[hong]

 
These pads look really nice.  Are they totally plug and play, or did they need some modification?  Do you think they're worth the asking price?
 
I'm trying to determine if its worth upgrading the pads and cable on my 400i.  I just got them a few days ago for $250, so pads and cable upgrade would practically be the cost of the phones themselves.

 
As @fjrabon mentioned, the Lawton pads do not come with the plastic rings, so you gotta reuse the ones that came with the stock pads. I had to peel off the stock pads off the plastic ring, since they are glued down onto the ring. After removing them, I just simply slipped on the new pads onto the ring. You are not required to glue the new pads back down onto the plastic ring, since they fit onto the ring very snugly and should not shift around with use.
 
Compared to the focus pads, they are slightly more uncomfortable brand new, since the material's harder than the velour that comes with the focus pads, but I find the improvement of the SQ and listening experience justifiable. 

 

[drwlf]

   
As @fjrabon mentioned, the Lawton pads do not come with the plastic rings, so you gotta reuse the ones that came with the stock pads. I had to peel off the stock pads off the plastic ring, since they are glued down onto the ring. After removing them, I just simply slipped on the new pads onto the ring. You are not required to glue the new pads back down onto the plastic ring, since they fit onto the ring very snugly and should not shift around with use.
 
Compared to the focus pads, they are slightly more uncomfortable brand new, since the material's harder than the velour that comes with the focus pads, but I find the improvement of the SQ and listening experience justifiable. 

 
The official velour pads from HiFiMAN contain the ring (surprise surprise), isn't glued, and costs 10 bucks.

 

[Hunki Chunki]

Yup likewise, i just gently removed the glued on ring from the original pads and am using it unglued in the alpha pads (much better unglued, you can still kinda adjust the pad after putting it on the headphones), no issues whatsoever.

 

[BookerDeWitt]

Hey guys, I'm new here. I'm wondering what people think about using these for gaming?

The primary reason I'm looking at these is I simply want planar. Second reason is music. 3rd reason is gaming...

However admittedly I will probably end up using them for gaming 70% of the time, so wondering what y'all think... thx

 

[Ancipital]

Hey guys, I'm new here. I'm wondering what people think about using these for gaming?

The primary reason I'm looking at these is I simply want planar. Second reason is music. 3rd reason is gaming...

However admittedly I will probably end up using them for gaming 70% of the time, so wondering what y'all think... thx

 
They worked well for me- I play a lot of Overwatch, which is benefits from rapid understanding of accurate spatial audio cues, and found that they worked really well for pinpointing sounds. They're also quite comfortable and surprisingly light for planars, which is important for long gaming sessions.

 

[zlatan]

Hi all,
 
I currently use a pair of Sennheiser HD25's for all my music listening and I'm looking at purchasing a pair of 400i's to replace them, and relegate the HD25's for DJ'ing only.
 
I bought a Violectric V100 and HD650's a few months ago, but returned the HD650's because of (IMO!) their bloomy midbass, lack of air and anaemic subass. I kept the Violectric V100 though, as it tightened up the HD25's and made them a bit more controlled.
 
As an all-rounder headphone, does the 400i present a balanced frequency spectrum (with some air hopefully), and does it present more DETAILW than the HD25? I don't want to "upgrade" to a headphone of a similar amount of detail.
 
Cheers

 

[Ancipital]

   
 
I bought a Violectric V100 and HD650's a few months ago, but returned the HD650's because of (IMO!) their bloomy midbass, lack of air and anaemic subass. I kept the Violectric V100 though, as it tightened up the HD25's and made them a bit more controlled.
 

 
yes, the HE-400i are really easy to drive, it will probably not stress your V100.

 

[fjrabon]

Hi all,

I currently use a pair of Sennheiser HD25's for all my music listening and I'm looking at purchasing a pair of 400i's to replace them, and relegate the HD25's for DJ'ing only.

I bought a Violectric V100 and HD650's a few months ago, but returned the HD650's because of (IMO!) their bloomy midbass, lack of air and anaemic subass. I kept the Violectric V100 though, as it tightened up the HD25's and made them a bit more controlled.

As an all-rounder headphone, does the 400i present a balanced frequency spectrum (with some air hopefully), and does it present more DETAILW than the HD25? I don't want to "upgrade" to a headphone of a similar amount of detail.

Cheers

The HE400i doesn't have much air (it's basically the same as the HD650 in that regard), it does have much more detail the the HD25 though. The HE400i doesn't have much sub bass unless you're willing to EQ. Doesn't sound like what you're after to me. Sounds to me like you're after a HE560 or LCD2.2 (both are more expensive).

 

[zlatan]

The amp is powerful enough I just didn't care for the sound signature of the HD650s personally...

 

[fjrabon]

The amp is powerful enough I just didn't care for the sound signature of the HD650s personally...

