INFORMAL COMPARISON between HifiMan HE-560 (V1) and Martin Logan Mikros 90:
Having good success with the HE-560 paired with the Lehmann BCL. The Lehmann is set at maximum gain, with the volume knob dialed about 65% to 70%. Also, the HE-560 (mine are the Version 1) are recabled with the CablePro "Vitality" upgrade, which is no slouch by any means.
Am informallya/b-ing the HE-560 against my dynamic reference: the Martin Logan Mikros 90 with HeadphoneLounge UPOCC silver recable (and Viablue terminations). Even though the MLs are portables, they exhibit exceptional tonal purity and are capable of resolving very fine detail.
My one audio nit to pick with HifiMan (and this was true for the HE-6, too) has been the way high frequency, in cymbals for example, is rendered. It just has never sounded quite right to me.
Am presently auditioning the Bill Evans Trio, a live recording of "My Foolish Heart". I am finding the HE-560 a bit reticent, perhaps a touch cold and closed in, while rendering the intricate brush work on the snare and cymbal. Even though the HE-560 makes it easy for me to trace the circular movement of the brush on the drum head, the connective interface between brush and head seems to lack that last bit of body and resolution--"proper synergistic outgrowth", if you will..
It could be the amping, although the Lehmann seems to have plenty of "grunt" to spare while driving the HifiMan. The HE-560 sounded fine with the all-tube SinglePower MPX3 and the hybrid Bada PH-12 (w/upgrades done by Fitz), but didn't seem to get quite enough push from those amps. Running the 560 balanced directly from the speaker outputs of the (50 wpc) Linn Intek integrated was fine for a while, too, but ultimately sounded too lean/sharp and "overwound" tonally and dynamically. The 560s just could not seem to "let go" in either critical respect.
Again, auditioning John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme, Part IV-Psalm", The HE-560 sound a bit cold and distant, with that last bit of tonal color/sheen from the cymbals left unexpressed, that last bit of ultrafine rattle in Coltrane's reed stifled.
Thelonius Monk Quartet, "Bye-Ya" or "Monk's Dream (Take 3)": detailed and lively a listen as it is with the HE-560, sounds a tad stark--again, not as tonally credible as I think it should be.
While perhaps not as spacious a treatment nor as adept in performer-individuation with the Mikros 90, I still give the nod to the MLs on these tracks for resolving plenty of detail, and for simultaneously preserving musicality without veering too far analytically (as the HifiMan seem to do by comparison).
Miles Davis, "Bitches Brew": again, for reasons aforementioned, [caveat: with this particular component arrangement and with my ears] I prefer the Mikros 90.
Please don't misunderstand me: the HifiMan HE-560 are a first class set of cans. If, however, the Martin Logan Mikros 90 were not on hand--and, more importantly, on the head!--the HE-560's Achilles' heel would not have been exposed and subsequently targeted. Needless to say, I conclude this thread listening to "Bright Mississippi (Take 3)" whilst in the firm grip (both mechanically and musically) of perhaps the most under appreciated overachievers ever to grace these august Head Fi threads.
Mikros 90 . . . 'nuff said!
Gear Train:
Lenovo G50 laptop/streaming 24/192 from Amazon Music-->AQ Jitterbug-->USB Disruptor/DaBigGenius-->Emotiva Little Ego dac-->Signal Cable OR AudioQuest Pipeline 3.5mm to 2x RCA hook-up-->Lehmann BCL-->DakiOm F273 Audio Feedback Stabilizer-->Synergistic Research HOT [my asbestos suit is at the ready]-->*HeadphoneLounge silver UPOCC cable (Viablue)-->Martin Logan Mikros 90 OR *CablePro Vitality (Furutech)-->HifiMan HE-560 (V1).
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