šŸ”¶ HarmonicDyne Helios

Yeah i hate how expensive these pads are. ZMF and Dekoni are prime offenders. but i love my Helios so much that i might want to buy some nice pads for them. but iā€™m afraid it will change the sound

Thanks for explaining things, the reason I find the 650s can annoy me is that at times I can really notice how close they feel (like the sound is actually coming from on/in my ear) which can take me out of the experience. But I do love the way that they sound

Doesnā€™t help me that I am based outside the US so shipping costs etc on top of the price of ZMF pads would make it close to what I paid for the Helios :joy: At least theres a couple UK based places that stock Dekoni

1 Like

Alright, so I need more time to go through some additional test tracks with the Dekoni Elite Choice Suede pads. Initial impressions, however, are that pulling the driver a little further out does help with soundstage a bit, and the presentation feels somewhat more natural, perhaps due to the staging and additional angle from the pads. Thereā€™s also just the slightest bit more thickness on the material that covers the driver, which may contribute to some of what I perceive to be a slight taming of the highs, but it could also be the difference in the pad material. The pad itself, itā€™s a slightly larger diameter than the cup, so it overhangs, which looks a little odd with the 3M adhesive strip being exposed.

I noticed this before about the Helios, but seems more apparent with these pads, that they really seem to be mix transparent. So, if the vocals are forward on the track, theyā€™re forward on the headphoneā€¦if the bass is forward in the track, very much so in the headphone. Still a somewhat V or U shape, but less pronounced. Listening to the Deadmau5 curated playlist on Tidal, the bass hits very hard, but feels pretty clean for the most part (maybe a touch of mid-bass bloat).

Iā€™d be very interested to try something like a ZMF Perforated Suede, but these pads may have found a new home for now.

2 Likes

Thanks for taking the time to try them for me, sounds like theyā€™re pretty good then :grin:

Iā€™m gonna wait to see how I am with the Helios stock before ordering new pads but by the sounds of it the dekoni lcd pads are gonna be top of my list to try

After listening most of the day to the combo of Helios and Dekoni LCD Choice Suede, Iā€™ll say the pad swap makes them somewhat of a bass cannon. Electronic and pop are fun, but some tracks can be overwhelmed by the bass. You have to listen a bit more closely to pull out details when bass frequencies are forward in the mix. Iā€™ll have to pull out the Argons, but going on memory, the bass quantity may be close. Itā€™s not super tight, but also not overtly loose. I no longer notice any of the sharp treble I did before except for an occasional cymbal crash, and while still intimate and aggressive, imaging and staging seem improved, IMO. There have been a couple of occasions where a sound seems to come from behind me and I catch myself turning around to see what it was, which was not the case before the pad swap.

2 Likes

Sounds interesting, I do enjoy it whenever a headphone makes me think something is actually coming from outside the headphones

Well on thing about the Helios pads is they have a big hole in them. Most headphones in that range doesnt have a hole as large. The only other headphone in my collection that has a hole that large is the ZMF Auteur. So how wide and big the ear pad hole is could be contributing a lot to the sound.

I also think that steel plate is effecting the sound. the only thing i can think to compare is a steel acoustic guitar. they have a similar sound. could be the reason the tone/timber nerds have so much problems with it. Zeos and myself love it i think because its so different. after hearing so many headphones i start to want something different. but it does sound sooo good lol,

1 Like

So these headphones turned out to not be for me (sorry Ant). The amount of treble they have was a deal breaker. To my ears, it sounds elevated around 3-4 dB above what you could call neutral. My second biggest complaint is the vocal presentation, which is a very important characteristic to me. I wouldnā€™t say its vocals are necessarily bad, but I much prefer the lush, natural sound on the HD600 or the sparkle and clarity the HE-4XX gives me. The Helios in comparison sounds like sounds like some of the upper frequencies in the vocal range are recessed. So I can I kinda see where that one reviewer was coming from when he described it as sounding ā€œnasalā€.

But overall I would still say the Helios solid performer for the price. Iā€™d recommenced them to anyone who likes some extra bass and treble and wants something different from the other popular $200 options. Iā€™m selling mine for $125 if anyoneā€™s interested. UPDATE: sold to FBizzle

7 Likes

Np Marc. Iā€™m so facinated with these headphones that any reaction helps me to understand them lol. sorry you didnt like them

I think Felenkor was interested in buying these used. let me message him and see if hes interested.

Would pick them up, as I have been wanting to audition them if anything, but currently in a small financial crunch due to world situation. Could post those in buy/sell forum or ebay and someone should snag them though.

Looks like they sold pretty quickā€¦

Been comparing the Helios to the Argons since yesterday after the LCD suede pad swap for the Helios. As far as quantity, it really is pretty close. Where itā€™s different is in presentation. The Argons have slightly more slam with similar impact, and the bass is a bit more tight/controlled overall. Still enjoyable on the Helios, just a little softer with less separation (dynamic vs planar?). This theme of separation carries through the mids for the Argon, where the Helios is slightly pulled back in comparison. The highs are similarly sparkly, with perhaps just a hint more ā€˜airā€™ on the Helios. I think overall, clarity goes to the Argons, with a little more balance/linearity in the FR vs more of a V on the Helios. Staging/imaging is just different. Argon sounds pretty spacious for a closed back, like listening in a small room with pretty solid placement and separation. The Helios is still more intimate, but slightly wider than your head after the pad swap and still images pretty well within that small bubble around your headā€¦just not enough stage depth to have much separation.

Anyone considering the Helios but concerned about the treble, the LCD suede pads really tame that quite a bit, improve sound stage, and soften the overall presentation as well while also turning them into bass cans. May try the LCD leathers nextā€¦wish I had hybrids or some ZMF pads to test.

4 Likes

I canā€™t wait to try mine out when they arrive, feels like its gonna take forever though hearing what Linsoul can be like right now in terms of shipping times. At least theyā€™re at the distrobution centre in Hong Kong now :sweat_smile:

I still havnt recieved my order from them and i ordered back in 16th of may. I checked the SF express website and it still says its waiting at New York customs. Think i better shoot a email to Linsoul and find out whats going on.

BTW is that Haruko from fooly cooly in your profile? i love that show man, its one of my favorites

Iā€™m holding out hope that itā€™s gonna be faster here but I doubt it.

And yes it is, great show :grin:

1 Like

I dont think it will take as long as my pads. i think there may be a problem with my order.

I think Iā€™m gonna try something else new in the meantime, I canā€™t resist something shiny to try out :rofl:

1 Like

Some graphs, in the meantime:

1 Like

wow its close to the Senn HD599. But the 599 is probably veiled

whats your budget? what sound are you looking for?

That graph suggests the 599 is bright? eh? that doesnā€™t sound right to me. Looked up the hd599 graphs and it doesnā€™t match that. Are we sure thats accurate?