[Daemos]

  Sure.
 
Foobar bar EQ, and below that the Electri-Q parametric EQ file.
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
 

 
I know this post is very old, but the eletri-q parametric EQ file does nothing for me (in Eletri-Q when I import it, it changes nothing) but the foobar one works well. I am wondering though if the Eletric-Q one would work better...

 

[beaver316]

   
I know this post is very old, but the eletri-q parametric EQ file does nothing for me (in Eletri-Q when I import it, it changes nothing) but the foobar one works well. I am wondering though if the Eletric-Q one would work better...

 
Yeah the Electri-Q one should work better. Pretty obvious since you only get a limited number of bars to work with on foobar's default EQ.
 
When you say it changes nothing, do you mean the sound doesn't change or the graphic doesn't change?

 

[MattTCG]

   
Hi, I got my HE-400's a couple of weeks ago and also bought an Asgard 2 amp and then a week ago the HD650's. I find the 650's allow me to hear a lot more details in the music. They also have depth to the 'stage' and a wider stage. They are also more exciting than the HE-400's in general. I'm amazed at how the HE-400's have such little depth to the stage.
 
Having said that, every once in a while the HE-400's astound with getting timbre on an instrument or even a vocal really correct. What is correct? Well, it's a bit esoteric but you know it when it happens. I was a drummer most of my life and every once in awhile the HE-400 will get the tone of a particular cymbal so very correct! Also, oddly enough the first time I noticed how it can be pretty amazing on vocals was on two old Rod Stewart songs (Maggie May and Stay with Me). I'm not really a fan of his and was just going thru my FLAC collection and on a whim put these on and was very impressed. I wanted to see how they would handle recordings that were done when the technology was a lot less than what we have available now.
 
With other genres, EDM, Jazz, Classical I find the HE-400's hit or miss. On some EDM they are very engaging and then on some tracks where I expect them to shine they are just dull. I spent days playign with eq settings to get the midrange corrected on the HE-400 and it's just a lot of hassle. I found that I'd be making small changes all the time for different recordings.
 
When the HD650's arrived I was at first underwhelmed. I set them to burn in for about 24 hours over a couple of days and they have opened up a lot and have pulled away from the HE-400's as all rounders by quite a bit. No fussing with eq, I put them on put some music on and am very happy.
 
So, I really didn't intend to get two more pairs of headphones and was going to send one of them back to amazon, but while the 650 is the clear winner for me, at the price that the HE-400 is right now, I may just keep them as well. However with the old desert island question in this case it would be a very easy and quick decision, I'd take the HD650's.
 
Anyway, if you can, listen to the 650's. The two headphones sound very different. Midrange detail on the 650 is astounding.
 
Oh, and the 650 is a bit more comfortable even though the 400 really isn't that bad. And, of course the disclaimer, we all hear differently etc. so the only way to REALLY know for yourself is to have both side by side for a few days.

 
I owned both of these hp's for a long time as the make good complements to each. Now I only have the 650 while I wait for the new hifiman's to arrive. 

 

[Daemos]

   
Yeah the Electri-Q one should work better. Pretty obvious since you only get a limited number of bars to work with on foobar's default EQ.
 
When you say it changes nothing, do you mean the sound doesn't change or the graphic doesn't change?

 
Graphic doesn't change...haven't tested sound as the EQ doesn't show any signs of change.

 

[beaver316]

   
Graphic doesn't change...haven't tested sound as the EQ doesn't show any signs of change.

 
Strange. Just to make sure, you're going into Menu > Presets > Import Preset?
 
Does it change when you select one of the ready made presets from the top of the screen? Also what version of electri-q do you have? It says in the About screen.

 

[Daemos]

   
Strange. Just to make sure, you're going into Menu > Presets > Import Preset?
 
Does it change when you select one of the ready made presets from the top of the screen? Also what version of electri-q do you have? It says in the About screen.

 
It changes when I user one of the ready made presets, I have 1.8.8 that was listed on the Electri-Q website. and yes I'm importing the preset...

 

[beaver316]

   
It changes when I user one of the ready made presets, I have 1.8.8 that was listed on the Electri-Q website. and yes I'm importing the preset...

 
I think I've found your problem. You're using the standalone version of Electri-Q, not the posihfopit version. My standalone version is v1.8.9. My posihfopit version v1.0
 
Only the posihfopit version works with foobar, but you will need a VST wrapper to allow them to interface. My recommendation is this one.

 

[MrMateoHead]

 Citizen's review . . . . .

Just wanted to say thanks for a great review. I really appreciated your ''recording" focused assessment and especially pointing out that the HE-400 can occasionally come across as accurate and realistic. That is spot on IMO. I needed about 2 weeks to really love mine. The "hit or miss" nature is really, if you take the time, a function in part of recording quality. Since I am the HE-400 "apologist" when it comes to that, I like to point it out.

