[rwelles]

I've noticed a few people talking Schiit, what are your guys impressions of the lyr with these headphones?

I've been VERY happy with my Lyr>560 combo!!

 

[conquerator2]

 
If anything it'll be a great match. I find them more pleasing with neutral or north of neutral (bright) DACs.


Anyone try them with a Sabre DAC?

I am right now. It sounds pretty good...
The usual applies - tight, extended bass, sparkly, present treble and neutral, clear midrange. Musicality is pretty decent too.
I am pretty happy with the sound I am getting but I've still opted for a slightly warmer amp than my current neutral one, which should arrive in a week or so.

 

[jerg]

Added cumulative spectral decay plot of HE560 with the Focus-A pads to first post, courtesy of @purrin .

 

[tuna47]

I have said many times lyr bifrost in IMHO sound great with the 500 and 560 smooths out the 560

 

[rgs9200m]

  Added cumulative spectral decay plot of HE560 with the Focus-A pads to first post, courtesy of @purrin .

Can anyone offer an interpretation of those measurements? Thanks.

 

[jerg]

  Can anyone offer an interpretation of those measurements? Thanks.

Here's what comes up first with google search:
 
http://www.daytonaudio.com/OmniMicV2/hs17.htm
 
It's a fairly succinct explanation I think, just read the early section about CSDs.

 

[rgs9200m]

I'm going back and forth between my TH900 and HE560 on my Rudistor RP010B.
 
TH900 strengths: ambiance, bass impact,
non-pushy, slightly recessed vocals and mid-centric instruments like woodwinds,
liquidity (again, especially in vocals, where it counts to me),
sweet non-mechanical fizz-free highs, freedom from abrasiveness or sandpaper-affect on any vocals, kindness to all recordings, freedom from fatigue.
 
HE560 strenths: immediacy, detail, well defined image boundaries, layering, bass control and transparency,
sense of being there, liveness, 4th wall gone.
 
[It's not that either phone is not decent in any of the strengths of the other, it's that the other seems better at it.]
Overall, it's hard too say which I like better, so I'm just leaving it at that.
 
Why am I concentrating on these you may ask?
After finally getting around to setting up a desktop system with a Chord Hugo and the Rudistor amp (and ripping a lot of CDs), these 2 phones work best on this system for me (with honorable mention to my Grado GS1000i phones here).
 
I also have a PM-1, HD800,  LCD3, RS1, and HE500.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Very nice so far, very, very nice. I am glad I have the Yulong A18 coming as I can play the Asgard 2 on high gain full out without an issue. And my hearing is well within the range it should be for somebody my age. I do seem to have a slight loss in the 4K band. I will post more impressions after some more time. Cheers.

 

[Sonic Defender]

For the record, at full tilt it was quite loud, and slightly too loud, but I could feel that the 560 wanted more current. The sound with the A2 feels a little restrained for lack of a better word. I don't intend to listen that loud all the time of course, I was just surprised how much gain I could apply.

 

[drheadphone]

They've arrived...  Unfortunately I have a set with the mismatched pads, one new and one old.  Razordog is looking into it for me so hopefully that'll be sorted out soon.  I have the ContactAs already ordered...  [COLOR=0000FF]*edit* in the <10 mins I've been at the computer writing this, Brian phoned HiFiMan and a set of the new pads are being mailed directly to me tomorrow.     Well done Brian and HiFiMan!![/COLOR]

I got the mismatched pads too. I didn't notice it at first appearance. But I did notice the sound was slightly unbalanced. Vocals especially sounded louder on the A Focus pad. I got the replacement pleather pads but now curious about the A Focus pads. The 560's higher frequencies could use more taming for modern music.

 

[zxc]

Yeah as mentioned earlier, mine is 38/39 ohms respectively.
Seems like this varies quite a bit.
That said, the 560s can do well with less power but they certainly don't mind more as well ;D

I wonder if the impedance difference has any implications on sound, especially bass presence. Difference between an 36 Ohm and an 49 Ohm driver doesn't look negligible...

 

[Maxx134]

What - no one wants to point out the hypocricy of my remark (above)?  ...

The truth is I think the choice in one phone over the other, in the long run, cannot be determined.

Clear as mud? :blink:  

The Teac HA-501 Headphone Amplifier used in your testing only pushes about 1.5watts max per channel and only has single ended output..

There's no balanced xlr power to feed what both the he560 and the hd800 really need and deserve. To scale higher ..

