Yamaha HPH-MT220BL

Yamaha mt220's are amazing headphones which offer top notch sound quality for little expense. They do net need an amp to drive, but still work well with one.
Neutral sounding while still maintaining a good, realistic sound.
They blow the m50x out of the water, if you are looking for a cheap set of cans with pristine quality look no further.

This is my first review.
 
I will cover a few points about this headphone as best as i can and will then compare them to some other headphones mainly the Sennheiser HD700.
 
Price:
I got these for 167€ which is basically a steal considering the sound quality of these. 

Built:
These are built very sturdy. I don't have them long enough to judge how they will last over the course of the years but they are made of aluminum and very hard sturdy plastic. The earpads while looking good quality are from what i've heard not that long lasting and will flake with time. Same with the headband. Again, this is only what i've heard. 
 
Comfort:
The MT220's are pretty comfortable but i think the earpads are a bit shallow and the earcups are a bit small so people with big ears might have some problems. I don't. I think the headband is comfortable and so are the earpads, but i will replace the earpads with some brainwavz earpads soon.
 
Sound:
I must say that i haven't burned them in for that long because sadly my left driver got a bit of a rattle when i play the bassshaker test from this website: http://www.audiocheck.net/soundtests_headphones.php and so i didn't had the motivation to let them burn in all day and all night. I already ordered a second pair and will test if these have the bass rattle too and return the current ones. The burn in at this time is about 20 - 30 hours. But let me say the already sound extremly good.
 
But lets move on to the sound. 
 
Right out of the box they sound they sound phenomenal. I plugged them into my iPod and my Xonar Essence STX and on both they sound very very good. The main reason i bought these is to listen to music in bed with my iPod / iPad and or at work with my Xonar DG.
 
Bass:
The bass is very good. It's tight, controlled, a "bit" emphasized (which i love) and fast / detailed. It doesn't bleed into the mids and its never overwhelming.  Compared to my Sennheiser HD700 the bass is not as textured but it comes so close its almost scary. Compared to the Fidelio X2's the bass is way  waay less present but the X2's the bass isn't as fast and punchy as on the MT220's. At last compared to the new Sony MDR100AAP the bass takes the Sonys to school with much more control and detail. Where the Sonys bass sounds pretty bloated to my ears, the MT220's bass plays in a whole other league.
 
Mids:
The mids are, while to my ears a tiny tad bit recessed, very neutral and balanced with the rest of the frequency. Female or male vocals come up beautifully and detailed and overall the midrange is just very pleasing to listen to. I heard that the midrange opens up with further burn-in so i am looking forward to that. Compared to the HD700's the midrange isn't as airy and open but it's not as reccesed as on the Sennheisers. On the HD700 i had to use an equalizer because vocals sounded so distant but with the equalization i got them to perfect volume with the rest of the frequency. On the MT220 i don't have to use and equalizer. The mids are just as good without. Compared to the Fidelio X2's the midrange is more balanced and alot "colder" and more neutral but the X2's are known for making the midrange sound rather warm. I won't compare these to the Sonys because it's just unfair IMO. The Sonys midrange just doesn't sound good anymore when you listened to the the MT220's.
 
Trebble:
While i first thought they were a bit sibilant and shrill i noticed with further listening that they are just so extended that i had to get used to the higher frequencies that these headphones give. The treble is what you could call pretty smooth with maybe a tad more volume but that is fine and adds the overall sense of more detail. Overall the treble is really good and pretty detailed as well. Compared to the HD700's they are not sibilant and annoying at all. Unequalized the HD700's make your ears bleed.. not THAT bad but i had to tone down the treble about 8 to 10db to make them non fatiguing. Again on the MT220 i don't have to do that. Compare the treble to the Sonys and you notice that the Sonys are rolled off and a lot quieter as on the Yamahas. Overall i like the treble a lot more as on Sonys. On the X2's the treble can sound artificial. One of the reasons why i will send them back (The X2's ofc).
 
