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ultra_prescriptivist t1_je8hkn1 wrote

Man, I feel for you.

I was pissed when my M&D MH40s started falling apart just outside their warranty, and they were "only" $300. I can't imagine spending HE1000SE level cash and having to do two RMAs within the warranty period.

At that level, the QC assurance should be absolutely top notch. No excuses.

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Illustrious-Lie8329 t1_je92ti1 wrote

Wow same with my M&D MH40-somehow no more sound on the right-what a waste of money and paid way more in Canadian dollars 💸

22

ultra_prescriptivist t1_je9428g wrote

Yeah, man, same - the right driver died after around 18 months, and the leather pads cracked and came apart at the seams through only moderate use after about a year.

Big waste of money - I'd advise people to avoid the company entirely.

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rhalf t1_je986ei wrote

Good to know. I was about to buy a pair. That explains why they're so cheap used.

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billy_nelson t1_jeal8cn wrote

Completely different level, but my Sundara sound so good, don't know what real alternatives are there. Hifiman is very competitive.

0

MDZPNMD t1_je9vfek wrote

Same happened with my clears, 2 rmas within weeks. They didn't even check if the drivers are matched.

Really goes to show that there is no price quality or at least QC mgmt correlation.

Sennheisers will still run decades later.

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ultra_prescriptivist t1_je9xkda wrote

Yeah, I guess I'm showing my Sennheiser bias - my HD25s, HD600s, and HD800s have never died on me and have been working just fine for years 😄

8

KaiVogt93 t1_jea28nh wrote

Yeah, same for me, my HD660s still going strong after four or so years. People should buy good AND reliable stuff, not the stuff that is prone to failure. And also well known for its bad qc, looking at you, Hifiman...

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lightning696969 t1_jeafl4n wrote

This is only reason i bought hd650 instead of Sundara bcuz hifiman garbage QC

2

drumplyr83 t1_jed6hdg wrote

The Germans don’t mess around. And that means absolutely no sacrifices when it comes to QC and QA.

1

Velarev t1_je9sna4 wrote

I have a hard time justifying moondrops qc issues but at least the IEMS were 20 bucks, for that much, sheeesh

5

f3llyn t1_jegbe21 wrote

> At that level, the QC assurance should be absolutely top notch. No excuses.

People keep buying them with all the known issues so they have no reason to improve.

4

GL1TCH3D t1_je9mhtr wrote

My Beyer T5p had a lot of cable problems that required 2 RMAs within the 1 year I owned it. It doesn't help that the supplied carrying case is a cable breaker. But even without that the cables were pretty thin, which makes sense since it's something meant to be decently portable.

My Fostex TH900 pearl whites had a defective earcup hinge that I RMAd immediately after opening it and inspecting. That being said, it didn't actually break yet but would have been more susceptible to issues. On the flipside I've used my TH900mk1 every day for the last 7 years, and that's after I got them used so they're even older than that.

After Audeze was stolen from there was a lot of QC issues in the past too.

3

Ehriqhck t1_je8gga2 wrote

Off to the hifiman rma landfill

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Friskyseal t1_je8mpii wrote

You mean the open-box section of their store.

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RChamy t1_je9qv4t wrote

their manufacturing line is just RMA'd headphones by now

17

AbbottsOnion t1_je8l4gi wrote

Don't think I could ever take the plunge with a HIFIMAN product for this reason.

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Deferian t1_je9bqmb wrote

Same. So many Hifiman headphones I would have loved to try/own. But at the price we're paying, durability should be very much consistent.

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blorg t1_je9il29 wrote

...says the Focal / Audeze owner

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Deferian t1_je9jlcl wrote

There are failures with every brand. But it would be a stretch to say that other brands have issues as widespread as Hifiman. And consistently across their models, too.

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blorg t1_je9k0bg wrote

I think they are very prevalent with Audeze and Focal. Particularly Focal, they were having driver and headband failures on certain models at an extraordinarily high rate.

