gmazz
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Nov 27, 2014
- Posts
- 23
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- 10
David - thank you so much for the review. I wish I had found this about a year ago. Really felt you were fair and objective. Thanks again!
The HE-560 is a slight upgrade to the HE-500; bigger sound stage than both the HE-500 and HE-6, more airy sound, a little bit more detailed, but also a little bit brighter in my opinion (swapping pads might change this according to the HE-560 thread). The HE-6 however is more of a direct upgrade to the HE-500, but you need a powerhouse of an amplifier to go along with it obviously. Better bass, speed, detail, clarity and separation than both the HE-560 and HE-500, and tonally it is very similar to the HE-500.
The HE-6 and HE-500 does not sound similar. The HE-500 stands out on its own. The HE-6, HE-5LE, HE-4 are more tonally alike.
The HE-500 is more forgiving and has a warmer tone compared to the HE-6. The bass on the 500s is not as tight compared to the HE-6. I owned all these headphones at the same time. I sold off the 5LE and the 4 and kept the 500 and the HE-6 because they where more different than alike. I later sold the 500 because the HE-6 got all the head time.
The HE-4 V shape? Yeah but that's the FR not the tone.
The HE-6 and all the HE-X has a brighter, airy tone. The HE-XXX has a more warmer tone. Excluding the new 560.
What amps have you heard the HE-500 and the HE-6 on?
The GS-X mk2 is a pretty darn good amp. I sold mine and kept the First Watt F1J.
Well it's not really a personal preference that it has more air - it's personal preference if you like it or not. You would hear more a difference if you could hear the others ie. HE-4 and the HE-5LE. All have the same tone as the HE-6. Where the 500 has a warmer tone. That's all I'm saying.
Any IEM bias in the review? I mean, personal preference sure...but the fact that most of the IEM's seem to be on the bottom of the list seems a tad worrying. Especially in the actual sound department. I've owned a LOT of the stuff listed (both fullsize and IEM) and something seems off. To say the HE-400's rank better than the JH16? Way above the W4? How in the hell does that even happen??? It has weaker bass with way weaker extension, the mids and highs don't even compare, detail and separation are no where near...sound stage and airiness are the only two things that I would say are "better" but not by that much.
I dunno...in the end it doesn't matter to me (as this hardly matches my experiences) but many of the IEM's he listed, to me, objectively sound much better in every way than the fullsized cans he reviewed. The ONLY reason I could see some of the lesser fullsizers (and a lot of the higher ends) being better than the IEM's is maybe sound stage...other than that...lows, mids, highs, separation, etc is far better on a majority of these IEM's then most of the fullsized cans.
Just...hmm...the ranking doesn't match up at all to where I would list most of these.
Whatever I guess...just seems a tad biased is all. Like I said, his decision I know I know...
What? Where are you getting that I haven't listened to fullsized headphones enough to realize their worth or something? Something like the HE-400 is noticeably worse then something like the JH16 (I mean come on!). Doesn't take an expert to know this.
I only listened to fullsized headphones for years and years. it wasn't until a couple years ago that I got into buds and was BLOWN AWAY by what I was missing.
Its all opinion, sure, but lets not act like half these headphones are better than half the IEMs on this list. Lets keep assumptions about my experience out of it as well please.
I'm not saying I dislike cans or anything at all but this list just seems biased to IEMs. You can't have some of the best IEMs ever made and say they aren't as good as $200 headphones. That's like...not possible. 0r am I in some fantasy world where the AD900 is better than the JH16?
My point is that if the author is biased (which I think he is whether he knows it or not) then this isn't a fair and balanced comparison and thus makes it somewhat moot.
I just don't think many people truly appreciate how good the HD800 until they listen to a decent pair of speaker and realise what good sound stage does to music. It like you've discovered a missing dimension. Please note, I have not audition the SR-009 or HE-90.