[martel80]

I knew a guy that did what you do, and he said he wanted it harsh, so after hours and hours, he'd be hit over the head so he wouldn't miss it.

The Stealth is probably too warm for you. Have not heard the Nano but it has a reputation along the lines of what you want. What about near-field monitors, or it headphones only?

The most defined sound I know over 250 Hz are estats (needing an amp, or energizer, bass and cost issues) and the Rall CA-1a (need power) but with the filter applied I've never heard anything as defined, even 20k speakers, but the bass has a good dollop of harmonic distortion.

I already master on Lipinski L-707 with upgraded A driver. Impecable, really. I bought the Nanos not expecting much but was blown away by the amount of details and transient response with very low distortion in the mids.

I was coming from the HD650 and Q701 which are staples in our trade for years now and the nanos really blew them oout the water.

I’m just wondering if I can get even better which is why, after reading and researching all I could find, given my budget, I wanted to gather more
Info about the HE1000se and the MM-500 to help me make the best decision between the two.

I never heard about the cans you mentioned but I will definitely have a look at them. I just need a full range solution with tons of definitions and details with fast transient response.

Thanks for the comment, I appreciate.

Edit: I can’t work with anything harsch or I’ll mix dull. That’s why I use corrective eq

 

[bagwell359]

Ok my review of HE1K V3 is complete and can be read here.
https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/hi...th-stealth-magnets.26331/reviews#review-31946

Pros:
-lush and open musicality
-mid centric tonality
-most natural timbre of any Planar HP or IEMs ive test
-gigantic headroom
-deep thumpy warm bass
-excellent sound layering
-intimate mid range with full bodied instrument
-lively yet not agressive macro dynamic
-end game female vocal
-great sens of proximity with piano, vocals, sax, guitar etc
-tactile large and dense instrument presence
-fast attack speed and control
-smooth treble that don't lack richness or fine detailing
-plenty of lower mids, nothing sound thin with those
-very comfortable even after hours and hours of listen
-great construction
-very decent sound value even with it's high price

Cons:
-not the best bass separation and definition
-lack a bit of treble sparkle and brilliance
-not end game imaging
-underwhelming packaging
-so so cables
-metal headband part isn't as elegant as rest of construction




For now its my favorite Hifiman headphones, big time. For those finding Sennheiser HD820 mids too thin or Arya too U shape and lacking a bit of lower mids warmth....its a must. I mean, audiophile that need meaty intimate mid range will be in heaven with the Stealth. Cello, piano, saxo and female vocal are truely blissfull.

Curious if you found the amp sensitive re: FR? On the Platinum I found the bass a bit spongy, on the Ragnarok 1 the bass was much better, but the 5,5-7k area was a bit zingy. In general I agree with your observations.

 

[bagwell359]

I was coming from the HD650 and Q701 which are staples in our trade for years now and the nanos really blew them oout the water.

I imagine I'd agree.

I’m just wondering if I can get even better which is why, after reading and researching all I could find, given my budget, I wanted to gather more
Info about the HE1000se and the MM-500 to help me make the best decision between the two.

MM-500 based on a short listen is more neutral than the Stealth.

I never heard about the cans you mentioned but I will definitely have a look at them. I just need a full range solution with tons of definitions and details with fast transient response.

Transients are better for estats (Stax, etc), and ribbons (Rall) with very possibly the new HEDD headphones than dynamics or planars. The planar that most fits at a sane price range would be the HFM HE-6 SE (open back as are just about any cans that aspire to a decent sized soundstage) but it needs 2+ wpc at 50 ohms and you'd need to look for used or restored at the moment. The other stuff is all well more expensive.

Thanks for the comment, I appreciate.

Edit: I can’t work with anything harsch or I’ll mix dull. That’s why I use corrective eq

Good to know.

 

[martel80]

I imagine I'd agree.

MM-500 based on a short listen is more neutral than the Stealth.

Transients are better for estats (Stax, etc), and ribbons (Rall) with very possibly the new HEDD headphones than dynamics or planars. The planar that most fits at a sane price range would be the HFM HE-6 SE (open back as are just about any cans that aspire to a decent sized soundstage) but it needs 2+ wpc at 50 ohms and you'd need to look for used or restored at the moment. The other stuff is all well more expensive.

Good to know.

Is there any electrostatic or ribbon cans that deliver full range and detailed bass under 2k$ ?

 

[javertim]

Is there any electrostatic or ribbon cans that deliver full range and detailed bass under 2k$ ?

The CA-1A comes in at exactly $2,000, but then you have to have a compatible amp, or, at the very least, the transformer box... and that's another $500. You may be able find a used deal for the combo at around $2K, and with the "donut" pads, the bass is definitely there and very detailed.

 

[bagwell359]

The CA-1A comes in at exactly $2,000, but then you have to have a compatible amp, or, at the very least, the transformer box... and that's another $500. You may be able find a used deal for the combo at around $2K, and with the "donut" pads, the bass is definitely there and very detailed.

A pair w/ adapter sold here for about $1625 about 7-10 days ago. It has detail in the bass and decent heft compared to say a DCA Voce (one of the best basses of an estat, but its mot a match for the HE-6 SE, never mind the HE-6 OG. Still, it's the apple of my eye these days but needs the filter to reach its heights.

Also the new Arya Organic is another can to check out.

