[cskippy]

I'm pretty sure MrSpeakers Ether/Ether C/E Stat pads will fix a lot of the issues with the HE-400i treble/mid balance.  They definitely help with HE-6 which is more forward sounding than the HE-400i.  

 

[jbiggie]

 
I'll start with this. If you can get them on sale like I did for around $260, they're well worth it. I wouldn't buy them at the full price though. They're very wide open. Fairly neutral. The main trouble spot I've found with them is the mids can get congested sounding on some music. I listen to a lot of prog rock, and there can be a lot going on musically at any given time. That is when they run into trouble. That said, for say acoustic, classical, jazz, they're pretty great. Most classic rock is nice through them too. They're easy to drive in my experience. But if you put a lot of power to them they can generally handle it very well. The pads are a little uncomfortable. Other than that I find them to be decent comfort wise. I know some have had build quality issues with them but I haven't so far. Hope that helps.

Yeah man, thanks.

 

[Astropin]

Sennhiser HD650
Meze 99 Classic
NAD Visio HP 50's
Fidelio X1's
Yamaha eph-100's
Samsung Level U pro

 

[lestatdi]

My new list/rank:
 
1-Audeze LCD2F
2-Fostex TH900 Mk2
3-Audeze EL-8 Open (2016)
4-Fostex TH-x00
5-JVC Victor HP-DX1000
6-Denon AH-D600
7-Sony MDR-1a
8-Audio-Technica ATH-M50x
 
 
My older ones:
Sennheiser HD800 - Between Audeze EL-8 and Fostex TH-x00
Sennheiser HD650 - Between JVC and Denon
Sennheiser HD600 - Same above
Sennheiser HD598 - Last one
Shure SRH1540 - Between JVC and Denon

 

[GirgleMirt]

Originally Posted by George Taylor /img/forum/go_quote.gif
---------------------------------------------------
Originally Posted by jbiggie 
I don't own the 650s myself, I just found it very interesting knowing their reputation. How would you describe the 400i sound signature then?
---------------------------------------------------
I'll start with this. If you can get them on sale like I did for around $260, they're well worth it. I wouldn't buy them at the full price though. They're very wide open. Fairly neutral. The main trouble spot I've found with them is the mids can get congested sounding on some music. I listen to a lot of prog rock, and there can be a lot going on musically at any given time. That is when they run into trouble. That said, for say acoustic, classical, jazz, they're pretty great. Most classic rock is nice through them too. They're easy to drive in my experience. But if you put a lot of power to them they can generally handle it very well. The pads are a little uncomfortable. Other than that I find them to be decent comfort wise. I know some have had build quality issues with them but I haven't so far. Hope that helps.

Which one are you talking about?  I've heard the 650s on a HDVD 800 D/A Headphone Amplifier, only for a few minutes, and I was quite disappointed..  So much so I think there might have been something wrong with the setup, it's true that right next to them were the hd800 and hd800s, so maybe that's why they sounded so 'lowfi' (contrary to what many have said); quite dark sounding, not very detailed/controlled, at least next to the 800s, they sound quite bad, but many love them, so maybe it was just the 800s shining & eclipsing them. 
 
For the 400i, the 400i are planars and extremely 'fast'.  Their precision and detail is very impressive, and the details in the bass, how cleanly it plays, and everything you can hear, is quite astonishing.  It's really a level well above the AKG Q701 for instance, which seem to be comparable to HD650 (http://www.head-fi.org/t/768698/sennheiser-hd650-vs-akg-q701-is-the-hd650-worth-getting).   I guess maybe that's why the 650 were disappointing, in terms of precision/clarity, the 400i is really on a different level.  Soundstage and imaging are really good.  Bass is definitely present and as I was saying extremely clean, but unlike others, it's definitely not emphasized.  The 650 bass I remember, and overall detail/clarity, wasn't anywhere near in terms of quality...
 
But that clarity comes at a price, and the good old garbage in garbage out applies.  Listening to some 93 aerosmith, and the cymbals sound a bit meh, if it's not recorded just right, it's not going to sound just right, as pretty much everything else, as everything is well audible, so can sibilance & other recording/mixing/flaws...  Q701s aren't that much more forgiving either...  Maybe for those 650s would be better... 
 
Anyhow, if you want high precision headphones, with clarity and details in troves, 400i is hard to beat I think.  For classic, phenomenal...  Well recorded music, they're absolutely great...  Definitely more neutral sound than 650.  Mine have a tight headband and it squeezes rather tight on my head, still with the nice pads, very very comfortable.  Great headphones, very recommended!  Paid ~350cdn for mine, 260$us, definitely highly recommend them for that price.

 

[George Taylor]

  Which one are you talking about?  I've heard the 650s on a HDVD 800 D/A Headphone Amplifier, only for a few minutes, and I was quite disappointed..  So much so I think there might have been something wrong with the setup, it's true that right next to them were the hd800 and hd800s, so maybe that's why they sounded so 'lowfi' (contrary to what many have said); quite dark sounding, not very detailed/controlled, at least next to the 800s, they sound quite bad, but many love them, so maybe it was just the 800s shining & eclipsing them. 
 
