Hifiman he-400i Impressions and Discussion
Jan 20, 2016 at 1:20 PM Post #7,141 of 14,386
  Just received my HE-400i's from Amazon. Even straight out of my iPhone 6s they sound pretty good. I was going to check for wrinkles but I wanted to get a better understanding of how to remove the ear pads so I don't break them. The manual seems to indicate you just pull straight away from the driver.
 
I'd also like to make my own headphone cables as the included ones are too short for use with my home stereo. Anyone have a recommendation for a 2.5mm phone connector vendor (US preferred). I'm familiar with Switchcraft's 859x but wouldn't mind alternatives.
 
Thanks,
 
McLean


Just be careful when you take the pads out and you should be fine. You want to make sure you do not put any pressure in the driver area ( inside of the earcup ) when you take the pads out. Also, try not to bang the body of the headphones together you remove the pads as it will scratch the outside of the headphones.
 
I did find a video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knqDryw8mNw
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 1:38 PM Post #7,142 of 14,386
  Alhamdulillah... i received my 400i just today. 
OMG... i cant even explain my excitement! soooo long wait and finally its here. 
 
 

 
 
anyways, just listened to it for like 30 min. before my initial expressions, i must tell im coming from using Sennheiser HD 518, 600 & used 650 for a week  and i also tested HD 700 for like 5 mins :D , Beyerdynamics DT 990 Pro 250ohm.
 
first off, i can testify this is the most comfortable headphone i have ever put on my head.! the pads are very very soft, very nice to touch and really hug my ears and part around that. after bad (rather very bad) experience with DT 990 Pro  (whose clips didnt get any softer even after a complete year of usage, i always felt my head was squished by something and then right driver died on its own without any accident which is a shame for beyerdynamic as they lost one customer FOREVER!)
 
anyways long story short, these 400i are Comfortable, 10/10. i was really worried about the size of cups and especially the headband but man its good! does not feel its on top of my head. this gives me same feeling as my HD 600 aged and grown on me. but these are more softer. im sure will get better with time, InshaAllah.
 
sound, well, after my usual thing, first song i played on this was Hotel California, benchmark i guess, and man it sounded awesome. then some Jeremy Soule, Dragonborn and Winter's Tale. 
it really surprised me the way it announces details. the mids on almost all these songs gave me something i never heard before. and im not even joking here!
especially noticeable were the "psss" sound of that equipment which keeps on going in Hotel California on left side, i always thought it was something from drums but it is not. 
the thump in Dragonborn, the initial beating of drums, i never heard it before. the instrument that they play in Winter's Tale, the sound of it moving, its so Perfect!
 
sound stage is not small. yes it might be small when compared to HD800 or T1s but compared to HD 650, its as wide and distributed or even a little better. depth is enough, as is the width. 
BASS. well, there is nothing that feels like moving parts, not they i felt that in dynamics before, but i definitely felt that when i pushed the vol to top, like very top, and removed cans from ear and i could feel the driver moving. 
these are just WOW. bass is there, and  its a lot!
these are my first planars. 
 
i feel like the bass is coming to ear from all directions, like its from all over the place, which is a good thing. honestly with all Sennheisers i had, i felt like the bass is kinda coming from middle of ear. yes it gave the thump but not the fullness to BASS. here its more full. lows are LOWS, like REALLY LOWS! 
 
Cable is too short! like too too short! even for me. i sit like 1 feet away and used to coil up all the cable of my sennheisers. but here its cable is hanging. its good quality but its too short. also right angle is Bad! 
 
and i remember someone telling me my Fiio E18 Kunlun would be enough for these, well my friend its not. these are power hungry. 
i used to keep my volume at 20 levels from windows and full 10 on E18 and it was loud enough for my 250Ohm DT 990 Pros, at 50 level in windows vol 990 Pro started to hurt my ears. here i have 100 volume on Windows and 10 on E18 and i feel these are not Loud. these are just loud. so yea they need power. might have to get O2 ODAC or something else after getting advise from you guys here.
 
but in my 30 some minutes with these, i can tell the best thing about these are the mids and freaking details! i never thought i would be so happy with mids so clear! lol :D
 
i dont know if im making myself clear here, but im REALLY IMPRESSED! So happy cause i saved for a lot for these, and just to let u guys know how long i waited for these, i placed order on 28November. had to import them from USA.
 
anyways, i will post more of experience with these here soon. 

 
You get a thumbs-up for sheer joy.
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 1:55 PM Post #7,143 of 14,386
APO eq. Easy and free.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/equalizerapo/

And this for gráfica gui:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/peace-equalizer-apo-extension/?source=recommended



Yup. Read this thread for some info. Very customizable.

