[xeizo]

The big advantage of HE400SE is it has very low distortion figures, and that at a very low price. Some EQ and it becomes a prime performer.

 

[rafaelo]

Is the HE400SE much different than the 4XX?

 

[xeizo]

Is the HE400SE much different than the 4XX?

I have no idea as I have never used HE4XX, also HE400SE exists in several different versions depending on market, I have the version with double-sided magnets which was sold through Amazon Europe in a color printed box with shiny stealth magnet stickers and the nice thicker rubber cable.

 

[Mike F]

Yes new. I EQ with Poweramp Equalizer on Android and APO/Peace on Windows.

Great! I’m not at all into a EQing as I’m not listening via a computer very much. That’s one advantage of the NDH 30 - that it doesn’t need any EQ. I can’t help feeling that any EQ program is going to affect the sound quality in some way as well, even if the EQ as such is very beneficial.

 

[rafaelo]

I have no idea as I have never used HE4XX, also HE400SE exists in several different versions depending on market, I have the version with double-sided magnets which was sold through Amazon Europe in a color printed box with shiny stealth magnet stickers and the nice thicker rubber cable.

I am using with eq and LDAC with amazon fire stick my HE4XX for movies which is great but for music I have always vastly preferred the 58X due to timbre and tonality.

 

[OkPsychology]

I spent a good bit of time immersing myself in some of my favorite tracks last night with the NDH30, with some swapping out for the Atrium and HD660S2.

One thing that this session got me thinking about is that accuracy can mean a few different things when we discuss a headphone's ability to faithfully reproduce source material. In addition to having an incredibly accurate frequency response, I was getting such a strong sense of the Neumann's facility in reproducing dynamic swings. This was to the point where I was starting to question certain mix decisions the engineer had made on some tracks. Like, "wow that synth line that just came in was about 2db too loud" or, "I'd love to get just a touch more of that background vocal, if only it was a little louder in the mix, and panned a touch further to the right so it would stand on its own a bit more."

Switching back to the 660S2 and Atrium I'd focus on these same details, and notice how these headphones were just glossing over these kinds of dynamic inconsistencies. To be sure, both of those other cans sounded fantastic also, but this exercise really underscored the fact that the NDH30 is, first and foremost, a tool for mixing/recording/production, and it wouldn't be worth its salt if it didn't pick apart the mix in such a surgical, precise way. It was quite fun and illuminating.

When listening to a lot of my music on NDH30 it sounds like a compressor effect has been removed from the track, like the dynamics have opened up significantly. This helps to separate and "unsquish" the different vocal and instrument tracks so you can distinctly hear everything.

I really wish I still had my Utopia so I could compare to the NDH30, but I traded it about a month ago

I'd be very curious if anybody else in this thread has Utopia and NDH30 for comparison? Or maybe this has already been done, and I missed it earlier in the thread...

 

[Harold999]

Great! I’m not at all into a EQing as I’m not listening via a computer very much. That’s one advantage of the NDH 30 - that it doesn’t need any EQ. I can’t help feeling that any EQ program is going to affect the sound quality in some way as well, even if the EQ as such is very beneficial.

The more expensive the headphone, the more it is "EQ'ed" by the manufacturer and then it's called tuning.
Tuning i think is nothing more than EQ'ing with resistors and other electronic components.
Not sure which method affects soundQ more.

 

[chesebert]

The more expensive the headphone, the more it is "EQ'ed" by the manufacturer and then it's called tuning.
Tuning i think is nothing more than EQ'ing with resistors and other electronic components.
Not sure which method affects soundQ more.

 

[Mike F]

When listening to a lot of my music on NDH30 it sounds like a compressor effect has been removed from the track, like the dynamics have opened up significantly. This helps to separate and "unsquish" the different vocal and instrument tracks so you can distinctly hear everything.

Excellent description.

 

[xeizo]

Anyway you see it, EQ is very useful, as I'm a guitarist I can tell you that the secret sauce is not tone wood or obscure boutique tube amps but it is an EQ-pedal as the last pedal in the signal chain on your pedal board LoL

 

[headstef]

The more expensive the headphone, the more it is "EQ'ed" by the manufacturer and then it's called tuning.
Tuning i think is nothing more than EQ'ing with resistors and other electronic components.
Not sure which method affects soundQ more.

There are no resistors or other electronic components in a wired headphone, no matter its price. Only a simple coil (dynamic headphines) to drive it. No tuning by electronics in it.

 

[bagwell359]

The HE-400 is a fine headphone for the budget, but the i, S, 4XX, SE, and the latest stealth are not candidates for a top spot. Lacking bass under 60 Hz, bulge from 650-1.2k, big HFM dip at 2k, and rocky highs 11-14k. EQ can address (but watch out crinicle settings under 100 Hz and 2.5-5 are not correct). Once they are EQ'd they still don't have proper timbre, and are well short on the detail front. The HFM XS, 500, 600 SE, Ananda SE are all much better stock, and scale better with EQ, and better equipment.

Now this a topic for another thread, we must hear about how the NDH-30 pads are perfect...

 

[OkPsychology]

The HFM XS, 500, 600 SE, Ananda SE

Knowing your post history and a little about your preferences, I believe you meant "6 SE" and not "600 SE," right?

 

[xeizo]

Back to NDH-30, I've never been a fan of Electronica but with the NDH-30 I have found myself listening for hours on that type of music. It's just so clean and powerful and with such authority when using the NDH-30, it really helps that they dig deep in the bass without loosing steam.

The sound reminds me of my MDR-Z7M2 with similar dynamics, even if I think the Z7M2 has a slight edge on dynamics with their huge 70mm drivers. The NDH-30 is much better balanced over the frequency spectrum. As a fact, surprisingly they really do not need EQ. And exactly nothing sounds harsh or grainy.

 

[OkPsychology]

Back to NDH-30, I've never been a fan of Electronica but with the NDH-30 I have found myself listening for hours on that type of music. It's just so clean and powerful and with such authority when using the NDH-30, it really helps that they dig deep in the bass without loosing steam.

The sound reminds me of my MDR-Z7M2 with similar dynamics, even if I think the Z7M2 has a slight edge on dynamics with their huge 70mm drivers. The NDH-30 is much better balanced over the frequency spectrum. As a fact, surprisingly they really do not need EQ. And exactly nothing sounds harsh or grainy.

any tracks in particular you'd like to share?