Comparisons: I can’t really think of anything that comes close to the engaging yet well balance nature of the HE6SE. The E40 has a very black background with no hiss and usable volume being above the imbalance point of the pot. I hope you have enjoyed this video, and at the end of this review, if you are looking for an analytic headphone, if you don't mind simplistic design, and a practical approach, HIFIMAN HE6SE is one heck of a headphone to look at, and it won't disappoint. But you have to ask yourself: is that enough to make you ignore the discomfort caused by the headband and the fact that they look like cheap headphones while they cost almost 2 grands?

As I noted in the sonic part of this review, the sonic performance of HE6SE is pretty much, like listening to live music. The HE6SE v2 weigh in at 510 g, which is not negligible, but HiFiMAN chose a headband that is not suited for this kind of weight.I don’t find this acceptable if you spend this much on a headphone, especially when the competition has more elegant solutions. I may be a bit jaded though by reviews and videos for every headphone and tech product starting with 2 paragraphs of opening the damn box… damn you Apple and that kid with all the toys. Despite a new headband and an adapter to hook these up to a speaker amp, those 2 factors appear to have been stumbling blocks. As primarily a speaker guy, I'm sure this little planar will keep me entertained for another 4-5 years, especially in rotation with my Elex. In the Drop manual they say one should not use high gain level (+10 db) if the DAC source is higher than 2.

The HE-6se’s sensitivity is only 83dB and Hifiman themselves even state “The HE6se is hungry for power, so it’s important to pair it with an amplifier that feeds it substantial output, 2 watts per channel or more. Audio-GD Master 19 is the amplifier part of a great setup, and you may require a DAC to run it, so even the Mytek Brooklyn DAC+ could be a part of this setup, but if not, I think that a DAC like the M2Tech Young MKIII DAC would still be pretty awesome DAC to power Audio-GD Master 19. It’s an experience that takes you to another dimension, if just for a little while, making you forget of everything else. I am definitely a planar guy, I need that well-extended, clean, clear and impactful bass only planars can offer. Traditionally, headphones strive to me easier and easier to power, and in some cases, can be driven quite efficiently through a cellular device.HIFIMAN HE6SE is really hard to drive, so HIFIMAN designed an adapter that lets you power HE6SE directly from a power or integrated amplifier, in other words, using a speaker amplifier to power HE6SE. So after 2 weeks and over easily 40+ hours of listening, I’d like to finally share my thoughts and impressions on this legendary headphone’s successor. I wanted to intimately familiarize myself with a "control sound" to better and more quickly figure out whether the HE6se V2 would be worth keeping. In reality, though, there are differences in sound as well and the HE6SE v2 is a more balanced, better all-rounder version. I remember people complaining that HIFIMAN headphones were frail so when i first reviewed their Sunadara headphones i did my best to put them to a lot of torture.

This is great for the airy midrange, treble and lifelike vocals but not that great for bass when it comes to electronic music.Rather, you hear every little bit of texture, every single intricacy, and even nuance, He6SE is really good at revealing all of those to you. One thing that should be noted is that the HE6se V2 scales with more powerful amplifiers, and I found that the Feliks Audio Euforia MK I had enough power to play the HE6se V2 beautifully. And since HE6SE comes with a really long cable, that may feel a bit uncomfortable for some, I expect that questions about where to get replacement cables exist, which is why I'm happy HIFIMAN went with such a popular socket format. I too enjoy having a more fun presentation sometimes, and even I love Arya's romantic serenades, but with HE6SE, I know that they sound natural, they sound live, they sound alive.

HiFiMan often asked about repairs, and spare drivers were still continuing to manufacture them, so an idea popped up to refresh the HE6 into more modern, more comfortable headphones.There is a bit of emphasis in the lower area, but it’s minor and doesn’t influence the overall signature too much. Since I mentioned a few times that HE6SE is a full desktop headphone, I went ahead and included mostly desktop amplifiers for the pairing part of this review, the chosen ones being Audio-GD Master 19, Mytek Brooklyn DAC+, and xDuoo TA-10, all of them pretty interesting choices. The bass was faster, and leaner, than the Arya, the mids had more clarity, as did the highs, than it’s counterpart. HiFiMan had their arm twisted gently round their back and have very kindly sent me another review sample. Some may argue that Thror has a smoother treble, which results in a smoother overall sound, and well, that may be true, if you are looking for something that's easier to listen to, Thror surely is impressive, but if you're looking for something that has the ultimate resolution, clarity and detail, HE6SE delivers int hat area better.