They had to up the warranty on the Utopia to five years to try to reassure people, because they were crapping out left right and center. The Elex, even worse, a very high percentage of them were breaking. I have the Clear and Utopia myself, so nothing against Focal, but I'm more concerned about them than I am my Hifimans. Listen to this for headband quality.

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random_LA_azn_dude t1_jee02od wrote

Yeah, Focal headbands have a chintzy internal construction.

Remember the goo that leaked from Utopia stock pads and got into the driver chamber? This caused a number of driver deaths.

I'm also a Utopia owner (2020 edition).

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blorg t1_jee0ui4 wrote

I have the 2020 Utopia as well, on Head-Fi Focal acknowledged but also said they had fixed the driver death issue with the Utopia by that point (I hope!)

3

random_LA_azn_dude t1_jeff3fv wrote

I saw that post too. Fingers crossed because I love my Utopia despite disliking most of the other Focal headphones that I've encountered (Elex, Elegia, Radiance, and Clear Mg, with the Clear Mg not being in my dislike bucket).

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1trickana t1_je8oyh5 wrote

Yeah I really wanted to try the Arya SE but seeing the dozens of weekly posts on here, no thanks

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garoo1 t1_je8yrh8 wrote

Luck of the draw I guess, I've had 3 pairs now and no issues at all

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lesiashelby t1_je9493b wrote

I’ve had two pairs, and no issues (knock on wood)

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radrod69 t1_je97j81 wrote

I've had two pairs and one issue (on the expensive one -_-)

12

dad_beans t1_jef796q wrote

I've had 8 pairs of HiFiMans over the years and none of them have had any issues. So YMMV.

1

External-Newt t1_jeajbw6 wrote

Idk my he400se has been reliable and abuse resistant (shit cables tho)

3

fgt-boi OP t1_je8ergg wrote

Already on my third pair in two years. First issue right driver died, second time the pads started disintegrating and now after a peaceful night of coding, the right driver just died. Thinking about owning these after warranty runs out is a scary though... 😐

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Joulle t1_je92y8n wrote

We don't have any statistics and Hifiman sounds like it's a popular brand in this sub so it's a bit problematic to draw conclusions.

It could be just that its sheer popularity could cause so many of these posts to pop up.

I'm convinced that Hifiman's quality control is terrible due to all these posts and the problems are pretty systematic as well. Should be easy to fix with higher quality solder, right? Maybe not as I have no idea what really causes drivers to lose contact

I ordered Hifiman Arya SE as an open box deal directly from Hifiman half a year ago. It came with a bad cable: Contact issues on the 6.35mm end due to too short contact part and too long plastic cover over it. Of course I got a new cable from them but it was another 1 week of waiting.

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Hail_LordHelix t1_jecd0ch wrote

I absolutely believe people have had bad luck with hifiman but on the flip side there's plenty of people like myself that own multiple hifiman headphones and have had zero issues.

So ymmv I guess. But their build quality definitely leaves something to be desired for the price.

Their customer service is decent fwiw, but I couldn't fault anyone for being worried about buying a set

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random_LA_azn_dude t1_jee0kgm wrote

Yeah, I own 7 Hifiman headphones. The only QC issue that I experienced was with a brand new HE-5XX. Its headband yolk holder already started to separate. I didn't want the HE-5XX anyways, so ended up returning the headphone (it didn't hold a candle to my HE-500).

HE-6 (4S and 6S), HE-500, HEKv1, HEXv2, Arya v2, HE-X4*

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OriginalAccording802 t1_je94z0i wrote

I own a ED XS and it had a hole in both drivers near the stalks of the unit, i'm currently in a RMA cycle myself. Shit's annoying, hope you resolve it my guy

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extremefriction t1_je97v9t wrote

I feel you. My Anandas' right pad started breaking too and one day, just a month after warranty ran out, the driver died.

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fucfaceidiotsomfg t1_jeaklz1 wrote

That sucks. I have been abusing my HD650 daily since 2017 and they are still going strong because they were made in Irelan and was thinking of buying the Ananda because of their sound quality but after seeing comments about their buil quality I changed my mind.

