wonder how these would compare to the HE-500.. I just own 2 headphone amps the fiio E12. And a DAC/amp Fiio E10.. Later on I would like a nice dektop amp/dac like the Burson Conductor.The HE-500 costs €600 in sum stores . others sell it voor €700. The Beyerdynamic are €900.. al and al quite an expensive new hobby.. hahahah

Skylab

Reviewerus Prolificus
Pros: Outstanding overall performance
Cons: somewhat heavy
Mini-review: HiFiMan HE-500 Planar-Magnetic Headphones
 
Fang from Head-Direct was kind enough to loan me a pair of HE-500 for review.  The HE-500 are billed as a more efficient version of the HE-6, although there are some other differences, both in design and in sonics.  They are also a little different looking, in that the casing is a very nice gun-metal grey:
 


 
 
Taken on its own, the HE-500 are really an exceptionally good headphone.  While they still require a somewhat powerful headphone amp, I was able to drive them with no problem from the Woo WA2, WA6, Trafomatic Head One, Decware Mini-Torri, Musical Paradise MP-301 mk2, and Leben CS300XS, all without any issues. 
 
The sound overall embodied the principle qualities I have come to love from Planar headphones - a very transparent, open, and smooth sound, that is free from the graininess that is present on even the finest of dynamic driver headphones, with the lone exception of the Sony R10.  The mids especially have a transparency that is very beguiling.  The HE-500 are very smooth sounding as well - in some ways they have the smoothest of all of the HiFiMan planars, especially in the treble.  The treble is very smooth, clean, and unfatiguing.  The mids, as mentioned, are very smooth and open, and sound very uncolored.  The bass is full, and fairly tight, with just a touch of mid-upper bass warmth.  Overall the sonic picture is quite neutral, with perhaps just a very small amount of warmth - not a bad place to be for many users.  The soundstage has very good image specificity, and depth is excellent, although it is not as wide as the very best.
 
All forms of music were well served, but I especially enjoyed the new CD by Alison Krauss and Union Station, which arrived about the same time as the HE-500.  Alison's delicate soprano was beautifully and accurately delivered, and the string plucking and tone were excellent.  The HE-500 also had no problem keeping up with very fast metal like Symphony X's "Sea of Lies", or complex prog-rock like in King Crimson's "Red".
 
Versus the HE-6, assuming one is using a powerful enough amp to drive them, I find the HE-6 to be just slightly more transparent.  Bass is slightly deeper, and slightly better defined.  The mids were just a very small amount drier, and the treble is just slightly more pronounced and seemingly extended, without being in any way edgy (although the HE-6 treble CAN be edgy without proper amplification).  If one already owns a VERY powerful amp, the HE-6 provide better absolute performance than the HE-500, IMO.  However, they are $300 more expensive, and they have much more stringent amplification requirements to achieve these results.
 
Compared to the LCD-2, again I very slightly prefer the LCD-2, as I find them to offer a slightly more natural sound (although the HE-500 are still excellent in that regard), and very slightly more nuanced. The LCD-2 are also just slightly more efficient than the HE-500.  But the fact is, I could live very happily with any of these three Planar headphones, and I prefer ALL three of them to any Dynamic headphone currently available.  The HE-500 easily outperform the HD800, Beyer T1, Rudi Chroma MD-1, Denon D7000, Ultrasone Edition 10 or 8.  And given the HE-500's price, they have to be considered a bargain, as far as high-end headphones go.
 
 
Skylab
Skylab
Unfortunately I did not get a chance to try the HE-500 with any portable amps before I needed to send my loaner pair back. The LCD-2 can be powered by the Meier Stepdance, but it is a pretty powerful portable. The RSA SR-71B can even power the HE-6, so it too for sure can power the HE-500 and LCD-2.
NobleSix
NobleSix
I loved the HE5 but im still looking for something that is more balanced and has smoother treble (without losing clarity and much speed).. Is this the one for me?
Thanks.. :)
gstepic
gstepic
I am in the market for a good hd portable music player, right now I have my eye on the Sony NWZ A17 that is just coming out. I am up for other suggestions. I am guessing with a good hd player I do not need a DAC but would need a headphone amp. I will also use my Lenovo Yoga Pro 2 laptop for listening. For this I do need a DAC. I will also be using Bose QC 25 headphones as the noise canceling comes in handy often.
 
So I am looking for practical suggestions to get the most out of the HE500s. Is there a good DAC/amp combo available for my laptop? Should I get a separate headphone amp only if I use a high definition portable music player? I noticed hifiman has a high definition portable music player but it is very pricey, is it worth the money?
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