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Hifiman he-400i Impressions and Discussion
Jan 3, 2016 at 1:20 PM Post #6,498 of 14,386
Jan 3, 2016 at 1:49 PM Post #6,499 of 14,386
hi guys i'm looking for a can to sound good with vocals and i jumped on the 400i train my current system is dt770 with fiieo e10 so do you think i should get a cheap amp and use the fiieo as a dac or wait to get a nice dac/amp 
 
Jan 3, 2016 at 2:03 PM Post #6,500 of 14,386
einzweidrei said:
What amp are you guys running the 400i through?
Click to expand...


Gustard H10 or Garage 1217  Sunrise III or Polaris.
Polaris would be the least expensive option and Eliminates the temptation to get into the insanely obsessive and expensive tube rolling game.
The Gustard, at the Massdrop price is hard to beat from the "bang for your buck" perspective.
 
Jan 3, 2016 at 2:31 PM Post #6,501 of 14,386
Jan 3, 2016 at 3:39 PM Post #6,504 of 14,386
einzweidrei said:
What amp are you guys running the 400i through?
Click to expand...


Cavalli Liquid Carbon, Burson Soloist, Benchmark DAC-1, Schiit Magni 2 Uber, FiiO E-10, iPhone 6s, iPad Air 2

They sound awesome on all, but clearly best on the Liquid Carbon
 
Jan 3, 2016 at 4:07 PM Post #6,505 of 14,386
fjrabon said:
i tend to think with the HE400i, DAC quality actually tends to matter more than amp. Unless of course you want a colored amp with a non-linear frequency response.

In my experience they're one of the least demanding headphones I've ever owned in terms of amping while also being one of the most demanding in terms of DAC quality. I think they sing particularly well with AKM chips. The bifrost 4490 and m9XX make incredibly musical, transparent, spacious, detailed pairings with the 400i. Amp wise, I thought they were very good with everything from a starving student to a CMOY to a m9XX to a Lyr.
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Maybe, but with one big proviso:  the amp output impedence can't be too high relative to the 400i.  I recently got a Gustard H10 with an output impedence < 1 ohm, and I'm feeding it with a Parasound zDAC.  The zDAC also has a HP amp, but its output impedence is 10 ohms.  As a result, the bass on the 400i with the zDAC as an amp is more amorphous than with the H10, in a not good way.  In addition, the treble response is rolled off a bit with the zDAC amp compared to the H10.
 
The zDAC has an Analog Devices AD1853 DAC chip.  Should I be putting a new DAC on my shopping list to take full advantage of the 400i's?
 
Jan 3, 2016 at 4:52 PM Post #6,506 of 14,386
mgbert said:
Maybe, but with one big proviso:  the amp output impedence can't be too high relative to the 400i.  I recently got a Gustard H10 with an output impedence < 1 ohm, and I'm feeding it with a Parasound zDAC.  The zDAC also has a HP amp, but its output impedence is 10 ohms.  As a result, the bass on the 400i with the zDAC as an amp is more amorphous than with the H10, in a not good way.  In addition, the treble response is rolled off a bit with the zDAC amp compared to the H10.

The zDAC has an Analog Devices AD1853 DAC chip.  Should I be putting a new DAC on my shopping list to take full advantage of the 400i's?
Click to expand...


Well, yeah, generally want output impedance under 5 ohms with the 400i
 
Jan 3, 2016 at 6:12 PM Post #6,508 of 14,386
lacuffia said:
For those who also have experience with the 400s is the 400i more comfortable or the same? I liked the size and feel of the 400s pads but clamping bothered me for some reason.
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The i has better pads. It will probably feel better. I had the s and thought it was pretty comfortable.
 
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