Drop HIFIMAN HE-5XX review

Powering and source pairings

Despite the relatively low impedance of 18 ohms, the HE-5XX isn’t exactly easy to drive with their sensitivity rating of 93 dB, yet certainly don’t require you to strap them to the back of a speaker amplifier like many of the older HIFIMAN planar headphones, including the HE-500. I used to own a pair of the original HE-5, and while I eventually sold them because I found their treble unbearable, I used to power them off the back of my NAD integrated amplifier via an adapter from its speaker terminals. 

While you’ll get playable volume straight out of a smartphone (my Samsung S9+ will power them to listenable levels at max volume), you’ll definitely benefit from a discrete headphone amplifier with the HE-5XX. They don’t feel terribly picky when it comes to amplifier pairings, and you ought to be well-served with any quality solid-state offering. Given that most of you considering the HE-5XX are likely new to the hobby or on a reasonably tight budget, then you’ll be pleased to know that you don’t need to spend a lot of money on source gear or require oodles of power to get the best out of them. 

The $139.99 Topping L30 (which I reviewed last week) is the affordable headphone amplifier to beat at the moment, and it makes for a fine match with the HE-5XX. It’ll happily power them in medium-gain mode with plenty of play and adjustment on its volume pot, and offers a faithful reproduction of the HE-5XX’s tonality and technical abilities. 

The $199 Schiit Audio Asgard 3 is a step-up from the L30 in terms of size, price, but also power. Its Class-A biased topology lends an ever-so-slightly more relaxed sound to the HE-5XX, which actually makes for a more enjoyable pairing in terms of overall synergy, creating a thicker, more layered presentation of the guitar parts and mid-bass in Smashing Pumpkin’s ‘Rocket’.   

Portable users will be happy to know that the HE-5XX is most definitely a portable proposition, particularly when taking advantage of the additional power offered via DAPs with a balanced output such as Astell&Kern’s most affordable offering: the SR25. Swapping-out the HE-5XX’s stock cable for a 2.5mm balanced one, I was able to get terrific performance out of the SR25 although it did require a bit of nudging on the volume-dial, requiring at least ‘90’ on the volume dial (out of 150 units of volume). There certainly wasn’t the same level of dynamics as the desktop amplifiers, but it was a market step-up over your standard headphone-out on a smartphone or laptop. 

Conclusions

Drop and HIFIMAN ought to have a hit on their hands in the HE-5XX. In my books, it has absolutely set the benchmark in terms of planar magnetic performance at $220 USD. While it’s not the second coming of the HE-500, it’s very much its own headphone in terms of tonality and very much worthy of consideration for those looking to get a taste of planar magnetic sound. Additionally, lovers of articulate, detailed treble and a fast, spacious sound will be well-served in the HE-5XX. Build-wise and aesthetically it’s not really anything to write home about, but eschewing frills in those departments has meant that Drop has been able to deliver a bona fide bargain in the sonic department.