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**Hifiman HE-400 Impressions and Discussion Thread** - Page 189

post #2821 of 10656
12/7/12 at 3:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marleybob217 View Post

Apart from felt, you could also try paper. I used on some closed headphones and it works great! 

Just get a tissue, peel of one layer, this layer should be really thin and see-through.

 

Then put the filter in front of the driver. Sound does not get muffled at all. It just smooths out the highs.

Good suggestion, I tried it and didn't notice any significant change in the sound, except for the bass sounding boomier. I decided not to keep the modification, thank you for the tip though!

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by Marleybob217 View Post

So how thick should the felt be? 

 

And should the circle of felt cover the entire driver? So should the circle have the same diameter of the inner pads? 

Or is it a ring shape, with a big hole in the center to let sound come through? If you're literally covering the entire driver, with let's say 3-4mm thick felt. The sound is going to be way muffled.

Curious as well.

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by MattTCG View Post

 

Yes, there are two other things that you can do. The first is to do a little gentle shaping of the metal headband. Just grab the headband, not the cups, at the ends before the cups and give a good but gentle stretching of the headband. It's metal and it will reshape making a looser clamp.

 

Secondly, be sure that you rotate the cups on the x, y axis to get the best custom fit. Some people do not understand that you can do this. 

 

gL!!

Thank you! That actually helped quite a bit. And yes, I had made sure to rotate the cups. I had read an earlier post about that and made sure to try to get the best fit that way first.

 

Also wanted to give you some thoughts on the ear-pads, I feel that the velour ear pads from the DT990 were much nicer. I'm starting to realize how spoiled I was with that headphone!

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post #2822 of 10656
12/7/12 at 3:39pm
Thread Starter 

^^ No doubt that Beyer has some of the best build quality in the business. German made...think BMW of headphones. 

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post #2823 of 10656
12/7/12 at 3:49pm

I'm sure if you try some double-sided adhesive tape, you could stick the beyer velour pads onto HE400 cup frame. Kinda like how Audeze earpads work, you know?

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post #2824 of 10656
12/7/12 at 10:41pm
jerg,

Which do you prefer, the 400 or 500?

I'm running the 400 out of the E17, it sounds good, but not as good as running it from the Icon HDP. w/ Sigma 11

A little better than my Sennheiser HD 650, and crushes my Q701.
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post #2825 of 10656
12/7/12 at 11:10pm
Fear this may be a double post; preemptive apologies if it is...

Looking to upgrade from my ATH-AD700s. Their highs can be a bit harsh, their bass a bit weak, but I'm basically just looking for Something That Sounds Better. If you're reading this forum, I'm guessing that's not an unknown feeling to you.

My ideal phones would have balanced and neutral frequency response, superb and rock-solid imaging, and a wide and realistic soundstage. When I listen to a string quartet, I love to hear each instrument precisely located, and the bows distinct from the fingerboards, if that makes sense.

I listen mostly to rock, pop, jazz, and classical. In the latter two realms, more often small groups than orchestras or big bands.

I have an audio-gd NFB12, which I use both as a standalone DAC/amp and a DAC feeding a Cambridge Audio Azur amp. I also have a couple FiiO amps and a Bithead floating around somewhere.

My next phones will be strictly stay-at-home and music only; no gaming or movies. Sound leakage is not a problem in my environment.

Budget is flexible, though $400 would certainly be near the top.

Anyway, reading this thread has left me thinking that the HE-400 might be a wonderful step up toward my personal version of audio nirvana. But, before I drop four bills on something I've never heard (I'm reasonably sure no one in Pittsburgh carries HiFiMan), I thought I'd ask for thoughts and advice. Does this sound like a good match?

Thanks in advance for your time and sage counsel.
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post #2826 of 10656
12/7/12 at 11:41pm
I, is someone experience a different level of bass between left and right ?

I noticed a 2 db difference in bass level, the treble is the same but the low end hits strongly on the right side
I tried to switch the pads but its s the same problem
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post #2827 of 10656
12/7/12 at 11:51pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by TontonJoK View Post

I, is someone experience a different level of bass between left and right ?
I noticed a 2 db difference in bass level, the treble is the same but the low end hits strongly on the right side
I tried to switch the pads but its s the same problem

 

Test with sinewave tones with Sinegen. Also test with the two cable connections switched so L-channel feeds into R-cup, et cetera to make sure it's not the source's fault.

 

If with all those done, you still perceive a bass vol difference (especially if it is the case with the sinewave tone sweeps) then there may very well be a driver-related bass imbalance. In that case you can't do much other than sending it in for replacement. Bass imbalance is a pretty annoying QC issue with planar magnetic cans it seems, since it is directly correlated with different L-R membrane tension, which is controlled-for but not perfectly in manufacturing.

