[sathyam]

I got my HE-1000 3 days back. Right now, I am listening to DSD version of "The Firebird Suite"  by Eiji Oue - Minnesota Orchestra. The HE-1000 is a micro-imaging monster! I can hear a lot of details I could not previously pick up on the Abyss.
 
Truly a great headphone!

 

[KG Jag]

 

   
I agree. the gear should be as good as it can be. The production values of the music or recording quality doesn't matter to me if all I notice is the music (basically anything decent will work). Artistic intent, or the music matters more than anything else for me. When the engineering of the album takes a dump on the music or is so bad that overtakes it then I hate it. When it's completely coherent to what the recording is about, as well as its time and place, then all is fine. This is one of the reasons I like very very few classical records from before the 80's. When hiss and artifacts dominates the track I gotta go. I have no problems with recording quality from a lot more stuff from other genres before the 80's, which is funny now that classical built itself over the years as one of the top hifi-type recordings.

 
My dad's classic rock records sound pretty damn good for being 40+ years old, way pre 80. Sometimes the nitty gritty can not take the crackle out though. Listening to Elton John Tumbleweed Connection and Santana Inner Secrets. Really good stuff. Allot better sounding than allot of modern day recordings.

 
It was back at the beginning of 1967 that I had my first "headphone music" "wow" (or more like "cosmic & far out") experience with "The Doors".
 
However, even before that stereo albums The Blues Project, Buffalo Springfield and others sounded damn good as well.  A year later we had two Blood, Sweat and Tears albums.

 

[tiagojsag]

Hi,
 
I am seriously considering buying the HE1000, but not without first trying the alternatives. I currently own the Shure SE846, and have tried the HD800 in the past. Yesterday I tested the Grado RS2i, the Beyerdynamic T1 (both with a Lehmann audio Linear SE amp) and the Stax SR-009 (with the SRM-007T II). In all cases I am using my AK240 as dac/player (non-balanced).
 
As expected, the Stax blew my mind. I found the bass to be a bit underwhelming, I was expecting a stronger punch. But that also held true for the other headphones, and the AK240 is famous for this, so I am not blaming it on the headphones. Everything about the Stax was just amazing. I felt like trading a kidney for the hp+amp
 
The Beyerdynamic were ok, but honestly I don't think they are worth the investment when compared, for example, with the HD800. They do seem to have a slightly stronger bass (again, I blame the lack of bass across the board on the AK240) but the clarity seemed to be nowhere near the HD800. While I did see a slight improvement in overall sound when compared with my current Shure SE846, I would honestly rather stick with my current IEM than spend ~1k on such a minor upgrade.
 
The Grado were the biggest letdown ever. Probably a lot of people will disagree, and I respect that, but, in my personal opinion, they are simply bad. They are uncomfortable (I tested the over ear model), as the foam/headphone actually touches my ear, and the seal around it is not uniform. I can imagine that, best case scenario, I would take a lot of getting used to, to actually be able to "forget" I am wearing headphones. Plus, as the seal around the ear is not complete, everything just sounds distorted and out of place. I never had this problem with any other over ears, so I am blaming it on the headphones rather than on my ears.
 
Tomorrow I am testing the Oppo PM1, the LCD-3 and LCD-X and, of course, the HE1K. I am kind of worried that, now that I have tried the Stax, everything else will just sound boring :S Has anyone compared these 2 headphones, that can give me a small comparison, or a heads up on what to expect?
 
thanks
 
EDIT: found what I was looking for here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/748334/hifiman-he1000-planar-dynamic-flagship/2985#post_11510244
 
I do have another question: if I do buy the HE1K, that will basically kill my "headphones and gadgets" budget for a few months, so I won't be able to get a proper amp for them right away. But I saw that they are rated at 35-38 ohms, so I thinks I "should" be able to temporarily drive them with my AK240. Alternatively I can buy a second hand amp on ebay for 100-200€, but I really wanted to avoid that. Is it possible to drive the HE1K with the AK240 or my PC's built in sound card?

 

[up late]

I got my HE-1000 3 days back. Right now, I am listening to DSD version of "The Firebird Suite"  by Eiji Oue - Minnesota Orchestra. The HE-1000 is a micro-imaging monster! I can hear a lot of details I could not previously pick up on the Abyss.

