Reversible AD700/900 Mod for increasing Bass and question for modding experts (56K Warning)

[dweaver]

I posted this in the AD900 appreciation thread but think it needs a thread for it as I wouldn't mind other technical responses from people who have more experience modifying headphones as well.

OK fellow AD900 users, here is a question / observation / reversible mod I've tried.

I am still unhappy with the bass I getting from my new AD900's (burnin is improving the bass but I have been wondering if there was/is anything I can do to improve the bass.

I popped the pads off the phones and was looking at the drivers and was wondering if letting more air through the paper on the drivers would do the trick. Then I looked at the headphone cover and saw that it was covering up those parts of the phones the paper was located at. So I then looked at the pads wondering if I should do the phatpad mod to raise the pad off of the cup. It was during this investigation I noticed that the headphone pads had holes in the underside of it all around the pad.

It seemed to me the holes would reduce bass sound as the waves were absorbed and dissipated into the foam of the pad through the holes. So for a quick and easy reversible mod I took tape and covered up all of the holes in the pads. Then put them back on the phones.

The result of this mod seems to be more bass quantity/impact/punch. Has anyone else ever tried this mod?

My question for those who might understand sound technology better than I, would be is my assumption about bass being reduced by these holes correct, or would the holes be used to reduce treble and midrange?

Cover Removed from Headphone:

Partially flipped headphone cover showing the holes in the pleather:

Headphone cover completely flipped inside out:

Picture of Scotch Brand Gift Wrap Tape:

Picture of the size of tape strips I used:

Picture of partially taped AD700 headphone cover:

Like I said very easy to try modification

 

[dweaver]

Nobody have any thoughts on this mod? I am curious if it sounds like it will work or not and if my theory is correct or not. It seems to be making a difference to me but it is not a huge difference, just noticeable.

If you flip the covers inside out you will see the inside bottom of the drivers are pleather, not velour. It is this pleather than the holes are punched out. From what I understand these holes are designed to absorb sounds and keep them from rebounding inside the cup (I read this in an article where someone was working on a closed headphone), in the case of these phones though I believe the open nature of the phone makes this unnecessary and counter productive. I also know that some people have switched the velour covers with either pleather (cheaper A-xxxx series covers) or leather (W5000 series) covers which has increased the bass of the phones. Again I wonder if the main benefit of these covers is the lack of the holes in the underside of the covers.

BTW while you have the covers flipped inside out simply take tape (I used regular tape used for paper and wrapping presents as it was all I had on hand) and cut strips large enough to cover 3 holes at a time. This size allows you comfortably cover the holes while keeping the taping neat and tidy. Upon completion I then simply flipped cover back and put them back on the headphones.

If someone who has the pleather/leather covers would be so kind as to try this mod using their original velour covers and give any feedback about whether this mod is an ultra cheap way to accomplish the effect of the more expensive pads I would also be VERY GRATEFULL as would other AD900 users who may be wanting more bass.

 

[dweaver]

Wow, no discussion on this at all? I figured there would be at least a small amount of interest from the AD900 community. Oh well go figure.

An update on the sound from the mod is a continued increase in bass but I think it also has impacted the midrange a bit as well making it a bit more prevalent. I also have a pair of AD700 and I think I will try this quick and easy mod on them to see what changes it makes to them as well.

 

[miloxo]

Im interested

But any change that you can make some pic's?

 

[Bengt77]

I have the ATH-AD900 as well, and honestly don't think it needs any modding. It outputs bass when the music calls for it, which is all I can ask for. The bass also goes very deep and is very detailed. Sure, it's also very fast, making it disappear quickly, but it's certainly there. What I must admit to, though, is the fact that the AD900 doesn't put a whole lot of weight behind the bass. But it doesn't lend itself too well for bass-heavy music anyways. That's what I got the A900Ti for.

 

[dweaver]

Miloxo, I'll pop off a cover and show pics when I get home tonight. They won't be much though.

Bengt77, I hear where your coming from completely. The mod seems to simply give the bass more weight or presence. What I am noticing specifically is actual sense of thump or movement, it's not subwoofer or earth shaking, but present. The other thing I am noticing a subtle increase in mid-bass and lower midrange, not distractingly higher like a mid-bass hump but again just noticeable especially for things like a bass guitar, a subtle rumble (mid-bass) or growl (lower midrange), cello's also gain from this as you can hear the nuances in vibration more clearly.

