[leeperry]

I've tried the M1060, (stock since it was not mine), it was very boring and nothing like all the hype I've been reading but I haven't given up yet.

Tyll said that ortho diaphragm tension is very hard to keep consistent so for all we know everyone in this thread has a somewhat different sounding phone and of course there'll be golden samples and duds. It's already true with megabucks phones so situation with chinese knock-offs can't quite be any better

All this said running 500g phones certainly requires dedication, anything >350g is a no-go for me. Might as well stick mini speakers to your ears if weight is no concern.

 

[DavidA]

Tyll said that ortho diaphragm tension is very hard to keep consistent so for all we know everyone in this thread has a somewhat different sounding phone and of course there'll be golden samples and duds. It's already true with megabucks phones so situation with chinese knock-offs can't quite be any better

All this said running 500g phones certainly requires dedication, anything >350g is a no-go for me. Might as well stick mini speakers to your ears if weight is no concern.

I glad you noted that weight is an issue for you also and agree that there is the possibility of golden samples and duds with the M1060, its why I haven't totally given up on them yet.

 

[junki]

Since the Audeze Vegan Pads are unobtainium now, is there a somewhat cohesive list of other recommended (and available) pads to produce the same sonic benefit as the vegans?

Also, I'm fairly new to pad rolling, is there a good way to tell if a pad may or may not fit my headphones? I'm currently eyeing these: https://www.massdrop.com/buy/brainwavz-memory-foam-ear-pads

Thanks!

 

[Brahmsian]

1. stock M1060, which sounded boring with no life, it lacked any extension in the highs to the point of being "veiled" IMO

2. One factor that I feel influences my impression is the level that I and the owner listen at, 65-75dB, which is lower than most.

3. Agree with you that the genre is a factor since I don't listen to dubstep, house or electro and very little EDM and pop.

4. As I noted earlier the weight is an issue with all of the LCD series and the M1060 is still up there in weight, also the stock pads on the LCD and M1060 get hot very quickly for me.

I consider the HD700 and SRH-1840 as my bench marks for comfort which considers weight, clamping force, feel of ear pads, headband weight distribution and how breathable the ear pads / headphones are.

As for the HE4XX, it looks like they used a variation of the HE400i driver which is a shame since I think the older HE400 driver has more potential but at $170 its hard to dismiss them until more get to try them.

1. After the fuzzor mod, highs are smooth and subdued, but not very present. I like the treble on the HE400i better.

2-3. When you crank up the volume on the M1060, the impression they give is that there is a whole dance club in your head. They sound big, bold, powerful. Nothing thin about them. But if you don't like that kind of music, then it's irrelevant. Normally, I don't like that kind of music either, but the M1060 makes me want to listen since it sounds so good.

4. I believe the stock pads on the LCD are the lambskin ones I put on my M1060. I have no hotness issues with them, but I did notice that they were a little warmer than M1060 stock. Here's why I think Audeze pads are better: it feels like they cover more surface area around my ears. Stock pads felt like a very thin ring around ears with slight pressure points above and below. The sensation they gave me is that they didn't seal properly (whether they actually did or not). The Audeze pads don't create the pressure points, evenly distribute the weight, and give the sensation of a better seal. They also seem to compress a little better against my head while the stock pads resist getting squeezed.

1. in my case the HE400i/560 pads fit really well and I get a good seal but you have a good point that for some it might be irritating...it was giving me a head ache at first.

2. And yes the M1060 I listened to was bone stock, but I haven't totally given up yet, I'm trying to get borrow some Eikon pads, ori pads and Ether pads from a friend to try on the M1060, hopefully within the next few months since the owner of the pads lives in Japan and travels quite a bit for work.

1. Same here. HE400i clamped so hard, it was giving me head/neck aches. They still clamp hard, but it has gotten better. Excellent seal, though. All in all, not too uncomfortable because of the great weight distribution.

2. I'm not convinced that the M1060 is a good match for you, even with different pads. It's just that when you say it's too laid back ("boring with no life"), I find that the M1060 is actually the opposite of that. There's just nothing boring about them. They're like the anti-boring cans. People might get the wrong impression or be confused. Make no mistake, these are big, fun, engaging cans. In fact, I would say fun is the name of the game with these cans.