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/software-tools/246970-eq-tools-windows.html



Thank you very much guys, will check those links out soon :wink:
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 2:29 PM Post #7,144 of 14,386
 
Awesome, glad you're enjoying them. I highly recommend a Class A amp like the Audeze Deckard or Asgard 2 for them. 

 
 
Glad you liked them aami. Regarding power, I echo the sentiments below:
I'm using the APPJ 1502A Class A amp with the 400i and it sounds better than my Vali 2. (The opposite is true with my X00 headphones which are dynamics.) Consider getting a Class A amp.

thanks for advise, but i dont have $600 with me :D
my max budget is $250 may be a little more. thats it!
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 3:10 PM Post #7,147 of 14,386
 
Then the Asgard 2 is perfect. http://schiit.com/products/asgard-2

 
 
The APPJ I have costs $215 on Amazon and new tubes will be another $60 or so. I'm sure there are other used deals to be found. A few Asgard 2's are for sale on the used forum here for <$250.

would Asgard 2 be enough on its own? i mean its amp+pre amp.what about DAC? or am i missing something here?
i always thought the best combo is to get a dedicated amp and dac and that would be great. can u elaborate?
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 3:24 PM Post #7,150 of 14,386
If your budget is $250, I'd do one of two things: Schiit Fulla until you can save or Modi+Magni. Modi plus Asgard would be great but is probably slightly out of your budget.
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 3:26 PM Post #7,151 of 14,386
i use Fiio E18 via USB with PC mostly. very rarely i use it with mobile phone when i have to travel with long travel time :D


I don't think you can use that as a dedicated DAC so you would need a separate one to use another amp.

A very typical and relatively inexpensive desktop setup I could recommend is the Schiit Modi 2 USB DAC ($99 new) and the Schiit Asgard 2 Class A Amp ($249 new).

But: if the sound is already to your satisfaction or your budget is limited right now, it may be more prudent to just enjoy the 400i. Then if your circumstances change you can consider another step. One of the downsides of this hobby is diminishing returns.
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 3:38 PM Post #7,152 of 14,386
I don't think you can use that as a dedicated DAC so you would need a separate one to use another amp.

A very typical and relatively inexpensive desktop setup I could recommend is the Schiit Modi 2 USB DAC ($99 new) and the Schiit Asgard 2 Class A Amp ($249 new).

But: if the sound is already to your satisfaction or your budget is limited right now, it may be more prudent to just enjoy the 400i. Then if your circumstances change you can consider another step. One of the downsides of this hobby is diminishing returns.

 
i also have this setup in my sight, but i have to save a little for that. im not going for it like right away, will surely save first to get the most appropriate setup now. 
also i have read and seen reviews that Asgard gets too hot, one of reviewer from UK (a cold place) said at room temp of 25C his Asgard 2 got upto 49C which is too much! because where i live,
 
its 45+C NORMAL temperature in summer. yes i have AC cooling but its not on all the time in summer, so  would that be dangerous? i mean heat is so much problem here that my HD 650 started chipping its paint which, i thought was very durable.
 
what do u advise about that?
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 3:44 PM Post #7,153 of 14,386
i also have this setup in my sight, but i have to save a little for that. im not going for it like right away, will surely save first to get the most appropriate setup now. 
also i have read and seen reviews that Asgard gets too hot, one of reviewer from UK (a cold place) said at room temp of 25C his Asgard 2 got upto 49C which is too much! because where i live,

its 45+C NORMAL temperature in summer. yes i have AC cooling but its not on all the time in summer, so  would that be dangerous? i mean heat is so much problem here that my HD 650 started chipping its paint which, i thought was very durable.

what do u advise about that?

Chipping HD650 paint happens regardless of temperature. The Asgard gets hot, especially if you run it at low volume or leave it on when not in use. As a class A amp, it actually runs hotter the less hard it's working. But it won't be "dangerous." I wouldn't put it next to my candy dish but it's not gonna burn you or anything.
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 3:47 PM Post #7,154 of 14,386
Chipping HD650 paint happens regardless of temperature. The Asgard gets hot, especially if you run it at low volume or leave it on when not in use. As a class A amp, it actually runs hotter the less hard it's working. But it won't be "dangerous." I wouldn't put it next to my candy dish but it's not gonna burn you or anything.

ok thanks. i will surely be looking more into that setup. 
 
also what would u recommend to listen to on these new cans i got? 
biggrin.gif

i  have a very long list of stuff to listen to have already made playlists but thought about asking what do u guys listen to when u first get ur new phones?
 
Jan 20, 2016 at 4:04 PM Post #7,155 of 14,386
The first thing I listen to is whatever I'm used to hearing.

The second thing I listen to tends to be experimental music. I know some people like the Massive Attack albums (like Mezzanine) for doing a sound test of that kind.
 

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