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Hifiman Edition XS

grogzilla said:
I just got a pair of the Edition XS the other day. For those who have them or have tried them, did you get used to the clamp and headband over time?

Coming from the HD 6XX, I can definitely feel the clamp on the sides of my head and I guess because my head is a bit too pointed, the headband is mainly sitting right on the peak of my skull and is immediately noticeable. I'm guessing I'll adapt to it over time, it's just very obvious right now. I've looked for those headband covers that people have mentioned buying for these, and at least on Amazon in Canada, it seems like it's just a few options from Geekria.

I haven't listened to them for long enough to know if I'll enjoy them, but it does seem like voices might be a bit quiet or distant sounding at times. Coming from the HD 6XX, the XS seems more detailed and there's definitely a larger/wider soundstage. I've only listened to a couple of songs so far, and I felt kind of hypnotized at times by the sound these make. I partly bought them because I wanted to try to find some good-sounding headphones with better imaging for games (I mainly play singleplayer games, so not so much for listening for footsteps and things like that in multiplayer), but I haven't had a chance to try them for that purpose yet. I listened to a couple of binaural recordings, and I don't know how much forward depth there is, but sounds that were placed to the sides or behind the head sounded pretty accurate to the point where I was kind of blown away, at least compared to the HD 6XX I've been using. Part of it might just be that I'm enjoying a new toy, I don't know.

Does EQ fix the vocals at all, or would I need different headphones to remedy that? If that's not fixable with these, does anyone know if there are any headphones that basically sound like this but with more present vocals?
Click to expand...
i find the clamping almost non-existant.
would like a little bit more but afraid to try bending it.
 
I think my head must just be wide, because the clamping force feels a bit like it's trying to push the sides of my head in.

edit: Besides the headband and clamping concerns, I think the only thing I would have liked is a longer cable. The stock one is a bit short for my desk setup. Does anyone have any suggestions for a relatively inexpensive, longer cable for these? I've seen suggestions elsewhere for Hart Audio (slightly expensive when converted to CAD), and then Openheart (I don't know what the difference is between the 8-core and 16-core versions of their cables) and Lunashops on AliExpress. There's also a couple of cables for around $20-25 on Amazon, but I don't know if they're of decent quality. I also might still have a random, overly long 3.5 mm extension sitting around somewhere, assuming that doesn't mess with the sound.
 
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grogzilla said:
I think my head must just be wide, because the clamping force feels a bit like it's trying to push the sides of my head in.

edit: Besides the headband and clamping concerns, I think the only thing I would have liked is a longer cable. The stock one is a bit short for my desk setup. Does anyone have any suggestions for a relatively inexpensive, longer cable for these? I've seen suggestions elsewhere for Hart Audio (slightly expensive when converted to CAD), and then Openheart (I don't know what the difference is between the 8-core and 16-core versions of their cables) and Lunashops on AliExpress. There's also a couple of cables for around $20-25 on Amazon, but I don't know if they're of decent quality. I also might still have a random, overly long 3.5 mm extension sitting around somewhere, assuming that doesn't mess with the sound.
Click to expand...
If you are just using 3.5mm, would suggest you buy an extension like "UGREEN Audio Stereo Extension Audio Cable 3.5mm AUX Jack Male to Female Cord Professional HiFi Phones Headphones Speaker" unless you plan to go "Balanced". Nowadays 4.4mm balanced cables are cheaper compare a few years back.

1731299413174.png
 
That specific UGREEN cable doesn't seem to be available here, but I have a cheap Amazon Basics 3.5 mm extension that I bought... six years ago (longer than I remembered), and that seems to be working fine except for some static when initially connecting the Hifiman cable to it (yes, I forgot to keep things unplugged before everything was connected properly). I'm using an old Magni as my amp right now, so I'm basically just sticking with the 3.5 mm cable and the 6.35 mm adapter that came with the headphones. I'm guessing there wouldn't be a reason for me to "upgrade" to a balanced amp anytime soon, as none of my headphones seem to need more power.
 