 
Recording quality is all over the map (and I am not talking about bit-rates here), and imaging / staging fall apart to my ears, on occasion, when recordings really "pan" too hard to the right or left, or do something a little "unnatural" - like set drums to the left and a vocalist to the right and peg them there. That may be how the "stage" is arranged, and work well with speakers, but it isn't how I want it mixed for headphones! Stuff like that takes me right out of the moment and speeds up fatigue - not unlike having two people carry on conversations beside me and expecting me to somehow respond to both while a subway train comes to a halt in front of us. They HE-400s are also unforgiving, but for the most part, I feel they achieve a sense of realism and "fun" that is more often awesome than not.
 
I've not owned the HD-650s myself, but I have heard quite a few Sennheisers so I 'get' much of the appeal (comfort in fit and also sound quality). To me, however, most Senn's I've owned lack the speed and attack that really help get my attention and blood going. They were better for me as "background" phones and less successful when I really started listening critically and trying to search through the layers of sound. Also, while the midrange is great, they always trade off quite a bit of bass and treble energy for the sake of low-fatigue. Sometimes I just wanted more at both ends if you know what I mean! Anyway, the 650s have been out forever, and the main reason I've skipped them is that I think there are more interesting phones out for $500 these days.

 
I've been taking a break from the HE-400s and listening to Pioneer's BS-22s with subwoofer (I snapped a couple weeks ago). The imaging and midrange are so nice on them - vocals are always pegged to the center, and in front. My distance from the stage is literally my distance from the speaker - it is an uncanny and, to steal from a reviewer, "very seductive" effect. The treble is a tad laid-back for my taste, but they still retain great air and detail while seeming just a little warm with the sub working (sub is actually really good if a bit loose and boomy at around 40 hz). In effect, for $200 bucks all in, the Pioneers are highly satisfying. The main drawback is a lack of ultimate dynamic range - they go into compression somewhere around 90-100 dBs, so they don't get any "crank it" points, but at anything less than that they have the same awesome "effortlessness" of the HE-400s. They are the first speaker, of any type, I have ever owned, that I can listen to straight-up classical piano on without almost immediately sensing a timbre problem. Now that is a good speaker. Sadly, the HE-400s don't quite get there on the piano - there are some resonances / spikes in response in places I am not sure about that get in the way of a perfect performance. There is no question that I will be getting the Pioneer towers at some point - for about $250/pair they are a straight up giveaway to non-wealthy audiophiles like me.
 
Anyway, my plan is either to eventually sell the HE-400 and HD-595s I own for some 400i's, or I am going to migrate over to some Focal's. I've loved focal's car line and they have a very good phone out for a mere $300 - a good fit for my budget. Oppo also has some great planars coming out (don't know the price but they are a good young company). I just can't really spend a huge amount on phones with short warranties and a slight lack of development (mainly in fit and finish). Not when I can get a killer set of (5) speakers for practically the same price.

 

[MrMateoHead]

  Hey guys I have a question and would like to hear your opinion on something.
 
Last year (mid March of 2013) I've purchased a pair of HE-400s. At the time of my purchase the Head-Direct website advertised a 3 year warranty on HE-400 model but couple of months ago I've noticed that the same website now offers only a 1 year warranty.
 
Which leaves me wondering - what the ****?
Normally I wouldn't worry about these things as I possess basic soldering skills but from my understanding this soon-to-be discontinued model will be quite difficult if not impossible to fix at home if a driver goes dead.

I have the same issue - basically, they changed their policy and while that smells a little like "bait and switch", good luck proving your case. I assume it is because their early-gen drivers were problematic but, now in their fourth iteration, they've ironed out most of the issues and feel less obligation to worry about failure. But they know their product's failure/defect rate, and we don't, making the odds favor them.
 
Longer warranty = Increased costs for company = less profit = worse for them
Longer warranty = reduced costs for consumer = less risk = better for them
 
1 yr warranty Vs. 3 yr warranty = Consumer loses
 
Given the premium pricing Hifiman is after, I think a better warranty should be standard. When Kia and Hyundai wanted to grab market share, part of the strategy was industry-first 10 year/ 100,000 mile warranties. Did A LOT to get people to take the "risk" on a younger company. Hifiman should take a lesson from that. I wanted a cable replacement and won't get it, and my issue is the exact issue others have commented on (making it possibly a design problem). But it'll cost me $60 bucks minimum to replace (15% of the phone's cost). Basically, it is making me want to find another company to buy from - if the Hifiman's used a more standard vanilla connector system it would be a lot cheaper and easier for me to just replace the stupid thing myself down the road. The thought of sinking $460 ($400 for phones, $60 for replacement cable) into these phones is just pushing it when my Sennheiser's are pushing 10 years old and still perfect.
 
The phones are awesome and all, but I feel pretty let down. Lesson learned.

 

[Bogatyr]

  I have the same issue - basically, they changed their policy and while that smells a little like "bait and switch", good luck proving your case. I assume it is because their early-gen drivers were problematic but, now in their fourth iteration, they've ironed out most of the issues and feel less obligation to worry about failure. But they know their product's failure/defect rate, and we don't, making the odds favor them.
 
