This is a thread to discuss all things to do with the HiFiMAN HE560 and its various iterations.
This is in all instances an open-back planar magnetic headphone, with a single-sided magnet array. Interestingly, it first arrived on the scene as a reaction to the heavier double-sided HE500 and HE-6. I’ve been told HiFiMAN worked a lot on getting the weight down, and thus the HE560 was born. Since then, this same driver platform has been used several times in various headphones and has been influential in other models, like the Sundara as well.
Currently the least expensive one, the V4 is only available used on Adorama, while the V2 is still available at a much higher pricepoint for some reason:
https://www.adorama.com/l/?searchinfo=he560%20v4
For those wondering, this is the headphone I’ve been daily driving for the past few live streams.
Measurements:
B&K 5128:
Raw
Compensated
Channel Matching
GRAS:
This has a similar sound signature to many HiFiMAN headphones, which I’d characterize as neutral-bright (depending on the slope applied to the reference curve). You can see in the compensated graph that it’s got a general counter-clockwise tilt relative to an average slope.
The dip in the mids around 1.5khz is also fairly common with HiFiMAN headphones, and this tends to have a widening effect on the overall presentation. I find it a bit lean there with too much distance between the mids and upper mids. But apart from that it’s got a nice balance to it and sounds even better after tweaking a bit with EQ. I personally enjoy it with a bit of a bass boost as well.
Notes:
- Sounds slightly more resolving for small gradations of volume than the Sundara, but all other technical qualities sound the same to my ear. Maybe slightly wider on the HE560.
- Very comfortable, I much prefer the newer style headband with the cup swivel.
- The build doesn’t exactly inspire confidence or feel particularly premium.
- Measured impedance is at 48.58
