I ordered the 940's pads on the 25th of August at a local shop in Canada. They were back order, and I received them only today.
I own the SRH-440. The pleather pads on my headphones were getting hard and not comfortable at all. After following most of the SRH-940 appreciation thread, I decided I would try the 940's velour pads. While those pads were back order, I tried the sock mod found here. The most notable difference was how this mod added some dept to the cushion: my earlobes no longer touched the bottom of the pads and the sound stage expanded. It didn't fix the problem with the pad's hardness though. It added weight to the headphone and pushed the cans wider apart, which worsened the discomfort from the headband pushing on a single spot on top of my head. I took the socks off two weeks ago to see the difference. I couldn't hear a difference but the headband became more comfortable.
Today I received the HPAEC940 and replaced the used pads on my 440 with these. I can confirm the SRH-940's velour pads will fit perfectly on the SRH-440. Placing the headphones on my head the first time put a smile to my face: the difference in comfort is night and day! They are softer both on the surface and through the cushion. The pad's inside is a bit wider and deeper than the 440's, which helps with comfort.
Then I turned my music player on and started one of the album I know best, Metallica's Master Of Puppets. The smile on my face didn't last much longer. The lovely revealing sound of the SRH-440 was gone, it's like I was listening to a cheap pair of logitech headphones. I actually checked to see if my computer's volume was not low or something! The bass is absent, the trebles are muted and the mids are distant. This is the first album I listen to, I will listen to other genres to get a better idea of the sound difference. EDIT: It turned out Amarok had Replay Gain Mode activated, which affected the music's loudness. I turned it off and everything is fine now.
I think I know where the difference in sound comes from. The 940 velour pads have an extra layer of foam between the driver and the ear, about 2mm thick. I compared the 440 pads with the 940 pads and noticed the 440s don't have this extra foam sheet. I'm wondering if this extra foam was a comfort "upgrade" on the 940 or if it was engineered as an equalizer for the 940's driver. I will keep the foam on for a few weeks to get used to the sound. Who knows, I might get used to it and prefer it in the end. I'll try to take it off then and make a comparison.
Now all I gotta do is find a way to hack this headband to make it more comfortable...
Edited by KimLaroux - 12/23/11 at 11:26am
