sennsay
1000+ Head-Fier
HD540 Ref1s No 1 v HD540 Refs No2: After so many years now with the utter smoothness of the No 1s, even just a smidge dark compared to many new cans, and the relatively 'bright' No 2s, I have at last pulled apart the No 1s just to see if I had done what I was now suspecting, blocked some of the airflow to outside of the ear cups. I could always gets stunning out of head and cans soundstage and compared to the 'newer' No 2s the blackness from which the images appear is still superior, the No 2s simply behaving more like the original HD540s with stock cables; ie, the upper mids and treble having the trademark grain and edge at times, if ameliorated somewhat by the Mogami cable. It can be recording dependant and a fine recording indeed has a more open and slightly emphasised upper mid and treble, yet with clarity focus that is rather good, never a trace of rhythmic integrity being slowed down in any shape or form. They also have a more integrated and natural bass response that can kick firmly in focus and detail without any thickening of the bass with the new wang pleathers.
So, I pulled apart the No 1 HD540s, discovering that I had indeed at some time replaced the outer foams with a thin foam over a cloth base. When I put it over my mouth and puffed some air through it, it was noticeably more restrictive than a new 4mm foam from wang. Not completely restrictive, but it certainly took more effort than the far more open weave foam. I cut the requisite pattern out and replaced both sides with new 4mm foams, very close to the original size, from memory. It's no wonder the bass was always warmer and more 'tube-like' than the No 2s. With the drivers checked and a little cleaning out of a few hairs, I put the No 1s back together and tested them out, using the QP1R/Modi Multibit and Stello SP100 headphone amp. Ah, now there is a better balance, but no trace of that upper mid/treble exposure of the other pair. Same cable, same foams - or within fractions of a mm. Hmm, the only other thing I can think of is the tiny piece of foam that goes immediately behind the pole piece of the drivers. Maybe I have put a new bit in that is a tad dense, a bit hard to gauge as the original foam from Sennheiser had basically dissolved on touching it. I did not touch those pole pieces in the No 2s, so I will take a look at them and see what is there, probably the original foam piece, I'd imagine.
However, on playing the first few minutes of the Doors track, When The Music's Over, that fantastic bass keyboard riff that runs through much of the track in the LC, is more constricted with the No 2s, a little closer to the earcup than I've heard many times from the No 1 Refs, which is out and down, uncannily below the earcup by my left shoulder. That slightly coarse grain affects the space between the vocals and some superb drumming behind Jim Morrison, a disappointment compared to the No 1 Refs using the KHA 1 headphone amp where the space behind Jim is so clear back to the drum kit, which gave a fantastic performance out in space.
The journey continues.
So, I pulled apart the No 1 HD540s, discovering that I had indeed at some time replaced the outer foams with a thin foam over a cloth base. When I put it over my mouth and puffed some air through it, it was noticeably more restrictive than a new 4mm foam from wang. Not completely restrictive, but it certainly took more effort than the far more open weave foam. I cut the requisite pattern out and replaced both sides with new 4mm foams, very close to the original size, from memory. It's no wonder the bass was always warmer and more 'tube-like' than the No 2s. With the drivers checked and a little cleaning out of a few hairs, I put the No 1s back together and tested them out, using the QP1R/Modi Multibit and Stello SP100 headphone amp. Ah, now there is a better balance, but no trace of that upper mid/treble exposure of the other pair. Same cable, same foams - or within fractions of a mm. Hmm, the only other thing I can think of is the tiny piece of foam that goes immediately behind the pole piece of the drivers. Maybe I have put a new bit in that is a tad dense, a bit hard to gauge as the original foam from Sennheiser had basically dissolved on touching it. I did not touch those pole pieces in the No 2s, so I will take a look at them and see what is there, probably the original foam piece, I'd imagine.
However, on playing the first few minutes of the Doors track, When The Music's Over, that fantastic bass keyboard riff that runs through much of the track in the LC, is more constricted with the No 2s, a little closer to the earcup than I've heard many times from the No 1 Refs, which is out and down, uncannily below the earcup by my left shoulder. That slightly coarse grain affects the space between the vocals and some superb drumming behind Jim Morrison, a disappointment compared to the No 1 Refs using the KHA 1 headphone amp where the space behind Jim is so clear back to the drum kit, which gave a fantastic performance out in space.
The journey continues.