Soundstage / Detail:
The Soundstage on these, while not beeing overly big, is very good and big enough to let the track breathe freely. Whats so special about these IMO is the detail and the clear lines between instruments, something which i came to love on my HD700's. They have some AMAZING microdetail. I hear things which i haven't heard on my HD700's. Not because the HD700's doesn't show them but the Yamaha's just reveal them clearer and show so much detail that you hear literally EVERYTHING that is on the track. That means you also hear a bad quality mic from vocals and sometimes even floor noise in the track which i didn't hear on the Sennheiser. Compared to the Soundstage and airiness of the HD700 the MT220's can't compete on the same level. But its a closed back headphone so it's expected. I would compare these to about the same Soundstage as the X2's but that is just from memory.
 
Conclusion:
Overall i am very satisfied with these headphones and i can recommend them to anyone who is on the lookout for some amazing closed back headphones. If you can get them under 200€ or $ they are a steal but i would even go as far as saying that they are worth 300 - 400€ as they were when they were released. The biggest pro for me is that they are sturdy, easily driven by an iPhone or iPad and i don't have to worry about them breaking when i carry them in my backpack.
 
Thanks a lot for reading my review.

Anyone looking for a set of closed portable headphones needs to try the Yamaha MT220. Why the MT220 and not one of the many other models available on the market? It’s simply one of the overall best-sounding closed portable headphones I’ve heard, regardless of price—and the fact that until recently it was available from B&H Photo for $150 practically made it a steal!
 
The MT220 is one of those headphones that probably won’t impress anyone upon first listen; it certainly didn’t impress me initially. There was no “wow” factor—its treble was just a bit subdued to me (but I personally like treble, so that may be a good thing for those who don’t), its bass lacked an extra oomph that some other headphones have (like the V-MODA M-100 and KEF M500), and it didn’t convey much of a soundstage despite having angled drivers. It didn’t help that I also found it to lack just a bit of clarity—elements in the mix didn’t sound totally clear & distinct, like they did on the Audio-Technica MSR7.
 
But the more I listened, the more I realized how balanced-sounding it was throughout the spectrum, without any of the common flaws I’ve heard from other headphones in this segment, like excessive bass bloat (V-MODA M-100, Shure SRH1540), recessed mid-range and/or bass (Beyerdynamic DT1350, Sony V6/7506), or just a lack of refinement (too many headphones to list there). The MT220 simply had a strong sense of fullness & body throughout the spectrum without sounding bloated, murky, blurry, or blunted anywhere. Both male & female vocals had convincing presence, drums sounded appropriately heavy & impactful, and bass guitars sounded low & powerful. And it consistently rendered synthesized bass lines with a depth that was satisfying but also a control that kept it tight as well. Essentially, it easily covered the range of music I listen to, which includes classical, jazz, bluegrass, folk, pop, rock, electronica, and metal. Everything sounded good on it, from symphony orchestras playing Beethoven, to Dave Brubeck, to my favorite female vocalist Alison Krauss and favorite band Massive Attack, to the tough & aggressive metal of bands like Machine Head, Trivium, and Periphery.
 
And it didn’t stop sounding good with just music either, as it worked great as a computer headphone too, for watching movies and playing games. In specifically action movies & games (first-person shooters, like Crysis), it delivered big-sounding explosions and heavy-yet-fast-sounding machine-gun reports. That’s no small thing—not many headphones I’ve heard can really do a convincingly visceral-sounding machine-gun report in particular, and that the MT220 could do it was just icing on the cake!
 
I’ve gone through too many other closed portable headphones over the past 10 years in the pursuit of finding something that works well for all of my uses, and the MT220 is the first one that I can say meets all of them! I highly recommend it for absolutely everyone!

Preface: Nothing too technical here; just wanted to give my impression as someone that had to "downgrade" from the HE-400's recently and has tried dozens of full-sized cans. I have had these things only a week, but with my experience I can quickly tell what they are and can do.


