[bemeurer]

@Shaffer ouch, 650 is way out of my league right now sadly, they do look like amazing amps tho. I'm probably just going to put a hold on this until I see a cheap Crack going around, haven't seen any Val2 vs. Crack reviews yet, that'd be interesting to read.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

 
Hmm, I don't quite understand this tho, how could the earpads make a significant impact in sound? I thought their function was purely for comfort.

 

They can affect the distance of the drivers from your ears which can affect the sound. You can simulate this by pressing the headphones (grip with one finger each on top and bottom of each oval, do not rest your palm on the open back grill) tighter against your head. Similarly the density of the earpad (whether innate or by compression) can affect the sound, like how people wrap tape around their Grado earpads to enhance the bass response, or how the HD6xx gained their "dark and warm" reputation partly through confirmation bias of too many people being the nth guy to try them on after several others used them for extended periods each at a meet, whereas people who actually own them get to try them on first once they get home after several hours of the pads slowly relaxing since they were last used.

 

Other earpads are asymmetrical, as on the AKG K7xx series and LCD-2/3 - this positions the driver more off-center relative to the opening of the ear canal, and also simulating speaker toe-in angles. The HD800, T1, Qualia, etc however don't need to rely on the earpads for that since they angled the driver mount already.

 

AKG earpad

 
Audezee earpad

 
Beyerdynamic T1 driver and baffle

 
 
Basically, think of the earpads partly as the room with respect to speakers.

 

[Planarman]

They can affect the distance of the drivers from your ears which can affect the sound. You can simulate this by pressing the headphones (grip with one finger each on top and bottom of each oval, do not rest your palm on the open back grill) tighter against your head. Similarly the density of the earpad (whether innate or by compression) can affect the sound, like how people wrap tape around their Grado earpads to enhance the bass response, or how the HD6xx gained their "dark and warm" reputation partly through confirmation bias of too many people being the nth guy to try them on after several others used them for extended periods each at a meet, whereas people who actually own them get to try them on first once they get home after several hours of the pads slowly relaxing since they were last used.

Other earpads are asymmetrical, as on the AKG K7xx series and LCD-2/3 - this positions the driver more off-center relative to the opening of the ear canal, and also simulating speaker toe-in angles. The HD800, T1, Qualia, etc however don't need to rely on the earpads for that since they angled the driver mount already.

AKG earpad



Audezee earpad



Beyerdynamic T1 driver and baffle




Basically, think of the earpads partly as the room with respect to speakers.

Very well said! So many people get hung up on soundstage and never make the connection to the earpads.