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Complex-Ad5423 t1_je936cq wrote

Oh so sad. I have read about this issue multiple time before. Sometimes it is due to high volume as well and it starts working suddenly as well in 1-2 days. Do you know what could have caused it, like if you tried high volume high gain etc. May be related to voltage, but not sure

0

WeakestBoss t1_je8lii7 wrote

I just bought myself an Ananda v2 recently because i really love the sound quality, but seeing all the posts about hifiman QC in this sub is really getting me worried.

What is a good alternative to Ananda Stealth?

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Spyronight t1_je8py3x wrote

had the ananda stealth and sold it. Better alternatives Focal Clear OG (better tone, slightly better detail retrieval, worse soundstage [ananda stealth had a “tall” soundstage) or the Stax L300 setup with srm 252 energizer (severely lacking without eq, peace eq has a great auto eq feature, I think I use the headphoneanalyzer eq for the L300). Nothing else matches it from the stuff I tried at that price range.

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blorg t1_je9izkg wrote

Focal quality is worse than Hifiman. They sound great, but incredibly creaky (Hifiman doesn't do this) and I would be more concerned about Focal headband or driver failure. And if it's out of warranty Focal want stupid money to fix anything, even the pads are like $200+.

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Spyronight t1_je9mivp wrote

I should have made it clear that I only gave those recommendations based of sound quality + same price bracket, not on build quality. The Ananda stealth is built way better than the L300 that’s essentially plastic with a weak headband. Regarding the focals mine only creak if I move around alot but I get were you are coming from. The pads for the clears are available for $80 I believe. I dont think you can find a headphone ~$500 in the pricerange of the 3 I mentioned with that quality of sound, Maybe a Beyer T1?

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blorg t1_je9mnue wrote

Edition XS :)

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Spyronight t1_je9q19i wrote

Thats still a hifiman tho, might as well get the ananda stealth.

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leperaffinity56 t1_jeab22j wrote

I have a pair of Hifiman Edition xs; what am I missing out on with the Anandas?

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Spyronight t1_jebqpvn wrote

no missing enough to upgrade.

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flyedchicken t1_jebnhe1 wrote

Anandas sound even a bit more 'clean' than the XS, slightly less bass, slightly more treble. Slightly more detailed I've heard.

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leperaffinity56 t1_jebprk6 wrote

Oh dang even cleaner than the xs sounds nice but the bass response on the XS is exquisite.

1

Watermelon4man t1_je9nqvl wrote

The Stax L300's plastic is so brittle that it'll just break if you look at it wrong.

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Ok-Psychology-1420 t1_je9q6eb wrote

Neumann NDH30 is worth a try in that price range. Very strong technicalities, and yet a very fun, engaging listen. Build quality is top tier as well.

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Spyronight t1_je9qgyp wrote

Always wanted one of their mics, truth be told havent heard much of this headphone. Maybe itll get more traction in the future.

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Ok-Psychology-1420 t1_je9quwj wrote

Yeah it’s stayed out of the spotlight since its release last year (surprisingly). I think it’s being marketed to the pro audio crowd, and not so aggressively toward the consumer/audiophile set. There’s a pretty active thread over on head-fi and it’s definitely gaining traction. I give it a strong recommendation!

1

wankthisway t1_je8s5xa wrote

Honestly from what I'm seeing basically every planar / high end planar brand has questionable QC. Maybe the monster you know is better than the one you don't? Aka at least you know what to expect with Hifiman.

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GamePro201X t1_je8su93 wrote

Meze seems pretty good when it comes to planars. Although their tuning is not something everyone would like

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No_Analysis6187 t1_je8vj94 wrote

Audeze and zmf are solid

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aceCrasher t1_je8w5ln wrote

Only recent model years. In the early 2010s Audeze was more known for shoddy QC, like cracking wood rings.

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coreyfromlowes69 t1_je9m2kd wrote

I remember those posts (LCD-5?) with the threaded mini XLR connectors getting yanked out. Might as well have been held in with bubble gum lol

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UnnecessaryMovements t1_je9qe6z wrote

And dead drivers as well.

