[elwappo99]

  Wow that's ideal you've had the same headphones as me. May i ask what cans got you into this journey and how did you get to the a900x and then the he500? Also what were your first impressions of the 500 coming from the AT's?
 
I will say that i listened to them for about 7 hours straight as soon as i hooked everything up. Every time i put them on its for at least 2-3 hours. Must mean something eh haha. 

 
I had a bit of a different experience than you. I started up headphones when really the "top of the line" were the K701 and HD650. My first serious purchase was the DT770.  I slowly worked my way up the chain, and was one of the first people with a pair of Audeze LCD-2.
 
Since I had a really high end rig at the time of the LCD-2 and had been listening to the K702 for such a long time I immediately picked up on the really fine details and speed of the LCD-2. In comparison they sounded "dark" but since I had "worked my way up" I picked up on the nuances. 
 
You have a great DAC/Amp unit. Kingwa's gear is always first rate and I love his stuff. Let those HE500 melt in, and honestly you should try to venture to some new genres and see how they do. I never really liked jazz until I had the K702. I didn't care for electronic until I had a pair of Stax headphones.
 
Linn is offering free music every day. These are very high quality music files. Try to give them a listen. 
 
http://www.linn.co.uk/christmas
 
 
Maybe other people can chime in with some links to songs that make their HE500's sing. Maybe something with some bass

 

[Pirakaphile]

   
I had a bit of a different experience than you. I started up headphones when really the "top of the line" were the K701 and HD650. My first serious purchase was the DT770.  I slowly worked my way up the chain, and was one of the first people with a pair of Audeze LCD-2.
 
Since I had a really high end rig at the time of the LCD-2 and had been listening to the K702 for such a long time I immediately picked up on the really fine details and speed of the LCD-2. In comparison they sounded "dark" but since I had "worked my way up" I picked up on the nuances. 
 
You have a great DAC/Amp unit. Kingwa's gear is always first rate and I love his stuff. Let those HE500 melt in, and honestly you should try to venture to some new genres and see how they do. I never really liked jazz until I had the K702. I didn't care for electronic until I had a pair of Stax headphones.
 
Linn is offering free music every day. These are very high quality music files. Try to give them a listen. 
 
http://www.linn.co.uk/christmas
 
 
Maybe other people can chime in with some links to songs that make their HE500's sing. Maybe something with some bass

I don't have the 500's yet, but a lot of the music I listen to has excellent bass guitar players. Esperanza Spalding, and absolutely amazing singer and electric as well as upright bass player, has superiority over almost any other artist I can think of when it comes to musical talent, let alone her singing or bassist ability. Yes, the older stuff, like Fragile, the Yes Album, and Close To The Edge have amazing bass playing. Jean-Luc Ponty has some albums that feature a lot of bass guitar solos and amazing ability. Old Kansas has a lot of good stuff as well, but if you're thinking bass as in electronic or rap, I have no suggestions other than maybe Com Truise and other artists like him, like Lazerhawk, Tycho, and Timecop1983, if you're into crazy synth experimentation.

 

[BeatsWork]

I just got a new pair of he500s and coming from AT a900x, the he500 sounds soft and veiled. The great mid range I've been led to believe these cans are supposed to have is simply not there, sounding distant and recessed. This is about 8-10hrs in. I'm driving them via a audio gd nfb15

Just out of curiosity did you reset any and all DSP settings in Foobar or whatever you're using?  When I 1st received my 500's I had the same reaction.  Disabled all DSP which I had consistently found pleasing across a number of HP and bam - there was the sound signature I had been expecting. Also do look up Grill and Fuzzor mods. Both can be done for less than $20 and are completely reversible. No harm in at least trying them.

 

[hifimanrookie]

Just out of curiosity did you reset any and all DSP settings in Foobar or whatever you're using?  When I 1st received my 500's I had the same reaction.  Disabled all DSP which I had consistently found pleasing across a number of HP and bam - there was the sound signature I had been expecting. Also do look up Grill and Fuzzor mods. Both can be done for less than $20 and are completely reversible. No harm in at least trying them.

+1 i agree..those pesky programs sometimes can really mess up the sound with their 'helpful' modifications to the sound....my jriver was configed as 5.1! And had all sorts of sound modifications...i put everything off..and the he500 sounded much much better

 

[abvolt]

just got mine off amazon really good deal they are now my favorites and go very well with the woo wa7d + wa7tp..

 

[guy3134]

i got the g109s few days ago and brain absolutely exploded.
its meh when you like something for the first 10 min and then get used to it, but its a whole level above when you literally say wow from every sec of this setup, i literally say to myself.... holy **** man this is ******* amazing.
i enjoy every ******* second of it, and my god i didn't even started to talk about movies...

 

 

[Liu Junyuan]

i got the g109s few days ago and brain absolutely exploded.
its meh when you like something for the first 10 min and then get used to it, but its a whole level above when you literally say wow from every sec of this setup, i literally say to myself.... holy **** man this is ******* amazing.
i enjoy every ******* second of it, and my god i didn't even started to talk about movies...:basshead:  

Nice. I have had my eye on this amp as a possible future purchase. Between this and the Meier Audio Classic, I think I would be set for solid state for awhile.

 

[StanD]

Try this for some bass, link below. Great drummer too.
http://grooveshark.com/#!/search/song?q=Dave+Weckl+In+The+Pocket
 
Edit: This too. One tight band.
http://grooveshark.com/#!/search?q=dave+weckl+crazy+horse
 
Edit 2: These links are to GrooveShark, if you hear any extraneous sounds, sometimes they play a video advert that you can stop with the pause button at the advert. There's not many places that you can legally playback music of your choice for free, this is one.

 

[BeatsWork]

Grill mod experiment

Just had a random thought I want to try after holidays. What would be the effect of coating grill with rubber? I.e. Plasticoat rubber spray? To absorb any reflection?

 

[hotdogseller]

any tips on fitting the plastic rings inside velour HM5 pads? 

 

[hotdogseller]

nvm found a guide, wow these are a lot more comfortable then the stock velours (and stock pleather is just garbage imo)

 

[Pirakaphile]

Just bought the He-500 a few minutes ago. Ugh, lots of money for the thing, I'm expecting great things out of them. I'll post my impressions on them in early January, and I'll decide if they need upgraded cables and pads then. I'm looking forward to them getting here, and I can't wait to hear em!

 

[Hansotek]

Just bought the He-500 a few minutes ago. Ugh, lots of money for the thing, I'm expecting great things out of them. I'll post my impressions on them in early January, and I'll decide if they need upgraded cables and pads then. I'm looking forward to them getting here, and I can't wait to hear em!

Congrats! Check out Jerg's Fuzzor mod once you've made your initial impressions. For about $10 you can upgrade the sound as much or more than any cable or pad swap.

 

[thug behram]

Can the O2 drive the he-500 to its full potential? Wanna upgrade my he-400..

 

[StanD]

  Can the O2 drive the he-500 to its full potential? Wanna upgrade my he-400..

Powerwise, it can't reach the full power potential of the HE-500's. It may be close enough for you, if you don't play loudly. Soundwise you will get all sorts of answers.