[up late]

just a friendly reminder guys that this is an impressions thread. there are two other he-1000 threads where you could have this discussion.

 

[Herueyes]

I was there and I saw heard & had dinner with Fang & other Head-Fiers - After dinner we all went back for some more listening and I'm not saying Schiit!!!

 
 
Methinks the EF-1000 has a tube stage though...
 

 
 
Peace...

 

 

[pearljam50000]

When is the price going to be announced?

 

[Herueyes]

Pics... Enjoy!!!!
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
That's all Folks!! All I can say is that the HE-1000's made a very good first impression...
 
Way too much chatter was going on to really do any critical listening even after dinner...
 

 
 
Bass is good better than the anemic (unmodified) HD800's for sure!
 
My iphone 5 couldn't drive the HE-1000's as well as it does my AKG K812's though...
 
Just needed that extra bit of Headroom if you know what I mean... 
 
I was unable to detect a difference between the 4 pin - XLR (balanced) and TRS (unbalanced)
 
connections through the EF-1000... I would have loved to have had 20 minutes alone with
 
the setup in the room - Then and only then would I feel comfortable enough to talk some Schiit!!
 
 
- Peace...

 

[Karllin]

@Herueyes

Are those the early prototypes for the HE1000 in your sig. photo?

 

[nw130d]

Thanks, those are some great pics Herueyes. More I look at them the more I feel like they are and will be ageless. As in the style and look will stand the test of time.

 

[Herueyes]

@Herueyes

Are those the early prototypes for the HE1000 in your sig. photo?

 
 
From what I could gather from the mini-meet, dinner with Fang, and all that was said, (and written down)
 
The HE-1000 and the EF-1000 as you see them in the pics are all prototypes...
 
These are not and should not be considered the final retail versions...
 
Most listened and left... (I had the same notion - as a matter of fact I
 
wasn't got to attend due to the inclement weather...)
 
Four Head-fiers Listened Stayed went to Dinner with Fang
 
gave feedback - did some brainstorming - pitched some really
 
novel ideas - went back after dinner to do more listening at Fang's request
 
and gave more feedback. These guys are really passionate about what they do
 
and it was a Pleasure to see their interaction with Fang as various
 
ideas, perspectives and critiques were being offered for him to consider.
 
A big shout out to AOmega X, bozebuttons and immtbiker for knowing their stuff.
 
 
Me, Myself, and I was happy just to be there to see it all happening...(and adding my own two cents here and there)

 
 
 
P.S. Can't really say anything about price nor when the HE-1000/EF-1000 will be available... Fang asked 
        us to not divulge anything that was discussed at dinner and we all agreed... Sorry.
 
 
- Peace...

 

 

[Karllin]

Yes discussion over dinner about not yet released prototypes are to be kept at the table. But I think it is great he is reaching out to the community to get as much feedback as possible, before finalizing the design. That is what really makes this group amazing. Thanks a lot for sharing the photos and the info.

 

[money4me247]

  A league above all the other TOTL's is a bit superlative.  We only listened for a couple minutes on a pink floyd album, maybe one full song lol.  Far too short at time at a meet environment to make such a blanket statement.
 
I concede the soundstage was pretty impressive and is probably the best part.  It was very realistic and speaker-like.  HD800s still have a larger soundstage, but perhaps a bit unrealistically large.  I plain disagree on the bass, LCDs just have better bass, more slam and texture.  Mids, detail, and treble were far too unremarkable for them to be exalted above the rest.  I walked away very impressed too, but I doubt this headphone as it is now will dethrone all of the TOTL's.
 
Nice meeting you btw

 

  Lastly, a meet impression with 2 unfamiliar songs on unfamiliar upstream equipment with an unfinished headphone is probably the worst way to judge a headphone.  Moreover under these conditions to declare it so good that it shouldn't even be compared to any other TOTL. I mean come on... I'm just advocating for some sense of context with useful impressions rather than feeding the hype

 
hey @rrahman!!
 
It was a pleasure to meet you too!!! Thank you so much for the recommendation to visit Stereo Exchange. It was pretty amazing & I had soo much fun!!!! There isn't anything like that in the area I live. I also got a chance to visit the Harmen store and audition the AKG K812 flagship.
 
