[chimney189]

They will.

When V3 comes out and they want another grand.

I guess it doesn't really make much sense to charge $1,000 for an upgrade when the original V2 costs $3,000 and the SE costs $3,500..

Then again, I believe that Abyss and Utopia charge nearly half a thousand dollars for pad changes/upgrades..

 

[eee1111]

How many focal utopias are there?

Hifiman are abusing he1k customers. Imo

I own the v2. And I stood by and defended them.
Not anymore. You watch in 1.5 years V3 will be out. And everyone will feel obligated to upgrade.

 

[llcook51]

on a side note:

sitting here 1:41 am with my he1000v2 really enjoying

What a great album; especially, with headphones. It "blows your mind." I am 67, so I remember hearing MMT when it was first released. Really changed the way a whole generation listened to and thought about music.

 

[dcguy73]

Time for silver cables! I switched from the copper Norne Audio Draug 3 to the Moon Audio Silver Dragon [v3(?)] and the sound took a half-step up. More detail and more crisp (crisper?) transients. Next, I switched to my old Norne Audo Silvergarde 2 cable (with adapters from 2.5mm to 3.5mm) and the sound filled out a bit more. Not a drastic change, but noticeable. I think I'm going to stick with what I have until I have the $$ to upgrade to Silvergarde 3 or the silver Draug 3.

 

[JaZZ]

If you like(d) the Silver Dragon: In my system the Lavricables Grand is quite a step up from it, especially in terms of (natural) soundstage, detail and high-frequency extension. (Im speaking of the standard HE1000 with V2 pads, though.)

 

[Gibson59]

They will.

When V3 comes out and they want another grand.

Ugh you're so right... and if it's a significant upgrade in sound unfortunately i'll be one of the first pony up (no self control when i want something)! But really, how much better can it get?!? I think we may have hit the point of diminishing returns anywhere past the HEKse. @TeamHiFiMAN you've officially been challenged! (But how about a $500 upgrade lol)

 

[marhol]

I guess it doesn't really make much sense to charge $1,000 for an upgrade when the original V2 costs $3,000 and the SE costs $3,500..

Then again, I believe that Abyss and Utopia charge nearly half a thousand dollars for pad changes/upgrades..

Yes it seems a bit unfair on first but on the other hand a brand new He1000 v2 can be found and bought for less than 3000 $ or €. To put things into perspective I bought a new HEK v2 in June 2018 for 2620€ in EU and I guess I wasnt the only one who got such discount in recent months.
I am happy with HEK v2 and also happy for HEK se owners who are satisfied with their purchase.
I would like to audition HEK se given the chance in summer 2019.

 

[thecrow]

I guess it doesn't really make much sense to charge $1,000 for an upgrade when the original V2 costs $3,000 and the SE costs $3,500..

Then again, I believe that Abyss and Utopia charge nearly half a thousand dollars for pad changes/upgrades..

How many focal utopias are there?

Hifiman are abusing he1k customers. Imo

I own the v2. And I stood by and defended them.
Not anymore. You watch in 1.5 years V3 will be out. And everyone will feel obligated to upgrade.

Customers should not “feel obligated” to pay for the newer model. Tempted? Absolutely. Obligated? Mmm...no.

And if a company offers someone the OPTION of paying $1k to change to the new model i would not categorise that as “abuse” and IMHO it makes good sense to offer customers the option of payong the $1k to swap to the newer model IF YOU WANT even if your headphone is a couple of yeara old.

Maybe that’s just me. Maybe I’m being unreasonable

 

[thecrow]

What a great album; especially, with headphones. It "blows your mind." I am 67, so I remember hearing MMT when it was first released. Really changed the way a whole generation listened to and thought about music.

How did you feel about Pet Sounds at the time too?

edit: i've got my albums confused - i meant to compare sgt peppers to pet sounds - but i guess MMT is not far off the timing

 

[GU1DO]

I guess it doesn't really make much sense to charge $1,000 for an upgrade when the original V2 costs $3,000 and the SE costs $3,500..

Then again, I believe that Abyss and Utopia charge nearly half a thousand dollars for pad changes/upgrades..