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grogzilla said:
That specific UGREEN cable doesn't seem to be available here, but I have a cheap Amazon Basics 3.5 mm extension that I bought... six years ago (longer than I remembered), and that seems to be working fine except for some static when initially connecting the Hifiman cable to it. I'm using an old Magni as my amp right now, so I'm basically just sticking with the 3.5 mm cable and the 6.35 mm adapter that came with the headphones. I'm guessing there wouldn't be a reason for me to "upgrade" to a balanced amp anytime soon, as none of my headphones seem to need more power.
Click to expand...
Where you at. You can buy it from Amazon or AliExpress.
 
grogzilla said:
I think my head must just be wide, because the clamping force feels a bit like it's trying to push the sides of my head in.

edit: Besides the headband and clamping concerns, I think the only thing I would have liked is a longer cable. The stock one is a bit short for my desk setup. Does anyone have any suggestions for a relatively inexpensive, longer cable for these? I've seen suggestions elsewhere for Hart Audio (slightly expensive when converted to CAD), and then Openheart (I don't know what the difference is between the 8-core and 16-core versions of their cables) and Lunashops on AliExpress. There's also a couple of cables for around $20-25 on Amazon, but I don't know if they're of decent quality. I also might still have a random, overly long 3.5 mm extension sitting around somewhere, assuming that doesn't mess with the sound.
Click to expand...
I hated both the clamping and the headband to start with,bought one of the geekria things,after a while took it off because it’s actually better without and now I can sit there for hours,so either it changes fit or you become used to it,as for a cable I got a 3m cheapest one off our favourite billionaires commerce site for less than £20,I’ve got no complaints about either build or sq.
 
I think I can feel the pads becoming less noticeable as I use them, but the band is still digging into the top of my head so far. Balding and not having the extra bit of padding that hair gave is a little inconvenient (e: maybe not the right word, but I'm waking up, take it easy on me), so I'm going to try one of those Geekria covers on it and see if it's any better. Maybe it'll just improve over time like you said.

Also, yeah, it would be nice if we had better options than to continue lining billionaire pockets. I'm trying to move what purchases I can off of Amazon and go more local, but the options are limited when you're in a middle-of-nowhere rural area and trying to find specific stuff. But, maybe I'm just using that as an excuse. I guess we can always just stop buying things! :D
 
I'm not a fan of extension headphone cables. Just another point of possible signal failure or degradation. I would always opt for a continuous single connection cable where possible.
 
Extension cable for 3.5mm Female to Male is usually quite cheap and easy to replace. Been using 3.5mm extension for my IEMs to my amp, with the same sound quality. Manufacture like Vention, UGREEN, ORICO and ANKER usually make value and good quality cable, robust and durable. But well it's from my experience from using them for years from display port, HDMI, Audio and USB.
 
grogzilla said:
I think I can feel the pads becoming less noticeable as I use them, but the band is still digging into the top of my head so far. Balding and not having the extra bit of padding that hair gave is a little inconvenient (e: maybe not the right word, but I'm waking up, take it easy on me), so I'm going to try one of those Geekria covers on it and see if it's any better. Maybe it'll just improve over time like you said.

Also, yeah, it would be nice if we had better options than to continue lining billionaire pockets. I'm trying to move what purchases I can off of Amazon and go more local, but the options are limited when you're in a middle-of-nowhere rural area and trying to find specific stuff. But, maybe I'm just using that as an excuse. I guess we can always just stop buying things! :D
Click to expand...
As a slaphead with a lumpy skull, I can empathise - however, I did find that the headband softens/you adapt to it reasonably quickly and I then found the Edition XS comfortable to wear for long periods.
 
Thanks for the help and advice, everyone. I like how these sound even without EQing them yet, so I'm going to try to give them time and see how things go.
 
grogzilla said:
I just got a pair of the Edition XS the other day. For those who have them or have tried them, did you get used to the clamp and headband over time?

Coming from the HD 6XX, I can definitely feel the clamp on the sides of my head and I guess because my head is a bit too pointed, the headband is mainly sitting right on the peak of my skull and is immediately noticeable. I'm guessing I'll adapt to it over time, it's just very obvious right now. I've looked for those headband covers that people have mentioned buying for these, and at least on Amazon in Canada, it seems like it's just a few options from Geekria.