Setup/review: Did my standard headphone test I do with them all (it's low end focused, but that is a huge thing for me in headphones; also these track do have acoustic elements and I know EXACTLY how they should sound and will test the low-end limits of cans easy) and all I have to say are these are some of the best cans i've ever tried period.

I was NOT expecting the low end to be as good as it is considering these are studio based headphones (though it does seem that they have a more "fun/musicial" side to them which is exactly what I want along with music production) these cans handled these tracks with EASE amped out of my Klipsch 2.1 headphone jack that is powered and up very loud with these EQ settings

(YES, I know everyone hates iTunes; I use it strictly because I love coverflow. YES I know this eq is an abomination is 70% of head-fi'ers eyes; but I absolutely love low end and it's how I test how far headphones can take and handle real serious bass)

I have also had time to listen to them with several albums out of my tablet with no amping; they were plenty loud and did not slouch at all in sound or fullness. Quite an amazing thing really.

The Yammys just did better than $300-$400 cans I have tried (many; mostly the closed ones as open is hard to beat in areas) overall in the sound + low end included. I really freakin' love the low end on these things it handled it so well and with surprising accuracy, punch, and POWER. Soundstage isn't huge or stellar, but open enough and very fair. More than enough for fun and musical engagement, plus fairness for sound work.
 
The rest of the spectrum? Very fair I would say; I prefer maybe a little more sparkle on the high end (HE-400) but I can only assume it's doing it's just as a semi-studio headset.
 
With the $140 I paid here 10/10. I honestly could not ask for more and wow are these things a gem.

guys,

I spent several hours (more than 40 hours research) to find the best headphone for my budget (under AUD $200). I tried to read as many reviews (mainly the 1-2 stars) as I could to know well-known issues with particular headphones and after spending hours on this, I recognized that I cannot buy an over-ear headphone without trying it in a local shop. Reviewers complain all the time about comfort like "I can't wear it for more than an hour", etc., so this is the best advice that I can give to you: Go to the local shops, test the headphones, choose one, go online and buy it OR go back to the local store and buy it there.
Unfortunately, headphones die usually after 1,5-2 years usage nowadays (probably by purpose) and manufacturer usually provides 1-year warranty for their products (Sennheiser offers 2 years).

I'm not an audiophile. I had cheap $10 headphones for my computer and portable devices previously. I decided to step up to a higher level 2 years ago. I researched the best headphones under $50 and after consideration, I ordered the Koss PortaPro that satisfied my needs that time. It showed me some sounds that I have never recognized in my favorite songs before. This headphone is fold-able, the cable is so tiny and well, I tore it in an awkward moment recently. So it was time to replace it.

I liked the PortaPro but after this incident, I realized that I need something more durable with a better build quality. I started my research and thought that I can order my next headphone online as I did with the PortaPro. As I mentioned earlier, I found that it will not work. So I went to JB Hifi because this is one of the places where you can test some headphones. The problem with places like JB is that, although they have display panels, not all headphones are displayed and the songs that you can listen are given (sometimes the test songs manufactured to the particular headphone so be aware of it). Thus, you can't listen to and test with your favorite songs. That's not good because headphones are like foods: some people like hot dishes, others like mild and we talk about the same category: spicy food. So when people say that "the bass is not enough" it's not enough for them, it might be perfect for you.

I was lucky to find one shop assistant who opened the display panel for me at JB Hifi and allowed me to listen to songs that I like. I was considering the Sennheiser HD 429, HD 439, and HD 280 Pro that time. I liked the sound of the Sennheiser Momentum but it wasn't in my price range and the tiny cable between the can and the head cushion reminded me my accident with the PortaPro. As many reviewers stated the HD 280 Pro had the best sound out of the three but it just squeezed my head after 5 minutes of wearing it. I use a headphone several hours a day (mainly for music, movies and during work) so I decided not to take this headphone. I tried the Sony MDR1A that was comfy but the price was too high.

