Terja
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2012
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Cross-posting this from the other 1000 thread:
Just came back from the Vancouver Audio Show 15 and got a chance to demo the HE1000. Thanks for the Heads(fi)-up Peter otherwise I would have totally missed it.
First off handling the HE1000 felt exactly like I thought it would from the pictures -- lighter than I figured, being used to wearing the HE-500 it felt like it was comparatively much lighter, very comfy and well-cushioned.
Sound wise this is quite difficult to zero-in on with demo set-ups even though I came away with a few impressions (below). Hifi Centre, who are going to be carrying the HE1000, were driving them balanced with an Auralic Taurus headphone amp. They also had the HE-560 accessing the same source but driven by the Hifiman EF100, so a quick side-by-side comparison of the two headphones was possible. I mostly listened to James Blake's 'Limit To Your Love' since I wanted to test the bass out. I also listened to some other tracks that don't particularly stand out. Against the HE1000 the HE560 sounded a bit edgy or perhaps strident (that's the word that came to mind). But having extensively listened to the 560 before I would say this was probably due to the amp. One just comes up against the shortcomings of demo set ups here.
The HE1000 sounded incredibly full, perhaps enveloping is the word vs the 560. It just felt like listening to speakers in an acoustically treated room (ala HE1000) (there were so many speaker audio rooms at the show), vs a room full of interrupters. Bass was incredible, didn't feel like the 1000s were breaking any sweat with the James Blake track. Detail was all there but I would put the 1000 on the warm side of detail.
I really would have loved to try the HE1000 with my own set up using familiar parameters, but the headphone really impressed and gave the sense of being miles ahead of the 560. P.S. Couldn't get the 560 to simultaneously play from the 1/4 inch headphone out of the Auralic Taurus which would have been a better comparison.
Just came back from the Vancouver Audio Show 15 and got a chance to demo the HE1000. Thanks for the Heads(fi)-up Peter otherwise I would have totally missed it.
First off handling the HE1000 felt exactly like I thought it would from the pictures -- lighter than I figured, being used to wearing the HE-500 it felt like it was comparatively much lighter, very comfy and well-cushioned.
Sound wise this is quite difficult to zero-in on with demo set-ups even though I came away with a few impressions (below). Hifi Centre, who are going to be carrying the HE1000, were driving them balanced with an Auralic Taurus headphone amp. They also had the HE-560 accessing the same source but driven by the Hifiman EF100, so a quick side-by-side comparison of the two headphones was possible. I mostly listened to James Blake's 'Limit To Your Love' since I wanted to test the bass out. I also listened to some other tracks that don't particularly stand out. Against the HE1000 the HE560 sounded a bit edgy or perhaps strident (that's the word that came to mind). But having extensively listened to the 560 before I would say this was probably due to the amp. One just comes up against the shortcomings of demo set ups here.
The HE1000 sounded incredibly full, perhaps enveloping is the word vs the 560. It just felt like listening to speakers in an acoustically treated room (ala HE1000) (there were so many speaker audio rooms at the show), vs a room full of interrupters. Bass was incredible, didn't feel like the 1000s were breaking any sweat with the James Blake track. Detail was all there but I would put the 1000 on the warm side of detail.
I really would have loved to try the HE1000 with my own set up using familiar parameters, but the headphone really impressed and gave the sense of being miles ahead of the 560. P.S. Couldn't get the 560 to simultaneously play from the 1/4 inch headphone out of the Auralic Taurus which would have been a better comparison.
