[bigkef]

Hello fellow HE'6 ers'!!! 
 
I am very new to this forum and just got a chance to listen to my pair of (second hand but pristine) HE'6's last night thru my vintage Akai 1175 receiver (thank to Oregonian and other vintage headfiers) and the sound WAS absolutely incredible!!!!!  Bass was stunning and did not bleed into ANY other part of crystal clear frequency range!!!  -How is that possible with a single driver???  But anyway, I say WAS because the right driver went DEAD only about an hour into session!!!!  I was only playing at moderately loud levels (maybe 95-100 DB peaks) and (now I am sick over this)......   Anybody have an "inside track" with Hifiman (or other shop I can contact) for quick repair???    I really want to take a look to see if just bad solder joint or something...  Is this difficult??  

 

[Hansotek]

Hello fellow HE'6 ers'!!! 

I am very new to this forum and just got a chance to listen to my pair of (second hand but pristine) HE'6's last night thru my vintage Akai 1175 receiver (thank to Oregonian and other vintage headfiers) and the sound WAS absolutely incredible!!!!!  Bass was stunning and did not bleed into ANY other part of crystal clear frequency range!!!  -How is that possible with a single driver???  But anyway, I say WAS because the right driver went DEAD only about an hour into session!!!!  I was only playing at moderately loud levels (maybe 95-100 DB peaks) and (now I am sick over this)......   Anybody have an "inside track" with Hifiman (or other shop I can contact) for quick repair???    I really want to take a look to see if just bad solder joint or something...  Is this difficult??  

You can email them directly or they also have a customer service thread on Head-fi.

 

[Jozurr]

  Hello fellow HE'6 ers'!!! 
 
I am very new to this forum and just got a chance to listen to my pair of (second hand but pristine) HE'6's last night thru my vintage Akai 1175 receiver (thank to Oregonian and other vintage headfiers) and the sound WAS absolutely incredible!!!!!  Bass was stunning and did not bleed into ANY other part of crystal clear frequency range!!!  -How is that possible with a single driver???  But anyway, I say WAS because the right driver went DEAD only about an hour into session!!!!  I was only playing at moderately loud levels (maybe 95-100 DB peaks) and (now I am sick over this)......   Anybody have an "inside track" with Hifiman (or other shop I can contact) for quick repair???    I really want to take a look to see if just bad solder joint or something...  Is this difficult??  

 
E-mail them and they'll help you out. Their customer service is ace.

 

[Happy Camper]

Hello fellow HE'6 ers'!!! 

I am very new to this forum and just got a chance to listen to my pair of (second hand but pristine) HE'6's last night thru my vintage Akai 1175 receiver (thank to Oregonian and other vintage headfiers) and the sound WAS absolutely incredible!!!!!  Bass was stunning and did not bleed into ANY other part of crystal clear frequency range!!!  -How is that possible with a single driver???  But anyway, I say WAS because the right driver went DEAD only about an hour into session!!!!  I was only playing at moderately loud levels (maybe 95-100 DB peaks) and (now I am sick over this)......   Anybody have an "inside track" with Hifiman (or other shop I can contact) for quick repair???    I really want to take a look to see if just bad solder joint or something...  Is this difficult??  

Sounds like a blown driver. If you can, measure the driver. It won't be real quick as it will be Chinese New Year soon and they will be closed.

 

[cskippy]

...and that's why I've been "settling" with the Liquid Carbon.  Don't want to risk a blown driver.  Good luck, hope it gets fixed quickly so you can get back to 

 

[LarsHP]

  Hello fellow HE'6 ers'!!! 
 
I am very new to this forum and just got a chance to listen to my pair of (second hand but pristine) HE'6's last night thru my vintage Akai 1175 receiver (thank to Oregonian and other vintage headfiers) and the sound WAS absolutely incredible!!!!!  Bass was stunning and did not bleed into ANY other part of crystal clear frequency range!!!  -How is that possible with a single driver???  But anyway, I say WAS because the right driver went DEAD only about an hour into session!!!!  I was only playing at moderately loud levels (maybe 95-100 DB peaks) and (now I am sick over this)......   Anybody have an "inside track" with Hifiman (or other shop I can contact) for quick repair???    I really want to take a look to see if just bad solder joint or something...  Is this difficult??  

Did you experience when the driver was blown? What happened? Any pop or others strange sounds?
I expect you have tested all other possibilities (source, amplifier, cables and connections)?
 
For some reason some users get blown drivers, but others can play the HE-6 through speaker amps for months and years with no problems. I wonder what's going on with those setups where the drivers get blown.

 

[FredrikT92]

Can it be bad soldering that makes them blow when paired with alot of power?
Mine blew aswell and I had them repaired. They dident blow again when I used them with the amp they blew on, so its a mystery! 

 

[bigkef]

Thank everyone for the guidance!! I got an acknowedgement email response from Hifiman customer service this morning... Hopefully I will get some direct instructions to get these things fixed by tomorrow.. Again, thanks..

 

[bigkef]

Camper,


I just measured the driver and it's blown... I guess I'm at the mercy of Hifiman now.. Thanks for replying!!

 

[bigkef]

Lars,

There were no symptoms before the failure. Music cut in and out for a second (or less) and then,, silence.. I had volume pot at around 40-45% which was loud but not "fire truck" range, I just getting a "feel" for the sound (which was phenomenal)..

 

[Silent One]

Reports of blown drivers from fellow users got me a bit nervous (understated). As, I am good 

 most of the time. I do allow myself a few hi-speed passes during certain passages. I mean, the volume knob on the receiver is so big it's like...you gotta turn it!

 

[Happy Camper]

Reports of blown drivers from fellow users got me a bit nervous (understated). As, I am good :rolleyes:  most of the time. I do allow myself a few hi-speed passes during certain passages. I mean, the volume knob on the receiver is so big it's like...you gotta turn it!

None of my "accidents" were from listening. Both of mine were mistakes with a new source. I bet there are more that have blown theirs than are willing to admit. While there's a great reward, there is a danger with all that power.

 

[Silent One]

 
None of my "accidents" were from listening. Both of mine were mistakes with a new source. I bet there are more that have blown theirs than are willing to admit. While there's a great reward, there is a danger with all that power.

Good point you make, illustrating other ways one can get in to trouble. 

 

[preproman]

Yes what a painful price to pay.  As we have learned the hard way, Dave (Happy Camper) and I have been through it more than once.  As long as you start from a very low setting (0 is a good start) on the volume knob the chances are very low that a driver will blow.

 

[JamieMcC]

Having sold my previous Nelson Pass ACA (new owner is over the moon with it) and while its replacement is in build I dug out my old Teac H500 its a midi size amp and have been running the HE-6  via the speaker taps. Its been doing a really superb job of driving them. It puts out 50 watts per channel @ 8ohms
 
I thought it worth mentioning as they regularly come up for sale used around the £100 / $150 mark used and are a stunningly well made piece of kit with a 10mm thick solid aluminium face plate nice metal dials along with separate controls for balance, bass and treble and a remote!
 
(pics from the web)