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Smugsie t1_jeb49zv wrote

Dead drivers indeed. Back in 2018 I RMA'd an iSine 20 for a dead driver, their customer service was great though, I only had to pay for shipping to have the unit replaced.

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Makegooduseof t1_je8tkql wrote

Does Dan Clark Audio have issues as well? I don’t recall seeing a lot of drama involving DCA.

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Ok-Psychology-1420 t1_je9qf4b wrote

I had a pretty noticeable channel imbalance in my Aeon closed 2s. But DCA fixed them for me for free. Their customer service is excellent!

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Makegooduseof t1_je9wyrt wrote

Other than the channel issue, how do you like your Aeons? That’s one headphone I’ve been waffling over for a year or two now.

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Ok-Psychology-1420 t1_jeaa8fq wrote

honestly, I think they're fantastic. And for the low used prices I've seen lately a solid value. I don't use them a ton, lately preferring a lot of dynamic driver headphones, but for a closed planar, it's hard to do better (unless you can afford something like the Stealth).

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SpringsNSFWdude t1_je8wvu1 wrote

DCA has good QC the most common complaints I hear is that their "resolution" or sound retrieval whatever you want to call it, isn't particularly great for its price range, and that they have a low dynamic range.

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UnignorableAnomaly t1_jeb47rb wrote

I've had 2 headphone problems and one was DCA but I rarely see any mention of DCA having issues so I think they're rare.

1st was a hd650 driver that died after a few years.

2nd was a DCA Aeon X Closed who's earcup would crash into into the hinge arm preventing it from swiveling and fitting to my head so I returned those.

1

MuchSalt t1_je94bgp wrote

the good ol beyer that will never broke

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curumba t1_jeboco4 wrote

I wasnt too happy about my DT 1990 Pro. They feel solid, but the driver died, the plastic sides broke 3 times until i was too tired to send it in and the headband started peeling off.

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subhanepix t1_je8rphb wrote

just bought edition XS two days ago and have similar concerns

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llIicit t1_je8jrvf wrote

The biggest reason that I don’t have a planar yet is because of the price. But hifiman solves that issues with very good and affordable planars.

But the only reason I haven’t done that yet is because of hifiman QC.

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Zaxer_ITA t1_je8oplk wrote

Try monoprice monolith maybe?

Have heard a lot of positive feedback about their products and they seem very affordable, especially when discounted.

Unfortunately never had the opportunity to try any, so I can only speak about stuff I've read about them.

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SpringsNSFWdude t1_je8x3e0 wrote

Mono is one I'm curious about. Years ago had a modded m1060. Sound was great but by a country mile the worst built headphones I've ever seen. Nothing that would break, the parts felt durable, but it just felt like the absolute cheapest possible "sturdy" build where yes things are metal and wood and so on, but it feels so poorly distributed weight wise. Feels like a piece of string with 2.5lb weights on each end, just the worst most uncomfortable headphone I've ever wore. Earpads were great but I literally couldn't even look down at my phone without them falling off.

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dokter_chaos t1_je91wsh wrote

same here. I would love to move the goalposts and get some affordable Hifimans, but the failure rates are a deterrent... unless they start offering 5 year warranty periods.

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Tubie34 t1_je9froo wrote

*Laughs in 15-year-old Sennheiser*

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09212 t1_je9th3i wrote

looks like i’m never buying hifimans lol

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Ryman546 t1_jea93pb wrote

Friends don’t let friends buy hifiman.

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SomeTechNoob t1_je8o3n9 wrote

waiting for my edition xs to come in. I heard the original HE1000 a little over 5 years ago and finally something has come out in my price range with large planar drivers.

fingers crossed for chifiman quality, that's really disappointing to see for such an expensive set

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VisceralVoyage420 t1_je8yx5j wrote

I love my XS, but I'm definitely going to upgrade eventually. The only headphone that interests me is the HE1000 v3.

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iAmmar9 t1_je9nfdk wrote

The XS is like a baby HE1000V1 from what I've heard!

