[zemroid]

Those are the ones...100mm round earpads.

BTW, if you like the basic frequency range/tonality of the A800 "as is," then you probably should get the 100% velour version of these round pads. But if you're interested in toning down the upper midrange peak a bit, and maybe also bumping up the bass a bit, then you might want to opt for either the hybrid rounds--or for the most sonic alteration, the round pleathers.

Wow, I didn't know you could actually replace the pads on these, thanks for the information! The pads were the biggest complaint I had when I got these. The default ones are so shallow that my ears touch the elements and it hurt a bit at start. Now I've gotten used to it but I'd still rather get something better.

Now comes the hardest part, choosing which ones I want from the full pleather, hybrids and full velour. I've used full velours for the longest time. First Superlux HD-330 with DT770 velour pads and now the A800's for about 10 months. I really like the comfortability of full velour, the only thing is that they attract all the hair and little smudges or whatever you call them which is pretty annoying. I also really like the sound of these so I don't know how much I'd like if it changed. Of course I might just be used to it and getting rid of the peak at upper midrange might be to my liking after all.

So should I just get the full velour ones? Do you think I'd like the full pleather sound and how's the comfortability with those? Or is the hybrid a safe and good compromise? I have to order these from abroad so returning them would be a pain. Then again, I'd probably like all of them. The question is, which ones I'd like the best I guess. Thanks in advance and sorry for all the questions.

 

[Pharmaboy]

FYI, there's a good chance I'll be selling my A800s as soon as they finish burning in & I try one more pair of pads.

The A800s are quite good--a very interesting design w/much to recommend it. However, I'm very twitchy/fast about buying selling stuff, especially at this price point...plus my jones for open-back planars continues to grow (none of those are cheap).

 

[Pharmaboy]

Wow, I didn't know you could actually replace the pads on these, thanks for the information! The pads were the biggest complaint I had when I got these. The default ones are so shallow that my ears touch the elements and it hurt a bit at start. Now I've gotten used to it but I'd still rather get something better.

Now comes the hardest part, choosing which ones I want from the full pleather, hybrids and full velour. I've used full velours for the longest time. First Superlux HD-330 with DT770 velour pads and now the A800's for about 10 months. I really like the comfortability of full velour, the only thing is that they attract all the hair and little smudges or whatever you call them which is pretty annoying. I also really like the sound of these so I don't know how much I'd like if it changed. Of course I might just be used to it and getting rid of the peak at upper midrange might be to my liking after all.

So should I just get the full velour ones? Do you think I'd like the full pleather sound and how's the comfortability with those? Or is the hybrid a safe and good compromise? I have to order these from abroad so returning them would be a pain. Then again, I'd probably like all of them. The question is, which ones I'd like the best I guess. Thanks in advance and sorry for all the questions.

Based on what you're posting, I would recommend that you start pad-rolling w/either of the following:

• If you want the least change in sound vs stock--Brainwavz round velours. They're deeper than stock and will no doubt be more comfortable. That extra depth may/may not change the sound slightly, but my guess would be any change would be slight & in good directions (ie, perhaps a touch more bass & wider soundstaging).
• If you want a little more sonic variation--Brainwavz round hybrids. Beyond better comfort, I'm guessing these would tweak the bass & soundstaging somewhat more...

 

[peter123]

Fwiw I've tried the round BW Sheepskin and velour pads on them but I found that detaching the pads straight to the housing messed up the sound totally. I'm pretty sure that by removing (and destroying) the stock pads from the ring they're fixed and put the BW pads on the there instead would give a lot better result but I'm reluctant to do so until the stock kicks pads are worn out. If we could locate a source from the rings it would be a lot more easy to test......

 

[Pharmaboy]

Fwiw I've tried the round BW Sheepskin and velour pads on them but I found that detaching the pads straight to the housing messed up the sound totally. I'm pretty sure that by removing (and destroying) the stock pads from the ring they're fixed and put the BW pads on the there instead would give a lot better result but I'm reluctant to do so until the stock kicks pads are worn out. If we could locate a source from the rings it would be a lot more easy to test......

very interesting. you found it totally messed up the sound by affixing the BW pads onto the earcup housings?

I'm going to test this as follows:

• I have a pair of Brainwavz round velours, brand new, never used on anything. These are the same 100mm diameter as the A800's stock velours, but somewhat deeper.
• I will attached these direct to the earcup housings, L & R, then check the sound. Given that it's replacing velour w/velous (though a bit deeper), I wouldn't expect much change in sound. But that's why I'm testing--to find out what happens.

(more to follow)

BTW, for those who haven't actually seen these headphones--the earpads are attached to the articulating earcup housing in a proprietary manner that's unlike anything I've seen before. It's a relatively complex system, to the point that I have no idea how one could attach a new pad to the ring that makes all this possible. I say that because the ring in question screws down into the earcup base--it doesn't sit on it flat or lock onto it as, say, the earpads on the Fidelio X2s do. It's because of this complex earpad/earcup interface that I decided to "end-run" the whole thing by removing the stock pads w/their attached rings & just affixing the BW pads around/surrounding the outer edge of the earcup housing. Not elegrant, but it works.

