thefitz
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- May 22, 2015
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Alright, I spent some/enough time with the hybrid pads on the HD800 SDR and have a conclusion.
My setup involves me running the HD800 SDR with the EQ settings that Tyll showed for the HD800S on his review. I think the sound is fantastic and in most cases my EQ'd HD800S gets more head time than my Focal Clear, although that could be a comfort thing! However, it did really bug me that I was using EQ - more accurately, it bugged me that I would constantly turn off and on the EQ depending on whether or not I was using the HD800. My other cans do not require EQ, but the HD800 does.
Looking at the frequency response curves posted by Dekoni, I thought that these pads would remove the need for EQ. Simply put, the pads were still too glarey with the EQ off, and I much preferred the sound of the stock pads when EQ was applied.
Note: I left the original dust covers on, and think you're a masochist if you take them off. I did not and will not cut off the dust covers of the Dekoni pads. To break the pads in, I howled at the moon, farted on my hand, twirled my arms, yelled at the pads, and did all the same crap that makes no difference that everyone else loves to do. It made my 12" interconnects sound better too.
Feel: I have a giant bald head and use the HD800 with the headband extended to the very last click. With these Dekoni pads on, the HD800 became on the tight side with the headband extended all the way. They were also quite warm with the Dekonis installed. Stock pads are far more comfortable for me, but that says more about me than the headphones.
Changes noticed regardless of EQ: This might be hard to explain, but the earpads seemed to have warmed up the bottom end a bit without actually adding more bass. I did notice a slight reduction in bass impact, as if the upper bass and lower mids now had the same warmth the low end did (i.e. less impact by addition, not subtraction). The soundstage had an interesting change - I felt that it shrunk noticeably, but everything got smaller sounding as well (as opposed to the soundstage shrinking but everything staying the same size, meaning the sound is more congested). I wouldn't call this a bad thing or a good thing - I think it's about preference.
Changes noticed with EQ off: The sharpness of "SSS" and "CHH" were smoothed out to the level of the rest of the treble, which in my opinion is a big win here. Unfortunately for me, the overall treble was still quite hot and glaring overall, just not in any particular spot. I went from occasionally wincing intensely to always wincing moderately. The heat in the treble did interact well with the "wide low end" the pads imparted (described above). This might be the answer people are looking for - just not me.
Changes noticed with EQ on: This is actually my least favorite sound of them all. The treble reduction in the pads with the treble reduction in the EQ made everything in the upper octaves sound distant, putting unflattering emphasis on the "wide low end" the pads imparted. None of the frequency range sounded good with both the pads and EQ on.
I admire what Dekoni is trying to do, but man, I've had such awful luck with them. Out of the 6 pad sets I've tried, only 2 worked well - the sheepskin leather Fostex TH50RP pads (at half the price of the headphones), and the fenestrated sheepskin pads on the HD600 (but not the HD650). But this experience makes me consider swapping the pads out to stock and seeing if they are really better after all. I'm scared to try Focal Dekoni pads based on what their FR graphs show (and how off their FR graphs seem to be from reality as it is).
Rumour has it that the reason the HD700 is a sack of horse crap is because of the pads introducing all sorts of reflections, and Dekoni is working on HD700 pads. I really really hope they knock it out of the park with them and finally make a pad that's a must-purchase.
My setup involves me running the HD800 SDR with the EQ settings that Tyll showed for the HD800S on his review. I think the sound is fantastic and in most cases my EQ'd HD800S gets more head time than my Focal Clear, although that could be a comfort thing! However, it did really bug me that I was using EQ - more accurately, it bugged me that I would constantly turn off and on the EQ depending on whether or not I was using the HD800. My other cans do not require EQ, but the HD800 does.
Looking at the frequency response curves posted by Dekoni, I thought that these pads would remove the need for EQ. Simply put, the pads were still too glarey with the EQ off, and I much preferred the sound of the stock pads when EQ was applied.
Note: I left the original dust covers on, and think you're a masochist if you take them off. I did not and will not cut off the dust covers of the Dekoni pads. To break the pads in, I howled at the moon, farted on my hand, twirled my arms, yelled at the pads, and did all the same crap that makes no difference that everyone else loves to do. It made my 12" interconnects sound better too.
Feel: I have a giant bald head and use the HD800 with the headband extended to the very last click. With these Dekoni pads on, the HD800 became on the tight side with the headband extended all the way. They were also quite warm with the Dekonis installed. Stock pads are far more comfortable for me, but that says more about me than the headphones.
Changes noticed regardless of EQ: This might be hard to explain, but the earpads seemed to have warmed up the bottom end a bit without actually adding more bass. I did notice a slight reduction in bass impact, as if the upper bass and lower mids now had the same warmth the low end did (i.e. less impact by addition, not subtraction). The soundstage had an interesting change - I felt that it shrunk noticeably, but everything got smaller sounding as well (as opposed to the soundstage shrinking but everything staying the same size, meaning the sound is more congested). I wouldn't call this a bad thing or a good thing - I think it's about preference.
Changes noticed with EQ off: The sharpness of "SSS" and "CHH" were smoothed out to the level of the rest of the treble, which in my opinion is a big win here. Unfortunately for me, the overall treble was still quite hot and glaring overall, just not in any particular spot. I went from occasionally wincing intensely to always wincing moderately. The heat in the treble did interact well with the "wide low end" the pads imparted (described above). This might be the answer people are looking for - just not me.
Changes noticed with EQ on: This is actually my least favorite sound of them all. The treble reduction in the pads with the treble reduction in the EQ made everything in the upper octaves sound distant, putting unflattering emphasis on the "wide low end" the pads imparted. None of the frequency range sounded good with both the pads and EQ on.
I admire what Dekoni is trying to do, but man, I've had such awful luck with them. Out of the 6 pad sets I've tried, only 2 worked well - the sheepskin leather Fostex TH50RP pads (at half the price of the headphones), and the fenestrated sheepskin pads on the HD600 (but not the HD650). But this experience makes me consider swapping the pads out to stock and seeing if they are really better after all. I'm scared to try Focal Dekoni pads based on what their FR graphs show (and how off their FR graphs seem to be from reality as it is).
Rumour has it that the reason the HD700 is a sack of horse crap is because of the pads introducing all sorts of reflections, and Dekoni is working on HD700 pads. I really really hope they knock it out of the park with them and finally make a pad that's a must-purchase.