Amplification and The HE6se v2

[Ahmonge]

Anyways.. sucks that it has to go back

You are right. I was hoping for an improvement in sound compared to the Ananda's, but it wasn't.

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

Tuned to Harman, and driven with enough power, the V2 has, in my opinion, some of the best bass I've ever heard.
If you really step on the gas, the A30 has too little power

Hifiman HE6se V2.pdf

Shared with Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

 

[Ahmonge]

If you really step on the gas, the A30 has too little power

I'm never listening above 80 dB average. No clipping or amp distortion experienced during HE6se v2 test.

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

80dB...

 

[lowtide1000]

Tuned to Harman, and driven with enough power, the V2 has, in my opinion, some of the best bass I've ever heard.
If you really step on the gas, the A30 has too little power

Hifiman HE6se V2.pdf

Shared with Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

For that reason I bought a SMSL AO200 and a banana pin to 4pin xlr and I haven't looked back.

 

[Bow_Wazoo]

how high is the power converted to 50 Ohm?

 

[okok]

any mobo output can "drive" them into ear painful level, how hard to drive

 

[lowtide1000]

how high is the power converted to 50 Ohm?

Hard to tell exactly. SMSL claims 150W x 150W (2Ω), 90W x 90W (4Ω), and 50W x 50W (8Ω). Converting those figures using RapidTables we end up with:

6W, 7.2W, and 8W. I can't go past 40/70 on the volume knob before it gets way too loud so I'm not sure when audible distortion would kick in.

 

[aravaioli]

I'm never listening above 80 dB average. No clipping or amp distortion experienced during HE6se v2 test.

Also my experience. And unfortunately I listen at higher volume than 80 dB...

 

[spede]

This headphone was major disapointment for me, sounded bright and dynamically flat as pancake, literally had to crank it to 80-85 dB to get life out of it and soundstage was small for planar.

Later readed about stuck driver problem and suspecting my unit suffered from it, would like to give it new try put damn i am afraid of that problem.

 

[staticV3]

how high is the power converted to 50 Ohm?

The AO200 can do 21Vrms or 8.9W at 50Ω based on SMSL's specs.

 

[Hamrin]

HE6se V1 sounds fine (and loud) with EF400 in hi-gain NOS and volume at noon.
No clipping and no distortions at all.

XLR cable is very needed, single ended output is too "polite". I think it is due to impedance matching... Sound is full, complete and no need to eq on my side.

Also L50 is fine too in hi-gain and something around noon/one o'clock.
Anyway HiFiMan amp sounds fuller, mid-bass is there with its "omph" and imaging/separation kept... These have been clearly designed to pair together IMHO.

 

[Puzzle]

I would love some help in clearing the waters here friends,



I have a quite lovely JDS Atom which i purchased a couple years ago on a review from here, and it has been a wonderful little thing.. i've driven the HD660s, HD800 , Sundara and they all sounded wonderful!



Now i am on hunt for an upgrade for the Sundara and the HE6se v2 from Adorama has been recommended to me , i can get one open box locally for 500 U$ and i really wanted some thoughts about what i keep reading






Everywhere i see there are discerning opinions about this;






But everywhere i look i see no data, no testing or measurements comparing frequency response on different amps,

like i saw on other headphones, that it did affected some dynamic drivers, that with a stronger amp the bass portion of headphone X (forgive me if i can't remember the headphone, saw this on a post @solderdude made) was stronger



So would i need a new amp? anyone got a HE6se in hands on this forum that has done some testing on this? any other thoughts?

adorama now has he6se for 399, new.https://www.adorama.com/hmhe6sev2.html?emailprice=t&sterm=zgqxfT3-LxyNTm4TNiROnWCBUkAxzp1lRVrTT40&utm_source=rflaid912571&utm_medium=affiliate
their market strategy is so.... forgive me I cannot find a proper word to say it.

 

[Hamrin]

What happened with v2 is pretty clear.
Understandably, it is very difficult to be recognised...

 

[Dunring]

I did some testing on the He6se and several amps and DACs I happen to have this week. I thought this would give a real world idea of how much power they need, since anyone with a phone amp decibel meter could do it. The target is 70db with a 440hz test tone.
All using XLR cables from the DAC to amp, and XLR headphone cables. The SMSL M500 is SW 1.7 HW 1.3 Rev 2.06 and the D30Pro has latest firmware just flashed.
Here's how loud in Windows volume I had to go with each. The DAC and Amp at full volume in high gain, then inching up Windows volume to hit 70db).

