[Sunstealer]

I left the thick pad alone and took off the deeper 4 screws to get to the penny sized felt disk on the other side. If the flat pads don't do anything for me I'll get the angled ones.

 

[kman1211]

I got the Yaxi comfort pads for these and have spent some time with them, honestly probably the first time I've come across a pad that is an actual upgrade in both sound and comfort over the stock pads on a newer headphone. It seems to specifically address some of the sonic issues of the msr7/b and basically fixes them. Midrange is more fleshed out and more even and it sounds more natural. The midrange is so good now.

 

[zazex]

Getting bored during the lockdown.. How hard it is to do the mod and will it be worth the effort

Sounds like anhedonia (among other possibilities), a notable symptom of depression.
Many are experiencing depression for the first time
during the Covid19 rules.

 

[WilcoRoger]

The plastic covering of the hinge on one side broke/chipped and on the other side already shows signs of the same. The cans have been hardly used and then only indoors. As the plastic only covers the metal, it's not a big issue but still...

(they're out of warranty)

 

[itchyears]

Does anyone know if Audio technica made any newer versions to the msr7b or similar like an updated model ?

Or even if there is a model that is better but still has the same portable, light weight and high sound quality.

 

[itchyears]

Well, after some break-in they will get even smoother, so let them play and you're in for a treat! I just hope you removed the correct felt ring, not the one on the driver!

As for pads, they are awesome with the flat HM5 pads, but man you gotta try them with the angled sheepskin ones. They are SO fun.

I left the thick pad alone and took off the deeper 4 screws to get to the penny sized felt disk on the other side. If the flat pads don't do anything for me I'll get the angled ones.

Life's too short to worry more so with these times, I hope I got the tolis mod right if not ill edit this post. Seemed straight forward with the instructions here:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/aud...iscussion-thread.893314/page-48#post-16132360

I did the exact same as Sunstealer, removed black pads on left and right driver, then started with either driver (Left or right, you got to do both anyhow) removed 4 screws, wiggled cup off gently, took yellow spongey circle padding off gently to get to last 4 screws then very slowly wiggled again till plastic separated and then poked a screw driver to nudge that tiny white circle sticker off and then just redid all in reverse to close it back up and then did the other driver unit. Just make sure when putting it all back together to put the yellow spongey circle padding in the same position it was before lined up with the wire.

I left 2 pictures below to give some idea of how to do it for others, just be careful when wiggling the plastic cups separately the 2nd one more so since it has a tiny wire attached to both sides of the plastic which is not so long so you want to do this gently and not pull it wide and completely apart !

No need to rush it take your time but only do so if you are confident with DIY, disclaimer you are responsible for your tools and actions not anyone else here.

 

[itchyears]

So far just one evenings worth of my playlist, impressive mod should never have waited a year or so to do it !

Bass was more noticeable in songs I now get a bit more depth to the bass its not over powering just enough. Separation of stereo better also just a bit more, actually its like its a bit more everywhere all round.

The treble highs are more sharper and tad harsh more so now is this why the AT engineers put that white disc sticker there?, I think I am picking up what others mentioned Ill look into the paper towel method or other options next.

 

[robmano]

I got used to the sound of the MSR7b after a few hours of listening and it's quite decent. The soundstage is wider than my HD280 PRO, but less than my Shure SRH-940.
Some flaws that I picked up:
- Overpowering one-tone mid-bass thump that most song seems to get. Very fatiguing after a while. Is this what boomy means? <- EDIT: This was directly through my laptop's headphone jack. When I used my old Total Bithead it seemed to lessen the mid-bass problem to an enjoyable level. EDIT2: It actually still is overpowering. I've ended up doing an EQ of -6dB at 110Hz
- Sub-bass <= 50Hz seems to be nearly absent. I played 20Hz to 50Hz test tones and barely feel anything at 50Hz. Nothing is felt at 20Hz. Easily felt with my HD280 PRO

Overall the sound is really nice. Does anyone else think the mid-bass is a bit too much?

I do and is most annoying thing for me.
I was definitely hoping for less bass, sometimes I feel there is so much bass. I wanted more highs and mids.
Why is that?

