[watchnerd]

Really late to the HE6-SE party here but it’s a head scratcher to me why the HE6 OG is regarded by several people to be better but was discontinued in favor of a SE model that’s not as good and more expensive at the $1799 price point? Does not seem sensible to make inferior products for sales reasons?

I paid $699 for my HE6SE V1.

 

[theangelboy]

Really late to the HE6-SE party here but it’s a head scratcher to me why the HE6 OG is regarded by several people to be better but was discontinued in favor of a SE model that’s not as good and more expensive at the $1799 price point? Does not seem sensible to make inferior products for sales reasons?

My purely speculative theory is that with some small differences in how it was manufactured (probably the magnets and/or the membrane which would cause the sound to slightly change) they were able to bring the price down significantly and make production easier/faster compared to the OG HE6.

This means their margin is way higher, hence the larger room for discount, and since they can lower the price, the can move more units and the model is able to hit economies of scale easier which also improves their magin. They keep the MSRP at $1800 so it still seems more akin to the OG HE6 in terms of price bracket and so it can keep the name and prestige.

Again, this is pure speculation, but I do work for a manufacturing company so I've had some exposure to this stuff.

 

[spruce]

Thanks. Seems a bit convoluted to me but I guess if it achieves their business goals without rubbing to many the wrong way. Primarily got my info from the headphone show piece:

 

[watchnerd]

Thanks. Seems a bit convoluted to me but I guess if it achieves their business goals without rubbing to many the wrong way. Primarily got my info from the headphone show piece:

In the ASR review of the OG HE6 vs HE6SE V1, the V1 has lower measured distortion.

So there might actually be engineering improvements.

 

[Postwarclover]

Ordered the V2, is the stock cable terrible ? I see many using alternative aftermarket cables

 

[theangelboy]

Ordered the V2, is the stock cable terrible ? I see many using alternative aftermarket cables

Yeah, the stock cable is absolute garbage. Any other cable is an upgrade. It's the "surgical tube" cable that hifiman has insisted on using for years for some reason. My Edition XX came with the same style cable. It's stiff, prone to permanent kinks, thin, and my 4 pin to 1/4 inch adaptor has a wobbly 1/4 inch plug despite being a Neutrik.

 

[cfranchi]

Hello,
How do velour pads compare to pali pads in term of sound and comfort ? I always thought that velour pads has a bright sound.

 

[theangelboy]

Hello,
How do velour pads compare to pali pads in term of sound and comfort ? I always thought that velour pads has a bright sound.

That might be the case on other Hifiman headphones (I seem to remember the Round Velour brightened the HE-400 compared to the Focus/Peli Pad), but it's not so with the HE6se V2. It actually lowers the treble slightly and helps alleviate some of that midrange dip, making the sound "clearer," to my ears at least.


Comfort wise the foam is harder on the round velour so it's not as comfortable as the stock pad. However, these pads I found on aliexpress are very soft/comfortable and sound almost exactly the same as the Hifiman Round Velour.

 

[watchnerd]

You know what f*cking sucks about the HE6, HE6se, and HE6se V2? The headbands. Hifiman has neglected to put what I feel is far-and-away their comfiest headband on any of these models, the "Newly Enhanced Comfort Headband". I thought about going Audeze, but I really want my Hifiman cans to keep being Hifiman cans, even in appearance.

It turns out you can attach my favourite Hifiman headband to the HE6se yourself. Very easily, if you're comfortable removing the housing from the driver so you can pop-out the little grommets that the headband screws go into.

As such, I now have two headbands for sale, if anyone is interested. Hifiman's Hybrid Headband, and a better looking version of the HE6 Original Headband - albeit with a couple very minor marks on both.

Here's my end result:

Does this let you swivel the earpads after making this mod?

 

[wazzupi]

Does this let you swivel the earpads after making this mod?

I've got a he6se v2 for sale with Audeze Headband installed/Grill mod I also include all the original stuff. XD

 

[watchnerd]

I've got a he6se v2 for sale with Audeze Headband installed/Grill mod I also include all the original stuff. XD

Just got a V1

 

[theangelboy]

Yeah, the stock cable is absolute garbage. Any other cable is an upgrade. It's the "surgical tube" cable that hifiman has insisted on using for years for some reason. My Edition XX came with the same style cable. It's stiff, prone to permanent kinks, thin, and my 4 pin to 1/4 inch adaptor has a wobbly 1/4 inch plug despite being a Neutrik.

Follow-up.
This discussion got me thinking about my Edition XX cable that's been sitting in the box for years. What's under that nasty surgical tubing sheath? Well I cut the tubing off of my cable and, well...

These extremely small stranded, stiff, microphonic AF, silver wire are what's carrying the signal. Note that it didn't have those twists (the strands are loose) or the heat shrink above the original y splitter. I did those things so it's slightly usable, albeit, still utter garbage. I wouldn't be surprised if this was the same silver wire that was included with the He400se that everyone hated (and Resolve Reviews claimed was the worst cable he had ever seen).

So, mystery solved! The HE6se v2 cable (and other models that use the same wire) is terrible no matter how many layers you remove. Lol

 

[luizffgarcia]

You know what f*cking sucks about the HE6, HE6se, and HE6se V2? The headbands. Hifiman has neglected to put what I feel is far-and-away their comfiest headband on any of these models, the "Newly Enhanced Comfort Headband". I thought about going Audeze, but I really want my Hifiman cans to keep being Hifiman cans, even in appearance.

It turns out you can attach my favourite Hifiman headband to the HE6se yourself. Very easily, if you're comfortable removing the housing from the driver so you can pop-out the little grommets that the headband screws go into.

As such, I now have two headbands for sale, if anyone is interested. Hifiman's Hybrid Headband, and a better looking version of the HE6 Original Headband - albeit with a couple very minor marks on both.

Here's my end result:

I can't believe i did not think of this! I owned the old 400i which used these and the comfort was insane!

Damn it, i have already purchased the Sundara headband for my He6, it was also more expensive than this one

I know these use more plastic and people had problems with the yokes breaking, but i would still prefer these over the Sundara's even if i had to buy a new headset every couple of years...

Thanks for bringing this to our attention! I may switch my headband again soon.

 

[cfranchi]

Which pads sound best with HE6se ?

 

[theangelboy]

Which pads sound best with HE6se ?

Everyone is going to have a different answer but, out of the dozen or so pads I've tried, I prefer the Round Velour (or equivilant). I think having a more breathable material (like velour) helps bass impact, imo.