[cycloverid]

So, I did the @takato14 mod, and listening to it now. I really can't tell much of a difference. Bass impact is pretty much the same as before, and I think that is of primary importance if looking for any improvement over the stock character of the 5XX. We need more impact!

I guess if subs are actually extended, I'd realize with a track that goes that deep, which isn't so common.

I want see somebody else with a measurement rig to do this mod with the blutack and see if their measurement will replicate Takato's result.

Because when I opened it up, I noticed that there isn't much of a gap to really be concerned IMO (I assumed the gap was large, but it isn't). Hifiman seem to have taken care of it with gasket of some sort that adhere's to that frame Takato shows.

Opening it up also tells me how clean it looks inside and how much precaution Hifiman has taken with this build. There's mesh like cover so that protects the driver, not just on the inside, but also on the other side under the grill. The build inside looks pretty good IMO. Perhaps Hifiman has simplified his design.

I know we all have seen some weirdness that people have posted images of Hifiman drivers in the past. This one is different.

I noticed this post by takato14 on the Drop review page. I removed a pad on my Sundaras expecting to see a similar baffle design, but it actually has a nice little piece of foam already in place in there (so there's not even a place to put blu-tack even if I wanted to). It appears as though there are a bit more cost cutting measures inside the 5XX. Not sure if this affects the sub bass though, as different measurements show different amounts of roll off that I've seen.

 

[SilverEars]

I noticed this post by takato14 on the Drop review page. I removed a pad on my Sundaras expecting to see a similar baffle design, but it actually has a nice little piece of foam already in place in there (so there's not even a place to put blu-tack even if I wanted to). It appears as though there are a bit more cost cutting measures inside the 5XX. Not sure if this affects the sub bass though, as different measurements show different amounts of roll off that I've seen.

5XX design does look simplified, perhaps that brings cost down.

Crin and I are using the same rig. For the most part they should be similar if not the same, but there may be some differences due to A) unit variations/revisions, and B) he uses his on a mobile setup, while mine is fixed on my desk. But in general yeah we compare measurements regularly.... and that's not a euphemism .

As requested, here's the HE6XX. I do also have an HD650 here that's very slightly different in the upper mids/lower treble, but still within tolerances. The HD6XX is so common these days though that it should serve as a solid benchmark. If you're wondering what the target is, it's Harman OE 2013 for bass, and 2018 for mids and treble. So if you prefer the 2018 bass, just imagine the shelf a few dB higher.

This is very insightful. If I had GRAS rig I would like to measure with my HE500 with velpads, and see what the tonal differences are. I'm sure people would be interested in the comparison.

It's just so interesting how the 6XX is so close to Harman. Did they know or was it an accident? How come HD6 series comes close to Harman yet, that changed with HD800? Weren't they all designed by Axel Grell?

What kind of tuning (if intentional) did Axel Grell and Senneheiser have back when they were designing the HD6 series? Was there a scientific basis to the tuning? Was there some sort of a tuning philosophy they were following back then?

 

[kid vic]

@Resolve where in Vancouver are you? I'm willing to lend you my HE500's for a comparison.

 

[Dogmatrix]

In fairness I can see the lineage between HE-500 and HE-5XX but it appears more devolution than evolution . Disappointing

 

[reeltime]

Way too much time on my hands. Enjoy this dumb video.

 

[SilverEars]

mod to remove the bass roll of

Ok, more impressions of the mod. It seemed to have tamed the vocal area lower treble emphasis. This is what I notice more than any bass changes. This could be just placebo as well, my ears are probably getting used to the lower-treble. Bass is still not the best quality, but acceptable. If somebody does the takato14 mod, and have a rig to measure differences, please post!

Yes, these are very clear sounding like the above reviewer says, but I also agree with another reviewer that states that they headphones sound a bit distant than something intimate like HD6XX for example. Which is odd since this Hifiman seems to lean so close to the Sennheiser HD6 response, but not quite there in the treble. Because a lot of us expect harman like, upper-mids to cause more intimate sound. Or some describe as 'mids emphasized.'

IMO, the tonality sound close to Ananda.