50 percent SMSL M500/SP200
45 percent Topping D30/A30
58 percent SMSL M500/Topping A30
50 percent SMSL M500 Topping A90
44 percent Topping A90/D30Pro
100 percent SMSL M500 by itself (took full volume, but it hit 70db)

I'm back on the A30Pro/D30Pro and equalized with a -4db preamp reduction. In a nutshell, if you go over that, or play pre-volume war recordings, you'll run out of power no matter what before hitting exciting volume levels good for playing a favorite song occasionally. With recently recorded songs, I'm at 2-3 oclock on the volume wheel and wouldn't dare go higher, even with the -4db reduction. With -6 it's pushing it, and songs like Tonight, Tonight, Tonight which is the extended version and very quiet. the volume wheel will max out easily without being too loud on that song and a few like Fleetwood Mac. To be fair, if you have the "remastered" versions of older songs it probably is at the modern volume levels and nothing to worry about.
These are the best sounding headphones I've heard when you equalize them, but out of the box I wouldn't use them. My daily driver is the He5xx which I love (light and easy to take on and off many times during the work day, and open so I can hear when UPS knocks on the door). For the HE6se a balanced DAC is a must, I tried them on the Schiit Asgard 3 and you can really max it out quick with a 2 volt DAC in it (the onboard DAC version was even worse). I think channel matching varies a lot by unit, with this the imaging is great in games and I can track other players to a pinpoint (even them walking the roof of a building I was in).

 

[Hamrin]

These are the best sounding headphones I've heard when you equalize them, but out of the box I wouldn't use them.

With ToppingStyle after EQ they still sound "rough" to me, sometimes harsh.
With EF400 no need to EQ because the amp itself "fills the gaps" by design I guess... For sure there are other similar amps out there.
My best experience for "dead flat" listening is via binding posts.
I feel no need to EQ in this scenario too, but it is the only way to do it and use the levels you prefer without issues, at least with my stacks.

Anyway EQ is not my cup of tea... If I want a different presentation I prefer to swap headphones.

channel matching varies a lot by unit

This is probably true for some V2 stocks but I think it is something related to recording/production issues too.
They have a massive imaging, so "mistakes" or other staging effects could be rendered as overdone.

To check this is pretty easy: swap channels and if the result is flipped your headphones are not guilty.

Pop and Rock music production is meant to work and produce "wow effect" even with (very) cheap stuff.
If you take any early stereo recording it is impossible to listen with headphones without cross-feed, and this is due to production strategy.
Also any "Loudness War Age" recording sounds ****** with top cans.

 

[Hamrin]

As far as I remember it has an internal a jumper to bypass resistors and output the same rate of binding posts to the front jack... Am I wrong?

 

[AVKS]

As far as I remember it has an internal a jumper to bypass resistors and output the same rate of binding posts to the front jack... Am I wrong?

Correct, and that's how I use my A-100 with my C2 and RT headphones as well. It is a bit hissy at the lowest volumes though.

 

[solderdude]

I did some testing on the He6se and several amps and DACs I happen to have this week. I thought this would give a real world idea of how much power they need, since anyone with a phone amp decibel meter could do it. The target is 70db with a 440hz test tone.
All using XLR cables from the DAC to amp, and XLR headphone cables. The SMSL M500 is SW 1.7 HW 1.3 Rev 2.06 and the D30Pro has latest firmware just flashed.
Here's how loud in Windows volume I had to go with each. The DAC and Amp at full volume in high gain, then inching up Windows volume to hit 70db).

50 percent SMSL M500/SP200
45 percent Topping D30/A30
58 percent SMSL M500/Topping A30
50 percent SMSL M500 Topping A90
44 percent Topping A90/D30Pro
100 percent SMSL M500 by itself (took full volume, but it hit 70db)

I'm back on the A30Pro/D30Pro and equalized with a -4db preamp reduction. In a nutshell, if you go over that, or play pre-volume war recordings, you'll run out of power no matter what before hitting exciting volume levels good for playing a favorite song occasionally. With recently recorded songs, I'm at 2-3 oclock on the volume wheel and wouldn't dare go higher, even with the -4db reduction. With -6 it's pushing it, and songs like Tonight, Tonight, Tonight which is the extended version and very quiet. the volume wheel will max out easily without being too loud on that song and a few like Fleetwood Mac. To be fair, if you have the "remastered" versions of older songs it probably is at the modern volume levels and nothing to worry about.
These are the best sounding headphones I've heard when you equalize them, but out of the box I wouldn't use them. My daily driver is the He5xx which I love (light and easy to take on and off many times during the work day, and open so I can hear when UPS knocks on the door). For the HE6se a balanced DAC is a must, I tried them on the Schiit Asgard 3 and you can really max it out quick with a 2 volt DAC in it (the onboard DAC version was even worse). I think channel matching varies a lot by unit, with this the imaging is great in games and I can track other players to a pinpoint (even them walking the roof of a building I was in).

This test says nothing about power output capabilities and maximum output level though.
It only says something about the gain of the used headphone amp combined with the volume control 'taper'.

 

[AudioFans]

我仍然使用我的旧 Emotiva mini-X 来驱动我的平面（HE500、HE560、HE6se V2、Dan Clark Aeon RT）……我喜欢它！还可以使用 A90 和 A20h，它们都带有 4 针 XLR 连接。

使用 min-X，我为 Neutrik 插孔钻了一个孔，并从每个引脚（编织）到相应的扬声器抽头连接了一根电线。不用说大量的原始力量和死寂的背景。如果需要填充，可以添加电阻器。

View attachment 249587

Can the a20h drive he560 well?