For the 400i, the 400i are planars and extremely 'fast'.  Their precision and detail is very impressive, and the details in the bass, how cleanly it plays, and everything you can hear, is quite astonishing.  It's really a level well above the AKG Q701 for instance, which seem to be comparable to HD650 (http://www.head-fi.org/t/768698/sennheiser-hd650-vs-akg-q701-is-the-hd650-worth-getting).   I guess maybe that's why the 650 were disappointing, in terms of precision/clarity, the 400i is really on a different level.  Soundstage and imaging are really good.  Bass is definitely present and as I was saying extremely clean, but unlike others, it's definitely not emphasized.  The 650 bass I remember, and overall detail/clarity, wasn't anywhere near in terms of quality...
 
But that clarity comes at a price, and the good old garbage in garbage out applies.  Listening to some 93 aerosmith, and the cymbals sound a bit meh, if it's not recorded just right, it's not going to sound just right, as pretty much everything else, as everything is well audible, so can sibilance & other recording/mixing/flaws...  Q701s aren't that much more forgiving either...  Maybe for those 650s would be better... 
 
Anyhow, if you want high precision headphones, with clarity and details in troves, 400i is hard to beat I think.  For classic, phenomenal...  Well recorded music, they're absolutely great...  Definitely more neutral sound than 650.  Mine have a tight headband and it squeezes rather tight on my head, still with the nice pads, very very comfortable.  Great headphones, very recommended!  Paid ~350cdn for mine, 260$us, definitely highly recommend them for that price.

No, I pretty much agree with everything you just said. The pads on the 400i were the one thing I'd change for comfort. And yeah, those are pretty much my feelings about the 650s as well. The only time I was impressed with them I had them plugged into my rack system and had the volume at a level beyond comfort. So while they finally sounded good, it was too loud to listen to for any amount of time.

 

[GirgleMirt]

Ha!    I actually tried to order a pair of 650s from massdrop, 6xx, but couldn't get in, and stumbled on a 400i sale, very happy I did!  I'm still keeping an eye opened for 650 though, they're so praised, they must do something good...
 
My current ranking:
 
1) Hifiman 400i.  The new king!
2) AKG Q701.  Still great, not as detailed as #1, great balance, very good!
3) AKG 550.  Great closed cans!  Not as comfy as Sony V6.
4) Beyer 990.  So very flawed, only nice with some music (ex: classical), horrible with others, really thinking of selling.  Would not recommend.
5) Sennheiser 598.  Light & comfy, good entry open cans.
6) Sony V6.  Comfy!  Good affordable closed cans.
7) Grado SR80 with senheiser pads.  Much better than stock pads, still less comfortable than V6 & 598.
8) Ety HF5.  After ~1h, hurts my ear canals, so very little use..  For sound would be #3.
9) Steelseries something, has a microphone...

 

[DavidA]

  Ha!    I actually tried to order a pair of 650s from massdrop, 6xx, but couldn't get in, and stumbled on a 400i sale, very happy I did!  I'm still keeping an eye opened for 650 though, they're so praised, they must do something good...
 
My current ranking:
 
1) Hifiman 400i.  The new king!
2) AKG Q701.  Still great, not as detailed as #1, great balance, very good!
3) AKG 550.  Great closed cans!  Not as comfy as Sony V6.
4) Beyer 990.  So very flawed, only nice with some music (ex: classical), horrible with others, really thinking of selling.  Would not recommend.
5) Sennheiser 598.  Light & comfy, good entry open cans.
6) Sony V6.  Comfy!  Good affordable closed cans.
7) Grado SR80 with senheiser pads.  Much better than stock pads, still less comfortable than V6 & 598.
8) Ety HF5.  After ~1h, hurts my ear canals, so very little use..  For sound would be #3.
9) Steelseries something, has a microphone...

You might also want to think about an amp for the DT-990 along with the HD650/6XX, like the HD800 the choice of amp is important in how they will sound, the HDVD800 is not a good match for the HD650, it was designed for the HD800 and FWIW I didn't care for the HD800S on the HDVD800, overly warm sound to me.  A BH Crack does wonders for the HD650 and DT-990.

 

[Globex]

1-Audeze LCD2F - best low-end I've ever heard.
2-MrSpeakers Mad Dogs - LCD2 mini2-
3-MEE Pinnacle P1 - very detailed, but genre picky
4- SHP9500 - amazing value for a headphone
5-Fostex TH600 - Pretty unlistenable for me

 

[jbiggie]

  1-Audeze LCD2F - best low-end I've ever heard.
2-MrSpeakers Mad Dogs - LCD2 mini2-
3-MEE Pinnacle P1 - very detailed, but genre picky
4- SHP9500 - amazing value for a headphone
5-Fostex TH600 - Pretty unlistenable for me

What's wrong with the th600?

 

[TWerk]

  What's wrong with the th600?

 
Thin sounding plus harsh treble.

 

[jbiggie]

   
Thin sounding plus harsh treble.

How would you rank the cans you currently own?

 

[Colonel basic]

1 AKG 712pro
2 Senheisser hd650
3 Beyerdynamic dt990 premium 600ohm
4 AKG 702
5 Senheisser hd600
6 Dennon AH d2000
7 Senheisser urbanite

 

[Pirastro]

1.  Beyerdynamic T1
2.  Sennheiser HD700
3.  Sony MDR-Z7
4.  Sennheiser HD580
5.  Westone 4
6.  Grado SR-125
7.  Sennheiser PX-100
8.  Koss PortaPro

 

[MattTCG]

1. ETHER Flow
2. hd800 SDR
3. hd650
4. Nightowl
5. jh13 pro v2