I'm not discerning enough to tell lower mids and upper mids...to me it's just mids. Coming from Grados I can definitely tell that the mids of the HE-400 are recessed but the highs are a bit forward. They do get a little bright at times but majority of the time they are good. I just wish they had mids that where more in line with them. The lack of mids to me leaves a pretty big hole in the listening experience. But so does recessed highs like the X2 has. So it comes down to which I can live with and enjoy with the most music, lack of highs or lack of mids. It's a tough call. Of course I could get rid of both and start all over and try something totally different. Who knows what I'll do. I still have sometime with the HE-400's before I need to decide or it's too late to send them back. But I'm sure I wouldn't have too much trouble selling them here for very close to what I paid either.
Agh, I made the mistake of putting my 400s back on. I really do love the bass on these, especially for electronic music, but the vocals (especially females) leave something to be desired. My orchestrated tracks sound good, but parts feel like they are missing ie this. In the back of my head is a voice that is like "what does it sound like on the X2"
But....as much as it seems that the X2 is a much better headphone....it really isn't. It's so close that it's very difficult to decide. Honestly, it's going to come down to your preferred sound signature. Mids vs. Treble and moderate bass vs. lots of bass (not quite bass-head bass though). So unless the velour pads really bring up the mids, this is where is stands for me.
Swapping between the pleather and velour pads, I can attest to them making a good difference to the mids. Someone sent me an EQ that was earlier in this thread that also helped fix this mids a bit. Also I should mention I'm currently not running an amp with them.
Decided to play with my little JDS Labs cMoy amp. HE-400 and the cMoy don't like each other. Seems to be plenty of power there but just doesn't sound good. On the otherhand...the X2 and cMoy play VERY well together. I'm going to spend the rest of the night with this combo....400/X2 and the cMoy. Tomorrow I'll hook up the LD1+ and run both headphones with it and see what happens. I did use it very briefly with the HE-400 and it seemed to be a really good pairing, at least for the one song I listened to.
A Tribe Called Quest--Jazz (We've Got) - Tie. Don't like the song. Not sure if it's the track or the headphones but didn't seem that either did well with it. If it's supposed to sound the way it did...then both headphones did equally well.
Bobina ft. Ana Criado--For Who I Am (Extended Mix) - X2. Dang there's a bunch of versions of this song...lol...but the X2's just have the bass that I feel like this song and songs like it need. Great impact and gets pretty low but stays tight. The bass with the HE-400's got really sloppy. This is through the cMoy. Female vocals really did much better too. Smooth and full without getting harsh at all. The HE-400 wanted to get a little bright at higher listening volumes and sounded a bit thin. It could be my equipment, but with the HE-400's I feel like I need to get them fairly loud for one, to get the details and good bass out of them and two, to make sure outside noise is blocked out since they are SO open. This time at night not such an issue since the family is in bed but I still feel like I need them loud for better sound. The X2's seem to be a bit better at lower volumes but who am I kidding....I still crank them up.
Tiesto--Adagio for Strings - Need to listen to this one once more. I'll come back and edit when I'm done.
I am enjoying it but the equipment is a large part of that. To me, $250-300 is a lot of money to spend on a pair of headphones. I am making sure I get the ones that will give me the best sound across the range of music that I listen to. I know that one pair of headphones won't do every genre perfect or even every song within a genre or even all songs by a single artist. I just want to make sure it's hitting most of it the right way though. So yeah, sometimes you have to get a little obsessive about the gear until you find the right components, then you can really sit back and relax knowing that you spent your money the best way you could...until the bug bites again and it's time to search for something new. I guess it's frustrating but at the same time part of the fun of this hobby. Thankfully I can usually go a couple years between headphones. So people are constantly buying and trying and that would drive me nuts not to mention make me poor. But those folks can afford it and it's what they like doing so more power to them.
I guess it's frustrating but at the same time part of the fun of this hobby. Thankfully I can usually go a couple years between headphones. So people are constantly buying and trying and that would drive me nuts not to mention make me poor. But those folks can afford it and it's what they like doing so more power to them.
Same. I've had my M50s for the bast 4 years now. Those things are like tanks, but now I want something different. I think these HE-400s (with amping) could be that for the next few years.
I also don't understand how some people can just buy so many headphones, amps, and such. Would be a huge drain on funds, plus diminishing returns after a while.
Yeah, I've been using the same amps for a while. My LD1+ I had for about 3 years maybe 4 before I fired it. I got another one used to replace it since it's such a great little amp. My cMoy I've had several years. My DAC is 5 years old now I guess. I'd like something new but I can't justify it really when these do everything I need. I would like to get a power solid state amp at some point but I have no need for one right now. Headphones are a little different. I don't know why...I guess boredom maybe. Just sometimes I get an itch. I disappear from this site for a long time...then one day something brings me back. I read a few threads, see some comments, curiosity gets peaked and next thing I know, I'm searching for a new headphone and the best deal on that headphone...lol Luckily I'm able to stay away from here for long enough periods of time that my bank account doesn't empty (which wouldn't take much to do) and my wife doesn't leave me.
ArmAndHammer, let me say thanks for your help! I will still await your verdict on Adagio for Strings, but as it stands I may still be leaning toward the HE-400 because
1. I seem to be able to find it for a better price
2. I really just want to try a pair of planar magnetics, I've heard the bass if very good on this type of headphone
But the X2s also have their merits:
1. Cabling is so much better
2. Sounds a lot more comfortable (granted any discomfort with the HE-400s could be remedied with new pads/headband)
They both seem like very good pairs, it will still take me some time to decide.
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