[Jenxer]

Quote:

ummm

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

They look so huge on her!

 

[jerg]

Headphone-size level: Megaman. 

 

[MotherShip]

hey!
 
Planning on joining the he-400 club soon, still haven't decided on an amp though...
From what I've read the o2 is a good cheap match for them, right now im planning to get this amp at a very reasonable price from a guy who might sell them to me...
But if this goes down the road I'd probably go for a jds labs O2. The thing is that at this price range I also have the LD MKII,
Any idea on which would be a better fit?

 

[MattTCG]

I tired the o2 with the he400 and it wasn't for me. Oddly, i really like the fiio 09k and odac. Go figure. Also on a budget the e17 really does check most of the boxes with the he400. For a lot more money the Schitt stuff will give you more with the he400. But then again you'll have to give more...

 

[MotherShip]

Thanks for the quick response,
I'm actualy pretty sceptical about the fiio's as they are portable amps, I figured a low budget full size amp like the LD or the o2 (pluged into the wall) would do a much better job.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

The Fiio E9 and E09K are NOT portable amps, and have more power than the O2 for low ohm headphones like the HE400. The O2 has slightly more power the higher the impedance after a certain impedance range.

 

[chewy4]

Quote:

What music plays best with the Hifiman HE-400?
 
After going through the reviews it seems like the kind of music people enjoy heavily influence what gear they like.  I'm thinking about these, the Senn 650 or the AKG 701.  So, for all you HE-400 owners out there, What music do you enjoy most and what do you think of that music when listening to the HE-400 compared to other cans?
 
To kick things off, I'll start listing my favorite music the way I categorize them (probably not how anyone else categorizes) and some examples.
 
Electro-Dance Pop (Erasure, DJ Sammy), Old school Country (Willie Nelson), Deep low bass pop with female vocals (Dido, Lana Del Rey), modern lounge (Pink Martini), Musical HipHop/Rap (Jay-Z, Notorious BIG), Indian Punjabi Music (think about the background stuff from Punjabi MC), Alternative (Vampire Weekend, The Shins, Keane), Coldplay, sweet female vocals (Feist, Loreena McKennit), Blue Grass, New Wave (i.e. cheezy Euro New Wave, like Modern Talking or Sandra), New Orleans Jazz with vocals, grunge (Nirvana, Candlebox), Frank Sinatra music, bossa nova (Gilberto), and Chinese modern pop.
 
Thanks in advance for the input..

 
My favorites so far are psybient, bluegrass and anything with an acoustic guitar.
 
But they are very versatile.

 

[IEMCrazy]

Quote:

Someone else who has the same exact issue with the old velour pads!

I thought I was the only one. I even wrote about it on the HE-4 listing on my gaming guide.

 
Yep, it's a shame about the glue and the mounting because the pad itself...the fabric, the cushioning, etc was, IMO vastly superior on the old pads.  The new pads are a big downgrade in most regards, however the mounting system is 400% better, and the lack of exposed glue in that inner ring is extremely important.  That said even the new ones have some exposed glue in individual spots around the inner seam which is unforgivable for pads for such excellent headphones.
 
It's not that the new ones are horrible, it's that they could be so much better, and they were already half-way there with the old pads.
 
Quote:

Hi, I'm thinking of buying these (my first GOOD headphones), but I was wondering about the size. I've tried the Audio-Technica AD700 and it was too big for me. Will the HE-400 be smaller than those?

 
In terms of overall diameter, AD700 is probably a bit larger.  On the other hand the AD700's weight a third as much if that, so I'd say if anything the HE-400 feels substantially larger than AD700, even if the measurement of the diameter of the cups and the headband versus those AD700 enourmous headband struts make it physically smaller in absolute dimensions. 
 
Quote:

What music plays best with the Hifiman HE-400?
 
After going through the reviews it seems like the kind of music people enjoy heavily influence what gear they like.  I'm thinking about these, the Senn 650 or the AKG 701.  So, for all you HE-400 owners out there, What music do you enjoy most and what do you think of that music when listening to the HE-400 compared to other cans?
 
To kick things off, I'll start listing my favorite music the way I categorize them (probably not how anyone else categorizes) and some examples.
 
