My personal opinion, the most comfortable ear pads tend to be the ones that are made of sheepskin (either Brainwavz or Dekoni). The Brainwavz pads are acceptable (cheaper), and the Dekoni are better (more expensive). Either will suffice. Pleather ear pads are a close substitute. Do NOT get anything that is either velour material OR angled ear pads (velour or sheepskin). Both are not to be used on the MSR7.
I’m a tad biased (to be expected) when it comes to mods on the MSR7, so when it comes to whether or not my mods are worth it… I think you get the gist. However, if you are going to go with an upgrade to more comfortable ear pads on the MSR7 you MUST mod it in some way as the sound signature of the MSR7 with a change in ear pads will make the sound slightly more treble accentuated / thinner as previously described before.
The easiest way to get rid of this is to do the following mods in this order;
1. As per Tolis’s recommendation, remove the small circular white felt type sticker that covers the hole within the headphone housing. This will give you a very satisfying increase in bass. A lot of bass. Seriously, a LOT of good quality bass (we're not talking Beats bass here), and this is more than enough to satisfy the inherent problems with fitting any leather / pleather aftermarket ear pads. In my opinion, this mod will slightly lessen the high details that this headphone is renowned for. So keep this in mind if you want to choose this one and only mod.
2. To do the above mod, you need to take apart the cans to remove the circular white sticker. If you want some of that good bass over the altered sound signature that the aftermarket ear pads gives the MSR7 with the crystal clear details as well, I found that replacing the circular white felt type sticker with another material (Fixomull Stretch) works the best. This material was the best substitute I found. It is a medical type of tape that is used for bandaging and is very stretchable. I found it at a local chemist / drug store and I’m sure it can be found anywhere around the world. Look it up. It works very well.
3. Use a filter to tame the highs. The best material (after trying everything I could reasonably find from tissue papers, toilet papers, felts, hand paper towels, wet wipes, tracing papers, etc. etc.) is a type of clothing material made by Vlieseline. It’s a clothing filler (the company that makes it call it a batting). It was a medium type batting and I think it was called B246? I can’t quite remember the exact code of batting. If you look up medium clothing batting from Vlieseline’s web site, I’m sure you’ll find it or something close to it.
4. To tame the MSR7’s highs just that little more, I put some Fixomull Stretch around the perimeter of the headphone’s driver grill. This worked well for me to just take that additional fraction more treble off the sound signature.
5. Another mod that works well for me is the slight raising of the ear pad cushions. This is one that works well if you want some additional sound stage and comfort. For this mod I used a type of construction material (a polyethylene gap filler rod) used to seal gaps between materials (wall and windows etc.) by making a circle and gluing the two ends together. After the glue has cured, I then pushed the circular rings I created out of the material into the perimeter of the ear pads that fits around your ears (see photos attached).
Best headband cover would be sheepskin leather. If that’s not feasible then use a soft and durable lounge type fabric. You might need to get the services of a good lounge restoration technician for this one if you’re not up to using a needle and thread.
In terms of wearing these headphones in, I think I went with about 1 week of playing my pair at decent volume using all sorts of music. I think by doing this I may have increased the sound signature of the headphones very slightly. It’s a very nuanced change for the better. Just wearing them in by listening to music over a six month period will do the same really. Not a real game changer if you’re looking for a better listing experience.
For cleaning the earpads, I use a specific leather cleaner. It’s a specific disposable cloth wipe called Everyday Leather Wipes made by Oakwood. With leather ear pads they can and will accumulate oils and dirt from your body (especially on hot days in summer). It’s highly recommended that anyone using leather products that touch your skin be cleaned regularly. It’s just a good hygiene thing. I also used a leather conditioning / sealing treatment before using the ear pads. This helps maintain it's characteristics and supple feeling while also waterproofing them.
Hope that helped you in some way, and happy modding!
