[Drrizzt]

HE-6 are quite a weird beast. First of all, ZMF Universe or Auteur pads are a huge improvement not only soundwise, but more importantly when it comes to comfort. I've also asked Shipibo Audio to create a leather LCD3-like headband and now I find my HE-6 far more comfortable than for example HD800, Ether Flow or T1v2, which I've owned for reasonably long periods of time. I can wear them for hours in 25+ degrees celsius, they simply feel like a feather.

I've tested them with plenty of decent amps and while I loved the signature, they were never really THE pair of choice. Merely one of many. For ultimate listening experience I'd always pick 007Mk1 with KGSS. The precision, the soundstage, bass, highs, mids ... everything sublime
But first Audio-GD HE-9 arrived, now I've received R2R 7HE and surprisingly HE-6 are suddenly the clear favourite of mine. I've never witnessed such a soundstage in headphones, not only is it vast, but more importantly its coherent - organic, natural, I don't really know how to describe it. Even in 007mk1 I can clearly feel that the sound is produced from a pair of headphones sitting on top of my head. Maybe that's the limitation of KGSS, after all Blue Hawaii or DIY T2 are supposedly quite a big upgrade.

Obviously the HE-6 I'm using are modded, just to temper the highs a tiny bit. Some people may miss the oomph present in LCD3 or TH900, but the bass in HE-6 is tighter and faster ... and it can also shake the ground if needed. If I were to nitpick, I'd say that the midrange could be a bit warmer for my taste. Odins are still the clear favourite of mine when it comes to male vocals. That being said, hifimans are what I understand as the definition of euphonic.
For me HE-6 are the best HPs I've ever tested. And while better setups probably exist, I have neither access nor money to test them.

This He6 is a real transformist. With the Rega Brio-r, i got even more bass than with the Lcd3, And a slightly more liquid and refined mids, it sound almost like the Odin.
Beside, it`s a totally different headphones whan i pair it with the marantz pm6010ose, very much less euphonic, more open but the high are harsh. I absolutely have never seen a headphone capable of changing this much according to the amp, its quite amazing...but tiresome to find the right amp for it.

 

[lawrence2357]

This is also what I've found, I put it down to an amps ability to maintain voltage and current across the whole frequency range into a higher impedance load than they were designed for. My ice power asp1000 amp is great, bit it's possible it's a little rolled off on the highs, is hard to know if that's the neutral sound of the HE6 or a rolled off sound as I have no theoretically perfect amp to test against.

 

[LarsHP]

@firegon

Nice to know that you prefer HE-6 over the SR-007Mk1 with KGSS.

Apart from changing pads and headband, what mods did you do on your HE-6?

 

[firegon]

@firegon

Nice to know that you prefer HE-6 over the SR-007Mk1 with KGSS.

Apart from changing pads and headband, what mods did you do on your HE-6?

There are two "things" inside the cups, a thin, grey sponge-like material, resembling to the one used in HD600 and something that looks similar to wool. Sorry I can't be more specific, but I've no clue what those materials are called even in my mother tongue. I've seen this exact mod somewhere on the internet, so it's probably something fairly popular. From my understanding, the sponge tempers the treble and wool adds a bit of weight to the sound.

Also tried changing grills, but while the sound was slightly better I didn't really want to risk any sort of magnet damage. I'll probably do that at some point, but first I need to find some protective fabric, just like the one behind the stock grill.

Today I've received a second pair of HE-6, so I've sent those to someone who will create wooden cups and mod them a bit.

Oh and obviously I've tried various cables, but it's gear and preference based. Hopefully Draug Silver will elevate them to even higher level.

 

[LarsHP]

OK, thanks. Since you have seen the mods on the internet, maybe you can post a link or a photo?

I have removed everything on the outside of the driver: foam, fibres and grill - and just have a thin, transparent cloth to keep out dust. Between the driver and the cup, I have self adhesive paste (Pritt Multi Tack = Blu Tack) to seal the air gap and absorb resonances. And of course I have changed pads and sealed them to the cups.

 

[Silent One]

Most of my ownership with the storied HE-6 have been with Lawton Audio TH-900 pads (vinyl). The pads have become compressed over time, any recommendations to get them billow-y again?

 

[Keithpgdrb]

Most of my ownership with the storied HE-6 have been with Lawton Audio TH-900 pads (vinyl). The pads have become compressed over time, any recommendations to get them billow-y again?

Try inflating them with a hairdryer. Refreshes some.

 

[DavidA]

Apologies if this has been answered before but I still can get the search function working correctly.

A question about the HE-adapter, is it only used for tube amps? and if so why? There is nothing in the Hifiman store about the HE adapter only being need for tube amps and my understanding was that it was for both SS or tube amps to change the resistance the amp sees and to protect both headphone and amp.

 

[Silent One]

@ Keithpgdrb
Thanks, will give it a shot! I should wait to use my friend's h/dryer next visit. Dang...the microwave in my kitchen sure looks tempting! Perhaps, a plastic baggie and then...

@DavidA
A few years back, Dr.Fang Bian (founder/designer - HiFiMAN) spoke about the HE-adapter. Lots of stuff was getting blown up! Yup, both cans and amps - HiFiMAN began to see lots of returns and warranty issues, I suppose. So he sought to cut power if enthusiasts lacked discipline. The few head-fiers I'm aware of here reported the adapter sucking the life out of their SS amp's presentation and felt it wasn't needed. Personally, I've used my HE-adapter to protect my tube mono blocks only. With my monster receiver, I enjoy the modded HE-6 straight off the taps...sounds better this way in my opinion.

 

[DavidA]

@Silent One, thanks for the detailed reply, so my thinking the HE adapter was made to protect both amp and headphones makes sense but it was not designed only for tube amps but for both types of amps but it also degraded the sound.

 

[firegon]

@LarsHP

Looks similar to that. Now I know that the white thing is cotton. Obviously it isn't as advanced as anything You've done, but I like the sound better with it than without it.

 

[LarsHP]

@LarsHP

Looks similar to that. Now I know that the white thing is cotton. Obviously it isn't as advanced as anything You've done, but I like the sound better with it than without it.

Okay, so you removed these (foam and fibres) from the headphone? That's what many in this thread have done.

I can recommend sealing the driver and pads to the cup. It enhances bass quality tremendously.

 

[Silent One]

The HE-5/6 presented head-fier's with quite the challenge.

Okay, so you removed these (foam and fibres) from the headphone? That's what many in this thread have done.

I can recommend sealing the driver and pads to the cup. It enhances bass quality tremendously.

LarsHP, it's been a few years since I was tweaking on my HE-6. Just took them out of storage last week. Are you referring to the blu-tack mod when you mention "sealing" above? If so, that's something I never got around to. Would love to enhance the bass quality...thanks.

 

[LarsHP]

(...)
LarsHP, it's been a few years since I was tweaking on my HE-6. Just took them out of storage last week. Are you referring to the blu-tack mod when you mention "sealing" above? If so, that's something I never got around to. Would love to enhance the bass quality...thanks.

Yes, but not only. That is - I have sealed the pads to the cup (with double sided tape) and I have put self adhesive paste between the driver and the cup too (however, not to a complete seal). It appears to be important to get a 100% seal between the pad and cup. If it's almost, but not 100%, then a marked loss of sub bass will be the result - in my experience.

 

[Silent One]

Thanks for your helpful reply. Been about four years but I now remember sealing pad-to-cups but not sure how I addressed drivers.

This past week I’ve been getting reacquainted with my HE-6 after hiatus a few years...I’m still grinnin’!