[kman1211]

You haven't seen the latest HD600. The cable is thin and cheap, and the plastic housing has hard edges around the adapter. And, the holes around the adapter is not precise. On some units the holes are too small, so the thicker HD650 cables don't even fit. I suppose sound is still the same, but the build quality is a total junk in my opinion.

The cable has always been thin and cheap on the HD 600, they changed it some, but it's not any worse than it used to be. I tried a few new HD 600's and don't find their build quality any worse and never came across the plastic having rough edges around the adapters. They don't have the glossy paint over them anymore which did make them feel a bit more premium in the past. Though honestly all the HD 6xx line feels cheap compared to something like the DT 1990 Pro.

 

[maegnificant]

You haven't seen the latest HD600. The cable is thin and cheap, and the plastic housing has hard edges around the adapter. And, the holes around the adapter is not precise. On some units the holes are too small, so the thicker HD650 cables don't even fit. I suppose sound is still the same, but the build quality is a total junk in my opinion.

That might be because they are not made from the same factory (or company, to some extent, ownership and facilities changed, probably some staff, too)

 

[jbarrentine]

You haven't seen the latest HD600. The cable is thin and cheap, and the plastic housing has hard edges around the adapter. And, the holes around the adapter is not precise. On some units the holes are too small, so the thicker HD650 cables don't even fit. I suppose sound is still the same, but the build quality is a total junk in my opinion.

Glad I bought two Irish units back in the day.

 

[pietcux]

The cable has always been thin and cheap on the HD 600, they changed it some, but it's not any worse than it used to be. I tried a few new HD 600's and don't find their build quality any worse and never came across the plastic having rough edges around the adapters. They don't have the glossy paint over them anymore which did make them feel a bit more premium in the past. Though honestly all the HD 6xx line feels cheap compared to something like the DT 1990 Pro.

I can agree with you on the build quality of the DT1990 pro. But they have two gripes for me, the round earcups are to small for my ears and they sound to uneven compared to the HD6XX series.

 

[kman1211]

I can agree with you on the build quality of the DT1990 pro. But they have two gripes for me, the round earcups are to small for my ears and they sound to uneven compared to the HD6XX series.

I don’t have problems with the round earcups on them thankfully. I always preferred the Amiron Home and T1.2/3 to the DT 1990 Pro. I have some issues with the DT 1990 sonically as well. On the HD 6xx series I like the HD 660S2 and HD 660S the most, haven’t spent enough time with the HD 600 recently to know where I place them now. I don’t like the somewhat brassy sounding mids on the HD 650 which seem to be caused by a combination of its forward and somewhat hard upper mids, warm midbass, and smooth sound. I don’t recall having issues with the HD 600 but haven’t compared them to the HD 660S or S2. Definitely curious how I feel about HD 490 Pro compared to HD 6xx line, it’s on my list to try soon.

 

[equalspeace]

Hi, do you think the foam that comes with HD6** line's earpads would have a similar effect?

Finally got around to trying this. I like it. I think it's doing better than silk

 

[chirsu]

Finally got around to trying this. I like it. I think it's doing better than silk

Are you talking about sound or looks/comfort? Could you explain what's different?

 

[equalspeace]

Are you talking about sound or looks/comfort? Could you explain what's different?

The sound is a bit thicker and more natural with the 6 series foam over silk. There's a little less air and sparkle, but I don't think I mind. The staging is more similar to the stock rubber foam as the 6 series foam lies flat now. I think I was loosing some of that the way the silk was kind of hovering a few mm over the driver. I was able to cut out notches on both sides of the foam so those two side clips could fasten with no impediment. The other clips fastened without cutting the foam, but I just gave a little help with the cut outs. I think this mod with the 6 series foam gives a boast to the timbre aspect. The sound is just meatier and the staging is really back to normal. I'm really liking what I'm hearing with this config.

 

[evonimos]

Did some more experimenting and to my ears, the best results came by simply removing the OEM dust cover.
The driver baffle is completely exposed and the driver dome visible.

I've tried foam, wool and cotton gauze but still the naked-baffle came on top in terms of speed, clarity and impact.

I was a bit dubious to leave it naked like that, at first.
But since it sounds best and there is no fear of damaging the driver (it's protected by plastic cover), i'll keep it as such.



