[trivium911]

I'm not looking for a portable device actually, I'm looking for a hifi stand alone system as I can't rely on my computer, as I said, I do most of my listening at work, but would be nice to have the same quality at home... while on the go I would use my phone as I'm doing now...

I have still 7 months to save money, I may get to a high end player and call it my end game (AK70, AK300 or the like), at least for some years!

The x1 powers the 400i fine and sound great by themselves, the x3ii sounds better overall but yeah you need them sode by side to hear the difference. Its subtle really, a bit disapointting but i guess thats becuase the x1 is very capable. I also use my x1 primarily for the gym for metalcore and heavy rock...so as mentioned recordings are not the best and soundstage is pretty small. The x3ii is mostly used for jazz, new age and classical. The x1 scales very well with portable amps though so i guess the dac is of decent quality.

 

[Change is Good]

  Sooooo....my headband just snapped after 3 years use 

​...not a happy man right now 

 
Litterally have a sock stuffed innbetween the metal headband and my head......any suggestions?

 
I've been afraid of this happening after end of warranty. HM doesn't even sell the headband parts anymore 

.
 
My guess is try to pick up a used HE-350 for cheap.

 

[ext23]

Quote:

the x3ii sounds better overall

 
Interesting, I found that my X3ii couldn't really get the 400i going hard enough, which is why I got the K5 amp to dock it in.

 

[drwlf]

   
I've been afraid of this happening after end of warranty. HM doesn't even sell the headband parts anymore 

.
 
My guess is try to pick up a used HE-350 for cheap.

 
Actually they should be, and with the old cheaper prices, "misunderstanding" from what I could make of the Edition 6 thread.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/831355/hifiman-edition-6-headphones/225#post_13169188 #2.

 

[trivium911]

[COLOR=FF00AA][/COLOR]

Interesting, I found that my X3ii couldn't really get the 400i going hard enough, which is why I got the K5 amp to dock it in.

Volume wise really? Im on high gain and it sounds excellent. How loud do you normally listen? Maybe i dont listen that loud...but yoy can hear these things from across the room.

 

[fumblingforward]

Sooooo....my headband just snapped after 3 years use :confused_face: ​...not a happy man right now   
Litterally have a sock stuffed innbetween the metal headband and my head......any suggestions?

Deerskin.
If there's anywhere nearby you can buy leathers, go find an appropriately sized piece of deerskin the same thickness as the headband in your choice of color, use the current busted headband as a template, cut it and do whatcha have to to attach it. It's not going to be OEM but willing to bet it'd work. Deerskin is fairly durable with a very soft hand and could be done single layer without having to stitch. Being so supple it should be pretty comfortable.
I was looking mine over when they got delivered yesterday and thinking the headband looked fragile and figured I would just replace mine with deerskin when it breaks. One of the t50rp modders uses it I think. Goat skin and elk hide are also pretty soft. Takes a sharp blade though. Just my $.02, fwiw.

 

[fumblingforward]

And it would beat the crap out of a sock in fist fight.

 

[DavidA]

Volume wise really? Im on high gain and it sounds excellent. How loud do you normally listen? Maybe i dont listen that loud...but yoy can hear these things from across the room.

My avg listening level is 68-78dB, with the X3ii the volume is at 84, high gain for the HE-400i.
 
You might want to measure your listening levels, simplest is to use a free app on your smart phone, some of the better apps will let you do some minor calibration to make the reading a bit more accurate but even so its good info to have since XX-dB is a measurement and means the same to all.

 

[spookanide]

I've been afraid of this happening after end of warranty. HM doesn't even sell the headband parts anymore  .

My guess is try to pick up a used HE-350 for cheap.

You should e-mail them and ask about the part specifically. You'd be surprised how easy it is to just ask some companies directly.

 

[Change is Good]

You should e-mail them and ask about the part specifically. You'd be surprised how easy it is to just ask some companies directly.

No complaints about HF customer service, here. They quickly replaced the faulty cable from my pair a while back. I was just commenting on what has been much discussed (in other HF threads) about the headband assembly no longer being offered as a seperate part. Mine is still like new after a year, but I can see these headbands eventually faultering (as it did with our fellow member after 3 years). That's my cause for concern.

But you're right. Always best to hear it from the horse's mouth. Send HF an email inquiry should be the first option. My apologies for jumping the gun and suggesting otherwise without confirmation of my own about the headband assembly. I just assumed it was common knowledge from what has been discussed around the HF threads as of late.

 

[trivium911]

My avg listening level is 68-78dB, with the X3ii the volume is at 84, high gain for the HE-400i.

You might want to measure your listening levels, simplest is to use a free app on your smart phone, some of the better apps will let you do some minor calibration to make the reading a bit more accurate but even so its good info to have since XX-dB is a measurement and means the same to all.

I will try that, i never thought those apps to be accurate but worth a shot. 84 is roughly where im at aswell with the x3ii on high gain, whats wrong with that? It goes all the way up to 120. Sometimes with a classical tune though you have to turn it up more but it always has just enough juice.

 

[DavidA]

I will try that, i never thought those apps to be accurate but worth a shot. 84 is roughly where im at aswell with the x3ii on high gain, whats wrong with that? It goes all the way up to 120. Sometimes with a classical tune though you have to turn it up more but it always has just enough juice.

I've found the mic on my phone and app to be fairly accurate after I compared reading with a friends hand held meter that he uses as part of his OSHA job.  Usually within 1-1.5dB so decent for SPL levels but not good enough to use for doing detailed comparisons IMO.
 
Agree that I tend to listen to classical at a slightly higher level due to the larger dynamic range

 

[yogibeezwax]

Thanks for all the suggestions...ended up hand stitching back the plastic piece on the end...not pretty, but OK as a temporary solution...better than my sock, which was only used because I was too drunk to find a better solution

 
I'll defiantly look into making my own headband soon!

 

[sK0pe]

I just joined the 400i owner's club and am currently going through my library as these are my first planars.
The bass response and mid clarity is amazingly fun, I was also not expecting to them to be as comfortable as they are.
 
I know what people are talking about when they speak of the bass provided by planar headphones.
 
They complement my neutral - bright Beyerdynamics really well however I'm guessing that I prefer the latter for gaming however I will be testing this assumption tomorrow.
 
The great thing is that both reveal different parts of every track.  Great headphone and the unboxing was amazing.  What do you guys do with the great box?
 
How would you recommend storing the headphones, do you hang them from the strap (off a wide headphone stand) or from the metal bar?

 

[Voxata]

I just lay my headphones on my mousepad.