[thug behram]

I forget... where we are at as far as. (If we own the 400. Will the purchase of the 400i be worth it ?

Only if you crave a more balanced sound and better comfort. Some, myself included, prefer the original he-400 sound.

 

[Thujone]

Having a hard time sorting through all these comparisons, what's the treble like on these compared to the HE-4? So far it seems that treble prominence is in this order: HE-400, HE-4, HE-560, HE-400i, HE-500 (not sure about the HE-6). Does that seem right? I might want to try the HE-400i if it can capitalize on everything the HE-4 has while having a smoother treble response.

 

[TMRaven]

It depends on how sensitive you are to particular treble regions.
 
For example, the 560 has more lower treble and less mid-upper treble than the 400i, while the 400i is more like the 400  in that it has less lower treble and more mid-upper treble.  In that sense I'd say they're about equal, but if you were to put 400 at the top for treble, then 400i has to go above 560.

 

[money4me247]

  Having a hard time sorting through all these comparisons, what's the treble like on these compared to the HE-4? So far it seems that treble prominence is in this order: HE-400, HE-4, HE-560, HE-400i, HE-500 (not sure about the HE-6). Does that seem right? I might want to try the HE-400i if it can capitalize on everything the HE-4 has while having a smoother treble response.

I feel like it would be really hard to rank treble prominence as they has different sound signatures and certain regions of treble may be more emphasized than others. I think your ranking probably has 400 first because of its treble spike, but I think that it actually has the 'worse' treble compared to everything else. According to the comparison reviews I've seen, the HE-6 is brighter than the HE-560, but this may be set-up dependent as well. I think it would be really difficult and listener-dependent to rank the treble quality like that. I think focusing on just one area of the frequency response doesn't do any of the headphones listed justice. Both the HE-400i and HE-560 has a great treble response. Though never heard the HE-4, so cannot compare that way.
 

  It depends on how sensitive you are to particular treble regions.
 
For example, the 560 has more lower treble and less mid-upper treble than the 400i, while the 400i is more like the 400  in that it has less lower treble and more mid-upper treble.  In that sense I'd say they're about equal, but if you were to put 400 at the top for treble, then 400i has to go above 560.

this.

 

[Thujone]

I guess I'm looking for something that isn't going to be quite as fatiguing as the HE-4, and obviously not as fatiguing as the HE-400.
 
Particularly the 8-10k peaks...

 

[marhol]

  If there's one word that comes to my mind when I listen to these HE400is, it's "boldness". The sound signature is warm and effortless, but still retains a very strong sense of attack, yet nowhere aggressive or offensive.
 
As such, these complement rock music very, very well it seems; better than other HFMs I've tried or owned, in my personal opinion...
 

 
 

   
 
In my opinion, however, the 400i just cannot handle heavy metal and some classic rock well. Whether it is Metallica, Pantera, Mastadon, Judas Priest, Led Zeppelin or Black Sabbath, these HPs just cannot duplicate the bass sufficiently to give me that "gut" reaction. Both the HE500 and HD 600 seem better...
.

 
 

  ...
 
BTW, I was listening to some Kansas, Emerson Lake and Palmer, and Alan Parsons Project earlier, portable, Fuze to C5D... I liked what I was hearing. I think they do a credible job with all of the classical rock stuff that I have thrown at them. Pink Floyd, Carlos Santana (Blues for Salvador is very nice), Grateful Dead ...etc.

Which of these three Hifimans : Hifiman HE-400i, Hifiman  HE-500, Hifiman HE-560  do you think suits best for rock genre ?

 

Is the vocal/electric guitar centric rock music strong side of Hifiman HE-400i ? Does it sound better with Focus Pads or with  Focus Pads A ?

 

 

As shown, jerg generally praised He-400i for rock (to my delight), on the other side IIcook51 wasn´t utterly impressed with  400i on some classical rock stuff, while mandrake50 didn´t seem disappointed  (to say at least)...
I would like to know what others think...
 
I listen mainly AOR with prominent vocals and prominent electric guitar (Journey, Boston, Queen, Asia, Toto, Survivor etc) and thus would be grateful if anybody  expressed his/her opinion on the matters.   Thanks a lot !

 

[skyline315]

   
 
 
 
Which of these three Hifimans : Hifiman HE-400i, Hifiman  HE-500, Hifiman HE-560  do you think suits best for rock genre ?

 

Is the vocal/electric guitar centric rock music strong side of Hifiman HE-400i ? Does it sound better with Focus Pads or with  Focus Pads A ?

