[Makiah S]

I genuienly think people need to at least try and find a pioneer sx1010, that's been gone through, and try it with an he4. I rarely get time to listen to my home setup, and tonight I finally got ample time to go back and fourth between, ifi bl on it's own, then into the sx1010. It's such a night and day difference and a very noticeable "perfect match" over anything else I've heard. Granted, I havnt heard any $1000+ amps. The soundstage is the largest I've ever heard it, and that really probably has a bit to do with the spacious Dac of the ifi. Even when I just used my fiio x3i as dav on my first sx1010 that I had, I had never heard such a perfect combo that suited my tastes to a T. It really is a warm, tubeish sound that works incredibly well with the IFi bl's dac and the he4. It tames the highs so well, it gives so much body and depth to the low end. If it didn't weigh so much I would be willing to send it on tour since I rarely get to use it, but, that ain't gonna happen with this heavy beast. I wonder what the sx1080,1250, 1980 are like with the he4, because from what I've read, they don't sound like the 1010. It's a special piece for sure and I'm lucky I found a 2md one in good enough shape, and was able to rehab what wasn't right for very cheap. I sometimes think about selling it because it sits so often unused, but, all I gotta do is plug in the he4 or speakers and I get hooked again thankfully. I would like to hear the Ican pro with the he4 though, it looks interesting for sure. The black label is good for on the go, but it simply is far outclassed by the sx1010. But for on the go, it's nice having the ifi because it powers the he4 well enough, gets you close and is still fun to listen to. Anyway, just trying to keep the thread alive and kicking. Don't know what I'll ever do if my he4 dies.

ugh like wise... maybe we should start exploring what headphones remind us most of the HE 4...

 

[hemipowered007]

ugh like wise... maybe we should start exploring what headphones remind us most of the HE 4...

I can only hope hifiman could repair them, even at a hefty price, if they fail.

 

[Makiah S]

I can only hope hifiman could repair them, even at a hefty price, if they fail.

I'm skeptical, my iBasso PB2 failed and they more or less offered me a "trade in credit" towards another purchase... which I don't want. I just want my PB2, but I'd imagine given how often Hifiman changes their offerings they may not keep the tooling around to repair older stuff... but here's to hoping!!

 

[hemipowered007]

All I can do is hope and baby them. I really don't know if any hps above it are going to hit the mark for me like them. Im sure the 800s is a better go in many aspects, but the he4 is a great blend for rock/metal and really everything.

 

[Makiah S]

All I can do is hope and baby them. I really don't know if any hps above it are going to hit the mark for me like them. Im sure the 800s is a better go in many aspects, but the he4 is a great blend for rock/metal and really everything.

I'm with you there too, I've heard an HD 800 and it's nice for a lot of genres, but it still not perfect... I guess neither is the HE 4. Some say though the Susvara has a similar frequency response like the HE 4, I wonder how close it or the Sundara would come to the HE 4

 

[hemipowered007]

I'm with you there too, I've heard an HD 800 and it's nice for a lot of genres, but it still not perfect... I guess neither is the HE 4. Some say though the Susvara has a similar frequency response like the HE 4, I wonder how close it or the Sundara would come to the HE 4

Too much money for me, not worth it

 

[pbui44]

The concerns of whether or not Hifiman will offer to replace your HE-4 with another HE-4 or another model does not limit itself to this thread, but many other threads as well. AFAIK, once the model has been discontinued, Hifiman will use up all of the drivers/parts it has for that particular model, until there are no more parts left, then offer to take your discontinued unit and make a discount for a unit that is available at that time. I remember reading an older review here, where someone had a Sennheiser HD580 and have it fail, so he sent it back to Sennheiser and it was discontinued for the HD600/HD650 models at that time, so they offered him a discount on a HD600, which he took. I say AFAIK, because Hifiman now goes through different models and styles, very much like how Sennheiser goes through different models and styles, and still work on prototypes that do not sound quite as good as its competition, like the Shangri-la.

