[hifimanrookie]

@Clemmaster,  I did switch to the velours that came with the HE500 and liked it better so far.  Also, I took out the grill cloth too to open it up a touch.
After many hours on it, I do feel the difference in sound stage in comparison to the Q701 is quite a bit.  
The only one instrument I don't like to listen on the HE500 is violin which I've played since 6 and still do daily.  The HE500 smooths it out a little too much for my taste while the Q701 still retains the rawness of bow movements, string sounds and has a touch more "air" overall.  One thing I wanna add is that, the violin tracks did improve when I listen to same track on the E9K instead of the E17.  I now start seeing and believing in amp power pushing these ortho.  I've just discovered where it matters in my case.  Everything else from guitar, piano,sax, to trumpet sounds fine with much dynamic and energy.  Hopefully, as the HE500 breaks in it will improve more.

I dont know where ur at..but if ur in uk/europe..try to make it to the coming london meet...i will take my 337 to the meet then..in my opinion a very good pair with the he500 at an affordable price..it makes the he500 sound very natural....u are more then welcome to try ur he500 on it..or use my balanced he500 as reference...or use ur own personal music library (favorably in lossless quality)...

U dont need to spend a fortune to get ur he500 make violins sound good....just as in reality..i love the sound of a violin..my favorite instrument to listen to...as is a good played electrical guitar.

 

[koiloco]

@hifimanrookie,  I am in the US, silicon valley where you see silicon used a lot in everything including you know what

I am going to the meet by San Francisco in August so I'll definitely take my HPs to try different gears out.
My personal rule always stands : "if I can't hear and judge the difference, I will not spend even a single penny more.  On the opposite, if the difference is worth the investment and I can justify then there's not a limit for me"  I am definitely not one of those who can't admit a bad investment and still says there's definitely improvement to self justify.  This is = self denial in my book.
 

 

[M-13]

Holy Lord! You're driving the HE-500 from an E17 and listening to 128 bps mp3???
 
Talk about squandering the potential of these cans, wow...

 

[hifimanrookie]

@hifimanrookie,  I am in the US, silicon valley where you see silicon used a lot in everything including you know what
I am going to the meet by San Francisco in August so I'll definitely take my HPs to try different gears out.
My personal rule always stands : "if I can't hear and judge the difference, I will not spend even a single penny more.  On the opposite, if the difference is worth the investment and I can justify then there's not a limit for me"  I am definitely not one of those who can't admit a bad investment and still says there's definitely improvement to self justify.  This is = self denial in my book.

 

I am the same..i will never invest in anything thats worth every penny of it...its in my genes..thats why i do procurement for a living . But am also honest enough to myself that when i find out the product doesnt meet my expectations i will get rid of it as soon as possible

But when i do love And I MEAN LOVE (my 337) something and consider it worth mentioning..i am not afraid to say it..and debate about it...as some people here tend to think that unknown means bad (so they buy wellknown brands or any other brand with VERY ACTIVE admirors here on headfi like shiit and emotiva) cant be further from the truth sometimes...thats nothing more then normal..its human....

as u already know..i am very open..but what i never do is talking badly about products i dont know..i did that once by accident and not on purpose...and saying that..i know a certain emotiva owner is now reading this..and yes..i will listen to one on the london meet.and then compare it to my 337..as promised and if its as good as he says..i will buy one for sure for my second rig. ..

the month after (november/december) my new Iamp will be delivered and so my 337 will be on sale then during the meet. ..it will save the buyer a bundle in postage as the 337 is a heavy basterd

 

[koiloco]

Quote:

Holy Lord! You're driving the HE-500 from an E17 and listening to 128 bps mp3???
 
Talk about squandering the potential of these cans, wow...

Worse!  I just found big steel wires in my garage that I am cutting up and make them into replacement cable for HE500's stock cable. 

 

[M-13]

Quote:

Worse!  I just found big steel wires in my garage that I am cutting up and make them into replacement cable for HE500's stock cable. 

Just use coat hangers. There. I just saved you some time.

 

[koiloco]

Quote:

Just use coat hangers. There. I just saved you some time.

Wait! they have metal coat hangers?  All I have at home are plastic and wood ones. 

 

[tuna47]

You need a good amp to power the 500s the e17 does not cut it
Love the lyr with them

 

[koiloco]

Quote:

You need a good amp to power the 500s the e17 does not cut it
Love the lyr with them

While I know the E17 is not optimal to bring out the best in the HE500, I've also found out that it's very listenable on high gain with the HE500.  This will serve me fine for portable.  It's not "garbage" like some people have implied so.  Heck, the HE500 is easy to drive enough that it sounds decent plugged straight into my samsung tablet (my Q701 barely gets enough volume on the contrary).  But well, I might have ****ty ears.  Who knows? but the main point is that I am enjoying the music from these HPs tremendously at the moment.  There's always better amp to be had for more money but I intend to enjoy the journey and verify some of the myths I've read here and on other forums.  Thx for you suggestion.  I am indeed debating between Lyr, audio-gd or Mini-X.

