Hifiman HE6se Review (Headphone)

[Bow_Wazoo]

My preset for the HE6SE

Adjust band

#2 for Bass
#3 for punch
#5 for mids
# 9 for highs

Connected to the Sabaj A30A

What you get for 1200€ is unbeatable.

 

[FrantzM]

My preset for the HE6SE

View attachment 303279View attachment 303280

Adjust band

#2 for Bass
#3 for punch
#5 for muss
# 9 for highs

Connected to the Sabaj A30A

View attachment 303281

What you get for 1200€ is unbeatable.

Hi

How do you connect the headphones to the Sabaj?

Peace.

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

At the speaker output

 

[peniku8]

My preset for the HE6SE

View attachment 303281

What you get for 1200€ is unbeatable.

That looks more like the HE6se v2, or did you retrofit the HE6se with the terrible new headband?

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

Yesterday I made an AB comparison between the SE and the SE V2.

I brought both to an identical FR and volume. I was very surprised at how big the difference was. I suspect that the higher clamping force of the se has a positive effect on the sound. Anyway, in my opinion, the SE sounded more powerful and mature.

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

Here my preset for the V2

Adjust band

#2 for Bass
#3 for punch
#5 for mids
# 10 for highs

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

I am very happy that I bought the he-6 se again. Because this time, I made the experience that these headphones, don't have something,
that very, very many others have:
namely an unpleasant sharpness, hardness, aggressiveness in the approximately 1khz range.
This topic has always accompanied me.
And often it spoils my fun. I was able to mitigate this problem a bit with the EQ, but never fixed it.

I'll give a few examples: HE-1000 Stealth, Arya Stealth, Arya Organic, Utopia. i

In my opinion, all sensational headphones. Especially the Hifimans are almost unbeatable in terms of price-performance ratio.
But all have this topic around 1khz.
Not the HE6SE.
I have certain test tracks that I can use to pinpoint that immediately.
When comparing it with the Aria organic,
I was shocked at how aggressive and sharp it is around 1khz.
Whether violin or piano.
The HE6SE is characterized by an unbelievable gentleness, which, however, never becomes boring. This also makes the reproduction of voices particularly beautiful.
In my opinion, it is the only headphone that can compete with the Utopia in this discipline.

And while we're on the subject, when I saw the hot glue in my Utopia 2022, it was all over...

 

[Robbo99999]

Yesterday I made an AB comparison between the SE and the SE V2.

View attachment 303312

I brought both to an identical FR and volume. I was very surprised at how big the difference was. I suspect that the higher clamping force of the se has a positive effect on the sound. Anyway, in my opinion, the SE sounded more powerful and mature.

How do you know you brought them to the same measured frequency response, did you measure them? If you're basing it off measurements from Oratory or anyone else then some of the differences you will hear will be due to unit to unit variation, so you couldn't rule that out in this case......but of course there's still the possibility they could sound a bit different even if you've done it based on you actually measuring the units you have & matching them for the reason you say & maybe distortion differences & if the cups & pad design are somewhat different between them.

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

The difference heard was too profound and cannot possibly be due to just minor differences in the fr. but the clamping force is different. I attribute that to that. the surface of the drivers also looks different. the surface of the V2 shines more. no idea if that has any meaning.

 

[peniku8]

The difference heard was too profound and cannot possibly be due to just minor differences in the fr. but the clamping force is different. I attribute that to that. the surface of the drivers also looks different. the surface of the V2 shines more. no idea if that has any meaning.

unit variation is not necessarily a minor difference... and clamping force aka seal also results in different FR at the ear. on some headphones this difference will be more significant than others

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

Anyway. The HE6SE I have sounds significantly better than the V2.

 

[Robbo99999]

The difference heard was too profound and cannot possibly be due to just minor differences in the fr. but the clamping force is different. I attribute that to that. the surface of the drivers also looks different. the surface of the V2 shines more. no idea if that has any meaning.

Like @peniku8 says, unit to unit variation doesn't have to be small. It's possible to get real unlucky! (And some headphone models have more unit to unit variation than others.)

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

Today I compared with vs. without grills.
In my opinion, these grill mods are a step in the wrong direction.

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

My preset for the he-6se v2
(Dekoni sheepskin pads) is finally ready.
So set, my enthusiasm for this headphone is almost limitless.

View attachment 215265


View attachment 215266
Adjust band 3 for bass, and band 8 for treble

This is totally crazy, you can also get one of the best HP for 700 dollars!

Please delete. Preset is updated.
Thanks

 

[Balrog]

I'm sorry, I have to ask: if a headphone (or a speaker, for that matter) only sounds great with EQ, is it really a great product? Question has been eating at me for some time.

So many variables, so little time. What's on your walls? What is your ceiling? What source? What pre-amp? What amp? How much snake oil? Do you have any freq loss in your hearing? You see where this is going. And for the grand finale, how many sliders on that EQ? Digital or analogue EQ?

 

[vlad335]

Well, I couldnt help myself... Bought the HE6SE refurbished from Hifiman store for $470 with coupon. I was looking for used ones on Ebay and this deal smokes everything on that site.

Love my HE400S and HE560v4 so hopefully this takes it up a notch. Ah, this retails for $1800 so hopefully a couple notches!

 

[vlad335]

Alright, time for the final update on my journey with the HE6se.
For those who didn't follow my past posts closely, I'll write a short but mostly complete summary:

-bought HE6se, but the pair I got had very bad channel matching (5dB wide-Q difference between left and right at around 1.5khz)
this was very noticable with voices, as it felt like all vocals were panned to the left
-contacted HifiMan, returned my pair and received a new one
-new pair had a narrow-Q issue near 4khz in the left channel, adding a constant "sizzle" to stuff like distorted guitars
-returned that pair too, but this time requested Hifiman to test and validate the new pair at the factory, so history doesn't repeat itself
-Hifiman assured me the 3rd sample was tested and sent that to me
-3rd sample arrived with a stuck left driver (physical defect) and the channel was all over the place (wierd response, high distortion)
-Sent that back and got all my money back (including import tax and shipping, which totaled at around 250€)

I want to note that Hifiman refused to send me a 4th pair, which I initially requested.
The first unit I had sounded fantastic, when all the issues were corrected in dsp, so I was hoping to get that perfect unit, but it shan't be.
If I knew I could get a good pair with my next order I'd order right this moment. But this whole endeavour left a bitter taste in my mouth...

Oh man, should have read the thread beforehand. Wonder if I am going to get one of these units? $470 shipped is an incredible price...

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

Well, I couldnt help myself... Bought the HE6SE refurbished from Hifiman store for $470 with coupon. I was looking for used ones on Ebay and this deal smokes everything on that site.

Love my HE400S and HE560v4 so hopefully this takes it up a notch. Ah, this retails for $1800 so hopefully a couple notches!

In my opinion, a completely different league. the he6se is my personal number one

 

[spede]

I've owned or heard plenty of headphones during my hobby. HE6SE + EQ might be best price performance ratio so far. I think It's worth the double cost over HD6XX because sub-bass extension and stereo image is clearer.

Just avoid or be prepared to change the headband if you are buying V2, stock headband in that is terrible.

 

[vlad335]

The 6se were sitting on my porch today. (that was fast) Grabbed the balanced cable I bought off Amazon for $23 and hooked these up to my Qudelix 5K. Thought I wouldn't get much volume, but a nice listenable level is achieved. Playing with some EQ presets on the 5K and out of the box, this is easily the best headphone I own. The bass is powerful and articulate, the highs are smooth and detailed. Definitely impressed!

I have to run some errands but next will hook them up to my RMA ADI-2 for more power.