 

[Sp12er3]

I might be in minority for this, but I rank Audio Technica's entry to mid closed backs to be:
1. M70x: most detailed of them all. I think I'd be hard pressed to find any headphone as detailed as the M70x on its price range, on that aspect alone, it's comparable to summit fi headphone like HD800s and T1 IMO. all that without really sacrificing in other aspect as well, a tad bigger soundstage than the pure intimacy M50x and 40x offers, a good bass that focused more on the lower registers than its brothers, the mids is different, its leaner sounding for sure.... tho really that's subjective whether its good or bad, for me I prefer MSR7's mids more, one to be cautious is the treble presentation it has, it is not for everybody. For me it's pronounced, yes but it's not annoying, its not peaky, but instead feel like they are spread pretty evenly, albeit in a quite high fashion. It is, for me, a unique sound, and I love this best with acoustic music. I've owned them for a couple years now, never intend to sell it. One thing I dont like about it tho.. is the non standard mounting mechanism for the pads, it'd be harder to replace than other AT closed backs. Mine is holding up but its slightly more worrying than it should I guess.

2. MSR7: when i think of audio Technica's tuning, the MSR7 is the best rendition of them before going to their open back offering, aka the AD1000x' Air Series, At least form what i've tried as i never got my hands on an A1000z or A2000z, also curious about the esw990h and WP900 as well, but Woodies & Titanium AT are a different thing altogether and certainly are not entry or mid fi. So anyway back to MSR7, I like the tuning for music enjoyment and I know there's other version of these now, but still for me this is still the best of them.

3. MSR7B: basically the MSR7 but slightly more reined in, i like these just as much but the build kills it for me, it basically feels like what would come out if you give a team a job to copy all the physical characteristics of the MSR7, but make it cheaper to manufacture. This, build more like an MSR6 would be if it ever exist in the line, just a step down of the MSR7's build, and the only upside you get from it is that its much lighter and ah yes more comfortable, but that's more due to the lower clamp than the lighter build, which IMO just make it feel hollow on the hand really. Well on the other hand it is "kinda" cheaper than the MSR7 by a couple bucks locally so i guess barrier of entry just got lower for the MSR7... at least in the long run when msrp got cut down as much as the couple years old OG.
Basically, as you can see I like the M70x the most so of course I prefer the more raw MSR7 than the slightly smoother MSR7b. this feels like a case of Beyer T1 and T1.2 again, there's the original intention, and then there is the successor trying to be more accepted by the mass market. To me it loses the original essence a bit to gain the appeal.

4. MSR7SE: this feels a tad more subdued than both MSR7 and B version, also the bass is a more pronounced, just a tad tho. I like the looks and it even comes with similar case as the one that came with the M70x, but on pure sound i prefer the OG just a little more. not worth the extra cost, tho maybe as they're newer manufactured its an easier way to buy into MSR7 without the old quirks but don't want the diminished build of the B.

5. WS1100: these are more comfortable than the others solely due to its better pads, still less comfortable than both the MSR7b and M70x IMO due to its tight fit. on sound it doesnt impress me much, but it did offer more bass and soundstage than the others, albeit on a diffused manner, it's just not that good on instrument placement so you doesnt gain much from the extra space, especially as I feel it lose an edge on detail over the others for that, on the flipside its more relaxed too tho, so.... priorities. What I like is that this is the more "natural", more balanced-ish sounding of the bunch, not really much to brag about but its a safer "a good headphone" recommendation for newbie than the others. I guess this feels like trying to be a Sony headphone too much and failing at it for me... I prefer its IEM version CKS 1100 a lot more.

6. M50x: well the first AT I tried, I prefer it over the 40x because it sounds more alive for me.
6. SR5: I dont remember much of the one time i try these but its a portable audio technica that doesnt sound too different from 7, so i did think i liked it. so same rank as 50
7. M40x: basically the minimum i'd go IMO, 30 and 20 doesnt offer anything for me.

I really want to try M60x, but man, local jaben just never get them in stock it seems.