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mollysa19 t1_je8xa4g wrote

Hifiman quality is unlike anything else on this planet

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BlunterCarcass5 t1_je98nam wrote

That's a strange looking paperweight you have there

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PopcornIsDaBest t1_je8q65e wrote

makes me wonder if hifiman driver issues are a hifiman problem or a planar problem since i read about other planars having issues too (audeze, monoprice, etc.)

…or worse its a hifiman and a planar problem

hopefully their customer service is good and you get that fixed

5

PolarBearSequence t1_je90kv8 wrote

Planar drivers generally seem to be a bit less robust than dynamic ones, but it’s mostly a Hifiman problem. They can definitely last long: I’ve got a 40 years old planar (orthodynamic) headphone. Some other companies like Audeze and Monoprice seem to have trouble too (though less than Hifiman), but I’ve very rarely seen people mention a Fostex planar driver breaking (except if it breaks during disassembly).

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arbitraryaryan t1_je90zte wrote

I have an ananda that I bought used, that's out of warranty at this point. I'm not really worried, if it survived 2+ years, then I reckon it'll survive more. The failures I've seen on hifimans, I've noticed, come very quickly or straight out of the box. Can any fellow long-term owners respond with their experience? Should I be in a rush to sell my pair?

4

daballsman t1_jea7qcw wrote

Been thinking about trying the XS for like half a year... nooooooooope

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SmashedSugar t1_je9ydp2 wrote

Hifiman sound so good but the build quality is dollar store level

3

thatcarolguy t1_jeaa94q wrote

I'm a simple guy. I see middle finger, I upvote.

3

AngryTank t1_jeaav5u wrote

I’ll buy it off you for $8 at the bin store.

3

fucfaceidiotsomfg t1_jeak7f4 wrote

Did you check the resistance with a multimeter. It could be a bad soldering job and the driver is still good. I would give up on them immediately. I would open them and see if the wires are still attached to the driver

3

fgt-boi OP t1_jeakllm wrote

Interesting thought, but wouldn't that void the warranty fiddling with them? How sensitive is the stuff in there? I am one clumsy man with massive hands

3

fucfaceidiotsomfg t1_jeakwab wrote

Only if they are not under warranty. Otherwise using warranty to is better. Because fiddling with them is a gumble

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moots27 t1_jebel3j wrote

I will never buy a hifiman. Even with a warranty its not worth. QC and durability is a big downfall.

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JonRadian t1_je90ys2 wrote

r/trademyHifimanDoorstopForYours

2

BionicSammich t1_je9bdfc wrote

People need to vote with their wallets when it comes to Hifiman. I've had 2 new headphones from them and both had QC issues. Yeah they sound good and all that, but you can buy stuff that sounds good and is built well for the same and even less money.

2

carlog234 t1_je9mrw9 wrote

are hifiman products really this hit and miss? i've had my SHP9500s for years and dropped them too many times to count and they work just like they did out of the box

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prains1 t1_je9sszj wrote

Thanks for this community I see all the issues that some of you have with Hifiman thanks god I don't buy one I almost did, I don't understand why you guys still buying those products

2

unlurk3r t1_je9thci wrote

My HE-400S died within a year - one ear went silent, pads disintegrated. It does not matter how headphones sound if they cannot last. Will never buy anything HiFiMan ever again.

2

pkelly500 t1_je9tntw wrote

Bummer. Sorry you're losing the HiFiMan quality control derby again. But you're not alone. Still sucks.

2

uberfrog t1_jea0j6s wrote

I'm so happy I sold my Hifimans. I didn't have any issues with mine but I'm never taking that chance again

2

y4mat3 t1_jea1igg wrote

Hifiman moment

2

Mccobsta t1_jeahjik wrote

How do they still suck at qc

2

AkagamiShanks007 t1_jeamnjh wrote

Honestly after reading so many of such posts, I'm really spektical of Hifiman's built quality when compared to sennheisers, focal, beyerdynamic etc

2

WarHead75 t1_je8nrby wrote

I’m glad I don’t like the sound of planars. No worrying of a lot of them failing after warranty period.

