[mikey1964]

I'm keeping my HE500 stock simply because I find it pretty damn good already without any mod necessary. Only things I'd changed are the pads, swapped them out for a pair of Focuspads. Is it me or does it have smoother mids and better vocals when compared to the HE400i? Admittedly, they sound quite similar other that what I'd mentioned....oh yeah, the HD400i seems to have better bass as well.

 

[joespride]

kept mine stock for better than 2 years and perhaps thats why I can hear such a difference with the grill mod
 
I find that once get used to something I tend to get bored (the 500's have done better at quelling this than any other audio product to date) and since I have no $$$ to buy anything I looked at the mods list performed a simple test (covered the cups to see if the 500's sound different) They are a completely different can this way so it made perfect sense that if more grill equals a different sound, less grill would have to do the same and it turned out less grill offered ME better clarity, more inner detail vocals show so much more depth 
 
IMHO the fuzzer mod is kind of like room treatments inside the cans and should tame some reflections which usually tends to be a good thing
 
I totally understand not modding the 500 I agree they are great in stock form, but as with everything in audio there is always room for improvement, if all audio were perfect we would all be happy with Beats 

 

 

[Terja]

>>>  
IMHO the fuzzer mod is kind of like room treatments inside the cans and should tame some reflections which always tends to be a good thing

 
^^ THIS !

 

[joespride]

Tried thee fuzzor mod today and though I spent a couple hours performing the mod it lasted about 1 hour B-4 taking it back off,  My impression of the mod was my 500 seemed to go back in sound Quality, IE... the mod killed some of the clarity, dulled bass, overall made the cans less defined with some harshness on the highs (I know the harshness sounds counter to the rest of my impressions but thats the way I heard things)
 
Loved the grill mod, Fuzzor not so much 

 

[borrego]

Tried thee fuzzor mod today and though I spent a couple hours performing the mod it lasted about 1 hour B-4 taking it back off,  My impression of the mod was my 500 seemed to go back in sound Quality, IE... the mod killed some of the clarity, dulled bass, overall made the cans less defined with some harshness on the highs (I know the harshness sounds counter to the rest of my impressions but thats the way I heard things)

Loved the grill mod, Fuzzor not so much :blink:

It looks like you may want to try myblack pearl mod instead.

 

[BeatsWork]

It looks like you may want to try myblack pearl mod instead.

 

 

[skyline315]

  Is it me or does it have smoother mids and better vocals when compared to the HE400i? Admittedly, they sound quite similar other that what I'd mentioned....oh yeah, the HD400i seems to have better bass as well.

MUCH better vocals and mids compared to the 400i.  This was the deciding factor for me.  The 400i has "shouty" vocals in relation to the 500.  The 500s sound far more natural.
 
The bass on the 400i is tighter and more controlled.  But, the difference wasn't enough to sway me one way or the other on that one.  

 

[jiggahwhat]

I just got a pair of these. I powered these out of a chromecast feed to my speaker amplifier (Denon v477).  
 
And I have to say in general I'm disappointed. Not because of these headphones per se, but because I think I'm expecting more out of a headphone than what they may be able to deliver. The problem being listening fatigue.
 
In the past I've had the Hifiman HE-400, and while they were a great headphone, and everything resolved, the headphone was way too bright and I was never ever able to listen to a full album in its entirety. Since then I've bought various quad-driver earbuds, which work well but don't have the soundstage or fullness of sound that a full size headphone has. I've also bought a Phillips Fidelio L1, which is a warm, dark headphone that is not fatiguing, but lacks detail resolution and clarity. 
 
I have very modest floorstanding tower speakers from Pioneer - bought for $120 - but the detail resolution and bass on those is excellent. You can hear everything in the music, and not at all be fatigued by brightness. 
 
To date I have failed to achieve this same kind of sound in a headphone. I was hoping the HE-500 would address this fault of the HE-400, giving me details in a headphone that wasn't excessively bright. It did not - and it still has the tizziness on vocals, hi-hats, and high-frequency sounds. At this point I'm going to move onto the Audeze LCD-2 with the hope that headphone might be the one I can listen to for hours at a time and hear everything in the music. 

 

[raybone0566]

I just got a pair of these. I powered these out of a chromecast feed to my speaker amplifier (Denon v477).  

And I have to say in general I'm disappointed. Not because of these headphones per se, but because I think I'm expecting more out of a headphone than what they may be able to deliver. The problem being listening fatigue.

