Iām listening now, this was an awesome suggestion and I think fixed the issue. The lower clip had come loose since there is not a lot of tolerance especially with Dekoni Hybrids.
I did notice SPL seemed to be lower in left channel but thought it was driver-related since many people have discussed this.
I check for channel balance using a phone decibel meter app and online test tone generator to switch left and right and at least get a rough idea if you have an issue. The way to correct for it would be the APO equalizer and Peace front end. In Peace thereās a hearing test where you run it and itāll correct for it and build a custom profile just for your hearing with those headphones on. A simpler way is getting a reading with the phone app and adjust the L/R balance that way. If the balance is an issue at different frequencies, then the hearing test will probably be more useful.
Iāve had them several times and great with the Autoeq profile in Peace. Just the power needed to do it gets pretty epic, worth it though.
Has anyone tried powering the HE6 with the Fossi Audio ZA3? Next time thereās a sale, Iāll pick one up along with the opamp upgrade.
If it doesnāt work well, then itāll mostly likely at least be an upgrade for my Rega Brio speaker amp
I have an HE6se and used the HE-Adapter before and it could easily power it, but distortion from a speaker amp might not be worth it. Just get a Sabaj A20h which are very inexpensive and on the balanced side and a 5 volt DAC it can handle them. If you equalize with something like an autoeq profile at -6.9b they will sound amazing, but power requirements soar. Even stock, my Topping A70Pro is at -17db to get them loud, and a preamp reduction like that during quiet recordings will push even that to itās limit with a 5 volt DAC helping.
If you donāt plan on equalizing, a lot of things can power them. Try a -6.9db reduction and the extended version of Tonight, tonight, tonight by Genesis and youāll realize just how much power you need. Even my Topping A90 was at the end of high gain. To use a speaker amp and HE-Adapter it just wasnāt worth the sound quality tradeoff.
If I recall correctly, Zeos found the ZA3 specifically (monoblock mode) to work great with the Modhouse Tungstens. So I figured it was also worth trying it on the HE6.
I have a Soloist 3X. So I donāt require a new amp for it. But it would be nice to have the extra option for when Iām in a different room.
Since Iām so surprised, Iāll add an amp to the list that seems to run these well. Lake people g108, Iām not sure if itās because of the fact that it runs 60v internally or what. Or because other amps over state their capabilities. But Iāve got a singxer sa-1(dc mod), jot 2, aune s17 pro, topping a90d, cayin iha-6, burson 3xp poweramp mode and an LP.
I run balanced and the g108 gets louder than all of the above set to high gain while itās at just +6 (can still do +12 and +18)ā¦ I do run a -9.6 eq in Windows (oratory latest settings + -4.1 to cover Windows audio issues, though havenāt been able to find if itās still necessary in win11). Iām obviously going to be returning some amps, lol. But Iām still surprised as hell.
Chain:
USB hub with separate power > su-2 > i2s > su-10 > xlr > douk xlr switcher or direct to su-10 depending what I was doing > amp > xlr to headphones
Also same chain but aes or coax to b2/64.
watts isnāt everything current can matter for certain gear (low impedance + low sensitivity)
lake people stuff is usually higher up on the current scale
Yep current is really important for planars. I got two more pairs of HE6se this week, one is the 68ohm version and this one today is the 50ohm drivers. Using a Topping A70Pro with an E70 9028Pro in 5 volt mode. Every bit of current helps keep from needing as much volume wheel. I worked out a great EQ profile, going easy on the bass boost so itās versatile for playing Destiny 2 as well as music. Iāll check serial numbers and try to find if thereās a numbering system for the different drivers. I just shipped another of these to Saudi Arabia last week, but they were the 68ohm version and I took a photo of the serial number to register the warranty. Iāll play detective this weekend. June at Hifiman is sending another one Monday, and Iāll see next week which ones they are and ask about it.
What current mode amps would you recommend for HE6SE ?
Iām currently using them with Auralic Taurus MK2 and Sapphire (A current output amp built locally by KMS).
I have an SMSL H300 and it works great, the A70Pro is really good, but the H300 has more speed and dynamics like drum hits sound more distinctive. The A30Pro only goes into class A mode when it detects over 250 ohm so I donāt use it for them. I have an SMSL H400 coming in a week and looking forward to doing a review while I have the A70Pro to compare it to.