BUT this doesn't mean that you're wrong. With the stock pads, played at low volume, and with certain genres/recordings, this headphone did sound kind of hollow at first with weak, recessed vocals, and a disjointed soundstage. I honestly don't know what happened. A lot of the improvement is due to the mods. Maybe breaking these headphones in also makes a difference. Also trying different genres. But man have they opened up! That I can tell you. Sometimes you just have to spend some time with a headphone to find out what it does well.

Comfort is a silly issue being discussed in forums, introduced by professional reviewers with questionable knowledge experience and skills to justify their existence.

I never had an issue with any of the phones I owned in the past 45 years. OK some are better than others but nobody would trade performance for comfort.

I couldn't disagree more. Comfort is a huge issue for me.

Tyll said that ortho diaphragm tension is very hard to keep consistent so for all we know everyone in this thread has a somewhat different sounding phone and of course there'll be golden samples and duds. It's already true with megabucks phones so situation with chinese knock-offs can't quite be any better

I was just reading about the Focal Utopias and Audeze LCD-4s reviewed by Tyll over at Innerfidelity that sounded and measured different from the pairs used by Bob Katz. They found significant variations. That's also a factor as well as variations in how we all perceive sound.

 

[kintsaki]

hey, can you kindly show me a pic of how you have the tape?

I did post it earlier just go back a few posts its on flickr.
fell free to experimentwith the size of the area covered as it does make difference
and your sweat spot may vary. I have not searched for it too just started at what I thought would be good.
It is the easiest and cheaper to mod to monkey around with provided you did the paper towel.
Just tak the still covers off to minimize the risk of damaging the screw holes.

 

[mandrake50]

I did post it earlier just go back a few posts its on flickr.
fell free to experimentwith the size of the area covered as it does make difference
and your sweat spot may vary. I have not searched for it too just started at what I thought would be good.
It is the easiest and cheaper to mod to monkey around with provided you did the paper towel.
Just tak the still covers off to minimize the risk of damaging the screw holes.

Problem is... when I went to look at the picture it wanted me to logon to my Yahoo/Tumblr account. I haven't used that thing in so long I could not remember my password... then it gave me a huge run around to try to reset my password... In other words, perhaps many people cannot look at the picture... Obviously I could not.

Maybe you could just embed it here ??

 

[macky112]

picture of my modified cups

https://www.flickr.com/cameraroll/

the link is only pointing to flickr login
and the embedded images are not showing up

could you please check?

 

[PockyG]

Guys

I've completely covered the backside with paper towel, I have the vegan pads
I've tried the paper towel mod with the 3 inch paper and the clarity just isn't there
Try it with both and let me know your thoughts... to my ears it sounds much better with paper towels covering completely

Interesting. I really disliked the way it sounds with the PT covering the entire backside. Soundstage closed off too much and there was weird distortions at least for me. Can't say how they sound with vegan pads though. Much preferred it with a 3 inch diameter.

Since the Audeze Vegan Pads are unobtainium now, is there a somewhat cohesive list of other recommended (and available) pads to produce the same sonic benefit as the vegans?

Also, I'm fairly new to pad rolling, is there a good way to tell if a pad may or may not fit my headphones? I'm currently eyeing these: https://www.massdrop.com/buy/brainwavz-memory-foam-ear-pads

Thanks!

I've liked my HiFiMAN Velpads on the M1060. Others don't seem to like them but they're cheap.

Do not get the oval brainwavz pads if you care about fit. They're too small to fully cover the driver, I've tried with my spare HM5 hybrids and they don't work. You want to look for pads that are round and have an outer diameter of at least 105mm. Brainwavz does sell XL round pads that should work if you want to try them.

 

[kintsaki]

hey, can you kindly show me a pic of how you have the tape?

 

[kintsaki]

Problem is... when I went to look at the picture it wanted me to logon to my Yahoo/Tumblr account. I haven't used that thing in so long I could not remember my password... then it gave me a huge run around to try to reset my password... In other words, perhaps many people cannot look at the picture... Obviously I could not.

Maybe you could just embed it here ??

