New headphone like He-400 but with more bass?

[ProfoundDisputes]

I bought Hifiman He-400 headphones as a replacement for my Beyerdynamics DT-990 Pros (broke them trying to mod them: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/129529-evil-coiled-cables/) . I love the sound of the He-400 besides it just doesn't have enough bass at all for me. I love the bass of the DT-990 Pros, it has impact or punch to it; you can feel it. He-400s don't have that feel I like. However besides that they sound GREAT with every other part of my music. I have a choice between keeping one the headphones, I need to return one of them (re-bought DT-990s). I was wondering before I make this decision if there is a headphone for a maximum of 300$, that gives me the bass of the DT-990s but the sound of of He-400s. I am playing these through a Fiio E10 DAC. Or I am being too optimistic?

-Thank You

[helping]

 a headphone for a maximum of 300$, that gives me the bass of the DT-990s but the sound of of He-400s.

 

jk someone is going to come and tell me I'm wrong and dumb

 

It sounds like you want everything. You can always try buying some flat, turning up the volume, and dropping the EQ to make it sound how you want it to.

 

Perhaps something like an HD650? Though I think that still might not be enough bass for you, especially since it has high midbass, but not necessarily sub bass. 

Your best bet is probably another orthodynamic pair. 

[ProfoundDisputes]

 

jk someone is going to come and tell me I'm wrong and dumb

 

It sounds like you want everything. You can always try buying some flat, turning up the volume, and dropping the EQ to make it sound how you want it to.

 

Perhaps something like an HD650? Though I think that still might not be enough bass for you, especially since it has high midbass, but not necessarily sub bass. 

Your best bet is probably another orthodynamic pair. 

Ya i figure that would be the reaction. I just needed to be sure haha

[ShearMe]

Maybe a NAD Viso HP50, Focal Spirit One, or a modded T50RP like Mayflower's V3. Sure, they don't have as much of a bass bump as the DT's, but the treble is smoother and more laid back than the HE-400.

Edit: the bass actually reaches deeper than the DT990 http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCompare.php?graphType=0&graphID[]=3631&graphID[]=3651&graphID[]=4283&graphID[]=2141&scale=30

[Ploooopp]

I would suggest the beats by dre. Now that apple has bought them they'll be amazing and totally worth what you're paying for them, and they probably now have justified the reason to why you want to spend the equivalent of a GTX 780 for sound that is not that noticably better than the Razer Krakens I currently have.

 

(This post is not at all my honest opinion, it's what you call sarcastic.)

[helping]

 T50RP like Mayflower's V3. Sure, they don't have as much of a bass bump as the DT's, but the treble is smoother and more laid back than the HE-400.

Admittedly (and ironically) I didn't think of suggesting that.

 

You might like these. They seem clear enough to me, a bit warm with very solid bass response but the top end isn't obnoxious and sometimes painful like my DT990's were.

 

If you thought the 990's were acceptable, these would be an improvement for certain. 

[ProfoundDisputes]

Maybe a NAD Viso HP50, Focal Spirit One, or a modded T50RP like Mayflower's V3. Sure, they don't have as much of a bass bump as the DT's, but the treble is smoother and more laid back than the HE-400.

Edit: the bass actually reaches deeper than the DT990 http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCompare.php?graphType=0&graphID[]=3631&graphID[]=3651&graphID[]=4283&graphID[]=2141&scale=30

How is the sound stage with these headphones? I do like a decent soundstage as well. I was thinking of keeping the He-400s because DT-990s are a little to high for my tastes, hurts my ears after a while.

I am not sure how much treble the He-400 are known to have since I have rely on DT-990s to compare, which are very high. So whats meant by the treble is smoothed out? The Tek syndicate video on the T50RP Mayflower's V3 said the treble is "muted".

[TheGrapeEscape]

How about Mr Speakers Alpha Dog https://mrspeakers.com/mrspeakers-alpha-dog-headphones/ It's a closed planar magnetic that lets you adjust the bass response with a screw. From the descriptions I've seen they provide better bass response without sacrificing too much sound stage and highs. There are also slip in mods to tame the highs if you so desire. I couldn't find any charts for it though.