Longer warranty = Increased costs for company = less profit = worse for them
Longer warranty = reduced costs for consumer = less risk = better for them
 
1 yr warranty Vs. 3 yr warranty = Consumer loses
 
Given the premium pricing Hifiman is after, I think a better warranty should be standard. When Kia and Hyundai wanted to grab market share, part of the strategy was industry-first 10 year/ 100,000 mile warranties. Did A LOT to get people to take the "risk" on a younger company. Hifiman should take a lesson from that. I wanted a cable replacement and won't get it, and my issue is the exact issue others have commented on (making it possibly a design problem). But it'll cost me $60 bucks minimum to replace (15% of the phone's cost). Basically, it is making me want to find another company to buy from - if the Hifiman's used a more standard vanilla connector system it would be a lot cheaper and easier for me to just replace the stupid thing myself down the road. The thought of sinking $460 ($400 for phones, $60 for replacement cable) into these phones is just pushing it when my Sennheiser's are pushing 10 years old and still perfect.
 
The phones are awesome and all, but I feel pretty let down. Lesson learned.

 
Yep. Here's a screenshot from their store page last year. Take a look at the Warranty policy, it's been like that for months until they decided to discretely bump it down to 1 year and pretend that this never existed.

 

[MrMateoHead]

I must've JUST missed the 3-year window. Sux.

 

[Citizen13469]

   
I owned both of these hp's for a long time as the make good complements to each. Now I only have the 650 while I wait for the new hifiman's to arrive. 

Darn...making me think I need to keep them both. Was not planning on that! You're right though, they both are different but compliment well.

 

[Daemos]

   
I think I've found your problem. You're using the standalone version of Electri-Q, not the posihfopit version. My standalone version is v1.8.9. My posihfopit version v1.0
 
Only the posihfopit version works with foobar, but you will need a VST wrapper to allow them to interface. My recommendation is this one.

 
I'm using the VST wrapper, the copy of posihfopit I have keeps crashing. Can you post up your copy? I keep getting a range check error

 

[pat1984]

I currently have a garage1217 starlight amp with my HE400, do u guys think I will get a significant improvement by moving to project ember amp?

 

[Citizen13469]

  Just wanted to say thanks for a great review...
 
I've been taking a break from the HE-400s and listening to Pioneer's BS-22s with subwoofer (I snapped a couple weeks ago). The imaging and midrange are so nice on them - vocals are always pegged to the center, and in front. My distance from the stage is literally my distance from the speaker - it is an uncanny and, to steal from a reviewer, "very seductive" effect. The treble is a tad laid-back for my taste, but they still retain great air and detail while seeming just a little warm with the sub working (sub is actually really good if a bit loose and boomy at around 40 hz). In effect, for $200 bucks all in, the Pioneers are highly satisfying. The main drawback is a lack of ultimate dynamic range - they go into compression somewhere around 90-100 dBs, so they don't get any "crank it" points, but at anything less than that they have the same awesome "effortlessness" of the HE-400s. They are the first speaker, of any type, I have ever owned, that I can listen to straight-up classical piano on without almost immediately sensing a timbre problem. Now that is a good speaker. Sadly, the HE-400s don't quite get there on the piano - there are some resonances / spikes in response in places I am not sure about that get in the way of a perfect performance. There is no question that I will be getting the Pioneer towers at some point - for about $250/pair they are a straight up giveaway to non-wealthy audiophiles like me.

Hi, thanks for taking the time to respond to my impressions on the 400 and 650. It's interesting to see what speaker systems you are listening to. I run Tannoy System 10 DMT II's thru a Hafler power amp for my 'desktop' system. Yes, it's huge overkill. I came from a recording studio background so I'm pretty much all about near and midfield professional driver matched monitors. My other speakers that I use are my yamaha MSP10's. I love these as well. I also have a pair of Mackie HR624's that are well, not getting much use, although they are decent enough.
 
I'm no expert but the Tannoy's with their dual concentric drivers hit the sweet spot for me for imaging. I'm a believer in the system. Here's a pic. So, they are the standard by which I'm comparing headphones. I know, it's kind of pointless to compare speaker experience with headphones, but I do. These are the ones I lust for being another poor somewhat audiophile - Tannoy Prestige Series
 
I mostly agree with you on the 400's. They are somewhat fun. They have moments where I'm very impressed but then sometimes not at all! I'm about 45 hours into 'burn in'. Maybe they will change some more?
 
Oh, and about the HD650. I've listened to a lot of Sennheisers and they do sound better. For example I owned the HD598 and never ever thought it was that great. I much prefer the Sony MA900 over that one. The 650 is very musical to me. You'll probably end up with a pair some day haha. Everyone does! You can't escape them. They are certainly not the most accurate but I'm feeling more and more they are musical.
 
Anyway, have the 400's on now..