[Voohoo]

Hello all
Is it worth getting HE1000 Stealth? It came down in price quite dramatically (just over £1100 in UK). I own Arya Stealth but keep on wondering if I'm missing anything. Would HE1000 be any improvement in sound? I am quite happy with Arya, but want to waste money on upgraditis...

Check out @MKHP's impressions on the HEK Stealth, Arya Stealth, and Arya Organic. I don't blame you for your upgrade itch since the discounted HEK Stealth price is so enticing.

 

[Lindholdt]

Hello all
Is it worth getting HE1000 Stealth? It came down in price quite dramatically (just over £1100 in UK). I own Arya Stealth but keep on wondering if I'm missing anything. Would HE1000 be any improvement in sound? I am quite happy with Arya, but want to waste money on upgraditis...

Depends on how much you can get for the Arya, IMO. I compared the two when I was shopping for my main headphones, and the Arya is amazing. I did like the HE1000 a bit more, as it just seemed to have more of all the nice qualities the Arya has. The price was almost the same for me, so the choice was not hard. The HE1000 is just a bit better all around, to my ears. Not a lot, which is why I don't think it is worth upgrading, unless you can get a nice price for your current set.

 

[stmayhem]

Depends on how much you can get for the Arya, IMO. I compared the two when I was shopping for my main headphones, and the Arya is amazing. I did like the HE1000 a bit more, as it just seemed to have more of all the nice qualities the Arya has. The price was almost the same for me, so the choice was not hard. The HE1000 is just a bit better all around, to my ears. Not a lot, which is why I don't think it is worth upgrading, unless you can get a nice price for your current set.

yeah.. reading some impressions I can't see the upgrade to be worthy, even though I'd love to get them... there's plenty of used Aryas now on ebay, prices are really low - I guess many people are getting rid of them for Organic or HEKS - so I won't get good price. I guess I'll stick with my Arya Stealth for another year or so... money saved

 

[fedebenji]

Hello! Ive been following this thread for a while. I own the Arya V2 and had the chance to buy/try both the Arya Stealth and the HE1000 stealth (both returned).

My actual chain is Chord Mojo 2 -> Audioquest Tower -> Topping A90 -> balanced litz cable from Custom Cans -> Arya V2

(I also own a Grado RS2e and Grado GS1000i)

So far, the headphones I liked the most are the Arya Stealth, more than the HE1000 stealth.

In the last 2 years (I'm quite a beginner audiophile) I've found that the thing I love the most of this journey is being totally immerse into the music, being able to perceive each sound, voice, instrument in a 3 dimensional space with great layering, air, separation, positioning. I love when I can feel distinctly the finger tips of a piano player on the keyboard, a note, a drum sound full of its skins, reverbs and body. I don't know how to explain it better that this. I love when I feel that I could almost touch the sound and feel it viscerally, see and imagine its position in front of me, in my real life room.

Said so..
I would like to make a step further enhancing this sensation and feelings. It's a drug
I don't know what could be the right choice between going for the Arya Organic rather then the HE1000SE.. OR.. none of the 2 and upgrade my DAC for something like a Qutest.

Thanks for your opinions!

Federico

 

[Denosha]

Aliexpress & Ebay have them listed.

I was hoping to be able to find OEM replacements. I've had bad experiences in the past trying to get earpad replacements for my Beyer T1 (1st gen) and Shure SRH1540. After going thru many different 3rd party pads from amazon, ebay, aliexpress, etc, all of which either didn't even fit or felt/sounded terrible, I still ended up having to get the original pads. But anyway, since i can't seem to find any online, i've ordered one from Aliexpress. Hope it turns out ok. Thanks for the suggestion though.

I replaced the damaged headband strap of my Ananda by contacting Hifiman customer service. First I was referred to the Spanish distributor of their products, Zococity, who offered to do the job, but I had to buy the replacement directly from Hifiman China and, once in my possession, send it together with the headphones to Zococity where they finally did the strap replacement.
This process would have been simpler, faster and cheaper if Hifiman had an official technical service in Europe, but unfortunately this is not the case.

Thanks. It's the same experience here in Singapore. Looks like if the 3rd party headband strap from Aliexpress doesn't pan out, i'll have to try getting the original directly from Hifiman China.

