Performance

As per HiFiMAN's instructions, we had the HE-1000 burn in for 150 hours before we did any serious listening. The first impression when you fire it up is that it sounds a bit brighter than the HE-560. It still has a very linear frequency response in the low end, and the extension is as ridiculous as its price.



Its bass is incredibly tight, and while not as dominant as with the HE-400I or HE-560, it is not lacking in any way since it is right where it needs to be to be precise—it does not add or subtract anything. Its impact is on par with the HE-560, a pair that is highly regarded for its impact.

There is a rapid decay of energy in the HE-1000 while retaining its musical representation. This trait can be described as an inherent tautness that is present throughout the range; coming from the HE-560 or HD600, both of which I use often and have on my desk, it is noticeably faster. The HD800s have an even quicker decay, but both would be described as fast.

The midrange is quite spectacular to my ears, especially when going through really technical acoustic guitar tracks. The midrange captures the transients and delivers each pick very accurately, both in terms of attack and decay. The HE-1000 never looses its transparency in even very complex passages. Its presentation of very complex material is even better than with the HD800, and you get more punch and extension in the low end.

Two things HiFiMAN really nails with this headphone are soundstage and positioning, where it comes close to the HD800s. Due to the wide and relatively deep sound stage, you get a real sense of air around the instruments and a great separation of voices. The thing that really sets the HE-1000 apart from other planar magnetics in the HiFiMAN line-up is that the separation is there even when the music is at its most complex and while there are interactions between many different voices. This is obviously due to a good driver, but perhaps also in equal amounts due to its surroundings, which have been upgraded over what is featured on cheaper HiFiMANs. The resolution and detail throughout, coupled with that sense of space, make it sound almost like the improbable lovechild of a Sennheiser HD800 and HE-560.

The upper midrange is slightly forward, which some would call sparkle. It is not as forward as on Sennheiser's HD800 and HD700, but it is noticeable, so if you are very sibilant shy, this should be taken into account. The treble extension is immaculate, just like with the HD800, and the detail level is similar as well. The HE-1000 is by no means forgiving on bad masterings, but if you buy these headphones, you should already have good source material available (whenever possible).

The specifications tell us that the HE-1000 should be quite inefficient at only 90 dB/mW. Hooked up to our JDSLabs C5D, we were able to get an adequate amount of volume without any artifacts. Switching to the EF100, the tonality changed, but there was no other clear difference in terms of sound quality.