I haven't listened to them for long enough to know if I'll enjoy them, but it does seem like voices might be a bit quiet or distant sounding at times. Coming from the HD 6XX, the XS seems more detailed and there's definitely a larger/wider soundstage. I've only listened to a couple of songs so far, and I felt kind of hypnotized at times by the sound these make. I partly bought them because I wanted to try to find some good-sounding headphones with better imaging for games (I mainly play singleplayer games, so not so much for listening for footsteps and things like that in multiplayer), but I haven't had a chance to try them for that purpose yet. I listened to a couple of binaural recordings, and I don't know how much forward depth there is, but sounds that were placed to the sides or behind the head sounded pretty accurate to the point where I was kind of blown away, at least compared to the HD 6XX I've been using. Part of it might just be that I'm enjoying a new toy, I don't know.

Does EQ fix the vocals at all, or would I need different headphones to remedy that? If that's not fixable with these, does anyone know if there are any headphones that basically sound like this but with more present vocals?
Click to expand...
Mostly commenting because I happened to notice your complaint with vocal performance is one of many I saw while I was researching the Edition XS for myself and figured id share my passing thoughts, granted this is my first planar headphone as well so folks with a larger collection can probably comment on this more accurately than myself.

I think your particular problem with vocals are a common complaint I saw from those coming off of the HD6xx or similar cans when trying the XS. I havnt tried the HD6xx in particular myself, but if I understand correctly its main claim to fame is its general high vocal performance, but especially its vocal body + forwardness combined with a intimate sound stage. The XS has a lot of those qualities reversed, wider sound staging making things more distant, thinned upper mids leading to a weaker vocal presence, throw in the often less-enjoyed vocal timbre characteristics of planars and its easy to see why a lot of folks who daily drove Sennheiser HD6-family headphones for a long time struggle with the Edition XS.

I used the Oratory EQ profile as starting point and modified it to personal preference. My personal issues with the XS are mostly to do with how unforgiving it is towards intentionally raw or aged/poorly recorded albums. Guitars or screaming metal vocalists that ran hot on the mic are very difficult to salvage without having to play whack-a-mole with sibilance for everything above 3khz, almost end up having to just do a high-shelf cut at the expense of detail/clarity. In truth, the answer is probably to just offset the weaknesses of Edition XS by running a gentler dynamic-driver headphone that excels in everything else.
 
Pretty much all rock and metal sounds at best edgy in terms of recording presentation, with quite a bit sounding dreadful. I grew up on rock and metal and personally, I think expecting any headphone to make these aggressive genres sound even acceptable let alone good is extremely unrealistic. Love the music, but accept that it will always sound edgy and piercing.
 
Sorry to keep bugging the thread, but how would you know what's causing a difference in sound between different DACs/sources?

I'm using these on my PC (and PS4 occasionally) from the headphone out on the back of my LG C1 into a first generation Magni and they sound fine that way, but I tried plugging my X-Fi Titanium HD sound card (from the RCA outputs) into the amp and there seems to be more bass in the sound somehow? I don't know specifically how to volume match the different outputs, but they sound relatively close in terms of loudness. I switched back and forth and it seemed like there was a slight bit of extra bass "rumble" or boomy-ness with the X-Fi. I also think I was able to pick out certain instruments more easily with the X-Fi, while others sounded maybe a bit more muffled, and it seemed like the soundstage might have been slightly wider, but maybe the volume is slightly louder and causing me to think that there's a difference there. I disabled all of the effects on the X-Fi and was using the same sample rate and bit depth for both outputs. Looking up old reviews of the X-Fi, a couple of people said that it emphasizes bass and could use more emphasis on the mid or higher frequencies, or that they would "prefer a more defined mid-range and slightly less emphasis on bass notes" (I have no idea how this translates to measurements, because they didn't really seem to perform or provide any).

I'm not sure if I'm limiting these headphones by running the sound from the headphone out on the TV, or if there's possibly something about the sound card that's colouring the sound by comparison.

I'm probably being obsessive about this and should just figure out how to relax and enjoy my setup.
 
grogzilla said:
I just got a pair of the Edition XS the other day. For those who have them or have tried them, did you get used to the clamp and headband over time?

Coming from the HD 6XX, I can definitely feel the clamp on the sides of my head and I guess because my head is a bit too pointed, the headband is mainly sitting right on the peak of my skull and is immediately noticeable. I'm guessing I'll adapt to it over time, it's just very obvious right now. I've looked for those headband covers that people have mentioned buying for these, and at least on Amazon in Canada, it seems like it's just a few options from Geekria.

