HiFiMAN HE400i Over Ear Full-Size Plannar Magnetic Headphone

Product Information

The most important thing to know id that the 2020 version of the HE-400i, is still using the same drivers as the one that saw the light in 2015. But these drivers are/were great, so we’re not complaining about this. Just FYI, I didn’t find I needed to mod the grills. My headphone didn’t actually come with padding inside so the sound was less impaired compared to some forums I had seen. I bought these second hand and I’m not sure if the previous guy took them out. Throughout the review, I have already made many comparisons between the HE400i 2020 and the se model, but to be clear I’ll sum up the main differences again.

Full-Size Over Ear Headphones: Best and High End Planar

The instrument’s separation is brilliant, every single sound source is well defined and pronounced. The vocal is coming from the front of the listener, resulting in a natural and mature staging. Bass extension is AMAZING on these. Sure I haven't listened to the other Hifimans or Audeze planars, but I have never experienced planar headphones before the 400is. Compared to everything I've heard, these win in bass extension hands down. They have the perfect amount of bass for me, I would call ever so slightly more than neutral, which I like. I just love the detail and the way they make things sound. The mids are great, but I do prefer the HD 650 mids over these. They are very close to the 650 mids, a little less smooth however. I think HiHiMAN met the goals of making a light, easy to drive, improved sound quality headphone that many, like myself, will thoroughly enjoy. I PERSONALLY don’t think these cans are my thing. I was expecting a slightly warmer sound. I know planars can do it. But it seems this headphone was much more analytical for me anyways.

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The headband for me was a little hard, but I really am not the one to make a comment on that -- by nature of my head all headbands hurt, so I can’t claim to have an objective view of this feature. But compared to other headphones I’ve tried, like the V-Moda M100s, this headband is very comfortable.

HiFiMan HE-400i review: High-end audiophile headphones for a

The treble section is very easygoing. For some it might be a bit soft, but for the big crowd and general consumer it will sit just right. So very soft treble on the ears, but with just enoug energy to keep things exciting. Treble is clear but not the most precise or extended. Simple, easy treble really. Last, but certainly not least important sound aspect I´m going to briefly analyse in connection with HE-400i is the overall transparency and resolution of the headphone. These sound aspects are closely linked, and while they are not absolute synonyms (see http://www.head-fi.org/a/describing-sound-a-glossary), it´s obvious you can hardly have great transparency without having great resolution and vice versa. Headphones with great transparency (should) have optimal clarit, low distortion and sound free of significant peaks or unwanted resonances. Headphones with great resolution (should) have superb detail retrieval, ability to render even subtle information in music. As mentioned in PRaT section HE-400i have appreciably fast transient response which helps a lot in deciphering subtle details. Together with impressively low distortion across the whole frequency spectrum (see THD graph on http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/HiFiMANHE4002014.pdf) and generally smooth and cohesive „planar“ sound, we get, in my opinion, a headphone with a high grade overall transparency/resolution. However some headphones may have more accentuated or extended treble, which may lead to a sense of more detailed sound. Some listeners may prefer this and it´s usually a desirable quality for some genres like e.g. classical. Some headphones may have better bass extension (HE-560, LCD-2, LCD-X) with similar or better transient speed and that also leads into more detailed or textured presentation in bass/ sub-bass. On the other hand HE-400i, also maybe due to its warm/neutral sound signature, does not feel overly analytical. It does not present music like „all details are in your face“ but chooses more musical approach – it tries to present music as a whole, while keeping more than sufficient clarity. At least for me. 9/10.

Introduction

Bass quality on the HE-400i is better. The 400’s bass was more basic and had more body while the 400i’s bass is more detailed and layered: a better quality bass. Treble wise the 400 might be a little further extended but the 400i’s treble is more textured and detailed than before. The sharp side has been filed of. These are among the most comfortable headphones I’ve worn. I’d say even slightly more comfortable than the HD800s. They are extraordinarily light for a planar and the focus pads really just seal the deal. In a way you could say the 400i is to the 560 what the 400 is to the 500 but the difference is less huge as it was before. These two headphones, performance wise, now are closer to each other and that’s very positive for the consumer with a smaller budget. Also new in this version are the connectors. Where the original HE-400i used the screw-on SMC connectors, the new version sports simple 3.5mm terminations and they are just so much easier to use. Especially if you like playing with aftermarket cables. The Hifiman HE400se is extremely easy to listen to. It’s fun, it’s engaging and it produces a very non fatiguing sound. You can use the HE400se with all kinds of music, but it’s also perfectly fine for watching TV, as well as Zoom & Skype meetings. It’s a great allrounder kind of headphone. Actually, it’s more than just that, as its sound quality is really impressive.

