HIFIMAN HE400se

Full Review here: https://jamesfiorucci.wordpress.com/2024/05/31/simple-audio-review-hifiman-he400se/

HiFiMAN, the Chinese audio company that brought planar magnetic technology to the masses, released the affordable HE400 a decade ago in 2014. Then considered cheap for $399, the same design has been improved upon with numerous innovations across multiple generations, including stealth-magnet technology in the latest iteration, the HE400se, released in 2021.

Perhaps best of all, the price has also trickled down, and the HE400se can be easily found for less than 100 dollars at major retailers and HiFiMAN’s own online store. This would have been unfathomable back in 2014, the question though is will the sound quality impress as much as the novelty of a sub-$100 planar? Let’s find out.

Many thanks to Mark at HiFiMAN for loaning out the HE400se for review.

Build and Comfort​

The build is well… fine I guess. Being made primarily of plastic and using very thin planar drivers, you don’t want to drop these headphones if you can help it. While the headband looks sturdy and probably is, the yoke adjustment feels a little rickety and may be a failure point if you like to adjust it often.


I found the comfort to be passable, but I couldn’t help but get a hotspot on the crown of my head after an hour of two without fail. It’s a thick headband with no comfort strap and stiff padding, so it’s no surprise that it’s a common sticking point for many HiFiMAN fans and headphone enthusiasts that have put up with this headband design.

The only other thing you get in the box with your headphones is a black rubbery cable and a 3.5mm to quarter inch adapter. Clearly HiFiMAN have spent almost all of their budget on making trying to make the headphone sound good; we shall see if they have succeeded in this aspect in the sound section of this review.

Sound​

Planar technology and stealth magnets for an unbeatable price, will the sound be just as difficult to beat as well? Long story short, you aren’t going to get a better technical performance from any headphone in the ultra-budget price category than the HiFiMAN HE400se.

Just as a little side note, I was shocked by how much the sound changes when you put your hands over the cups. Not that it matters much though.

Bass​

The subbass does taper off ever so slightly in its deepest reaches, so you don’t get that stereotypical prominent rumble that other planars, even those in HiFiMAN’s own lineup, do.

Furthermore, the midbass frequencies are on the lean side of the spectrum, and macrodynamics are not the best which is a characteristic of lower-level planar magnetic cans.

All these factors combine to provide a decently well-extended but laid-back bass experience that won’t particularly excite but won’t offend either.

Midrange​

When it comes to the midrange, you have the usual HiFiMAN-esque recession between 1.5kHz and 3kHz, which is believed to help widen the soundstage and give the impression of space.

Some also say that it results in a “plasticky” midrange timbre, but I personally don’t hear it. What I do hear however is a veil to vocals, particularly female vocals which take a decisive step back in the mix. It lends itself to a relaxed vocal presence, by all means preventing shoutiness which plagues other headphones.


The trade-off is less vocal intimacy, as if you’re listening from the middle rows of a concert hall rather than in a personal booth with the artist. There’s pros and cons to both.

Treble​

The treble is subtly elevated and remains so into its uppermost registers, which can’t be said for all of its nearest competitors.

Despite the HE400se being what can be described as “neutral-bright” in its sound signature, it is far from being fatiguing to listen to even for a treble-sensitive person like myself. It’s sparkly, and gives a sense of air to instruments and vocals that can emphasise the texture of sounds in a pleasant way. Depending on the track, treble can be the star of the show with the HE400se.

Detail, Imaging and Soundstage​

Being a planar magnetic, you get a keen sense of immediacy and excellent microdynamics for the price. However, a decent dynamic driver headphone for a hundred or so bucks more will prevail over the HE400se in the detail retrieval department.

For under $100, I haven’t heard a headphone that images as well as these HiFiMANs do. The soundstage width isn’t particularly wide, but within the narrow-ish stage you can pinpoint the precise location of sounds and instruments better than anything else I’ve listened to in the budget category.

This may well be the first audiophile headphone you buy as a first taste for proper head-fi, in which case the sense of holography and the 3D-like surround-sound feeling in your head will probably blow you away the moment you hit play.

Drivability​

A quick word on the power requirement of the HiFiMAN HE400se. With a sensitivity of 91dB/mW, an amplifier with a decent power output and more importantly a high current flow is needed to unlock the full potential of the HE400se.

