REVIEW: HiFiman HM-601 - Page 8

OK, here it is, my comparison between the HM-601 and S:flo 2. I have been using two headphones as of late, the ER4S and Monster Turbines. Both daps had some jazz, salsa, oldies, black metal, and hardcore.

 

Both players performed great, but with different sets of headphones. And it comes down to your sound preference as well as the headphones that you own. I have an extensive collection of headphones, so it is not hard for me to compensate a certain sound signature of a dap with a headphone and viceversa, but for those of you that have just one pair, you need to think about your sound preferences and choose a dap that is in line with your sound preferences.

 

I like both players equally. I may prefer the HM-601 a bit more because the navigation is friendlier than that of the s:flo 2. Furthermore, I have verified that the HM-601 can indeed play 24-bit hd tracks while the S:flo 2 just freezes on me. The HD tracks somehow have more detail and more depth than regular 16-bit tracks a in general do sound better.

 

Since I hate carrying an amp, my observations are from running the headphones straight from the HO.

 

Here is the bottom line: The HM-601 sounds great with the ER4S’. The bass, mids and highs are just right. Very balanced and natural presentation. The highs do sparkle. I think that I agree with another poster that compared the HM-601/HM-602 with a very high quality cassette tape player. This high quality cassette tape player with the ER4S is the perfect combo. It is what the ER4S was designed to do, to emphasize the highs of sources that were dark in nature.The S:flo 2 with the ER4S’ sounded too bright and as a result the bass sounded lean and powerless. The HM-601 sounded more detailed than the S:flo 2. The reason for this clarity is that with the highs toned down, the mids can really shine and bring forward some of the details that the S:flo 2 would mask with its extended highs through the ER4S.

 

The Monster Turbines are not the best sounding headphones, so they did not sound particularly great with either dap, but  if I had to choose the dap to go with these, I would go with the S:flo 2 as the HM-601 sounded too dark and rolled in the highs.

 

Conclusion: I am keeping both because I can. I like both, but with different headphones. If you are happy with the s:flo 2 and your current headphones, I do not see the need to get the HM-601 unless you want the ability to play HD tracks. If you own the HM-601, I don't see the need to get the s:flo 2 unless all your headphones are on the warm side and you are currently not satisfied with the sound provided by the HM-601.

 

Edited by DJGeorgeT - 11/26/10 at 8:24pm

Thanks for this review DJGeorgeT, I was hoping for a comparison like this.  I'm getting (as in already ordered) JH16s and an s:flo2.  When you say on the warm side, I (being a noobie) am not precisely sure what that means.  Is warm meaning similar to dark -- in other words tending more toward bass?  From what you're saying I get the impression that your ER4S are a more bright headphone, am I getting that right?  I guess the JH16 would qualify as a "warm" sounding headphone which should get along well with an s:flo2 -- which would be lucky for me of course!

 

Sorry to ask so many basic questions, just trying to really understand your review!

Edited by alyanm - 11/26/10 at 9:14pm

I wonder how the line out of the 601 does. Has anyone compared the line out to the headphone out?

I use warm and dark interchangeably to mean that there is less presence of treble and bright to mean that there is an emphasis on treble.

 

Hmm, for me dark is bordering on veil as in details either missing or less evident.  I can have a warm phone w/ good detail retrieval and good clarity.  Warmth is more to do w/ tonality for me.

Warmth is associated with the presence of 2nd harmonic distortion in a source, so warmth is associated with tubes. Headphones cannot be warm. Warmth is more of a function of the source. Dark would apply to a headphone if you wanted to make a distinction. Nevertheless, warmth has always sounded to me veiled and too emphasized towards the mids and the lows. Dark does something similar, so I use both interchangeably without a loss of meaning. The clarity you obtain with a warm source is due to the apparent presence of better mids. Again, it is apparent clarity. The term I should be using is "dark" in regards to the HM-601 output and headphones.

Edited by DJGeorgeT - 11/26/10 at 10:43pm

Thanks for the review, dj. I own the sflo2 as well, and have a 601 coming in next week. Im really happy with the sflo2, especially when combined with the pa2v2 amp...a trully wonderful combo. Im really curious as to how the new 601 will compare

I have a question regarding charging the HM-601.  In fact two.  Can the 601 be charged via usb?  In Australia AC is 240volts, will I be able to use the included charger?

I use the included charger or any usb cable from any mains here in Korea which also is 240.

As stated on my charger it's for input from 100V up to 240V 50/60 Hz 0.8 A ... so it should work.

Ok, I see what you're saying now.  I guess technically my JH16 would not be dark (perhaps warm per Anaxilus?) since I do not believe there is any loss of detail in highs or mids.  Well, it will be interesting to see how the JH16 and s:flo2 get along together, thanks again for the review!  I fully anticipate that I will get a 601 after I have my s:flo2 burnt in nicely -- and keep whichever one I like better...

Very interesting about 2nd harmonic distortion.  The IEMs like my JH16 does have little tubes, does this suggest that they might be generating 2nd harmonics?
 

Thanks for the info re charging the 601. Cheers xabu and shigzeo.  Looking forward to recieving mine.

Actually warmth tends to be more associated with a midbass bump. You'll hear mastering engineers talk about inserting a bump around 125hz to warm up a recording.

Sources, amps and headphones can all distort sound. No distortion is prefered by most folks but people get way too wound up over specs. I'd take a well designed 2a3 or 300b amp over many solid state amps. It's not distortion I crave it tonal accuracy which very often triodes get correct. Oddly the 601/602 for an NOS DAC gets tone spot on.

I usually associate warmth with the mid bass as well. I got an email saying my HM601 and RE-Zero should ship today which means I'll get it Monday. I'm pretty excited to know if the 601 was worth it for me. I'll have to get myself a 16gb sdhc card and maybe some deals with pop up for Cyber Monday. If only I could just go to their NY location and pick it up instead :p