 

[M-13]

The Lyr is a weakling. You need a real amp like the Emotiva to drive your HE-500.

 

[Stalker81598]

Quote:

While I know the E17 is not optimal to bring out the best in the HE500, I've also found out that it's very listenable on high gain with the HE500.  This will serve me fine for portable.  It's not "garbage" like some people have implied so.  Heck, the HE500 is easy to drive enough that it sounds decent plugged straight into my samsung tablet (my Q701 barely gets enough volume on the contrary).  But well, I might have ****ty ears.  Who knows? but the main point is that I am enjoying the music from these HPs tremendously at the moment.  There's always better amp to be had for more money but I intend to enjoy the journey and verify some of the myths I've read here and on other forums.  Thx for you suggestion.  I am indeed debating between Lyr, audio-gd or Mini-X.

 
Lyr is excellent with the HE-500. Coming up from the Magni, the tonality and character of the HE-500 remained much the same but the soundstage imaging and separation were greatly improved. Definitely worth it IMO.
 
Quote:

The Lyr is a weakling. You need a real amp like the Emotiva to drive your HE-500.

 
I'm not sure whether to laugh because I don't know if you are serious or not.

 

[koiloco]

Quote:

 
Lyr is excellent with the HE-500. Coming up from the Magni, the tonality and character of the HE-500 remained much the same but the soundstage imaging and separation were greatly improved. Definitely worth it IMO.
 
 
I'm not sure whether to laugh because I don't know if you are serious or not.

For someone (M-13) who thinks the HE500 silver stock cable is "garbage", he could be serious or just talking out of his behind 

If there's something else besides the Mini-X tmr, he could call the emotiva a POS in a heart beat.

 

[M-13]

The reason the stock cable is garbage is because it's probably the most microphonic cable I've ever come across. Look at how many headphones I've gone through in my profile. Not going to comment about the sound but the microphonics alone dictate you get a different cable IMO. So yeah.. it's garbage. I'm sorry, but even Hifiman's HE-400 Canare cable is leagues better in terms of ergnomics and microphonics.
 
I liked the Lyr actually and I think it does a great job with the LCD-2/Q701/HD650 and others... but for the HE-500, the bass was just too loose/flabby. The Emotiva tightens that up and adds more dynamics. This comparison is with the Lyr running vintage Telefunken 60s tubes which are a $150 upgrade to the stock.
 
Even if there was a better amp. At $189, the Emotiva would be no brainer. Unless someone built a $99 amp that was superior I'm not going to abandon the Emotiva any time soon or call it a POS. Don't hold your breath.
 
BTW I also have the E17, so I know exactly what your hearing out of that HE-500 when I say your squandering it.

 

[hifimanrookie]

The Lyr is a weakling. You need a real amp like the Emotiva to drive your HE-500.

Sorry to mention it..but raw power alone is not the whole picture thatsimportant for the he500....the he500 only needs around 1w at 50 ohm to sound on its best..the lyr is actually not bad pairing with the he500. It sounds rather good actually..There are better choices ofcourse (see my profile ) .its all about what ur willing to spend
Allthough a steal The emotiva is not the holy grail for the he500 also i understand....
As I read the emotiva is not the last word in detail for instance......but i will test that out soon at the next meet in london..and compare him to my wonderful, UNKNOWN and therefor unloved, modded 337...the emotiva better put his best foot forward as he willbe in for a fight..

 

[M-13]

I was half joking. I know it's hard to tell because it's the Internet.

 But yeah the Emotiva puts out 2.5 times the current of the Lyr, so the Lyr is in fact a weakling compared to it (in terms of current for planars)
 
But on a serious note the Emotiva is much better than the Lyr for the HE-500. The bass alone is worth it. The HE-500's bass is quite flabby/loose on the Lyr, and the Emotiva greatly reduces this one flaw. I also find the dynamics to improve across the board, and make the HE-500 sound fast and not dull and more immersive. The HE-500 might sound a bit too calm/boring on the Lyr.
 
And it's less than half the price of the Lyr, so this is why the Emotiva is kinda exciting. I know you love to push your 337 on Head-fi as hard as I'm pushing the Emotiva, so I'm sure you understand. It's too bad both of us don't get paid for free advertising. LOL.