Senn 650, HIFIMAN HE-400I, OPPO PM-3. Which should I buy?

which one would you choose?

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Oct 5, 2018 at 10:53 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 15
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hseldon

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Senn 650 and Hifman 400i can be bought about 200usd. Oppo Pm3 gets nice discounts so it's in my range too.

I mostly going to use them for listening Jazz, Rock (70's) and Blues. I like listening guitar solo's from Gary Moore , Clapton, Vaughan and similar. Would a warm headphone go better with these?
I heard nice things about planar headsets but they say it lacks bass too.

Which of these there would be a better choice?
 
Oct 6, 2018 at 12:09 AM Post #2 of 15
hseldon said:
Senn 650 and Hifman 400i can be bought about 200usd. Oppo Pm3 gets nice discounts so it's in my range too.

I mostly going to use them for listening Jazz, Rock (70's) and Blues. I like listening guitar solo's from Gary Moore , Clapton, Vaughan and similar. Would a warm headphone go better with these?
I heard nice things about planar headsets but they say it lacks bass too.

Which of these there would be a better choice?
Click to expand...

HFM 400i's are a far superior can to Senn's (including HD-800). Haven't heard the Oppo. Last year at a trade show, the Focal Upoopia 'cans' and Sony's $2K (US$) model was on active display; excellent headphone amp, kimber/other upgrade cabling, (don't recall the source.).
Knowing equipment/sound (and the great variations that can alter performance/SQ) that I couldn't quite identify to be the problem during my listening sessions, but neither of those very expensive can's impressed. I looked to a profesional (and clearly honest) chap standing near by, shook my head in disapproval -as he nodded in agreement.

Do yourself a great favour; Hifiman 400i's (for $200.) ? Good luck finding anything remotely as good (from other brands) anywhere near -it'even older/standard- price of $500-$600.

A caveat thus unfolds: The 400i is a nuanced, articulate, highly resolving headphone. It will give you precison Low-Frequency Reproduction/Peformance, but again, articulate, tight, resolving nuanced -easily resolving differences in amplification/cabling . But, I doubt its bass 'performance' will rattle your noggi'n. If that's what your're after, consider a sealed-back model from, I don't know who ! lol

The Hifiman 400i is a splendid, neutral, articulate, engaging performer.

Subjective impressions of bass power (boat/elevated/coloration) it WILL NOT deliver; only the immensely important capability of resolving low-frequency 'information', conveyed with nuance, articulation and 'texture'.

Very highly recommended.

pj
( P.S.$200.-seriously ? )
 
Oct 6, 2018 at 12:32 AM Post #3 of 15
allhifi said:
HFM 400i's are a far superior can to Senn's (including HD-800). Haven't heard the Oppo. Last year at a trade show, the Focal Upoopia 'cans' and Sony's $2K (US$) model was on active display; excellent headphone amp, kimber/other upgrade cabling, (don't recall the source.).
Knowing equipment/sound (and the great variations that can alter performance/SQ) that I couldn't quite identify to be the problem during my listening sessions, but neither of those very expensive can's impressed. I looked to a profesional (and clearly honest) chap standing near by, shook my head in disapproval -as he nodded in agreement.

Do yourself a great favour; Hifiman 400i's (for $200.) ? Good luck finding anything remotely as good (from other brands) anywhere near -it'even older/standard- price of $500-$600.

A caveat thus unfolds: The 400i is a nuanced, articulate, highly resolving headphone. It will give you precison Low-Frequency Reproduction/Peformance, but again, articulate, tight, resolving nuanced -easily resolving differences in amplification/cabling . But, I doubt its bass 'performance' will rattle your noggi'n. If that's what your're after, consider a sealed-back model from, I don't know who ! lol

The Hifiman 400i is a splendid, neutral, articulate, engaging performer.

Subjective impressions of bass power (boat/elevated/coloration) it WILL NOT deliver; only the immensely important capability of resolving low-frequency 'information', conveyed with nuance, articulation and 'texture'.

Very highly recommended.

pj
( P.S.$200.-seriously ? )
Click to expand...
yes. blue one is even less than that ,188usd on amazon.

Some neutral headphones sound too dry ,tasteless .They sound like studio monitors that are geared for professinals who do editing ,recording stuff but not for listeners. Does it sound like that? I 'm not going to do any kind of editing, recording etc.
Also I'm going to use these at home. Living at the middle of a big city it's not quite but not like undergroud transit, bus etc either. So I don't know if Hifi being open back will cause problems.
Other than that hifiman seems like a great bet at 188-200usd.
 
