[dontpokethebear]

Definitely more comfortable, much cooler, and ears further away means ears won’t touch the headphones, though if you already have clamping force issues then this will make the problem worse (pads are much thicker). The sound is a tiny bit different, but easily corrected with EQ if you don’t like the changes.

Do you have any recommendations on how to EQ them to "correct" the changes to the sound signature? The treble sounds harsher, and I think I've lost some subbass, but without measuring it's hard to tell what's going on in the mid-range and upper treble.

I find the wicked cushions a lot more comfortable than stock, and with the wicked headband, I also get a MUCH better fit for my head. All stock it was either too loose or too tight. Not anymore. I also like the increased "depth" to the sound, but don't like the FR changes. I've also seen a lot of measurements from different sources that all tell different stories, so again, it's really hard to tell what's happening here.

 

[04gto]

I just received the Wicked Cushions yesterday. As for the sound: The frequency response difference is not small or 'slight' at all. It is huge. Maybe 4-5 db throughout the bass and sounds like a 3-4 db dip in the upper mid/ lower treble. Soundstage sounds wider, more spacious for sure (maybe 15% larger sound overall?). I love to EQ, I EQ everything. But with the bass I added a ton of extra bass from 250hz on down and these pads just don't do the job. They must leak a lot of SPL in that bass region, as I was able to correct the upper mids/lower treble with EQ, pretty easily. Complete deal breaker for me for music.

As for the comfort: They are really comfortable. super cool feeling on your head. No pressure points or any other fit weirdness going on. The price is great too.

The main reason I ordered these was to address the one issue I have with the Maxwell: The pads are a little warm. If comfort and keeping your ears cool is your number one priority, then these will be great. However, for me, the stock pads are not miserable and the comfort is otherwise fine. I prioritize sound quality and bass quality in particular, over comfort. These pads are not for me. I repeat: The difference is not small. Bass tightness/punch/texture in particular is significant.

 

[jsmiller58]

I just received the Wicked Cushions yesterday. As for the sound: The frequency response difference is not small or 'slight' at all. It is huge. Maybe 4-5 db throughout the bass and sounds like a 3-4 db dip in the upper mid/ lower treble. Soundstage sounds wider, more spacious for sure (maybe 15% larger sound overall?). I love to EQ, I EQ everything. But with the bass I added a ton of extra bass from 250hz on down and these pads just don't do the job. They must leak a lot of SPL in that bass region, as I was able to correct the upper mids/lower treble with EQ, pretty easily. Complete deal breaker for me for music.

As for the comfort: They are really comfortable. super cool feeling on your head. No pressure points or any other fit weirdness going on. The price is great too.

The main reason I ordered these was to address the one issue I have with the Maxwell: The pads are a little warm. If comfort and keeping your ears cool is your number one priority, then these will be great. However, for me, the stock pads are not miserable and the comfort is otherwise fine. I prioritize sound quality and bass quality in particular, over comfort. These pads are not for me. I repeat: The difference is not small. Bass tightness/punch/texture in particular is significant.

Everyone’s anatomy and hearing health varies, so it is not a surprise that these represent a big disappointment to you. I stick by my own impressions that for me the changes are just a few db here and there and easily addressed in the app’s EQ, and since I already EQ these headphones that is a tiny thing to me.

But, for total transparency, I am in my early 60s, so if you are significantly younger than me then we definitely would hear differently the audio frequencies.

 

[Helvetica bold]

According to @GadgetryTech measurements using WC don’t change Maxwells sound much. But like it’s been said everyone hears differently.

 

[Brutal Deluxe]

Hi, Hope someone might be able to help with an issue I’m having with the Maxwell.
They’ve worked great since I got them around May last year but then yesterday my Xbox just won’t pick up the mic anymore.
My Xbox says the headset is linked to my profile.
I’ve tried with boom mic and without.
I’ve connected it to my PS5 and it works fine.
It works fine over Bluetooth.
I’ve tried re-pairing using the app on PC.
The switch is set to Xbox on the dongle.

