[FlySweep]

Another fantastic album that the HE-400 just eats up:  Larry Carlton's "Fire Wire."
 
Not sure if it's audiophile-grade but the mastering & mixing sounds very good to my ears.  I'm giving the G109 a rest and listening to this album with the ODAC/OBJ2,. simply awesome & wholly engaging.  The HE-400 knows how to deliver this brand of soulful, instrumental blues-rock.

 

[DangerToast]

Hey guys,

Had a quick question regarding the treble spike with the HE-400's. Does it 'tame' after the 150 hour burn in mark that hifiman claims you should do in the manual? Most songs sound brilliant but I'm not sure if I can live with this spike. It feels like its piercing my brain in some songs. If it doesn't subdue, can anyone show me how to control it via EQ?

Also, my Schiit stack should be arriving early next week so that potentially could subdue it? If not, do you guys recommend going the route of tubes? 

Sorry I am a complete noob in this area. Thanks for bearing with me.

Happy listenings! 

Hey! I had the same problem. Constant burn in for about a week and the velour pads fixed it. Hope it does for you as well!

 

[TMRaven]

HE-400 are about 6db above neutral at around 16khz and 3db above neutral at 8khz.  If you can EQ down that specific area in that manner, you should get rid of some of the harshness.

 

[TwinQY]

^^ Do the newer models come with a manual now? And a burn in disclaimer? First VSonic, now HiFiMAN. Weird.

Never heard changes on my pair. Which is great, as it means they stayed consistently awesome.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

That's because the burn in fairies only use their magic for true believers.

 

[ozarkcdn]

Hey guys - asked a few pages back but senny talk bumped it... is there a good method for bending the headband?

 

[TwinQY]

Maybe if I believe hard enough, and run them in hard enough, the audio gods will transmogrify them into HE6s. Or the drivers would blow, whichever comes first.

 

[TwinQY]

I used a vice on the headband the first night. No problems since. Oc, don't need to go overboard like me, just just use a stack of books. HiFiMAN also has a diagram for bending them by hand

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I bend them by hand, like I do with all my headphones that arent plastic.

 

[jiggahwhat]

This treble spike is making me worried. A lot of people complain about it. The whole reason why I sold my D2000s is because they were bright and fatiguing and I sure as hell don't want another headphone with bright highs. 

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Don't get the HE400 then, as the highs are bright, and it's their main shortcoming. Of course you can try all those mods, pad swapping being mentioned and see if that works out.

 

[jiggahwhat]

Haha, so that would put me back at square one. There aren't many choices, and no choice is perfect. It's either the HD 650 (which is not possible because to make it sound good you have to spend double the price on an amp), the Mad Dogs (which I hear are a clear step down from the HE-400) or the HE-400 (which is bright). It might have to be the Mad Dogs but I kind of wanted something that was a definitive upgrade from the D2000 and I'm not sure the Mad Dogs fits that bill

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I would tell you to try the K702 65th Anniversary, which to me is a step up from the HE400. Warm, mids are forward, and treble is smooth yet more energetic than the HD650. The bass is actually quite full compared to the non-Anniversaries. The only thing the HE400 does better is bass presence.

It isnt as hard to drive as the HD650 either, though they do scale up more than the HE400.

 

[YGuyG]

Just get the HE-400 and get some J$ Beyer pads, tames the brightness a little bit, bass is improved, lower and more volume to it. If you are very sensitive to it though I'm going to have to recommend you stay away, or try it and buy it. I really love these cans, resale is pretty high as well. You won't be out much for renting them, and if you like them, keep em

 

[justin w.]

Quote:

^^ Do the newer models come with a manual now? And a burn in disclaimer? First VSonic, now HiFiMAN. Weird.

Never heard changes on my pair. Which is great, as it means they stayed consistently awesome.

yes, all of the HiFiMAN come with manuals now