[rlisin]

They are not compatible, it a similar locking mechanism (twist and lock ring), but not exactly the same, diameter is probably different too. That's based on looking at the photos of Meizu and Xiaomi headphones that I could find. But the mechanisms are similar enough that they could come from the same manufacturer.

 

[CoFire]

And the search continues...

 

[Slater]

Some interesting reading about mods for the A5 Pro: http://diyah.boards.net/thread/732/philips-a5-pro
 
According to the article, adding a layer of 3mm felt between the drivers and pad, and removing the metal grille under the pad made noticeable improvements in sound (increased bass and reducing the treble peak at 10k).
 
The rest of the tuning was done with a custom Kameleon amplifier filter, which 99.9% of us don't have.
 
Regardless, the felt and grille mods are cheap and easy enough to squeeze some additional improvements from an already good can.
 
Check out the before and after graphs (110mm velour pads used in final tune BTW):
 

 

[slowpickr]

slaterlovesspam thanks for posting this. Going to try it when I get my A5s back from Lurk650.

 

[Slater]

@slaterlovesspam thanks for posting this. Going to try it when I get my A5s back from @Lurk650.

 
Sure, NP.
 
You can also use the original graph to help flatten with EQ if that's your thing.
 
I tweaked the dips at 500Hz and 4kHz, and I really like the result. I haven't done the mods outlined in the article yet - mine are unmodded & have stock pads other than the EQing.
 
It always bothered me that something sounded a little 'off', but I could never put my finger on it. After seeing the graph now I see why (or should I say now I see WHERE).

 

[Slater]

I have an update on the article I posted above (regarding mods to the A5 Pro).

My 3mm felt arrived today, and I did the mods outlined in the article I posted.

Here's what I found:

1. Be VERY careful when you remove the discs. In addition to the 4 tiny screws on each side, there's also 2 small 'curvy' metal clips in the 3 and 9 o'clock position that are now loose, and if you don't see them & remove them you'll likely drop them into the carpet and they'll be lost forever. Set the screws and clips aside for now, because you'll need them for later.
2. I absolutely love the sound with the metal discs removed. The clarity has improved, and the mids are less recessed. I am a fan. Next time me & Armin are hanging out in my production studio I'll ask him why they added the grille.
3. I do not like the 3mm felt at all. It sounds like you're listening with cotton balls in your ears. It adds a wooly muffle to the sound, reduces the bass, and loses some of that magic sparkle the highs had. Basically it loses that special sound that defines the A5. Since the guy in the article didn't specify, I experimented with 2 different diameters of felt - 1 only covering the drivers (about 45mm), and 1 larger one the same diameter as the metal disc (covering both the driver and vents). No difference.
4. I did NOT do any experiments with any other materials - thinner felt, paper towel, acoustic foam, etc. It's possible there are additional improvements to be had with different materials (a lot of headphones respond well to different materials). But I suspect anything covering the drivers will negate the improvements gained (and may result in veiling some frequencies). So I'm not messing with a good thing, and am very happy with the sound exactly as it is now with just the discs removed.
5. It's very easy to A/B the sound with/without the metal discs and/or felt. You don't even need to secure the metal plates with the screws. Just twist off the pads, lay the plates right into the cups (or take them off), and twist the pads back on. It takes less than 5 seconds per side.

With the metal discs removed the pads don't twist lock on anymore. The curvy metal clips are what provides the locking action, so by removing the clips you lose the ability for the pads to stay on securely. Luckily, I found an easy solution:

Get an old (spent) gift card or expired credit card. You could also use a guitar pick, but the gift card is easiest because it has 4 corners. Notice how the rounded corners of the gift card fit right into the recess where the screws go?



Now get a really small drill bit (like 1/16") and make a hole near each of the 4 corners. If you don't have a drill, you could also use tip of an Xacto blade (like a drill), a small Philips screwdriver (like a drill), or even drive a small nail through the hole. Anything to make a fairly clean 1/16" hole. You'll end up with something like this:



Now cut off the corners at a 45 degree angle with scissors. To put it into perspective, I cut it at the bottom of the $ sign in the above photo. Once you test fit it, it'll be obvious if you cut it too big - just trim off a little more with the scissors until it's good. I also trimmed off the sharp tips because I'm OCD, but it's not necessary. You'll end up with something like this:



Insert the bent metal clip in the 3 and 9 o'clock positions (they only go in 1 direction), and screw the gift card pieces on top using the stock screws. You'll end up with something like this:



Put the remaining screws back in the 6 and 12 o'clock screw holes so you don't lose them. Then test fit the stock pads and make sure they click lock into position just like before.

