The overall imaging and separation on sundaras isnât all that great and something about the highs with sundaras always seemed off to me and they get a little congested which I didnât think was possible on planars but the sundaras pulled it off somehow. All that is fixed with the he400se and they can slam harder. Theyâre kinda just better at everything and I hope itâs because of the stealth drivers. If it is, I hope all the new hifimans get them because itâs a game changer.
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Happy to say the headband pressure of my HiFiMan HE-400se has reduced with break-in, proper extension of headband for cups and pressing the padding with my fingers to soften it.
i found just squeezing the headband like iâm creasing the center helped reshape it a lot but make sure you do it with the yokes all the way out. it helped drastically.
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OK, itâs no secret by now I love the HE-400se International version headphones. But the stock cable is janky as f*ck. Does anyone know any good replacements? Thanks.
The new fantasia ones are good and if you have a balanced output they respond really well to power. If you want some really nice cables I love my cables from halbycables on etsy with an interconnect.
Thanks. Iâm sticking with unbalanced for now. Eyeing a balanced amp in the future.
Besides advice for replacement for the janky cable, what would be a good budget DAC/amp stack for the 400se International edition? JDS Labs Atom? Schiit Magni-Modi? Iâm looking to stay in that $200-250 USD sweet spot, and I know every DAC/amp has different sound characteristics.
Thanks! These headphones sound so good $150 itâs scary.
If the Khadas Tone 2 Pro ever decides to come back in stock, that might be a good option. But itâs a DAC/AMP. Might be worth your radar though, if it ever comes back in stock that is.
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No, thatâs fine. I donât mind a combo unit. It doesnât have to be a stack. Thanks!
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Just ordered these today off Amazon today. Will be my first planars
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I think youâll dig them. Hope you do! Youâll need some power to drive them, though. Hope you have more than a phone. Enjoy.
I got used to mine stealth driver edition over the last week and honestly theyâre the best headphones Iâve ever heard but the volume is to low on my smartphone why is it? Other phonos are much louder. Also remind that other people around you can hear everything youâre listening to and you hear all outside noises to! so for some people this might be a no-go
These things take more power than my gl2000s. Theyâre noticeably quieter. I have a feeling the advertised sensitivity is overstated.
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Going to run my HE400se off the atom stack when I get home. Really looking forward to using these as gaming headphones.
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first impressions of A/B testing 400i 2020 and 400SE (international aka stealth magnet):
very similar in terms of technical performance. none reveals anything the other doesnât. 400SE sounds brighter and more intense. meaning the bass punches more but also the treble is very hot in comparison. it reminds me a lot of a the DT990 i tested recently. impressive intensity but much less refined in terms of tuning for long term listening. the 400i is overall more pleasant and balanced sounding. it has more warmth and body between bass and mids. thus sounds less âairyâ but also more natural. voices sound more natural and pleasing to my ears too.
overall iâd say itâs a matter of taste. the 30 difference in price (in europe) is not high enough imho to say that it autoamtically makes the SE have more value. while tuning is subjective it also plays a factor in usability in terms of fatigue. so maybe i just canât handle them but they feel more rough around the edges to me.
in one word each: 400SE = impressive, 400i 2020 = refined
if the 400i 2020 are indeed discontinued, iâd advise anyone, who likes the SE, to also test the 400i 2020 while you canâŠpreferably side by side. iâd say itâs like two slightly different versions of the same thing.
these are first impressions, so take it with a grain of salt. but eventhough i only had the 400i for a few days only, i made sure to take a two day break from them while i wait for the 400SE to arrive so i could test them fresh side by side.
iâll update, if my thoughts change at all.
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Donât like the headband. Feels hard. Pads are comfy which is nice. The cable is so shit omg.
yea the cable on the SE is kind of odd. for the headband, like i said before, press it into your head to force it to adapt to your headshape. the headband design isnât exactly geniously ergonomic but i think the main issue is the foam being stiff not reacting very well. i wonder, if i would like the old style more since i really dug the ones on AKG headphones.
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@Musician Planars are tougher to drive than many dynamics. You maybe saw the fairly low impedance number and thought, âHell, my phone or Apple dongle can drive these!â
Not so fast, my friend. Sensitivity matters just as much as impedance. Low impedance makes a can easier to drive. But low sensitivity makes it tougher, and the HiFiMan cans all have sensitivity in the low to mid-90s, which is pretty low.
You definitely need an amp with at least 2 volts of output to drive the 400se International properly.
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@JaVerde Let me know how they sound, man. Iâm thinking of buying an Atom stack just for these cans. Iâm using a TempoTec Sonata HD Pro in high-gain mode now. Works fine, but I would like a bit more overhead for non-portable situations.
Enjoy!
@JaVerde The headband will break in with time. Mine felt like a metal bar the first two nights I used these cans. But now I barely even feel them.
One suggestion: Gently press and knead the padding on the headband near your hotspots. That softens it nicely.
Good luck.