Online reviewers always mention Audio Technica M50x and how good is it but to be frank, you can't rely on reading reviews, you need to listen to music on the headphones. Luckily I found one audio shop nearby where I could test this model. I tested it twice. I went to the shop first time and tried to test this headphone with the Audio Technica ATH-AD900X, the Yamaha HPH200, and the Yamaha HPH-MT220. But they didn't have the Yamahas so I tested the Audio-Technicas. The original price tag on the AD900X was $350 (I could get it for $200 because it was on special) but after listening to the M50x (that was $200 as well) I didn't understand why it was more expensive. The M50x sounded better, at least for me. I asked the shop assistant to get me the Yamaha for a test and they did. It was in the shop next day because one of the guys (from the shop) had it. I'd like to say thank you for him to bring this headphone to the store and give me an opportunity to test it.

So I went back and tested the M50x and the MT220 on my iPod shuffle and android phone and believe me, you don't need an amplifier for these headphones. They worked perfectly on these devices without any issues. Of course, I needed to increase the volume around 25-40% compared to my PortaPro but that's it.

Let's clarify this first: both of them are excellent. Seriously.

The following review is based on my ears, I'm not an audiophile so please forgive me if I don't use special words or enough critic like "the bass is not enough", "the high is not accurate enough", etc. I will describe my findings in plain English.

As I mentioned earlier, both of them are superb but after 1 hour testing with a wide variety of songs, I found some slight differences such as
- M50x is more colorful in sound, it mainly enhances the vocal and leave the instruments in the background
- MT220 is equal in sound (the instruments are in the same level with the vocal) and it gives you the quality and the clear sound of the recording

I mainly could not "fly" (enjoy the music with closed eyes) with most of the songs by listening to the Yamaha. I'd use it for work (software development) so I prefer not do this But with some songs like Angus & Julia Stone - Big Jet Plane, I was in the music. I saw the instruments playing, it was unbelievable. Before any conjecture: I never used narcotics so if you thought that I was high during this test - forget about it

The other difference that I recognised between the M50x and the MT220 was that when I listened to Eagles - Hotel California, I have never ever heard the sound of the airplane at the beginning of the song - from 0:20 to 0:32 (Note: I had this song in 128kbps MP3 format and it was hardly noticeable with the PortaPro). I heard it on the MT220 first so when I listened to this song on the M50x, I was already concentrating on this sound and well, it faded! I heard it in the background but wasn't as clear as on the Yamaha and if I didn't focus on this sound, I would probably miss it. Also, the MT220 got so punchy in one song (sorry, not sure which rock song was it) and I didn't recognize this with the M50x.

The isolation is almost the same. I heard in low volume that people are around me with both of the headphones but I couldn't understand what they said.
UPDATE: I took the MT220 to work and well there wasn't any sound leakage on Volume 80 (normal sound card of a desktop). Just to clarify: our office is really silent so you can hear anything and my colleague, who sit next to me within a meter, couldn't hear my music. I tested the sound leakage of the MT220 at home with my musician friend and on volume 80 (with DFX Audio Enhancer + max Winamp volume on my laptop) I could hear nicely what song was playing. But without enhancement of normal volume (30), it isolated the sound nicely. On the other hand, with the very low volume, you can hear the noises of the environment. On volume 30, I could still hear a few noises (basically the songs' default volume aren't the same) but it wasn't disturbing at all. One time, my boss came to my desk and talk to me from 50cm (sideways) and I didn't recognize that he was there. So it does the job but the MT220 is not a noise cancellation headphone so don't expect that.

In the shop, the MT220 had a $249 price tag but after talking to the shop assistant he offered it for $220 meanwhile the M50X was $200. I spent around 2 hours testing the headphones in the shop and if I could I would buy both of them. Unfortunately, it was not the case, I had to consider other factors such as portability. The M50x is fold-able, has detachable cables so it's better for traveling but the MT220 is mainly for studio purpose so the fixed cable should not be an issue. Bear in mind, when a headphone has extra features (such as volume control, detachable cable, etc.) more things can be wrong. Although, I like the secure jack solution (plug in and turn) of the M50x.

