[Nimzerz]

Yes it's true the highs get a bit steelier with the Ethers that was secondary to other things for me. Are your screens off - Ethers do better when they are gone. You are correct, fuzzor mod will cut that stuff down - is the #1 key mod of all mods for the 500 IMO. Helps develop more depth, cuts distortion, increases detail. It evolves the can from a slightly bass heavy slight hard treble that seems to belong to 2010, to something much different. and better.

I'm surprised at your reaction on the soundstage. I find it deep and very wide (not as awesome as the HD-800), but its the best of any HFM round form can I've heard (heard them all except HE-4, HE-5, HE-6 4 screw), its better than the Ananda and HEX v2, although the Arya and above, no can't match those. I find recordings that are well recorded such as Krall - when something happens that's supposed to be forward or even in your lap - there it is.

How much power do have at 40 ohms?

I should have about 6 watts into these headphones available with this amp, straight out of the speaker taps at its impedance. It's definitely not a question of power. I began the fuzzor mod a long time ago and stopped because after just a little bit of it I noticed a drop off in bass. Not sure what was going on, but I ended up removing it and never gave it another shot. I don't have the screens on my headphone either, removed those long ago and never put them back on, haha.

As for the soundstage, it's not that it's not impressive, I guess I might just like the forward nature of the HE-500 with the other pads. It's hard to explain.

I swear these earpads are much heavier or something. Maybe the difference in clamp or something makes me not used to the weight distribution of the HE-500 now, haha, I might need to adjust again. I find myself getting tired of wearing them pretty quickly now, whereas I used to be able to wear them all day with all the other pads.

Edit: After listening for a while longer with these.... wow that bass. I thought the Focuspads bass was great but I'm hearing some level of control in the bass I have never heard before with these. That along with the way these make brass instruments sound are easily imo the strongest points of the Ether Angled pads. I'm not crazy about soundstage in general, but if you care a lot for it, yes, these help to really push sounds out a lot.

 

[Nimzerz]

I would say to take what I said earlier with a grain of salt. I made those comments at the same time as restoring my amplifier with many film caps that had yet to be fully broken in. After that, along with me probably getting used to the sound of these pads, I don't really detect any harshness anymore. I would recommend these to everyone here, confirming pretty much everything @bagwell359 has said about them. Also, I think the fact that these are real leather makes them actually very breathable, unlike pleather pads that can get hot over time. Very easy to wear for long periods of time.

 

[DivineCurrent]

Hey guys, was wondering if anyone here has a spare Audeze Yoke kit? Or is anyone willing to order them for me if you own an Audeze? I'm asking around, because Audeze won't let me order yokes unless I provide them proof of purchase and a serial number. I already got a headband, so all I need now are the rods and the yokes to do the headband mod.

 

[Oregonian]

Hey guys, was wondering if anyone here has a spare Audeze Yoke kit? Or is anyone willing to order them for me if you own an Audeze? I'm asking around, because Audeze won't let me order yokes unless I provide them proof of purchase and a serial number. I already got a headband, so all I need now are the rods and the yokes to do the headband mod.

Try TSAV - they sold me the kit for my HE-6SE.

 

[DivineCurrent]

Try TSAV - they sold me the kit for my HE-6SE.

Is TSAV this place? https://www.thesourceav.com/
Edit: never mind, I contacted them. Thank you!

 

[Oregonian]

Is TSAV this place? https://www.thesourceav.com/
Edit: never mind, I contacted them. Thank you!

Yep, as you found out that's the place - and you're welcome!

 

[bagwell359]

I should have about 6 watts into these headphones available with this amp, straight out of the speaker taps at its impedance. It's definitely not a question of power.

Damping factor? BTW I know you had a different view later, this is just a good spot to jump in w/ any new folks hanging out.

began the fuzzor mod a long time ago and stopped because after just a little bit of it I noticed a drop off in bass. Not sure what was going on, but I ended up removing it and never gave it another shot. I don't have the screens on my headphone either, removed those long ago and never put them back on, haha.

Screens off good, no fuzzor for more output bad. What they remove (almost all in the mids and highs) needs to go for clarity. More bass/mid bass/upper bass/low mids lost in pitching the screen.

