[zenpunk]

It seems to me that ortho drivers being mostly resistive what matters is just enough current  with large voltage swings and  high slew rates.

 

[Solude]

InnerFidelity is your friend.
 
HE-500 @ 90dB   310mV,  2.04mW
HE-6     @ 90dB 1018mV 19.69mW
 
The HE-6 is certainly needing serious power but personally I listen at 80dB and lets be honest modern music, not know for dynamic swing

 

[Loevhagen]

Hm. So, based on that dataset - what amp (as a minimum) would you recommend for HE-6 and HE-500? 
 

 

[Solude]

I wouldn't having heard neither  Power wise though the HE-500 can get away with pretty much anything, the HE-6 anything claiming ~4W+ should be plenty loud for even the stone deaf.  Where it gets interesting for the HE-6 is getting one biased enough to not be listening in class AB all the time.  Mjolnir, Dynahi, B22 certainly fit the deep bias spec.

 

[Loevhagen]

Volume plenty enough - that is just easy. That is not what the masses are dictating. They want control - and high SQ. Can 200mW provide that for the HE-500 and the HE-6?
 
For the HE-500 I say yes. For the HE-6 - I say maybe.
 
One of my stereo amps have 1500VA torodial transformer, and doubles the W going from 8ohm to 4ohm. The first power-parts is Class A. Even connecting the HE-6 to the bare speaker taps - I think the "power-hype" is ... a hype.

 

[preproman]

Quote:

Hm. So, based on that dataset - what amp (as a minimum) would you recommend for HE-6 and HE-500? 
 

 
 
Dark Star as well

 

[preproman]

Quote:

 I think the "power-hype" is ... a hype.

 
 
Can your V200 overcome the hype?

 

[Loevhagen]

Hype is just that; "more than enough". 
 
Just for the heck of it, I hooked my HE-6 once again to the speaker taps (no HE-adapter) to Abrahamsen V2.0 integrated amplifier. It plays a bit / tad different, but not to an extent that power is the only reason. The pre-amplifier part of the equation is significant...
 
The Yamaha RX-V2067 (from speaker taps) sounded bad in comparison to the integrated stereo amps. Hands down.

 

[LugBug1]

Thanks for all the input regarding my he500 power query. I think I'm just going to stick with the Asgard for now, its a great amp and works well with my other phones (all low imp). Still very early days but IMO the he500's work well with most headphone amps (I've got about 5 that I've tried) even a portable cmoy. As far as the tightening of the bass for my preference; a more powerful amp may very well push more at the bottom and give more control but this may come at the cost of distorting the highs? as the highs and mids seem just about perfect feeding them approx 1 watt.  This may just be the HE500's character, not dissimilar to the 650's in the very lower end, nice, warm and impactful but not as tight as others. I'm certainly not unhappy with the bass, I'm just looking for absolute perfection and the he500's are as close as I've come yet. Also it may be the price of designing a planner with low impedance? Some may argue that the LCD2 has perfect bass, but I've also read many times that the soundstage and highs aren't as good as the he500's. Suppose you can't have everything; efficiency and perfect SQ, but it looks like the Hifimans are pretty close (for me anyway). Cheers

 

[plin]

Quote:

... As far as the tightening of the bass for my preference; a more powerful amp may very well push more at the bottom and give more control but this may come at the cost of distorting the highs? as the highs and mids seem just about perfect feeding them approx 1 watt.  

 
I have found (in my HE-500) that there is a nasty resonance in the mid-low frequencies that makes bass less tight than it should. This resonance comes from the back black mesh. Removing it makes bass tighter and punchier, but it adds, also, a good amount (about 2dB) of treble boost.
Removing this mesh is easy and completely reversible. You can try it and see if the bass gets any better. More info here.

 

[WNBC]

Thanks for the link.  I don't think I'll need the mod for My HE-500.  You mentioned the newer HE-500 seem to have a thicker mesh.  Mine are only a couple months old and I would not consider the mesh on it flimsy so I probably got this thicker mesh you spoke of.  Trying to decide if I want more treble.  Definitely not with my Pioneer SX-750 as a headphone amp.  Could be interesting with the V200 though.  
 
Quote:

 
I have found (in my HE-500) that there is a nasty resonance in the mid-low frequencies that makes bass less tight than it should. This resonance comes from the back black mesh. Removing it makes bass tighter and punchier, but it adds, also, a good amount (about 2dB) of treble boost.
Removing this mesh is easy and completely reversible. You can try it and see if the bass gets any better. More info here.

 

[plin]

Quote:

Thanks for the link.  I don't think I'll need the mod for My HE-500.  You mentioned the newer HE-500 seem to have a thicker mesh.  Mine are only a couple months old and I would not consider the mesh on it flimsy so I probably got this thicker mesh you spoke of.  Trying to decide if I want more treble.  Definitely not with my Pioneer SX-750 as a headphone amp.  Could be interesting with the V200 though.  
 

You can just try the mod for a few minutes and see, eeh sorry, hear for yourself! 

Personally, I have tried to put the mesh back on the other day because I wanted to re-check if I still prefer it, and reject the 'normal' sound of HE-500 in a couple of minutes. Although it is still the same headphone, the difference is quite apparent and anyone can easily decide his/hers preference in a couple of minutes!
Please note that I equalize (cut) the 2dB high frequency boost.

 

[J-Pak]

I measured resistance on my HE-500, 45.5 (R), 45.3 (L). This is an older one with the thick black cable and hard flight case.

 

[Loevhagen]

My HE-500 is from the old-and-gold as well. Here´s a snapshot taken some time ago:
 
 

 

[RMZ250MX]

Ive desided to go with HE-500s but I'm struggling with choosing AMP/DAC for it.
What you guys recommend?
Mjolnir?WA6?Lyr?