[theothermike]

hello everyone. Im new to the forums and hifi headphones but not new to the hi fi community (into hi fidelity car audio and home audio). I finally decided that I believe the He-400's with velour pads are going to be the right starter headphones for me in this new endeavor. My question is... Where do you guys prefer to buy these from? I'm very nervous of knock off's all the time and damaged goods (bad past with higher end products).
 
Idk whether to buy from.
 
Head-Direct
Headamp
Crutchfield
etc....
 
i dont want to spend more than 420-430 after shipping for the cans plus the pads.
 
Thanks everyone for the help. I can't wait to purchase some schiit amp / dacs in a few months following and not have to use my pioneer receiver. I know they will really shine then.

 

[Sniping]

Quote:

hello everyone. Im new to the forums and hifi headphones but not new to the hi fi community (into hi fidelity car audio and home audio). I finally decided that I believe the He-400's with velour pads are going to be the right starter headphones for me in this new endeavor. My question is... Where do you guys prefer to buy these from? I'm very nervous of knock off's all the time and damaged goods (bad past with higher end products).
 
Idk whether to buy from.
 
Head-Direct
Headamp
Crutchfield
etc....
 
i dont want to spend more than 420-430 after shipping for the cans plus the pads.
 
Thanks everyone for the help. I can't wait to purchase some schiit amp / dacs in a few months following and not have to use my pioneer receiver. I know they will really shine then.

My understanding is that Justin from Headamp will give you velours and free shipping with the phones for $400. Check with him though, as I'm not completely sure, he's on Head-Fi so I think a PM is appropriate. 

 

[Bboy500]

Quote:

That's what I'm planning on when i get the extra $200 to spend ^_^
 
Quick question:
 
Would the Magni alone be better for me then my E10? Or should I just save up to get both at once?

 
Little bump since no one replied/it got overlooked 

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

You should be using the Magni WITH the E10 as a DAC, not alone.

 

[Bboy500]

Quote:

You should be using the Magni WITH the E10 as a DAC, not alone.

Didnt know I could only use one part of the E10 without the other.
 
How exactly would I go about doing this?
 
Edit: Also since that's case case I assume I can use the Amp part of the E10 without the DAC?
 
If so.. what would be better to get, the Magni or the Modi as a first purchase to pair with the E10. I do have $100, just not $200 to get the full set up.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Uhh, the Line Out on the Fiio E10. Line Out = not using the amp portion of the E10, meaning DAC only.

Get a 3.5mm male to RCA male, and hook that up between the Fiio E10 and Magni.

http://www.amazon.com/Mediabridge-3-5mm-Stereo-Audio-Cable/dp/B004YEBK66/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1356478153&sr=8-2&keywords=3.5mm+to+rca

Something like this. I have that one. It's great.

I see you have the E07K as well, though I believe you'd need the Fiio L7 to use the E07K as a DAC only. Both of your Fiios would work fine with the Magni.

 

[Bboy500]

Quote:

Uhh, the Line Out on the Fiio E10. Line Out = not using the amp portion of the E10, meaning DAC only.
Get a 3.5mm male to RCA male, and hook that up between the Fiio E10 and Magni.
http://www.amazon.com/Mediabridge-3-5mm-Stereo-Audio-Cable/dp/B004YEBK66/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1356478153&sr=8-2&keywords=3.5mm+to+rca
Something like this. I have that one. It's great.
I see you have the E07K as well, though I believe you'd need the Fiio L7 to use the E07K as a DAC only. Both of your Fiios would work fine with the Magni.

Alright, thanks for the info.
 
I might just go ahead and buy it now then.

 

[Moustache]

I just received my Sense G5 amp and I must say that it sounds pretty good with the HE-400. I find them to sound better with hybrid amps but well, that's my taste.

 

[CanadianNoob]

I am considering the HE-400s for the office. Do they leak sound out a lot? I am not as concerned about leaking in, just don't want to bother my co-workers. I am in an open environment.

 

[GTRagnarok]

Quote:

I am considering the HE-400s for the office. Do they leak sound out a lot? I am not as concerned about leaking in, just don't want to bother my co-workers. I am in an open environment.

 
HiFiMAN's design is probably one of the leakiest out there. They're like small speakers when you turn up the volume.

 

[justin w.]

you will definitely want closed headphones

 

[beaver316]

Quote:

you will definitely want closed headphones

 
While I do agree with you, it actually is possible to use the HE-400 in a quiet office environment so long as you keep the volume fairly low. I find that I can get some decent volume out of the headphones before they start to leak anything considerable. It's only once I pass a certain point (about 10 o'clock ok maybe 9 o'clock on my M-stage), then they begin to leak a lot. But of course this would only work if your environment is quiet, otherwise you'd need to crank it to drown out the sounds.

 

[MattTCG]

^^ I would NEVER consider the he400 for an office environment. They are like mini speakers. They do not isolate any sound whatsoever. 
 
For a comparable pair of closed hp's consider the Maddogs by Mr. Speakers. They isolate very well. 
 
gL!!

 

[wje]

Quote:

^^ I would NEVER consider the he400 for an office environment. They are like mini speakers. They do not isolate any sound whatsoever. 
 
 

 
Certainly not in "cube-ville."  Maybe, if one has their own office with a door.  Yet, those are getting real rare in office environments nowadays.  Also, if you have an office with a door, you probably have more working area, too.  This is a prime scenario for a big amp, or a vintage receiver, too.  Again, the majority doesn't have access to it.
 
Also, regarding the sound leakage.  I'd still rather have the HifiMANs, but keep the volume down as opposed to some $39.99 pair on ear headphones that screech and try their best to puncture your ear drums at higher levels.  Quality over quantity.  

 
Bloody drats.  Not enough sleep and I need to clean up for work.  Grr ... 

  I lost my iPod classic with the Wolfson DACs, too.  I loved the sound with more efficient headphones.  Double Grr ...

 

[Marleybob217]

Quote:

Actually, the bottleneck is the E7, not the E9. The E9 is a great amp. The E7 is pretty bad DAC. Even the Fiio D3 is better. People need to realize this. Also, the E9 wouldn't even affect the HE400 with it's output impedance, as planars are basically immune to that, unlike dynamic headphones.
Your opinion is quite the opposite of what most people here on Head-fi have experienced, including myself. The E9 competed quite well with other SS amps I've used, including my SA-31. The E7...didn't. The E is better than an onboard soundcard, but other than that, it's pretty entry level.
Thought the E9K sounded great with the HE-400 too. Not as refined as the SA-31, but for $109, it sounded VERY damn good. About as good as the Magni does.
Again, I say to switch out the E7 for a better DAC. There is more to squeeze out of the E9.

But if the E9 really is that good with the HE-400 then why does it sound so much worse than the onboard amp of de hud-mx1?
 
The hud-mx1 must be insanely good, if what you're telling is true. Either that or my E9 is faulty, which I doubt.
 
It might just be preferences, the e9 sounds a lot warmer than the amp of the hud-mx1, but at the price of losing quite a bit of clarity. So this might be what people like about this amp?