Just saw this, been quite busy recently. They sound pretty close overall. I would say that the 1AM2 has more treble, doesn't sound as dark as the N3's. Not the piercing kind, its just right. The N3 has more intimate vocals, but its still plenty forward on the 1AM2. Certain male vocals sounded...

Just got these awhile ago for a really good price, took a few days to get used to the sound as I almost never use headphones. Coming from my XBA-N3, I can hear some similarities in the sound - deep bass, detailed but smooth treble. Running these through the ZX300, high gain on the balanced...

When I first got the N40, I was unimpressed with it, mids sounded recessed and I just couldn't get engaged. Left it in the box for a few months. I then bought the Sony MUC-M12SB1 cable to use with my XBA-N3 and ZX300 and got curious to use it on the N40. The difference it made was incredible...