1

3ric510 t1_je9alvh wrote

Sucks dude. I feel your pain. I just mailed my out my 5 year old, out of warranty LCD-4’s to Audeze for repair. 😵‍💫 its a pretty rotten feeling spending EVEN more money on these things. Left driver just… stopped working. 😑

1

Fairstrife_Deception t1_je9i21a wrote

Reading some comment on this Reddit make me worrying, but I always forgot that my He-400i 2020 is working like a charm after 3 years already. At 5-12h usage by day.I mean, I changed the ear pad and the stupid angled cable for a balanced cable(Fanta ) + Fio K3 v2.

Had plan to upgrade to a Sundana since my revenue allow it. Maybe am I going to hold on my gold Sample. I take really care of it lel. I even put it back in its box when I don't use it because I don't have a stand.

1

halfercode t1_je9lizl wrote

If you prefer to box it rather than use a stand, you can get a cheap instrument suitcase - they have foam lining that you can roughly cut to fit.

1

antdroidx t1_je9uf0p wrote

have you tried a different cable?

1

-ArtDeco- t1_jea4ocq wrote

That's why I stick with ZMF, their QC is SUBLIME. Not to mention some of the best handcrafted wooden headphones.

1

-ArtDeco- t1_jea4oqt wrote

That's why I stick with ZMF, their QC is SUBLIME. Not to mention some of the best handcrafted wooden headphones.

1

Jascmu t1_jeapj06 wrote

It took me 3 tries to get my working set of Edition XS... this scares me into thinking they won't be working for that long 😕

Sorry for your luck!

1

TheOneWhoReadsStuff t1_jeasobb wrote

If you’ve still got proof of purchase, contact them. Same shit happened to me and they replaced my headphones, no questions asked.

1

CrackNgamblin t1_jeavhdu wrote

This is why I love Koss ESP950's (no, not Massdrop 9xx with lower price + crappier warranty) they have a lifetime warranty and can get run over by a train and Koss will fix them. Says a lot about their company.

1

LeEasy t1_jeayhjv wrote

Typical chifi experience, they will deny or delay your warranty service as well.

1

fgt-boi OP t1_jeb4mbf wrote

Had no issue getting it replaced the first two times...

2

FdPros t1_jeb2nib wrote

ive dropped my he400se twice and its still working.

hope nothing else happens

1

filmlicker t1_jebdxr6 wrote

Man this just sucks to see. I'm pretty damned new here still as I just got my first pair last Xmas of some Closed Back Sundaras. They SEEM to be quality made. I use mine maybe 4+ hrs most days and haven't had a single issue yet. Am I lucky or??

1

_ShutUpImThinking_ t1_jebe66j wrote

I mean.. the feel of plastic alone should say something about the build quality.

1

Puzzled-Gift-792 t1_jedf3ur wrote

The fact they are supposed to be high quality headphones but suck

1

f3llyn t1_jee752e wrote

I don't understand why people keep buying this brand.

1

Ippomasters t1_jea2957 wrote

Biggest reason I won't spend tons of money on expensive planars.

0

nickjohnedward t1_jeb07g8 wrote

Bs this would never happen with abyss 😆

0

MainManHeMan t1_jeb0e4y wrote

Hifiman quality issues are a thing apparently

0

ciska20 t1_jebcewf wrote

Just as you were listening to DSOTM in ULTRA SACD HD TUBE ANALOG VINTAGE QUALITY EXTRA DEFINITION HIGH

0

IMKGI t1_je9lycy wrote

Ok, seen these posts one too many times now, someone tell me, is it really just Hifiman that's at fault here or is it the technology (Planar) that's the problem, i am NOT getting a Planar headphone until i get a TOTL device that lasts me at the very least 8 years

−1

Afasso t1_je9nlkw wrote

Do you have other headphones? The same driver dying twice could imply the amp is killing things

−1

VisceralVoyage420 t1_je8ytii wrote

I want the HE1000v3. Unless someone has suggestions on headphones with similar sound quality at 1999€?

−2