Considering the volumes that I typically listen at (~65dB), I found I could get to comfortable levels through my phone and laptop. However, dynamics were even more blunted and the soundstage became even narrower than it usually is. It didn’t suddenly become bad, but to unlock that final five or ten percent of sound quality a dedicated DAC/amp is a necessity.

Overall Verdict​

The HiFiMAN HE400se has been out for a number of years now, but is yet to be usurped as one of the best bang-for-buck headphones on the market. It’s still the only planar magnetic headphone you can find brand-new for less than a 100 bucks. As long as you can look past the plastic build and minor comfort niggles, the sound emanating from the HE400se is the perfect gateway to audiophilic nirvana.

Rating: 8/10​

Hifiman needs no introduction as they make some of the best headphones in every price category. I have owned several Hifiman headphones and reviewed a couple of them before. In general, they all impressed me and became my benchmarks. HE400se is Hifiman’s entry level planar magnetic headphones that are currently priced at 109 USD but can be bought for even cheaper during sales.

Disclaimers​

Hifiman HE400se was provided to me by Mark from Hifiman for free and I only paid the customs fees. As I always say, everyone is biased one way or another so take everything you read with a grain of salt. Also I will try to be more concise and to the point in my reviews from now on without worrying about the word count etc. If you have any questions, please ask me in the comments and I will try to answer them to the best of my abilities.

Build and Accessories of Hifiman HE400se​

Since HE400se is Hifiman’s entry model, it would be unfair to expect too much from it in terms of construction and accessories. So headphones being presented in an environment friendly cardboard box and only coming with a rubberized cable didn’t bother me too much.

Materials used in its construction are mostly plastic with only yolks being metal and headband being leatherette. In fact the materials are almost identical with Edition XS and HE6se v2. So while I can’t fault the choices in its construction considering the price, it’s more frustrating that higher models don’t offer a more premium experience.

Headband is mostly comfortable since it’s not too heavy. This wasn’t the case with the Edition XS since its headband caused a hot spot on top of my head. In the case of HE6se v2, while it was fairly comfortable, it wasn’t staying firmly on my head so I replaced it’s headband with a Audeze styled one.



HE400se is not exactly easy to drive. I would recommend using an amplifier with a decent power output. Probably something along the lines of 500 mW or 1 Watt should suffice.

Sound of Hifiman HE400se​

Tonality​

HE400se proudly represents Hifiman’s bright/neutral house sound. Bass is not very emphasized but not exactly linear either. It has a tint of warmth if we consider Diffuse Field as strictly neutral. There is also a slight sub bass roll off due to the leakage in the seal in the pads.

Mids tuning is again mostly neutral with slight deviations. HE400se also has Hifiman’s usual 2k dip which helps with the sound stage but also gives a slight unnatural sensation. It’s more true for this one as the voices sound like they are coming through a tunnel ever so slightly. By itself you wouldn’t notice it but it becomes apparent when you change headphones or compare it directly to something more “natural”.



Like other Hifiman planars, HE400se is also bright but I wouldn’t call them harsh. In fact it doesn’t have the tizzy and fatiguing nature even some of the higher models have but you can also say HE400se doesn’t have their treble extension and detail level. It's also not as refined as its bigger brothers but by itself, it’s hard to complain.

Technicalities​

HE400se is a cheap planar and this translates to several things. It’s mostly superior to the headphones with dynamic drivers that are even more expensive but doesn’t beat more expensive headphones with planar magnetic drivers and other novel technologies. It has good details and staging capabilities. Timbre is surprisingly good but not exceptional. As always, comparisons will give more context to what I try to convey.

Comparisons​

Hifiman HE400se vs. Hifiman Sundara​

I didn’t expect the HE400se to beat its bigger brother but this comparison should help those you are considering an upgrade in the future or wondering if they should directly jump to Sundara.

• Sundara is mostly made out of metal while HE400se is mostly plastic.
• They both have similar sound signatures.
• Sundara immediately sounds clearer and more refined.
• Sundara has more noticeably impact, authority and control in the bass. They both have similar subbass extensions. HE400se is slightly warmer and has a little bit more midbass quantity.
• There is a bigger scoop in the mids on HE400se which makes it sound like voices coming from further away through a tunnel but it doesn’t necessarily sound wider.
• Sundara sounds wider, deeper, more open and spacious.
• HE400se is more likely to get sibilant depending on the volume you are listening to.
• Timbre is more natural on Sundara throughout the frequency spectrum but especially in the mids.
• Sundara is a step up to HE400se in every thinkable technical aspect, it’s more detailed and resolving, has better layering and separation of instruments, sounds more spacious and imaging is better. You simply feel more perceptive of your surroundings with Sundara. But HE400se puts out around 70% of Sundara’s performance, which is considered a modern classic already, for around one third of its price.

