[Maxvla]

No, the cups are identical forward or backwards since they are perfect circles. The only thing that changes is the orientation of the driver and the foam wedge placed over part of the driver under the thin foam screen on the surface. Have you tried it with yours?

 

[grokit]

I remember that, something about an open side and a foamed side porting and covering the drivers, and how this reversal technique changed the sounsdstage somewhat for better or worse depending on the listener.

 

[daveDerek]

Quote:

On a multi layer related note - I picked up a pair of Hifiman RE-262 IEMs in trade today. I'm quite impressed with them. I think they are similar to my HD600 in that they are very good, but still have room to go. The tonal balance is good, but lacks clarity in the upper end (also similar to HD600). The 3D headstage is quite present and superior again to any full size headphone I've ever worn. I really see this as my new direction. The HE-6 just isn't doing it for me.

Unfortunately even with a fairly high impedance (150ohm) and low sensitivity (95db) I still get substantial hum from my MKVI so the best amp I have for these presently is the built in amp from my Shanling CDP, which doesn't sound amazing, and couple that with the subpar DAC it also has inside and I really can't say for sure where these IEMs will go. Listening through the hum on the MKVI shows much better treble clarity, but the hum is too distracting for detailed analysis.

Still on the fence about trying the speaker amp route with the HE-6. They still sound best when flipped around and cables swapped. The only reason I haven't done something to get rid of them yet is if more power makes this flipped orientation more lively (more forward, mostly) it could still serve a purpose.

 
it sounds like you could use either a decent portable amp to drive the 262s or perhaps the a headamp g lite or the upcoming gilmore x2, if you are resistant to a portable unit.
if you can go small the soon to be released rsa sr71b can drive the he6s nicely and it would probably do a bang up job with the re262s too, and that's probably true with the ibasso toucan which only costs $229 (half of what the schiit lyr is projected to cost).
 

 

[Maxvla]

I don't believe in portable hi-fi for many reasons, so I'm focused on a top quality desktop amp. I have been eyeing that X2, but not sure what I'll do in the mean time since it won't be out til sometime in 2011. Currently listening on the MKVI despite the hum, and if I keep it on rock/pop/louder stuff it doesn't bother me as much. The clarity and extension really shines with the better DAC and amp, despite the mismatch creating the hum.

 

[Zoide]

Skylab: Thanks for the Concerto impressions.  Do you think that it's worth upgrading from the HE-5LE to the HE-6 even if I have a relatively modest amp (Meier-Audio Corda Opera)?

 

[daveDerek]

Quote:

I don't believe in portable hi-fi for many reasons, so I'm focused on a top quality desktop amp. I have been eyeing that X2, but not sure what I'll do in the mean time since it won't be out til sometime in 2011. Currently listening on the MKVI despite the hum, and if I keep it on rock/pop/louder stuff it doesn't bother me as much. The clarity and extension really shines with the better DAC and amp, despite the mismatch creating the hum.

 
i'd love to hear about your objections to going with a portable, if your willing to share/air.  the headamp gilmore lite has been reported by folks to run iems nicely and may do so with the re262s. i'm not sure how it would do with the he6s.  they have a small foot print and have been showing up with some frequency lately on the fs boards.
 

 

[Maxvla]

I'll respond via PM since it's completely off topic.

 

[coolcat]

yesterday night we've also tired the HE6 with The  Auditor,Audio GD Phoenix and DIY M3, They sound fine out of these 3 amps ,but still the most powerful amp ,the DIY Tube amp,performs better ( tube used EL34 telefunken oo and Mullard XF1 oo getter). Bad records sound bad (Feist  The Reminder here and some pirate cds from China  , I just thought I got a pair with driver problem, and that's was the reason I ran out at 10 pm to my friend's house to compare mine and his LOL.
 
by the way ,I think HE6 are more comfort for me to wear than the LCD2 ,I got today.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

With the my tricked out WA5LE the answer on the distortion front is yes and no. My Amp is said to be "perfect" for the HE6, this coming from Head-Direct.
 
With music there is no distortion but with Blu Ray movies (DTS HD MA, True HD) there is a little distortion in the very low bass and very high treble. This distortion is not there using my HD-800s (Cardas Cable) or my D7000. Of-course there is a much bigger dynamic range with movies, but still this should not be.
 