The hd800 can show more bass with more power.
It has been said the hd800 can scale indefinitely. ..

As for the560, I can only say from my experience. .

I have gone thru a love/hate relationship untill recently (today) finally culminating to me having to agree that these headphones really do change.

I was contemplating letting these go for a more bass heavier planar and was frustrated because I only needed a little more (3db) overall.

So I near the 200 hrs mark and I decided to give it hell with my amp at near bleeding levels for a time, and came back to it much later, to find an increase of lively impact and weight(!).

I gave the headphones to another family member to ask if they herd any difference from before and he nonchalantly said, "yeah, it has a lil more bass weight"..
That noticable difference a "non-headfi head", made it tantamount to alot for me and I am now enjoying added size & weight to the sound(!).

Also, in comparison to my hd800,
The hd800 always does everything one step nicer, clearer, larger, or more better,
Yet it never made me believe them any more than just being "presented" as an Impressively clear, realistic and musical sound.

While the he560 actually startled me(!), at least expected times, into believing an actual "presence" or "body" in vocals showing thru, that was a different glimpse into realism that I did not expect to hear and experience at all..

I was very surprised that my technically proficient and detailed hd800 did not give me that specific type of "nudge" into realism.
Rather, the hd800 was a constant barrage of technical detailing, proficiency, and brighter liveliness. .

Like the hd800 displayed more "life"
While the he560 displayed more "soul".
Plus that added weight

So I believe the magic of the he560 is in the organic nature of the sound in planars in general,
that the he560 showcases Impressively as being so balanced.

Looks like the he560 turned out to be a nice compliment to the hd800. .
Musically, more like cousins to each other, displaying a different "view" to the music, rather than one simply being above another. .

 

[Roth_s]

The Teac HA-501 Headphone Amplifier used in your testing only pushes about 1.5watts max per channel and only has single ended output..

There's no balanced xlr power to feed what both the he560 and the hd800 really need and deserve. To scale higher ..

The hd800 can show more bass with more power.
It has been said the hd800 can scale indefinitely. ..

As for the560, I can only say from my experience. .

I have gone thru a love/hate relationship untill recently (today) finally culminating to me having to agree that these headphones really do change.

I was contemplating letting these go for a more bass heavier planar and was frustrated because I only needed a little more (3db) overall.

So I near the 200 hrs mark and I decided to give it hell with my amp at near bleeding levels for a time, and came back to it much later, to find an increase of lively impact and weight(!).

I gave the headphones to another family member to ask if they herd any difference from before and he nonchalantly said, "yeah, it has a lil more bass weight"..
That noticable difference a "non-headfi head", made it tantamount to alot for me and I am now enjoying added size & weight to the sound(!).

Also, in comparison to my hd800,
The hd800 always does everything one step nicer, clearer, larger, or more better,
Yet it never made me believe them any more than just being "presented" as an Impressively clear, realistic and musical sound.

While the he560 actually startled me(!), at least expected times, into believing an actual "presence" or "body" in vocals showing thru, that was a different glimpse into realism that I did not expect to hear and experience at all..

I was very surprised that my technically proficient and detailed hd800 did not give me that specific type of "nudge" into realism.
Rather, the hd800 was a constant barrage of technical detailing, proficiency, and brighter liveliness. .

Like the hd800 displayed more "life"
While the he560 displayed more "soul".
Plus that added weight

So I believe the magic of the he560 is in the organic nature of the sound in planars in general,
that the he560 showcases Impressively as being so balanced.

Looks like the he560 turned out to be a nice compliment to the hd800. .
More like cousins to each other than one above another. .

Well said and I feel pretty much in agreement with your last sentence. And they are complimentary to each other.
 
So you have experience with the Teac HA-501?

 

[Maxx134]

..

So you have experience with the Teac HA-501?

Actually no I just checked the power specs.
I have no doubt about the musicality and beauty of sound that amp can poses..
Only that I know the hd800 impedance actually responds to higher voltage and scales well in that environment.

The he560 sounded more expansive when I switched to balanced power..

 

[Roth_s]

I've got the Bottlehead Crack that provides plenty of power to the HD800, yet I heard a big step up in quality and drive from the Teac HA-501.
 
As in the speaker world, it's how loud I like my music and the actual sound quality of the equipment that are the real factors, not looking at specs on a sheet. Respectfully.
 
One of the first things my friend and I noticed was how deep and controlled the bass sounded from the Teac. That applies to the HE-560 for me. It does the job and I hope you get a chance to have it change your mind, someday.