Yeah, the idea that the V100 is "too weak" is rubbish. People may not like how the HD650 sounds out of the V100, but "too weak" is nonsensical unless they discovered a new measurement of electricity other than wattage, voltage and current. The V100 is a bit on the warm side with its stock op-amps, that's probably what you're describing with bloomy mid-bass. But to my ears the HD650 also has bloomy midbass out of the bottle head crack, which is the most common recommendation for the HD650. The only amps I've really heard that the HD650 didn't have boomy midbass were the Liquid Carbon, Lyr2, Jottenheim and Torpedo III with output CCS. Oh, and oddly enough the midbass was fairly controlled out of the dragonfly red. Basically the HD660 has bloomy midbass, period, and a handful of amps can ameliorate it somewhat, and it has nothing to do with whether they're too weak or strong enough.

But back on topic, LCD2.2s with the fazor sound awesome out of the V100 and hit what you're describing: great sub bass, controlled mid bass, moderately airy highs. Upper midrange is a tad recessed, but not really noticeable unless you're trying to hear it. HE560 would be the choice for even more detail and even more airiness, but with less sub bass (although the subbass is extremely high quality). You won't nail all the aspects you're after without stepping up to something like the Abyss, or a calibrated HD800. Or a HE6.

 

[shuto77]

Hey guys, I'm new here. I'm wondering what people think about using these for gaming?

The primary reason I'm looking at these is I simply want planar. Second reason is music. 3rd reason is gaming...

However admittedly I will probably end up using them for gaming 70% of the time, so wondering what y'all think... thx

They're fine as long as you're not coming from something with a really big soundstage, such as an AKG (Q or K series), Beyerdynamic or Philips. Those typically have better soundstages, but usually have drawbacks in relation to the HE400i.

 

[Ancipital]

Saying that the V100 is "too weak" could send some people in search of a more powerful amp than the V100 for the HD650

 
We can but hope, shilling for overpriced, underpowered midfi is rather the rule in these parts, though.
 
If you like paying a fortune for a boring, flat, unresolving amp in a very pretty box, that's one thing- especially if you have cloth ears and a strong sense of aesthetics. I have no idea if they have crummy slew, poor tradeoffs in the feedback design or what- that's simply not my job to know. It is gutless, slow and unresolving, distinctly mediocre. They do make some good SS amps- the V280 sounds nice, and would be a decent deal for about 60% of its usual price (looks very smart, too). 
 
However, a V100 in a chain with HD650? Welcome to an expensive quality bottleneck, that doesn't sound much better than a Magni.

 

[Voxata]

Well, that certainly helps.  All I know so far is that they're a step up from the HD650, and K7xx and almost all the way to the HE500 / HE560.  They're cheaper than the HE400S today, too, so I plunged and just bought 'em.  Now I just gotta get the Schiit Modi 2 Multibit, and Magni 2 Uber.  In a year or so the next step is the HE-Xv2 and Lyr 2 + Bifrost Multibit.

As someone who has owned the Lyr2, A2, Bifrost etc.. I'd recommend Mimby+Jot balanced to 400i. Big step ahead IMO for the 400i.

 

[Ancipital]

  Well, that certainly helps.  All I know so far is that they're a step up from the HD650, and K7xx and almost all the way to the HE500 / HE560.  They're cheaper than the HE400S today, too, so I plunged and just bought 'em.  Now I just gotta get the Schiit Modi 2 Multibit, and Magni 2 Uber.  In a year or so the next step is the HE-Xv2 and Lyr 2 + Bifrost Multibit.

 
If your amp is good enough, they're not a step up from the 650, but a bit of a downgrade. For a lot of people, they're a sidegrade. For less good or equally overly warm/polite amps, they might sound better. When all things are equal, you get nice fast attack on the transients of the 400i, but decays aren't quite as nice as on dynamic drivers. They also ring somewhat in some frequencies if you look at the CSDs- the famous "ortho wall", but that can't be helped. They're brighter than the 650, which can fool the uninitiated into thinking they're more detailed than they are- the Beyerdynamic effect.
 
The have a slightly plastic timbre, and a slight upper-mid suckout that can cause strings to vanish under brass, and also very slight grain in the treble compared to the 560. They have a more "radio friendly" tuning than the 560, too, which lots of folks enjoy.
 
For people looking for a second pair of headphones for a different flavour, or for something easy to drive, they're really good value. The current price is killer, they're well worth picking up.They're an undemanding and enjoyable headphone for the money.

 

[Voxata]

I've owned both the 650 and 400i, balanced from Jot I felt the 400i took the cake. Didn't stop me from buying a 6XX for a less fatigued listen and simply because I still like the 650 and will mod the pair eventually. It however is not what I'd consider a side grade.