[thatonenoob]

Hmmm, I guess it could be a risk. I mean, the cotton would be on the inside of the pad so it seems pretty safe to me but aybe its not such a good idea. There seems to be examples online of people using the technique with open back phones though. 

Without a doubt if it works it'd be probably be very comfortable. However just a little squeamish about doing these things to my cans hahaha.

 

[Andrew Rieger]

There are also numerous examples of people modding phones by sticking cotton or polyfill inside the cans themselves behind the drivers, much like the fill they stick inside of speakers and sub boxes. 
 
If its safe to do this:
 

 


... then its probably safe to slip some cotton under the inside rim of the pad where it is separated from the driver by the protective foam that covers it. 
 
I'm going to try out this mod as soon as my r70's come in a few days but I figured someone who already has them could try it out since its super easy to do and super easy to undo. 
 
Shure 1840 owners have been reporting good results with this mod. You can read about it here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/591325/how-to-hi-end-ify-your-srh940
 
Same mod on some Audeze:
 


Doesn't hurt to try. I'm going to try some rolled cotton from the pharmacy. its probably less stringy and fibrous. 

 

[pear]

I've had my set of R70x for about a month now and they've quickly become my go-to headphones. The only thing I'm unhappy with is the cable length - easily fixed though. DIY cable in the making just waiting for some locking 2.5mm connectors to arrive in the mail.
 
As far as pads go I've also tested the velour HM5 pads but went back to the stock pads. Comfort wasn't an issue and I didn't like how the HM5 pads changed the sound.

 

[Andrew Rieger]

So I went ahead and did the cotton ball mod on my Fidelio L2's which are obviously not equivalent to the R70x's because they are semi open. I'm honestly not an audiophile yet so my ears are far from golden but to my ears, the bass seems to be slightly punchier. Everything else sounds about the same. The pads are a tad more comfortable. I say give it a shot if you are curious. I will test it on my R70's when they arrive. I may go to a fabric store and look for some black velour that I can roll up to do the same thing. It will probably look tidier. 

 

[digiman]

I'm trying to decide between these and HD650s.
 
I want to get the AT's as i've owned a few in the past and loved them (ESW9 favourite so far, W1000x), and i'm turned off by sennheriser for some reason.
 
Can anyone tell me if the treble of r70x is at all peaky/harsh?
 
I'm a big fan of subtle treble, and very sensitive to peaks. This is why i'm considering the 650.
 
Listen to all genres, will be amped and ODAC'd

 

[woodpecker]

  I'm trying to decide between these and HD650s.
 
I want to get the AT's as i've owned a few in the past and loved them (ESW9 favourite so far, W1000x), and i'm turned off by sennheriser for some reason.
 
Can anyone tell me if the treble of r70x is at all peaky/harsh?
 
I'm a big fan of subtle treble, and very sensitive to peaks. This is why i'm considering the 650.
 
Listen to all genres, will be amped and ODAC'd

I could only compare the R70x to the HD600, and I prefer the AT sound.
If anything, the R70x treble is a bit on the low side. Not peaky or harsh at all and very comfortable for longer listening sessions.

 

[thatonenoob]

  I'm trying to decide between these and HD650s.
 
I want to get the AT's as i've owned a few in the past and loved them (ESW9 favourite so far, W1000x), and i'm turned off by sennheriser for some reason.
 
Can anyone tell me if the treble of r70x is at all peaky/harsh?
 
I'm a big fan of subtle treble, and very sensitive to peaks. This is why i'm considering the 650.
 
Listen to all genres, will be amped and ODAC'd

 
The R70X treble is not peaky or harsh in my opinion.  If you're worried about M50X style sibilance somehow making its way into the R70X, don't worry, cause it ain't there.  I tried the 650s, and the darker sound signature just didn't gel with me, or my genres for that matter.  It's absolutely wonderful at slower music that focuses more on body and emotion (i.e. jazz) and it definitely comes into its own there.  However, for faster and more technical (and I use this term with care, as the 650 is by no means technically incompetent) genres, especially modern and 80s-90s synth stuff, I found the 650s to be a bit slow and heavy-handed for my tastes.
 
In comparison, R70x plays very well with a variety of genres, and is graceful in its execution of sound.  Perhaps it's not really a master of any one, but for those like myself who listen to a whole ton of stuff...this is definitely the right pair of cans to get.

 

[Arinko]

   
The R70X treble is not peaky or harsh in my opinion.  If you're worried about M50X style sibilance somehow making its way into the R70X, don't worry, cause it ain't there.  I tried the 650s, and the darker sound signature just didn't gel with me, or my genres for that matter.  It's absolutely wonderful at slower music that focuses more on body and emotion (i.e. jazz) and it definitely comes into its own there.  However, for faster and more technical (and I use this term with care, as the 650 is by no means technically incompetent) genres, especially modern and 80s-90s synth stuff, I found the 650s to be a bit slow and heavy-handed for my tastes.
 
