[BEYER]

  I didn't actually get around to comparing the thickness of the stock HD560 velvet pads next to a pair of HD540II velvet pads that I plumped up with my own foam and sewed in. They were a little thicker if left unstitched but either way, I think against the HD560 pads, the thickness was pretty similar. I simply preferred the stereo imaging of the HD540II velvet pads as they don't have a backing plastic that would otherwise hinder outward sound dispersion, in my personal opinion. But yes, with the HD560, new stock pads allowed you to crank the volume more than if you were using worn flattened pads, which won't separate drivers from the ears very well.

Thank you
Have u ever did a direct comparison between 540 and 560, wich are main differences? And for booth, is better I or II ?

 

[o0CosmoMemory0o]

To my ears, 540II and 560II were more or less equal. 540II is more spatial and that's about it. I had these two models side-by-side from a dual output and switched between them frequently over a prolonged period of time, to try and discern the differences.

 

[luke99]

  • Directly compared both tracks with my HD540 (300 ohm), Hifiman HE-500 and Philips SHP8900 • (just to get two good headphones from the top and bottom of the scale)
 
- The Eagles track is almost good. Sub bass is simply missing on the HD540. I get a very nice slow sub-bass decay on the HE-500 that gives the recording a sense of volume and a larger space.
- Bass guitar sounds feeble in the Deep Purple track. Sounds like the bass knob has been turned right down on the bass amp/cab. 
 
Sorry, just my honest opinion. 
I feel that I can give this opinion with some authority being an amateur guitarist/bassist. 
 
I don't dislike the HD540, but both my SHP8900 and HE-500 has better bass extension and both are to my ears a more well-rounded sonic experience. 

No need to be sorry, this is all subjective. I have the SHP8900, and I think they are pretty good for the money. I also have the higher end Philips HP1000, this is leaner on bass than the 8900, but I still consider it to be a superior headphone. IMO, the bass is exaggerated and I don't think these cans are flat in their response. I also think that if the bass is accentuated, you miss things further up the spectrum, like top end extension transparency. Again they are just opinions, and I find my opinion about audio often changes.  

 

[Grumpy Old Git]

   
 
Sorry, just my honest opinion. 
I feel that I can give this opinion with some authority being an amateur guitarist/bassist. 
 
I don't dislike the HD540, but both my SHP8900 and HE-500 has better bass extension and both are to my ears a more well-rounded sonic experience. 

Never apologise for having an opinion that differs from someone else's. Your opinion is just as valid and gives other readers of this thread an alternative viewpoint.
Guitars? Tell me about them! 

 
I'm a fan of Hifiman can's, I've owned the (comparatively) bass rich HE-400, and I've owned two pairs of HE 500's, the last pair I sold a couple of weeks ago.
I compared the HE 500 to a pair of Senn' HD 700's, the 700's beat the 500's hands down for  sound stage, on certain tracks I would have to listen carefully to hear some background instruments with the 500's, the same instruments would be more noticeable on the 700's.
This in part could be down to the bright signature of the 700's, far too bright and harsh on anything less than well engineered tracks. The treble on the 500's much smoother and forgiving on poorer recordings.
 
Lovely bass on the 500's, and the bass on the 700's I found to be pretty close, but the 500's get the nod because of their more refined treble.
 
For me the 540's are a more 'linear' headphone than the HE-500, no they don't quite have the same bass impact but the treble and midrange are more transparent.
My findings are based on having Beresford ancillary equipment, other readers might come to a totally different conclusion than me.
 
If I was forced to own only one pair of cans and those cans had to be HE-500's then I would be very happy, but on balance I'd rather be forced into owning a pair of HD 540's.
 
Bang for buck? HD 540's can be purchased for around the £100 mark, second hand  HE-500's sell at £350 all day, are HE-500's worth 3.5 times the cost of the HD 540's? 
In my opinion....NO. The law of diminishing returns really kicks in on this one, HE-500's are excellent cans that beat the HD 540's on bass performance and bass performance alone.
At £100 or so the 540's really are a 'no brainer'.
 
Now if someone can point me in the direction of a pair of cans that produce the sweet linear treble and midrange performance of the 540's, combined with the bass or even more bass than the 500's, at a sub £500 pound price point (even second hand) I'd be VERY interested.

 

[coolhand]

HD250 Linear II is precisely what you are looking for, essentially identical in signature to the 540 Ref, but with significantly deeper & tight linear bass with nice wallop factor.
For either the 540 or 250 Linear you do need very good amplification in order to hear them at their best.
I've owned both for decades and only last year did I find an amp which truly did them justice, they can again play in the company of the highest echelons without apology ! (Interestingly the amp I refer to was also built during the 80's

 

[o0CosmoMemory0o]

The HD250 was my former headphone of interest. I restored and cleaned up a few HD250 Linear II about 3 years ago. They were the reason I discovered the HD540II. Depending on the pads and headfit, the sealed design of the HD250 can be a bit overpowering in the deep bass and an area of the midrange seems a bit withdrawn compared to HD540 in my opinion, which is why I switched to the HD540. I felt the open design and velvet pads of a HD540II gave a more spatial reproduction than the HD250 Linear 1 or 2 but the difference is fairly small.
 