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post #2828 of 10656
12/8/12 at 12:13am
Thanks Jerg
Good idea I'll try sinewave tones with Sinegen and cables switching
Edited by TontonJoK - 12/8/12 at 12:20am
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post #2829 of 10656
12/8/12 at 12:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by dshlapak View Post

Fear this may be a double post; preemptive apologies if it is...
Looking to upgrade from my ATH-AD700s. Their highs can be a bit harsh, their bass a bit weak, but I'm basically just looking for Something That Sounds Better. If you're reading this forum, I'm guessing that's not an unknown feeling to you.
My ideal phones would have balanced and neutral frequency response, superb and rock-solid imaging, and a wide and realistic soundstage. When I listen to a string quartet, I love to hear each instrument precisely located, and the bows distinct from the fingerboards, if that makes sense.
I listen mostly to rock, pop, jazz, and classical. In the latter two realms, more often small groups than orchestras or big bands.
I have an audio-gd NFB12, which I use both as a standalone DAC/amp and a DAC feeding a Cambridge Audio Azur amp. I also have a couple FiiO amps and a Bithead floating around somewhere.
My next phones will be strictly stay-at-home and music only; no gaming or movies. Sound leakage is not a problem in my environment.
Budget is flexible, though $400 would certainly be near the top.
Anyway, reading this thread has left me thinking that the HE-400 might be a wonderful step up toward my personal version of audio nirvana. But, before I drop four bills on something I've never heard (I'm reasonably sure no one in Pittsburgh carries HiFiMan), I thought I'd ask for thoughts and advice. Does this sound like a good match?
Thanks in advance for your time and sage counsel.

I'd look into the 65th anniversary K702. They seem to be improved over the Q701 which is basically what you describe as wanting. The HE400 is a huge leap over the AD700, but its soundstage isnt very large, and I wouldnt call them balanced. The HE-4 is technically more balanced and superior to the HE400, though not as musical.
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post #2830 of 10656
12/8/12 at 12:28am
I tried little sinegen and others but I don't get the bass frequencies??
Do you have a link to a good free program that works
Thanks a lot

edit : tried NCH tone generator and it s unbalanced, looks like I'll miss my he 400 for a while
Edited by TontonJoK - 12/8/12 at 12:58am
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post #2831 of 10656
12/8/12 at 12:55am
Quote:
Originally Posted by TontonJoK View Post

I tried little sinegen and others but I don't get the bass frequencies??
Do you have a link to a good free program that works
Thanks a lot

 

Sinegen does have bass frequencies; all the way down to 15 Hz in fact. You just hit "Power" to start the sinewave tone, and drag the frequency range bar to the left down to bass frequencies.

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post #2832 of 10656
12/8/12 at 12:58am
Quote:
Originally Posted by wje View Post

 

Yes, I've had it for a bit of time.  I love all of Cassandra's music.  Great stuff.  Also, we can't forget - Holly Cole, Etta James, and many, many great others.

 

 

Are you listening to her new one - Glad Rag Doll?  That album would sound bad on any system.  The issue is, she can write crappy music, and just rely on her album covers to sell the music.

 

 

        

 

                                                tongue_smile.gif

 

Yet, I much prefer her earlier work instead.  The music ... that is.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


I' say in general, but specifically these two:

700 700

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post #2833 of 10656
12/8/12 at 5:47am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by dshlapak View Post

Fear this may be a double post; preemptive apologies if it is...
Looking to upgrade from my ATH-AD700s. Their highs can be a bit harsh, their bass a bit weak, but I'm basically just looking for Something That Sounds Better. If you're reading this forum, I'm guessing that's not an unknown feeling to you.
My ideal phones would have balanced and neutral frequency response, superb and rock-solid imaging, and a wide and realistic soundstage. When I listen to a string quartet, I love to hear each instrument precisely located, and the bows distinct from the fingerboards, if that makes sense.
I listen mostly to rock, pop, jazz, and classical. In the latter two realms, more often small groups than orchestras or big bands.
I have an audio-gd NFB12, which I use both as a standalone DAC/amp and a DAC feeding a Cambridge Audio Azur amp. I also have a couple FiiO amps and a Bithead floating around somewhere.
My next phones will be strictly stay-at-home and music only; no gaming or movies. Sound leakage is not a problem in my environment.
Budget is flexible, though $400 would certainly be near the top.
Anyway, reading this thread has left me thinking that the HE-400 might be a wonderful step up toward my personal version of audio nirvana. But, before I drop four bills on something I've never heard (I'm reasonably sure no one in Pittsburgh carries HiFiMan), I thought I'd ask for thoughts and advice. Does this sound like a good match?
Thanks in advance for your time and sage counsel.

 

You say that you are looking for a neutral hp yet you think the ad700 is bass light. Most neutral hp are what I'd call bass light. Have you tried any of the Sennheiser line? Maybe something like an hd600/650 would be what you're after.

 

The he400 may seem like a bass can coming from you previous hp. It's wonderful ortho bass though and from an open can too which is a nice trick. The imaging that you're looking for is certainly there...have to disagree with MLE on that one. They are also great for your preferred music, but I'm not much of a rocker so I can't verify that genre. 

 

This is a special hp at $400 despite some production problems. It may be one that you have to pull the trigger on to find out just how good it really is. 

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post #2834 of 10656
12/8/12 at 5:47am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by griff2 View Post


I' say in general, but specifically these two:

700 700

 

That Christmas Songs recording is brilliantly recorded and a great listen!!

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post #2835 of 10656
12/8/12 at 6:05am
He mentioned soundstage as well as imaging. The HE-400 has almost perfect imaging, but it's soundstage isn't really wide or even realistic. It's moderately sized for an open can.
Edited by Mad Lust Envy - 12/8/12 at 6:06am
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