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HiFiman HE-500 (HE as in High End) please post your impressions. . loan pair for UK pg. 28. - Page 4

post #46 of 5029
5/8/11 at 8:56am
Aluminum would be alot easier to move than gold. I know very little of how different drivers work but am curious to know more. What is the benefit of having a higher mechanical damping force, such as gold in HE-6? Is it less prone to distort?
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post #47 of 5029
5/9/11 at 9:26am

Aluminum is less ductile than gold so the traces would have to be thicker (speculation on my behalf), aluminum is also worse conductor and is more prone to corrosion and so on.

 

To these ears the HE-500s seem a little more colored than the HE-6s from the Protector in single ended mode. Been trying to score a RSA four pin to four pin XLR but so far no lucky.

 

The midrange rendering is incredible, Leonard Cohen's There for you sound spectacular. The sound stage is a bit more intimate, but it is still very precise.

 

Bass wise the two are pretty equal both when it comes to extension, and amount. The HE-6s seem to have a bit more attack when driven from the EF1 which is not able to do the HE-6s full justice.

 

The HE-500s I have did not seem to change noticeably after 100 hours. I have 250 hours on them now.

 

The cable on the HE-500s is too heavy and stiff for my licking. It is very durable but a bit annoying to use, I hope Head-Direct will provide a more reasonable cable in the future.

 

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post #48 of 5029
5/9/11 at 9:58am
The 500 uses speaker cable. The 6 cable is perfect.
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post #49 of 5029
5/9/11 at 11:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Happy Camper View Post
The 500 uses speaker cable. The 6 cable is perfect.

Agreed!

 

The cable on the HE-6s is incredibly good all around. It is quite light and does not suffer from to much microphonic noise either. A shorter version of that terminated to single ended would be a good option for the HE-500s.

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post #50 of 5029
5/9/11 at 2:22pm

Tried the 500s this past weekend.  I definitely thought they had better resolution than the 5LEs and so compete quite well with the top of the line stuff but their downfall is their price.  I thought them a step down from well amped LCD2s in terms of resolution yet they're priced almost the same.  Now that the Lyr is out (and it sounds quite nice with the LCD2s given the price) I don't see where the 500s fit exactly.  Maybe if they don't scale well and reach their potential sooner (and cheaper) they'll have a market.


Edited by sphinxvc - 5/9/11 at 2:26pm
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post #51 of 5029
5/9/11 at 4:00pm
Thread Starter 

I don't hear an increased resolution with LCD-2. I do hear a very nice presence with them though, maybe a little more than with the HE-500. To me, the 500's have a little more spatial information with a slightly recessed mid compared to the LCD-2 but to me, the 500 isn't recessed but only in comparison to the mids of the LCD-2, which are more forward, if that makes any sense. :^)

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post #52 of 5029
5/9/11 at 4:18pm

So Jamato which would you say is better for overall listening with a wide variety of music..?? I actually heard the LCD-2 and HE-6, preferred the HE-6 at the time. So id assume the HE500 would be a no brainer in my case..?? I just dont plan on buying a speaker amp etc etc.

 

Also after hearing about the HE500 cable im a little annoyed, i really liked the HE-6 cable alot. Hopefully Fang will change the cable design for more flexibility. Using as stiff cable at a computer desk is really annoying.

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by jamato8 View Post

I don't hear an increased resolution with LCD-2. I do hear a very nice presence with them though, maybe a little more than with the HE-500. To me, the 500's have a little more spatial information with a slightly recessed mid compared to the LCD-2 but to me, the 500 isn't recessed but only in comparison to the mids of the LCD-2, which are more forward, if that makes any sense. :^)



 


Edited by Townyj - 5/9/11 at 4:23pm
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post #53 of 5029
5/10/11 at 1:51pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Townyj View Post
So Jamato which would you say is better for overall listening with a wide variety of music..?? I actually heard the LCD-2 and HE-6, preferred the HE-6 at the time. So id assume the HE500 would be a no brainer in my case..?? I just dont plan on buying a speaker amp etc etc.

Also after hearing about the HE500 cable im a little annoyed, i really liked the HE-6 cable alot. Hopefully Fang will change the cable design for more flexibility. Using as stiff cable at a computer desk is really annoying.

The HE-500 seems to fall between the 6 and LCD-2 in sound. I do like the cable that comes with the HE-6 much more and haven't used the stock cable for the HE-500 as I like the flexibility of the 6 cables. As to which is better for a variety of music I can't say because it is so subjective. I like them both, they are just a little different flavor as in a change of venues or a place that has more people in it one night and less the next, it changes the sound. The LCD-2 sit you just a little closer to the music. 
 

 

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post #54 of 5029
5/10/11 at 9:28pm

Cheers! I suppose i will just have to do a blind buy as i wont have anywhere to try the HE500. Oh well :)

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by jamato8 View Post



The HE-500 seems to fall between the 6 and LCD-2 in sound. I do like the cable that comes with the HE-6 much more and haven't used the stock cable for the HE-500 as I like the flexibility of the 6 cables. As to which is better for a variety of music I can't say because it is so subjective. I like them both, they are just a little different flavor as in a change of venues or a place that has more people in it one night and less the next, it changes the sound. The LCD-2 sit you just a little closer to the music. 
 

 



 

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post #55 of 5029
5/10/11 at 9:35pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Townyj View Post

Cheers! I suppose i will just have to do a blind buy as i wont have anywhere to try the HE500. Oh well :)

I am on an island surrounded by 1.2 million square miles of ocean. I read and read and just jump, got no choice but that is ok, who wants everything predictable? 

 

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post #56 of 5029
5/10/11 at 9:56pm

Oh!! Do you by any chance know if there is a Proper "Release Date"..?? I was told the 1st of May last month... But that didnt happen. I have been checking the website everyday.

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by jamato8 View Post



I am on an island surrounded by 1.2 million square miles of ocean. I read and read and just jump, got no choice but that is ok, who wants everything predictable? 

 



 

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post #57 of 5029
5/11/11 at 4:31pm

Dear Jamato,

 

Out of the LCD2 and the 500, which in your opinion gives a more realistic mid-range timbre to voices and instruments?

 

Also, where can I get a 500?

 

Cheers,

 

Dave

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post #58 of 5029
5/12/11 at 10:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Duckman View Post

 

Also, where can I get a 500?

 

Cheers,

 

Dave

http://head-direct.com/product_detail.php?p=102
 

 

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post #59 of 5029
5/12/11 at 10:55am

Mine are ordered!! :D Woohoo! Finally! Last buy for me for sometime now!

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post #60 of 5029
5/12/11 at 3:42pm

ordered!

looking forward to these.

they sound really great on red wine audio amps

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Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Headphones (full-size) › HiFiman HE-500 (HE as in High End) please post your impressions. . loan pair for UK pg. 28.