Abyss dont provide any upgrade solution anymore , they even canceled the waiting list.

 

[Hifiearspeakers]

Abyss dont provide any upgrade solution anymore , they even canceled the waiting list.

That’s stupid. And their headphones are way overpriced. The Abyss Diana Phi should have been the original Diana. The original Diana should not even exist with those tiny earpads.

 

[GU1DO]

That’s stupid. And their headphones are way overpriced. The Abyss Diana Phi should have been the original Diana. The original Diana should not even exist with those tiny earpads.

Overpriced that's for sure , thankfully i bought my 1266 at the cost price which is way cheaper then the MSRP
yes its not the latest model but still a good deal , i never buy a Used headphone but also not at its retail price ,,
even my HE1000se i got it last black friday with huge discount

 

[chimney189]

I heard that Abyss will be offering the Phi pads sometime this year.

 

[Gibson59]

Customers should not “feel obligated” to pay for the newer model. Tempted? Absolutely. Obligated? Mmm...no.

And if a company offers someone the OPTION of paying $1k to change to the new model i would not categorise that as “abuse” and IMHO it makes good sense to offer customers the option of payong the $1k to swap to the newer model IF YOU WANT even if your headphone is a couple of yeara old.

Maybe that’s just me. Maybe I’m being unreasonable

Not unreasonable at all dude. I couldn't agree more.

IMO they're doing us a huge favor by offering the upgrade option. For everyone who whines about this, are they supposed to offer new and better tech for free? Are they not allowed to try and make improvements? This is business. Think about the downside if there weren't an $1,000 upgrade option... Initially you would buy HEKv2 for $2,500 or so then sell it used for what $1,500? Then you take that $1,500 from you sale and have to pay an additional $1,500 - $2,000 on top of that (plus tax) for the HEKse. And if you wanted to pay less then you'd have to buy a used pair of HEKse. So I'd argue there are three significant and obvious benefits to the $1,000 upgrade option directly from Hifiman: 1) Saving us the hassle of having to find a buyer for our used headphones 2) Saving us $500 (and that's a conservative number) or more on the upgrade cost 3) We get a brand new in box headphone.

I'd much rather them keep trying to improve their headphones and offering us an upgrade rather than them not making any improvements just so we don't have to face our own GAS! If someone's budget is topped out after buying the HEKv2 don't hold that against Hifiman... plus the HEKse retails for more than the HEKv2 anyways, so you would have been paying more money for it one way or another. Don't slap the hand that feeds you!

 

[UsoppNoKami]

Not unreasonable at all dude. I couldn't agree more.

IMO they're doing us a huge favor by offering the upgrade option. For everyone who whines about this, are they supposed to offer new and better tech for free? Are they not allowed to try and make improvements? This is business. Think about the downside if there weren't an $1,000 upgrade option... Initially you would buy HEKv2 for $2,500 or so then sell it used for what $1,500? Then you take that $1,500 from you sale and have to pay an additional $1,500 - $2,000 on top of that (plus tax) for the HEKse. And if you wanted to pay less then you'd have to buy a used pair of HEKse. So I'd argue there are three significant and obvious benefits to the $1,000 upgrade option directly from Hifiman: 1) Saving us the hassle of having to find a buyer for our used headphones 2) Saving us $500 (and that's a conservative number) or more on the upgrade cost 3) We get a brand new in box headphone.

I'd much rather them keep trying to improve their headphones and offering us an upgrade rather than them not making any improvements just so we don't have to face our own GAS! If someone's budget is topped out after buying the HEKv2 don't hold that against Hifiman... plus the HEKse retails for more than the HEKv2 anyways, so you would have been paying more money for it one way or another. Don't slap the hand that feeds you!

Yep. Upgrade a used headphone to a new one = get the latest model, new in box with fresh warranty where your previous model may be running out already. Good luck getting such a deal with other gadgets such as phones and tablets, I know plenty of ppl who 'upgrade' during every new model release paying full RRP or entering new contracts endlessly. I bought the SE outright as I did not have a older HE1K to trade up from, but I personally think a $1k top up deal for a new TOTL headphone with warranty is a great deal.