[Krassi]

Hey,

By chance do you remember if you ordered the sheepskin or protein skin earpads from that link you provided on aliexpress? Second question would be if you still prefer them today.

Would appreciate it,
Thanks an take care!

Edit: Apologies, saw the latest post in this thread haha.

Hi it was of course sheepskin! i get earcancer from plastic
The sheepskin ones are very comfortable

i am so happy that i have 3 pairs of them and would never ever change them! .. so its a yes

 

[tdogzthmn]

Decided to order the Brainwave XL sheepskin pads for my K340. I'll try to take some new measurements with the pads to see how they impact the sound.
I've found the bass on the default pads are quite good and that im still able to get a good seal even with glasses however I would like more comfort for longer wearing.

 

[Krassi]

Well the default pads are cancer
its super ugly if the plastic stuff touches your ears and they are like car tires. New pads are really needed

 

[TooSpooky]

Hi it was of course sheepskin! i get earcancer from plastic
The sheepskin ones are very comfortable

i am so happy that i have 3 pairs of them and would never ever change them! .. so its a yes

Hey,

Thanks! Haha, yeah I don't want to alter the sound much if I can as I hear the default pads are 'the best' sound wise. Although currently they sit my ears a tad on the plastic.

Ordered a pair to try.

Take care!

 

[TooSpooky]

Hello,

Appreciate the help on the ear pads earlier. I was wondering if anyone had any info on how to hook up the K340's to a receiver's speaker outputs and if it's worthwhile compared to using the headphone output?

I've read a few forums on people doing that with different headphones, some bare, some with resistors, etc and I do see doing so mentioned in the original K340 brochure, but have no clue on the proper way to do it with these headphones.

Would appreciate any help

Thanks again for your time and take care!

 

[Majoox]

Hello,

Appreciate the help on the ear pads earlier. I was wondering if anyone had any info on how to hook up the K340's to a receiver's speaker outputs and if it's worthwhile compared to using the headphone output?

It's not worth it. Old vintage headphone outputs are fed via the power amplifiers and usually the power is reduced by a high-impedance resistor behind the headphone output. This is practically the same thing that people do with the amplifier terminal outputs. Advantage at the amplifier terminal would be that the headphones are "balanced", i.e. R and L driven completely separately. I have tried this with several older AKG and it is no different than with a good OTL tube amp. My headphone amp output from my Optonica SM3636 (Transistor) already makes the K340 "sing" at a high quality. Old amplifier headphone outputs have incredible power (1 Watt and above) and voltage, perfect for all high-impedance headphones.

 

[Davidzak64]

It's not worth it. Old vintage headphone outputs are fed via the power amplifiers and usually the power is reduced by a high-impedance resistor behind the headphone output. This is practically the same thing that people do with the amplifier terminal outputs. Advantage at the amplifier terminal would be that the headphones are "balanced", i.e. R and L driven completely separately. I have tried this with several older AKG and it is no different than with a good OTL tube amp. My headphone amp output from my Optonica SM3636 (Transistor) already makes the K340 "sing" at a high quality. Old amplifier headphone outputs have incredible power (1 Watt and above) and voltage, perfect for all high-impedance headphones.

+1 on the amplifier here. My Luxman R-113 receiver drives the K340'S to insane clean levels right from the HP jack at only 1/3 of the volume knob..I do use the speaker outputs to drive my K1000s though, but then again they are designed to do so.

 

[DTgill]

Decided to order the Brainwave XL sheepskin pads for my K340. I'll try to take some new measurements with the pads to see how they impact the sound.
I've found the bass on the default pads are quite good and that im still able to get a good seal even with glasses however I would like more comfort for longer wearing.

Did you ever have a chance to test those pads?

 

[DTgill]

It's not worth it. Old vintage headphone outputs are fed via the power amplifiers and usually the power is reduced by a high-impedance resistor behind the headphone output. This is practically the same thing that people do with the amplifier terminal outputs. Advantage at the amplifier terminal would be that the headphones are "balanced", i.e. R and L driven completely separately. I have tried this with several older AKG and it is no different than with a good OTL tube amp. My headphone amp output from my Optonica SM3636 (Transistor) already makes the K340 "sing" at a high quality. Old amplifier headphone outputs have incredible power (1 Watt and above) and voltage, perfect for all high-impedance headphones.

The Emotiva A-100 can and will drive the K340 hard and loud!

 

[DeweyCH]

+1 on the amplifier here. My Luxman R-113 receiver drives the K340'S to insane clean levels right from the HP jack at only 1/3 of the volume knob..I do use the speaker outputs to drive my K1000s though, but then again they are designed to do so.

