[Kris1989]

Hi! I've had my he-400i for a year, I love the sound signature very much. But now I'm looking for an upgrade. Do you guys think I should go for Aeon Flow Open or LCD2c? Which one should be a better upgrade for my he-400i?

 

[SHAMuuu]

HE560, HE400i, HE400S and HE350 all use the same headband
HE400 and HE500 use the older style headband
LD

Are cup sizes same? Wondering about 007 lambskin pads on 400/500/560. IIRC they were on a pair of he-6. There was a photo online a while ago of this "mini 007 or 009" but it was a hifiman with the stx pad mod. Any info helpful thx

 

[DavidA]

Hi! I've had my he-400i for a year, I love the sound signature very much. But now I'm looking for an upgrade. Do you guys think I should go for Aeon Flow Open or LCD2c? Which one should be a better upgrade for my he-400i?

When you say "upgrade" what are you looking for specifically? more bass? cleaner more extended highs? a more neutral sound? What genres do you listen to?, do you have amps or DACs? how loud do you listen at?
I'd suggest filling in your profile so it would make it easier to figure out what you are looking for.

Are cup sizes same? Wondering about 007 lambskin pads on 400/500/560. IIRC they were on a pair of he-6. There was a photo online a while ago of this "mini 007 or 009" but it was a hifiman with the stx pad mod. Any info helpful thx

I don't have my SR009 anymore but I think the pads were very similar in size at 105mm

 

[Kris1989]

When you say "upgrade" what are you looking for specifically? more bass? cleaner more extended highs? a more neutral sound? What genres do you listen to?, do you have amps or DACs? how loud do you listen at?
I'd suggest filling in your profile so it would make it easier to figure out what you are looking for.

I'm sorry that I didn't fill in my profile. My systems is Teac UD501 + Audio GD NFB-1 amp (running he-400i with balanced cable). Most of the time I listen to Radiohead and Björk. I'm looking for a replacement with a similar tonality, but has a wider soundstage and clarity. My budget is under 1k

 

[jnorris]

Hi! I've had my he-400i for a year, I love the sound signature very much. But now I'm looking for an upgrade. Do you guys think I should go for Aeon Flow Open or LCD2c? Which one should be a better upgrade for my he-400i?

Before you drop a lot of money on new headphones, check out Sonarworks True-Fi and Reference 4 Headphone. They are software drivers that adjust the EQ to compensate for the sonic characteristic of specific headphones. They have a large list of headphones that were analyzed and profiled. The change this software brought to my HE-400i was so good that I have a hard time listening without it. The software is less than $100 and you can get a fully functional trial version.

Try it!

 

[letlive]

Any recommendations for a balanced cable?

 

[Kris1989]

Before you drop a lot of money on new headphones, check out Sonarworks True-Fi and Reference 4 Headphone. They are software drivers that adjust the EQ to compensate for the sonic characteristic of specific headphones. They have a large list of headphones that were analyzed and profiled. The change this software brought to my HE-400i was so good that I have a hard time listening without it. The software is less than $100 and you can get a fully functional trial version.

Try it!

Thank you for your suggestion. Now I'm using only Audirvana Plus to play the music. But I will try the software you recommended

 

[Kris1989]

Any recommendations for a balanced cable?

I'm using junkosha silver cable from VE. The sound is clearer with a controlled bass. It might make your he-400i slightly brighter, but what you will get from this is a decent improvement on the soundstage.

https://www.veclan.com/engappliance_sel_one?eng_ApplianceVo.eac_id=16

 

[DavidA]

I'm sorry that I didn't fill in my profile. My systems is Teac UD501 + Audio GD NFB-1 amp (running he-400i with balanced cable). Most of the time I listen to Radiohead and Björk. I'm looking for a replacement with a similar tonality, but has a wider soundstage and clarity. My budget is under 1k

Nice gear . Might want to look at the Sundara, Aeon Flow open (I haven't heard the Sundara or AFO yet but they seem to liked by many), EL-8 open or a used HE560 since there are too many having problems with broken headbands with the latest batch and since the price is so low you should be able to find some bargains.

 

[DaaDaa]

I'm using junkosha silver cable from VE. The sound is clearer with a controlled bass. It might make your he-400i slightly brighter, but what you will get from this is a decent improvement on the soundstage.

https://www.veclan.com/engappliance_sel_one?eng_ApplianceVo.eac_id=16

the website does not say anything about the conductor used in the cable being silver. is it really silver for 25 bucks? why?

 

[CoFire]

Hi! I've had my he-400i for a year, I love the sound signature very much. But now I'm looking for an upgrade. Do you guys think I should go for Aeon Flow Open or LCD2c? Which one should be a better upgrade for my he-400i?

I have a 400i as well. I just bought an EL8C Titanium, a very nice headphone and probably the best passive cancellation of any closed headphone I've heard.

Probably not what you're looking for and it's discontinued. I'm looking into the Sundara, HEX V2 and HEK V2. The reviews seem to have these in line tonally and technically with all getting better and better in that order. I'm intrigued by both. I think both would be a step up with the HEK V2 a much bigger jump.

The Sundara is touted to be far superior than the 400i in every category. Comparison of Sundara vs the HE560 seems to be somewhat conflicting but overall well received. Not to start a debate but it seems quite a few Sundara owners and noticing break in of their head phones after 30-50 hours of play to the extent that it might be muddyig up the initial impressions reported. If you read the thread, read fast is all I can say.

 

[Paddy]

I have the HE400i and He 4XX which to me sounds VERY similar so i just tried the Sonarworks reference 4 and i have to say it ruins the sound for me. The HE 400i preset has too much emphasis on bass and everything else is pulled back, it's nowhere near as airy, clear and sound-stage feels narrower. It feels like they have tried to replicate a closed back headphone with this preset which ruins the soundstage

 

[jnorris]

I found that it does boost the bass a bit much, but after experimenting with bass levels, simulations and advanced settings, I found a 75% wet setting,with the curve set flat and optimum filtering made the HE400i easier to listen to, opened up the soundstage and made instruments sound more natural. To each his own, I guess.

 

[DaaDaa]

i was hoping one of you could tell me about the quality of venture electronics cables?

https://www.veclan.com/engappliance_sel_one?eng_ApplianceVo.eac_id=8

 

[peter123]

i was hoping one of you could tell me about the quality of venture electronics cables?

https://www.veclan.com/engappliance_sel_one?eng_ApplianceVo.eac_id=8

Fwiw they're my go to cable supplier these days. I've got quite a few different cables and adapters from them and I'm very happy with all of them.

For the record: I've never heard any difference in sound between properly made cables so I'm talking about build quality and value for money here