Another modification i've tried which seems to improve the dynamics in the mids/bass region, is to apply a thin (single-ply) cotton gauge layer behind the metal grill.
Staging fortunately seems affected, since the gauge is thin and transparent enough.
Its effect is probably mostly due to its ability to absorb resonances.

For this, you'll need to unscrew the baffle, carefully remove the spider behind it and reach the grill from inside.
Gently cover all the grill with the cotton gauge and put everything back together.



Finally, I'm planning on a couple of wiring/cabling modifications:
A. Internal re-wiring with a better copper/silver-plated copper wire
B. External re-cabling with a better silver-plated copper, DIY cable

 

[RuslanG]

Did some more experimenting and to my ears, the best results came by simply removing the OEM dust cover.
The driver baffle is completely exposed and the driver dome visible.

I've tried foam, wool and cotton gauze but still the naked-baffle came on top in terms of speed, clarity and impact.

I was a bit dubious to leave it naked like that, at first.
But since it sounds best and there is no fear of damaging the driver (it's protected by plastic cover), i'll keep it as such.



Another modification i've tried which seems to improve the dynamics in the mids/bass region, is to apply a thin (single-ply) cotton gauge layer behind the metal grill.
Staging fortunately seems affected, since the gauge is thin and transparent enough.
Its effect is probably mostly due to its ability to absorb resonances.

For this, you'll need to unscrew the baffle, carefully remove the spider behind it and reach the grill from inside.
Gently cover all the grill with the cotton gauge and put everything back together.



Finally, I'm planning on a couple of wiring/cabling modifications:
A. Internal re-wiring with a better copper/silver-plated copper wire
B. External re-cabling with a better silver-plated copper, DIY cable

You definitely have a talent for modification. I think you should also pay attention to the appliances in your home, some small mod and... the refrigerator will cool better, the blender will spin faster, and the vacuum will suck a lot.
It was a joke, dont be offended, please

 

[evonimos]

I think you should also pay attention to the appliances in your home, some small mod and... the refrigerator will cool better, the blender will spin faster, and the vacuum will suck a lot.

Indeed, if tools and skills allow.
(joking of course)

But, more seriously on that topic:

Seems it might be prudent to clarify that any modifications done in a headphone could damage the warranty.
And if you don't know what you are doing, you are running a risk of damaging your cans altogether.

Another thing to stress is that any and all modifications, are done with curious and experimental attitude.
There is no guarantee that they'll offer any perceived improvement and involves risks, as stated above.

So, keep that in mind.
I'm just documenting what is possible, provided you understand the above claims.

 

[drummerman1]

Have to say that if I can't make a headphone sound pleasing with a little EQ I wouldn't bother keeping it but that's just me.

 

[evonimos]

Have to say that if I can't make a headphone sound pleasing with a little EQ I wouldn't bother keeping it but that's just me.

Digital EQ is always an option, if one wants to actively and easily alter the character of a headphone and many people choose to do it.

There are also passive ways to EQ by applying a permanent electronic filter with resistors, chokes and capacitors.
Provided you know how to calculate and simulate the response.

Another think to consider, is that any kind of equalization(especially digital) is exclusively for frequency response alterations.
Doesn't have an effect in factors like resonance, transient time, staging etc.

 

[krenzler]

 

[Blackrao]

Did some more experimenting and to my ears, the best results came by simply removing the OEM dust cover.
The driver baffle is completely exposed and the driver dome visible.

I've tried foam, wool and cotton gauze but still the naked-baffle came on top in terms of speed, clarity and impact.

I was a bit dubious to leave it naked like that, at first.
But since it sounds best and there is no fear of damaging the driver (it's protected by plastic cover), i'll keep it as such.



Another modification i've tried which seems to improve the dynamics in the mids/bass region, is to apply a thin (single-ply) cotton gauge layer behind the metal grill.
Staging fortunately seems affected, since the gauge is thin and transparent enough.
Its effect is probably mostly due to its ability to absorb resonances.

For this, you'll need to unscrew the baffle, carefully remove the spider behind it and reach the grill from inside.
Gently cover all the grill with the cotton gauge and put everything back together.



Finally, I'm planning on a couple of wiring/cabling modifications:
A. Internal re-wiring with a better copper/silver-plated copper wire
B. External re-cabling with a better silver-plated copper, DIY cable

this reminds of hd58x foam that is added to grill extends the bass extension