The HIFIMAN HE4xx has been a wonderful pair of headphones to use daily since I bought them from Massdrop almost one year ago today. They are planar magnetic, easy to drive, and absolutely gorgeous. I was originally running them through my Schiit Modi - Magni stack but felt like some compression/coloring to the sound was being added. I then switched over to a Topping D10 and JDS Atom which deliver crystal clear sound and plenty of power to these planars.
I love the look and the sound, they are open but close off a little bit of background noise… just a tad. The ear-cups are massive and easily fit over my big ears. The sound is so true to life, it really sounds like I am there inside the music, something lacking from headphones such as my previous Grado 60Es. The HEXX get very loud but I always listen to music at a low volume, and these really produce sound well at low volume which is important to me. I usually EQ other headphones, especially IEMs, but the HIFIMANs I never felt the need to tweak sound at all. I DID replace the pads because I had these already, velor certainly added to comfort. I also use a wool headphone headband from china which fits great.
For $160 I would absolutely recommend these headphones, they are just so wonderful to use and fit the music I listen to (rock & metal) perfectly.
They are pretty great, and imo a really good headphone for most people who like that sound signature. There’s really nothing to complain about at this price point, besides some people getting batches with qc issues, but personally I have not known someone who has had qc issues with the 4xx
I should also mention that you may think the stock cable is too short BUT it is replaceable which is awesome
I use both the stock cable and this one depending on where I am listening.
They were my favorite before I bought Ananda, so I gave them to my wife to take to work. She brought them home yesterday so I could put the 177x sheepskin pads on it and I forgot how nice they sound. I’ve been wearing 177x pretty much exclusively since I got them and 4XX is like a breath of fresh air.
177x sounded good enough that I cancelled my 1770 order. I wanted the excuse to go balanced as well
I tried 1770 at CanJam this year and loved it, but I already knew I was going to buy Neumann NDH20 as my next closed back. If I had known NDH20 couldn’t seal around glasses, I would have bought 1770. I guess it worked out, eh?
Uhhhhhhhh 4 27inch 4k displays and a 80 inch oled (got that one from my dad). I need them to work effectively at home. But my work only lets me have 3 ultrawide displays in my office because 4 is “a safety hazard” (cannot think of one reason why but I digress). I just need as much screen real estate I can get for work (and fun too lol)
I can see close things just fine but far away I can’t make out many details. (Can still drive safely though)
But now this is off topic, so back the the he4xx lol
Just checked and its actually a 77 inch, but idk its more then big enough for me. It’s an LG OLED77G7P from what it says. My dad is a big movie and tv watcher, and he offered to sell it to me for a price that would be dumb for me not to take.
And now back to appreciating the 4xx lol. Can we appreciate the 400i too? (since they are very similar in sound and price)
I use my HE4XX as my daily for tv/movie duties. They are plugged straight into my Yamaha receiver and in my opinion produce a great neutral sound that I find very natural and realistic. For music I prefer the Verum 1, but for hours of tv watching the HE4XX has the edge for comfort.
I can really wear them for hours, but maybe max about 3 because of my aftermarket velor pads… lol gets a little warm. they really sound great for rock I was doing A/B testing with System of a Down’s Hypnotize last night. Tidal vs CD. You can really hear the nuances to make a well informed decision. Lots of fun to be had with these headphones.
