[DavidA]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ZGGG3KY/ref=abs_brd_tag_dp?smid=A2XYIDHW2C10EQ

I suggest getting a $10 set of HiFiman velour pads too, just to steal the rings out of. Swapping them into these pads is tough!

Also, the changes the pads make are in my opinion of course.. And further more, when I try to explain what those changes really are, the differences go against my normal preferences. I do hear a few trade offs too. But to my ears, I just feel like I'm listening to the music with these and not the equipment. Everything just comes together, "like it should."

No, my 560 are not broken in. This is my initial impression. I am not running them balanced yet either. I'm using an Audio GD NFB-10SE.

Also realized, my 2.5mm plugs are too fat. The 560's cups kind of shroud the ports, so you need a really skinny plug, like the stock one. I think I'll just buy that cable Z Reviews suggested. If I still prefer the 5LE whenever I get them fixed, then get wrecked, I guess it'll all be up for sale then!

I also see that Brainwavs sells a hybrid angle version as well. Have you ever tried those? Thanks

The link is for the oval pads which I tried once, its a B----- to it stretched on the mounting rings and I cracked 2 just trying and due to the poor fit it didn't seem to have a good seal between the ear pads and the headphone cups. The result was that sometimes it sounded decent when the seal was good and at others really bad due to not having a good seal. When I tried the TH900 sheep skin Dekoni pads the results were better IMO but due to the pads getting a really good seal they get a little hot for me here in Hawaii. I also tried the spare pads from my SRH-1840, very comfortable and not bad with my old HE400 since they brought the mids a bit more forward but not so great with the HE560 since it made them a bit too mids forward.

 

[Zack W]

Yeah, I broke a set of rings to. I was so frustrated, I tried trimming one of them down a little, but then it didn't work at all. In the end, I didn't care if I ripped up the pads any more, so I used my hands to stretch the hell out of the retaining flap, or what ever you'd call the part the ring goes into. Then I got it on. That flap also partially blocks the little clips, at least on mine. So there's a trick to clipping the new pads onto the drivers too. Then I found, it's easy to bend the little clips and fold them part way down under themselves so the pads don't sit right on the driver. It's a nightmare. But once I got them on right, they do indeed fit and make a very good seal. To me, they add a bit of heft to the phones and just make the whole package feel more befitting of the price.

 

[peter123]

Trying the Alpha pads on them today and it works pretty well. Manged to get the rings to lock properly after some fiddling and the sound is really nice, especially the bass is more present. I'll keep them this way for a couple of days and go back and see how I feel about the stock pads after that.

Anyone else using the Alpha pads on them?

 

[Zack W]

Which are the alpha pads?

I think my new 560s are noticeably broken in a bit now. Not a huge difference though. I tried the stock pads again last night.

I think they are technically more accurate, but they just aren't enjoyable to me. The sound stage is a little wider with them and certain mid range sounds like an electric guitar, come in more prominently. These things are nice, but there's just something off about their tone and they sound really dead to me with the stock pads. Part of it is, even if the sound stage is wide, individual sounds are very two dimensional. The HM5 pads help with that a lot and the 5LE is better in this respect either way.
Another thing I noticed with the 560,is that they do bring vocals forward live I hoped, sometimes brilliantly. Sometimes they can kind of blare though. In that case, the HM5 pads may help, once a while maybe make it worse. Hard to tell. I need by balanced cable and see what's what then..

 

[peter123]

These are the Alpha pads:
https://www.mrspeakers.com/shop/accessories/alpha-pads-genuine-lamb-leather.html

You do realize that balanced will only make a difference if your amp lack power or perform better through the balanced output compared to the single ended one?

 

[TK16]

I`m using the Ori pads for my HE500 and HE560. Very durable, had too many issues with the Focus A pads ripping.
http://www.zmfheadphones.com/pads-and-cables/omni-pads

 

[DavidA]

I`m using the Ori pads for my HE500 and HE560. Very durable, had too many issues with the Focus A pads ripping.
http://www.zmfheadphones.com/pads-and-cables/omni-pads

Any changes to the sound with the Ori pads relative to the Focus and Focus-A?

 

[TK16]

Sound sig changed a bit from memory, but that is going by memory for the Focus A pads so that might be a placebo effect. Don`t have any pads to do an A/B comparison.

 

[Guidostrunk]

Have you tried any of the dekonis yet bro? I have the th900 fenestrated atm.
I'm more than likely going to get the Ori's to try. Curiosity has me on a pad roll lol. At least it's not tubes right now.

Sound sig changed a bit from memory, but that is going by memory for the Focus A pads so that might be a placebo effect. Don`t have any pads to do an A/B comparison.

 

[TK16]

Have you tried any of the dekonis yet bro? I have the th900 fenestrated atm.
I'm more than likely going to get the Ori's to try. Curiosity has me on a pad roll lol. At least it's not tubes right now.

Not yet grabbed 2 pair of Ori`s on the recommendation of our monkey friend. Will look into that.

 

[Zack W]

My amp is an Audio GD NFB-10se, so it's a fully balanced amp and DAC. It's not under powered single ended, but the balanced makes a difference. I've been running my 5LE's balanced all this time, up until they died again. Compared to plugging them in single ended, the balanced operation has a slightly wider sound stage, better instrument separation, cleaner and generally just more control and authority. It's not a radical difference, as it's very good either way, but those are the benefits and there's no draw back. If the 560 enjoy similar benefits, even if small, it may take them up to the next level. They could really use a little more of everything I just mentioned.

Those alpha pads look neat. Expensive though!

 

[peter123]

If anyone is looking for a portable source to pair with the HE560 I highly recommend checking out the LH Labs Geek Out V2+, what an amazing synergy. I'm using the balanced output on the V2+ as it performs better than the SE one and there's definitely no lack of power:

On another note unfortunately I've got some rattling noise on the right side on my pair. Having read about other having reported the same issue I contacted Hifiman and they came back to me very quickly with the suggestion to try out a different cable (which I had already done), check the driver for hair and if that didn't help they'd replace them. I took of the earpads and unscrewed the mounting ring to release the driver and the carefully blew inside it to remove anything unwanted (couldn't actually see anything) and I'll be damned if it didn't work. Very happy right now as sending stuff from Norway to China is expensive and it's also expensive to get things into the country due to taxes.

Did also try the stock pads again when I had the Alpha pads off anyway but have put the Alpha pads back on again and they will stay on.

 

[mandrake50]

How did you mount the Apha Pads? Did they accept the HiFiMan rings? Easily?

 

[peter123]

How did you mount the Apha Pads? Did they accept the HiFiMan rings? Easily?

Yes, they fit the Hifiman rings easily. Actually my pair has spent the last couple of years on a pair of T50rp so they're stretched quite a bit. I wouldn't imagine new ones would be difficult to fit at all though. There's some fiddling to get the locking mechanism to fit properly on all sides but nothing major. I've done it twice in a few days now and its taken me a couple of minutes each time.

 

[DavidA]

Yes, they fit the Hifiman rings easily. Actually my pair has spent the last couple of years on a pair of T50rp so they're stretched quite a bit. I wouldn't imagine new ones would be difficult to fit at all though. There's some fiddling to get the locking mechanism to fit properly on all sides but nothing major. I've done it twice in a few days now and its taken me a couple of minutes each time.

Easiest way to remove and mount Hifman pads is with a credit card or similar flat thin object, get the first two tabs mounted then use the credit card to get the other 2, takes about 30 seconds