The he560 v2 and v3 are bad because they are an adorama camera exclusive that used b-stock drivers in a cheaper housing, and also had a headband that messed with the comfort and the seal. It was just produced to a lower standard to meet the price and also get rid of the b-stock drivers. I also have a sneaking suspicion that regarding the he5se and he6se, the earliest models were produced to a much higher standard, and the new ones out now are not as good, comparing my and bagwellās reactions to them
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Just got a bunch of Zeos videos today. one of them is a review of the 5SE. And zeos really didnāt like it lol. He even thought it was possible that he had a faulty set of headphones.
Thatās really unfortunate then, as it seems like the models currently being produced for the 5se and the 6se just arenāt the same as when they made the first couple batches
his were modded?!
also you should use a cable which hat banana plugs at the end of it, not so many plug connections and adapters
Edit: maybe his speaker amplifier is just not working with them
Wait I havenāt seen the videos so what are you talking about?
Those are the he6, not the 5se. I just use the hifiman speaker adapter and they sound great. The 6 and 6se are very very picky when it comes to amps and power, and the higher quality speaker amp the better. You seems to have some pretty nice speaker amps, so I think you should have no problem if you decide to consider an he6 or 6se. This is one of those videos where I think the headphones didnāt like the amps or I donāt really agree with z
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Thanks!
Looks like I finally have a reason to equip the good old SU V8 with new elcos, pots and speaker terminals and hope that he will not light my table on fire again ā¦ very good amplifier but I do not dare to use it unattended so perfect for headphones ā¦ letās see ā¦ the repair project already lasts three years, maybe I have the appropriate HE6SE in another three years too
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Seems like a fun project (albeit a bit long but it seems worthwhile lol).
Also if you are more of a speaker guy, have you considered picking up a raal sr1a or akg k1000 (or the mysphere headphones)? They are a great hybrid for headphones and a full size speaker 
You could use them and not disturb others (well at least less than actual speakers lol)
wow those look like scifi headphones. 4000$ though, ouch
The comfort on those also isnāt the greatest (for some), but they are very good speaker like alternatives. They are a more modern akg k1000
I just saw Zs review of the HE5SEā¦ oh boyā¦ Not sure Iāve ever seen him so frustrated about a headphone review. lol
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Itās unfortunate, because the one I heard was great, and now I feel bad for recommending them to people since they seem like they turned them into crap. Ahhhh I should have expected it tbh. I guess Iām glad if I got lucky by getting a first run he6se and hearing a super early version of the 5se
Wow, hifiman really seem unreliable lol. build problems, silent revisions and now inconsistent quality in production runs.
Starting to worry about those Anandaās i bought
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The arya, Ananda, sundara, and edition xx seem to be safe. Their SE editions seem to have been changed though
I never had a problem with all my HFM cans re: quality although there are certainly those that have.
I donāt think there is inconsistent quality in production runs. I think the drop in quality in a given later rev is the same for all in that rev. Itās the sales/marketing/manufacturing/Mgt that is to blame for these unethical choices devoid of notice to the innocent.
But on the round can side there appear to be issues with solid rev 1ās, and lesser versions after getting hot sales numbers from a combo of the reputation of the originals and low sales prices.
I myself am a victim of the HE5SE and HE6SE switcheroo. But it started with the 560. I didnāt get sucked into that one, because personally I like the HE-500 more than the 560 v1, so I didnāt chase the later revs in Adorama.
The HE-6 has to be in the top 5 reputation cans of the past 10 years. But I was worried about dropping $900 on a nearly 10 year old can, then here comes the HE6SE - HFM says its the same, initial reviews - huge). But - $1800 (too expensive), $1200 (hmmm), $899 (get ready), $699 (go ! ).
Still waiting on my parametric EQ, I havenāt listened to these pariah HE6SE for close to 10 days. I already got rid of the HE5SE. My patience is pretty worn down.
Well I guess if you want to stay safe go for 1st run hfm then, thatās what Iāve taken out of this stuff for the most part. If it drops in price substantially itās either reached itās actual intended price (sundara) or itās had a silent revision (any v2 or v3 or se apparently)
I never heard the original HE6, so I canāt compare the two. I can say that judged as a $700 headphone, I feel like the 6se is a more than good value if driven properly. Yes, I have to hook it up to my receiver, but if I decide to do so I think it absolutely crushes lots of headphones in the same price range such as the LCD2c. If choosing between it and the Elex, I would pick either under certain circumstances, but I definitely wouldnāt say one is outright better than the other. I donāt like it off of any of the dedicated headphone amps I have, but off my receiver or even Sprout100 I think it more than holds its own. I donāt pay much attention to graphs, but I donāt hear anything jarringly bad unless I underpower it.
If any sense of getting a good deal based on the price is fabricated because of a stealth revision, thatās lame of Hifiman. I was reluctant to buy their headphones before based on previous issues I had had and seen countless other reports of. If they have taken the good reputation of one of their better headphones to try to hoodwink people with a lesser product, then they really do suck. And I may have felt that way had I paid $1600. But for $700 I think it performs well beyond the price of admission and donāt feel like I was taken in any way.
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which eq are you getting?
Letās define terms. Your can != my can. Your HE6SE sounds good for $699 driven well to you.
My Ragnarok 1 drives an original HE-6 6 screw two different times for about 40 hours total very nicely. I thought there was some treble issues at 6 kHz and 9kHz, things I would try the āfuzzorā mod on, but nothing awful. My HE6SE seem good except a big dip at 1.5 kHZ and a monster peak at 2.8 kHz. BTW two other graphs exist on the web for the HE6SE that show a +13 and +15 db peak at 2.8-3 kHz.
Right now, It is its worth whatever I can get for it in sale, because I wonāt listen to it until I get an EQ (thus raising the price), and the EQ is able to turn this can to my liking.
My 3 other cans that I actually listen to: Senn HD-600 (minor mods), HEX v2 (minor mods), HE-500 (lots of mods) are all more musical and pleasing than that fucking ice-pick in the skull HE6SE that belongs to me.
Iām very happy for you, and others like you that find the same thing, but some others with nice well working HE6SEās have tried to touch up my findings as something issued by crank or a fool. You know: HFM said that they are the sameā¦mine are better than the originalā¦
I am neither, I will continue to report on my experience with them.