[Bill-P]

Aw, well... I'd need a completely stock headphone. One that has ear pad swap would be okay but if it's already outfitted with a custom cable, that would be troublesome.
 
The reason being that I would like the mod to work pretty much the same for everyone, and to also disregard how much the cable would affect the sound.

 

[No_One411]

  Aw, well... I'd need a completely stock headphone. One that has ear pad swap would be okay but if it's already outfitted with a custom cable, that would be troublesome.
 
The reason being that I would like the mod to work pretty much the same for everyone, and to also disregard how much the cable would affect the sound.

Hey Bill, how much of the mod is due to the Martin Custom earcups? If wooden earcups over titanium are required for vibration dampening, it may be difficult given how swamped with orders Martin is. 

 

[lcats]

I'll be happy to put the original cable back on them.
 
Ed

 

[Bill-P]

That's why I'm asking for a stock pair.
 
The wood cups do affect the sound slightly.
 
But I'm confident I can reproduce at least about 80-90% of everything even with the stock cups since I understand what needs to be done now.

 

[Triggerfish]

I'll happily volunteer mine as the guinea pigs.  Totally stock.

 

[Bill-P]

Great. I'll PM you details, my good sir. 

 

 

[vincik]

Waiting for your article Bill. When can we expect you reveal your secrets?
 
I bought es10 based pretty much on comments on this forum and im happy with them but if there is something that can be done to improve them even better im all ears. I know you changed cabel and said it is huge improvement. Still thinking that? You also swapped earcups. That seems pretty expensive (if somebody even makes them) and anyway i dont like the look. Finally, you wrote something about dampening material change, which made better midrange. Which is exactly what i miss on es10. Deep bass, clear details but mids seems to me quite unmusical and unnatural. Especially breath instruments and piano are ...meh.
 
Anyway. Thanks for sharing your knowledge about this special headphones and i hope i will see soon some good article, which will help me to mod my es10.

 

[lbbef]

  Waiting for your article Bill. When can we expect you reveal your secrets?
 
I bought es10 based pretty much on comments on this forum and im happy with them but if there is something that can be done to improve them even better im all ears. I know you changed cabel and said it is huge improvement. Still thinking that? You also swapped earcups. That seems pretty expensive (if somebody even makes them) and anyway i dont like the look. Finally, you wrote something about dampening material change, which made better midrange. Which is exactly what i miss on es10. Deep bass, clear details but mids seems to me quite unmusical and unnatural. Especially breath instruments and piano are ...meh.
 
Anyway. Thanks for sharing your knowledge about this special headphones and i hope i will see soon some good article, which will help me to mod my es10.

 
You forgot to add in changing of earpads too!

 

[JHern]

  ...Deep bass, clear details but mids seems to me quite unmusical and unnatural. Especially breath instruments and piano are ...meh.

 
Indeed, if you want textured bright resonant mids then something like Sennheiser Momentum will do better. But the Momentum sound thin and airy in comparison to the ES10, and the ES10 bring out bass guitar like no other portable headphone. It's Miles Davis vs Red Hot Chili Peppers, neither can is great for both, but in their own turf they are great performers.
 
Is there any way to have the best of both worlds in a single HP via a clever mod? I'm not sure it is even plausible, but the ES10 seem like a good place to start...thus also very interested in seeing about Bill's mods, I have 2 pairs of ES10 and certainly willing to experiment.

 

[Bill-P]

  Waiting for your article Bill. When can we expect you reveal your secrets?
 
I bought es10 based pretty much on comments on this forum and im happy with them but if there is something that can be done to improve them even better im all ears. I know you changed cabel and said it is huge improvement. Still thinking that? You also swapped earcups. That seems pretty expensive (if somebody even makes them) and anyway i dont like the look. Finally, you wrote something about dampening material change, which made better midrange. Which is exactly what i miss on es10. Deep bass, clear details but mids seems to me quite unmusical and unnatural. Especially breath instruments and piano are ...meh.
 
Anyway. Thanks for sharing your knowledge about this special headphones and i hope i will see soon some good article, which will help me to mod my es10.

 
I'll have photos and everything else up within the next month or so. The reason I want a stock pair as a guinea pig is because my pair is already modded too far... like you said. I would like the next few modifications to work universally with any pair of ES10.
 