The neat thing with this mod is that it's super easy and completely reversible since all your doing is covering up the punched in holes in the headphone cover with tape. To understand what I talking about without taking the cover off intitially, simply take you finger and run it on the inside of the cover between the cushion and the thin speaker cover material. You will feel the holes with your fingertip, they are spaced every 1/4 inch or so.

 

[fldrice]

I remember that the GMP 435s in the "Loan Program" came with 3 sets of pads. The set with the perforations in the lining was said have made the lows sound thin in comparison to the other pads.

 

[Philimon]

I am interested. More opinions from dweaver and others please.

I agree with you Bengt77. However, a quick and reversible mod is worth trying atleast. It could make your A900 redundant.

 

[dweaver]

OK I just uploaded pictures of the modification. As can be seen in the photos this is a dead simple mod that is fully reversible (just take care removing and putting back on the covers).

Fldrice, thank you for pointing out other discusions about perforated headcovers, this is what I was hoping to hear. I really do think this mod changes the sound of these phones in a positive (for me anyway) and very real way.

When I took the pics I actually took the covers off of my AD700 and killed two birds with one stone since I was determined to try this mod on them to see if it helped them as well. On the AD700, I hear a little more bass but it is not as dramatic a change as the AD900, but the AD700 gain in the midrange I think and they do have more bass than they started with.

It took me considerably longer to take the pictures and add them to this thread than the actual mod on the phones. For anyone struggling with their AD700/900 phones because they are finding them bass light, this is a cheap, quick and easily reversible mod that may be the difference between trading or reselling your phones.

BTW now that I have found a way to bring out the bass more in the AD900, I really do prefer them over the AD700, that added clarity and more forward mids are simply worth the extra money. But I am still not getting rid of my AD700's

.

 

[Philimon]

A similar situation I remember reading long ago about perforated vs non-perforated pads:

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/tho...stance-365991/

I might not have time to do this mod and to have an extended listening session until next weekend. Keep up the good work dweaver.

dweaver, how many holes are you covering in order to find your ideal sound? Does it matter which holes you cover (front, back, etc)? Also, how do you wear the headphones? Do you place your ears in the middle, where there is a recess in the pads? Or do you rest the back of the pads slightly on the back of your ears sort of like a circumaural headphone? This way I can have more reference as to maybe why you might find the headphones lacking in the bass department... I prefer the pads to slightly rest on the back of my ears for optimal preference of sound. Dononus agreed with this solution for better bass. Its been awhile since I a/b these two different styles of wearing the AD900, but I think the latter not only produced more bass, but also tamed some of the brightness as well.

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BTW - Thank you for the pics.

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You must make this mod known to the AD700 crowd. I think it would become very popular.

 

[dweaver]

I adjusted the title to reflect the purpose of the mod plus the fact that works for AD700 and 900 headphones.

Philimon, to answer your questions. I wasn't sure if covering only some of the holes would cause an uneven sound field within the headphone so I have taped them all up at this point and am very happy with the change in sound with both headphones. I bounce between the phones touching the back of my ears (I find this bothers my ears after an extended listen) and being in the center. The bass is better at the back of my ears and the treble is slightly tamed down but I do notice that it also changes the soundfield when I do this. But also rereading your post I have to admit I haven't actually rested the pads on the back of my ears so I will try that tonight and see what changes that makes.

Thanks for the encouragement about the thread.

 

[Kawai_man]

Hi Dweaver quick question how did you remove the ear pads from your ad700s?

 

[fldrice]

I'm going to have to try this on my already modded AD700s this weekend.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kawai_man /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi Dweaver quick question how did you remove the ear pads from your ad700s?

They just pull right off (Do it SLOWLY you don't want to rip them).

 

[Kawai_man]

^thanks

 

[dweaver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kawai_man /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi Dweaver quick question how did you remove the ear pads from your ad700s?

If you look at the phones they have a side with a large hump and a side that is very thin. Going to the thin side I slide my finger inder the cushion to the edge then slowly push out using my thumb on the outside to help pull the pleather material on the outside just below the velour cover out from the lip of plastic it's tucked under. Once I have the pleather over the lip of the plastic pulled enough to reveal the plastic I then take my finger and gently pull it further away and start to work the cover off the cup.

To put the cover back on you start on the side with the hump and hook the cover in under the plastic lip at that point and then use your fingers to slowly work the cover back on the cup. At one point you will start to have to stretch the covers pleather by reaching in and pinching it with your fingers to pull it out to the edge, it's a bit tricky but you will figure out how to do it. Here's a good [size=large]video[/size] showing how to do it using a different ATH headphone but it's the same basic idea.