I totally agree that it is a bit early to judge & I hope my impressions aren't seen as just hype. I meant for my comments to be seen as early personal impressions rather than a definitive statement.
 
My non-audiophile brother and I both very extremely "wowed" by the HE-1000 during the meet & we both felt that the HE1000 noticeably outperformed the other flagships we tried that day. However, without a direct head-to-head comparison using the same source & components, it is difficult to say with certainty. I tried to refrain from too specific comments on the subtleties. My comments on sound stage and bass were the things I personally felt the most confident about, so I felt comfortable in sharing those opinions. Of course, they are definitely subjective personal views & perhaps with a longer audition time with direct comparisons, my opinion would shift.
 
I can definitely say though that these headphones perform extremely well & I am confident that they are very sonically competitive against the other TOTL flagships. I do personally feel like they outperform the flagships I had gotten a chance to audition during my time in NY & I really do believe they are a league above the current flagships. I do make to emphasize that these are more subjective views from a imperfect meet impressions. I would need more time and direct comparisons to make any more definite claims.
 
Very fun & exciting experience for me!!! Cheers

 

[money4me247]

  I see!  As far as LCD3 and superior technicalities, it just seems to have a smoother and more refined frequency response and balance throughout the mids and lower treble.  Detail might be more apparent as well as it still sports the thinnest of the Audeze diaphragms.  I'd have to have a real good side by side comparison of the two to get affirmative on that.  I agree that the LCD-X has the most tasteful bass of the Audeze bunch (at least for me.)  It's the highest in quantity down low and punches the hardest.

 

  @money4me247 Thanks for posting those impressions.  I'm really amused to see that your impressions agreed with mine, on pretty much all the headphones you tested.  
 
I think you may have missed something on the LCD-3 though.  When I compared the LCD-3 to the LCD-X on the Meridian Prime with LPS, the LCD-3 was objectively superior.  I mean it was just obvious that it was so neutral and smooth it was crazy. The LCD-X was objectively more colored and not quite as smooth, but subjectively it sacrificed very little to achieve a lot more FUN.  It was an easy choice for me to make between the two.
 
I also agree that the HE-1000 is notably better than the HE-560.  I listened to the two back to back and the HE-560 just sounded more... artificial?  It was pretty capable but not nearly as natural sounding and, obviously, the soundstage wasn't there.
 
Anyhow, it's good to see another impression from someone who doesn't own gobs of flagships.  :-D

 
@TMRaven
@Stillhart
 
I am really glad that my impressions during my demo of those flagships matched both of your experiences! I do remember seeing both of you guys on other threads I frequent & agreeing with a lot of your sonic impressions, so I have a lot of respect for your opinions. I feel a lot more "audiophile-y" now that my ear can pick up on some of these subtle details and independently arrive at the same conclusion
 
With the "smoothness" aspect, I don't really think I ever really listened specifically for that. I definitely did not pick up on that during my audition time. What test tracks would you guys recommend that really highlights the differences in that sonic aspect?
 
I also had a chance to visit the Harman store in NYC & listen to the AKG K812 flagship!!!! They were also very impressive headphones, though I am not confident enough in my audio memory to really make any comparisons of equipment heard over different days though. My brother did state that after the HE1000, his preference was for the AKG K812! I personally liked the Audeze LCD-X the best after the HE1000.
 
It was a great time & my brother was laughing at my audiophile enthusiasm!! It is pretty amazing to be able to listen to summit-fi gear

 

[money4me247]

Sorry if this has been discussed but are the connections 2.5mm mono's such as on the OPPO PM1?

They don't look like the typical hifiman connections.

Yes, they were 2.5mm monos. I paid especially close attention to the connections as I know there are some complaints for the usual Hifiman connectors & I had noticed that the connections looked different in the pictures. I have a close-up picture of the connectors, but will not be able to post them until later.

 

[ayaflo]

Can someone report if these are isodynamic or single sided?

 

[jerg]

  Can someone report if these are isodynamic or single sided?

It's asymmetrical double-ended. So neither isodynamic nor single-ended, but something inbetween.

 

[DisCHORDDubstep]

Sounds like Hifiman was gunning for the Orpheus and SR-009 with this one.

 

[ayaflo]

  It's asymmetrical double-ended. So neither isodynamic nor single-ended, but something inbetween.

 
Thanks.