[preproman]

You guys have to understand amps play a major role in this as well.  Those data sheets, charts and graphs don't tell you the whole story.  
 
On the B22 the HE-500s highs are a bit more top focused.  The 5LE can handle that power a little better.  The B22 is a pretty powerful amp.  That's why it's really hard to compare these IMO.  
 
Now on my balanced M^3 the 500s highs are not tilted, bright, hot, sharp or nothing.  But the M^3 has a harder time driving the 5LEs compared to the 500s.  The M^3 is a really laid back and warm amp - kind of tube-ish like (but not).
 
So the B22 is the only amp that I can compare these two on fairly IMO.  Thus these are the results I came out with.  
 
The 500s on the M^3 and the 5LEs on the B22 sound pretty much equal.  It would be very hard to pick one out in a blind listing test.
 
I haven't tried the balanced CK²III with the 5LEs yet but the 500s are great on that amp as well.  
 
I'll be doing some HE-6 and HE-5LE listing on the speaker amps later. 
 
 

 

[conquerator2]

http://www.avguide.com/review/hifiman-he-5le-planar-magnetic-headphones-playback-33
 
A great review and read! Practically convinced me on its own

 

[zibra]

Definetely give it a try. I dont think Ill ever let it go. Currently testing without foam inside cups.
I just received Sony MDR SA5000 after hearing how great they are in imaging and crystal clear sound. Well see.

 

[pataburd]

Listener impressions about the HE-500 being apparently "faster" is due, I believe, to their actually being less coherent than the HE-5LE.  I flatly disagree with the assertion that the 500 are "more revealing".  To me they were less revealing than the 5LE, particularly with regard to high frequency response and, to a lesser extent, low frequency response.  The 500 are definitely midrange prominent, but I will hastily add that--IMHO--they are not nearly as midrange coherent as the 5LE.

 

[pataburd]

Quote:

http://www.avguide.com/review/hifiman-he-5le-planar-magnetic-headphones-playback-33
 
A great review and read! Practically convinced me on its own

I really enjoyed that review as well.

 

[pataburd]

Quote:

Can you give a brief impression of all three and how you rank them.

I will have all three here soon and want to see if we agree.

HE-6
HE-5LE
HE-500

. . . arranged in descending logarithmic order.

To me the HE-6 are the culmination of everything already done right with the HE-5LE: excellent balance, detail, frequency extension, coherency, dimensionality and transparency. To these, the HE-6 add a more complete tonal and dynamic rendering across the board, gaining some of the comparative strengths recognized in the HE-500 v. the 5LE, but without relying on novelty. The HE-6 are headphones that I think come the closest to getting everything technically, sonically and musically "right"--of successfully getting out of the way of the source gear--at least in terms of my personal listening preferences.

My preferences for the 5LE over the 500 are already known. The latter have been targeted to a broader, "middle" market and, to Fang Bian's credit, have grabbed up a fair percentage of the customer base there.

 

[captouch]

Quote:

Listener impressions about the HE-500 being apparently "faster" is due, I believe, to their actually being less coherent than the HE-5LE.  I flatly disagree with the assertion that the 500 are "more revealing".  To me they were less revealing than the 5LE, particularly with regard to high frequency response and, to a lesser extent, low frequency response.  The 500 are definitely midrange prominent, but I will hastily add that--IMHO--they are not nearly as midrange coherent as the 5LE.

 
I never personally perceived the 500 as faster or more revealing myself.  I think the 500's have some treble roll-off which makes them seem more laid back and less fast/revealing vs the 5LE.  I think the 5LE is also a more exciting set of cans to me, though potentially more fatiguing with the wrong (badly recorded) material.
 
In the end (just a couple of days ago), I forced myself to choose and kept the 5LE's and sold my 500's - not because I didn't like the 500's, but I really wanted to keep only two higher end cans and for a variety of reasons, kept the 5LE's and HD650's.

