[Lappy27]

Disclaimer: Sorry for my bad english but I'm a french canadian from Montreal.
 
My father and me, bought two pairs of HE-300 at the end of the year at a hifi store in downtown Montreal (the only reseller of Hifiman products in town apparently) after hearing a demo pair of HE-300 with the black Canare cable (the thick one). I found them a bit warm but really liked the mids and the non fatiguing treble (I hate harsh sound) and the price was so good for two pairs (especially compared with the Sennheiser HD-650 at twice the price of the HE-300).
 
They were BO so we had to wait a couple of days to receive them.When we finaly got the call to pick up the phones, the two pairs, surprizingly, came in the travel bag that HIFIMan sells $29 on their site to carry the phones, instead of the woody square box. Much more practical IMHO. But the biggest surprise, was when we unzipped the bag. Both headphones were accompagnated by the silver cable (the same that came with the HE-500). At first, we were a bit deceived because we found the black Canare cable of the demo, really well built and impressive. But as soon as I arrived at home, I plugged the headphones in my new Little Dot Dac 2 and sat down to enjoys some WAV tracks from my computer and with coax from my Pioneer BD player. The sound was fairly different from what I heard in the store with the demo HE-300 with Canare cable.
 
Much, much clearer, open, detailled with less but more articulate bass than the demo HE-300 with Canare cable and close to the sound of the Sennheiser HD-650 I tried the same day I first demoed the HE-300. I thought this silver cable was the new cable that Hifiman provided with the rev.2 until I saw some pictures yesterday of the new slimmer Canare cable. Despite the fact I really enjoyed the sound of my phones, I was curious to hear how my HE-300 will sound with the slimmer Canare so I got back to the store today to borrow the Canare cable (the new version) of their HE-300 demo.
 
OMG! It took me only a couple of different songs on different genre and less than one hour to decisevely and irremediably conclude that my dad and me were really, really lucky that we got the silver cable with our HE-300. I know that sound preferences are subjectives but to my ears, the cable are in a very different league. The sound with the silver is simply better at all frequencies and certainly have a much better extension and definition in the higher frequencies and with a lot more details to pick up. The sound of the black Canare L-4E5AT is simply more muffled, distant and compressed in comparaison. It's the only way I can descibe it. I'm not saying it's a bad sounding cable but the comparaison with the silver is simply that much revealing. I know that some folks don't like silver for his brightness and thinner sound but I am really sensible to harshness in sound and the silver cable with my HE-300 was never sibiliant nor fatiguing. Just amazingly clear and clean with good body. Probably because the match of silver with a known warm headphone is simply natural. I don't know why we were that lucky but I will take it!
 
So in conclusion, if some of you are considering a cable upgrade, the silver cable is in my opinion, a really good choice.
 
Regards.
 
Steve 

 

[manveru]

^This has been confusing me a little bit...
 
Do rev2 HE-300s now come stock with the silver cable?
 
I think one or two other people also mentioned having a silver cable in the last few pages. Recently I emailed Head-Direct explaining that I had rev1s, and asked if they would send me the rev2 cable. I paid them some money for shipping and a few days later an envelope arrived. I opened it up and was surprised to find the silver cable inside. Not that I'm complaining. I can't say I noticed as huge a difference as Lappy27 seems to have, but I agree that it sounds darn good. It's a quite a lot thinner than I would have expected it to be and is pretty microphonic, but it's not a problem for kicking back in the listening chair and enjoying some music. Not to mention it looks totally out of this world compared to a boring black cable. 

 

[FlySweep]

HE-300 rev. 1 came with a thick (unwieldy), black Canare cable.. HE-300 rev. 2 came with a thinner (more flexible), black Canare cable.  The silver cables described in the two posts above are most likely the silver cables that come with the more recent versions of the HE-500.

 

[manveru]

That's what I thought, that the silver cable came with the HE-500. I originally got the Canare cable. I suppose my request for an HE-300 rev2 cable and subsequent receipt of the silver could have been a fluke, but the fact that someone else received it stock with their HE-300 lends to the possibility of more. Perhaps they just started throwing in whatever cable they had on hand, haha.

 

[Cosmic Fool]

Quote:

Unless you do DIY, the cheapest cable you could get (IIRC) is the Q-Audio cable, worth $200.

Otherwise, you could just cut the cable to your desired length and reterminate it. That would be better, IMO, since the stock 3.5mm plug loses the gold plating very quickly. That's what happened to mine.


 

$200 for a cable for a headphone that hardly costs more than that, that is a bit too much for me. Unfortunately I have two left hands, so DIY is not an option either.
 
The silver stock cable that you guys talk about, is that a braided cable? Mine came with a braided cable.
 
 

 

[manveru]

Yeah, the silver cable is braided.