The finished product (before adding back the 2 extra screws):

 

[john57]

With no thread tools available here that I can find, is the larger ear pads available anywhere?

 

[rlisin]

If you go one page back, this is the last place that they were available:

https://www.reservex.se/artiklar.asp?id=64556

And apparently still are, but they only ship to Scandinavia.

 

[john57]

I see that now. I guess that Philips was not selling the headphones enough for third party to offer replacement pads for it.

 

[rlisin]

I think the proprietary locking mechanism is the problem. It's good for effortless pad changing, but pointless if you can't get replacement pads. Another example of a good idea wasted. Like the replaceable cable in Onkyo headphones, crappy MMCX connectors made the headphones pretty much useless and the only solution was to mod the headphones. Anyway, this is the only Philips headphones I remember for which Philips offered replacement pads at all, their philosophy seems to be: need new pads - buy new headphones.

I'm happy I managed to buy one of the last 80mm pads, at least I have something.

 

[Slater]

I'm working on a replacement pad solution.

As soon as the pads arrive, I'll document everything & post the How2.

Stay tuned.

 

[john57]

Does anyone have the inner dimensions of the stock earpad? I had to replace the earpads on my MSR7 to something bigger.

 

[Slater]

On the stock pads:

Inner diameter: 48mm
Outer diameter: 90mm
Thickness: 25mm

 

[Slater]

Just wanted to let A5 owners know that I found a nice cable that's an alternative to the stock cable and also to the Beats cable previously posted here. There's a number of benefits to this cable over the Beats cable.

On this one, it can be ordered with in a straight-straight, straight-90, or 90-90 configuration (all in a variety of lengths). The shoulder is a very tight fit into the A5 - at 1st it seems like it won't fit, but it just barely fits (within a few thousands of an inch clearance). It fits with a very tight friction-fit, so there's zero chance of it falling out, and it doesn't rotate (it stays in the exact direction you inserted it in due to the tight friction-fit).

The other nice thing is that, unlike the Beats cable, you can use the 90 degree end in the headphone cups, so it functions exactly like the stock locking cable (except it doesn't actually lock like the stock cable). You can also run it with the straight end in the cup too (like the Beats cable). I prefer using the 90 degree end in the cup (like stock), and never really liked how the Beats cable could only have the straight end in the cups - it stuck out at a weird angle with the Beats cable, and put undue pressure on the strain relief.

The cable is very well made, inexpensive, and uses 26awg copper conductors (unknown if OFC or not). The impedance of the Vention measured significantly lower than on the Beats cable of the same 100cm length (1.0 ohm on the Beats cable, 0.3ohm on Vention).

The Vention cable has TPE insulation, so it's not as soft and supple as a silicone insulated cable. But it doesn't tangle and doesn't have 'kink memory'. TPE is also tougher as far as abrasions go.

Vention makes a number of different style of AUX cable, but the 90 degree end is different on most of them. This is the only Vention AUX model that I can verify fits when using the 90 degree end in the ear cup. And since you can order this cable with a 90-90 configuration, it's nice because the you can do a 90 degree end in the ear cup AND still do 90 into your music source.

Here's the link to where I got mine from: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3-5...e-Stereo-Audio-Cable-1m-1-5m/32266758254.html

 

[Slater]

OK gang, I have completed the replacement pad How2.

It was even easier than I hoped it would be - total time can be completed in under 10 minutes with absolutely no tools or glue needed. The new pads look, feel, and function exactly like the stock pads, NO 'homeade/diy' look whatsoever, and zero evidence that the pads were ever tampered with. They may as well have come from the factory like this.

Note that this How2 is only for the stock 90mm pads (because those are the only pads I have access to). The same method will work with the optional 80mm on-ear pads (assuming you purchase appropriate aftermarket 80mm pads). However, since I have only ever seen the optional oval upgrade pads in photos, I do not currently have a method to replace those at this time. If you are willing to send me your oval pads as a donor, I will develop a method to replace the oval pads that will benefit us all (PM me if interested).