 

[peter123]

very interesting. you found it totally messed up the sound by affixing the BW pads onto the earcup housings?

I'm going to test this as follows:

• I have a pair of Brainwavz round velours, brand new, never used on anything. These are the same 100mm diameter as the A800's stock velours, but somewhat deeper.
• I will attached these direct to the earcup housings, L & R, then check the sound. Given that it's replacing velour w/velous (though a bit deeper), I wouldn't expect much change in sound. But that's why I'm testing--to find out what happens.

(more to follow)

BTW, for those who haven't actually seen these headphones--the earpads are attached to the articulating earcup housing in a proprietary manner that's unlike anything I've seen before. It's a relatively complex system, to the point that I have no idea how one could attach a new pad to the ring that makes all this possible. I say that because the ring in question screws down into the earcup base--it doesn't sit on it flat or lock onto it as, say, the earpads on the Fidelio X2s do. It's because of this complex earpad/earcup interface that I decided to "end-run" the whole thing by removing the stock pads w/their attached rings & just affixing the BW pads around/surrounding the outer edge of the earcup housing. Not elegrant, but it works.

Iirc correctly I tried with the velour as well (I've got those too so I'm pretty sure that I did try them when I was messing around) and the problem, the way I see it) is that the stock pads doesn't seal perfectly against the housing and this (I guess) helps giving the very open sound while closing this gap by attaching the pads straight to the house made the presentation quite congested. It was a while since I tried this so I don't really remember the details more than that the sound changed a lot and not to my liking.

It's stil very interesting to read other people's impressions though so hopefully more people will try it.

 

[Pharmaboy]

Iirc correctly I tried with the velour as well (I've got those too so I'm pretty sure that I did try them when I was messing around) and the problem, the way I see it) is that the stock pads doesn't seal perfectly against the housing and this (I guess) helps giving the very open sound while closing this gap by attaching the pads straight to the house made the presentation quite congested. It was a while since I tried this so I don't really remember the details more than that the sound changed a lot and not to my liking.

It's stil very interesting to read other people's impressions though so hopefully more people will try it.

UPDATE: just changed pads again on the A800, and the results are very encouraging, far better than I was expecting.

Background: ~3 days ago, while burning in the A800s, I impulsively figured out how to remove the stock earpads, then replaced them with the first set of deeper pads (I was shooting for deeper at that point) I could lay my hands on, that also had a fairly wide & stretchy backflap--they happened to be the Brainwavz angled sheepskins. They weren't too hard to put on, stretching that backflap all the way around each of the articulating earcup bases. The sonic results were kind of startling--broadly elevated bass, diminished upper midrange energy, and an overall "thickening" of the sound of this relatively articulate, detailed open-back headphone.

I kept on burning them in, but inspired by @peter123's post, resolved to replace the Brainwavz angled pads with the nearest physical equivalent I have to the stock pads, the Brainwavz 100mm round velours. I just did that (what a PITA!!) and am listening to the results right now. What I'm hearing is the best sound I've gotten from these still not completely burned in headphones:

• Bass: These headphones really do BASS. Perhaps not basshead level, maybe, but far better than many open-back designs. Not just bass quantity/level, but articulate, detailed bass with realistic instrumental timbre. In well-recorded jazz cuts, the string bass really sounds like a string bass (not every bassy headphone can do this).
  • I think the overall level of the bass w/Brainwavz round velours is a little higher than it was w/stock--but not nearly enough to truly alter the overall sonic balance. Stock, it's a somewhat bassy HP; now a bit more so--but it's a very pleasing kind of bassy IMO.
• Soundstaging: With stock pads, these headphones have rather good soundstaging. It's not especially spacious or diffuse, as some open-backs are...more in the "detailed" soundstaging corner, a bit like my modded HD650s. The channel separation is strikingly good, and overall, there's a pleasingly open feel to the sound. The space & instrumental separation of every recording sounds quite different, which is always a good thing.
  • Sonic memory (of sound of stock pads) being imperfect, I can't be sure--but I don't think the soundstaging has been impaired or altered in any significant way by pad-rolling w/the Brainwavz round velours. I'm listening to well-recorded jazz, and the instrumental separation continues to be outstanding, with each instrument firmly located in space.
• Detail/resolution: With stock pads, these headphones convey a lot of detail. No blurring or lack of clarity. This design was done by Philips/Woox, but IMO, any similarity to the Fidelio X2s is superficial, at best, when it comes to detail & resolution. This design has great clarity. It sounds accurate & detailed.
  • That continues w/the Brainwavz round velours. I'm not hearing any loss in detail & resolution, also no emphasis or elevation. No change, from what I can tell. And that's good, because these headphones are giving my ears a LOT of musical information, nicely layered and sorted out.
• Tonality/frequency range: With stock pads, this was the trouble zone IMO. I heard peakiness/glare in the upper midrange (and perhaps also in the middle of the midrange). Not enough to make my ears bleed or turn vocals into sibilance cannons, but elevated levels sufficient to bother my ears (bear in mind that I'm extremely averse to elevated upper midrange & treble, more than most). Anyway, I started pad-rolling to tame this somewhat "hot" sound.
  • With the Brainwavz round velours, most of the hotness is reduced, to the point that I'm enjoying the sound from these headphones a LOT. Without that peakiness as a sonic speed-bump, I'm cruising along at any volume I want, getting the full benefit of that good bass, detail, resolution, and soundstaging.

