[m00hk00h]

Got them without having read something about them before. Just wanted to have them because of their reputation and for collectors reasons. And...

WOW!

I expected everything - but not such a lightweigt, comfy and great sounding can. Just WOW.

In the direct comparison with my HD 580 jubilees they win clearly in nearly every aspect and the 600 Ohms are anything else but a problem for the Aria, had to turn up to 10 instead of 9 o'clock with DT880.

I'm not sure yet, if they can compete with my DT880s (my main HP by now) but I thinks it's close at least.

If Senns wozuld have this kind of sonic signature today I would definitely have a HD 650......

Anyone else here think this way? Am I alone?

m00h

PS: I demand a 540 smile!

 

[TomH]

I find myself going back to the HD540rII from time to time and thinking, these are great cans standing the test of time. Their tonal balance is a lot like my Stax Lambdas, and although they lack the refinement of the 650s and Staxen, they do little wrong. They are not leaving the collection any time soon. They are especially appreciated for their comfort and exact L-R channel balance, as well as their speed and slightly forward presentation.

 

[facelvega]

Hello MK,

I'm surprised to hear that you've come around on the HD540 since we last were talking about them. I remember you thought then that they hadn't stood the test of time. What changed your mind? Was it a case of just taking time to get accustomed to the sound signature? As you know, I'm interested in these old Senns as well.

Anyway, now that you've started a 540 thread, where's sgrossklass? You can't have a 540 thread without SGK.

FV

 

[sgrossklass]

m00h posted this thread when he'd just gotten the '540 Gold (look at the date!), it just never got updated. Apparently the sound changed to normal after the mothballs were out. My '540 basically is a brighter, more forward version of the '580 (not too little bass either, and well-damped); the same kind of presentation apparently was carried on into the HD560. Then with the HD5x0 II generation, a presentation similar to the current HD555 was introduced that was carried over to the old HD5x5s later - quite neutral with a slightly elevated upper midrange and somewhat recessed highs, yielding a slightly dark sound overall. Or that's what my 535-with-580-pads sounds like (it seems to exhibit a bit of muddiness due to internal reflections that I don't hear on the '540, so I'm on the hunt for some '565 now).

 

[facelvega]

Ah, yes, of course I didn't notice the original post date. Actually I picked up a pair of HD540 myself, but after only a few hours of use (alas, long enough for me to post positive feedback), one channel went out. I've taken them completely apart, but can't identify where the connection has failed, so I guess I'm back on the hunt.

 

[facelvega]

Oh, and sgrossklass, you recommend the original 540 over the 540 II, right?

 

[NiceCans]

Can anyone ellaborate on the differences between HD540, HD540 II, HD540 Reference, and HD540 Gold?

 

[sgrossklass]

Quote:

Originally Posted by facelvega Ah, yes, of course I didn't notice the original post date. Actually I picked up a pair of HD540 myself, but after only a few hours of use (alas, long enough for me to post positive feedback), one channel went out. I've taken them completely apart, but can't identify where the connection has failed, so I guess I'm back on the hunt.

Err... the only really critical spot should be the spring connectors (construction similar to the '580, but not as bad), my '540 is occasionally flaky there, too. Have you swapped left and right to make sure it's not the cable?
BTW: I'd be very grateful for some disassembly instructions, I don't even know how to get the earpads off, and there is a small something rattling around in one earpiece.

Whether I would recommend the '540 over the '540 II, I don't know. If I put the puzzle together correctly, the '540 II should have acceptable sonic balance out of the box, while the '540 needs some EQ (respective thread will be updated soon). Spec wise both of them should be about equally capable, though the 300 ohm '540 may be worse here.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NiceCans Can anyone ellaborate on the differences between HD540, HD540 II, HD540 Reference, and HD540 Gold?

HD540 = HD540 Reference (they just liked giving their cans fancy names, like AKG had been doing, this continued well into the late '90s). *1985, 600 ohms, late models 300, 16-25k@-3 dB, 10-30k@-10dB, THD <0.2% (300 ohm <0.4%), 94 dB/mW, steel cable w/ PX1 combo plug. Not sure whether there are any sonic differences between the 600 and 300 ohm version.
HD540 Gold = HD540 Reference Gold. Limited, individually numbered edition of the '540 with matched drivers and a fancy wooden box, came out at the time when it was still their flagship model (the '560 came along in 1989, their first model to use neodymium magnets).
HD540 II = HD540 Reference II. *1991/1992, 300 ohms, otherwise same specs. Copper cable, velour pads (original '540 pads were cloth covered with pleather ring, the "Gold" still uses this kind of pads to this day). Should have the newer sound.

 

[facelvega]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sgrossklass Err... the only really critical spot should be the spring connectors (construction similar to the '580, but not as bad), my '540 is occasionally flaky there, too. Have you swapped left and right to make sure it's not the cable? BTW: I'd be very grateful for some disassembly instructions, I don't even know how to get the earpads off, and there is a small something rattling around in one earpiece.

Yeah, definitely not the cable. Not only have I swapped, I've disassembled the spring connectors and respaced the springs, to no avail.