 

[pataburd]

The HE-6 and the HFI-780 are the only two headphones I presently own; the former for critical listening, the latter for workplace convenience/portability.  None of the current, purely "dynamic" offerings interest me at all right now.  
 
God willing, I would like to a/b the HE-6 and the LCD-3 at some point, but am in no hurry.  The difficulty there lies in finding a single set of source equipment--i.e. a single amplifier in particular--suitable for both at the same time.  
 
Right now, I am getting surprisingly excellent results with the Fitz-improved Bada PH-12 and the HE-6 (and a really, really fine HeadphoneLounge cable).  The Bada may provide a future basis for a/b-ing the LCD-3 and the HE-6 in single-ended mode.  
 
Ultimately, I prefer the Qinpu A-1.0X integrated paired with the HE-6.  The HE-6 do, as did the 5LE, seem to best "find their stride" when driven by a power amp with more than ample reserves.  The ease, technical facility and inherent musicality of either of these fine HifiMAN offerings are really brought to the fore with the "right" amplification.  
 
The 500, to me, like the Beyerdynamic DT-880 redesign of 2005--a redesign that, in my opinion, fell short overall of their predecessor, the DT-880/2003--are targeted to a broader market and are the most politically-sonically "correct" of the three (HE-6, HE-5LE, HE-500).    

 

[preproman]

I agree with these rankings 100% for some of the same reasons as you and for some different ones as well.  Although, we don't agree about everything on these two headphones I think for the most part we're on the same page.  
 
Also most head fi'ers would probably pick the 500s over the 5LEs because of the use of most headphone amps that aren't up to snuff to power the 5LEs.  
 
When both are used on the majority of the headphone amps in use today I'll pick the 500s as well.  However, having speaker amps and knowing how great the 5LEs scale, the 500s has to take a back seat.  
 
Both take a back seat to the HE-6s

 

[asmoday]

Thats the reason I chose the 500's over the 5LE or 6. I am space challenged enough in my listening room. 

 

[Joong]

Is there anyone to tell me about part to part variation of SQ of he-5le?
This is one of the major concern for purchasing.
According to the structure of driver, tolerance control can be complicated, and the magnetization of the magnet array should be enough precise to control the SQ with respect to dynamic one.

 

[Kaiser]

I thought He500 were just a bass heavy version of the the he5le.

 

[conquerator2]

Quote:

I thought He500 were just a bass heavy version of the the he5le.

 
Nope they arent And if properly driven, the HE-5LE have stronger bass than the HE-500

 

[gunting]

Several folks have pointed out that the HE-5LE and the HE-6 significantly benefit from speaker taps and the use of an amplifier. I have the original HE-5 . Do you think this model would also benefit from speaker taps/power amp to drive them? If so, would you recommend using the Hifiman Speaker Adapter or just having a set of interconnects made for the 1/4 headphone jack? Also, what amps (emotiva?) would be well matched for the HE-5?

 

[conquerator2]

Quote:

Several folks have pointed out that the HE-5LE and the HE-6 significantly benefit from speaker taps and the use of an amplifier. I have the original HE-5 . Do you think this model would also benefit from speaker taps/power amp to drive them? If so, would you recommend using the Hifiman Speaker Adapter or just having a set of interconnects made for the 1/4 headphone jack? Also, what amps (emotiva?) would be well matched for the HE-5?

 
I d say definitely. I believe it is as hard to drive as the two, so yes speaker amp would definitely help.
If the speaker amp is under 150 wpc, the adapter shouldnt be necessary, but if you were planning something with higher wattage, then yes, absolutely.
A cable which terminates with either the banana plugs (for the speaker taps) is said to be best, but using the 1/4 output of the speaker amp should do too.
I am sure the Mini-X is a sure bet. If you want to try what speaker amps are like but want something affordable yet very good, try the Mini and see how you like it. You can always upgrade to a higher wattage amp if you like it. Its a good start definitely
 
Hope this helps!