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Oct 6, 2018 at 12:57 AM Post #4 of 15
He400i sounds great, and imo the best under $450. @ 500 the headphones get better (HE560, HD660s, Beyer's Amiron/DT1990 etc.

Bass is extended but recessed.
650 will give you much more impact.

I'd go for HE400i but it could go either way really.
 
Oct 6, 2018 at 1:26 AM Post #5 of 15
I haven't heard an HE-400i. I did try an HE-350. I didn't think it did anything especially well and the highs were tizzy. I did not consider any of the upper level Hifiman headphones because the ear cups are too small, caught the top and bottom of my ears.

I did not like the Senn HD 650, too warm and laid back. Guitar solos faded into the background.

Grados are awesome for rock.
 
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Oct 6, 2018 at 11:50 AM Post #6 of 15
hseldon said:
Senn 650 and Hifman 400i can be bought about 200usd. Oppo Pm3 gets nice discounts so it's in my range too.
---
Which of these there would be a better choice?
Click to expand...

PM-3 needs to be worn tight to get good bass out of them, otherwise if you're trying to make for the cheapest system, these are your best bet since they don't really need an amp unlike the HE400i or even the HD650. You can't use a total crap smartphone but something like an LG Vx0 is enough; if you get an amp, even a Fiio A5 is already overvkill.

HD650 has strong upper bass but wear them loose and the bass will stay well controlled (mind the earpad wear still though).

As for the HE400i...what you save on buying it doesn't stay in your pocket, it just adds to the amplifier budget.


hseldon said:
I mostly going to use them for listening Jazz, Rock (70's) and Blues. I like listening guitar solo's from Gary Moore , Clapton, Vaughan and similar. Would a warm headphone go better with these?
I heard nice things about planar headsets but they say it lacks bass too.
Click to expand...

Most planars can reach deep into the bass maintaining a very flat curve; the HE400i is practically flat from 1000hz down to 10hz.

That means that, given a quiet room and everything upstream is great, you'd hear the double bass plucking on say Taking A Chance On Love or In the Still of the Night.

Where they're weak is if you want the headphone equivalent of a Cadillac rollin' on them Spinnerz down tha ghetto wit fo Audiobahn 12in woofaz blasting TURN DOWN FOR WHAT!!! you can hear the bass from six blocks away.
 
Oct 6, 2018 at 12:27 PM Post #7 of 15
Each of these seems to come with drawbacks.

The HiFiMan I've not heard and don't care to. I won't touch them with a ten foot pole until I stop hearing so much about quality control problems and bad warranty service.

The HD 650 I love, but they can be a bit laid back with aggressive music. My guess is they will sound beautiful with Sarah Vaughn or Eric Clapton, though. They are a mids-centric 'phone. If you want something that can portray visceral grit (like sibilance and distortion in live rock recordings), you should keep looking.

Oppo no longer exists, so the PM-3 is only available used or for whatever mark-up the seller wants. No warranty, either. Their sound is dark, with nice bass, somewhat cold, bland mids, and recessed treble. Some people hear them differently, of course. I like them a lot with EQ, but not much without.

I'd probably go for the HD 650, personally.
 
Oct 6, 2018 at 10:17 PM Post #8 of 15
Thanks for all the replies.

it didn't know Oppo PM-3 was discontinued. Anything replacing it?

I'm already going to buy a amp/dac , without it the headphone I'm using (Sennheiser 598cs) doesnt work it's best either . It works but underwhelming, it kinda shows its strength with an amp/dac.

Since I'm already using Senn 598 , the new headphone needs to be a significantly better than this .That would be?
 
Dec 18, 2018 at 9:08 PM Post #13 of 15
hseldon said:
Senn 650 and Hifman 400i can be bought about 200usd. Oppo Pm3 gets nice discounts so it's in my range too.

I mostly going to use them for listening Jazz, Rock (70's) and Blues. I like listening guitar solo's from Gary Moore , Clapton, Vaughan and similar. Would a warm headphone go better with these?
I heard nice things about planar headsets but they say it lacks bass too.

Which of these there would be a better choice?
Click to expand...
I had the He400i and i didn't like them, I found them quite boring and I replaced them with HE-560 but between the 3 ones you listed here they are the best of the 3, so you took the right decision
 
Dec 19, 2018 at 12:48 PM Post #15 of 15
Trunks159 said:
To me the HE560 sounds like a he400i with more bass. Not much else is different.
Click to expand...
More bass, warmer sound, more detail bout mods. He400i are good but they didnt give me any emotion
 
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