Hi! update - my CAL! is heavily modded now, turned into not-so bassy, but quite balanced phones. there's mineral wad in each cup, hole in magnet is damped by foam circle, not paper, 1 of 2 paper holes on the outer ring is blocked by piece of paper masking tape, on the front side, i added ring...

Hi!   Is there a danger buying long stocked pads? OR store spares of them for long at home? I mean, they could be several years in storage, then I buy them and I'm afraid they would become squished quickly, much quicker than new ones. Or, if i buy spares, let them rest a few years in drawer...

Hi!   I' using my modded CAL! for some 2 years now. There were numerous steps I've taken to make them betterr suit my listening preferences. Stock they were bass heavy for me, almost unbearable.   There is a list of steps I did  - only those I found good were left and are listed.   -...

Hi!   After a very long time, I decided to repair my STAX SR-80 a bit more.   There was slight bass resonance in left cup. Also, the highest treble was weaker than I like.   So i detached the driver, held by 33 year old double sided tape. Cleaned both the driver perimeter and platic...

Hi!   I have velours from Sennheiser U 320 headset. Fits like a glove.   Isolation diminishes very clearly, they are not memory foam pads and are more shallow.   Bass diminishes as well, sibilance arises on med-high volume. Vocals are more upfront, not drown out by big bass anymore.  ...

Hi!   Thanks for great article!   I just finished modding SR-80 earspeakers. When I heard them side by side with new STAX 207 and 507, they were technically inferior IMO, but I still enjoy them very much. They are just little old gems, improved when I changed the supraaural pads to...

Hi!   I'm back to pleather pads, taken from Aurvana Live! headphones. They are similarly comfortable as those from SenheiserHD438, but offer more low end presence, thus move toward balanced sound.   Also sensitivity is subjectively improved. The SR-80 easpeakers clamp tightly to my...

Hi!   I destroyed one of the CE knobs prying it out, so I used the white cheap knobs with the same dimensions without CE mark, bought 50 pcs. for about $1.   Moonwalker

Hi!   I used easier method, just used strip of metallic sticker (pentium III) under the slider, on the back of the cup. Holds well, and lasted more than 3 years now...   Moonwalker  

post removed - contained measurement of now unused velour pads, never to be returned...

Hi!   Last night I glued velour pads form Sennheiser phones, I think HD438. The velour ovals make them really different, and better.   The new pads are bigger, so the headset cannot be rotated (earpads outside) for storage anymore.   I think electrostats are almost always equipped...

Hi!   Last night I measured the influence of the Sennheiser HD 205 pads on Stax SR 80. Results are here: (cyan original, magenta Sennheiser pads)   Moonwalker

Hi!   Yesterday I listened to few songs from Lobo and Rod Stewart.   I must say, they are nice to listen to, according to my wife, precise, and I concur. It seems, though, there's a certain level in volume, lower than my usual limit, that seems to introduce strain , or compression to...

Hi!   Last month I detached old pads, they are really flat. Now I'm using Sennheiser HD 205 pads, which fit my ears as circumaural. The comfort went up a notch, for sure   Just small update... Moonwalker  

Hi!   I tried that also on high quality headphone amp,with zero Ohm output impedance, and decided, on that setup, the original damper is better IMO. On lesser, consumer equipment, I liked denser damping foam better.   Moonwalker  

Hi!   I hand washed them, using Woolite, but they are softer and softer after each washing, even when I did not sqeezed them, just let it spontanneously dry. Also, they became a bit discolored, turning to brownish tan.   They have nice odour now :-)   Moonwalker

Hi!   Yesterday I decided to return to the stock configuration, after spending several days listening to the modded HD600.   I used denser foam on the back side of the driver. It reduced bass quantity slightly, balancing sound a bit, and it seemed to me the bass was a bit better defined...

Hi!   Try removing rear grilles and push the drivers until they click back into place. One of them could be loose, causing this imbalance.   Moonwalker  

Hi!   Thanks to thread starter for genuine idea. I did myself this swap about a year ago, and after such a ong time i can say: Ahhh :-D The difference in comfort is large, for the better with 601 headband.Now I no longer miss reddish / brown color of the original headband any more. The...

Hi!   I suspect/speculate that by removing this foam you will leave the damping control on the electrical side of the amplifier out only. The lower impedance, the better control. But, by leaving out the foam as mechanical damping, you can prevent backwave distortion to some degree, even...

This is an FR chart on ear coupler after some extensive testing and modding:     Unmodded, with absent, rotten damper foam and wool, there was pronounced peak at 200 Hz, up almost +9 dB, with second peak at 3000 Hz almost as severe...   Still, as you can see, there's nothing to hear...

Well, i can take some pics, but i find them in very good condition, almost MINT. They've been almost unused, the pads are still not cracked, cable is like new and the only thing needing repair was the foam on both sides and the yellow wool damper disc.   There was some dust, but i cleaned...

Hi!   Last week i purchased cheap, very old Stax system. It consists of Stax SR-80 electret earspeakers and SRD-4 adaptor.   Price was about 50$, so I was expecting something belonging more to museum expositions, than anything resembling HiFi behavior.   I was pleasantly surprised...

Hi, you are welcome! It has taken me years to find a way for measuring these things, which dare I say, at least loosely corresponds with my perception of given cans.   Yes, it is HD580 frame with old plastic screens and old HD600 driver in there, with brass ring under diaphragm's dome. I...

Hi!   Thanks for you comments, Mad Dude.   The 200+ Hz not changing, I found it quite natural, but only after thinking about it a lot...   The driver breathes mainly through the center hole in the magnet, which is responsible for displacing comparatively large amount of air. The...