Audeze SINE Series
Apr 8, 2021 at 3:27 PM Post #4,562 of 4,774
I had Hifiman HE-400i, they are made of cheap material. there are no damping filters in the housings. They do not sound interesting. The SINO's construction used more expensive parts. the design was done at BMW.
 
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Apr 8, 2021 at 3:48 PM Post #4,564 of 4,774
Ich habe die Hifiman HE-400i gekauft, sie sind aus billigem Material. es gibt keine Dämpfung in den Schalen. im Lager ist der Klang nicht interessant. SINO sind mit teureren Teilen hergestellt. das Design wurde von Designern aus BMW gemacht.
Nicht alle hier verstehen Deutsch. Es ist viel besser wenn du in Englisch posten kann.
 
Apr 8, 2021 at 4:15 PM Post #4,565 of 4,774
Hey all,
I have a chance to get these for pretty cheap or get a Hifiman He400 new.. Can anyone help me choose between these two? I know the HE is open back but wanted to know if these are technically better than those..

I have both the SINE and the 400i, and I find the SINE to be more impressive in terms of sound, more impressive in terms of build and aesthetics, and easier to drive, to the point of sounding very good with portable gear while the 400i struggles. The 400i has the advantage in soundstage, comfort, and availability of resources to mod them. I put ZMF Ori sheepskin pads on my 400i and now they are my most comfortable headphone.

To be more specific about sound, to my ears the bass on the SINE is deeper, whereas the 400i sounds more mid-bassy. Both resolve well but slam not so well. The mids on the SINE are most resolved, more present, and subjectively more appealing. Treble is hard, because the SINE tends to have too little treble while the 400i has peaky treble in spots. My preference is for the former. That said, the difference in quality between the two is not huge. I'd suggest making the decision instead based on your priorities about comfort, portability, price, and, well, looks. If the price is about the same, you'd likely be pleased with either option when it comes to the sound.
 
Apr 10, 2021 at 10:24 AM Post #4,567 of 4,774
Just bought a set of SINE's for the second time as I sold my first pair a couple years ago. I'll be looking to pad swap them immediately. Anyone have any experience with Vesper's pads?

https://vesperaudio.com/earpads?brand=83

I'd be looking at the Audeze Sine over-ear genuine leather custom earpads.

I don't want to mess with the frequency response that much so looking at a pad that doesn't add or subtract anything with the original tuning.
 
Apr 10, 2021 at 11:10 AM Post #4,568 of 4,774
Just bought a set of SINE's for the second time as I sold my first pair a couple years ago. I'll be looking to pad swap them immediately. Anyone have any experience with Vesper's pads?

https://vesperaudio.com/earpads?brand=83

I'd be looking at the Audeze Sine over-ear genuine leather custom earpads.

I don't want to mess with the frequency response that much so looking at a pad that doesn't add or subtract anything with the original tuning.
I have a pair from Vesper. Though mine do change the sound signature since they were designed to be super breathable and get rid of the driver flex I was experiencing. I have no complaints with my pads, they are made to order, so wait times can get quite high.
 
Apr 12, 2021 at 2:21 PM Post #4,569 of 4,774
Just received these today, here are my first impressions driving them with a desktop amp (Fiio K5 pro).

These are definitely planar transducers and not second grade ones, impossible to mistake them with some cheaper dynamic design. The level of transparency is more resemblant of balanced armatures, but I think it's actually better than the few kilobuck iems I've heard. I don't think I've heard something that transparent in a portable package, except maybe something a bit exotic like the Stax SR-001 or the LCD-i4 which are not closed-back.

For someone used to open planar designs, the sound presentation is quite unusual. The closed design acts like a microscope that highlights every detail and forces you to pay attention to every bit of it. The imaging is excellent, you are completely immerged in the music, no way to escape. If that's your thing it's quite an experience, especially if you're coming from open designs like me. I'll have to see how I get used to them during long listening sessions. The precarious comfort makes it feel like it's going to be some kind of mental test lol.

The tonal balance is quite good overall, I would say it's a bit brighter than an HD600 for instance (but with excellent deep bass), I wouldn't call it a bright headphone but it can get a bit hot sometimes. But it's hard to say if it's due to the frequency response itself or the fact that every detail is literally forced into your ears. It's analytical without really sounding like an analytical headphone. Strange. Let's listen to these more and see how they fare after a few days of use.
 
Apr 12, 2021 at 2:52 PM Post #4,571 of 4,774
yes, these headphones are appealing in their sound. the treble and bass are amazing. BUT, when you remove the rear covers, you get the right middle, the vocals become more correct. the width of the scene will be bigger.
Or get the DX version maybe? But I think that's the closed soundstage that makes the Sine special. I didn't think it could work that well with a planar design. Maybe the tuning could be smoothed out a bit but it's very appealing in some ways. I think it's time for me to investigate closed back designs more seriously lol.
 
Apr 12, 2021 at 3:12 PM Post #4,572 of 4,774
Just bought a set of SINE's for the second time as I sold my first pair a couple years ago. I'll be looking to pad swap them immediately. Anyone have any experience with Vesper's pads?

https://vesperaudio.com/earpads?brand=83

I'd be looking at the Audeze Sine over-ear genuine leather custom earpads.

I don't want to mess with the frequency response that much so looking at a pad that doesn't add or subtract anything with the original tuning.
I’m in the exact same case as you and ordered the leather on ear with memory foam a week ago. Will report back in around 7-8 weeks lol
 
Apr 12, 2021 at 5:23 PM Post #4,574 of 4,774
How much you stretch the headband with these seems to have a great influence on the sound signature. I find that barely stretching the headband gives me a smoother signature and also relieves my dying ears a bit because of the lower pressure. It's really good now in terms of tonal balance.
 
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Apr 12, 2021 at 8:47 PM Post #4,575 of 4,774
How much you stretch the headband with these seems to have a great influence on the sound signature. I find that barely stretching the headband gives me a smoother signature and also relieves my dying ears a bit because of the lower pressure. It's really good now in terms of tonal balance.

In general, fit and the positioning of headphones relative to your ear, even the toe/angle of the housings will all influence sound quite a bit; this can be measured. If I’m not mistaken, as pads compress and stuff, that will also influence sound too; though I don’t remember if anyone has ever measured this.
 

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