 

 

As shown, jerg generally praised He-400i for rock (to my delight), on the other side IIcook51 wasn´t utterly impressed with  400i on some classical rock stuff, while mandrake50 didn´t seem disappointed  (to say at least)...
I would like to know what others think...
 
I listen mainly AOR with prominent vocals and prominent electric guitar (Journey, Boston, Queen, Asia, Toto, Survivor etc) and thus would be grateful if anybody  expressed his/her opinion on the matters.   Thanks a lot !

 
Warning:  these comments are purely subjective and I'm operating off memory of the 500s.  I don't have them on hand for a proper side-by-side comparison.  
 
That said, I feel the 400i handles guitars better than the 500.  More bite and energy.  They both handle rock quite well, in my opinion, but the 400is spotlight the guitars a little more heavily.
 
Can't comment on the 400s as I've never heard them.

 

[swspiers]

   
 
 
 
Which of these three Hifimans : Hifiman HE-400i, Hifiman  HE-500, Hifiman HE-560  do you think suits best for rock genre ?
 
Is the vocal/electric guitar centric rock music strong side of Hifiman HE-400i ? Does it sound better with Focus Pads or with  Focus Pads A ?
 
 
As shown, jerg generally praised He-400i for rock (to my delight), on the other side IIcook51 wasn´t utterly impressed with  400i on some classical rock stuff, while mandrake50 didn´t seem disappointed  (to say at least)...
I would like to know what others think...
 
I listen mainly AOR with prominent vocals and prominent electric guitar (Journey, Boston, Queen, Asia, Toto, Survivor etc) and thus would be grateful if anybody  expressed his/her opinion on the matters.   Thanks a lot !

One of the reasons I am giddy about the 400i is how they handle rock guitar, from classic Eagles/70's stuff, to extreme metal like early Opeth.  I thought that the 560 was slightly awkward in this respict. Not by much, but the 400i's have a very thick mid-range, and I also am coming to appreciate the slight zing at the upper-mids, lower treble area.
 
But there is now way to tell until you hear them for yourself.  I figured  I could buy them, and sell them at minimal loss if they didn't work out.
 
I'm not selling them...

 

[marhol]

  One of the reasons I am giddy about the 400i is how they handle rock guitar, from classic Eagles/70's stuff, to extreme metal like early Opeth.  I thought that the 560 was slightly awkward in this respict. Not by much, but the 400i's have a very thick mid-range, and I also am coming to appreciate the slight zing at the upper-mids, lower treble area.
 
But there is now way to tell until you hear them for yourself.  I figured  I could buy them, and sell them at minimal loss if they didn't work out.
 
I'm not selling them...

 
 

   
Warning:  these comments are purely subjective and I'm operating off memory of the 500s.  I don't have them on hand for a proper side-by-side comparison.  
 
That said, I feel the 400i handles guitars better than the 500.  More bite and energy.  They both handle rock quite well, in my opinion, but the 400is spotlight the guitars a little more heavily.
 
Can't comment on the 400s as I've never heard them.

Thank you for your observations ! I´m looking forward to early December, when I´m going to make an audition of HE-400i, HE- 500 and HE-560 in my country at the local reseller (Bratislava, Slovakia). If possible maybe even sooner.

 

[Oregonian]

Only if you crave a more balanced sound and better comfort. Some, myself included, prefer the original he-400 sound.

Same here. I prefer the 400 and I have no issue with the comfort.

 

[bartzky]

In my opinion the 400's comfort is okay, too, but is heavy... after listening more than about 2 hours my neck starts to hurt.
I think weight is the main improvement of the 400i's comfort, isn't it?

 

[thug behram]

I have no issues with the weight.

Velour pads and beyer style headband and the comfort is "good enough".

 

[tinyman392]

In my opinion the 400's comfort is okay, too, but is heavy... after listening more than about 2 hours my neck starts to hurt.
I think weight is the main improvement of the 400i's comfort, isn't it?

Even with the most heavy headphones, I rarely had neck issues (unless I lacked sleep)...  Generally the discomfort for me comes with the pressure on the top of my head.  But the 400i are lighter than some dynamic driver headphones out there and the headband helps with comfort quite a bit.  

 

[bartzky]

Even with the most heavy headphones, I rarely had neck issues (unless I lacked sleep)...  Generally the discomfort for me comes with the pressure on the top of my head.

That's funny, I never have problems with that. I have got my 400 since a year now and the foam on the headband is still very soft.

 

[tinyman392]

That's funny, I never have problems with that. I have got my 400 since a year now and the foam on the headband is still very soft.

I wasn't talking about the HE-400 BTW...  I'm just making a statement that, generally, with the heavier headphones, if I get discomfort, it's due to the design and shape of the headband; not the weight itself.