Truly a great headphone!

thought they were comparable in that deaprtment

 

[moedawg140]

  Hi,
 
I am seriously considering buying the HE1000, but not without first trying the alternatives. I currently own the Shure SE846, and have tried the HD800 in the past. Yesterday I tested the Grado RS2i, the Beyerdynamic T1 (both with a Lehmann audio Linear SE amp) and the Stax SR-009 (with the SRM-007T II). In all cases I am using my AK240 as dac/player (non-balanced).
 
As expected, the Stax blew my mind. I found the bass to be a bit underwhelming, I was expecting a stronger punch. But that also held true for the other headphones, and the AK240 is famous for this, so I am not blaming it on the headphones. Everything about the Stax was just amazing. I felt like trading a kidney for the hp+amp
 
The Beyerdynamic were ok, but honestly I don't think they are worth the investment when compared, for example, with the HD800. They do seem to have a slightly stronger bass (again, I blame the lack of bass across the board on the AK240) but the clarity seemed to be nowhere near the HD800. While I did see a slight improvement in overall sound when compared with my current Shure SE846, I would honestly rather stick with my current IEM than spend ~1k on such a minor upgrade.
 
The Grado were the biggest letdown ever. Probably a lot of people will disagree, and I respect that, but, in my personal opinion, they are simply bad. They are uncomfortable (I tested the over ear model), as the foam/headphone actually touches my ear, and the seal around it is not uniform. I can imagine that, best case scenario, I would take a lot of getting used to, to actually be able to "forget" I am wearing headphones. Plus, as the seal around the ear is not complete, everything just sounds distorted and out of place. I never had this problem with any other over ears, so I am blaming it on the headphones rather than on my ears.
 
Tomorrow I am testing the Oppo PM1, the LCD-3 and LCD-X and, of course, the HE1K. I am kind of worried that, now that I have tried the Stax, everything else will just sound boring :S Has anyone compared these 2 headphones, that can give me a small comparison, or a heads up on what to expect?
 
thanks
 
EDIT: found what I was looking for here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/748334/hifiman-he1000-planar-dynamic-flagship/2985#post_11510244
 
I do have another question: if I do buy the HE1K, that will basically kill my "headphones and gadgets" budget for a few months, so I won't be able to get a proper amp for them right away. But I saw that they are rated at 35-38 ohms, so I thinks I "should" be able to temporarily drive them with my AK240. Alternatively I can buy a second hand amp on ebay for 100-200€, but I really wanted to avoid that. Is it possible to drive the HE1K with the AK240 or my PC's built in sound card?

 
With regards to your "another question", the HE1000 doesn't get very loud with the AK240, at least when I tried it.  For most people it will provide a low to medium noise level (I wasn't able to measure the dB sound output).  It may be sufficient enough for you until you upgrade to an amp, or more powerful DAP like the Lotoo PAW Gold, or powerful and super clear-sounding DAP like the Questyle QP1R.  Both of those can power the HE1000 to listenable levels and still have headroom.  My PC built in sound (Asus P5E3 Deluxe/WiFi-AP@N) and Surface Pro 2 for reference does not provide sufficient volume output to power the HE1000 to enjoyably semi loud to loud listening levels.

 

[tiagojsag]

Hi,
 
Thanks for the reply, moedawg140
 
My plan does not involve changing DAP. For now, I will (probably) buy the HE1k and, later down the road, Schiit's Ragnarok + Yggdrassil combo. The HE1k+AK240 combo will be a temporary solution, until I can afford the Ragnarok. But I don't plan on carrying the HE1k around, so portability is not a goal here. For that, I already have the AK240+SE846.
 
Once again, thanks for your feedback

 

[moedawg140]

  Hi,
 
Thanks for the reply, moedawg140
 
My plan does not involve changing DAP. For now, I will (probably) buy the HE1k and, later down the road, Schiit's Ragnarok + Yggdrassil combo. The HE1k+AK240 combo will be a temporary solution, until I can afford the Ragnarok. But I don't plan on carrying the HE1k around, so portability is not a goal here. For that, I already have the AK240+SE846.
 
Once again, thanks for your feedback

 
No worries, and sounds like you have it all figured out!  Take care. 

