[kenshinhimura]

im thinking that as well... wonder how a 5LE with jerg pads would sound

sound great on my he5le.

 

[MrMateoHead]

Since everyone is posting their EQs lately, I thought I would post my latest:
 

 
I have a little 'bass boost' in the 50hz region, a light cut to the 1 khz region, and another boost around 4 khz. I actually cut treble from 7khz - 20khz. Everything is quite subtle, but I have noticed I really like having a 3 db boost or so in the 50hz region - gives the bass a tad more weight without it getting too sloppy or boomy.

 

[Makiah S]

  Since everyone is posting their EQs lately, I thought I would post my latest:
 

 
I have a little 'bass boost' in the 50hz region, a light cut to the 1 khz region, and another boost around 4 khz. I actually cut treble from 7khz - 20khz. Everything is quite subtle, but I have noticed I really like having a 3 db boost or so in the 50hz region - gives the bass a tad more weight without it getting too sloppy or boomy.

Indeed I have boost of about 3db at 50k my self
 
but HOW DO YOU ppl get Easy Q working in FooBar! I can't get it to work... :/
 
that said I also have a nice boost to upper mids as well but I also dip the 7-10k area while brining 14-20k back to neutral 

 

[MrMateoHead]

  Indeed I have boost of about 3db at 50k my self
 
but HOW DO YOU ppl get Easy Q working in FooBar! I can't get it to work... :/
 
that said I also have a nice boost to upper mids as well but I also dip the 7-10k area while brining 14-20k back to neutral 

 
It wasn't that straightforward for me either. I'll try to remember what I did. You really need to do two basic things: Get a VST wrapper for Foobar, and then Get Easy-Q.
 
*download "George Yohng's VST Wrapper" for foobar. Install.
*Download Easy-Q
*Add Easy-Q .dll file to the foobar/components directory.
*Load up Foobar -> File / Preferences / Playback / DSP Manager
*Add VST Wrapper to the list of Active DSPs
*Possibly close / restart Foobar
*VST Wrapper is now running in the taskbar as an icon or a hidden icon (use the small up arrow)
*Right click on the icon, select "Use VST Effect / EasyQ"
*Play with EQ for hours, save the ones you like.
 
Once setup, VST and Easy Q should pop up with Foobar every time. You can follow this same process but use Electri-Q if you wanted to. Both programs need a VST wrapper of some kind. Personally, Easy-Q was better for me. But I hate that it doesn't sit within the foobar player, and I always have to minimize everything I am doing / re-select Foobar to see it and use it again. Sometime I ought to go back to back with the 31-band EQ built into Foobar to see if all the extra setup is REALLY worth it.

 

[Makiah S]

   
It wasn't that straightforward for me either. I'll try to remember what I did. You really need to do two basic things: Get a VST wrapper for Foobar, and then Get Easy-Q.
 
*download "George Yohng's VST Wrapper" for foobar. Install.
*Download Easy-Q
*Add Easy-Q .dll file to the foobar/components directory.
*Load up Foobar -> File / Preferences / Playback / DSP Manager
*Add VST Wrapper to the list of Active DSPs
*Possibly close / restart Foobar
*VST Wrapper is now running in the taskbar as an icon or a hidden icon (use the small up arrow)
*Right click on the icon, select "Use VST Effect / EasyQ"
*Play with EQ for hours, save the ones you like.
 