 

Tyll from innerfidelity seems like a fan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXJ7vVwBj4Y

 

EDIT: Ah crap, just realised your budget is $300, not the $600 that these cost 

[swifty7]

which one between the he-400 and the audio technica ATH-AD900x ?

[TheGrapeEscape]

which one between the he-400 and the audio technica ATH-AD900x ?

 

Kind of depends on what you would use them mostly for (audio recording,music,gaming,youtube,etc) and what type of music genres you like.

 

If you did want an all rounder, I'd probably suggest the HE-400 over the AD-900x.

 

EDIT: Also, I'd suggest you make a new thread if you want more responses.

[SSL]

Where'd Stefky get to, he loves them HP50s.

[Valhallatier]

I would suggest the beats by dre. Now that apple has bought them they'll be amazing and totally worth what you're paying for them, and they probably now have justified the reason to why you want to spend the equivalent of a GTX 780 for sound that is not that noticably better than the Razer Krakens I currently have.

 

(This post is not at all my honest opinion, it's what you call sarcastic.)

... i can't stop looking at your profile pic....

where'd you get it?

[creatip123]

From my experience, AT tends to sound a bit 'hollow' on the vocals. Nothing wrong with that, if you prefer it that way. I myself prefers warmer and denser sounds, which I got from HE400. So in a nutshell, HE400 is warmer, AD900x should be brighter....

[Stefky]

Bear with them for a couple of weeks.

 

Our mind adjusts to hearing all our well known music with whatever level of bass you are used to. 

 

DT990 has comically boosted upper/mid bass, so your mind is telling you that is right.

 

Your mind will readjust to the HE400 bass within a week or so, and you'll be left with a much better set of headphones.

[ShearMe]

How is the sound stage with these headphones? I do like a decent soundstage as well. I was thinking of keeping the He-400s because DT-990s are a little to high for my tastes, hurts my ears after a while.

I am not sure how much treble the He-400 are known to have since I have rely on DT-990s to compare, which are very high. So whats meant by the treble is smoothed out? The Tek syndicate video on the T50RP Mayflower's V3 said the treble is "muted".

The soundstage on the HP50 and V3 is pretty good. Not as good as the DT990, but probably close to the HE-400.

Look at this graph of frequency responses: http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCompare.php?graphType=0&graphID[]=3651&graphID[]=4283&graphID[]=2141&scale=30

The DT990 has a huge spike in the treble, which makes your brain think there's tons. The HP50, on the other hand, is nicely sloped downwards - there's smooth hills in the treble instead of massive mountain spikes. The V3 is similar in my experience, though I haven't seen a graph yet.

If you just can't enjoy the flat response of the HE-400, grab one of these bassy headphones with "muted" treble.

[Ploooopp]

... i can't stop looking at your profile pic....

where'd you get it?

 

Physics class, can't remember what happened, it just... I saw it, and when the class ended it was all over my computer... And then my school computer went through HDD failure so I dont have it saved anywhere...

[swifty7]

Kind of depends on what you would use them mostly for (audio recording,music,gaming,youtube,etc) and what type of music genres you like.

 

If you did want an all rounder, I'd probably suggest the HE-400 over the AD-900x.

 

EDIT: Also, I'd suggest you make a new thread if you want more responses.

I use my headphones for everything from music to movies to games.   I like a huge sound stage and tons of detail and separation of instruments and sounds.  Also comfort is imperative.

 

if only I could audition one the he-400 that is.

 

also I hope these cans are not the dark sounding type like HD558's and if that's the case then forget it.

[creatip123]

I use my headphones for everything from music to movies to games.   I like a huge sound stage and tons of detail and separation of instruments and sounds.  Also comfort is imperative.

 

if only I could audition one the he-400 that is.

 

also I hope these cans are not the dark sounding type like HD558's and if that's the case then forget it.

