[griff2]

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Okay first of all I only read the first maybe 50 pages of this thread or so.
 
The only headphones I own are HD280's, DT770/80's and DT880/250's, and a pair of R1 IEM's.
 
My favorite of those is probably the DT770's to me they are a fun headphone, maybe a little on the bass heavy side but I enjoy it. DT880's are more comfy though. 
 
So, how do these compare to any of those, worth the upgrade? Specifically to the 770's, how is the bass on these? I don't need as much bass but I would like more than the 880's have. I already assume the mids/highs/soundstage will all probably be better on these than the 770's.
 
Also the only amp/dac I have is an audioengine D1, anyone tested these on that yet?

I can comment on the DT770s: you'll find that the 770s have more bass, but are not as defined; the HE-400 portray instruments, particularly brass and woodwind with more accuracy, but vocals can seem a little "cuppy" (for want of a better word) when compared to the 770s.  The HE-400 are much more source critical than the 770s meaning they will expose poorly recorded/sourced music.  I tend to use the 770s for certain types of music (pop/rock) and the HE-400 for other types (Jazz/Live acoustic).
 
 
From what I’m reading on here, people are driving these headphones with portable gear as they are relatively easy to drive, however the adage “garbage in garbage out" applies and your source should not be neglected.

 

[catspaw]

Well im definitly getting the Velours as well as a cable for them (i dont need a 2 meter long cable...).
 
I actually use these on the move rather than my closed cans (in fact i lended my father my sennheisers hd 380 for 3 months since i was so positive i would not use them), even thou i look weird with them.
 
Also, im not sure if its just me or if its the burn in, but i would swear that they were a lot quiter when driven directly from my laptop or my cowon i9 when i first bought them.

 

[Marleybob217]

Quote:

I can comment on the DT770s: you'll find that the 770s have more bass, but are not as defined; the HE-400 portray instruments, particularly brass and woodwind with more accuracy, but vocals can seem a little "cuppy" (for want of a better word) when compared to the 770s.  

 
Are you still using the pleathers? Because I don't hear anyy cuppyness in vocals. They are actually very natural sounding to me.

 

[griff2]

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Lol, no. My sources are fine. The general consensus is that the pleathers make the sound more dark and stuffy, mids more recessed (purrin's graphs proved this), and the treble more peaky. I didnt even see the graph until I had already confirmed it to be true.
Don't know what magical pleathers you got...

I'll take my own ears over general consensus any time (after all I'm not listening through general consensus)

The pleathers were designed and used for a reason and work for me, so I can relax and enjoy the music without wondering what that next [size=11.0pt]magical pair of velours will do to “enhance” my listening experience[/size]. Cheers.

 

[griff2]

Quote:

 
Are you still using the pleathers? Because I don't hear anyy cuppyness in vocals. They are actually very natural sounding to me.

I think its because I interchange with the DT770s, vocal presentation between the two is very different so compared to the 770s the HE-400s can sound cuppy on some vocals (female usually, Diana Krall in particular).

 

[sappl3s]

Well I mostly listen to rock or electronic music, some video game music too. I'm just looking for something new that might be better/different is all. Being that these are open headphones I'll still be going back to my DT770's sometimes when needed. (I sold the 880's to my roommate).
 
From what I've read I think I'm going to purchase these, seems like they'll be a good pair to go along with the DT770's. I'm going to get the velour pads too, also thinking of getting Modi/Magni or the odac/o2.

 

[Moustache]

Speaking of the velour and pleather pads, am I the only one to find the pleather more fun-sounding?  I mean, they seem to accentuate the separation of the instruments, the treble and the bass to me.
With the velour, the sound seems just a bit flatter but I still prefer them over the pleather, they make the HE-400 so much more natural sounding and airy. 

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

That's because the mids are more recessed on the pleather, making the sound more v-shaped.

 

[Moustache]

Make sens. Interesting how simple pads can change the sound signature of a headphone so much.

 

[Clemmaster]

I received my replacement pair of HE-4 this morning (one earcup detached itself from the head-band, 2 months after the end of warranty...).
 
Before any comparison with the HE-400 (and HE-500), I wanted to share a pic of the babies:
 

 
The lighting  does not do them justice but you can notice they are different than what you see on the web (and the HE-4 they replace) for 3 reasons:
- The half-rings are now grey (like the 500s) instead of black (like the 600s)
- The cups are not black (like the 600s, again) but rather dark blue, like no other Hifiman headphones. It is close to black (not on the picture) but one can see a hint of blue. As if they repainted the HE-400 blue cups with black laquer. The result is gorgeous!
- The drivers now have a plastic protection in the inner side. My former HE-4 did not have anything, I could touch the planar driver through the pad's "cloth".
 
On my screen, the cups color look pretty much like the HE-400 but they are much darker in reality (very close to black).
 
Seems like Hifiman made some adjustment to the HE-4 too... Let's hope it sounds good ^^.
 
Bad note however but I anticipated that: they didn't ship it with the pleather I had on my broken 4's (which I really like, confort-wise, and sounded better than the old-styled velours).

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I miss the HE-4. Truly, marvelous, MARVELOUS headphones. Definitely more classy than the HE-400s.

 

[griff2]

Quote:

Speaking of the velour and pleather pads, am I the only one to find the pleather more fun-sounding?  I mean, they seem to accentuate the separation of the instruments, the treble and the bass to me.
With the velour, the sound seems just a bit flatter but I still prefer them over the pleather, they make the HE-400 so much more natural sounding and airy. 

I think you've hit the nail on the head there.  I personally prefer the pleathers, but it's down to musical taste at the end of the day.

 

[Moustache]

I do switch them quite a lot actually, the pleather are also more comfy.

 

[MattTCG]

^^ to the guy who asked if there is any difference in the original r2 and the current revision...according to Jerg ( correct if I'm wrong ), the current revision is a touch brighter than the old r2. Nothing drastic but the old r2 would be considered a bit darker. I have not listened to every revision along the way, so please refer to Jerg on this one. 

 

[preproman]

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^^ Funny thing...I've been holding my breath for about 6 months for an he700. 

 
 
How about a HE-7.  Another hard to drive headphone