[nc8000]

X2

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Okay, okay. These things are incredible! I just cannot get enough of them!
 
First let me start off by saying the treble is as good as ever right now. The ONLY problem I can detect in the sound, is moments of sibilance, but the treble itself is very nice. If that sibilance ever calms down, the sound of these will be as perfect as I could ever want in a headphone. Let me just say, out of every headphone I have tried to date, this is the only one I've ever had that I found myself listening to my music for hours -- just wanting to hear, "one more track". These are just hypnotic, they just sound so good. They give all my music life and realism that no other headphone has given, and a very nicely proportioned/balanced sound that just makes it sound, "right". Heck, even externally, these are one of the nicest looking headphone I've had. When you pick them up, these just feel like uber quality. I really cannot give enough praise for these now, as they are simply incredible pieces of art. $450? In a pinch! Bests every headphone I've ever tried, by a long margin.
 
But now, I've made a decision. I'm a dedicated orthohead now, and I honestly don't think I'll buy another dynamic driver again. Besides, I'm guessing there are few that can compete with even the HE-4! But now, that gives me only one direction to upgrade, and I am hooked to HiFiMAN's sound. So, when I'm ready, I'm going to go straight up the HiFiMAN line. And, with the introduction of the HE-500, I have something to look forward to in the future...

Very happy to hear that the HE-4 is working out for you.

BTW, FWIR, the HE-6 is more polite than the HE5-LE.... more business, while the HE5-LE is more 'aggressive'. Judging by the HE-4 which is said to sound like the HE-5LE, I assume the HE-6 won't hit as 'hard' as the 4 and 5LE, and focus on refinement. That's what I gathered by the 6moons. I know I certainly wouldn't want it more polite than the HE-4 which is as refined as I'll want it before losing the musicality and attack that I prefer over pure fidelity.

I'm loving the HE-4 so much, that I'm literally done with my headphone purchases. I'm moving on to something else. I've found my perfect duo in the D7000 and HE-4. After I upgrade my DAC to the upcoming Schiit DAC, I believe I'm done as far as main rigs go. I may buy a pair of J$ V3 pads for my D7000 just to see if I'd prefer it, but other than that, I'm 100% satisfied with the D7000, and 99.9% with the HE-4 (my basshead tendencies wishes it had just a little more sub bass, but it's no slouch.... not an issiue just personal preference for fun over balanced). I'll use my D7000 for fun, and HE-4 for critical and balanced listening.

As far as sibilance, I only hear it in poorly mastered music. I've had songs that hit higher on a frequency without sibilance. I find the HE-4 just stellar all-rounders, and what DT880 fans should look into as an upgrade.

 

[blankdisc]

Glad to hear that HE-4 finally got the reputation it deserves. Personally i think that it's the best value in HifiMan's lineup. 

 

[.Sup]

Quote:

Glad to hear that HE-4 finally got the reputation it deserves. Personally i think that it's the best value in HifiMan's lineup. 

that is probably true. Although 602 with re262 at an intro price was phenomenal as well. All they need to improve at hifiman is quality of the production.

 

[blankdisc]

I agree. I really like the HM-602/RE-262 combo. The quality of their HE headphones is certainly better than everything else they make. Haven't heard anyone who had quality issue with HE4/HE6.

 

[Katun]

Well, I forgot to mention, that the sibilance doesn't occur to often, and when it does, I almost cannot classify as that. It's just barely on the borderline of sibilance on certain songs. Some songs are just too dang bright! With those, that's where I can find sibilance. But in most scenarios, these keep it under control. I'm pretty sure it irritated me a lot more out of the box, and it seems now it has improved greatly. I'll still just have to give my EF5 and HE-4 more time. I probably need to give my P650 some time as well, maybe the DAC inside will improve; as many say DAC's need time before sounding their best.
 
Overall, I think I'm just finding to nit-pick about. In the "sibilance" group of headphones, this probably has the lowest, but it still has a tad. Usually I'm fine with it though, but improvement is welcome!

