Claritas, like you said, they might have retuned the drivers, but I don't believe that this alone can do the trick. A few years ago I read an interview, in wich John Grado stated that you can't have an intimate midrange, and a big soundstage. That's why the RS1 for exemple, wich have L-cush, also have an intimate midrange, also have a narrowish soundstage, and it's also why the GS/PS1000 both of wich have G-cush, also have a wider soundstage, and more recessed mids. Pretty logical, if you ask me. You can't have the impression of siting in the 10th row, and expect the signer to be wispering in your ear.
Altough we can't have our cake, and our glasses of milk, we can, to a certain extent, cheat, by swapping pads, that's a great thing that I think that after a while, we start taking for granted. I have swapped the comfies, for the TTVJ flats on my SR80i, and I also swapped the comfies for the L-cush on my Bushmills X.