[FullBright1]

So, have any of your compared the Utopia and the Hifiman He1000SE , just regarding the details that each deliver?

Here is what i hear when i compare them for resolution, detail retrieval, and micro dynamics.

Now, if you want soundstage, then the HEKse, is much better.
If you are looking for Euphoric, then the HEKse, is better.
If you need, more bass punch, then that depends on what you prefer, as the Utopia is more mannered yet perfect, while the HEKSE, is deeper and fantastic.
Both have a nice low end.

The HEKSE is more comfortable, by about 15%.
Both are comfy.

If you are looking for midrange, then the Utopia has a more forward midrange, because it's soundstage is more intimate.
When listening to headphones, the soundstage can produce the effect of how the FR feels to you.
So, with an intimate soundstage, you perceive the mids as more.
Some who hear the HD800S, feel that the mids are lacking, but this is really the way the wide soundstage presents them, as the HD800S's mids are very good.
The Utopia provides more low midrange richness.

So, does the Utopia present more DETAIL or does the HEKSE present more detail. ???

A.) The Hifiman.

It presents more music revelation, all the way around. There is more treble detail, more midrange detail, and more bass detail.
This means you can hear more of the details in the music, using the HEKSE.

Now how does it achieve this?
Well, similar to the way Abyss uses strong midrange forwardness to present detail, the HEKSE uses "airy Treble" extension, to ramp up its detail retrieval.
Apparently Hifiman spent a lot of time dialing this in, as the the headphones capture and present so much detail, using High FR.
This does not cause the overall sound of the Hifiman to become annoyingly Bright., or "SSSSSSSSSSSS"
It's tonality definitely leans toward a more bright sound, but, that is the Hifiman House Sound.

Dont buy this gear hoping for a lush round honey tone, as you wont find it in the HEKSE's cups.. But its also not a treble etched ear burner.
What does it sound like? The HEKSE sounds like the HE1000 with a lot more detail and extended dynamics.
The HE1000 was usually described as being "soft sounding", but detailed. And the HEKSE isn't particularly soft sounding, and its sound is certainly much more detailed. It does not have better treble than the HE1000, tonally...... but it does have a lot more detailed treble, and it certainly sounds as good.

So, what about that Utopia?
Well, its detail retrieval is light years ahead of the LCD4. So, the reality is, the Utopia has a smaller more intimate soundstage than the HEKSE, and due to this, everything is more up front, and this is perceived as warmer, thicker, and more sweet.
Both the Utopia and the HEKSE are very good.
There is no "best" between these 2.
If you buy them both to compare, planning on selling the one that isn't as good, then you're stuck.

If you want the Hifiman Sound, and all the inner musical details revealed, and you dont want to spend $6000, then buy the HEKSE.
Your music collection will be REVEALED to you, like never before.
However, If you prefer to hear everything, and the sound be "FOCAL", and the best they've ever created, then you'll love the Utopia.
Both of these sound so good, that you'll get lost in the listening, and isn't that why we do it?
The Utopia's sound feels more dense in your headspace, while the Hifiman HE1000SE's sound feels more layered and "floating in the air"
=

 

[FullBright1]

As i have been swapping cables, i discovered something unusually good.

The cable that comes with the HarmoicDyne Zeus, is a masterpiece when used with the HEKSE.
It elevates midrange focus, warms the FR, and tames a touch of the high end.
So, this makes a great sounding set of headphones, even better.
I think that Linsoul sells this cable, which is also a balanced cable.
Its SE and Balanced, (Adapters)

 

[Chamade]

Is the HE1000SE just a more detailed and brighter Arya or does it also have any of the natural/organic timbre improvements of the Susvara?

 

[Hifiearspeakers]

Is the HE1000SE just a more detailed and brighter Arya or does it also have any of the natural/organic timbre improvements of the Susvara?

It's less bright than the Arya.

 

[FullBright1]

Is the HE1000SE just a more detailed and brighter Arya or does it also have any of the natural/organic timbre improvements of the Susvara?

The HEKSE is much better sounding than the ARYA. Its different.
The ARYA, is so highly praised, but, i never loved it, yet when i reviewed it, i gave it high praise, as i knew that a lot of people would not find it dry, and with that upper mid or low treble glare that i can't stand.
It has it, and those who can't stand this, sell the Arya, and there are always a lot of Arya's for sale.
Does this mean that the ARYA is not good.......of course not. Its very good., but its flawed in one respect, and that keeps it in the "for sale" piles all the time.
Another reviewer said that you have to play it too loudly, to get it to sound its best, and i agree.

So, your real question is....... is the HEKSE a Susvara "Lite".
I would have to say that its the closest thing you'll find but its not the exact same sound, its just in the same league.
Both have tremendous revealing powers, but the Susvara is just more natural and even more detailed.
Hifiman tuned the Susvara to be both natural sounding, and extremely detailed.
It is so natural sounding that on one hand its the top of the tier, but on the other hand, its almost too much FR reference.
I think Josh V said its sort of a bland perfection sound, or that's my paraphrase.


Lets grade them, regarding the world of HIFIMAN.

If the Susvara is their 10..... then the HEKSE is their 9.5.
Its a case of that extra 5% that costs so much more to hear.
I love the Utopia, but the HEKSE, has that width of stage that for me is the sound i love to hear the most.
I can get lost in the UTOPIA's sound. Its truly just wonderful.
If Focal creates a Utopia V2, then all they'd need to do, is just widen the soundstage about 20%, and it would be another rare gear that is Euphoric and has all the detail you can stand, which is what you get with the HEKse, and slightly more with the Susvara.

Here is a Video you might enjoy if you are on the hunt for a Hifiman HE1000SE
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[FullBright1]

It's less bright than the Arya.