I have a Warren Audio X-10 cable for the HE6 on its way to me (I hope), maybe that will help with the little distortion I am hearing.
Tonight I will be changing BD-players from my BDP-09 to my BDP-83SE/NE just to make sure.

 
I believe the X10 cable will be a good match for the HE-6, but I don't see how it will help with some of the distortion you hear when playing Blu Ray movies with deep bass.  That sounds to me more like an amping issue.
 
Quote:

Quote:

New amp from Schiit due early 2011, the Lyr, a hybrid amp specifically designed for high current orthos outputting 6W @ 32ohms. $449

I have to say that this news is officially causing me to consider an HE-6 purchase, as I don't want to buy the EF6 and would prefer to get an American-made amp.

I'm also very interested in the Lyr.  While the Asgard and Vahalla sounded very nice, they didn't fill a gap or need in my amp collection.  The Lyr seems like something that could be very useful if it's 3x more powerful than my ZDT at low impedances.  I think my SAC amp may be 2x more powerful and perfect with K1000, but it's got a little bit of forward upper mids and treble that is not as great with the HE-6.  I'd love to try an EHHA or Stacker amp with the HE-6 too.

 

[glc]

Just an fyi for anyone interested in changing the stock cables for the HE-6. I happened to break one of the stock connectors on the cable when my He-6 banged up against the table (on the connector of course). Luckily, I had a Moon Silver Dragon for my HE5 that was lying around. I have to admit that changing the cable made the music sound very different while running through my A-GD Phoenix.I will have to A-B to cables when I get the stock cable fixed.
 
IMO, I thought the Moon cable warmed up the music but I am sure everyone will hear differently.

 

[Skylab]

Quote:

I sometimes wonder if the front of Rob's house is actually an audio shop. Rows of amps, sources, speakers, headphones..

LOL!  Nope, it's a very normal house...but there is a bit of audio gear around!  Most people outside of head-fi don't have bedside headphone rigs, after all.
 
The main area of ridiculousness is my office, where I have the RSA Stealth, Woo WA2, Meier Concerto, and Decware Mini-Torii.  I obviously don't NEED four amps of that caliber in my office.  But they help me get through some long days at work!  The HE-6 also reside at my office, along with the T1.


Quote:

Skylab: Thanks for the Concerto impressions.  Do you think that it's worth upgrading from the HE-5LE to the HE-6 even if I have a relatively modest amp (Meier-Audio Corda Opera)?

I really cannot answer this, I'm sorry - never listened to either one with the Opera.  My recollection of the Opera was that it had less output power than the Concerto, so that would seem to rule out the HE-6.

 

[dlrkdnjs]

Today I got a used Sonic frontiers SFC-1 amplifier(maybe 45wpc into 8ohm).
The result is so great!!! Never thought to hear such a great sound from a headphone.
My Melos SHA Gold was not bad, but this combo is really fantastic!!!

 

[grokit]

From not bad to fantastic... another HE-6 speaker amp convert 

 !

 

[daveDerek]

Quote:

Quote:

New amp from Schiit due early 2011, the Lyr, a hybrid amp specifically designed for high current orthos outputting 6W @ 32ohms. $449

I have to say that this news is officially causing me to consider an HE-6 purchase, as I don't want to buy the EF6 and would prefer to get an American-made amp.

I'm also very interested in the Lyr.  While the Asgard and Vahalla sounded very nice, they didn't fill a gap or need in my amp collection.  The Lyr seems like something that could be very useful if it's 3x more powerful than my ZDT at low impedances.  I think my SAC amp may be 2x more powerful and perfect with K1000, but it's got a little bit of forward upper mids and treble that is not as great with the HE-6.  I'd love to try an EHHA or Stacker amp with the HE-6 too.

i really hope that they put a 4 pin xlr jack on the Lyr so that you could directly plug in the HE6 or AKG K1000. Schiit guys, are you listening?

 

[moodyrn]

 
Quote:

From not bad to fantastic... another HE-6 speaker amp convert 

 !

I haven't received my he-6s yet, but I used to own the he-5. I must say going from a powerful headphone amp to a speaker amp did bring the performance to another level. I know some will say it isn't necessary, and for them it may not be. But I've seen people making posts criticizing other people posts who say it makes a significant difference which isn't fair. If a speaker amp makes a big difference on the he-5, it must make an even bigger difference using one on the 6s since they are much harder to drive. It's always better to have too much power than not enough power. I can't imagine any headphone amp having to much power with these. Just my opinion though.