Hifiman he-400i Impressions and Discussion

[DavidA]

   
Sorry for re-asking this, but does anyone else have any thoughts as to whether I would be able to comfortably wear the 400i with a small head?

my girlfriend is 5-1, 94lbs, very tiny and the HE-400i/560 will fit her on the first click and she says its pretty comfortable, she usually will listen with them on for about 2-3 hrs at a time.

 

[porridgecup]

 
my girlfriend is 5-1, 94lbs, very tiny and the HE-400i/560 will fit her on the first click and she says its pretty comfortable, she usually will listen with them on for about 2-3 hrs at a time.

 
Thanks! I'm probably going to purchase them.

 

[DavidA]

   
Thanks! I'm probably going to purchase them.

you're welcome

 

[reddog]

Thanks! I'm probably going to purchase them.

Sweet the HE-400i is a very nice sounding headphone, hope it puts a big old smile on your face.

 

[sbtruitt]

  Hello! Just received my pair of the HE-400i's yesterday, love them, though I need a DAC/AMP setup. Thinking of getting the Schiit modi/magni setup since I hear a lot about it around here. Does this setup work well for the 400i's?

 
I have the HE-400's and as of today the 400i's. I'm using a Magni/Modi with them and they sound great. For the money they are hard to beat.

 

[sbtruitt]

 

 
my girlfriend is 5-1, 94lbs, very tiny and the HE-400i/560 will fit her on the first click and she says its pretty comfortable, she usually will listen with them on for about 2-3 hrs at a time.

 
Thanks! I'm probably going to purchase them.

+1 - I've got a small head (S hat size) and they fit great on the first notch. I'm really surprised how comfortable they are.

 

[DavidA]

   
I have the HE-400's and as of today the 400i's. I'm using a Magni/Modi with them and they sound great. For the money they are hard to beat.

I went from the modi/magni to the bifrost/lyr2 and its pretty good step up, more so with the HE-400, it really tamed the highs.  Also, you might want to do the grill mod, opens up the sound stage and smooth's out the highs.

 

[sbtruitt]

 

   
I have the HE-400's and as of today the 400i's. I'm using a Magni/Modi with them and they sound great. For the money they are hard to beat.

I went from the modi/magni to the bifrost/lyr2 and its pretty good step up, more so with the HE-400, it really tamed the highs.  Also, you might want to do the grill mod, opens up the sound stage and smooth's out the highs.

Yeah, that a nice combo, I've thought about those for a while. My Little Dot I+ with some Russian Voskhod tubes is also a nice pairing (helps smooth my Grado's out a bit).  I don't have as as much issues with the high end on the 400's as some, but I EQ to my taste and on my 400's a reduction around 8K is good for me.
 
I just got my 400i's in today, so haven't had a chance to analyse them to see how I'll EQ them. But really like them so far, especially the better upper mids and vocals.

 

[gearofwar]

Hello, wonder if anyone could help me choose between HE-560 (i could get "used" around 600$) and HE-400i around 375-400$ (I could actually trade off my HD650 for). Well what i  have right now is HD650 with Valhalla, JH13FP, HDP R10 (something i want to use to drive those headphones). I really need something worth spending in this situation. Thanks

 

[chowmein83]

  Hello, wonder if anyone could help me choose between HE-560 (i could get "used" around 600$) and HE-400i around 375-400$ (I could actually trade off my HD650 for). Well what i  have right now is HD650 with Valhalla, JH13FP, HDP R10 (something i want to use to drive those headphones). I really need something worth spending in this situation. Thanks

 
I actually wrote a comparison between the HE-400i and HE-560 when both were still prototypes. I still feel that the differences I heard back then still apply to the production models after hearing both of them recently at CES 2015. Here's the post: http://www.head-fi.org/t/698974/hifiman-he-400i-impressions-and-discussion/285#post_10603065
 
Basically, HE-560 seems to be a bit more neutral and not as warm as the 400i, is better technically, has a bigger soundstage and sounds airier. But that isn't to say that the HE-400i is a bad headphone - in fact, to me at least the performance between the two headphones is closer than you think considering the $400 difference in MSRP.
 
However, if you are planning to use the HDP R10 a lot with these headphones (its a iBasso DAP, am I correct?) then you may be better off with the 400i, since it is easier to drive. But I'm not really familiar with the R10, and it may be that the R10 can drive the 560 adequately (the 560 isn't horribly inefficient). Somebody else might be better able to provide you with advice here.
 
Both the 400i and 560 will be a definite upgrade to the HD650, at least in my opinion. The 560, of course, will be a bigger upgrade.

 

[Hachiko270296]

I think the 400i is that headphone that gives you a taste of what Hifi is all about. They have some qualities found in higher planars like the HE-500 and LCD-2. A bargain for the price. I wish they had the extension of the HE-500 and the Lush mids. The HE-400i though, sound cleaner in the mids but I prefer the romantic mids of the 500's.

 

[DavidA]

  Hello, wonder if anyone could help me choose between HE-560 (i could get "used" around 600$) and HE-400i around 375-400$ (I could actually trade off my HD650 for). Well what i  have right now is HD650 with Valhalla, JH13FP, HDP R10 (something i want to use to drive those headphones). I really need something worth spending in this situation. Thanks

I have all three of these headphones and I agree with Hachiko that the 400i is a good bargain.  With that said, I would still pay the extra for the HE-560 since its a big step up in sound quality from the HE-400i and HD-650.  I don't have any experience with the Valhalla, JH13FP or HDP-R10 so I don't know how the HE-560 will sound with them.  I currently use a Lyr2 or Project Ember on my main rig and my girlfriend has a Teac AH-01 and modi/magni on her system for most of the headphones we have.

 

[rovopio]

here's the gist, if you're a starving student, or have limited funds, he-400i is an AMAZING bargain in comparison to it's brother, the he-560.
If you can afford both but on the fence regarding sound quality and / or value, the he-560 price difference is justified by the upgrade in sound you'll received going from it's brother, the he-400i.

 

[DavidA]

  here's the gist, if you're a starving student, or have limited funds, he-400i is an AMAZING bargain in comparison to it's brother, the he-560.
If you can afford both but on the fence regarding sound quality and / or value, the he-560 price difference is justified by the upgrade in sound you'll received going from it's brother, the he-400i.

+1

 

[Matthew720]

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