Anyways, my requirements for replacement pads is that they had to have the same ID and thickness as the stock pads, so there were no unwanted changes in sound. I also wanted pads that had similar construction, quality, and feel as the stock pads. Many of the cheap $3-$5 pads didn't cut it, and I purchased a number of potential candidates that I wasn't happy with until I finally found one that I was perfect.

The replacement pad I recommend is this one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/182240334787



I will mention that the pad in the ebay link is slightly different than what the seller actually shipped. First off, the seller listed th thickness at 25mm (this is a typo - the actual pad thickness is 20mm just like the stock pad). The photo above has the correct dimensions. Secondly, the pad in the ebay link has a sewn inside edge (on the back side of the pad), but the pad I received had no sewn edge. This is actually preferable (ie no sewn edge). So if you order this pad from this seller (at least as of 05-2017 when this was published), you'll receive the correct pad.

If at some point in the future the ebay link is dead (or the seller is gone), you'll have to find an alternate pad. Here are the 3 main things to be aware of:
1. Make sure the pad is 90mm OD, 48mm ID, and 20mm thickness
2. Make sure the pad has a rear inner piece that is not sewn. If all you can find are sewn units, plan on carefully unthreading the sewn threads. Don't just hack off the whole threaded pleather portion with scissors - you need every bit of that material. Just pull on the threads until they unravel and fall out.

3. Make sure the pad has a rear inner piece that is made of the same pleather as the rest of the pad (like the above photo). If you've ever seen BrainWavz HM5 pads, it has the same thing. Some (low end) pads have a very thin flexible plastic in the back, which you DO NOT WANT (like this example):



OK, so once you have your replacement pads, let's move onto the actual How2.

Remove OLD pads, Install NEW pads

1. Unlock the STOCK pads from the A5 by holding the pads and gently twisting COUNTER-CLOCKWISE.

2. Gently prey off the thin plastic retaining ring using your fingernail. You can also use a guitar pick, gift/credit card, driver's license, spudger tool, dull butter knife, or a small flathead screwdriver. The ring will pry up and remove like this:


3. Now begin to gently peel up on the inside edge of the STOCK pad. It's glued down with a sticky adhesive. Go SLOW and GENTLY. Even if your stock pads are trashed, the goal is to preserve the adhesive because it is needed for the new pad. If you remove the stock pad properly, all of the sticky adhesive will remain attached to the plastic mounting ring. This is what it will look like when 1st peeling the stock pad off (1st photo) and with the pad fully removed and all of the adhesive still in place (2nd photo):


4. Now you will notice that the inside edge of the pad is still attached to the plastic mounting ring:


Just poke your finger through the inside edge and it will easily separate, like this:


5. Now that you have the STOCK pad totally separated from the mounting ring, take the NEW pad and insert the plastic mounting ring inside, like this:

Note: With the STOCK pad completely removed, notice that the STOCK pad has NO inner fabric. The acoustic fabric & foam is built onto the stock plastic ring. My NEW pad, however, DOES have a thin acoustic fabric. It is up to you if you want to cut this out with scissors. I left mine in because it was extremely thin fabric and will make a minimal impact on the sound. If you feel this is a major issue, just cut out the fabric from the new pad using scissors before performing step 5.

6. Once the plastic trim ring is fully inside of the NEW pad, simply fold over the edges of the stock pad and stick it back onto the adhesive. Go evenly and slowly all the way around the pad to prevent wrinkles, and 'tug' on the pleather to stretch it as needed. I found it best to skip around to ensure everything stayed even, for example attach and work a small section at 12 & 6 o'clock, then move to 3 and 9 o'clock, 10 & 4, 2 & 8, and so on. Also make sure the very EDGE of pad material covers all of the adhesive, but STOPS right at the plastic clips (just like the stock pad). You'll end up with this:


7. Once the edge of the NEW pad is all pushed/smoothed down, reinstall the thin plastic retaining ring you removed in Step 2 (note that there are 4 CLIPS along the bottom edge of the thin plastic retaining ring that fit into 4 matching NOTCHES in the stock plastic mounting ring). I have indicated the CLIPS & NOTCHES below:


8. Repeat steps 2-7 for the 2nd STOCK pad. Once both STOCK pads have been replaced with NEW pads, mount them back onto the A5, twist-locking in a CLOCKWISE motion. Here's the completed product with the NEW pads:


Enjoy your fresh new earpads!

Let me know if you have any questions or need any clarification with anything.

- Slater