 

[Voohoo]

I've been looking around Head-Direct for this silver cable. But I can only find the OCC copper cable. I'm guessing they don't sell the silver cable for individual sale? Or am I blind?

 

[JFan]

So, does the silver cable come with every pair now?

 

[Lappy27]

Yes my cable is braided too.
 
Now, I don't think HE-300 came automatically with the silver cable because the store where I bought my HE-300 received others pairs after I bought mine and they came with the black Canare cable. At the time I was waiting for my HE-300, they were probably out of stock of black Canare and simply thrown the silver instead. Who knows? It was just after christmas. Maybe the distributor felt generous. Anyway, I want to thanks the HIFIman distributor for this unexpected gift.  

 

[manveru]

 

I've been looking around Head-Direct for this silver cable. But I can only find the OCC copper cable. I'm guessing they don't sell the silver cable for individual sale? Or am I blind?

Just shoot them an email. I'm sure they'll send you one.
 
 
 
Quote:

Yes my cable is braided too.
 
Now, I don't think HE-300 came automatically with the silver cable because the store where I bought my HE-300 received others pairs after I bought mine and they came with the black Canare cable. At the time I was waiting for my HE-300, they were probably out of stock of black Canare and simply thrown the silver instead. Who knows? It was just after christmas. Maybe the distributor felt generous. Anyway, I want to thanks the HIFIman distributor for this unexpected gift.  

I guess this was just an anomaly in both our cases then, albeit a happy one. 

 

[WoahReQQuiem]

My L-4E5AT's 3.5mm plug is losing it's gold plating.. and now I'm getting poor signal sometimes (losing sound on one channel, or that + hiss)..

 

[Cosmic Fool]

How does the HE-300 Rev 2 respond to amping with a full-size amp? I am using it with a Meier Corda 3Move portable amp and I am under the impression that this headphone is already well amped. Is it worth investing in a a full-size rig (amp/dac) if I would only use it with this Hifiman?

 

[FlySweep]

I've had the HE-300 rev. 2 now for a good month+ now.  they're plenty burned in.. what's changed since ootb?  In general.. they smoothed out, tightened up, sound more dynamic, and resolve better.  The graininess I heard ootb is now gone and they're surprisingly clear & detailed.  Also gone is the (loose) bass response that I mentioned could stand to dig deeper (it extends quite impressively now).. mids are more up front yet on the balanced side more than outright mid forward/aggressive/Grado-y.  The splashy treble is much more articulate, rounded, and clear.  The soundstage, while not extremely wide, is proportioned very well & imaging above average.  Instrument separation is mush better than it was ootb, too.
 
Simply put.. I love how they sound.
 
Based on pure listening pleasure, I'd take these over an HD650, 10 times out of 10.  They're just flat out fun while being quite versatile too.  Despite being quite efficient, they like being amped.  Running them through my TubeDAC-11.. they're incredibly musical & immersive.. soundstage has fantastic depth and everything sounds much better refined, dynamic, and clear vs unamped (from my iPhone).
 
Listen to rock, jazz, fusion, hip hop, electronica, DnB, pop, trance, etc. w/ these & you'll have a tough time taking them off.. it's a real treat to listen to almost anything with these (as long as accuracy isn't a paramount concern).  It all sounds excellent.. even classical is highly enjoyable.
 
I can understand why many well-respected members here got behind these & came away impressed.  At $250, I feel they're a phenomenal value.  I'd go as far to say these are my favorite(full sized) dynamic driver headphones.
 
I face a slight dilemma though..  on a whim, I recently ordered the HE-500 so in the interest of keeping the phone collection tidy, I might have to (regrettably) put these up for sale.  I've heard the HE-300 shares a certain (general) sound characteristic with the HE-500 (with the 500 being more refined) so it'll be interesting to A/B them.  But make no mistake, the HE-300 is a truly fantastic phones I have practically no issues with.. hats off to Fang & co for putting out a high class phone at a remarkably value minded price. 

 

[manveru]

Glad to hear you are enjoying them FlySweep. I'm enjoying my pair as well. 

 I'd love to hear comparisons with the HE-500 when you get them. I'm quite satisfied with the 300s for the time being, but I've been itching to hear the 500 when the upgraditis starts kicking in harder and I have the money.

 

[ChaiBear]

Hi everyone,
 
I am considering the HE -300 vs. HD 650 as my first pair of audiophile headphones. The price difference (which is considerable) has me leaning towards the HE-300.
 
A few questions:
 
- Does anyone know if Amazon carries Rev. 2 or Rev. 1?
- Will it connect to an O2 amp directly (without adapter)? Or does it come with any adapters?
- Does it still come with the nice box? : )
 
My setup will be:  PC-> HRT MSII -> O2 -> HE-300 or HD 650
 
Thanks!