 

[Lindholdt]

I've had my HEKS for a few weeks now, and I'm not returning them
They are giving me a great experience everytime I put them on my head. They make me re-listen music I have hear 100's of times before, just to experience how different/well these headphones portray the music.
The downside is that some of my old electronic musik do fall a bit apart, as these headphones inform my of how poorly the music was made/mastered. I generally find them forgiving in most scenario's, but downright badly produced music do get punished with these.
Been running them mostly on the V200 and the SMSL, but at some point, I want to give a decent/good tube amp a try, as I'm a sucker for a great soundstage

 

[Nick727]

I'm starting to think that the HE1000 Stealth at $1399 might be one of, if not the best deal in headphones right now. The slightly warmer tuning and having a bit more bass compared to the V2, SE, and Susvara might make these the most enjoyable to listen to while retaining most of the detail of the more expensive models. If you prefer a more vocal forward presentation, these could be most people's endgame.

Listening to live performances, I've never felt a more realistic representation than on these headphones. Well recorded female vocals literally give me the chills, and I've never had that experience before with any other headphone except for maybe the HE1.

Additionally, they're super comfortable and I could forget they're on my head.

I'm honestly surprised these aren't being talked about more...

Edit: If anyone is interested, I really enjoyed this performance with the headphones and I thought I'd share: Olivia Rodrigo - Vampire (Live)

 

[martel80]

@javertim and @bagwell359
Have you guys tried the stax sr007 mk2 or the hifiman jade 2?

 

[NymPHONOmaniac]

Curious if you found the amp sensitive re: FR? On the Platinum I found the bass a bit spongy, on the Ragnarok 1 the bass was much better, but the 5,5-7k area was a bit zingy. In general I agree with your observations.

yes i do. it add warmth to it, their a bit of euphonic boost in mid bass i feel with EF600 which i enjoy but with HE1K Stealth its alreay there so we got double low mids warmth if we can say.
no Zingy at all with EF600 tough. smooth as butter. yet, pass 10khz i feel their some roll off going on.

 

[bagwell359]

I've had my HEKS for a few weeks now, and I'm not returning them
They are giving me a great experience everytime I put them on my head. They make me re-listen music I have hear 100's of times before, just to experience how different/well these headphones portray the music.
The downside is that some of my old electronic musik do fall a bit apart, as these headphones inform my of how poorly the music was made/mastered. I generally find them forgiving in most scenario's, but downright badly produced music do get punished with these.
Been running them mostly on the V200 and the SMSL, but at some point, I want to give a decent/good tube amp a try, as I'm a sucker for a great soundstage

I think the bass from 70-250 is near being too much on a Ragnarok, unless the tube amp is very good, or a hybrid I'm not sure there is enough control to keep the bass trim. Of course if you like it, then could be good.

I think the soundstage on the Stealth is quite large, and maybe too

@javertim and @bagwell359
Have you guys tried the stax sr007 mk2 or the hifiman jade 2?

No to Jade, yes to Stax

 

[econsumer666]

For graph lover, i think this can be interesting though im not sure how valuable and precise those graph are

I'm very confused, judging by this graph HE1000 Stealth has more recessed mids than Arya Stealth, yet somehow people are writing here that it has more vocal presence and less of the recessed mids? Could someone please enlighten me how this correlates with this measurements graph :-D

 

[martel80]

I'm very confused, judging by this graph HE1000 Stealth has more recessed mids than Arya Stealth, yet somehow people are writing here that it has more vocal presence and less of the recessed mids? Could someone please enlighten me how this correlates with this measurements graph :-D

See that dip between 1.2khz and 2.2 kHz ? Thats where vocal presence live. It’s really a Hifiman signature dip. I correct mine with a DSP EQ . On the nanos we’re talking about 5 db and a fairly large Q. Once corrected it becomes a lot more natural imo.

Now the distortion happening in this range can also affect the perception and also in neighbouring frequencies in context . So the amplitude domain is not the only thing that will give you the whole picture of the presentation.

 

[econsumer666]

See that dip between 1.2khz and 2.2 kHz ? Thats where vocal presence live. It’s really a Hifiman signature dip. I correct mine with a DSP EQ . On the nanos we’re talking about 5 db and a fairly large Q. Once corrected it becomes a lot more natural imo.

Now the distortion happening in this range can also affect the perception and also in neighbouring frequencies in context . So the amplitude domain is not the only thing that will give you the whole picture of the presentation.

So in theory, it should not affect male voices at all as their fundamental frequency reaches to about 900Hz as far as I understand. Nevertheless, what's the easiest way to try out an EQ setting (and which one to try and treat this dip) on a mac? :-D

 

[martel80]

So in theory, it should not affect male voices at all as their fundamental frequency reaches to about 900Hz as far as I understand. Nevertheless, what's the easiest way to try out an EQ setting (and which one to try and treat this dip) on a mac? :-D

While it’s fundamental can be much lower then 900hz, the clarity and presence of the vocal range, be it male or female , is all the way up towards 1.2khz and onward. I’m not on Mac so I cannot give you the name of a free EQ to use but whenever you find one, just paint a broad strock with a pretty wide bell at about 2khz for +4 or +5 db and you’ll get it instantly. The vocals will come sit all the way up in front as it should.

Edit: don’t forget to lower the gain of your EQ in proportion ( ie -4 or 5db so it doesn’t clip your output)