[AutumnCrown]

   
Glad mine was ok the first time round. But I'm treating it veerrrrrry nicely and delicately.

Are Planar Magnetics known to be more delicate than dynamics?

 

[bracko]

   
Glad mine was ok the first time round. But I'm treating it veerrrrrry nicely and delicately.

I also did that. Unfortunately it didn't help. 

 

[ezekiel77]

 
Are Planar Magnetics known to be more delicate than dynamics?

 
I was referring to Hifiman's QC issues and not planar vs dynamic in general. Sorry I can't answer your question. Maybe the others might chime in?

 

[Fearless1]

 
Are Planar Magnetics known to be more delicate than dynamics?

Not the driver (magnet array), much more sturdy then a dynamic driver and less sensitive to foreign particles/mechanical failure.  (YMMV)

 

[ChesterYonany]

  I had problems with my 400i. First it was a imbalance between drivers. The second pair had some kind of rattling/klicking sound on one side. The third pair was ok. My HE500 that I bought less than one week ago have channel imbalance. So it doesn't seem to matter if it is the new or the old models. 

how can i check if i have that problem?
it seems that on some tracks the vocals and bass are more present on the left side.
i flipped the HP (putted the left cup on my right ear and the right cup on my left ear) and then the right side was louder.
 
should i switch the cables? i mean connect the left side on the right and the other way around?

 

[DavidA]

  I had problems with my 400i. First it was a imbalance between drivers. The second pair had some kind of rattling/klicking sound on one side. The third pair was ok. My HE500 that I bought less than one week ago have channel imbalance. So it doesn't seem to matter if it is the new or the old models. 

Are the headphone being damaged during shipment?  The odds of getting two headphones with channel imbalance issues is really low or you really have some bad luck.  I've only have channel imbalance issues with two 6JD8/6922 tubes in my Ember, never had headphones with imbalance issues.

 

[marhol]

  I had problems with my 400i. First it was a imbalance between drivers. The second pair had some kind of rattling/klicking sound on one side. The third pair was ok. My HE500 that I bought less than one week ago have channel imbalance. So it doesn't seem to matter if it is the new or the old models. 

Sorry to hear (read) that muxamed... Good luck with your current setup and also with next purchases !

 

[bracko]

 
how can i check if i have that problem?
it seems that on some tracks the vocals and bass are more present on the left side.
i flipped the HP (putted the left cup on my right ear and the right cup on my left ear) and then the right side was louder.
 
should i switch the cables? i mean connect the left side on the right and the other way around?

You can reverse channels to see if the left channel keeps the higher volume. You can also do some testing using this page:
 
http://www.audiocheck.net/soundtests_headphones.php

 

[bracko]

  Are the headphone being damaged during shipment?  The odds of getting two headphones with channel imbalance issues is really low or you really have some bad luck.  I've only have channel imbalance issues with two 6JD8/6922 tubes in my Ember, never had headphones with imbalance issues.

I am not sure what happened to the headphones. I couldn't see any damage at all so my guess is that nothing extraordinary happened during shippment. The odds of getting any two headphones with channel imbalance is probably low. It seems to be higher with Hifiman. Or as you say, maybe I just had bad luck.

 

[bracko]

  Sorry to hear (read) that muxamed... Good luck with your current setup and also with next purchases !

Thanks marhol. I will try hard to get my HE500 replaced. They sound too good.

 

[cyclops214]

   
I know for a fact the cables for Hifiman IEMs are dodgy... any QC problems I should be aware of for their headphones? The 400i cable seems plenty sturdy.

The right focus pad on my first pair busted open in the first two months they sent me a replacement focused pad and when I was replacing it I noticed the edge of the cup was really sharp so two months later they ripped open again hi-fi man just replaced the headphone with a another pair of headphones they look to be refurbished I just got it yesterday and this one seems to be fine but I do agree there is a quality control problem with the company on all of their products.

 

[ChesterYonany]

  You can reverse channels to see if the left channel keeps the higher volume. You can also do some testing using this page:
 
http://www.audiocheck.net/soundtests_headphones.php

you can multi quote instead of triple posting
 
 
 
i just checked and its moved to the right but less present.
i also connected my old SONY (once to the magni and once to the motherboard) and the vocals and bass kicks are louder on the left channel.
i never noticed it before with the sony.
 
at this point i think its safe to say that the HPs and DACs\amps arent the problem.
so it might be just how the tracks were recorded or my hearing is getting bad

 
i will upload some samples and maybe you guys can check this issue too if you feel like.
tracks to check: Link1 Link2
 
1. Hero --  at 1:07  bass kick is more to the left.
2. How Deep Is Your Love --  at 1:40  bass kick is more to the left.
3. Step Up/Nobody's Listening/It's Goin' Down --  vocals are coming from the left.
4. Metalingus --  vocals are coming from the left.

 

[mandrake50]

Find some monaural music or test tones and see if the image  is  centered.

 

[ezekiel77]

Basically I just go to youtube and search for channel test.

 

[mandrake50]

http://www.audiocheck.net/soundtests_headphones.php
 
Driver matching test