UPDATE: Yamaha doesn't provide a hard case for the MT220 but I found a general headphone case (20x18x9cm) that's perfect for it. With this case, the portability and transportation of the MT220 is not an issue. It's a bit bigger case than the M50x's but doesn't make much difference for me. Perfectly fit into my backpack or messenger bag.

UPDATED - July 2015: I've bought and used the MT220 for almost 6 months (around 5-7 hours daily on workdays) and it's extremely comfortable. It can be hot after a while (3-4 hours) but if you remove it for 10-15 seconds and put it back, it will be perfect again (unfortunately, this is unavoidable in case of over-ear headphones). The built quality of the MT220 is superb, it has plenty of screws so if you need to change something on this headphone - that I doubt - you can easily do it. It doesn't have a detachable cable so there is no change that the socket will wear out.

UPDATED - Nov 2016: I used this headphone in the last 20 months so I felt that it's time to update you guys, how the headphone is going. I had two issues with the MT220 up to.

The first issue was related to the synthetic leather cushion as it started peeling off. Well, time past and when you're wearing this headphone daily for 5-6 hours (on weekdays) as me, it's unavoidable after 1.5 years. I got annoyed of the small black pieces on my cloth and neck so I peeled the cover off recently (a couple of months ago). You'll be surprised but I like this textile cushion better. Same comfort but less mess.

My second issue was more serious as it was related to the left ear cup. I experienced sound loss and much lower volume in the left ear cup than the right. I was afraid that this is the end of my headphone as this is the clear sign that you reached the lifetime of the headphone. As I use my MT220 at work (93% of the time), I was suspecting my desktop as a cause. The front audio socket of it always gives you the "secondary sounds" e.g. drum clearer than vocal or you can hear the additional singers in the "front" and the main vocal "at the back"... (I hope it make sense). As a result, I used the socket on the back panel. It worked well first but I started experiencing the issues with the left ear cup after 1,5 years. When I unplugged the headphone and plugged it into the front socket, the left ear cup was full of sound so it worked again... It was weird, so I took the headphone home to test it on my laptop that does not have audio card/driver issues. Surprisingly, I still had the ear cup issue when I first plugged the headphone into my laptop but after unplugging it and plugging it again, the problem was solved. It was really weird.
I did some research on this issue and people suggested to move the cushion on the ear cup when this "sound loss" happens. I tried it at work and sometimes it worked, sometimes not. So what did I do? Well, not much. I had to remove the cushion to peel the synthetic leather off and it might helped. I don't know. When I used the headphone again with the textile cushion, I had the sound loss but when I moved the cushion, it became good again. I don't have this issue with the MT220 since August... It's a very weird issue and it probably includes several components but if you experience this sound loss, don't throw this headphone away. Try to play with the cushion and it might help... Something definitely solved this sound loss issue on mine as the sound of the MT220 is exceptional again. No volume issues, sound's crystal clear like when I bought it...

UPDATED - Jan 2018: I used this headphone in the last 3 years and it's unbelievable that it's already that "old" as it works perfectly! The sound is exceptional. I haven't had the sound loss issue since my last report. Honestly, I still don't know what happened back then...
The only issue, that I had, was related to the synthetic leather as it started to peel on the top due to age and the regular use of the headphone. Not a big problem though, I removed all leather pieces and it has a matt, textile look now. I don't mind it and I think if you have a headphone for 3 years that gives you superb sound than it's already pretty good!

YAMAMAHA HPH-MT220 REVIEW

 
preface: People can become fans of a product and get scared to be honest but I can honestly stand by the impressions below without wavering.  Other reviews I have posted are not as in depth for a reason as I feel this one worthy of full coverage(not that I am a good reviewer or anything... just saying).
                                                                             
 
OVERVIEW:
They are accurate for professional use with enough low end to please most. I don't use eq with these ever!
 