As for the soundstage, it's not that it's not impressive, I guess I might just like the forward nature of the HE-500 with the other pads. It's hard to explain.

I swear these earpads are much heavier or something. Maybe the difference in clamp or something makes me not used to the weight distribution of the HE-500 now, haha, I might need to adjust again. I find myself getting tired of wearing them pretty quickly now, whereas I used to be able to wear them all day with all the other pads.

Edit: After listening for a while longer with these.... wow that bass. I thought the Focuspads bass was great but I'm hearing some level of control in the bass I have never heard before with these. That along with the way these make brass instruments sound are easily imo the strongest points of the Ether Angled pads. I'm not crazy about soundstage in general, but if you care a lot for it, yes, these help to really push sounds out a lot.

Its the width off the soundstage that separates it from others. On very good recordings I've heard it all outside the head giving a spead of 145 degrees, and some of it over the top of your head .

Try Thurman Green Dance of the Night Creatures - first 3 cuts in particular. No other pad (of the 12 I've tried) is going to play it the same.

 

[Nimzerz]

Damping factor? BTW I know you had a different view later, this is just a good spot to jump in w/ any new folks hanging out.

Screens off good, no fuzzor for more output bad. What they remove (almost all in the mids and highs) needs to go for clarity. More bass/mid bass/upper bass/low mids lost in pitching the screen.

Its the width off the soundstage that separates it from others. On very good recordings I've heard it all outside the head giving a spead of 145 degrees, and some of it over the top of your head .

Try Thurman Green Dance of the Night Creatures - first 3 cuts in particular. No other pad (of the 12 I've tried) is going to play it the same.

Given that I’m running them off of the speaker taps, the damping factor is nothing to be concerned about (should be 200+). I will say for others, however, it is very important. When I first got this amp long ago, I tried the headphone Jack and the large resistor inside to reduce the power had completely ruined the sound because of the massive change in the damping factor.

Maybe I’ll get around to trying the fuzzor mod again but for now I’m really still enjoying these headphones as they are with these new pads

 

[DivineCurrent]

I agree the soundstage changes noticeably with different pads. I'm using 400S VelPads most of the time, they make the soundstage wider than most pads I've tried (Dekoni hybrids and velour, Focus Pads, Pali Pads).
I've started using the Pali Pads recently with the HE-500. They seem to bring the sound in a little more, but also have more controlled bass and smoother more natural treble than the VelPads. With EQ, I think I like them better than the VelPads when it comes to tonality, but time will tell.

Anyone know of a good storage/travel case to use with the HE-500? I'd rather not use a stand, as it may compress the pads or affect the headband over time.

 

[JARRRNO]

How have people in here gone about repairing or replacing their a headband with their set of cans? The left cup/housing/whatever-its-called started coming loose on my pair a month or two ago (which I temporarily remedied by gluing it to the leather of headband), and now broke off from the rest of the headband for good. I bought mine new back in 2013, so warranty isn't in the cards one way or the other. Googling for a solution, I did come across this thread from some years back about replacing the headband, but I'm definitely not confident that I can pull such a clean mod off myself.

I imagine my options are pretty limited as someone not very keen on disassembling the whole damn thing, but is there anything besides the 'Original Headband' from HiFiMAN that I could use? At a glance, this thing looks like something I could manage - just four screws in and out, by the looks of it.

 

[sennfan83261]

How have people in here gone about repairing or replacing their a headband with their set of cans? The left cup/housing/whatever-its-called started coming loose on my pair a month or two ago (which I temporarily remedied by gluing it to the leather of headband), and now broke off from the rest of the headband for good. I bought mine new back in 2013, so warranty isn't in the cards one way or the other. Googling for a solution, I did come across this thread from some years back about replacing the headband, but I'm definitely not confident that I can pull such a clean mod off myself.

I imagine my options are pretty limited as someone not very keen on disassembling the whole damn thing, but is there anything besides the 'Original Headband' from HiFiMAN that I could use? At a glance, this thing looks like something I could manage - just four screws in and out, by the looks of it.

