Hifiman HE-6SE

Discussion in 'Headphones' started by purr1n, Aug 22, 2018.

  1. Ant Page

    Ant Page New

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    Adorama had a pair of these for sale under 500$ but the left driver is out. I was thinking of buying it and sending it to Hifiman to repair. So I emailed them and they emailed back saying that had no more drivers for the he6se v2 and could not repair. They said usually they just replace them with another pair
     
  2. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    Interesting that he says the original HE6 is significantly better than the "se" versions. How can this be if they use the same driver? Asking because I'm considering the se, but wonder if I should hold out for a used original, if the difference is that dramatic.
     
  3. elwappo99

    elwappo99 Friend

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    Of all the "remakes" Hifiman has done, none have sounded like the original.
     
  4. loadexfa

    loadexfa MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    I never heard the original but I found the se lifeless without modding. Supposedly a good amp also brings it alive, I'm still not sure which one though due to being speaker amp ignorant. Or you can get it modded, @rhythmdevils does a great job. :)
     
  5. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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    the original, seV1 and seV2 all use different drivers. Or rather different tweaks on the same driver.

    I haven’t heard an original HE6 in a long time but for modding purposes the se is likely better. It’s better to start with a darker tuned driver and add damping to the back than try to make the original HE6 warmer by filtering frequencies on the front of the driver. This causes loss of resolution and clarity.
     
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  6. rhythmdevils

    rhythmdevils MOT: rhythmdevils audio

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  7. weicheheck

    weicheheck Almost "Made"

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    Recently saw the V2 for sale for $580 open box with coupon code from Hifiman. I currently have a Frankenstein 4 screw and a 6 screw but figured I could compare the V2 with the originals for free at that price point.

    Hopefully I don't get a dud.


    Edit: they finally came in! Stock cable is a little sketchy on these but the pads seem much nicer than what came stock with the He6. Gonna have more time to compare the 6 screw with the V2 tomorrow
     
    Last edited: Aug 20, 2021
  8. ShaneD

    ShaneD Facebook Friend

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    I got the HE6se V2's a few weeks ago. Adorama had them on for $599.00. What a headphone! It feels kind of like an Elex on steroids. Very full sound with lots of bass, a good high end and the mids come across nicely.

    As people say it is very amp fussy. My system is a Bifrost 2 feeding three amps.

    1) The Violectric V220 (stripped down V281) really can't drive them at all.

    2) The Monoprice Liquid Platinum could get them good and loud (@3:00), but no fun. If I put the Schiit Loki in the chain it adds some gain and some bass and gets it almost there.

    3) iFi Pro iCAN. My newest amp was built for these headphones. Mid gain at 11:00-12:00, tube mode, max bass boost, max 3D.

    These are addictive to listen to, but the headband is painful. I waited a couple of weeks to make sure that I was still in love and now I will put in some Dekoni Nuggets tomorrow.

    These are a steal at $599.99, if you have the amp for them.
     
  9. laevi

    laevi Friend

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    I also briefly auditioned the v2's and found the headband painful, which was most prominent along the vertex of my skull. Driven by the EC Aficionado, I had to turn the volume knob quite high to get satisfactory volume out of them. At those levels, I still felt like the v2's felt lifeless. Driven by my old audio-gd Phoenix, I got satisfactory loudness at level 66/99. Ultimately, I tried them on an Adcom 545 speaker amplifier and found them much better in that setup. Unfortunately, I didn't get to try them long enough, but they were promising and might warrant a revisit in the future.
     
  10. Ox Cart

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    I've owned and tried a few meme setups, including stuff like the OG Andromeda + homemade impedance adapter, and for the most part I found all of them disappointing. Still, I decided to try out the HE6SE + speaker amp, and this is the first meme that lives up to the hype. I've had to tweak a little with EQ to fill out the lower mids a bit, but holy sh*t, I'm listening to Dark Side of the Moon right now (studio and live versions) and the detail, bass impact and depth, dynamics, timbre and stereo image are to die for. This may be the first time that I'm enjoying the live version more than the studio version.

    Also, either because of the shape of my head or my full hair, I have no comfort issues with the v2 headband. One of the size adjusters is too loose, but the headphone itself seems to work fine which is a rarity for Hifiman, so I'm inclined to leave it be.

    Oh the cable - it's horrible to look at and feel, and I'm afraid it will stop working at some point, but once I'm actually using the headphones I don't notice the cable (partially because it's so light), so I guess in a strange way it's just fine.

    [​IMG]
     
  11. ShaneD

    ShaneD Facebook Friend

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    I love using these with bass boost, but I was having a little competition today to see where my new headphones fit into the collection, bass wise.

    I thought these would be a winner based on how I enjoy their bass. And then I remembered that I always have bass boost jammed up on them.

    Turns out that even without bass boost these still have lots of bass. Better bass than the Elex's but not quite as clear and precise as the LSA HP-2's.
    Tomorrow will just be the LSA's and the HE6se's on the iFi Pro iCAN with lots of bass boost. They both seem to enjoy it.