In the past I've had the Hifiman HE-400, and while they were a great headphone, and everything resolved, the headphone was way too bright and I was never ever able to listen to a full album in its entirety. Since then I've bought various quad-driver earbuds, which work well but don't have the soundstage or fullness of sound that a full size headphone has. I've also bought a Phillips Fidelio L1, which is a warm, dark headphone that is not fatiguing, but lacks detail resolution and clarity. 

I have very modest floorstanding tower speakers from Pioneer - bought for $120 - but the detail resolution and bass on those is excellent. You can hear everything in the music, and not at all be fatigued by brightness. 

To date I have failed to achieve this same kind of sound in a headphone. I was hoping the HE-500 would address this fault of the HE-400, giving me details in a headphone that wasn't excessively bright. It did not - and it still has the tizziness on vocals, hi-hats, and high-frequency sounds. At this point I'm going to move onto the Audeze LCD-2 with the hope that headphone might be the one I can listen to for hours at a time without. 

I don't think the lcd2 will satisfy you. They are not the best for detail & resolution. You should look at the he-560. They are very detailed and IMO reference quality phones. Read the reviews here. Jude just did a review recently stating they may be the best planar in that price range. They sound fantastic.

 

[Rockcoon]

Fail. HE560s brighter than 500s.
I would give a try to new ATH R70x. It's only 350 bucks. These cans delivers "safe" sound with touch of warmth, but doing this not as muddy as hd650s.

 

[BeatsWork]

  I just got a pair of these. I powered these out of a chromecast feed to my speaker amplifier (Denon v477).  
 
And I have to say in general I'm disappointed. Not because of these headphones per se, but because I think I'm expecting more out of a headphone than what they may be able to deliver. The problem being listening fatigue.
 
 At this point I'm going to move onto the Audeze LCD-2 with the hope that headphone might be the one I can listen to for hours at a time and hear everything in the music. 

 
You're looking for maximum resolution but feeding your amp streaming audio? The HE-500 is extremely detailed and I can listen for hours but it is also very unforgiving of source material. Feed it crap and it will sound like crap. I would look at your chain before buying another headphone.  My chain : Flac>Jriver>DAC>amp>He-500 = Bliss

 

[rwpritchett]

@jiggawhat

Have you tried using a headphone amp? My receiver (RX-V667) sounds like ass through the headphone out.

 

[raybone0566]

Fail. HE560s brighter than 500s.
I would give a try to new ATH R70x. It's only 350 bucks. These cans delivers "safe" sound with touch of warmth, but doing this not as muddy as hd650s.

560's bright!? I've owned them for a while and haven't noticed it yet. I never found the 500's bright either. The only reason I parted ways with them was the loose bass. The 560 is much more natural sounding to me. Everyone's tastes differ though.

 

[Rockcoon]

560's bright!? I've owned them for a while and haven't noticed it yet. I never found the 500's bright either. The only reason I parted ways with them was the loose bass. The 560 is much more natural sounding to me. Everyone's tastes differ though.

560s brighter relatively to 500s. That not my notice. It can be found, if read through forum.

 

[joespride]

  I just got a pair of these. I powered these out of a chromecast feed to my speaker amplifier (Denon v477).  
 
And I have to say in general I'm disappointed. Not because of these headphones per se, but because I think I'm expecting more out of a headphone than what they may be able to deliver. The problem being listening fatigue.
 
In the past I've had the Hifiman HE-400, and while they were a great headphone, and everything resolved, the headphone was way too bright and I was never ever able to listen to a full album in its entirety. Since then I've bought various quad-driver earbuds, which work well but don't have the soundstage or fullness of sound that a full size headphone has. I've also bought a Phillips Fidelio L1, which is a warm, dark headphone that is not fatiguing, but lacks detail resolution and clarity. 
 
I have very modest floorstanding tower speakers from Pioneer - bought for $120 - but the detail resolution and bass on those is excellent. You can hear everything in the music, and not at all be fatigued by brightness. 
 
To date I have failed to achieve this same kind of sound in a headphone. I was hoping the HE-500 would address this fault of the HE-400, giving me details in a headphone that wasn't excessively bright. It did not - and it still has the tizziness on vocals, hi-hats, and high-frequency sounds. At this point I'm going to move onto the Audeze LCD-2 with the hope that headphone might be the one I can listen to for hours at a time and hear everything in the music. 

I dont think your problem is the cans I think it is source related or delivery of the source, The 500 is miles away from being bright and it has loads of detail.........................I was 100% vinyl  with set amps and horn speakers b-4 going the headphone route, and the 500 reveals MUCH more detail than the aforementioned, and using my tube amp and NOS dac I feel like I am pretty close to analog SQ
 
what you describe sounds like a bright delivery or poor source, which a pair of speakers could easily mask