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Hifiman HE-6

Discussion in 'Headphones' started by Meteora, Nov 13, 2015.

Page 33 of 41
  1. skem

    skem Friend

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    Pass F5 Turbo is the best pairing I've heard—they can be found from time to time. My only caution is to make sure you have adequate gain on whatever amp you get. For example, the Pioneer M22 cannot drive the HE6 to adequate volumes.
     
    skem, Dec 29, 2018
    #641
  2. captkirk

    captkirk Khan's BFF

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    How about @Vansen’s Vidar that he’s selling? Does amazingly well with my 5LE.

    I’ve run mine off my SX-850 and found it was a tad noisy and didn’t have the resolve and clarity I was looking hoping for.
     
    captkirk, Dec 29, 2018
    #642
  3. Ray

    Ray Friend

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    Vidar/saga is excellent w/ he-6. My daily driver for rock/metal
     
    Ray, Dec 29, 2018
    #643
  4. weicheheck

    weicheheck Almost "Made"

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    weicheheck, Dec 29, 2018
    #644
  5. weicheheck

    weicheheck Almost "Made"

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    Metal is probably the main genre I listen to so that's very useful information. I have a topping d50 that can act as a preamp so I would probably skip out on the saga, would that impact sound for the worse? Coming from the headphone world I've never really understood what a preamp does, other than control volume.
     
    weicheheck, Dec 29, 2018
    #645
  6. skem

    skem Friend

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    For metal, Vidar may even be better than F5. The F5 is softer than my pass XA30.8.
     
    skem, Dec 29, 2018
    #646
  7. weicheheck

    weicheheck Almost "Made"

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    I messaged @Vansen thanks for the help :punk:
     
    weicheheck, Dec 29, 2018
    #647
  8. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    I really like my HE-6 powered by my Benchmark AHB2, but that's a lot of money to chase after nutjobery.
     
    Armaegis, Dec 29, 2018
    #648
  9. weicheheck

    weicheheck Almost "Made"

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    @Armaegis I've seen you mention the bryston 2b combo a few times in other threads. That's much more in my price range, what did you like about that combo?

    Also I found a pioneer m22, m25, and c21 preamp being sold locally. I've been told the m22 lacks a bit of juice for the he 6, but would it be safe to assume the m25 still carries that Japanese magic while adding the power the he 6 would need?

    It's listed for under $1k and seems to be in great condition.
     
    weicheheck, Jan 1, 2019
    #649
  10. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I'd be wary of the Pioneer amps unless you know about their history / rebuilds and are capable of diagnostics yourself. Keep in mind that these things are from 30 years ago.

    If you are considering the 2B or other amps near $3k, you should also consider ditching the Topping D50 (don't even bother worrying about "magic" levels between the M-22 and M-25 as long you have Topping in your chain). Come back with a BUDGET and then people will come back with solid system recommendations with maybe an upgrade plan. Otherwise, people here are just shooting in the dark. (Even if you do come back with a budget, people will still be retarded and recommend something way over, but at least this will be minimized.)

    Randomly mentioning amps of extremely varying attributes (power, age, and price) in successive order, SX-1280, Pass F5, Bryston 2B, Pioneer M-22, M-25, isn't helping your cause. And again, consider source, which becomes increasingly important as you move up to better quality gear.

    FWIW, the BEST HE-6 system I have heard belongs to @ohhgourami. He's got a 100lbs Krell monster with some transformer preamp. This preamp provides for a deeper and more expansive headstage. If considering used, this setup can be put together for $7-8k. DAC and SPDIF accessories were probably $3.5k.
     
    Last edited: Jan 1, 2019
    purr1n, Jan 1, 2019
    #650
  11. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    @weicheheck

    I think the Bryston 2B is simply a solid amp when you can get it at the used $400-500 range. Definitely not worth the sticker price new.
     
    Armaegis, Jan 1, 2019
    #651
  12. weicheheck

    weicheheck Almost "Made"

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    Okay well let me get my thoughts together then.

    I'm exclusively looking for used products, I want to maximize the bang for my buck. My maximum total budget for changing my system is probably around ~$1600, but I would prefer to stay on the lower end unless it is a high value deal.