    The LSA HP-2's are a whole different kind of bass for me (exceptional clarity and precision. Not booming bass.) Very cool! Both of these are keepers, long term.
     
  12. Ox Cart

    Ox Cart Facebook Friend

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    It could just be the honeymoon period, but so far the Focus-A pads I borrowed from my HE4XX are da bomb on the HE6SE.

    Here are measurements comparing to the stock and Hifiman velour pads (which I think are the ones that shipped with the original HE6).

    [​IMG]
     
  13. malenak

    malenak New

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    HE6SE or Arya for Hugo TT2?
     
  14. legcramp

    legcramp New

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    Any updates on the comparison with the original HE6's? I saw the video above and the guy preferred the original 6-screw version so that had me itching to hunt down a pair. I love my HE6SEV2 though but you know how it goes.
     
  15. Ox Cart

    Ox Cart Facebook Friend

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    I've never heard the OG, but I know that the velour pads that came on the OG sound and measure very different from the Pali pads on the SE. They're quite cheap direct from Hifiman if you want to try them.

    https://www.ebay.com/itm/HIFIMAN-Ve...-Ear-pads-for-HIFIMAN-HE-Series-/253238435364
     
  16. dubharmonic

    dubharmonic Friend

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    Those velour pads also shipped with the HE6se.
     
  17. Ox Cart

    Ox Cart Facebook Friend

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    Oh yeah, I forgot that the v1 included more stuff than my V2!
     
  18. urbanjanitor

    urbanjanitor New

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    Hello all - New to SBAF, but I love the HE6se V2. Perfect presentation - impactful bass (with a little eq sometimes), great body for a planar, detail galore, glorious treble, super dynamic with a good amp.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG]
    credit DuncanDirkDick for the sweet grills
    (edit: I'm an idiot and don't know how to use imgur)
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Jan 31, 2022
  19. BenjaminBore

    BenjaminBore Friend

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    @urbanjanitor Nice photos. Can you state what mods you're using, and how you feel they improved on the HE6SEv2s sound?

    I'm particularly interested in hearing about the effects of the perforated pads.
     
    Last edited: Feb 1, 2022
  20. urbanjanitor

    urbanjanitor New

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    @BenjaminBore I removed the stock grills and replaced them with some custom grills that have significantly larger openings. When I first got the new grills, I tested them and thought that I found the custom grills opened up the soundstage a bit and had an impact on imaging. Proper A/B was difficult to accomplish though, so take that with a grain of salt.

    Between the driver and the grill, I have some foam inlays and 1-2mm felt. The foam is really just there to prevent the felt from touching the drivers. I found that the felt and foam elevates the bass to lower mid and reduces on the upper mid just a tad. Again though, proper A/B was difficult and no measurements were done (although I'd love to get a minidsp EARS for this kind of thing!) The biggest benefit of the felt is in how much better it makes the headphones look hehe.

    The pads I'm using are Dekoni TH-900 Fenestrated Sheepskin pads. I haven't pad rolled a ton though, only these pads and stock. With that said, these pads are really comfortable and sound amazing. Once I switched, I loved the sound/comfort and didn't go back, so I don't have notes comparing the two (I'll try to do some more testing this week).

    The easiest and most important mod for this headphone IMHO is the headband strap. It's so easy to buy a little bit of cheap leather and it makes these headphones incredibly comfortable for all-day listening. The reason the HE6se is the best deal in hifi is because the build quality is shit. With this strap, I'm able to listen to music on these for 10 hours straight. Without the strap, my head is hurting after 30 min. All you need to do is measure 8 5/8" (sorry metric folk) between the cuts for a comfortable fit at max headband extension.

    Lastly, if anyone loves the HE6se, but finds it too precise and analytical for everyday or relaxed listening with a solid state amp, check out the xDuoo TA-30. It's the only tube hybrid amp I could find that pumps out enough watts to power the HE6se to it's highest potential outside of speaker amps. It's a hybrid, so the tubes actually function as a kind of preamp and the output stage is Class A. All that to say, it still sounds tight with great clarity and dynamics, but you're able to get just a little softening of some of the sharp edges in the treble and just enough of that tube sound (distortion, roll-off) to really make these hifiman sing in euphonic harmony without wrecking the frequency response or nerfing the bass at all. Plus it's fun to tube roll.

    Disclaimer: I should probably mention that while the TA-30 is amazing because it pumps out over 2 watts into a 50 ohm load, it's also a very niche amp because of that. There's no gain switch and apparently xDuoo caters to the nearly deaf, because it's incredibly overpowered for any other headphone I've used. In fact, I have to lower the volume by about 15 db on a digital preamp just to use this amp with my HE6se's from about 8:30-12 on the dial. I am a low volume listener, so your mileage may vary, but it's the only thing I dislike about the xDuoo.
     
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    Last edited: Feb 1, 2022

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