[MixMasterMan]

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 was curious, and picked up a 400i, based on your recommendation when I asked about open back planar's (Edit: on the 660s thread). I wanted to check out the Hifiman planar sound, but didn't want to go all in on one of their upper models without getting a feel for their product, and the 400i's sound has a good reputation.. It sound's almost exactly like my DT-880's, only with less detail in the mids, less that 6k-10k spike, and more width. A couple of things I noticed that I wondered could be fixed if I "upgrade". While I love the width, it does sound a tiny bit unnatural, and the mids are a little too cloudy. So my question to you and anyone that has heard them, how would the Sundara & DT1990 compare? - Would either of those 2 cans be a noticeable step up from the 400i's (or DT880's for that matter)? - After listening and flipping back and forth between the DT880/400i, I want the exact sound of 880 but minus the 6-10k spike, with a touch of the width and slightly more forward character of the 400i.

 

[DavidA]

@MixMasterMan, I think you might have more luck with impression on the DT1990 and Sundara thread since there are a few that had say they had the HE400i in the past that have posted on those threads.

 

[MixMasterMan]

@MixMasterMan, I think you might have more luck with impression on the DT1990 and Sundara thread since there are a few that had say they had the HE400i in the past that have posted on those threads.

BTW, the 400i is DEFINITELY the direction I wanted to go in, when I asked on the 660s thread. - I want THIS sound, but more refined. Thx

 

[DavidA]

BTW, the 400i is DEFINITELY the direction I wanted to go in, when I asked on the 660s thread. - I want THIS sound, but more refined. Thx

I'd suggest trying different ear pads since they do change the character of the sound from very little to a lot depending on the pads that you select. To clean up the mids you might want to see about getting the Dekoni sheepskin since I liked how they made the mids a little more clear sounding but they also slightly boost the treble so you should take that in to consideration. If you want a touch more bass then I'd suggest some attenuation rings like these made from card stock or hanging folders, cheap and easy to install/remove if you don't like the effect:

You can use two if you want a bit more bass. Nice thing is they don't seem to affect the mids or highs.

Another pad is the Hifiman Focus-A which looks like the Focus pads but the internal wall made out of a different material. And to make removing / installing pads easy use a credit card or other thin stiff plastic to help remove / re-attach the clips (4 clips at 12-3-6-9)

 

[Sonic Defender]

... After listening and flipping back and forth between the DT880/400i, I want the exact sound of 880 but minus the 6-10k spike, with a touch of the width and slightly more forward character of the 400i.

So why not do some EQ work with the 880? It should be pretty easy to accomplish what you want to achieve. I would recommend using a parametric EQ. If you use a computer as a source there are free parametric EQ plugins for software such as JRiver Media Center, which also has a built in parametric equalizer. Unless you need major sonic surgery which would suggest finding a headphone with a better matching signature would be in order, otherwise some EQ tweaks are a viable way to get where you want to go.

And as DavidA suggested, I hear that many people find pad changes to be very useful at adjusting the sound signature. Not something that I have any real experience with, but there are people like davidA who do pad swapping quite a bit and I trust their impressions.

 

[MixMasterMan]

So why not do some EQ work with the 880? It should be pretty easy to accomplish what you want to achieve. I would recommend using a parametric EQ. If you use a computer as a source there are free parametric EQ plugins for software such as JRiver Media Center, which also has a built in parametric equalizer. Unless you need major sonic surgery which would suggest finding a headphone with a better matching signature would be in order, otherwise some EQ tweaks are a viable way to get where you want to go.

And as DavidA suggested, I hear that many people find pad changes to be very useful at adjusting the sound signature. Not something that I have any real experience with, but there are people like davidA who do pad swapping quite a bit and I trust their impressions.

I like to use EQ, but just for flavor and character. Not correction. I do have good VST PEQ's for my PC. For my DAP's, I like to use just 1 or 2 flavor/character settings. If I were to use EQ for "correction", I'd preferably use 2 EQ's in serial, so I can easily separate the EQ roles. I just want something that has the right tonality for me, off the bat, so I just use EQ to spice up the music (like a smiley curve).

 

[denis1976]

Hello i have a pair of 400i for almost 3 years, and i allways notice that that the bass is stronger on the right side ...does someone have this experience...it.seems that i have a defective 400i....

 

[Mr Trev]

First thing I'd check is to make sure the earpads are still completely sealed against the earcups. If the mounting ring isn't correctly seated or bent that could explain the difference in bass

 

[MrMan]

What is a good pad replacement for the 400i? The pads are crap and i know its only a matter of time before they failed. I owned a pair of pads prior and I used them on another pair of headphones and within 2 months they started to fall apart. I have a pair of TH900 pads but they are too soft and get compressed too much with the clamping force of the 400i.

 

[DavidA]

@MrMan, I'd suggest reducing the clamping force of the HE400i. When I first got my HE400i the clamping force was so high that the pads were always compressed and it was giving me a headache, bent them so that there is a space between pads when I place them on a table or stand. This seems to have help since my pads are about 4 years old and still look new. Did the same for my HE560 and its pads also look like they are new. Another thing is I've stopped using "omega" style stands since it also keeping the ear pads in compression which I think contributes to early failure, IMO.

 

[Selfish Android]

What is a good pad replacement for the 400i? The pads are **** and i know its only a matter of time before they failed. I owned a pair of pads prior and I used them on another pair of headphones and within 2 months they started to fall apart. I have a pair of TH900 pads but they are too soft and get compressed too much with the clamping force of the 400i.

Do yourself a favor and get the ZMF Ori earpads, they are amazing and they come in various materials: Lambskin, Protein and suede. I have the Lambskin ones and they are pretty cool, not only they make the headphones look more "premium" but they are more comfortable than the stock pads i even think the headphones sound better with them.

 

[Selfish Android]

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

I got one of their cables on my 400i, the construction looks nice for the price.

 

[Jazmanaut]

What is a good pad replacement for the 400i? The pads are **** and i know its only a matter of time before they failed. I owned a pair of pads prior and I used them on another pair of headphones and within 2 months they started to fall apart. I have a pair of TH900 pads but they are too soft and get compressed too much with the clamping force of the 400i.

So what pads do you currently have? There is different pads on different revisions. (Sorry but your picture tells about nothing). Mine came with Focus A:s and they are still like new.

 

[DavidA]

So what pads do you currently have? There is different pads on different revisions. (Sorry but your picture tells about nothing). Mine came with Focus A:s and they are still like new.

Did you get your HE400i used? I've never heard of them coming with Focus-A pads on either the original SMC version or the newer 2.5mm version. Also, even the HE560 only came with Focus-A pads if you had pre-ordered the first release and everything after came stock with Focus pads.

 

[MixMasterMan]

Less than 2 weeks with them, and the plastic ring that holds one of the earcups is cracking, bound to snap/break. I saw user reviews that show pics of the same problem. Only that theirs had already snapped. I was hoping that I wouldn't have that problem. Ugh! - what a shame. I love the sound, but that is ridiculous. CHEAP build quality. Boo!!!!