[icebear]

http://www.head-fi.org/t/785377/shure-kse1500-review-shure-kse1500-sound-isolating-electrostatic-earphones/2265#post_12604859
 
QUOTE:
“There's some folks, that, if they don't know, you can't tell 'em.”
― Louis Armstrong  
(The real one.)

 

 

[john777]

Mmmm......just curious: what is it about the build quality that you guys don't like about the HEK? The materials used are metal, wood and leather. Nothing out of the ordinary for any headphone. Aside from the creaking sound when you swivel or flex the headphone (a very minor annoyance), nothing seems out of place.

How many factories do HiFiMan use? Are we seeing a difference in quality from one factory to another? This should not be so. I am saving for a pair of HE-1000s, but want a 'good' pair for my money. Otherwise I go elsewhere.

 

[LouisArmstrong]

THE most comfortable headphone I have used is the Ultrasone Edition 10, although it sounded horrible for its price. Ethiopian sheep skin for the win!  

 

[paulchiu]

  THE most comfortable headphone I have used is the Ultrasone Edition 10, although it sounded horrible for its price. Ethiopian sheep skin for the win!  

 
ED10 is not that bad.  You just need a Chord DAVE or Nagra HD DAC to drive one.
 
paul

 

[Samut89]

ED10 is not that bad.  You just need a Chord DAVE or Nagra HD DAC to drive one.

paul

Does the ultrasone is picky on the Dac that it chooses.??

How about Using a yggdrassil..??

Thanks,
Jonathan

 

[LouisArmstrong]

Does the ultrasone is picky on the Dac that it chooses.??

How about Using a yggdrassil..??

Thanks,
Jonathan

The ED10 has a very bad sibilance and is independent of which DAC you use... ED10 is the best headphone I have heard for male vocal, but for female vocal, jazz and rock/metal (or whatever music where cymbal is present), it is a terrible terrible headphone. I owned it for over a year and it was my only high end headphone at that time, but I had to let it go eventually.
 
Yggdrassil may be a good DAC as far as Schitt is concerned, but I would not consider any Head-fi brand at all for DACs.

 

[reddog]

Does the ultrasone is picky on the Dac that it chooses.??

How about Using a yggdrassil..??

Thanks,
Jonathan

I just love how my HE1000 sounds when driven by a Yggdrasil and Ragnarock or the Liquid Glass.. .

 

[Samut89]

The ED10 has a very bad sibilance and is independent of which DAC you use... ED10 is the best headphone I have heard for male vocal, but for female vocal, jazz and rock/metal (or whatever music where cymbal is present), it is a terrible terrible headphone. I owned it for over a year and it was my only high end headphone at that time, but I had to let it go eventually. 

Thanks for the info bro.

Means that if ED10 able to carry male vocal, it should be bassy phones?

As per say man natural voice is to be tenor to barritone.?

Coukd you enlightened me of the reason that ED10 was unable to potray the female vocal?

He1000 vs ED10.? Any opinons?

Thanks,
Jonathan

 

[LouisArmstrong]

Thanks for the info bro.

Means that if ED10 able to carry male vocal, it should be bassy phones?

As per say man natural voice is to be tenor to barritone.?

Coukd you enlightened me of the reason that ED10 was unable to potray the female vocal?

He1000 vs ED10.? Any opinons?

Thanks,
Jonathan

Not that it is unable to portray female vocal - just that the sibilance is so prominent that it becomes unbearable.  You cannot expect a lot of bass from an open earphone.
 
HE1000 vs ED10? HE1000 all the way.

 

[Samut89]

Not that it is unable to portray female vocal - just that the sibilance is so prominent that it becomes unbearable.  You cannot expect a lot of bass from an open earphone.

HE1000 vs ED10? HE1000 all the way.

Hoping 1 day to own a chord dave.

Am waiting for my schitt yggy to arrive to malaysia.

Bought from a good guy named Richard ( the Attorney).

Hoping to have beat synergy with master 9.

Thanks,
Jonathan

 

[musicman59]

 
The ED10 has a very bad sibilance and is independent of which DAC you use... ED10 is the best headphone I have heard for male vocal, but for female vocal, jazz and rock/metal (or whatever music where cymbal is present), it is a terrible terrible headphone. I owned it for over a year and it was my only high end headphone at that time, but I had to let it go eventually.
 
Yggdrassil may be a good DAC as far as Schitt is concerned, but I would not consider any Head-fi brand at all for DACs.

I agree 100%. I loved the sound of my Edition 9 but they were very uncomfortable so I had big expectations for the edition 10. Ordered them twice, one in stock form and one recabled with the Zeus OCC Copper. The recabled one was better than stock but still the high frequencies were very unnatural and metallic sounding. Could not stand them either. It was a same because I loved to looks and comfort.

 

[vc1187]

Anyone else really feel like the HEK needs a lot of volume before it actually comes alive or reaches its full potential?  I find that I'm listening at higher levels of volume on my HEK over any other pair of headphones I've owned in the past.  At low volumes, the HEK does not sound very involving or clear, and is way too mellow.  
 
Once it hits a certain level of loudness, everything improves: imaging, soundstage, depth, engagement factor, and most noticeably - explosive dynamics with brain rumbling bass.

 

[sheldaze]

  Anyone else really feel like the HEK needs a lot of volume before it actually comes alive or reaches its full potential?  I find that I'm listening at higher levels of volume on my HEK over any other pair of headphones I've owned in the past.  At low volumes, the HEK does not sound very involving or clear, and is way too mellow.  
 
Once it hits a certain level of loudness, everything improves: imaging, soundstage, depth, engagement factor, and most noticeably - explosive dynamics with brain rumbling bass.

Yes, but I rather enjoy that aspect of immersion into the sound. This was the headphone I would reach for first when I was ready for an evening of sonic immersion.
The HD800S was not so much about immersion as it was about delicate and detailed sounds, while listening at low volume.

 

[vc1187]

  Yes, but I rather enjoy that aspect of immersion into the sound. This was the headphone I would reach for first when I was ready for an evening of sonic immersion.
The HD800S was not so much about immersion as it was about delicate and detailed sounds, while listening at low volume.

Thanks for the response.  Now for the million dollar question: how much does an aftermarket silver cable change this (i.e. Moon audio silver dragon V3)? 
 
I don't find it to be a deal breaker and I really enjoy the sound, but there are times that I'd just prefer more lower decibel listening without sacrificing the level of dynamics and immersion that the HEK is so capable of providing.
 
On this note, I can understand why the HEK works well with more neutral sounding amps that can provide a lot of power.  Adding warmth to its already warm tone will only be amplified into a bloated and unclear sound at the high volumes the HEK craves to be played at.  I've opted for more neutral sounding tubes in the Stratus, and it has worked much better than some of the tubes I was using for the HD800.

 

[sheldaze]

  Thanks for the response.  Now for the million dollar question: how much does an aftermarket silver cable change this (i.e. Moon audio silver dragon V3)? 

My opinion - the original cable is broken.
 
I actually had a friend stop by a few weekends ago. I wanted him to try out an amplifier, and wanted him to hear it on my HE-1000, now with aftermarket cables. He stopped me cold, when he suggested he wanted to try the original cable first. Why? He had never in his life heard an audible change due to cables. So I went back into a drawer, pulled out the original cable, and let him hear it. Then I switched back to my aftermarket cables. Even standing nearby, I could hear the difference between the two cables. And he heard it too...
 
The original cable, in my opinion, is broken. I use Norne Audio Zoetic.
But my guess is any aftermarket cable will solve the "brokeness" of the original cable.