[ben_r_]

  I have had my HE-400 for almost a week and I really enjoy them. For me it was that I had some nice IEM's, good closed cans and honestly what I paid for the HE-400's for me it wasn't worth more than 300.00 the difference in sound to buy the HE-500, next wekk that may change

. When I tire of these I will sell them or else I will buy something else. Look for a good deal on the HE-400 be happy with them and don't give it a second thought. I am driving them from a FiiO X3 and it has great sound quality. I also have a  FiiO e11, sometimes I use it sometimes I don't. My deal included velour pads that I haven't put on yet. I read the sibilance of the HE-400 and what others said but I don't have that issue. When you find something that sounds good to you ...enjoy it. It just make the sound that much sweeter now that I have more money in my wallet. There will always be better, there will always be newer technology....makes you crazy searching but it is a great hobby and actually cheaper than my golf hobby I had for a while.

Yep. When you find something your happy with you have to just stop coming here and stop searching around and looking for whatever you "might" be missing and new stuff that comes out that probably isnt much better.

 

[richthorn]

I bought my HE-400 without ever hearing a pair of HE-500's. Went to a Head-Fi meet and tried some a HE-500 with some Jerg pads and I literally could not tell the difference. Had I bought the HE-500 and tried someone else's HE-400 I would've been pissed.
 
Just my experience, but I wouldn't spend that kind of money on the HE-500, they'd be wasted without an amp anyways.

 

[tuna47]

You need an amp for the 500 that's probably why you couldn't tell the difference had both hfs and the 500 are far superior

 

[ben_r_]

Yea thats wild. I bought both the HE-400 and the HE-500 at the same time with complimentary amps and no matter which way I tried them I liked the HE-500's better all around. They sounded a lot different to me. But I guess good for you as you saved yourself the money!

 

[mogulmaster]

I had the he-400s and now have the LCD-2s. It's my understanding that the LCDs sound realllllly similar to the 500s. For those who like electronic, the LCDs really crush the 400s even in this genre. The bass on the LCDs is top level, better than the 500s, but most people who have both LCD and 500 like to use the 500 for electronic because the bass has a bigger and more fun bloom. 
 
If there is any hint of natural instrument, the timbre just aint right with the 400s. And timbre is almost perfect with the LCD, lending to a more realistic, emotional experience. Vocals are jaw-dropping with the LCDs, while they sound "off" with the 400s. 
 
Not to say the 400s are a slouch, they sound really fun but the next step up (500) is a lot better in terms of realism. Not to mention the 400s have a major flaw: the peaky treble -- lends to a fatiguing experience. This is non existent on the LCDs and 500s, and DEFINITELY worth the extra money to avoid. trust me. 
 
IMO if you are getting into hi-end just skip the 400, save money, as you will soon crave more out of your HPs. I only had my 400s for a couple months. 

 

[CT007]

I compared the 500, 400, and several others on a very high-end McIntosh system with a Liquid Gold amp, and the simple difference is that I did not like what I heard from the 400, and loved the sound of the 500. The 500 is stupid heavy & uncomfortable, and also has a fairly nasty treble spike. Of course, the 500 only sounded half as good with my equipment at home, so, considering total equipment costs, I would say it's not worth it. I would get something else(better, even; LCD) in the meantime, and wait until HiFiMAN comes out with a better version(probably beyond 560). I'm flying high with my HD600 though, no regrets. 

 

[wahsmoh]

I'd say demo the HE-500, LCD-2.2, and Alpha Dogs together. They all sound relatively similar with the LCD-2 being the darker of the bunch. Don't buy an HE-500 right away when you can get an Alpha Dog that looks way better and more expensive : ]
 
I just can't justify the price tag of the HE-500 when they are uncomfortable to me unless they've been modded. 

 

[soundeffect]

  Yea thats wild. I bought both the HE-400 and the HE-500 at the same time with complimentary amps and no matter which way I tried them I liked the HE-500's better all around. They sounded a lot different to me. But I guess good for you as you saved yourself the money!

 
+1

 

[shayson1357]

Hello guys 

just wondering if it's a good idea to get the he-500 along with a magni amp(no dac yet, source would be the pc..... I know, I know, noise and crackles and sh**) I'll get a dac after a month once I have enough funds..... would the he-500 sound so horrible I'd think it's broken or would it be driven well but not optimally ?
I currently have 600 dollars to spend on audio, and the he-500+magni would cost me 625$ shipped(an extra $25 aren't an issue).... how far up the hifi ladder would this setup get me considering that's I'm coming from a sony XB-900 driven off of my realtek ALC892 on-board ?
PS. might get the audio-gd NFB-28 amp/dac later on(probably a year later), so would the difference between the AGD amp/dac and magni/modi stack be worth the substantial difference in price when paired with the He-500( it's 4X pricier

 ).
any suggestions would be appreciated.
I know these might sound like silly questions to you but please bare with me as I'm somewhat new to this stuff 

 

[i019791]

I would wait a month or so for the Hifiman HE400i.
You might consider the HIFIMEDIY SABRE USB DAC, as it is inexpensive enough.
NFB-28 will be better, but I suggest you refrain from balanced gear until you get more experience.
Any reply on money difference "worth" will be highly subjective (for the record, it worths for me).

 

[shayson1357]

I'm starting to get really serious about the quality of my audio recently so I'm more than willing to wait a little bit if it means gaining a clear step up up in audio performance, the 560 will likely drop to the he-500's price point in a while, do you think it's clearly a better headphone or just a different taste ? how would it differ from the 400i , is the difference then also marginal supposing there is proper amplification ?

 

[i019791]

I much doubt that the HE560 will drop to the current HE500 price point any time soon.
I have not heard the HE560 and I would not buy it before a good audition, unless there is the option for return with full refund.
I would expect the HE560 to win on good recordings (typically jazz & classical) but being even "worse" with many mainstream recordings for a lot of folks - so a lot might depend on the kind of music you prefer. Also for the HE560 I would check to make sure that the higher treble level is ok with me.

 

[tuna47]

I have both the 560 is more open and detailed I like it better the 500 is a little lusher if money is not a big object I would get the 560

 

[money4me247]

  Which between HE-400 and He-500 is better for EDM music??

omg the he-400 is amazingggg for edm!!! best edm headphones i've tried (though I haven't ventured past the $400 mark yet). sounds solid with everything else. with the recent $300 price, it is a steal!!!!

 

[Xenophon]

  I'm starting to get really serious about the quality of my audio recently so I'm more than willing to wait a little bit if it means gaining a clear step up up in audio performance, the 560 will likely drop to the he-500's price point in a while, do you think it's clearly a better headphone or just a different taste ? how would it differ from the 400i , is the difference then also marginal supposing there is proper amplification ?

Don't hold your breath for that price drop anytime soon.  It's a different set of cans from the 500.  Depends on what you like.  For jazz/blues/vocals I'd stick with the 500, like its midrange and slightly warmer voicing.  Instrumental classical maybe the 560 (though it doesn't come close to the 6 imo).  Rock and electronics I'd tend to go with the 560 but I hasten to add that I don't listen to those genres.  Considering used prices the 500 is very, very hard to beat imo.  And the 6 rules 'm all but comes with a serious financial health warning due to its amping requirements.