[E1DA]

GirgleMirt, I also prepared many different EQ settings for freq.response morphing 400i to lsd2, hd800, ideal-Harman etc. All of them sounds not bad but some of them better, some worse. I think it is necessary to have original target-headphones to evaluate that audio-sanity.
PS: good idea to see compensated shape for reference i.e. the resulting curve.

 

[dwqdd]

nice

 

[jksoon]

I have a pair of Massdrop HE-4xx with focus pads and some standard HE-400i with pads similar to the ZMF Ori pads and the sound signatures are quite a bit different. More neutral with the focus pads, but more soundstage and bass with the aftermarket pads as they are a bit thicker and position your ears out a bit more.

My Audio GD NFB-12 works quite well with these. My Grace m9xx runs out of steam when I want more volume.

 

[drwlf]

I have a pair of Massdrop HE-4xx with focus pads and some standard HE-400i with pads similar to the ZMF Ori pads and the sound signatures are quite a bit different. More neutral with the focus pads, but more soundstage and bass with the aftermarket pads as they are a bit thicker and position your ears out a bit more.

My Audio GD NFB-12 works quite well with these. My Grace m9xx runs out of steam when I want more volume.

As I saw this, I had to respond, so that people do not take erroneous information as fact.

(As 400i has the same efficiency as 4XX?), the Grace m9xx doesn't run out of steam with the 400i, even when factoring various listening levels people have, period.
Full volume doesn't blow out the driver, but indeed is enough to cause damage to your hearing with continued listening.
This begs me to ask a question, is your source volume to the max (O/S volume/software player volume, and by max I mean just a notch under the max due to inter-sample peaks/clipping, if you're that paranoid )
I sat at 50-75 of the volume on the Grace unit, and that's with a -6dB attenuation from EQ:ing, and pushing over 75 would require a tremendously high dynamic range/low volume content; or to be drunk and show off the combo to a friend for quick test.
Additionally, it's been reported over and over again how extraordinary pairing the m9xx and 400i are, over the years in this thread.

and @DavidA I noticed your reply a while back, haven't had time to respond, I just get these e-mail notifications which I skim through, had a horrible year and the situation ain't over yet, I'll PM you when things settle down.

 

[DavidA]

@drwlf, take care of your situation and hope everything turns out well for you.

 

[drwlf]

@drwlf, take care of your situation and hope everything turns out well for you.

Thanks, your words earlier did actually cheer me up mentally! It's so nice to see peeps coming back to thread to discuss the headphones, time and again.

But yeah, things are slowly creeping towards status quo - had no time whatsoever to hang around here in the first six months of the year, bought the Freya/Vidar combo during the summer to cheer me up - and just now have had time to concentrate on the issues/hiccups I've had there (my content on the Freya-thread). I'll get those sorted, one way or another!

And on the m9xx/400i-combo, I use that in the office, I'm still more than satisfied with it, stopping sometimes for a while in awe or just smiling

 

[DavidA]

I got this prototype TOY powerDAC which was designed for the HE400i from another head-fier (@E1DA) and so far I'm liking it a lot and going from memory I like it better than a Mojo that I borrowed from a friend but its not flexible or in a housing.



setup on my test rig with mini-XLR since the powerDAC only works in balanced mode, it will also drive my HE560 so it has some "power" to it.

 

[jksoon]

As I saw this, I had to respond, so that people do not take erroneous information as fact..../QUOTE]
..........
and @DavidA I noticed your reply a while back, haven't had time to respond, I just get these e-mail notifications which I skim through, had a horrible year and the situation ain't over yet, I'll PM you when things settle down.[

As 400i has the same efficiency as 4XX?)
---- For some reason the 4xx with the Focus pads requires more volume in MY case compared to my 400i with aftermarket pads, it could be the ears being closer to the drivers with one set of pads vs another. It's the first thing I noticed when I got the 4xx after I had the 400i for months.

the Grace m9xx doesn't run out of steam with the 400i, even when factoring various listening levels people have, period.
---- I feel that I could use a bit more power when I want to play at higher volume with the 4xx and Focus pads for my taste with the 400i, not so much as those seem to play adequately, though I might run as high as 90 on the 100 scale. I find myself switching to my Audio GD NFB-12 just to get a bit more power and I feel that it has a bit more control when tracks get complicated at higher volumes. For casual listening at normal volumes, I can use either the Grace or the Audio GD with my Hifimans.

Full volume doesn't blow out the driver, but indeed is enough to cause damage to your hearing with continued listening.
This begs me to ask a question, is your source volume to the max (O/S volume/software player volume, and by max I mean just a notch under the max due to inter-sample peaks/clipping, if you're that paranoid )

---- On my Mac Pro, the system Volume when running the Grace m9xx already set to max by the OS, so I can't adjust it via software settings, basically the m9xx takes over and I can only adjust the gain via the knob. On the Audio GD, I can change volume settings via volume control. I'm not using additional software to boost the volume. As of note, not all of my music is recorded at the same levels and with a couple thousand songs on my library, I have not normalized the volumes. I also notice this with youtube content. Sometimes I wish for a bit more volume.

