Hifiman HE-560

I have a bunch of headphones besides the HE-560. I currently have three HD600s, two HE-500s, various Audio Technica headphones (AD700, AD900x, and etc.), HE-400i, HE-400s, Koss Porta Pros, HD-598, and others I can't remember. Nonetheless, from my perspective, it is not a good upgrade from a HE-500 or HD600. The HE-560 does have a cleaner sound than the HE-500. The HE-500 can become confused when the music becomes busy, but the HE-500 has a better timbre, slam, bass extension, and a more speaker like presentation. The HE-560 is far too bright. Even switching to a Focus Pad A can't tame it completely. My HE-400i is better with the Focus Pad A, and it is much easier to listen too. Nonetheless, even my HE-400i is relegated to only casual listening when I'm working and not really paying attention. If you are looking for a planar magnetic, a used HE-500 or HE-400S are far better. At least in my setup they are... In fact, my HE-500 slams like a pissed off mule. That's something the HE-400S doesn't have.

 

I came from the AD700 to the HE560. I have the older SMC connector model. I prefer neutral and do not mind them being slightly bright. I prefer bright to being too bass heavy. To me, the HE560 is not as bright as the AD700 and has oodles more bass. My pair are unmodded. I hear peaks at around 1.1 Khz and 7.3-7.4 Khz that are about 2-3 dB louder than the frequencies around them (using SineGen). With the 1.1 Khz being a bit less than the 7.3 Khz peak. Neither peak really bother me, but I do use PEQ to lower them by 2.0-2.5 dB.

I've had my pair for a year now. My only complaint about them are the pads. Cheap glue is used to attach the pleather section of the Focus-A pads to the mounting rings. The glue has degraded and the pleather is coming off the plastic. You do need to try to remove the old glue first or the super glue will not hold.

 

guys listen to the doors waiting for the sun, nirvana in utero
and tell me it s not rocking good !!!
i think the he 560 can be very good with hybrid or tube amp ...

 

I really enjoyed the 560's. but amp pairing is critical with these cans. I swapped pads for the mr. Speakers alphas. The only two amps I really enjoyed them with were the nfb1 and the black widow. Unfortunately I had a driver fail & just didn't think they were worth keeping after that.

 

I think the 560, like most planars, pairs with more powerful amps that can swing a lot of current. I think it helps the headphones be more tactile, textured and punchier. I also think its actually surprisingly demanding of amps and can come off sounding a bit thin or bloomy on a lot of setups.

 

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https://www.adorama.com/hmhe560.html?emailprice=t&utm_source=rflaid913528

$350 brand new boys....

 

Is there any good mod for the 560 other than replacing stock pads with Focus-A pads? Does the Jerg mod improve the sound? I am looking for a bit more neutrality, resolution, bass depth and probably a bit more warmth.

 

Buying new headphones? EQ? I think I measured mine and applied a tiny bit of EQ with TDR Nova.

"I am looking for a bit more neutrality, resolution, bass depth and probably a bit more warmth" - this really sounds like you're unhappy with almost every aspect of these slightly wonky headphones. Rather than fretting and stuffing them with kapok wadding, you might want to either sell them, or keep them for gaming if you do that (they're weirdly good for gaming headphones, fast, detailed, easy to pick out those tiny sonic tells).

I have a love/hate relationship with mine, I must admit.

 

Nah, it's not I'm unhappy with them. I'm looking for a miracle mod like the KISS mod that will improve most aspects of the headphone. Once I switched from Focus to Focus-A pads the find the headphone being a bit more balanced.
Vocals esp sounded too distant for me with Focus pads; with the Focus-A it's a bit more intimate.
The overall sound stage has become a little bit smaller after the pad-swap is what I think, but I'm digging the overall sound better, esp cleanliness compared to the 650.
Not much of a gamer, but I definitely prefer the 560 over the 650 for movies!

 

Yeah, they do sound superficially better than the 650s at first- they're bright and fast, and have a certain amount of fake detail due to the highs. It takes more listening to realise that they are actually worse headphones by quite a long shot. The frequency response is so very wonky, and short of EQing the ever-loving f**k out of them, will stay that way. Maybe getting Sonarworks to measure yours and build a curve would give you some of what you crave? Not sure it's worth the cost, mind. (I'd love an average model to try though, @Hrodulf - pretty sure it's not worth you guys doing that though, on numbers alone...)

They are probably more extended, but the FR is like someone sat on it, they simply don't have the smoothness of the 650 either. The sound has a sort of "sheen" to it, too.. it's weirdly off.

However, being fast, fairly extended, and having that fake detail is actually kinda great for gaming sometimes, if they're comfy for the wearer.