To get the earpads off, just pull gently from the center. It's a continuous seal on a firm earpad backing, like a tupperware lid. First, though, I'd pop the headband off of the ball joints to make it easier to see what you're doing.

Getting the earcups apart is a little trickier. See the plastic ring between the one around the driver cover and the outer edge? There are six points on this ring that hold the rear cover on. You can twist them loose with a small screwdriver, pressing on the ball joint at the back, which is part of the main housing and not of the back cover. I had to keep pressure between the metal strip (part of the main housing) and the cover to keep the loosened clips from reconnecting. There's a thin piece of foam inside the cover which is loose; taking it out will make it easier to clean those dust-attracting back cover slats. (Boy, I wish I had my camera with me, I've got the disassembled earcup right in front of me.)

Once you've got that far, flip the housing over. See the wheel spokes on the back of the outer ring of driver-protecting felt paper? That's the frame of the driver cover, which is just sitting tightly over the driver's part of the main housing. Pressing against it from the back, it slides rignt out. Now you can access the driver and the spring connectors. (they're under a little while plastic cover)

I definitely recommend taking them apart, as the paper covering the drivers is porous and has almost certainly allowed lint and small hairs in over the years. The center of the driver surface is sticky, so you'll need tweezers to get all those little hairs off.

In general, I'd say you can see right away that Senn's engineering was more complicated than contemporary AKG's or Beyers, but not necessarily for any good reason. Those unnecessarily complex pads are expensive to replace! It strongly reminds me of an old Audi I once had from almost the same year. It also had very complicated engineering and seemed really impressive under the hood-- and with the Audi too, I couldn't find where the damn wire harness kept shorting out.

hope this helps,

FV

 

[sgrossklass]

OK, got the earpads off, and some shaking turned up the little noisemaker, indeed the missing piece of rear grille like I had been suspecting. (Reattaching it will probably be tricky.) Some tiny black foam pieces also came out, from the previous driver covers perhaps. The driver covers needed some de-hairing. Yeah, some pics would have been nice, as I have no idea how to pop off the headband in the right way or rather have had no success trying (I don't want to break anything either).

Have you measured the resistance from one spring to the other on the troublesome driver?

 

[lcp12345]

Quote:

Originally Posted by m00hk00h Got them without having read something about them before. Just wanted to have them because of their reputation and for collectors reasons. And... WOW! I expected everything - but not such a lightweigt, comfy and great sounding can. Just WOW. In the direct comparison with my HD 580 jubilees they win clearly in nearly every aspect and the 600 Ohms are anything else but a problem for the Aria, had to turn up to 10 instead of 9 o'clock with DT880. I'm not sure yet, if they can compete with my DT880s (my main HP by now) but I thinks it's close at least. If Senns wozuld have this kind of sonic signature today I would definitely have a HD 650...... Anyone else here think this way? Am I alone? m00h PS: I demand a 540 smile!

I have same amp (Aria), headphone(540G, DT880). I think 540G is difficult to get good sound from Aria. I have other DIY amp. It sound better than aria. I have never got such impression from HD540G(in fact, it is good enough from Aria). Regarding the sound from DT880 and 540G, I like 540G better especially the "high" extension, very brillant, smooth.

 

[facelvega]

Wow, tonight on ebay.de a HD540 gold sold for 166,90 shipped, while a Stax Lambda Pro went for only 127,53, in dollars about $50 difference. Good old Ebay insanity-- next week the Stax will go for twice as much and the Senns for half. The 540's were in Berlin, it seems-- MK, vielleicht?

Quote:

Originally Posted by sgrossklass OK, got the earpads off, ...Have you measured the resistance from one spring to the other on the troublesome driver?

1. just pop the headband off, it's just a ball on the back of the housing fitting into a socket on the headband, you can pop in on and off as much as you want.

2. definitely get that housing open, because believe me there is some hair and lint behind the white paper. It'll also help you see whether that foam is the stuff from the inside or not.

3. if I end up buying another broken pair of HD540 to cobble together a single good pair, I'll send you an extra rear cover out of sheer head-fi bonhomie.

4. yes, I've got to get a multimeter to do some diagnostics on that driver. I never expected I would have to buy one in Germany. Oh well, more cash!

 

[sgrossklass]

I didn't watch that auction, but this much is quite a lot for a '540 Gold. They tended to go for more than 100 in the past, but 166, rather not. I also got outbid on a badly worn-out HD565 and a BTech, so no luck today.

Believe it or not, the &"§!%"&/( headband won't come off no matter how much I pull.

My finger hurt, that's all. Is there some trick to that?

Re: the multimeter, fortunately the most simple 5€ digital thing from the nearest Baumarkt should do easily - actually that's pretty much what I have (the replacement battery probably cost almost as much again...).

 

[facelvega]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sgrossklass Believe it or not, the &"§!%"&/( headband won't come off no matter how much I pull. My finger hurt, that's all. Is there some trick to that?

I just retried it, and the trick is to tilt the earcup all the way up toward the band, then pull the band straight away from the earcup. If you tilt the earcup down, it won't come off.

 

[sgrossklass]

So I tilt the earcup all the way upwards and pull on the headband, but regardless of whether I pull horizontally or vertically still nothing happens.

This must be a particularly stubborn sample.