In comparison, R70x plays very well with a variety of genres, and is graceful in its execution of sound.  Perhaps it's not really a master of any one, but for those like myself who listen to a whole ton of stuff...this is definitely the right pair of cans to get.

I agree with the last paragraph. This is the first headphone which I found to be very natural in it's rendition of the sound. I sometimes forget the sound is from a headphone.

 

[pear]

  I'm trying to decide between these and HD650s.
 
I want to get the AT's as i've owned a few in the past and loved them (ESW9 favourite so far, W1000x), and i'm turned off by sennheriser for some reason.
 
Can anyone tell me if the treble of r70x is at all peaky/harsh?
 
I'm a big fan of subtle treble, and very sensitive to peaks. This is why i'm considering the 650.
 
Listen to all genres, will be amped and ODAC'd

 
The R70x is definitely a more polite and neutral-sounding headphone than the HD 650. Like woodpecker said the HD 600 from Sennheiser are closest to the R70x as far as sound signature goes. 
 
I use my R70x with an ODAC and the SMSL sAp II Pro.

 

[thatonenoob]

The R70x is definitely a more polite and neutral-sounding headphone than the HD 650. Like woodpecker said the HD 600 from Sennheiser are closest to the R70x as far as sound signature goes. 

I use my R70x with an ODAC and the SMSL sAp II Pro.

Agreed. Between the HD600 and r70x I found the 600s to be smoother and a bit slower. The r70 has slightly weaker mid performance in this regard but has a subtle treble sparkle that makes it more lively and engaging in my opinion. Not to mention the fact that the r70x is significantly more comfortable on my head (not going to talk about manually stretching out the hd600 which to me is painful to watch).

Run out of a slightly warm amp like the dac mini and the r70x is a real party.

 

[Soundsgoodtome]

Hello guys, does anyone know of another company making aftermarket cables besides Lunashop and Hivecables? Or perhaps know if the locking 2.5mm trs on lunashop and E-bay actually works for the R70x?

I just got mine and would like to make a balanced cable for it. If I can not source the connectors that goes into the phone, I may just chop the stock cable and attach a 4-pin male XLR. Which then begs the question, does the stock cable have 4 wires to the plug?

 

[pear]

  Hello guys, does anyone know of another company making aftermarket cables besides Lunashop and Hivecables? Or perhaps know if the locking 2.5mm trs on lunashop and E-bay actually works for the R70x?

I just got mine and would like to make a balanced cable for it. If I can not source the connectors that goes into the phone, I may just chop the stock cable and attach a 4-pin male XLR. Which then begs the question, does the stock cable have 4 wires to the plug?

The stock cable should have 6 wires at the plug end since the 2.5mm connectors are wired for both left and right and can be used on either side of the headphone.
 
As far as the connectors go I bought a pair from AliExpress for $2.69 a piece (free shipping). I think the same one is available from Lunashops as well. This is the one you want:
 

 

[Soundsgoodtome]

Thanks for the info, didn't realize the contacts on the cable wasn't mono. Did they really run both left and right to each side? What an oddity.

And those connectors on aliexp/lunashop works for sure?

The stock cable should have 6 wires at the plug end since the 2.5mm connectors are wired for both left and right and can be used on either side of the headphone.

As far as the connectors go I bought a pair from AliExpress for $2.69 a piece (free shipping). I think the same one is available from Lunashops as well. This is the one you want:

 

[pear]

Thanks for the info, didn't realize the contacts on the cable wasn't mono. Did they really run both left and right to each side? What an oddity.

And those connectors on aliexp/lunashop works for sure?

No worries. 
 
Yes, both connectors are stereo and can be connected to either side of the headphones. On the phone-end they are wired so the left cup uses tip and sleeve, the right cup uses ring and sleeve. If you make your own cable you'll probably want to make it left-right-specific.
 
And yes, that is the correct connector. The author of this thread used the same ones. I'm waiting for mine to arrive. Will post a picture when my DIY cable is finished.

 

[Arinko]

  Hello guys, does anyone know of another company making aftermarket cables besides Lunashop and Hivecables? Or perhaps know if the locking 2.5mm trs on lunashop and E-bay actually works for the R70x?

I just got mine and would like to make a balanced cable for it. If I can not source the connectors that goes into the phone, I may just chop the stock cable and attach a 4-pin male XLR. Which then begs the question, does the stock cable have 4 wires to the plug?

 
Try https://hivemindcables.com/collections/audio-technica