Sorry in advance, english is not my native language.
There is a big difference in tonality and overall presentation of this headphones when you change the stock pads.
Everyone has their own taste in sound signature, some people like it bright, other like it warm and smooth, and some people like it neutral.
I will try my best to describe differences to the sound.
stock pads and with HM5 velours pads
leather pads
sound signature - warm, smooth and sweet
bass - the bass is big (not too big), it can go low when the song call for it, mid and upper bass is more than the sub bass in quantity, the bass have good texture and layering, decay is moderate in speed, not the fastest out there but fast enough to sound natural.
mids - mids are thick, lower midrange is fat and smooth, you can try some songs of Barry White and you will notice extra power to his voice, middle part of the midrange is neutral, upper mids take one step back, mids are very special, they are not recessed, but the tonality is different than AKG open backs for example.
highs - highs are extended, clean and detailed, they are smooth and inoffensive, you will not find nasty peaks in the lower treble like A LOT of other headphones, sometimes i want more quantity.
imaging - imaging is top notch, instrument separation is very precise , every instrument is well defined inside the soundstage
soundstage - soundstage is good but not great, nothing special here, is better than typical closed back headphones but not close to fully open back cans.
velour pads
sound signature - neutral and detailed (but not cold or bass light)
bass - the bass is flatter, there is no huge mid bass hump, the thickness in the mid and upper bass is very reduced, with velours the bass is airy, the driver breathe, now the sub bass is in line with mid bass, is clean, texture and just beautiful, the rumble on the lower bass is a lot cleaner, is like a high quality musical subwoofer kind of bass, airy and clean.
mids - no thickness in the lower mids anymore, midrange now is more clear and detailed, there is more upper mid range, mids are smooth and beautiful, female voices sound more present and clear, amazing mids.
highs - more highs (the perception for more treble is from the shifted balance between the bass and treble), but interesting thing is that only the very upper treble feel like more, after 10 khz, that makes the sound more airy overall, i love the treble
soundstage - bigger, better, close to fully open back headphone, the soundstage now is big, not as big like my K601 but big.
imaging - the same precise imaging but with bigger soundstage now you can enjoy it more.
conclusion
It was a hard one, warm and organic smooth sound vs clearer more spacious and detailed sound, today i made i lot of tests and i was enjoying the velour pads more, if you already have NH, try this.
Thank you.
There is a big difference in tonality and overall presentation of this headphones when you change the stock pads.
Everyone has their own taste in sound signature, some people like it bright, other like it warm and smooth, and some people like it neutral.
I will try my best to describe differences to the sound.
stock pads and with HM5 velours pads
leather pads
sound signature - warm, smooth and sweet
bass - the bass is big (not too big), it can go low when the song call for it, mid and upper bass is more than the sub bass in quantity, the bass have good texture and layering, decay is moderate in speed, not the fastest out there but fast enough to sound natural.
mids - mids are thick, lower midrange is fat and smooth, you can try some songs of Barry White and you will notice extra power to his voice, middle part of the midrange is neutral, upper mids take one step back, mids are very special, they are not recessed, but the tonality is different than AKG open backs for example.
highs - highs are extended, clean and detailed, they are smooth and inoffensive, you will not find nasty peaks in the lower treble like A LOT of other headphones, sometimes i want more quantity.
imaging - imaging is top notch, instrument separation is very precise , every instrument is well defined inside the soundstage
soundstage - soundstage is good but not great, nothing special here, is better than typical closed back headphones but not close to fully open back cans.
velour pads
sound signature - neutral and detailed (but not cold or bass light)
bass - the bass is flatter, there is no huge mid bass hump, the thickness in the mid and upper bass is very reduced, with velours the bass is airy, the driver breathe, now the sub bass is in line with mid bass, is clean, texture and just beautiful, the rumble on the lower bass is a lot cleaner, is like a high quality musical subwoofer kind of bass, airy and clean.
mids - no thickness in the lower mids anymore, midrange now is more clear and detailed, there is more upper mid range, mids are smooth and beautiful, female voices sound more present and clear, amazing mids.
highs - more highs (the perception for more treble is from the shifted balance between the bass and treble), but interesting thing is that only the very upper treble feel like more, after 10 khz, that makes the sound more airy overall, i love the treble
soundstage - bigger, better, close to fully open back headphone, the soundstage now is big, not as big like my K601 but big.
imaging - the same precise imaging but with bigger soundstage now you can enjoy it more.
conclusion
It was a hard one, warm and organic smooth sound vs clearer more spacious and detailed sound, today i made i lot of tests and i was enjoying the velour pads more, if you already have NH, try this.
Thank you.