I haven't listened to them for long enough to know if I'll enjoy them, but it does seem like voices might be a bit quiet or distant sounding at times. Coming from the HD 6XX, the XS seems more detailed and there's definitely a larger/wider soundstage. I've only listened to a couple of songs so far, and I felt kind of hypnotized at times by the sound these make. I partly bought them because I wanted to try to find some good-sounding headphones with better imaging for games (I mainly play singleplayer games, so not so much for listening for footsteps and things like that in multiplayer), but I haven't had a chance to try them for that purpose yet. I listened to a couple of binaural recordings, and I don't know how much forward depth there is, but sounds that were placed to the sides or behind the head sounded pretty accurate to the point where I was kind of blown away, at least compared to the HD 6XX I've been using. Part of it might just be that I'm enjoying a new toy, I don't know.

Does EQ fix the vocals at all, or would I need different headphones to remedy that? If that's not fixable with these, does anyone know if there are any headphones that basically sound like this but with more present vocals?
Click to expand...
1732591322507.png


Try this eq if you want, it is an eq that aims at this target (Its from Auriculares Argentina, basically a neutral bass harmann with some esoteric treatment in the treble department, my favourite at the moment)

It is adjusted from 300 hz to 10000hz, the measurement i took as a reference is this one, with sheepskin pads (mines are not dekoni but random aliexpress ones), i tried to use as few bands as possible to make the correction and later added a bass shelf at 80 hz, experiment with bass shelf and 1700 hz filter to your taste wouldnt change the others

1732591502091.png

sai.squig.link

Squiglink - IEM frequency response database by Sai

Compare hundreds of frequency response graphs between IEMs and earphones from manufacturers like Moondrop, Sony, 64 Audio, Fiio, and more.
sai.squig.link sai.squig.link

If you are on original pads this is the measurements:

1732591908195.png


sai.squig.link

Squiglink - IEM frequency response database by Sai

Compare hundreds of frequency response graphs between IEMs and earphones from manufacturers like Moondrop, Sony, 64 Audio, Fiio, and more.
sai.squig.link sai.squig.link

So you may need to boost even more at 1700 hz or just try to autoeq from 300 hz to 10000 hz using 3 4 bands or so and later add a bass shelf to your liking. Look at the dip from 1 to 2.5 khz
 
Just got back my XS replacement. Hope this will stand the test of time like my HE400SE.
 
How do these compare to HE6SE? Anyone had the chance to hear them both?
 
My pair just arrived and this is kind of hilarious. Since 2009 I've been using some JMoney Beyer pads. First on my 880s, then in 2020 on my 1990s after getting them.
Whatever magic was done when those pads were designed has not been replicated through the other notable third-party pads. None of the Dekoni, Brainwavez, ZMF etc have been able to replicate their sound signature, which tames the shrill, sibilant treble they have with stock pads, and also bring out the bass without actually sounding boomy or bloated and it also doesn't negatively impact dialogue (I mainly use them for movies through various devices).

I've been using those same pads since 2009 and they are pretty deteriorated, and I've not been able to find a suitable replacement. Nothing, and I mean nothing comes close to the way they sound. I even contacted Vesper Audio recently to see if they can try to reverse engineer mine and make me a new pair. After recently dumping $300 on a bunch of ZMF pads, I ended up grabbing the XS for $269...

They come closer to sounding like 1990s + JMoney than anything I've heard yet. Almost, but not quite identical. To the point in which I would be perfectly happy with just using these. They also have the upside of having planar bass, and they seem even more open sounding overall.

Downside? These headphones are uncomfortable as hell. I've never worn a pair of headphones that actually gave me a headache after only ten minutes, but these do it. The top of my head is not perfectly round, and the top/back has very slight point, and these rest directly on top of that. I've seen the various complaints about how uncomfortable these could be, but I had no idea until now. Definitely going to be looking at the various aftermarket headbands for these.

It also seems like I've found my preferred sound signature, so from now on I can just use their frequency response as my baseline, since there wasn't really a way for me to graph the 1990s + JMoney.
 
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