Adding bass ot the K500's?

Fabric is good, you can try some felt as well.

You should probably just get different headphones unfortunately.  I loved my K400 but real life has bass!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No need to be so sad, just try the K-702.

Get a Luxman P-1u for them, it really helps ! 

 

But if a $3000 mod isn't an option, I think your best option is to learn to love for what they do right. K701 pads do increase the bass a bit, but in my opinion also completely destroy the sound signature of the K500.

If the k500 (or preferrably k400) had more bass there would be no reason to ever make or buy another headphone. But, its not perfect.

I'm not sure, you would just have to experiment.  But one thing you could try is K601 pads.  They are said to be a middle ground between the 701 pads and 501 pads and might add some bass or midbass without changing the tone. 

 

I actually liked the 701 pads on the K500 if I'm remembering right.  I just didn't like them on the K400.  They make the sound a bit more dry and analytical but I thought it worked ok on the K500. 

Yes they are!

I've been experimenting with my K501s and AKG pads for quite some time. This is one of the most effective and yet simple mod one can do.

Here is what I think of them :

 

K601 pads: these are the fattest and fluffiest of all. The velour fabric is the thickest of all 3, which provides a better seal (hence more bass). I think they're also a bit deeper but only slightly.  

I'm not so fond about them (they color the sound a bit too much for my liking). They do increase bass quite significantly (the most of all 3 pads) , but sacrifice the midrange 'purity' (sort of speak) in the process.

I've only tried the on my v3 and v1 K501 (which are bassier). Not sure how they apply to K500, but I would absolutely give them a try.

 

K701 pads: these are quite similar to the K601 pads, maybe a bit more dense and less fluffy. Their main feature is that one side is fatter (angling the drivers a little bit). I use to like them quite a lot with my ver.2 K501 (which is probably closest to the K500 in sound signature, very airy and bass-less). Not as much today, but I still prefer them with certain types of music/recordings. Sound signature wise they're kind of midway between K601 and K501 pads.

 

K501 original pads: initially I didn't care for them all that much. Compared to the other two they just seemed bass-light, boring and dry. After more listening and buying brand new pads (from Thomann.de) I came to like them the most. I think the condition of the pads is very important. Very worn ones don't sound as good as new ones.

 

 

Another type of mod that improves the sound a bit: bitumen/blue-tack (or similar) dampening on the back of the drivers. Also a tiny bit on the inner, smaller cup.

I've found that this mod reduces a bit the glare of the mid-highs , where K501 is the hottest , and gives a bit more clarity and balance to the sound. I'm not sure if it affects directly the low frequencies (if it does it's subtle anyways), but it does help by contrast (from removing treble glare)

 

Edited by audiofil - 3/7/11 at 1:45am

You dont want to just stuff the pads. A bigger chamber or more distance between driver and ear reduces bass.

You want to either make the chamber smaller, flatten the pads (try pushing the phones against your head a bit) or make the pads seal better. A better seal will mean more bass, which is why leather pads are bassier than cloth if theyre the same size/shape. So you could try something on the outside of the pads. Some grado users put electrical tape around the outside of the bowl pads to increase bass.

Stuffing the pads can work, a simple mehod to increase the bass it to build a thin "sausage" out of paper tissue and adhesive tape. You place that construct as a ring in your pads, and voilà, there's the boom. I personally didn't keep that in any can though, the effect is too strong for my taste.

Edited by nickchen - 3/7/11 at 11:17am