Also, That "arya glare" is not found in the HEKSE's sound.
And that is a good thing.

 

[Hifiearspeakers]

Also, That "arya glare" is not found in the HEKSE's sound.
And that is a good thing.

Agreed

 

[Chamade]

That’s interesting, I was under the impression that the HE1000SE was brighter, lacked body and needed EQ, which is what some reviewers mention.
Personally I love the Arya and was going to look into the Empyrean as complement, but might have to check out the HE1000SE.

 

[Hifiearspeakers]

That’s interesting, I was under the impression that the HE1000SE was brighter, lacked body and needed EQ, which is what some reviewers mention.
Personally I love the Arya and was going to look into the Empyrean as complement, but might have to check out the HE1000SE.

I've owned the Susvara, HEKse (twice), HEK V1, HEK V2, Arya, Ananda, HEX V2, and HE560 V1. The HEKSE is definitely smoother and less bright than the Arya. It's also important to note that there is more to sound than just the amount of energy at a given frequency. A more refined treble can be simultaneously brighter and smoother. You have to watch out for unwanted resonances and ringing as well.

Also the Arya has less bass than the HEKSE. And at the end of the day, I actually prefer the HEKSE to the Susvara. YMMV.

 

[Chamade]

I've owned the Susvara, HEKse (twice), HEK V1, HEK V2, Arya, Ananda, HEX V2, and HE560 V1. The HEKSE is definitely smoother and less bright than the Arya. It's also important to note that there is more to sound than just the amount of energy at a given frequency. A more refined treble can be simultaneously brighter and smoother. You have to watch out for unwanted resonances and ringing as well.

Also the Arya has less bass than the HEKSE. And at the end of the day, I actually prefer the HEKSE to the Susvara. YMMV.

Well guess I’ll just have to find one and try it out. It’s nice that it’s so efficient too. Anyway, not to derail your thread…thanks for the info.

 

[SonicFade]

I like how you connected intimate and mids. That makes a lot of sense actually! It kind of puts things into perspective in that you can’t have everything. If your sound stage is wide, the mids may be affected.

I just purchased the TH900’s (today) and people have said they are wide for being closed back but someone mentioned the treble being detailed in a specific way that attributes to the FR being the reason why they seem wide. And people have also said the mids are recessed slightly. I hope I like them

 

[lumdicks]

That’s interesting, I was under the impression that the HE1000SE was brighter, lacked body and needed EQ, which is what some reviewers mention.
Personally I love the Arya and was going to look into the Empyrean as complement, but might have to check out the HE1000SE.

It is absolutely not the case.

 

[FullBright1]

That’s interesting, I was under the impression that the HE1000SE was brighter, lacked body and needed EQ, which is what some reviewers mention.
Personally I love the Arya and was going to look into the Empyrean as complement, but might have to check out the HE1000SE.

Some ears hear "utter clarity" as "bright".

Also, Hifiman creates a certain sound, that is more delicate, regarding the top end., most of the time.
Did you ever hear their original HE400? It was so heavy, and so bright, and sounded very unique.
All their headphones since that one, their upper tier, are a revision of that original "Fang" sound, which is really just the ASIAN preference Audiophile sound.
The Asian Headphone Audiophile sound leans toward the upper FR as the main objective.

For example, Audio-Technica. Their best Headphone, is the ADX5000, and it sounds like the HEKSE, generally speaking, with a touch more midrange forwardness.
Audeze, prefers a thick lower FR as their main sonic objective, and not so much upper Treble AIR dialed in.
The reason the Hifiman HE1000 Series Treble, while , over the top , works...... is because they place it inside a wide and deep soundstage.
So, in that way, its an amazing sound. The wideness of the Soundstage, allows that Hifiman Treble detail retrieval to be magnificent.
Yet, if you put that same into a intimate small soundstage, your ears would melt from the SIZZLE.

 

[cfranchi]

I've owned the Susvara, HEKse (twice), HEK V1, HEK V2, Arya, Ananda, HEX V2, and HE560 V1. The HEKSE is definitely smoother and less bright than the Arya. It's also important to note that there is more to sound than just the amount of energy at a given frequency. A more refined treble can be simultaneously brighter and smoother. You have to watch out for unwanted resonances and ringing as well.

Also the Arya has less bass than the HEKSE. And at the end of the day, I actually prefer the HEKSE to the Susvara. YMMV.

In term of pure musicality enjoyment, how would you rank/compare HEKv2 vs Susvara and HEKse ?

 

[SilverEars]

I like how you connected intimate and mids. That makes a lot of sense actually! It kind of puts things into perspective in that you can’t have everything. If your sound stage is wide, the mids may be affected.

I just purchased the TH900’s (today) and people have said they are wide for being closed back but someone mentioned the treble being detailed in a specific way that attributes to the FR being the reason why they seem wide. And people have also said the mids are recessed slightly. I hope I like them

Didn't like the 900 I've gotten. People seem to like the bass from it a lot, and generally hear that they have good bass quantity. That's not what I experienced, it didn't have the level of bass based on impressions I've read. Most of my amps couldn't bring the bass up except a tube amp, which was odd. I think it was lacking mid-bass, and most of the emphasis was toward the subs, and that didn't jive with me. I can get better and more linear subs from planars.

The technicalities were no better than a HD6XX, but with a sharp emphasis at the 6k, which is bothersome with certain vocals. I think that 6k is what people are meaning treble. Treble isn't all that detailed, there are headphones with superior details. No more detailed than a HD6XX.

It just wasn't as fun of a headphone as I was expecting in terms bass. I prefer the THX00 Ebony over it, due to Ebony's bass quantity (reason why Ebony has more bass is due to the reduced pad room.). If I wanted fun bass, I would go with Denon D7200 or 9200. Depending on if you prefer warm or bright. 9200 is the bright one.