 

[Drienvyftigcent]

I'm a complete noob on this forum but having bought a pair of MSR7b's about a month ago, I'd like to explain my impressions, especially in comparison to the original MSR7's. Prior to having bought these, I owned two pairs of MSR7's for a duration of about 4-5 years. The first pair lost all of it's low end for no apparent reason and the second pair had a hinge that snapped. So now I decided to buy these. Overall, if I'd have to choose between the two, it would probably be a 50-50 for me.

Build:
First of all, the MSR7b's are definitely more comfortable mostly due to the lighter weight and the decreased clamping force. Personally, however, due to my rather small head I had no issues with the MSR7's and thought they were comfortable as well. When I first grabbed the MSR7b's out of the package I was concerned about the build quality though, to the point where I thought they might be fake. They definitely feel cheaper and more fragile because they weigh substantially less. I hope the hinges won't break like they did on the original MSR7's. I will say though that my MSR7b's joints crackle a lot less than my MSR7's did, those were much noisier when put on and off the head. I also believe the original MSR7's got hotter around my ears than these do.

Sound:
I would say both the MSR7's and MSR7b's are great sounding bright headphones, with really good accuracy and detail retrieval. The main reason I can think of not to get either of these is if you're are huge basshead, if you really like your low-mids, or if you don't like bright sounding headphones.

I'm now mainly going to talk about the differences between these two headphones. Having looked at both frequency response graphs I would say they are very much in accordance with my personal experience. In general, I would say that both headphones are relatively neutral with a slight V shape to the sound profile. To me, the biggest difference between the two involves the mid-bass, the low-mids, and the top end peaks. Before I explain the difference in sound, I do want to add that in my opinion the MSR7b's have slightly more clarity in the bass, and have slightly better instrument seperation than the original MSR7's.

Both have an equal amount of sub bass in my estimation, being slightly reduced by about a few db below neutral up to 50hz. The quality of the sub bass is excellent but by quantity, there is not a lot of it (although I wouldn't say the sub bass is terribly lacking, it's there and it's sounds good it's just not as present as you might expect/want). If you're a huge sub-bass guy, you're probably going to want to pass on either of these headphones.


Going up to the mid bass, this is where a noticeable difference shows up. The MSR7b's have more mid-bass than the MSR7's do, right around 125hz at a pretty wide range. This was the first thing I noticed when I put on the MSR7b's, the mid-bass was pretty forward. It works for some songs, not so much for others. I would say it emphasizes bass-lines at the mid-bass level but overall I prefer the more neutral MSR7's in that regard. I had no problem eq-ing it out though.

Both the MSR7b's and MSR7's sound identical to me from the mid bass all the way up to the low mids. This is where another noticeable difference shows up. Both headphones are slightly scooped in the low-mids, giving them a modern sound. To me, however, the MSR7b's sound scooped at around 350hz, whereas the MSR7's sound scooped a little higher at around 500hz. I really believe that this is the reason that many people think the MSR7b's have more soundstage. The more scooped low mids around 350hz creates an illusion that the music is farther away, as this frequency tends to sound a little pokey and in-your-face. Altough both headphones are scooped in the low-mids, I prefer the tuning of the original MSR7's as the 350hz region gives body to vocals, and makes instruments sound organic, the lack thereof making the MSR7b's sound slightly hollow/veiled in comparison (the low-mid scoop is not too bad on either headphones though, it just sounded a bit more obvious in the MSR7b's to me).

Furthermore, the MSR7b's to me sound more present around the 1khz-1500hz region, making these sound a little warmer in that regard than the original MSR7's. I find that this adds a nice touch to classical music and pianos especially.

Finally, the last big difference I noticed is the tuning of the top end peak, and this is where something interesting happens. The graphs show that te original MSR7's reach their peak at a relatively wide range at around 10khz, whereas the MSR7b's actually have a slight scoop at 10khz, and then reach their peak at a slightly higher and narrower 12khz region. It's very tricky to explain what this difference sound like but I would say that the original MSR7's have more forward vocals in terms of top end, whereas the MSR7b's seem to accentuate cymbals and hi-hats a bit more in comparison. What I don't love about both headphones as a result of this is that the MSR7's sometimes make vocals sound a little bit harsh, whereas the MSR7b's make cymbals sound a little artificial. It's nothing too bad though, these headphones don't really over-or underdo anything too much in the frequency department, therefore being relatively neutral as I said before.