As pad-rolling experiments go, this has to be considered a wild success. Unlike my first reaction to the sound w/stock pads, the sound of the A800s w/Brainwavz round pads is really kicking it for me. All of a sudden I'm hearing better sound than this price-tag should bring. The A800s just got way more interesting. It's an exciting, articulate, open-back sound.

It's early; they're not even fully burned in...and I have way more music to throw at these 'phones. But the Brainwavz round velours are on to stay.

PS: almost forgot to say that comfort also got better. ears don't/can't touch drivers. no complaints at all w/the Brainwavz round velours...much better than stock pads.

 

[lyrean]

I just received a replacement cable for Sony MDR Z7 and Denon D600 and I can confirm it works with Onkyo A800. The cable connectors do not fit so tightly into A800:s sockets as in Onkyo's own cable, so you may quite easily lose sound from right or left headphone.

This is the cable I ordered: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Hea...-D600-Headphones-Accessories/32829238962.html

 

[mbwilson111]

I just received a replacement cable for Sony MDR Z7 and Denon D600 and I can confirm it works with Onkyo A800. The connectors do not fit so tightly into sockets as in Onkyo's own cable, so you may quite easily lose sound from right or left headphone.

This is the cable I ordered: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Hea...-D600-Headphones-Accessories/32829238962.html

Thanks for confirming.

I have the Denon D600. I have been planning to try the cable with the A800. I will definitely do it this week. I love the look of the A800 cable but it is several times longer than I need. Sitting at my PC desk now with another headphone plugged into my desk dac/ amp... 4 feet of cable is more than enough for me.

 

[Pharmaboy]

per a recent post + pictures, whatever able you get for the A800s must have each connector be 2-pole, not 1 (ie, 2 inset rings circle the shaft of the jack, not just 1).

I tried the Focal Elear cable on the A800s and only got 1 channel sound--because they're single-pole connectors.

 

[lyrean]

Has anyone who owns (or has owned) Onkyo A800 compared it to Monoprice M1060? I know that the first one is dynamic and other one is planar but would still be interesting to know how they compare sonically.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Has anyone who owns (or has owned) Onkyo A800 compared it to Monoprice M1060? I know that the first one is dynamic and other one is planar but would still be interesting to know how they compare sonically.

The A800 is for me better sounding than the M1060. I had the 1060 here for quite some time, and while for the price it is certainly decent, I didn't find anything all that special about it. I certainly didn't motivate me to really give it much head-time. I found the sound of the 1060 not overly engaging and in a few places a little rougher sounding than I like. That said, for the money the 1060 is ok, but I thought, for instance, that the HE400i was better sounding and it now goes for a very good price so I would have a tough time knowing when the 1060 would be the planar to get. That wasn't your question, and I hope I didn't flame a headphone that you may like, preferences are very personal so that is all based on my preferences. The A800 I feel is better in every single respect than the 1060 is, going by memory of course as the 1060 has long since been sold. My apology if I slammed your headphone.

 

[lyrean]

The A800 is for me better sounding than the M1060. I had the 1060 here for quite some time, and while for the price it is certainly decent, I didn't find anything all that special about it. I certainly didn't motivate me to really give it much head-time. I found the sound of the 1060 not overly engaging and in a few places a little rougher sounding than I like. That said, for the money the 1060 is ok, but I thought, for instance, that the HE400i was better sounding and it now goes for a very good price so I would have a tough time knowing when the 1060 would be the planar to get. That wasn't your question, and I hope I didn't flame a headphone that you may like, preferences are very personal so that is all based on my preferences. The A800 I feel is better in every single respect than the 1060 is, going by memory of course as the 1060 has long since been sold. My apology if I slammed your headphone.

Thanks. No you didn't slam anything, I don't own M1060. I was just curious to know because many are praising it highly and from the reviews I understood that they could sound a little like A800.

I'm still liking my A800, they still wow me after listening to many other headphones after them. Though they may be a little too bright in some songs.

 

[Pharmaboy]

My A800s started out (before burn-in) very bright & shrill. They changed a great deal as burn-in commenced. Now they sound quite good, with only very occasional flashes of brightness (source dependent).

I have them F.S. here mainly because I just can't get comfortable with them.

 

[Sonic Defender]

My A800s started out (before burn-in) very bright & shrill. They changed a great deal as burn-in commenced. Now they sound quite good, with only very occasional flashes of brightness (source dependent).

I have them F.S. here mainly because I just can't get comfortable with them.

So what headphone are you sticking with? I find the A800 comfortable, but I don't have a large head so maybe that is why?