Electro-Dance Pop (Erasure, DJ Sammy), Old school Country (Willie Nelson), Deep low bass pop with female vocals (Dido, Lana Del Rey), modern lounge (Pink Martini), Musical HipHop/Rap (Jay-Z, Notorious BIG), Indian Punjabi Music (think about the background stuff from Punjabi MC), Alternative (Vampire Weekend, The Shins, Keane), Coldplay, sweet female vocals (Feist, Loreena McKennit), Blue Grass, New Wave (i.e. cheezy Euro New Wave, like Modern Talking or Sandra), New Orleans Jazz with vocals, grunge (Nirvana, Candlebox), Frank Sinatra music, bossa nova (Gilberto), and Chinese modern pop.
 
Thanks in advance for the input..

 
Check out the HD650 Appreciation Thread where just a few minutes ago I commented on some genre differences between the two. 
 
Ultimately they're both very much all-rounders.  They'll handle everything well, so my views are more toward the specifics of with what genres I prefer which one a bit more.  Your genres are pretty evenly split, as mine are.  Electro-Dance Pop, deep low bass pop, hip-hop, alternative, etc are all firmly in HE-400 territory in my opinion.  The other genres are firmly in HD650 territory.  Old school country and bluegrass can tilt toward either one, and the Dixie may depend on the recording. 
 
AKG 70x is....different.  I wouldn't consider that an either or so much as "do I prefer it for one thing or another."  HE-400 and HD650 both sacrifice the neutral for the natural.  K70x is neutral all the way.  You can read "neutral" as "sterile, analytical, sound as it was recorded, sound in an anechoic chamber, etc." The thing that makes 70x great is it takes EQ very well and is thus good for studio work or building your own sound signature.  But I find I rarely ever use my K70x these days outside binaural recordings (where they certainly do impress!)
 
Quote:

I tired the o2 with the he400 and it wasn't for me. Oddly, i really like the fiio 09k and odac. Go figure. Also on a budget the e17 really does check most of the boxes with the he400. For a lot more money the Schitt stuff will give you more with the he400. But then again you'll have to give more...

+1...it wasn't bad...o2 + HE-400 was much more likable than o2 + HD650 for me.  But I prefer my Lyr across the board....

 

[viveksaikia22]

I terminated my HE-400s with Neutrik 4 pole XLR connector and feeding them from the balanced out of the Audio-gd NFB-6. The balanced output had made a significant improvements to the sound signature.
I immediately listened to the following improvements:
 
 1. The gain increased a bit than the single ended output
 2. The midrange became more clearer
 3. The treble become more smoother and natural. Zero sibilance!
 4. The female voice became so natural that it feels like the singer is in the same room!
 5. Overall a very organic sound. less digital.
 
I am just loving my HE-400s more than ever now.
I highly recommend trying out the balanced output with the HE-400s. 

 

[palmfish]

Quote:

I terminated my HE-400s with Neutrik 4 pole XLR connector and feeding them from the balanced out of the Audio-gd NFB-6. The balanced output had made a significant improvements to the sound signature.
I immediately listened to the following improvements:
 
 1. The gain increased a bit than the single ended output
 2. The midrange became more clearer
 3. The treble become more smoother and natural. Zero sibilance!
 4. The female voice became so natural that it feels like the singer is in the same room!
 5. Overall a very organic sound. less digital.
 
I am just loving my HE-400s more than ever now.
I highly recommend trying out the balanced output with the HE-400s. 

 
I wonder if there is something wrong with your NFB-6. When I had my HE-500's, I made a speaker tap with banana plugs and 4-pin neutrik connector for my stereo receiver. The sound from the headphone jack and speaker taps was exactly the same.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Expectation bias and all that.

 

[MattTCG]

Quote:

Expectation bias and all that.

 
Don't think so. This was my experience with the nfb-6 just about to the letter.

 

[wje]

Quote:

 
I wonder if there is something wrong with your NFB-6. When I had my HE-500's, I made a speaker tap with banana plugs and 4-pin neutrik connector for my stereo receiver. The sound from the headphone jack and speaker taps was exactly the same.

 
It has been noted by Kingwa that the NFB-6 performs better in balanced mode as opposed to SET mode.  I was highly considering the NFB-6, until I learned of this difference.  Since not all of my headphones don't have balanced connectors, I held back on that model.

 

[abs1nthe]

Quote:

Check out the HD650 Appreciation Thread where just a few minutes ago I commented on some genre differences between the two. 
 

 
Thanks.  I read your comments.  Very helpful.  I think I'm sold on the HE 400 because of your post.  It's less about preferring one type of music to another (I listen to all kinds and my tastes change dramatically), and more about what I would be "missing."  I'm most disappointed in music when I can't hear the low end bass when it should be there.  So, even though I listen to a lot of music with female vocalists (where you said you prefer the HD650), that probably wouldn't make up for missing bass when it should be there.