 

[LouisArmstrong]

  Hi,
 
I am seriously considering buying the HE1000, but not without first trying the alternatives. I currently own the Shure SE846, and have tried the HD800 in the past. Yesterday I tested the Grado RS2i, the Beyerdynamic T1 (both with a Lehmann audio Linear SE amp) and the Stax SR-009 (with the SRM-007T II). In all cases I am using my AK240 as dac/player (non-balanced).
 
As expected, the Stax blew my mind. I found the bass to be a bit underwhelming, I was expecting a stronger punch. But that also held true for the other headphones, and the AK240 is famous for this, so I am not blaming it on the headphones. Everything about the Stax was just amazing. I felt like trading a kidney for the hp+amp
 
The Beyerdynamic were ok, but honestly I don't think they are worth the investment when compared, for example, with the HD800. They do seem to have a slightly stronger bass (again, I blame the lack of bass across the board on the AK240) but the clarity seemed to be nowhere near the HD800. While I did see a slight improvement in overall sound when compared with my current Shure SE846, I would honestly rather stick with my current IEM than spend ~1k on such a minor upgrade.
 

 
I also have the SE846 and SR009 (with BHSE), but the HE1000 still appeals to me. It is a different kind of amazing.

 

[TonyNewman]

   
I also have the SE846 and SR009 (with BHSE), but the HE1000 still appeals to me. It is a different kind of amazing.

 
That's a pretty impressive list of awesome right there. Does the SR009 + BHSE combo get most of your HeadFi time?

 

[JaZZ]

  ...if I do buy the HE1K, that will basically kill my "headphones and gadgets" budget for a few months, so I won't be able to get a proper amp for them right away. But I saw that they are rated at 35-38 ohms, so I thinks I "should" be able to temporarily drive them with my AK240. Alternatively I can buy a second hand amp on ebay for 100-200€, but I really wanted to avoid that. Is it possible to drive the HE1K with the AK240 or my PC's built in sound card?

 
My FiiO X5 drives it surprisingly well, sonically better than the HD 800 (relatively speaking) – it's even loud enough with low gain. Now how does this translate to the AK240?

 

[drez]

Hek is a great headphone, and probably less likely to turn off people than HD800, but it's also a lot of money... IME ak240 sounds a bit dead so HEK might help by adding body and flow. I would expext it to be more forgiving of gear and recordings than HD800 also.

 

[musicman59]

   
With regards to your "another question", the HE1000 doesn't get very loud with the AK240, at least when I tried it.  For most people it will provide a low to medium noise level (I wasn't able to measure the dB sound output).  It may be sufficient enough for you until you upgrade to an amp, or more powerful DAP like the Lotoo PAW Gold, or powerful and super clear-sounding DAP like the Questyle QP1R.  Both of those can power the HE1000 to listenable levels and still have headroom.  My PC built in sound (Asus P5E3 Deluxe/WiFi-AP@N) and Surface Pro 2 for reference does not provide sufficient volume output to power the HE1000 to enjoyably semi loud to loud listening levels.

I concur with this. i tried my HE-1000 with my AK240 and I need to max out the AK240 volume to have a decent volume level but still clearly under powered.

 

[moedawg140]

  I concur with this. i tried my HE-1000 with my AK240 and I need to max out the AK240 volume to have a decent volume level but still clearly under powered.

 
The QP1R by comparison gets to pretty loud levels.  The entire night/this morning, I had to keep it at around 38 out of 60 on high gain while listening to the HE1000, and that was loud enough already.  Sounds so intoxicating. 

 

[tiagojsag]

  I concur with this. i tried my HE-1000 with my AK240 and I need to max out the AK240 volume to have a decent volume level but still clearly under powered.

Ok, thanks for the warning. Guess I'll just grab a cheap amp then, until I can get a high end one. As you can tell by now, I have a thing for Schiit's stuff, so I'll probably get a Magni2 Uber. Any thoughts on that combination?

 

[sathyam]

thought they were comparable in that deaprtment

They are close but you can tell the difference. HEK was using stock cable, Abyss was using DHC Spore 4 Silver. I am waiting on the adapters from Peter for the Spore 4 cable. Then I will be able to compare then on an even keel.