Once setup, VST and Easy Q should pop up with Foobar every time. You can follow this same process but use Electri-Q if you wanted to. Both programs need a VST wrapper of some kind. Personally, Easy-Q was better for me. But I hate that it doesn't sit within the foobar player, and I always have to minimize everything I am doing / re-select Foobar to see it and use it again. Sometime I ought to go back to back with the 31-band EQ built into Foobar to see if all the extra setup is REALLY worth it.

oh gawd I need the VST wrapper, yea screw that. the VST wrapped pissed my computer off. OK moving on [thank you though] 

 

[jerg]

I like the alternative VST-DSP adapter more:
 
http://wiki.hydrogenaudio.org/index.php?title=Foobar2000:Components/VST_adapter

 

[Makiah S]

  I like the alternative VST-DSP adapter more:
 
http://wiki.hydrogenaudio.org/index.php?title=Foobar2000:Components/VST_adapter

Meh I might try that... or not 
 
I honestly don't use EQ enough to warrant having it, and with only a 50hrz boost I am very satisfied with the HE 400

 

[JBal4]

I was wondering if anyone had any experience with the matrix mini-i and the he400. I am looking to change up my amp/dac because I would like to see if there is a difference in treble(less). I also liked the option of balancing since I have heard that it improves the sq. another that I looked into wasthe yulong d100 mkii. any opinions/advice?

 

[Soundsgoodtome]

D100s don't pair well with the he400. Too bright for my taste, although for classical and acoustic it's ok. Excellent detail retrieval. Any other genres its too bright. Great match for warmer HPs and even the DT880s.

The matrix Mini-I straight from the dac is a good pairing. The mini has a warm sound and the he400 does well. I find that the mini-I with the e9 as an amp produce a very favorable sound of a nice balance in warmth and brightness. Luscious warmth is the best way i can describe it. A little loss in the soundstage dept (vs using the mini-I's built in amp) but nothing major. Be sure to use the optical or coaxial side of the mini-I. A cheap transport would be the Hifimediy Usb 2 async with optical out for $60. Huge gain in SQ vs the laptops optical out.

 

[JBal4]

If i am using a laptop with cd quality tunes(16/44.1) what is the difference of using a usb vs using a converter to go to optical? Also just wondering why you suggest using a seperate amp, is the matrix amp not very good?

 

[Soundsgoodtome]

USB jitter and the Mini not being async. Quite an audible difference specially on a lower quality pc. It's not just a matter of matching cd quality to a cd quality rated transport. The async usb to optical or coaxial would be a good upgrade for the mini-I, even the budget brand I mentioned.

The amp on the mini-I is decent although can be too warm for my liking on certain songs. Sinatra sounds fantasic along with r&b, motown, acoustics, and music that benefit from a warm and laid back sound. Hard rock, edm, pop, etc can benefit from a more neutral amp using the mini-I as a dac. Again this is my taste, head over to the mini-I appreciation thread and you'll see other peoples opinion on it. Never found one that paired it to he400 however.

 

[Anvil]

Hey, are we still arguing about HE-400 pads? Because I finally switched out my stock pleathers for velours today(yesterday really) after about 6.5 months with those 

. Immediate impression is that it doesn't sound as fatiguing with the new pads, though they do seem to clamp pretty tightly, likely because they're new.
 
Should maybe consider turning the old pleathers into Jergpads or something.

 

[pdrm360]

Let's start voting on HE-400 pads (pleathers vs. velours).  I prefer the stock pleathers.
 
Pleathers: +1
 
Velours:

 

[Lohb]

  Let's start voting on HE-400 pads (pleathers vs. velours).  I prefer the stock pleathers.
 
Pleathers: +1
 
Velours:

I "prefer" Beyer velour only from a comfort/aesthetic standpoint, but I know from all that has been said and graph evidence that the Jerg pads bring out the absolute best in 400s. So I will be switching soon.
 
How about the choice of 1) stock pleathers 2) stock velours 3) jerg pads 4 ) any other pad ? !

 

[pdrm360]

 
I "prefer" Beyer velour only from a comfort/aesthetic standpoint, but I know from all that has been said and graph evidence that the Jerg pads bring out the absolute best in 400s. So I will be switching soon.
 
How about the choice of 1) stock pleathers 2) stock velours 3) jerg pads 4 ) any other pad ? !

 
Jergpads are superior; I don't think they need to be in the vote.