[Saoshyant]

I'm far too much a pansy to mod mine... I should really reconsider

 

[rudeboybass]

Dust really is not much of a factor unless you use your cans in a crazy dusty environment lol. Mechanical damage (like something poking the diaphragm) is another story I would say

 

[chrismini]

It's not like removing grills off of loudspeakers. Your ears are inches away and that fabric is acoustically transparent. One thing I''ve never been able to use and that's ear buds and in-ear devices. I was on a commuter train and I counted 23 people mostly with iPods and those wonderful $5 ear buds that come stock. I put on a pair of Sennheiser PX-100's and people actually complained to the point the conductor told me to turn 'em down or off. HE-400's would give people a stroke they're so loud. I imagine any planar or electrostatic would do the same since basically they're dipoles that send sound in both directions equally. Magnaplanar and electrostatic speakers like Martin Logan's and Magnepan's have to have some serious acoustic treatment employed in their sound rooms. ASC Tube Traps and the like which ain't cheap. You can drop 5 large easily. That's why the vast majority of super high-end loudspeakers like Wilson and Rockport are dynamic. Us headphone users avoid that, but it's really almost impossible to re-create a live performance with headphones, but there are advantages. Like cost, space (you need a dedicated sound room. I had a friend who's wife insisted on placing a flower pot on his Phase Tech. speakers.) .
 
Hey has anybody heard the $12,000 Sennheiser Electrostatics that came out years ago. With the built in tube DAC?.

 

[nicholars]

  My point is relevant, given that I was commenting about a very specific thing you mentioned..  You said you need at least 700mW to get your money's worth with the HE-400.  The X3 puts out 270mw at 32ohm, and the HE-400 is more demanding than that.  I know I enjoy the HE-400 given this combo, and I seriously doubt I'm the only one either.  My point was that I disagree with your assessment of needing 700mW minimum.

 
Xonar STX drives them well enough and is about 650mw into the HE400, even my sansa clip+ sounds alright with them, the HE400 were designed to be usable with low power.

 

[BaTou069]

   
Xonar STX drives them well enough and is about 650mw into the HE400, even my sansa clip+ sounds alright with them, the HE400 were designed to be usable with low power.

I  have to disagree:
my LG G2, or my Laptop also can drive the HE400 loud enough, the iBasso DX90 also can. But they don't drive these cans with enough authority. Loudness is not everything. Orthos love power, the more they get the better.

 

[PETEREK]

  I  have to disagree:
my LG G2, or my Laptop also can drive the HE400 loud enough, the iBasso DX90 also can. But they don't drive these cans with enough authority. Loudness is not everything. Orthos love power, the more they get the better.

He only said they were designed to be USABLE with low power, not that they were optimized for use without an amp. Any headphone should sound better with amplification, but it isn't always necessary. 

 

[rudeboybass]

^
Thank you x2 post up
Also LOUD ENOUGH IS A MATTER OF OPINION!
the number one rule of audio,
Crap in crap out

 

[TontonJoK]

My xonar essence st is capable to drive my He 400 with authority but my other amp are doing a better job

 

[nicholars]

  I  have to disagree:
my LG G2, or my Laptop also can drive the HE400 loud enough, the iBasso DX90 also can. But they don't drive these cans with enough authority. Loudness is not everything. Orthos love power, the more they get the better.

 
But LG g2 and laptop are not even as good as a sansa clip+ probably, the HE400 are designed for low power use, look on the hifiman website if you don't believe me, everything you said there are generalisations which do not really apply to the HE400.

 

[nicholars]

My xonar essence st is capable to drive my He 400 with authority but my other amp are doing a better job

 
You are probably right but I doubt it is a massive difference with the HE400 like it would be with some headphones.

 

[TontonJoK]

that's right, before getting a better amp for the Hifiman I was using the amplified ouput of the xonar, and the sound was good enough

In sound it's rare to get massive differences with an amp as long as it is able to handle the phones

 

[rudeboybass]

My fostex t50rp also makes noise when I plug it into an iPod also. But it's less impressive than with an amp much like the he400

 

[PETEREK]

The T50RP really needs amped to get their full potential. And Speaking of T50RP, I just got mine put back together this morning after being disassembled for a couple weeks for a makeover
 

 

 

 

 
Sorry, I love showing off my mods. Oh, and I can use my Hifiman cables with them now too! I guess I'll include that last bit to make it relevant to this thread. Haha

 

[sammy123]

Anyone else find the soundstage to be noticeably smaller on velour pads? Maybe its because mids have a lot more body to them and overall sound is smoother and dare i say darker. Thats weird though, that i find pleather to have brighter sound with a larger soundstage right? I could almost swear that bass is much fuller too, i havent done any excessive A/B testing yet cause im still adjusting to the he-400s sound signature. These are brand new and seen around 20hours of music as of now. Do the highs tame during burn in? These are a bit too sibilant to my taste, less than dt990/250 though.
 
I may need better amp too, broke my o2 and running them out of udac3 now.

 

[Netforce]

Try the jerg pads mod if you are confident enough to do some modding. For me it helped tame the treble and brought out the upper mids. Still have sibilance but it is a lot better than in the past when with plain velours. Otherwise maybe try some eq.