 

HE400 is warm and tends to lean toward dark sounding. If you don't like that, don't go with the HE400. Never tried the HD558, but HE400 is definitely darker than HD600.

[ProfoundDisputes]

The soundstage on the HP50 and V3 is pretty good. Not as good as the DT990, but probably close to the HE-400.

Look at this graph of frequency responses: http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCompare.php?graphType=0&graphID[]=3651&graphID[]=4283&graphID[]=2141&scale=30

The DT990 has a huge spike in the treble, which makes your brain think there's tons. The HP50, on the other hand, is nicely sloped downwards - there's smooth hills in the treble instead of massive mountain spikes. The V3 is similar in my experience, though I haven't seen a graph yet.

If you just can't enjoy the flat response of the HE-400, grab one of these bassy headphones with "muted" treble.

Well I decided that I am going to return the DT-990s. I already bought the HP50 and will be getting it sometime next week.

I will compare he-400 and hd50s against each other. The one most pleasing stays. Hopefully I have enough time in the return policy for the he-400 to adjust to the hd50.

[ProfoundDisputes]

Bear with them for a couple of weeks.

 

Our mind adjusts to hearing all our well known music with whatever level of bass you are used to. 

 

DT990 has comically boosted upper/mid bass, so your mind is telling you that is right.

 

Your mind will readjust to the HE400 bass within a week or so, and you'll be left with a much better set of headphones.

I agree with you here. When I first started listening to he-400, I immediately hated them. I was incredibly disappointed with price to sound ratio. 

I was convinced that I was returning them, until I got lazy and didn't right away. Now even though they don't have the bass like the dt-990s I still really enjoy them. I acclimated myself to its sound signature and they sound more pleasing to me now.

I still do want more bass though. Its just that I can enjoy them now, while at first, I was heavily disappointed.

[swifty7]

I guess I'll stick with my ATH-AD900x.  I like a bit more treble anyways as long as it's defined and smooth

 

I also loathed ad900x when I first got them but that was the fault of my previous headphone amp than the can itself.

[creatip123]

I agree with you here. When I first started listening to he-400, I immediately hated them. I was incredibly disappointed with price to sound ratio. 

I was convinced that I was returning them, until I got lazy and didn't right away. Now even though they don't have the bass like the dt-990s I still really enjoy them. I acclimated myself to its sound signature and they sound more pleasing to me now.

I still do want more bass though. Its just that I can enjoy them now, while at first, I was heavily disappointed.

 

Have you tried fiddling with EQ, adding some gains on the low frequencies? Tried fiddling with the 40-150Hz in Foobar's EQ, and I got rumbling bass from the HE400. Kinda drowns the other freq though, so I reset it after a few minutes of musics. 

[ProfoundDisputes]

Have you tried fiddling with EQ, adding some gains on the low frequencies? Tried fiddling with the 40-150Hz in Foobar's EQ, and I got rumbling bass from the HE400. Kinda drowns the other freq though, so I reset it after a few minutes of musics. 

Yes I have. I use MusicBee and tried the 15 band equalizer. I also tried switching on the bass boost on the Fiio E10.

The result is just more bass and removes the sharpness of the sound, perhaps drowning out other frequencies. The bass doesn't have the signature that I like when boosted. It has a different sound to it

Its not just about more bass but the type of bass.

[SSL]

Yes I have. I use MusicBee and tried the 15 band equalizer. I also tried switching on the bass boost on the Fiio E10.

The result is just more bass and removes the sharpness of the sound, perhaps drowning out other frequencies. The bass doesn't have the signature that I like when boosted. It has a different sound to it

Its not just about more bass but the type of bass.

 

E10 bass boost is fail, it extends right up to 1000Hz resulting in a lot of boom and mud.

[ProfoundDisputes]

I've made my decision and I am keeping the He-400.

The Nad Viso HP50 weren't anything that I was expecting. They were clear but too much lower range for my liking. The sound stage wasn't anything special also in my opinion.
They just didn't feel like they were worth 300$ that I paid for them, maybe ~150$ not 300$.