[Za Warudo]

  I Had the headphones for almost 3 weeks before purchasing the cable. The headphones were pretty much broken in using the stock cable. Look I'm not saying the cable upgrade made these headphone sound like the HE-500s or  Audez. What I a saying is for me they're were worth the money. High-end cable issues are what make non-audiophiles roll their eyes and make out out the be obsessive money wasting fools. Even today they remain controversial. Most cable manufactures offer money back guarantees so there's really not risk in auditioning the products. Do you know Transparent Audio make speaker cables that cost $40,000? That's 40 large! When these cables are ordered the whole plant shuts down and it can still take up to a week to finish the order. Wilson Audio and Rockport Technologies make speakers that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and both companies recommend Transparent cables. 
 
My point is cables are big time **** and improve the sound of most components. Of course there are rip-offs out there as well.

But with a little bit more money than what you spent on the HE-400 and cable, you could have gotten a HE-500 which would have been a much bigger improvement in sound than even the best cables.  

 

[chrismini]

That though crossed my mind, but I have to admit my wife let me use her card and I have to grovel to let me get the $299 HE-400s. Plus if I got the HE-500's and, of course, I'd need to upgrade the cable. And the cables I bought for the HE-400s would probably not be up to stuff for the 500's. I've done some research on recommended cables for the HE-500's and the prices vary from $250 to $300. So were talking $600 for the phones and say $270 for the cable. So were talking about $850. Look my goal is to save up enough to get a pair of HE-6s or Audeze LCD-X. And if I do this I'll have to upgrade my amplification and DAC. So were talking a lot of $$$. About $2500 to $3000. Of course by the time I save that much money, new models will have been introduced...

 

[Nimzerz]

Man, might as well get some more crack by bottlehead right?!

 

[chrismini]

Sorry, but being new to this forum, I have no idea what you're talking about...

 

[Nimzerz]

Smh, all this cable talk needs some more bottlehead crack, that's all I'm saying.

 

[Za Warudo]

  That though crossed my mind, but I have to admit my wife let me use her card and I have to grovel to let me get the $299 HE-400s. Plus if I got the HE-500's and, of course, I'd need to upgrade the cable. And the cables I bought for the HE-400s would probably not be up to stuff for the 500's. I've done some research on recommended cables for the HE-500's and the prices vary from $250 to $300. So were talking $600 for the phones and say $270 for the cable. So were talking about $850. Look my goal is to save up enough to get a pair of HE-6s or Audeze LCD-X. And if I do this I'll have to upgrade my amplification and DAC. So were talking a lot of $$$. About $2500 to $3000. Of course by the time I save that much money, new models will have been introduced...

LOL 2500-3000 for HE-6?  You can get a 2nd hand HE-6 for about $1K, then you can just get an Emotiva Mini-X ($200) and a adapter cable (one instance where an aftermarket cable is worth it) which shouldn't cost more than $200.  Even with a decent DAC that wouldn't push you over $2k.

 

[MattTCG]

I have not heard much difference with several cable changes.

 

[chrismini]

And "bottlehead crack" would be?

 

[Netforce]

http://bottlehead.com/?product=crack-otl-headphone-amplifier-kit
A lovely tube amp.

 

[chrismini]

Really? A $200 amp would not only adequately drive a pair of headphones with a reputation of being notoriously hard to drive and sound good? If that's the case, why doesn't everyone have one? I've never heard of it. I have to admit I'm getting weary of this thread.

 

[Netforce]

Believe Nimzerz was referring to the he-400 rather than the he-6 if that is what I think you're talking about. Think he is suggesting instead of getting a new aftermarket cable for the he-400 then one could spend a bit more to go and get the bottlehead crack. And yeah it probably won't drive the he-6 though I haven't looked at its specs but it will drive the other hifiman cans fine.

 

[manbear]

  Are you saying the audiophiles who have been purchasing expensive high-end cables for years are all being bamboozed and ripped off? Look man, I going with what my ears tell me. Of course there are a lot of solder joints. It comes down to the quality of the solder and the skill of the technician. As far as boards are concerned it comes down to the materials and the quality of the components. Pass Audio Labs reject the vast amount of output transistors. Their circuit boards have to the best quality available. This process is very painstaking and expensive which I why their amps cost thousands of dollars. And that's why they sound so incredible. Boulder amps cost over $100,000 and the build and sound quality are nothing short of amazing. If you have a high-end audio shop, put on some nice clothes and audition some of these products.

I'm sure that companies like Pass Labs do use excellent components throughout. But a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. In a super high end system using Pass Labs, Wilson Audio, DCS DAC, perhaps there are no weak links and expensive cables are justified. Or perhaps someone who can spend all that money on components has money coming out the ears and buys expensive cables simply because he or she might as well go all in.

That's completely different from Head-Fi. We aren't running $40K amps with $100K speakers and gold-plated binding posts that cost $3K each. I just don't see the point of connecting a $100+ piece of wire to a $3 SMC connector. But that's just me. I'm not denying what you hear (though I do actually think a great many audiophiles have been ripped off over the years). If the cables are worth it to you, then enjoy and don't listen to naysayers like me. 

If I'm looking to subjectively improve my listening experience, however, I'd rather just drink a beer. Improves the sound way more than cables, IMO 

 

 

[chrismini]

BTW I've been using HeadRoom's Micro Amp and it's crossfeed circuit I've found to be invaluable for the music I listen to which is mostly rock which has been heavily panned during the engineering and production phases. For instance I'm listening to Pink Floyd's Shine on You Crazy Diamond. When I shut off the crossfeed there is a huge difference in the overall presentation of the music. It staggers me why almost every headphone amp manufacture ignores this issue. Meier Audio in Germany is the only other company that includes this feature in it's amp and DAC's. And I believe Grace does this on some of it's units that are very pricey.

 

[chrismini]

Everything sounds better after a few beers!

 

[Nimzerz]

Rofl no body understood my pun I guess.