Conclusion:
Overall, the two headphones do sound really good and very similair, both being on the bright side, but having subtle differences in the way they are tuned. I prefer the neutrality of the low end in the MSR7's, the less obvious scoop in the low mids, and the focus at 10khz (altough it is ever so slightly sibilant sounding in that regard). On the other hand, I prefer the warmth delivered by the MSR7b's around 1khz-1500hz, and the better instrument seperation. The MSR7's had a much sturdier build quality, but the MSR7b's are more comfortable. I cannot really recommend any headphones because these two are the only decent ones I've owned, but I also cannot really recommend the original MSR7's because both of mine went kaput. I will have to see how these MSR7b's hold up over time. I think most people will be pleased with both pairs in terms of sound though.

*Edit ~ I forgot to say that the cables fit into the jacks of the MSR7b extremely tightly, forcing me to grab firmly onto the headphones to remove the cables, whereas the cable fit in the MSR7 jack is fairly loose, often times causing the cable to accidentally jank off the headphones. Also, the ''Left'' and ''Right'' on the MSR7b cans is rather hard to discern, and I often have to hold them at a certain angle to see it. These things are a little annoying, and could be just on my pairs but I think it's worth mentioning.

 

[dadracer2]

I'm a complete noob on this forum but having bought a pair of MSR7b's about a month ago, I'd like to explain my impressions, especially in comparison to the original MSR7's. Prior to having bought these, I owned two pairs of MSR7's for a duration of about 4-5 years. The first pair lost all of it's low end for no apparent reason and the second pair had a hinge that snapped. So now I decided to buy these. Overall, if I'd have to choose between the two, it would probably be a 50-50 for me.

Build:
First of all, the MSR7b's are definitely more comfortable mostly due to the lighter weight and the decreased clamping force. Personally, however, due to my rather small head I had no issues with the MSR7's and thought they were comfortable as well. When I first grabbed the MSR7b's out of the package I was concerned about the build quality though, to the point where I thought they might be fake. They definitely feel cheaper and more fragile because they weigh substantially less. I hope the hinges won't break like they did on the original MSR7's. I will say though that my MSR7b's joints crackle a lot less than my MSR7's did, those were much noisier when put on and off the head. I also believe the original MSR7's got hotter around my ears than these do.

Sound:
I would say both the MSR7's and MSR7b's are great sounding bright headphones, with really good accuracy and detail retrieval. The main reason I can think of not to get either of these is if you're are huge basshead, if you really like your low-mids, or if you don't like bright sounding headphones.

I'm now mainly going to talk about the differences between these two headphones. Having looked at both frequency response graphs I would say they are very much in accordance with my personal experience. In general, I would say that both headphones are relatively neutral with a slight V shape to the sound profile. To me, the biggest difference between the two involves the mid-bass, the low-mids, and the top end peaks. Before I explain the difference in sound, I do want to add that in my opinion the MSR7b's have slightly more clarity in the bass, and have slightly better instrument seperation than the original MSR7's.

Both have an equal amount of sub bass in my estimation, being slightly reduced by about a few db below neutral up to 50hz. The quality of the sub bass is excellent but by quantity, there is not a lot of it (although I wouldn't say the sub bass is terribly lacking, it's there and it's sounds good it's just not as present as you might expect/want). If you're a huge sub-bass guy, you're probably going to want to pass on either of these headphones.

Going up to the mid bass, this is where a noticeable difference shows up. The MSR7b's have more mid-bass than the MSR7's do, right around 125hz at a pretty wide range. This was the first thing I noticed when I put on the MSR7b's, the mid-bass was pretty forward. It works for some songs, not so much for others. I would say it emphasizes bass-lines at the mid-bass level but overall I prefer the more neutral MSR7's in that regard. I had no problem eq-ing it out though.

