[Biscuitz]

Definitely looking forward to trying these. I am patiently awaiting TheCableCo to get their Library pair, as I am first in queue to borrow it. When I do, I will post my impressions as well, and I'll offer some comparisons to my beloved HE-5LE.
 
I'll also mention in passing that I have had a chance now to try both the Focus and Focus-A pads with my HE-5LE. My impressions, which echo a lot of what's been said:
 
For me, the Focus-A pads offered a bit more room for my ears and thus were a bit more comfortable. That said, I still find the Focus pads pretty comfortable, though my old style velour pads are still perhaps the most comfortable of the three. Sonically, all three pads have their unique advantages. The production Focus pads, imo, are aptly named as they seem to give my HE-5LE the most "focused" sound. Imaging is superior with these pads, and the overall sound has a greater tightness (bass) and crispness (midrange / treble) to it. If these qualities sound good to you, then I think you'll appreciate the production Focus pads. The Focus-A pads, on the other hand, sounded substantially (to my ears) smoother, i.e. less crisp / more buttery. Vocals regain a bit of seductiveness to them that is lost with the Focus pads. Treble is non-fatiguing. Bass is a bit warmer, and truthfully sounds beautiful. With the Focus pads, the bass is quite dry; with the Focus-A pads, the bass has a bit more wetness to it, or as Conquerator so accurately put it - it has greater "fluidity". It's really quite beautiful sounding. That's a good way to describe it, really - the Focus-A pads make the HE-5LE sound beautiful. The Focus pads make the HE-5LE sound "focused" - again, aptly named I think! And actually, the HE-5LE with Focus-A pads reminded me quite a bit of the HD650! Like an HD650 on steroids - certainly had the smooth, non-fatiguing sound to it.
 
I like both pads, but they do different things to the sound. I know this is the HE-560 thread, but many owners of the HE-560 have been caught up in the pads storm and may feel curious or confused, so I thought it'd be appropriate to offer my findings on what either pads tend to do for the sound of a Hifiman.
 
PLEASE REMEMBER, these pad impressions are with my HE-5LE. They are meant to convey what the pads slightly do to the sound of a Hifiman, not what they actually sound like on the HE-560 itself - as I haven't heard it yet.

 

[maricius]

T
Outcome was that there was indeed a corrolation between daily noise (especially lower frequency noise) and our hearing loss in rural areas...people living in areas where ist quiet..like woods etc., Tend to keep their hearing longer..specially the highest and lowest frequencies hearing capacity gets lost the fastest, even if u sleep u get affected of noise around u in cities... I think it was a study in sweden if i am not mistaken a few years back..i read it in some medical magazine when i was working in a hospital back then.

But its oftopic..back on topic pls...
Maybe a 40+ club?

Anyone want to start a 21 year old and below club??

 

[Eric_C]

  These puppies LOVE POWER!!! Right now I'm driving them as: PC --> NuForce Icon HDP --> Burson Soloist SL (High Gain) Can't imagine these on better gear! (they probably give more expensive headphones a run for their money...)

 
High gain? But aren't they relatively sensitive (as Jerg just pointed out, the diaphragm is thinner than HE-500's, so it should be more efficient)?

 

[Soundsgoodtome]

It still has one less magnet than the 500 which could be the reason for inefficiencies.

High gain? But aren't they relatively sensitive (as Jerg just pointed out, the diaphragm is thinner than HE-500's, so it should be more efficient)?

 

[Moosecraft]

Anyone want to start a 21 year old and below club??

Sure just turned 18 a couple of weeks ago

 

[zxc]

Any comparisons with the Fostex TH900? Thanks!

 

[tuna47]

Anyone want to start a 21 year old and below club??

Enjoy it passes fast have fun and watch your music taste change

 

[songmic]

 

  That first one isn't anywhere remotely close to a review of the HE-560. The second one is more accurately described as an initial impression, as admitted by the author, though still interesting.

The HiFi+ HE-560 preview is really good. HE-560 is not at all easy to drive as advertised . I have used decent amplifier (LD MK III). It couldn't drive 560s.

 
It is still a rather difficult headphone to drive, sensitivity of 90dB is quite low. The LD MKIII would be a poor choice for the HE-560 as it is an OTL amp, and should be paired with something like an HD600/650.

 

[TMRaven]

HE-500 is written at 89db/mw while HE-560 is at 90, but Hifiman's numbers could be wrong.  Will have to wait for Innferdility's measurements where Tyll gives power to achieve 90db reading.
 
I don't think these are too difficult to drive.  Their average position on my Asgard2's volume pot is only slightly above what HE-400's used to be on average.  If I had a particular song at 12 o'clock with the HE-400, it was at 1-2 o'clock with the 560.  If I had a song at 11 with the HE-400, it was at around 12 with the HE-560 (all on low gain) Given Asgard 2's power distribution with its volume pot, I'm assuming those small differences are mere MWs.

 

[TMRaven]

This seems like a great chart to compare the Hifiman models for power needs. 
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/698974/hifiman-he-400i-impressions-and-discussion/705#post_10725717

 

[gelocks]

   
High gain? But aren't they relatively sensitive (as Jerg just pointed out, the diaphragm is thinner than HE-500's, so it should be more efficient)?

 
yeah, well... something mysterious is going on then... (or maybe it's my crappy gear!)
Still, I'm good with how I got it sounding so that's what's matter but I wouldn't plan to drive these with underpowered gear.

 

[jerg]

   
High gain? But aren't they relatively sensitive (as Jerg just pointed out, the diaphragm is thinner than HE-500's, so it should be more efficient)?

They are about on par in terms of efficiency from my loudness testing. Do not forget, HE500 has DOUBLE the amount of magnets compared to HE560, so that compensates entirely for HE560's thinner diaphragm; or rather HE560 had to thin down its diaphragm to have comparable efficiency to HE500 while cutting down magnets (and so the otherwise heavy weight of the drivers) by half.

 

[Sonic Defender]

I think the amp requirement will of course depend on the listener. If you like loud playback, you may need more power than say an Asgard 2 (which describes my scenario). Others may find this level of power perfectly acceptable. Your musical library intersects with your playing volume preference. If you like well mastered dynamic recordings (typically quieter on average), or older recordings (definitely quieter) and you also like higher playback volume you are going to need an amp with some muscle. The notion of hard to drive in this case is quite relative, but from my perspective the A2 for many users I suspect provides enough power for the 560. Try and affordable amp first, see if it works. If you aren't satisfied look for more power. The Lyr 2 has been mentioned as a powerful and affordable option.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Any comparisons with the Fostex TH900? Thanks!

There were a few mentions of this in the thread, try searching within the thread and you should find a few impressions. If I remember correctly the few TH900 users who posted seemed to prefer the 560 overall and specifically for the more articulate bass reproduction and the sound stage (although I believe the TH 900 like the D7000 has a very good sound stage for a closed can)>

 

[Eric_C]

Thanks everyone for weighing in on the amp pairing comment, very helpful as I expect to be a happy secondhand HE-560 in time to come.
FWIW I'll be trying out the Vali and Pico (DAC/amp, not the Slim or the Power) first and report back.