[Tuneslover]

It was never designed to be hot/frequent swapped in the first place. Only for when you need to replace it after the pads are old and worn.

Um I removed the original "worn" ear pads once in order to try out the brand new HD6XX pads briefly (for a couple of days) and then removed them in order to put the old pads back onto the HD650. Far from hot/frequent swaps. But hey now I know, once you remove the ear pads they're pretty much shot. I still think that's pretty lame quality for ear pads though.

From a value proposition, I could spend roughly an additional $40-$50 and be able to purchase a Magni 3 headphone amp. But hey Sennheiser wants you to spend your $60 and they will give you some foam, felt and plastic in return. They got you by the short & curlies though because you gotta have that foam, felt and plastic if you want to be able to listen to your HD650's.

 

[penmarker]

I stand corrected.

Sucks to be you though since no one else has that problem. But hey, now you know what not to do when you replace the earpads.

 

[MWSVette]

Don't exaggerate!

It's only 11 years 4 months

Yep, I stretched it a bit.

11 years 5 months 27 days.

But who's counting...

 

[jimmers]

11 years 5 months 27 days.

11 years 3 months and 10 days (post date, not join date)

But who's counting...

Not me

 

[Quadfather]

I am going back and forth on whether to get Bottlehead Crack 1.1 Speedball or LaFigaro 339. Please help!

 

[DavidA]

I am going back and forth on whether to get Bottlehead Crack 1.1 Speedball or LaFigaro 339. Please help!

How much tube rolling will you be doing? If a lot then I'd go with the BH Crack since its only one driver and one power tube. FWIW I removed the speedball from mine since it sounds better to me.

 

[Krutsch]

I stand corrected.

Sucks to be you though since no one else has that problem. But hey, now you know what not to do when you replace the earpads.

Yeah... I don't get this one. I just replaced my 650's ear pads (and headband pad) with Senn replacements.

I'm pretty sure I could put the old ones back, if I hadn't tossed them in the trash.

With new pads, I feel like I am rediscovering the magic of the HD-650 ... seriously shocked what a difference that made.

 

[Jasonaudio23]

You just replied to a 12 year old post...

Thanks for the heads-up. It states on my end it was posted 3 days ago.

 

[castleofargh]

Yeah... I don't get this one. I just replaced my 650's ear pads (and headband pad) with Senn replacements.

I'm pretty sure I could put the old ones back, if I hadn't tossed them in the trash.

With new pads, I feel like I am rediscovering the magic of the HD-650 ... seriously shocked what a difference that made.

reverse burn in! you see, the new pads have a time traveling ability and they bring you the headphone from when it was new. that or the significant changes were caused by the pads all along. at this point, hard to tell which hypothesis might be the right one.

as for switching the pads several times, I've done it a all lot of times when measuring the headphone, without anything significant even in measurements and no visual hint of damage. so our friend was unlucky, or maybe had really bad noname pads from the start? IDK.

 

[Quadfather]

How much tube rolling will you be doing? If a lot then I'd go with the BH Crack since its only one driver and one power tube. FWIW I removed the speedball from mine since it sounds better to me.

I am honestly not sure, this will be my first experience with an amplifier. Having said that I think the prospect of experimenting with tubes sounds fascinating.

 

[Krutsch]

reverse burn in! you see, the new pads have a time traveling ability and they bring you the headphone from when it was new. that or the significant changes were caused by the pads all along. at this point, hard to tell which hypothesis might be the right one.

...

I know you are half-joking, but that's actually an accurate description. My old pads were pretty worn and flat. I listen to my 650s more than my other 5 'phones, combined.

The new pads significantly change how the drivers are positioned over my ears. As Tyll has noted, the physical configuration is more important than the drivers themselves.

 

[raybone0566]

Prices of tubes are just ridiculous these days. Then you really need to be careful who you purchase from. Make sure tubes are tested, and ask about microphonics. In the end I found my favorite pair and stuck with that. I rather spend money on music.

 

[Tuneslover]

I know you are half-joking, but that's actually an accurate description. My old pads were pretty worn and flat. I listen to my 650s more than my other 5 'phones, combined.

The new pads significantly change how the drivers are positioned over my ears. As Tyll has noted, the physical configuration is more important than the drivers themselves.

While I agree that ear pads have a pretty noticeable affect on the sound of the HD650, I discovered that the Loki has had a much more profound affect on the sound of my HD650's. I can EQ tailor the sound of my 650's, with flattened ear pads, pretty close to the sound of how the HD650 sounded when I tried the ear pads from my new HD6XX.

 

[hikaru12]

While I agree that ear pads have a pretty noticeable affect on the sound of the HD650, I discovered that the Loki has had a much more profound affect on the sound of my HD650's. I can EQ tailor the sound of my 650's, with flattened ear pads, pretty close to the sound of how the HD650 sounded when I tried the ear pads from my new HD6XX.

I've noticed than Sennheiser's 60x-80x line respond really well to equalization - hence why Sonarworks basically transforms the 800s into entirely new headphones. I am however very surprised by how much a set of pads can affect a headphones sound - further away from your ear and you get better soundstage and bass, etc.

 

[Tuneslover]

I've noticed than Sennheiser's 60x-80x line respond really well to equalization - hence why Sonarworks basically transforms the 800s into entirely new headphones. I am however very surprised by how much a set of pads can affect a headphones sound - further away from your ear and you get better soundstage and bass, etc.

Agreed, EQ doesn't necessarily change the soundstage. I ordered the Massdrop Dekoni ear pads as replacement pads for my HD650 but several person's have suggested they may have a detrimental affect on the sound. Well we'll see, or should I say, hear how much differently they sound to the stock Sennheiser pads. If they are really that different sounding then I'm anticipating that the Loki will be helpful. The other reason I purchased the Dekoni ear pads is because they look more durable than the Senn pads, however time will tell.