Both the MSR7b's and MSR7's sound identical to me from the mid bass all the way up to the low mids. This is where another noticeable difference shows up. Both headphones are slightly scooped in the low-mids, giving them a modern sound. To me, however, the MSR7b's sound scooped at around 350hz, whereas the MSR7's sound scooped a little higher at around 500hz. I really believe that this is the reason that many people think the MSR7b's have more soundstage. The more scooped low mids around 350hz creates an illusion that the music is farther away, as this frequency tends to sound a little pokey. Altough both headphones are scooped in the low-mids, I prefer the tuning of the original MSR7's as the 350hz region gives body to vocals, and makes instruments sound organic, the lack thereof making the MSR7b's sound slightly hollow/veiled in comparison (the low-mid scoop is not too bad on either headphones though, it just sounded a bit more obvious in the MSR7b's to me).

Furthermore, the MSR7b's to me sound more present around the 1khz-1500hz region, making these sound a little warmer in that regard than the original MSR7's. I find that this adds a nice touch to classical music and pianos especially.

Finally, the last big difference I noticed is the tuning of the top end peak, and this is where something interesting happens. The graphs show that te original MSR7's reach their peak at a relatively wide range at around 10khz, whereas the MSR7b's actually have a slight scoop at 10khz, and then reach their peak at a slightly higher and narrower 12khz region. It's very tricky to explain what this difference sound like but I would say that the original MSR7's have more forward vocals in terms of top end, whereas the MSR7b's seem to accentuate cymbals and hi-hats a bit more in comparison. What I don't love about both headphones as a result of this is that the MSR7's sometimes make vocals sound a little bit harsh, whereas the MSR7b's make cymbals sound a little artificial. It's nothing too bad though, these headphones don't really over-or underdo anything too much in the frequency department, therefore being relatively neutral as I said before.

Overall, the two headphones do sound really good and very similair, both being on the bright side, but having subtle differences in the way they are tuned. I prefer the neutrality of the low end in the MSR7's, the less obvious scoop in the low mids, and the focus at 10khz (altough it is ever so slightly sibilant sounding in that regard). On the other hand, I prefer the warmth delivered by the MSR7b's around 1khz-1500hz, and the better instrument seperation. The MSR7's had a much sturdier build quality, but the MSR7b's are more comfortable. I cannot really recommend any headphones because these two are the only decent ones I've owned, but I also cannot really recommend the original MSR7's because both of mine went kaput. I will have to see how these MSR7b's hold up over time. I think most people will be pleased with both pairs in terms of sound though.

Try the 7b in balanced mode and see if that adds anything for you.

 

[Sp12er3]

to note on my impression I did used the 7B on balanced mode with my Shanling M3s, but it doesn't add anything to it IMO, it might be different if I bring it home and used the balanced out of my DX7s of which I noticed quite a bit better instrument placement on both my T1 and Z1R when comparing it's unbal and bal output, but not sure the MSR7B even have that much resolving ability to detect that. My Z7 sure doesn't.

 

[dadracer2]

The 7b will certainly resolve things very nicely in balanced on a good amp in my experience. Also a better cable will add some differences.

 

[itchyears]

You could also try the paper towel mod to reduce that bright sting on vocals and instruments on the msr7bs, mine feel more better since I done that mod.

I did not notice any difference between 3 headphones amps (ifi zen balanced amp, topping l30/d30 and topping dx3-pro) when trying balanced on the ifi zen over my topping
amps, but its possible these are just more cheaper £130-200 range budget amps so perhaps needed much higher level quality dacs/amps and better wire to notice any difference with balanced use.

Still tempted to try the AKG K371s which some are saying are very good closed hps.

 

[dadracer2]

You could also try the paper towel mod to reduce that bright sting on vocals and instruments on the msr7bs, mine feel more better since I done that mod.

I did not notice any difference between 3 headphones amps (ifi zen balanced amp, topping l30/d30 and topping dx3-pro) when trying balanced on the ifi zen over my topping
amps, but its possible these are just more cheaper £130-200 range budget amps so perhaps needed much higher level quality dacs/amps and better wire to notice any difference with balanced use.

Still tempted to try the AKG K371s which some are saying are very good closed hps.

The ATH AP2000Ti are excellent closed backs and if you like the 7b sound with less sting.........