HIFIMAN HE400i 2020 Version Full-Size Over-Ear Planar HIFIMAN HE400i 2020 Version Full-Size Over-Ear Planar

As for the distortions we saw in the graphs, I could tell you that I hear them but I am not sure at all. The highs sound a bit shrill at moderate levels. Turning the levels up accentuates this. But this could just be me not trying to EQ above 8 kHz. A shelving filter may help there. Build quality, like with the HE-560 is excellent. After what happened to the HE-560’s recall, I wasn’t sure what to expect of the HE-400i but the unit I received was flawless. Well, I did only get it a few months after the launch, that probably helped as well. Never the less, I much prefer this new – smoky grey – color scheme over the weird blue the old HE-400 had. It just looks better and higher end. The box it came in is one of the prettiest I have seen from a headphone company. And I have seen a lot. (see pics) The 400i is easier to drive than the HE-560 but the overall sound is less refined and detailed. The HE-560 in a way is smoother and more natural sounding with more detail and timbre.The 400 wasn’t the greatest headphone ever made but for its price it performed quite good. Now, compared to the 400i, the old version is miles behind. Technology has evolved, and that’s a good thing. If it was only for the sound quality alone I would give HE-400i four and a half star. But taken into account also the price/performance ratio, the level of comfort and fairly good efficiency (for a planar headphone) I decided to give this audio product five stars. He400i + Darvoice 336se: I’ve noticed some higher than normal noise floor, probably due to the He400i being low impedance headphones but this combo adds more bass and vocal emphasis. Overall, I would say it makes the He400i slightly warmer without losing any detail in the highs. Mids: Oh. Thissss. This is amazing. The mids have a sweetness to them that is hard to describe, its unlike anything I’ve ever heard. The instruments are presented in a way that is just a joy to listen to! On Porcupine Tree’s song- My Ashes, the guitar sounds incredible and the imaging is very good. The vocals carried that sense of dark atmosphere which just stood out so much to me! And not surprisingly Steven Wilson’s songs are great on these. The Vocals and the instruments never sound congested, rather they flow. Green day is also amazing here. The guitar riffs have a sense of authority to them. On Diana Krall’s Let’s Fall in Love, her voice sounds intoxicating to say the least. I’m blown away each time I hear that song. Bjork and Carpenters also sound amazing! Blowing me away each time I put their songs on. Treble on HE-400i is reasonably extended with a gentle spike around 9-10 kHz, which for me provides just the right amount of sparkle. There is less treble energy on HE-400i than on HE-560 or DT 990 but a bit more than on LCD-2 or Oppo PM 1. Cymbals, percussions, organ or string instruments like violin sound detailed and clear. There is no exaggerated focus on treble (like on DT 990) which may result into analytical tonality and fatiguing sound. Some headphones somewhat artificially boost treble which can give a listener sense of ultra detailness but usually such headphones (like DT 990) have V-shaped sound and that is not my preference. On the other hand HE-400i doesn´t sound artificial in treble but quite natural, sufficiently detailed and smooth. Treble is well integrated with other parts into frequency spectrum and contributes to the balanced tonality of HE-400i. OK, there are headphones which have slightly more detailed and still perfectly natural treble, namely HD 800 and HE-6 (these two headphones have the best treble I´ve heard so far), but on the other hand HE-400i offers (at least for me) sufficient treble oomph without harshness or sibilance. Sibilance or treble harshness/hardiness may occur very very rarely and only on pretty bad recordings ( usually badly mixed, highly compressed remasters in mp3 format) On decent recordings, even on compressed, modern date music with poorer dynamic range, there is virtually no sibilance or excessive glare. I am sorry for a comparison to speakers, but my Dynaudio Focus 110A (1800 € expensive) are in no way so forgiving of poor recordings while Hifiman HE-400i is in that regard much more listener-friendly audio product. What already sounds harsh or overly bright on my speakers is still perfectly listenable on HE-400i. Among headphones HE-400i is more forgiving of bad recordings than DT 990, HE-560, HD 800 or HE-6. In my opinion it even rivals LCD-2 (fazored) and is only slightly inferior to Oppo PM1 in this regard. This is also one of the reasons why HE-400i has non-fatiguing sound and why I am giving such a high grade also in this section – 9/10.