I just got another HE6SE yesterday and this one is brand new and 50ohm, so thatās the new version, not the 68ohm drivers. Itās smoother and this one has superb channel matching and even the ohm rating match up identical. Had to put it back in the box before I got tempted to keep it 
The key with the HE6se is to get an amplifier with constant power, not one that needs to detect high ohm resistance like the A30Pro.
Iām using a Cayin iHA-6 preamped by a xduoo TA-26. I love it a lot but Iām itching to upgrade to a quality speaker amp. I use an old Denon receiver as well which runs it well but I really want to see what these can do with something significantly better.
The HE6SE can be used with the HE-Adapter and Iād check the leaderboard on speaker amps for SINAD score, some are really impressive on par with headphone amps for low distortion. If you hear the new 50ohm version on an SMSL H300 youāll be impressed. Same with the Topping A70pro.
I think getting a Questyle CMA12 or 15 would be a better route but Iām contemplating if getting an amp just to drive HE6SE makes any reasonable sense. 
In my case I already have a pair of Gjallarhorns to drive another hard to drive planar. So I might buy an HE6se v2 in the future to try it out. Other hard to drive planars on my list are Horizon and Tungsten.
If I manage to get a Tungsten, I think it would definitely call for buying a good speaker amp or a current output amp so I can use both HE6SE and Tungsten.
I have a Kevin Gilmoreās Bakoon based current output amp which is brilliant but it lacks power. Itās perfect for driving my HE-500 and Aeon 2 Noire though.
I just setup an A70Pro and E70 9028Pro in 5 volt mode and with the He6se it gets as loud as I feel is safe with -15db left over. With EQ and a preamp reduction of -6.9db itās close but can do it even on quiet recordings. I have an A90 and A90D also and they run out of gas at times if you EQ them. Out of the box even 3 watts into 32 ohms like a Drop HO150X will make them sound good with a 4v DAC. Itās just when you cut the volume in half then itās all bets are off for power requirements.
Out of maybe 100 amplifiers Iāve had, the A70Pro hands down is the winner for quality and power. Monday the SMSL H400 is coming in, so I can compare them head to head. Iāve got the SMSL H300 and Topping A30Pro, will try to get them all in the same photo for a comparison review. Will use a decibel meter on the HE6se to see how they each do.
I found HE6SE sings on Class A amps compared to others. Iām curious to see how the SMSL H400 compares when it arrives on Monday. Having the SMSL H300 and Topping A30Pro in the mix for a comparison review will make for a comprehensive analysis
Looking at the H400ās power rating has me curious about when the power output starts to dip. 7.5w into 32 ohms and 1w into 300 ohms, which would mean that it takes a steep drop in power somewhere between those. Hopefully somewhere after 60 Ohms. Always interesting how different amps of the same class handle similar loads.
Edit: Just for reference/comparison, the Mjolnir 3 for instance has a max rating of 2 Watts, but it still outputs 1 watt into a 300 ohm load. So it has a more gentle slope if you plot its power output across various loads. Since both headphones and speakers have some load shift at certain frequencies, having less of drop off in power may sound more pleasing in the end. In the speaker realm for instance, some 8 ohm rated speakers will dip down into the 2.5 to 3.5 ohm range with some frequencies. Those sudden changes do put extra stress on the amp, so it is a good test of a quality amplifier.
In my case (for headphones) I drive a pair of Starry Night v1 first run headphones which have a rating of 10 ohms at 87 db sensitivity (people have noticed the sensitivity might actually be lower). It is not an easy load for an amp to handle. I have tried them on several amps, but they only come to life on the Mjolnir 3, and a pair of Gjallarhorns (30 watts per channel into 8 ohms). I have a Burson Soloist 3xp as well, but even with its 8 watts per channel, it didnāt get them all the way there.
Not trying to hijack the thread with amplification of another headphone, but it seemed like it was in the same vein as the current topic. Amp pairings for hard to drive planar headphones are always trial and error, as with most things in this hobby. 
The HE-Adapter is just resistors in series. It neuters the sound. Only use it if you want to drive the HE6se from a tube speaker amp thatās not used to those loads. The HE-adapter is useless for solid state power amps. Just get a banana plug to 4pin XLR adapter and place a a preamp or volume control between your DAC and the power amp if the DAC does not already have a volume control.
Be sure to power on and off the power amp without the headphones in the signal path.
have you received the SMSL, how big is the diff compared to A30 pro?