I sat at 50-75 of the volume on the Grace unit, and that's with a -6dB attenuation from EQ:ing, and pushing over 75 would require a tremendously high dynamic range/low volume content; or to be drunk and show off the combo to a friend for quick test.
Additionally, it's been reported over and over again how extraordinary pairing the m9xx and 400i are, over the years in this thread.

---- It might be a personal preference thing, but I get more dynamics through my Audio GD than the m9xx with the HifiMans. I do however prefer the m9xx with my AudioQuest NightOwls, they seem to have better synergy. The m9xx also seems to run my Audeze LCD2 just fine, but for some reason in my case, not as good with the HE400i / HE4xx. I probably also play music a bit on the louder side, but not to the point my ears hurt or ring after long sessions.

I like both of my Hifiman headphones and might even get the HE-500 later on. I also like the Grace m9xx, but it might be a case that the Audio GD just has more control with planar magentics. I also prefer the m9xx with my Grados and my IEMs. So I don't hate on my m9xx, I'm just saying that I wish it has just a tad more power and perhaps someone else might run into playing headphones at loud levels, which I do at times and wish for a bit more power.

 

[jksoon]

Also, I think the Hifiman HE-400i / HE-4xx are one of the best purchases in their price range and it's the first ones I recommend to friends that are looking for audiophile headphones without spending over $500. It's a great way to get them into planar sound. Even though I had the HE-400i first, I could not pass on the Massdrop HE-4xx for their price. It was too good of a deal.

 

[drwlf]

@jksoon thanks for the reply.
The various LCD-2 revisions I've tested have always been a bit harder to drive than the 400i's I've tested, though I've been out of the loop for a year now, so I don't know what the current situation is, perhaps somebody else could chime in on that. Perhaps there's unit variation in play as well.
Also, with my previous tests, I've thought that the 400i doesn't scale as much as the LCD-2 with better amplification either; albeit I wouldn't be happy with the 400i with an overtly cold amp, nor the LCD-2 with a warm one. I've been extremely happy with the m9xx with any low Z/relatively high sensitivity headphones, dynamics and planars.

 

[jksoon]

@jksoon thanks for the reply.
The various LCD-2 revisions I've tested have always been a bit harder to drive than the 400i's I've tested, though I've been out of the loop for a year now, so I don't know what the current situation is, perhaps somebody else could chime in on that. Perhaps there's unit variation in play as well.
Also, with my previous tests, I've thought that the 400i doesn't scale as much as the LCD-2 with better amplification either; albeit I wouldn't be happy with the 400i with an overtly cold amp, nor the LCD-2 with a warm one. I've been extremely happy with the m9xx with any low Z/relatively high sensitivity headphones, dynamics and planars.

I'm running the LCD-2 (late 2016) with Fazors and Microsuade (early Vegan pads). They seem fairly easy to drive, and they definitely scale better then the HE-400i as you mentioned. Not sure why my 4xx requires more power than the 400i, I'm guessing it's the pads and/or they have low hours and they need to break in. I think I recall Hifiman stating 150 hours?

Even though I have the LCD-2, I usually grab the HE-400i most of the time since I find the LCD-2 heavy over extended listening sessions and I'm wanting a bit more energy on the highs, especially with music that has electric guitar and drums. The Audeze are my current go-to planars for vocals.

 

[Lurk650]

If anybody wants a 2.5TRRS balanced cable for cheap lmk. Bought one for my 4xx forgetting that they use 3.5 at the cups not 2.5.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/hifiman-400i-balanced-cable-2-5-trrs.891996/#post-14563295

 

[CADCAM]

Sweet Mother! I brought my 400i's upstairs to my LD MKIII setup and threw some Chet Atkins C.G.P. on and I don't think they've ever sounded better. Great recording, musician's and setup.
I usually use this setup (LD, Maverick Audio DAC, Audio Control EQ, NAD CD) with my DT880's but can't believe how good the 400's sound...should have tried this months ago.
These will be staying up for a while. Bass is present, clean and tight, mids sound accounted for and highs show a nice attention to detail. Crazy good!
Carry on...

 

[DavidA]

Sweet Mother! I brought my 400i's upstairs to my LD MKIII setup and threw some Chet Atkins C.G.P. on and I don't think they've ever sounded better. Great recording, musician's and setup.
I usually use this setup (LD, Maverick Audio DAC, Audio Control EQ, NAD CD) with my DT880's but can't believe how good the 400's sound...should have tried this months ago.
These will be staying up for a while. Bass is present, clean and tight, mids sound accounted for and highs show a nice attention to detail. Crazy good!
Carry on...

Interesting that the LD Mk3 would pair well with the HE400i since the LD Mk3 has a higher output impedance due to the design of the amp. I tried my HE400i on my BH Crack and it was a muddy mess to me

 

[CADCAM]

I use the LD with my 600Ohm DT880's but do not have the gain set to max. I remember long ago listening to the different gain options (I believe there are four) and setting the LD to the one I thought sounded best. I want to say 4 or 5 but I may be wrong on that I just know the highest gain didn't work for me. At any rate the 400i's sound superb with LD in my setup.