larcenasb
100+ Head-Fier
I was really hoping Dekoni or some other brand would try and recreate the K500/K501 earpads, but understandably they're just focusing on the newer models. And yeah, I couldn't find any on eBay either.
My K500 earpads are coming apart a little, so I'm able to see how they're made. I didn't realize the fabric material is actually just mesh or a speaker grill cloth-like material. It is quite literally just mesh over the foam earpads (see photos). Ah, so that's what helps gives the K500/K501 such an open, spacious sound quality. The engineers designed the headphone to not have a good seal. That's why whenever I try an earpad with a better seal, the soundscape closes in and lower frequencies sound muddied and unnatural.
So, here are my possible plans once the earpads' foam wears out one day:
A
- Buy earpad foam cushions (maybe from cheap K702/K7XX earpads, and remove the cloth/velour to take out the foam cushions)
- Continue to push up and unbond the mesh from my K500 earpads, until the mesh is only attached to the outer diameter of the mounting backplate
- Compress and pull the old foam down through the middle of the mounting backplate
- Compress and place in the new foam through the same way
- Use a little glue to attach the mesh to the inner diameter of the mounting backplate
B
Or, to create all-new earpads, we could buy similar mesh or speaker grill cloth, along with cheap K712/K7XX earpads...remove the fabric/velour and custom fit/install our new mesh. Takes some planning and work, but now knowing the earpad is just mesh over foam cushions,--and that not having a good seal is what's important for the K500/K501's sound quality--this is totally doable. And at least there's no mystery about how the K500/K501 earpads sound so good.
C
Call Dekoni or Brainwavz (or whomever else makes pads) to create them and make them an offer they can't refuse (not meant to endorse a Godfather approach lol).
If anyone else has ideas about how we can replace the earpads in the future, please chime in. Cheers
My K500 earpads are coming apart a little, so I'm able to see how they're made. I didn't realize the fabric material is actually just mesh or a speaker grill cloth-like material. It is quite literally just mesh over the foam earpads (see photos). Ah, so that's what helps gives the K500/K501 such an open, spacious sound quality. The engineers designed the headphone to not have a good seal. That's why whenever I try an earpad with a better seal, the soundscape closes in and lower frequencies sound muddied and unnatural.
So, here are my possible plans once the earpads' foam wears out one day:
A
- Buy earpad foam cushions (maybe from cheap K702/K7XX earpads, and remove the cloth/velour to take out the foam cushions)
- Continue to push up and unbond the mesh from my K500 earpads, until the mesh is only attached to the outer diameter of the mounting backplate
- Compress and pull the old foam down through the middle of the mounting backplate
- Compress and place in the new foam through the same way
- Use a little glue to attach the mesh to the inner diameter of the mounting backplate
B
Or, to create all-new earpads, we could buy similar mesh or speaker grill cloth, along with cheap K712/K7XX earpads...remove the fabric/velour and custom fit/install our new mesh. Takes some planning and work, but now knowing the earpad is just mesh over foam cushions,--and that not having a good seal is what's important for the K500/K501's sound quality--this is totally doable. And at least there's no mystery about how the K500/K501 earpads sound so good.
C
Call Dekoni or Brainwavz (or whomever else makes pads) to create them and make them an offer they can't refuse (not meant to endorse a Godfather approach lol).
If anyone else has ideas about how we can replace the earpads in the future, please chime in. Cheers