With this said, like I do with my Sennheiser HD250 Linear, I decided to box up my HE-4 and use my ENIGMAcoustics Dharma D1000 as part of my primary home-theater setup. The D1000 is clearer and more resolving than the HE-4, but the bass is not better and needs less power to sound its best, as the dynamic-electret setup starts to sound uneven with more power. At one point, I wondered about selling HD250 Linear, but heard it again and could not part with it. I definitely felt this with the HE-4 and glad Dr. Fang Bian was at least some-what generous with the accessories for a product lineup that was for many the best-bang-for-buck lineup against other companies.

 

[Makiah S]

Meh, the bass is half the fun of the HE 4, having heard the Utopia, I can say it did EVERYTHING but bass better than the HE 4, I still preferred the low end response of the HE 4 over the Utopia, suffice to say I'm just hoping mine continues to work! Though I did like the Low end on the HD 800 better than that of the Utopia, if were speaking of what to upgrade/replace an HE 4 with

 

[pbui44]

Have you heard the Focal Clear, yet? I know the Utopia is starting to be the GOAT TOTL for many, but think about the price AND replacement part costs. I guess if you have $2k and headphones to donate, you can go to audioadvice.com and see if they are still offering that deal for the Utopia...or I saw their open-box Hifiman Edition X (probably 1st gen) for $805. Whatever works for you.

 

[Makiah S]

Ehh I hated the Elear when I compared it to my HE 4, the Clear might be a nice side grade... I like others need to hear it first. Apparently the Clear is bassier than the Utopia but not as forward as the Elear

 

[Makiah S]

@cskippy

When you get the Auteur in I'm curious to see how it compares to an HE 4/6 if you still have one! It's looking like it might be my next upgrade... that or the SDR modded HD 800... but I'm a sucker for wood cups <.< and depending on how resolving it is compared to the HD 800 It might finally dethrone my HE 4!

 

[cskippy]

I'll definitely post my thoughts in the Auteur thread. I'm a frequency response first kind of guy so HD800 is excellent but I don't reach for it anymore now that I have a LFF modded HE-6.

 

[Makiah S]

Many of us a

I'll definitely post my thoughts in the Auteur thread. I'm a frequency response first kind of guy so HD800 is excellent but I don't reach for it anymore now that I have a LFF modded HE-6.

Good, I'm happy to hear you still have an HE 6, frankly I don't want to chase after a modded 4 screw HE 6... I also don't have the amp requirements for it atm either, at the least a HD 800 is easy enough to find, some with mods

either way sounds like the Auteur might be the way to go, the response looks amazing.

 

[Makiah S]

Man it's crazy what can change in a week huh!

I officially bite the bullet and got an HD 800, it would seem that I recently paid off all my previous purchases with Sweetwater... and in response to that they upped my Limit! So given the lucrative financing option I went ahead and just got it with a whopping $100 off MSRP lol. Not sure if I want to mod it yet though. I'm thinking to upgrade the cable first, but just in case I've got a pair of SDR inserts on stand by

... I'm saddened to say as much as I LOVE my HE 4 the 2012 LCD 2.2c I got just consistently out resolves it... there is so much more micro detail/dynamics with the LCD 2.2 without too much loss in tactility. While the HE 4 is still faster, more tactile, more exciting and much more AGGRESSIVE sounding, it doesn't resolve on quite the same level... so here's to chasing the HD 800 and trying to perfect it as an open back replacement for the HE 4. I'm hoping it'll have the same EXCITEMENT and energy I've come to love about my HE 4, while resolving on the level that I've become accustom to from the LCD 2.2 and Eikon

That said, the HE 4 will stay with me! As it's my little piece of Mid Fi, but I think it's finally time to move onto bigger and better things...

 

[eschaaf]

Just posted in the classifieds, but I'm looking to purchase the HE-4 if anyone is willing to sell. PM me with a price... Located in the US