 

[gabjuasfijwee]

I hate you guys. This thread pretty much convinced me to buy the HE4/EF5 combo...though I'm going to sleep on it at least one more night.

 

[Farnsworth]

Quote:

I hate you guys. This thread pretty much convinced me to buy the HE4/EF5 combo...though I'm going to sleep on it at least one more night.

 
Dont sleep on it too much, you may convince yourself to go a step further and get the HE-6. 

 
If you do decide to get them, im sure your going to love them.
 
 

 

[Happy Camper]

The HE-500 will be better suited for existing headphone amps. You lose nothing in sound and you may even prefer the 500s over the 6s. The HE-6 is a beast to amp.

 

[gabjuasfijwee]

Quote:

 
Dont sleep on it too much, you may convince yourself to go a step further and get the HE-6. 

 
If you do decide to get them, im sure your going to love them.
 
out of my price range. it would also be unwise for me to jump up the line that quickly i think

 

 

[blankdisc]

I agree with Happy Camper. Unless you really have a limited budget, HE-500 is a much better option, and will be on sale either by the end of this week or early next week.
 
Yes, you will pay twice for the HE-500 than HE-4, but saves you a lot of trouble since you will want to upgrade after hear what HE-4 is capable of.
 
i am getting my HE-500 soon, so will let everyone how it goes. This is going to be a great year for head-fiers.

 

[leesure]

FWIW, I have both the HE-4 and the HE-500 in my possession right now...and amps to drive them well. 
 
I will tell you that I reach for the HE-4's before I reach for the HE-500's.  The HE-4's when powered by the Schiit Lyr are tremendous.  The slighty forward mids and thicker treble of the Lyr play well to the recessed mids and slight brightness of the HE-4's and the bass slam is palpable.
 
For $900 I still reach for the LCD-2's, which are still slightly more efficient than the HE-500's. 
 
FWIW, you can get the HE-4's AND a Lyr for the exact same $900 as you can the HE-500's alone.  Just sayin'

 

[WNBC]

Hey leesure, do you think the LCD-2 blow the HE-4 out of the water or not a major leap?  Those of us with orthos already such as the HE-4 thinking of upgrading down the road may be considering the LCD-2 or possibly keeping the HE-4 and get a good dynamic can to complement the orthos.  Haven't heard the LCD-2 yet so looking for opinion from a fellow HE-4 + Lyr owner.
 
Quote:

FWIW, I have both the HE-4 and the HE-500 in my possession right now...and amps to drive them well. 
 
I will tell you that I reach for the HE-4's before I reach for the HE-500's.  The HE-4's when powered by the Schiit Lyr are tremendous.  The slighty forward mids and thicker treble of the Lyr play well to the recessed mids and slight brightness of the HE-4's and the bass slam is palpable.
 
For $900 I still reach for the LCD-2's, which are still slightly more efficient than the HE-500's. 
 
FWIW, you can get the HE-4's AND a Lyr for the exact same $900 as you can the HE-500's alone.  Just sayin'

 

 

[leesure]

They are different but better, IMO.  The HE-4's are brighter and less lush in the midrange.  The LCD-2's are sooooo right in almost every way...the timbre, tonality, extension are all great.  the one area the HE-4 bests them is in soundstage.
 
That said, I just posted in the Lyr thread that I prefer the synnergy of the Lyr/HE-4 to that with the LCD-2's...with the caveat that it's only with the stock tubes that I've tried.  The LCD-2's work better with the Woo 6SE and the Red Wine Audio Isadellina HPA.  I've been told that tube rolling can fix this tho.
 
The LCD-2's are still the best headphone I've heard, but the Lyr/HE-4 combo is excellent. If I was just starting out and had only $900 to spend, the choice of the LCD-2's off my iPod vs HE-4's/Lyr, it would be the latter.  If I had $2000, it'd be the LCD-2's and Woo 6SE.

 

[gabjuasfijwee]

i cannot wait for my HE4s (and EF5) to come in. it's killing me to wait around