    I listen to a lot of Metal, Electronic, classic rock, Talking heads, Beastie Boys, some jazz (more afro-cuban style), and a bit of classical.

    I want an engaging sound that can also tame the highs of the 4 screw a bit. Tactile percussion is important to me, idk if that makes sense.

    eBay has a bryston 2b listed for $495 which is why I asked. The random string of amps were all sorta related to recommendations and what is available to me locally that I can identify based on stuff I've read hear.
     
    weicheheck, Jan 1, 2019
    #652
  13. Armaegis

    Armaegis Friend

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    Armaegis, Jan 1, 2019
    #653
  14. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Mods are a better way to tame the highs. More power will bring massively more slam and grip to the drivers of the HE-5. The problem with this is that the highs won't necessarily get softened. They may actually get worse since the attacks hit harder and stronger. The best way to address the highs is with mods. There are many different approaches. The most common being a pad swap. I've seen Audeze velour pads and HM pads used. You will need to be creative mounting them. Other ways may be to line the inside of headphone, over the driver with a filter-like material.

    The stuff you read about on HF that "power" makes the highs better is only partially true. Yes, if you are coming from a high-powered crappy amp with awful highs like the Hifiman EF-6, then likely yes, the highs will get better if you use any decent amp. But IMO, even the smoothest most tactile amp will not address the etchy highs of the HE-5.

    Bryston 2B, like any other pro-audio amps from the higher lines of Crown and Crest Class AB amps are good. Keep in mind that used amps may need refurbishment. Some of this stuff has been sitting around for 20 years, which is worse than if they were being used on a regular basis. Personally, I'd go for even more power than the 2B, which I think is about 50W? Try to shoot for at least 120W in 8 ohms (which should ideally translate into 30W into 32 ohms) and find units with big power transformers.

    Don't bother with vintage receivers.
     
    Last edited: Jan 1, 2019
    purr1n, Jan 1, 2019
    #654
  15. weicheheck

    weicheheck Almost "Made"

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    Oh wow thanks for the great find, I set an alarm for right before the auction ends.

    I should've mentioned that I'm currently using an emotiva mini x a 100, and have ether c sheepskin pads lined with felt on the back. I feel absolutely no sibilance or peakiness in the highs with my he 6 6 screw with the felt pads, but the headphones seemed to have lost some life from the sound. I haven't switched back to no felt yet so maybe my opinion will change after having gotten used to it. I guess I just mentioned taming highs because I'm uncertain how much stronger the treble will be with the 4 screw I bought.

    By the way I get a very annoying static sound in my right driver both with the he 5 le and he 6 when there is a silent background and there is only vocals or piano playing in the song (very specific to mid-range frequencies). This also applies to YouTube videos when people are talking with silent backgrounds. Is that AC related or could it be due to dust build up in the amp? I've never had this problem with headphone amps so I'm guessing it's the emotiva's fault. Should I avoid toroidal design power supplies?

    I'll try to jump on that bryston, but will still be open to suggestions since that leaves me a lot of budget room for experimenting with other stuff.
     
    weicheheck, Jan 1, 2019
    #655
  16. skem

    skem Friend

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    That sounds like oxidation on a relay contact. Does that amp have relays?
     
    skem, Jan 1, 2019
    #656
  17. weicheheck

    weicheheck Almost "Made"

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    I googled it and couldn't really find any info on that. I'll crack it open later and check
     
    weicheheck, Jan 1, 2019
    #657
  18. ohhgourami

    ohhgourami Friend

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    Welcome to No Man's Land with a $1600 budget! Save a bit more and stretch for the AHB2.
     
    ohhgourami, Jan 2, 2019
    #658
  19. frenchbat

    frenchbat Almost "Made"

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    Even with that, he'll still have to find the preamp.
     
    frenchbat, Jan 2, 2019
    #659
  20. cskippy

    cskippy Creamy warmpoo

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    The right preamp is key with AHB2. I didn't like AHB2 with Freya in any mode. Unfortunately I wasn't able (or could afford to) buy another preamp to see if that would improve the sound before I decided to return the amp.
     
    cskippy, Jan 2, 2019
    #660
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