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Is the HE-6 right for me?

post #1 of 7
12/25/11 at 5:48pm
Thread Starter 

I have been researching the HE-6 for a while and believe it is right for my music preferences / setup. And I just want to put some worries to rest, and listen to some suggestions.

Here is my setup:
FLAC > Muse Mini TDA1543 x 4 > Schiit Lyr > Headphone
I plan on upgrading my DAC, but not for about 6 months. And I plan on tube rolling to get the perfect sound.

I love the sound of female vocals (Sarah Brightman, Diana Krall), ancient & chamber choir, and classical.
I couple of years ago I got the HD650 for female vocals and classical. Although I noticed some music (electronic, DnB, New Wave, Punk, and some Rock) sounded as good as my car speakers through my HD650.

I was thinking that the HE-6 would make many of the genres the HD650 can't play sound fantastic. So here are my questions:

Would the HE-6 sound good for DnB, chiptune, glitch, house, punk, and rock?
Would the HE-6 have better sounding female vocals and classical than the HD650?
Are the HE-6 very engaging? (very important)
Any suggests on where to buy? Head-direct?

Thanks

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post #2 of 7
12/26/11 at 11:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by LadroneScar View Post

I have been researching the HE-6 for a while and believe it is right for my music preferences / setup. And I just want to put some worries to rest, and listen to some suggestions.


Here is my setup:
FLAC > Muse Mini TDA1543 x 4 > Schiit Lyr > Headphone

I plan on upgrading my DAC, but not for about 6 months. And I plan on tube rolling to get the perfect sound.


I love the sound of female vocals (Sarah Brightman, Diana Krall), ancient & chamber choir, and classical.

I couple of years ago I got the HD650 for female vocals and classical. Although I noticed some music (electronic, DnB, New Wave, Punk, and some Rock) sounded as good as my car speakers through my HD650.


I was thinking that the HE-6 would make many of the genres the HD650 can't play sound fantastic. So here are my questions:


Would the HE-6 sound good for DnB, chiptune, glitch, house, punk, and rock?

Would the HE-6 have better sounding female vocals and classical than the HD650?

Are the HE-6 very engaging? (very important)

Any suggests on where to buy? Head-direct?


Thanks

The HE-6 is a world-class phone that will outperform your HD-650 in every way, as well it should, considering that it is more than twice as expensive. That said, the HE-6 is very demanding of amplification, and should be thought of much like a speaker system. If you consider "engaging" to be a very lifelike presentation, yes it is. If you want some type of coloration, best look elsewhere.

Best results are usually obtained by using the speaker terminals of a high-quality amplifier that can output 40-50 clean watts. Inadequate amplification will result in a thin sound that does not in any way do justice to the quality of this headphone.

Unless you can find a second-hand HE-6, the only source is from Head-Direct.
Edited by HiFlight - 12/26/11 at 11:47am
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post #3 of 7
12/27/11 at 9:52am
Thread Starter 

The Schiit Lyr can do 6 watts into 32 ohms, from what I have heard it is powerful enough.

Would the HE-500 be a better choice? I can't find a direct comparison between the two, except small bits tacked onto reviews.

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post #4 of 7
12/27/11 at 10:32am

It depends on how loud you listen to and the types of music you enjoy. The Lyr might be adequate for you.

But for many others, me included, we use speakers amps. I use 3 different amps. The HE-6 sounds different

depending on the amp I use.

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post #5 of 7
12/27/11 at 11:00am

For you current setup buy the HE500

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post #6 of 7
12/27/11 at 3:15pm

There are vendors authorized to sell the HiFiMan orthos in the US. When I looked last week, Headroom had most of the product line as well as an HE-6 listed at discount in the B-stock page.

 

That said, I agree that you might get better results with the HE-500, although if you can try out the HE-6 first somehow, you might be happy with the sound.

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post #7 of 7
1/1/12 at 12:14am

Have you considered the LCD-2? I think that would be more preferable for your taste in music...

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