 

Not the first time I've heard someone say this about the 560 vs the 650. I guess I need (a lot) more practice and probably better gear. I guess my matrix amp is the weakest link in the chain right now (of course, next to my listening skills).

 

Jerg mod mainly boosts bass, as I understand it - I'll mod mine as soon as the ZMF pads get here, as neither focus pad is deep enough for my ears.

I kind of wonder if LFF can do something magical with them though.

 

We all need better listening skills, that's an ongoing project

One thing that the 560s like is a lot of current, I think. They're a fair bit harder to drive than the HE-400i, for example. That said, the HD-650 benefit from a fairly grunty amp too- they can sound pretty sleepy, otherwise.

(Also, tastes do vary, some people just plain don't like 650, and as long as they're consistent and able to describe their preferences clearly, it's still a useful data point.)

 

I have to admit that it took me a long time to realize this statement is correct. However, I feel the 560s do excel at over the 650 when it comes to extension, positioning/air around instruments and definitely the bass department. The mids are so..so dry.. I EQ the treble to smooth it as well. Still, the 560 is wicked clean. Also, the 560 responds very well to EQ so don't hesitate. If you are using a PC, EqualizerAPO is your friend. Huge swings makes things sound wonky elsewhere, but small DB shifts make the difference in my experience.

I believe a lot of people like the 560 with the Lyr 2 since the tubes add some color which is welcomed by some. I however, prefer a clean SS and 'jot' it up.

 

Couldn´t resist picking up a HE-560 from the recent Adorama 350 dollar deal (believe it or not, they cost 1300 dollars over here locally). At this price no matter the customs/shipping fees I can sell them on without losing anything and whoever buys them will be super happy as they got a deal of the century. Basically a free extended home demo.

I´m a complete newbie when it comes to planars. The only one I´ve previously owned are the original LCD-2 back when they were released (horrible ergonomics, no treble; sold them on very fast). In other words I had no idea what to expect other than from reading the comments here/measurements imply they have good extended bass with low distortion.

They only just arrived, but I´m already surprised how comfortable the HIFIMAN headband design is. For my head shape these are definitely more comfortable than the HD 800 (which are already good in that department). Very lightweight for a planar too. As for the sound, can´t say much as I´ve literally only listened to them for a couple of hours. The bass is great though and if you listen to some electronica like Deadmau5´s 2016album you can quickly hear how much the HD 800 S rolls off the sub bass / there isn´t that much impact in comparison either. Their tonality seems pretty good for my taste, but I tend to prefer a somewhat bright sound. I´ll probably actually end up keeping these...

Update: Wow, it seems the tales of planar drivers often having issues are true. After some low volume burn in (with music) these have started to rattle with deep bass test tunes/some electronica with a lot of bass. It´s there on both sides, but louder on the right side. With most music it´s not audible, but still this isn´t acceptable at this price range or even a much lower one. A quick Head-Fi browse seems to imply this was a somewhat common issue with early drivers - looks like I likely got one of those.

Another update: Replacements would ship out of China, which means to much of a hassle with customs. Sent these back to Adorama for a refund instead. Oh well, maybe I´ll get the chance to try HIFIMAN planars some other day.

 

They are really really comfy, except for the pads.

Maybe because I have flappy elephant ears, but they're always touching the driver. That gets annoying after a while.

I have some Ori pads coming in with the Auteur, which should fix *that*.

Oh, and the cable is disgraceful, that's getting fixed as soon as @Forza AudioWorks gets some sleep, which from 3rd-party experience with newborns should only take a year or two

 

I have a similar issue with mine. I'll get around to buying the ori pads one day. I did get some single ended cable in a nylon jacket that was really stiff and not very practical. I got a much better balanced cable (ergonomically better at least) so probably won't replace them.

For the $300 price range, they sound really good. I bought mine used a few months ago and it's a much better value than when I had them a few years ago at msrp. I have a jotunheim amp with these and for less than 1k total I can't really complain much.

I do wish I had the he6 instead however they are too heavy for my head.

 

The HE560 is my only pair of headphones atm and I drive it from a Meier Audio Corda Jazz-ff fed by a Sony CDP-D11. Pads are velour.

There's much I enjoy about it, but I find that music loses coherence when things get busy, such as orchestral music. Imaging goes to hell and balance of timbre gets all muddy and messy.

Has anyone else experienced something similar? Is this something that can be fixed via mods or changing the gear upstream?

Budget is next to nothing.

 

I don't find them too busy, per se, but the 560s don't have the depth to go along with the width. The separation is pretty spectacular, especially in its price range. I always powered them through a Lyr 2 with Amperex tubes with no hassle. They're not bad on a Marantz DAC 1 either.