[Th3rd3y3]

these things are amazing...  glad I decided to go a lot further with my budget...  the level of detail is amazing....  have found out that my cmoy isnt enough for these babies though
 
is the EF2A enough for these or should I go bigger...  dont really wanna spend an arm and a leg....  but I hadnt planned on spending 400 bucks on a pair of headphones either though so u all know how that goes lol

 

[Th3rd3y3]

Days of the New's first album sounds so amazing with these cans...  even out of my crappy onboard audio from pc...  totally worth every penny!!!

 

[Katun]

EF2A was made for their earliest of orthos, and probably isn't the best choice for the HE-400.
 
Curious, did you buy the velour pads for them? Many say that's one of the best upgrades you can get.

 

[Th3rd3y3]

came with velour, pleather and J$....  using the J$

 

[Th3rd3y3]

would I be better off if I got something like the dac destroyer and then a separate tube amp like the little dot??

 

[KCxSmacker]

Quote:

would I be better off if I got something like the dac destroyer and then a separate tube amp like the little dot??

Personally using a schiit asgard. I used just a Titanium HD soundcard before then hooked up the asgard from the soundcard and holy hell. The sound just completely cleared up even more. Next upgrade for me is a dac but a good amp is going to make the he-400s rock your world. Maybe even more then sex....0_o?
 
Recently a few people have loved comboing the he-400 with the magni/modi combo and love it. 

 

[Th3rd3y3]

I have been thinking about the magni/modi combo....and also the fiio e09/e17...  not sure which would suit me better... all I do know is that I am really loving these headphones...  cant wait to hear them just a touch louder!!

 

[ninjames]

Quote:

I have been thinking about the magni/modi combo....and also the fiio e09/e17...  not sure which would suit me better... all I do know is that I am really loving these headphones...  cant wait to hear them just a touch louder!!

The M&M will definitely get more out of the HE-400 than either the E09 or E17. The latter are sufficient to drive the HE-400, but the headphones really improve with the extra power from the Magni.

 

[Caessa]

I'm also new to the world of amps, so I can't make any amp comparisons from personal experience.  I will say that the standalone Magni plugged into my sound card sounds truly blissful (and I even liked the HE-400 before putting the extra power into them).  I skipped on the Modi because of this comparison review, in which the well-respected reviewer couldn't tell the difference between the Modi and his sound card DAC.  Do note that if you go this route, you will need to buy a male-male 1/4" to dual RCA cable, which you can pick up at your local Radio Shack.

 

[ninjames]

Sound is a little far-away sounding and muddled with my Magni straight into my laptop, personally.

 

[Caessa]

Quote:

Sound is a little far-away sounding and muddled with my Magni straight into my laptop, personally.

Is that with a dedicated sound card, or on-board sound from the motherboard?

 

[1-MiC]

Quote:

Is that with a dedicated sound card, or on-board sound from the motherboard?

Yeah the reviewer of the thread linked had a aftermarket dedicated soundcard. It may not cost as much as some of the DAC's recommended by the community, but it's still a very usable upgrade.

 

[planx]

The EF2A is still a great amp. I would suggest getting a better DAC instead as the EF2A's DAC is mediocre at best. I remember the EF2A as remarkably sweet sounding, a superb starting tube amp, but the HE-400 deserves better.

 

[Caessa]

Quote:

Yeah the reviewer of the thread linked had a aftermarket dedicated soundcard. It may not cost as much as some of the DAC's recommended by the community, but it's still a very usable upgrade.

Yeah I know, I use the same card.  My question was in response to ninjames who said he noticed a discernible difference from his laptop and the Modi, so I was wondering if his laptop had any aftermarket sound parts.

 

[ninjames]

Quote:

Yeah I know, I use the same card.  My question was in response to ninjames who said he noticed a discernible difference from his laptop and the Modi, so I was wondering if his laptop had any aftermarket sound parts.

No, I don't have an aftermarket sound card, but I don't believe the original post suggested an aftermarket sound card was used. I thought it was a little misleading.