The thing about these headphones is that they are tuned for "modern studio applications". As we all know, modern music calls for bass. These are not bass monsters but the bass response is awesome!! If making or mixing EDM, these will translate very well to the speaker monitors given that the monitors reach as low as these. The tuning reflects what is on the recording. They also do good with everything I have thrown at them. I literally get goose bumps sometimes and they shock me. I stepped outside of my personal music genre favorites and get floored with my jaw slightly hanging. They become very clear/transparent after burn in and hold nothing back from you without the covering up of poorly recorded vocals. The mt220 will reveal to you the crappy mics some artists may have used as an accurate window into the recording while staying delightfully enjoyable.  
 
Dark sources on these are okay but neutral sources imo help you see its balance. I used to be a mid range lover and still am but prefer balance and that is what these have. Though they have a little more energy in the treble, I can honestly say nothing is recessed. They have a bite to them at first that makes it seem like you are getting rushed with detail and crispy instruments. The slightly murky lower mids clear up after burn in. Compared to a Pioneer hdj 2000 these are way more transparent right out of the box. I just had slight issues with the lower mids at times pre burn in. Now that is non existent.  If you don't believe in burn in like I didn't then these will prove it to you if you give them time. I have never heard a headphone go through so many changes as these. Now I can say that mine are completely burned in and I still can't put them down.
 
 
SPECIFIC QUALITES:
- Pad swapping/rolling is a synch with many options
- Not genre specific
- Kind of raw sounding
- Awesome tuning on the headphones
- Scalable (amping is suggested but not needed at all)
- Balanced sound that is awesome for reference purposes
- Revealing of bad recordings
- Revealing of equipment signatures and quality
- The bass doesn't make all songs sound bass heavy and is moderately textured and will satisfy the bass hungry
- Bass slams when it needs to and extends low
- Great attack
- Mids are not recessed or too forward
- highs are clear and not rolled off
- decent soundstage as well but not artificial with accurately sized instruments
- barely any mid bass hump with little to no booming into the mids
- sturdy build
- handles power easily
- little distortion
- little sibilance
- sound improves as you listen
 
SPECIFIC FLAWS:
- pre-burn in lacks some transparency in the lower mids
- lacks isolation
- stock pads are shallow
- no detachable cord
- little accessories (I need to try the cd it comes with)
- can be unforgiving
 
FR GRAPH:
http://personalaudio.ru/raa/otchety/naushniki/yamaha-hph-mt-220/
(this is from personalaudio.ru I dont even know if I picked the right one but its the only one site I could find)

 
 
AMPING/SOURCING:

 
 
 
 
 
 
These don't need an amp to sound good but an amp definitely helps especially for portable uses. The fiio x3 and plain ipod leaves me a bit unsatisfied. When I plug them into my iMac they actually shine. They will tell you exactly what your source sounds like so just choose wisely. I suggest something with a tight low end(no need for bass boost), detailed sound, and average or above average soundstage and these will reward you greatly. They don't need anything to add to it basically but just an amp/source that won't take away what it has already because it can be easily held back.
 
- JDS Labs ODAC and Schiit Vali : The combo is smoothing them out slightly but helping the soundstage and adding a little air. The drums, instrument attacks, bass thumps, and kicks are being a little rounded off with these two.  So this combo is allowing its soundstage to breathe as well and lower level noises are more easily focused on. I immediately missed the edge of these on first impression, but now I appreciate how refined these have become with this combo. The combo has also given better instrument separation and detail. It makes for a sweet listen on some songs and others slightly more dull. That being said the Yamaha can never be dull to me and it would take a lot to make them boring. Overall its a good match.
 
- The Fiio X3: restricted the soundstage, darkened the headphones, made them less engaging than the Vali and ODAC, added bass warmth(which was not needed), and made the mids less clear. I think that is just how the x3 sounds on its own. I am making the x3 sound worse than it really is but imo I think these will do great on a better and more neutral source and I felt the fiio was holding them back. I respect the x3 though as it paired really well with the k545 and gave it the warmth and push it needed.
 