 

[kintsaki]

 

[kintsaki]

Hey guys I am beginning to love this thread because you are all very polite and I do learn things from you. I must also apologize for my roughness and try to keep my tone down.

1) DavidA informing me that ZMFs are up from 50 to 75. I got them from Zack at regular price just before the Vegan frenzy started, to replace my worn Denon and to save the unacceptable short lasting pleathers of the stock TH900s (Fostex being my favorite company is not ashamed to put crappy pads on their 1700 flagship.
Well it seems people are going to ZMF to get an alternative to the hard to find Vegans and drove the price up.
Based on my findings the 15 $ velour pads are fine so save your money the LCD and ZMF part of the mod is the least significant.

2) The stock M1060 at low level is boring veiled etc. exactly as DavidA described.
In addition when driven by low power amps (true 0.1 Watt output) again it sounds veiled boring etc. With true 0.35 Watt (true means at all frequencies at all complex impedances not resistances) in balanced mode it wakes up and sounds hard, shooty, with treble completely out of control and with bass sometimes great and other times anemic.
So unless you are willing to experiment with mods and have a good amp with outstanding damping factor to control the bass stay away. (Many 1 or 2 Watt amps can’t deliver to low complex impedance or don’t have robust power supplies to keep the dumping factor high)

3) People say HeXX and LCD’s are opposite sides (Bright-Dark) if this is true and you like sparkling highs HeXX is better for you because M1060 modes aim to clone LCDs.
But and this is a big bud HeXX are the most difficult to drive phones and you will definitely need to spent money on the amp. I myself like sparkling highs and as time goes buy and get used to the sound of my latest configuration of the M1060 I begin to
at times wish there was more. (more on that later)

4) I am going though 8-12 hour listening sessions quite frequently and have a large head.
Neither weight nor clamping force bothers me. Maybe I have a “thick skull”...
But I can tell the differences in comfort level.
So OK. I can see that for most people comfort level may be a significant issue, which would severely impact their enjoyment level.

5) A lot of you experiment with variations like for example the full size paper towel mode and this is also helping me a lot.

I will continue later.
For the time being I want to tell you what an LCD and Hifiman dealer said about the planar moded Fostex
and why I prefer them for low and moderate volume levels and I suggest you try them.
Unfortunately they are the second most difficult pair of headphones to drive.

Here is the review I want you to read




http://www.headfonia.com/standing-ovation-smeggys-thunderpants/

 

[DavidA]

Since the Audeze Vegan Pads are unobtainium now, is there a somewhat cohesive list of other recommended (and available) pads to produce the same sonic benefit as the vegans?

Also, I'm fairly new to pad rolling, is there a good way to tell if a pad may or may not fit my headphones? I'm currently eyeing these: https://www.massdrop.com/buy/brainwavz-memory-foam-ear-pads

Thanks!

While I haven't tried to pad roll with a M1060 yet the pads you linked to are oval and were a PITA to even get on a Hifiman headphone which is slightly smaller than the M1060.
Pads needs to have a diameter of 105-110mm: ZMF Eikon pads (109mm), ZMF Ori pads (105mm), MrSpeaker Ether pads (107mm), Audeze pads for LCD series

 

[kintsaki]

While I haven't tried to pad roll with a M1060 yet the pads you linked to are oval and were a PITA to even get on a Hifiman headphone which is slightly smaller than the M1060.
Pads needs to have a diameter of 105-110mm: ZMF Eikon pads (109mm), ZMF Ori pads (105mm), MrSpeaker Ether pads (107mm), Audeze pads for LCD series

M1060 diameter is 105mm identical to ZMF Ori and best looking leather wood fit.

 

[DavidA]

@kintsaki, the article you linked to was a good read but the comparisons were to older models like the HE400/500 and probably the LCD-2.1/2.2 (pre Fazor models). I have a HE400 but its highly modded and to me sounds better than my HE400i. The difference between the pre-Fazor and Fazor LCD-2/3 is very noticeable, if you like the laid back smooth mellow sound then you really want the pre-Fazor version and even then there are differences between the 2014-Dec 2015 Fazor and the 2016 Fazor. The M1060 that I tried was closest to the LCD-2.1, very warm with rolled of highs and to be a little boring at the level that I listen to.