 

[CheekerBreeker]

yeah.. reading some impressions I can't see the upgrade to be worthy, even though I'd love to get them... there's plenty of used Aryas now on ebay, prices are really low - I guess many people are getting rid of them for Organic or HEKS - so I won't get good price. I guess I'll stick with my Arya Stealth for another year or so... money saved

Im jealous. On my local marketplace people want more for them than hifiman/amazon ask :/

 

[Hyperion ATX]

I was hoping to be able to find OEM replacements. I've had bad experiences in the past trying to get earpad replacements for my Beyer T1 (1st gen) and Shure SRH1540. After going thru many different 3rd party pads from amazon, ebay, aliexpress, etc, all of which either didn't even fit or felt/sounded terrible, I still ended up having to get the original pads. But anyway, since i can't seem to find any online, i've ordered one from Aliexpress. Hope it turns out ok. Thanks for the suggestion though.


Thanks. It's the same experience here in Singapore. Looks like if the 3rd party headband strap from Aliexpress doesn't pan out, i'll have to try getting the original directly from Hifiman China.

Have you looked at the zmf pilot pad?

 

[Soonam]

Hey guys. New here. Joined because I'm in desperate need of some advice.

I'm a bit lost. I got the Arya Stealth after returning the LCD-X because I just couldn't wear them for long sessions which is essential to me. The weight was too much.

I see both headphones advantages very clearly. The LCD-X had a TON of more punch (probably because of the very strong clamp force.) However they lacked soundstage a lot. Something the Arya Stealth does better by miles. Resolution-wise they seem pretty similar to me.

The sad thing: I had the Arya stealth for 4 days now and barely had anything close to the "wow"-moments that I had within only 1-2 days with the LCD-X. I think this was mostly because of the punch but also because to me the LCD-X somehow made things sound "bigger". Some songs just sounded massive on them even though there was way worse sound stage than the Aryas have. Not sure how to describe this exactly or what caused this to me. I think this weirdly shouldn't be the case with a headphone that has such little sound stage.

Either way, now I'm torn between keeping the Arya Stealth or actually continuing my search looking for something that has the punch and "big sound" of the LCD-X but weighs less and is more comfortable for long sessions. Does anyone know if there are any headphones l ike that out there? Hell, is there even any other planars in the 1000-1500€/USD range that can compete with the punch of the LCD-X? I feel like I did a mistake by checking out the LCD-X before the Arya Stealth because now I might have heard a level of punch that I will be unable to find in any other planars.

(I 80% listen to drum and bass and all kinds of electronic genres. 20% rock, punk, reggae) You could probably already tell considering how much I value punch. lol )

 

[hanumanbob]

Save up for a used Atrium Closed.

 

[Hyperion ATX]

Some reviewers have said the Organic has more punch but hopefully someone here has experience.

 

[theveterans]

Some reviewers have said the Organic has more punch but hopefully someone here has experience.

That's also my experience with Organic. It will punch more than the HE1000SE and is equivalent to a well driven Susvara in the punch category

 

[hanumanbob]

The organic are much more mid/vocal forward. Some find it harsh in the treble area but to me this just added to separation. Dekoni pads can help with this.

 

[ThEvil0nE]

I just got this Meze Audio 99 Series balanced cable for my Arya Organic. It's very lightweight and reasonably priced. Comparable to the cable for my Moondrop Kato IEMs, maybe even lighter, and you don't have to deal with an adapter. It's been a nice experience so far with this cable because all my other cables are long and braided-sheathed and more noticeably tug on the headphones a bit. In contrast this Meze cable disappears. It can be found on Amazon as well. Unfortunately there's no 3.5mm option.

Love the cable but could use at least an additional foot for desktop use. Either way.. it's tangle free, light and has a nice supple/smooth feel.

 

[Soonam]

That's also my experience with Organic. It will punch more than the HE1000SE and is equivalent to a well driven Susvara in the punch category

Does their punch get close to the lcd-x in any way though? (In case you heard these before.) I have absolutely no clue what the Susvara is like so I have no reference. Unfortunately way out of my budget.

 

[theveterans]

Does their punch get close to the lcd-x in any way though? (In case you heard these before.) I have absolutely no clue what the Susvara is like so I have no reference. Unfortunately way out of my budget.

I haven't heard the LCD-X in a long time so roughly the same I think, but if I'm gonna give you an estimate, it's about 90% of the Focal Clears (Focals are known for their dynamic punch)