- The Nuforce ICON DAC: Great match however not only is the natural punch, dynamics, clarity and raw sound of these headphones back but a bit enhanced and a tad bright. The Nuforce takes away nothing from what the headphone has to offer. I would however like to use it with another tube amp because the Nuforce alone is a bit bright and turns from neutral to slightly bright but with full mids and deep bass. So far this is the best. The Vali with the DAC section of the Nuforce also makes a good match and places things almost right where they should be but not a huge difference from the Nuforce ICON DAC all by itself using both the dac and amp sections.
 
 
HEADPHONE BUILD/AESTHETICS:
 
They look great in person and are light and comfortable with the pads enveloping the ears. I would definitely not call these lifestyle headphones though and in public you will look like you walked out of a studio. They do however look great in the studio or home next to an iMac,PC, or laptop<<<all in my opinion of course.
 
 The chord is coiled closer to the jack which has a very heavy duty screw on adapter that is only usable with the Yamaha.  Where the cord goes in to the jack is a spring protector to prevent the end from breaking. They are made with a very sturdy plastic and like most headphones have the metal inside of the headband encased in this plastic. The driver housing is plastic as well with a brushed metal plate around the driver compartment. 

 
 
The cushion on the headband is thin but wide and is fairly comfortable. My ears fit in the pads with the inside opening measuring 6.25 cm top to bottom and 4.5 cm left to right
Though they are not the most comfortable headphones I have worn, they do have minimal clamping pressure and seem to have more of a universal fit. I can't picture to many people complaining about the fit of these. 
 
HEADPHONE COMPARISONS:
THIS DOES NOT MEAN THE FOLLOWING DONT HAVE ITS THINGS IT DOES BETTER THAN THE YAMAHA OR THAT THE YAMAHA IS BETTER. These are distinctive things the yamaha does better in my opinion and from memory. I remember still preferring the ZMF modded fostex over all of these in preference (not technicalities) so its not included.
*close contenders
 
 
____AKG k545 (yamaha = stronger bass, more depth, better transient response, less restrained/more forward and energetic, better lower mids,  more natural timbres, more accurate, less gentle, less treble emphasis)
____*Sony mdr 7520(yamaha = smoother, wider soundstage, more sub bass, less midbass hump, more neutral mids (slightly less mids) and balanced highs(sony slightly darker), more treble, less thick, stronger attack)
____Sennheiser Momentum ( yamaha =  larger soundstage, tighter bass, more detailed, better instrument separation, more accurate of the mix, slightly more bright, more transparent)
____Philips L1 (yamaha =  less flabby, more controlled, larger instruments, more forward, more detailed, better resolution, similar balance, better attack, more transparent)
____AKG K550 (yamaha = more natural timbre, more accurate of the mix, more bass, fuller but neutral mids so basically not recessed, less bright, smaller soundstage, better attack, more body and weight more forward, more snap)
____Denon AH-D2000 (yamaha = less boomy in bass but similar impact, more mids, less grain, more transparent, weightier/more organic sound, smoother)
____German maestro 8.35 d (its been a while, but yamaha = more bass, very similar balance, less fatiguing,less sibilant, better details and instrument separation)
____Beyerdynamic COP(yamaha = tighter bass, less bright, less air, fuller/weightier notes, better resolution, better instrument separation)
____Beyerdynamic dt 770(yamaha = better depth, fuller/weightier sound, stronger mids, less bright, stronger impact/attack/slam, more refined, better details, better instrument separation)
____JVC DX700(yamaha = better attack and punch, faster, similar bass quality, less bass, less soft and smoothed over, more treble, more balanced, less dark, less genre/song specific, less cavernous)
 
 
*The YAMAHA GETS BETTER AND BETTER and after burn in bests the above even in technicalities the close runner up is the Sony that has better bass resolution (the best out of all of them) similar sub bass quantity, s stronger build, faster, drier/less wet and only a little less highs. 
 
PADS:

 
hope to try more later. maybe --- 1540 shure pads.
Mr Speakers Alpha pads:
- add comfort
- improve soundstage depth
- smooth the sound out and make them slightly darker
- increase bass quality