Yes, this is probably one of the darker treble Hifiman in the treble, but not really dark due to the lower-treble presence. It doesn't have much in the mid-treble for the hard hitting hard hats. So, these do share similarities to HD6XX type treble.

The imaging is the most fun part of this headphone. Very spacious and much black background. I think most impressive is the acoustics sounds, the bass pluck sounds, or some other types of bass like sounds that are focused or narrow, etc.. How these sounds images in the way it pop up and disperses. the way sounds disperses spatially is impressive.

Although very clear sounding with the black background, I don't the detail retrieval is that impressive. But, it's not really bad at details either. The details are not sharply resolved, but a bit meshed sounding of the textures. It could come off as slightly smoothed over in contrast to distinct imaged textures.

 

[Acapella48]

Way too much time on my hands. Enjoy this dumb video.

Love your reviews. Reminds me of Chicago Saw the WE 300B review you posted over on SHMF.

 

[bagwell359]

In fairness I can see the lineage between HE-500 and HE-5XX but it appears more devolution than evolution . Disappointing

We are DEVO. D-E-V-O.

 

[Dogmatrix]

We are DEVO. D-E-V-O.

Are we not men ?

 

[dgindlespergerd]

Got mine last night; sound very bright and clear. I did a side by side with me 4xx and there is a huge difference in focus and clarity. I found Metallica and Deftones to just rock on these. So far my only complaint is the 3.5 plugs for the earcups instead of the 2.5. So, I will need to invest in balanced cables for these before I can test in balanced mode. Will be trying against the Edition X later today. Funny for the a/b testing yesterday to save time I used the Fiio X1 as a source. Will be using the Magni Heresy for the rest of the comparison.

 

[bagwell359]

Got mine last night; sound very bright and clear. I did a side by side with me 4xx and there is a huge difference in focus and clarity. I found Metallica and Deftones to just rock on these. So far my only complaint is the 3.5 plugs for the earcups instead of the 2.5. So, I will need to invest in balanced cables for these before I can test in balanced mode. Will be trying against the Edition X later today. Funny for the a/b testing yesterday to save time I used the Fiio X1 as a source. Will be using the Magni Heresy for the rest of the comparison.

In the long run you are better off with 3.5's. More sturdy and more common.

what sort of cable do you have on the HEX v2? Does the center of the can point right at your ear canal? How is the fit of the pads around the edges? EQ?

Some do not agree, but I find that the HEX needs a good amount of prep to really get it to sing. If its off angle to your ear upper mids become soft and technicals go way down.

 

[dgindlespergerd]

In the long run you are better off with 3.5's. More sturdy and more common.

what sort of cable do you have on the HEX v2? Does the center of the can point right at your ear canal? How is the fit of the pads around the edges? EQ?

Some do not agree, but I find that the HEX needs a good amount of prep to really get it to sing. If its off angle to your ear upper mids become soft and technicals go way down.

The HEX are stock and play well. I run the balanced with an xlr cable I to a Loxjie p20. I have that running on a magni heresy as a preamp and it is soooo clear. Ear angle does not seem to make a difference to me, but I wear them laying down and relaxing. I know what you saying with the 3.5, but when you already have custom 2.5 it is not as cool.

 

[bagwell359]

The HEX are stock and play well. I run the balanced with an xlr cable I to a Loxjie p20. I have that running on a magni heresy as a preamp and it is soooo clear. Ear angle does not seem to make a difference to me, but I wear them laying down and relaxing. I know what you saying with the 3.5, but when you already have custom 2.5 it is not as cool.

Sit up and try 3-5 different headband locations on a cut with lots of treble energy and detail. You'll note some obvious differences. Of course with nothing done to it, it kills the 4XX.

 

[Acapella48]

Oops!

 

[muletrane]

I for one am loving these cans! Love the detail, love the soundstage, love the sub bass. Just a fun listening experience! I can’t put em down. Plays nice on all my amps. Sounds real nice coming out of the headphone out of my Yamaha as501. My favorite pairing is the Woo WA6 and schiit modi 3 dac. Also sounds great through my iPhone.

I haven’t done any direct comparisons with my other headphones, but I can tell you right off the bat that these blow the 4xx’s out of the water. Just better all around.