Love seeing other people using that old line of Luxman R-11X receivers. My R-117 is a BEAST among beasts.

 

[Davidzak64]

Love seeing other people using that old line of Luxman R-11X receivers. My R-117 is a BEAST among beasts.

I'm hoping to score a R-117 one day. This R-113 doesn't seem to want to grow up any bigger. But it's like the little engine that could. Pushes the K340'S with ease. Although I could probably use a little more Headroom for the K1000'S. But they do sound really good.

 

[DeweyCH]

I'm hoping to score a R-117 one day. This R-113 doesn't seem to want to grow up any bigger. But it's like the little engine that could. Pushes the K340'S with ease. Although I could probably use a little more Headroom for the K1000'S. But they do sound really good.

Yeah I got my 117 as a for parts unit on eBay figuring I know the most common issues with them. Had a bad pot and speaker relays, I replaced the relays and had a local tech fix up the pot since it’s unobtainium and other pots don’t work with it if you still want remote function on the volume. It’s great, and I ended up adding a tp117 as a preamp to it.

 

[Davidzak64]

Yeah I got my 117 as a for parts unit on eBay figuring I know the most common issues with them. Had a bad pot and speaker relays, I replaced the relays and had a local tech fix up the pot since it’s unobtainium and other pots don’t work with it if you still want remote function on the volume. It’s great, and I ended up adding a tp117 as a preamp to it.

Do you happen to know what resistor is used for the HP out jack on these models? I'm trying to figure out how many watts it's pushing to the K340'S.

 

[mulveling]

I dug out a pair of K340 from my closet, under a ton of spare cables, where they've been hiding for over 15 years. I only needed headphones with a standard stereo plug to use my old Singlepower SDS amplifier as a 6SN7 tube tester (listening tests after the MaxiPreamp tester). BUT I started noticing some of the better 6SN7 were sounding good. REALLY good. And oh my, I found myself falling into these headphones again!

My Stax 009 / DIY T2 setup has been in stasis a while, until I get around to dealing with its heat issues. That's my ultimate reference. In the meantime I have HD650 (w/ Silver Dragon), a newly acquired Grado PS1000, and a Sennheiser HD820 on loan.

I've had an on/off relationship with the HD650 for almost 20 years. It's pleasant and well balanced, though a bit boring. Despite its warm signature, the midrange has a slight dryness, alleviated only by pairing with a vinyl source. Not near "top echelon" in any category, but quite nice overall when driven balanced with a great vinyl source (which I'm not doing, presently). But even for just a desktop setup, I desire more than HD650 these days.

The PS1000 sounded worse than the HD650 when fitted with stock "G-cush" (MEGA-bowl) pads. Simply reversing these pads (so they work like deeper flat pads) made a HUGE difference! Now they're decidedly bass heavy, but not obnoxiously so. Fun! Has that trademark Grado "snappy" sound. Very good midrange. A vastly more engaging listen than HD650, now. I really enjoyed my 1st week with these cans. I dig the look of its polished metal cups, too!

The HD820 is quite competent, but also reminds me exactly why I never liked HD800. I hated that super dry & austere midrange. Treble is out there partying on its own (and no one else is invited). Bass is a bit recessed for my preference. I don't get WOW'd by its detail & speed like I do with Stax 009 or even the old Qualia - not even close. So in the end, these cans (and HD800) have nothing going on for me.

Then the K340. Ah, what a beautiful midrange! Especially when paired to an OTL tube amp (like my SDS). These are 35 year old cans with both electret and dynamic drivers in each cup - so it may take a little time for your brain to adjust to some of the weirdness in their sound, but once it does, oh my! These cans responded beautifully to the nuances of the great old USA 6SN7 tubes. Surprisingly great detail. The treble is actually quite clean crisp and lovely, without being fatiguing. Bass is not cutting edge, but quite competent and well integrated - it doesn't detract from the music like say a Sony MDR-R10, or a poorly amped Stax. Because of its midrange, instruments and vocalists seem more lifelike inside your head, than with the other cans.

I'm also using the Headroom Max Balanced (great amp!) as a preamp in this setup, since I needed a Balanced-to-SE conversion to use the tube amp with my XLR-only DAC

 

[DeweyCH]

Do you happen to know what resistor is used for the HP out jack on these models? I'm trying to figure out how many watts it's pushing to the K340'S.

Not off the top of my head; the schematics for the 117 are here, but the only parts listed on the headphone board are a switch and the jack.