  You forgot to add in changing of earpads too!

 
Which does have a prominent effect on sound.
 
I prefer ESW11 ear pads for comfort, though ESW9 ear pads do have the "wow" factor due to improved airiness and bass. Bass is unholy with ESW9 ear pads... and with my particular pair... it can get super overpowered.
 

  Indeed, if you want textured bright resonant mids then something like Sennheiser Momentum will do better. But the Momentum sound thin and airy in comparison to the ES10, and the ES10 bring out bass guitar like no other portable headphone. It's Miles Davis vs Red Hot Chili Peppers, neither can is great for both, but in their own turf they are great performers.
 
Is there any way to have the best of both worlds in a single HP via a clever mod? I'm not sure it is even plausible, but the ES10 seem like a good place to start...thus also very interested in seeing about Bill's mods, I have 2 pairs of ES10 and certainly willing to experiment.

 
I think you'll be surprised when you hear the modded headphone. It truly is remarkably different. Whether the difference will make it a better headphone is up to you to judge, though.
 
Personally, the ES10 has been a trusted companion, and after all this time, it continues to be the one that I use the most. My other headphones actually don't get as much head time as the ES10 no matter the material. In fact, if I'm listening to something that's bassy, or watching a movie, I'd grab the ES10 over all of my other headphones, so... 

 

[Reignfire]

Where can i get a real leather or lambskin headband/cushion for es10? Can i use the one from Grado or other ATH models? Also, any comfortable and bigger earpads that i could use es10? Can i use an alpha pad? TIA

 

[PETEREK]

Where can i get a real leather or lambskin headband/cushion for es10? Can i use the one from Grado or other ATH models? Also, any comfortable and bigger earpads that i could use es10? Can i use an alpha pad? TIA

 
I cant think of a headband with a small enough diameter to use on the ES10, you would probably have to get another one from Audio Technica.
 
Alpha Pads? No way. You can use pads from the ESW9, ESW11LTD, or...? Generally you can't upgrade to bigger pads on any headphones without some big modification, how would they stay on?

 

[ericfarrell85]

Considering giving these a go. Can anyone compare them to an AD2000? Do they have the fun-factor? How do they do with rock, particularly lo-fi indie stuff (think Neutral Milk Hotel, Pavement, Olivia Tremor Control)? Although I'll mostly be running them out of a mid-fi CLAS > Alo MK3 setup, do they scale with desktop equipment? Thanks for any and all opinions.

 

[Bill-P]

Man, I have been so busy, but I finally have an update:
 

 
Thanks to Triggerfish, I now have a stock ES10 to play with.
 
Having extensively tested them over the past week, the house sound of the stock headphone wasn't destroyed, fortunately. What's different? My pair has a less aggressive sound, and it's smoother overall. Soundstage is clearer and cleaner, and also wider. The stock ES10 seems to congest at lower frequencies, but my pair doesn't do that. Treble extension is better with my pair, while the stock ES10 seems to top out around 9-10KHz. Also, stock ES10 is just a tad sibilant with certain songs, and that's especially noticeable with the ESW9 ear pads. My pair presents a smoother treble range, but it's still cleaner and clearer overall. Best of all... both pairs have bass that hit just as hard, but my pair extends far deeper into the sub-bass region, with better bass details and clarity all the way down there, so instead of overpowering congested bass, it's more atmospheric. These differences are even more pronounced with the stock ear pads, or with the ESW11 ear pads. Stock ear pads sound smoother up top for the stock ES10, but then soundstage suffers tremendously. ESW11 ear pads make the stock sound even darker (whoa!), and even more congested although midrange is slightly cleaner. My pair with ESW11 is tremendously more spacious than stock pair with ESW11 ear pads, and still wider than stock with ESW9 ear pads.
 
So to summarize: it's the same sound as the stock ES10, just with more clarity, more space, slightly more smoothness and better separated bass.
 
But that's a few days ago. I'll post instructions on how to perform this mod tomorrow. Just gotta organize my notes. That stock ES10 headphone has been modded, and I'll lightly sand the ear cups before shipping it back to the original owner on Monday.
 
Thanks again, Triggerfish! I think you'll enjoy the headphone very much when it gets back!

 

[lbbef]

Sounds like a winner.

 
Can't wait for the instructions.