I’ve also connected up some Turtle Beach Stealth Pros and they worked perfectly.

Completely at a loss as to why it suddenly stopped working.

Anyone got any ideas what it could be?




Edit. Did a full factory reset which seemed to fix the issue. Sorry should have checked that before asking!

 

[Doc Octopus]

Audio distortion from the left pad when listening to music with the USB dongle on PC. Does this happen to anyone else?
Audeze Maxwell for xbox

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Audio distortion from the left pad when listening to music with the USB dongle on PC. Does this happen to anyone else?
Audeze Maxwell for xbox

Test all your usb ports. The dongle is sensitive to bad ports, and use the included USB A adapter as well. Also turn off any EQ you have during the test to ensure it's not an EQ issue.

Also test the OTHER connection types.

I have a laptop where one usb ports distorts at all times with the dongle, and another 3 ports that doesn't.

Also, test the dongle on other devices that is not that laptop. You need to narrow down the cause, from whether it's the PC, the dongle, the headset, the EQ preset used, etc.

 

[dougq]

Audio distortion from the left pad when listening to music with the USB dongle on PC. Does this happen to anyone else?
Audeze Maxwell for xbox

No.

 

[LCDean]

No.

Audio distortion from the left pad when listening to music with the USB dongle on PC. Does this happen to anyone else?
Audeze Maxwell for xbox

It did on my original set that lasted 5/6 months. Have you cranked the volume up quickly from cold, using a custom EQ at any point? A mate of mine did exactly that. Afterwards, that's what I heard. Thankfully, he replaced them.

 

[jsmiller58]

It did on my original set that lasted 5/6 months. Have you cranked the volume up quickly from cold, using a custom EQ at any point? A mate of mine did exactly that. Afterwards, that's what I heard. Thankfully, he replaced them.

Hmmm… there are probably several ways to break things, but I usually don’t go out of my way to find them…

 

[Audeze]

Note that using things like exclusive mode, and not setting the bitrate to 16bit/24but and 48/96hz will cause audio issues. Maxwell does not support 44.1khz. through usb/dongle.

 

[audiobile]

Haven't checked this thread in a while. Has anything been done about the static/crackling (while sidetone is on) lately or is that just going to be unfixable?

If it's not a firmware fixable defect and it's hardware/unfixable, is it all pairs or just the early revisions from the first few months? I only say this because I'm probably coming up on 1 year warranty.

 

[svisone]

Haven't checked this thread in a while. Has anything been done about the static/crackling (while sidetone is on) lately or is that just going to be unfixable?

If it's not a firmware fixable defect and it's hardware/unfixable, is it all pairs or just the early revisions from the first few months? I only say this because I'm probably coming up on 1 year warranty.

I have gone through 3 pairs, with the most recent being purchased a week ago. They all have bad static when sidetone is enabled. It sounds like Audeze is no longer committed to solving this problem. Last time I put in a support ticket, I was told that a certain level of static is "normal" and I should mail them my headset to inspect. No thank you.

 

[jsmiller58]

I have gone through 3 pairs, with the most recent being purchased a week ago. They all have bad static when sidetone is enabled. It sounds like Audeze is no longer committed to solving this problem. Last time I put in a support ticket, I was told that a certain level of static is "normal" and I should mail them my headset to inspect. No thank you.

Could also simply be that the current design makes the issue unfixable. Will completely depend on how important side tone is to you, and how sensitive you are to the noise. If side tone is essential to you, and you are very sensitive to the noise, then the Maxwell is not for you. Fortunately you have other options. As well as the Maxwell is selling I don’t think their business is being unduly impacted.

 

[Radio81]

I generally don't notice it much when playing since there's game or chat sounds also going. It's been a year now and I wouldn't expect it to be fixed. I don't think continuously exchanging pairs is the answer. If Audeze told you the noise is normal then I'm not sure what you're expecting.