It seems that the button that holds the gimbals broke off on yours. Yeah, that is a point of weakness for that headband design. For any headband replacement, it all depends on whether you can loosen the four screws that attaches the cups to the gimbals. First, those damn screws can be easily stripped, really. It is as if they were made out of play-doh. The problem is that once they strip, the headband replacement process just got a lot tougher. The problem is that some of these mushy screws are jammed in there pretty good, as if Hifiman applied loctite to them. If this is the case for yours, then you'll have to be careful. I've read people use soldering irons to heat up the screw to loosen any adhesive that might keep them jammed in there. Plus, the screws are so damn tiny that I don't know if any screw extractor kits could work on them. Anyways, if you can get the screws off, then you are good to go. The easiest replacement would probably be an Audeze headband+gimbal kit. Unfortunately, people who purchased the HE6sev2 during the Adorama special flocked to dealers to purchase Audeze's gimbal kits, so Audeze has restricted their sale for those who can prove that they own Audeze cans. Several months ago, getting that gimbal kit was pretty easy.

Tell you what. I have an original HE500 headband that has been sitting in my closet unused for the past several months because I swapped it out for an Audeze headband (see pic below). I think you'll have to re-bend the metal piece underneath the leather part to make it properly fit your head. If you are in the US, then I can ship it out to you if you pay me for the shipping. PM me if interested.

 

[JARRRNO]

It seems that the button that holds the gimbals broke off on yours. Yeah, that is a point of weakness for that headband design. For any headband replacement, it all depends on whether you can loosen the four screws that attaches the cups to the gimbals. First, those damn screws can be easily stripped, really. It is as if they were made out of play-doh. The problem is that once they strip, the headband replacement process just got a lot tougher. The problem is that some of these mushy screws are jammed in there pretty good, as if Hifiman applied loctite to them. If this is the case for yours, then you'll have to be careful. I've read people use soldering irons to heat up the screw to loosen any adhesive that might keep them jammed in there. Plus, the screws are so damn tiny that I don't know if any screw extractor kits could work on them. Anyways, if you can get the screws off, then you are good to go. The easiest replacement would probably be an Audeze headband+gimbal kit. Unfortunately, people who purchased the HE6sev2 during the Adorama special flocked to dealers to purchase Audeze's gimbal kits, so Audeze has restricted their sale for those who can prove that they own Audeze cans. Several months ago, getting that gimbal kit was pretty easy.

Tell you what. I have an original HE500 headband that has been sitting in my closet unused for the past several months because I swapped it out for an Audeze headband (see pic below). I think you'll have to re-bend the metal piece underneath the leather part to make it properly fit your head. If you are in the US, then I can ship it out to you if you pay me for the shipping. PM me if interested.

Thanks for the offer. Unfortunately in this case, I do happen to reside in the EU. I took a photo of my predicament - it's a bit grimy, but probably does a better job of illustrating what I'm working with than any vague description of mine. Don't mind the 'stud' to the grill of the left cup - it's the for a ModMic.

I haven't gone to pick at the screws at any point during my time with the cans, but I wouldn't necessarily presume them to be in tip-top shape given the age of these cans (and the quality of the parts as described by those with experience of taking these apart).

Yours look great.

 

[leeperry]

zip ties + duct tape and you're back in the game, mine's broken in the exact same way and 3 screws are stripped so no chance of rolling headband sadly

 

[bagwell359]

Damping factor? BTW I know you had a different view later, this is just a good spot to jump in w/ any new folks hanging out.

Screens off good, no fuzzor for more output bad. What they remove (almost all in the mids and highs) needs to go for clarity. More bass/mid bass/upper bass/low mids lost in pitching the screen.

Its the width off the soundstage that separates it from others. On very good recordings I've heard it all outside the head giving a spead of 145 degrees, and some of it over the top of your head .

Try Thurman Green Dance of the Night Creatures - first 3 cuts in particular. No other pad (of the 12 I've tried) is going to play it the same.

 

[SilverEars]

^ Thurman Green Dance of the Night Creatures is one of the best recorded album ever produced!!!! It will blow your mindzzz.