Upgrade question: HD800s , Arya SE or other?

Submitted by EvLTimE t3_125w4wd in headphones

I need some advice for further upgrade. Sorry for my English in advance. I’ll give some background.

Headphones: M50x->Dt770 80ohm->HD560s->900 pro x->he400se->Edition XS

AMP/DAC: Zen Dac v2-> K5 pro ess-> K7 + PL50 (it actually smooth treble and add more bass punch) (budget k9 combo XD)

Preference: I like neutral tuning with good imaging and soundstage. I am FPS tryhard(sometimes singleplayer) but I also work from home so gaming/music is 50/50%. From music genres I listen mostly to metal and OST(it could be everything from epic instrumental stuff to crazy anime intros).

I have all the gear mentioned above but I use HD560s and XS.As for 560s I find something magical in Senns mids and treble. It sounds right to me. I have to get used to bass first after the Beyerdynamic type of bass. After sometime I really like the Hd560s presence of bass and not straight slap that overshadow mids and treble.I didn’t mention good soundstage and imaging. I had my moments when I put headphones down because I thought that something was going on in the room. Light weight is also a good bonus in long sessions.

When I did K5 pro ess + hd560s combo it was too harsh in treble. But K7(AKM+ more bass control) + hd560s + PL50 (more bass, less treble) = made magic with “boring, cold” headphones that I saw in many reviews.

As for edition XS, at first I got a taste of planar sound by 400se, skipped Sundara and gave a shot to Edition XS. I read a lot about how XS are good in scaling to source so I upgraded from K5->K7 and ran them balanced. It's actually true. After some time I added PL50 to the chain and this thing actually slaps. Sound is more relaxed due to 2k dip but if I try to eq it, it sounds bad to me. For some reason on XS it doesn’t really help. It was fine for 400se.

Imaging and soundstage are good. Soundstage seemed natural and didn’t have any artificial enhancements.IMHO for 500$ XS is a steal and it makes it really hard to take the next step that will be worth it.

So yeah I was considering something like HD800s or Arya SE as my next purchase. I didn’t have the option to try them because I live in a small town so it could be blind purchase.

HD800s - I am really interested in that soundstage and imaging. Sure it will be upgrade to hd560s but how does it compare to XS?As for Arya SE. On my edition XS I have an issue that sometimes the diaphragm in the left cup gets stuck or smth and I lose bass. I have to run 30hz tone generator to “fix” diaphragm. I have constant anxiety when I pick my XS and run the tone generator to check that bass and balance are ok. So yeah QC issue just stopping from spending more on Hifiman.Another reason that Arya SE is just another flavor for 3x price with other headband. Many people say that you get 90-95% of Arya with XS(I know that this is the whole point of that rabbit hole hobby) . XS is too good for its price to take a risk imho.

Could you guys suggest the next step or should I stick with XS and don’t bother?

Update 1:

Summary from comments:HD800s: Not good for metal; overrated; for pvp gaming soundstage unnatural width to the stage makes for footstep cues sounding farther than they truly are (actually I saw it multiple time in different topics because of that some of players go back to hd560s to get back more natural soundstage) ; pillowy bass (I am planar bass addict so it's real trade)Arya SE: better all rounder both music and gaming; Arya SE is an upgrade in all fronts compared to the XS (which I really like how they sound).

Update 2:
Ordered Arya SE. It will arrive in few days

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Comments

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No_Jicama_1148 t1_je69dbd wrote

I have an edition xs and have been flirting with upgrading to the Arya but from what I’ve read there have been mixed reviews if it is worth it so I have held off for now

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AntOk463 t1_je6bqqa wrote

Are you going to sell the XS if you get Arya? If you will then get the Arya Stealth. The HD800S is great for soundstage, but isn't as good for music as Arya. The Arya doesn't have the soundstage of the HD800S, but it's still better than a lot of other headphones.

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andysaurus_rex t1_je6et5l wrote

> Preference: I like neutral tuning with good imaging and soundstage. I am FPS tryhard(sometimes singleplayer)

HD800s and it's not even a question IMO. Since you're on the fence about whether they'd be worth the upgrade or not (I can't say, I've never heard the XS), I'd buy them new from somewhere with a no question return policy, or pre-owned and sell them if you don't like them. There's plenty of demand for a used HD800s.

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1trickana t1_je7j1nq wrote

The 800S would be best for fps games but not very good for metal music. I see you seem to like Beyers, the 1990s are awesome for both metal and fps games

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gonomon t1_je7q3j9 wrote

If you found 560s magical, you should get hd800s since it can be considered as direct upgrade over 560s without changing the frequency response much.

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Toronto-Will t1_je7wly2 wrote

Replying to andysaurus_rex (#2,457,439)

I'll back this up, nothing beats the HD800S for soundstage and imaging, particularly in the context of FPS gaming.

But the dual use for music makes it tough, especially since OP's genre preference is metal. The HD800S sounds far better than the average headphone for any kind of music, but it has pillowy bass, and shines with things like instrument separation and soundstage that pay off more with understated stuff, like classical music or acoustic. I wouldn't be shocked if at the end of the day you still preferred the XS for music. But for gaming, I don't think you'll find anything at any price point that's better than the HD800S.

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becuzwhateverforever t1_je86bad wrote

The HD800S is not my cup of tea at all for metal. I was in between headphones at one point and had only the HD800S while I was waiting on a different pair to ship. The HD800S was so incredibly fatiguing for metal.

If you already have the XS, I’d probably just stretch and get a LCD-3.

As a sweaty FPS gamer, I will say that the HD800S is a bit overrated. The improvement over other headphones is not massive.

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vkare t1_je8hewp wrote

If you are happy with XS, just stick with them. Arya SE is an upgrade in all fronts compared to the XS. The soundstage of SE opens up with good amps and reaches upto 95% of the Arya v2. The clarity, details and dynamics are really good compared to the XS. Having said that there is no reason to upgrade if you are contempt with the XS.

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No-Context5479 t1_je8uqi0 wrote

The HD800S is overrated for FPS games... Unnatural width to the stage makes for footstep cues sounding farther than they truly are

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JaxonH t1_jeb09vg wrote

I own both 800S and Arya Stealth.

I'm gonna be honest... I slightly prefer 800S. They just sound incredible. And it's not just the insane Soundstage (though that's part of it), they're just tuned really well, I can head perfect separation and while I thought the light bass would be an issue, it actually makes some songs sound even better, like Linkin Park - Numb. On the Arya, the bass bleeds over but on the 800S, it just sounds right.

They're also way more comfy. Though I did mod my Arya by adding 3 Dekoni nuggets to the headband and put a cloth button-up cover around the headband and nuggets to keep them from falling off. It's comfy now, but stock hurt my head. Senns are still most comfy though.

I love both headphones though. Arya just sounds slightly more forward with female vocals that really makes them shine. But if I had to choose... I'd go with the 800S. They're also WAY better for gaming.

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