I tried HD250 Linear I with HD540II velvet pads one time and compared them against another HD540II, side by side from dual output and they sounded almost identical. HD250 bass was no longer slightly overpowering with deep bass music and some of the midrange absence was remedied as well. Could not tell them apart really. Although like this, HD250 is no longer a sealed headphone (closed back and "open" pads) allows some sound to move out. Bass was probably slightly more prominent than from HD540II but it was very close and I struggled to hear the differences after extensive comparison time.

 

[Grumpy Old Git]

Thanks for your replies Guys.
 
Anyone in the UK got a pair of reasonably priced HD 250's for sale?

 

[o0CosmoMemory0o]

If you want a HD250 (mk1 or mk2, both are excellent), ebay.de is probably the best place to go. 

 
 
For HD540II, the above also applies. 

 

[amigomatt]

 

   
 
Sorry, just my honest opinion. 
I feel that I can give this opinion with some authority being an amateur guitarist/bassist. 
 
I don't dislike the HD540, but both my SHP8900 and HE-500 has better bass extension and both are to my ears a more well-rounded sonic experience. 

Never apologise for having an opinion that differs from someone else's. Your opinion is just as valid and gives other readers of this thread an alternative viewpoint.
Guitars? Tell me about them! 

 
I'm a fan of Hifiman can's, I've owned the (comparatively) bass rich HE-400, and I've owned two pairs of HE 500's, the last pair I sold a couple of weeks ago.
I compared the HE 500 to a pair of Senn' HD 700's, the 700's beat the 500's hands down for  sound stage, on certain tracks I would have to listen carefully to hear some background instruments with the 500's, the same instruments would be more noticeable on the 700's.
This in part could be down to the bright signature of the 700's, far too bright and harsh on anything less than well engineered tracks. The treble on the 500's much smoother and forgiving on poorer recordings.
 
Lovely bass on the 500's, and the bass on the 700's I found to be pretty close, but the 500's get the nod because of their more refined treble.
 
For me the 540's are a more 'linear' headphone than the HE-500, no they don't quite have the same bass impact but the treble and midrange are more transparent.
My findings are based on having Beresford ancillary equipment, other readers might come to a totally different conclusion than me.
 
If I was forced to own only one pair of cans and those cans had to be HE-500's then I would be very happy, but on balance I'd rather be forced into owning a pair of HD 540's.
 
Bang for buck? HD 540's can be purchased for around the £100 mark, second hand  HE-500's sell at £350 all day, are HE-500's worth 3.5 times the cost of the HD 540's? 
In my opinion....NO. The law of diminishing returns really kicks in on this one, HE-500's are excellent cans that beat the HD 540's on bass performance and bass performance alone.
At £100 or so the 540's really are a 'no brainer'.
 
Now if someone can point me in the direction of a pair of cans that produce the sweet linear treble and midrange performance of the 540's, combined with the bass or even more bass than the 500's, at a sub £500 pound price point (even second hand) I'd be VERY interested.

I picked up a used pair of Hifiman HE560 for £500 over a year ago and they would definitely fit your criteria and exceed it.  I think these HE560 are endgame for me.

 

[Grumpy Old Git]

  I picked up a used pair of Hifiman HE560 for £500 over a year ago and they would definitely fit your criteria and exceed it.  I think these HE560 are endgame for me.

I Have pondered on buying some HE-560's, how do you rate them against the HE-500?

 

[amigomatt]

 

  I picked up a used pair of Hifiman HE560 for £500 over a year ago and they would definitely fit your criteria and exceed it.  I think these HE560 are endgame for me.

I Have pondered on buying some HE-560's, how do you rate them against the HE-500?

I'm sorry, I haven't tried the HE500 but by all accounts, they are a definite step up in most areas. There's lots of comparisons available on this site and through google though.  From what I can remember from what I've read in the past, they most probably differ in that they are more neutral sounding, more extended at both frequency extremes, more dynamic and have more detail.  They have great speed and a very impressive and open bass response.  They have impressed me more than any of my other cans.They're certainly going to be more light and comfortable.  I know as I own the HE400!

 

[amigomatt]

In fact, now I think, I was dead set on the HE500s at some point and I remember being happy to have waited and saved for the HE560s.  Coincidentally, the HD700 were on my radar too and they have just been talked about on this thread.

 

[Grumpy Old Git]

  In fact, now I think, I was dead set on the HE500s at some point and I remember being happy to have waited and saved for the HE560s.  Coincidentally, the HD700 were on my radar too and they have just been talked about on this thread.

I've just noticed you live in my neck of the woods!

 
HD 700's not bad, but the HE-500's (for me) every day.

 

[amigomatt]

 

  In fact, now I think, I was dead set on the HE500s at some point and I remember being happy to have waited and saved for the HE560s.  Coincidentally, the HD700 were on my radar too and they have just been talked about on this thread.

I've just noticed you live in my neck of the woods!

 
HD 700's not bad, but the HE-500's (for me) every day.

You're near me?  That's cool.  Manchester?  I don't think I've met anyone else on here from Manchester.  If you ever wanted to give the HE560 a go, I'd be happy to let you try my pair.

 

[Grumpy Old Git]

  You're near me?  That's cool.  Manchester?  I don't think I've met anyone else on here from Manchester.  If you ever wanted to give the HE560 a go, I'd be happy to let you try my pair.

Thanks for the kind offer.

 I live close to Stockport actually.
 
Just been playing some Eric Clapton and Gary Moore tracks, I'm picking up some fine background details that I've not heard through either the HE-500's or HD-700's....Yes I'm insufferable!