Hifiman HE400se vs. Monoprice Monolith M570​

Monolith M570 are planar magnetic headphones that are from the family of Sendy Aiva, Sivga P-II, BLON BL20 and Takstar HF580. They cost 300 USD when they were released but sold for less than 150 USD before they were discontinued.

• Build quality and materials are much more premium on the M570.
• M570 is even warmer and has a thicker note weight. Bass is again more impactful and it has more authority and power behind it, but M570 also has more detail and texture in the bass. M570 extends much better into the subbass and rumbles more.
• Mids, especially lower mids up to 1-1.5 kHz are emphasized on M570. Vocals are pretty much neutral on HE400se, on M570 on the other hand, they are close and personal and sometimes honky. This makes presentation on M570 more emotional while HE400se sounds more natural.
• HE400 is brighter, it’s also again more likely to get sibilant with the volume but, M570 is not particularly dark either.
• Upper mids and lower treble are similar on both but M570 has more treble sizzle and snap. Still tonal balance skewed more toward low frequencies on M570 so overall they are warmer headphones.
• Timbre on HE400se is more natural. M570, although sounds enjoyable, has tuning quirks and is not exactly natural.
• Their imaging capabilities are similar, M570’s headstage isn’t particularly wider but it’s deeper than HE400se. M570 is more resolving and has better separation and layering capability.

Conclusion​

I will be honest, I missed reviewing full size headphones so I had a great time reviewing HE400se. My comparisons were all with higher tier headphones because I was already impressed with them from the start. They are very well tuned, especially at their price. They didn’t outright beat any of them, true, but around 100 USD I can’t think of any headphones that’s better. So probably the lesson you should learn from this review is that HE400se is probably the best headphones around 100 USD but if you decide to spend more, you can definitely get more.

The HE400SE might be the cheapest planar magnetic over-ear headphones, but the sound quality of these headphones is anything but cheap. The HE400SE has two versions: the older model and one with stealth magnets (new model). The term "stealth magnets" means that the pre-installed magnets inside the headphones have a minimal impact on the sound, almost "invisible". These two versions have a slight difference in price, but the tuning style and sound quality are not significantly different. According to the frequency response, the stealth magnet version has a deeper "dive" at sub-bass. The appearance of the two versions of the HE400SE is exactly the same, so it's not recommended to buy the stealth magnet version second-hand, especially without the original box, because if the seller sends you the older model, it would be hard to distinguish.

When driven by the FiiO K9 Pro ESS, there's nothing to fault in the sound of the HE400SE. The HE400SE leverages the good frequency extension of its planar magnetic unit to "produce a natural sound and listening experience" and "accurately reproduce the audio". At this price point, I can't find any other headphones that could compete with the sound of the HE400SE.

For gamers who are on a budget and mainly play in quiet environments, the HE400SE is a blessing. Its balanced frequency response, undamaged low frequency (compared to the K701 and SHP9500), and excellent soundstage and imaging (imaging can be understood as the accuracy of sound localization) make it a good companion for audio and video entertainment.

In terms of wear comfort, thanks to its not-high weight (as planar magnetic over-ears usually be heavy), the clamping and pressure of the HE400SE are well controlled (shame on the Edition XS which caused serious pain on my head). The ear cups of the HE400SE, although slightly less comfortable than leather or pure velvet, have no defects. In short, I can wear it for several hours without any pressure. The much-criticized build quality problem of HIFIMAN does not exist in the HE400SE (You can't expect headphones at this price to be better-made), and the materials of these headphones are very decent and sturdy.

Because the price of the HE400SE is so low, HIFIMAN had to use weaker magnets for this planar magnetic headphone, which resulted in the HE400SE having a lower sensitivity and needing a larger current to drive, leading to its "hard to drive" drawback. Although the HE400SE commendably does not produce "bad sound" on weaker amp, a better amp will significantly optimize its sound performance, and it is recommended to pair it with a dongle with a 4.4mm port or a desktop amp.

Suitable for: Audiophiles on a budget
Not suitable for: Users who go out a lot, people who are unwilling to buy an amp
Recommendation index: Its only downside is "hard to drive", but as an old Chinese saying goes, "a skinny camel is bigger than a horse".