[Delance26]

I think it would be cool if they played around with some Planar tech for a future flagship. Something similar to the el-8 audeze is sending out soon.

Also just had a random idea inspired by their clear iems. They should make a clear housing for full sized headphones. Would be very unique and could be very cool.

 

[nicholars]

I think it would be cool if they played around with some Planar tech for a future flagship. Something similar to the el-8 audeze is sending out soon.

Also just had a random idea inspired by their clear iems. They should make a clear housing for full sized headphones. Would be very unique and could be very cool.

 
Ergh I don't think that would work as well as it does with IEM's... it would just be an ugly rear of driver and some damping material... prob look terrible lol.
 
I don't think I will change the pads... Mainly because they are so comfortable.

 

[Delance26]

   
Ergh I don't think that would work as well as it does with IEM's... it would just be an ugly rear of driver and some damping material... prob look terrible lol.
 
I don't think I will change the pads... Mainly because they are so comfortable.

Yeah this is true, but it would certainly make a statement! anyway I like the 1540 as is, good sound, very comfy which is a requirement cause I wear glasses, and very versatile.

 

[WhoIsThis]

Depending on the materials used, durability too could be an issue.
 
Shure so far has done a good job of making sure that this headphone not only looks good and is very comfortable to wear, but that for practical reasons, it can survive being handled not in the most gentle way. The tradeoff I guess is that it cannot fold. Although I am not fond of the V-Moda M100's sound signature (a bit too much on the bass), I do think that they have the right idea in making their headphones really durable.

 

[nicholars]

  Depending on the materials used, durability too could be an issue.
 
Shure so far has done a good job of making sure that this headphone not only looks good and is very comfortable to wear, but that for practical reasons, it can survive being handled not in the most gentle way. The tradeoff I guess is that it cannot fold. Although I am not fond of the V-Moda M100's sound signature (a bit too much on the bass), I do think that they have the right idea in making their headphones really durable.

 
Shure products are built to last and always sound good. They make good stuff and do not try to rip you off on accessories etc. That is why they are one of my favorite brands as well as NAD and Sennheiser. Vmoda M100 for example.. Built well, but probably the worst comfort I have ever used. Out of my headphones I almost always use the 1540 because they are so comfortable and sound good with everything as I listen to a lot of different music. Same with the SE215... Sound good with everything and have lasted me about 5+ years.

 

[WhoIsThis]

Agree. My concern was for the transparent materials. To be honest, I'm not fond of that direction.
 
I'm sure that when there are future headphones, Shure will make them durable enough for professional use. Personally my favorite brands are Shure, Audio Technica, and Mr. Speakers has been growing on me as well.
 
If anything, I expect that as Shure moves up to the flagship tier, we'll see even more comfortable cans. The 1540 has been a step up in comfort compared to the 1840, 940, and the 840 before it. So I would expect any future releases to continue this trend.
 
One of the issues I have had with the LCD XC was comfort. There are aspects of the imaging that I would argue make it a superior headphone than the Shure SRH 1540. First there's the fact that it costs about 4x as much, but the other problem is that it is not a comfortable headphone for hours of listening. At least not for me it is not - I do know that many people don't have issues. It depends on the head size too. Some people find the ATH wing design to be incredibly uncomfortable, while others love it. I think that Shure with this headphone seems to have nailed it for comfort though.

 

[nicholars]

  Agree. My concern was for the transparent materials. To be honest, I'm not fond of that direction.
 
I'm sure that when there are future headphones, Shure will make them durable enough for professional use. Personally my favorite brands are Shure, Audio Technica, and Mr. Speakers has been growing on me as well.
 
If anything, I expect that as Shure moves up to the flagship tier, we'll see even more comfortable cans. The 1540 has been a step up in comfort compared to the 1840, 940, and the 840 before it. So I would expect any future releases to continue this trend.
 
One of the issues I have had with the LCD XC was comfort. There are aspects of the imaging that I would argue make it a superior headphone than the Shure SRH 1540. First there's the fact that it costs about 4x as much, but the other problem is that it is not a comfortable headphone for hours of listening. At least not for me it is not - I do know that many people don't have issues. It depends on the head size too. Some people find the ATH wing design to be incredibly uncomfortable, while others love it. I think that Shure with this headphone seems to have nailed it for comfort though.

The 1540 are the most comfortable headphones I have ever used. Also probably the best sounding overall, probably the £800+ "flagship" headphones sound better but that is too much money for me... all the other headphones in the price bracket have at least one fatal flaw... Maybe the HE400i are better I have not tried those yet. That's what shure does.. headphones that sound good at everything.
 
If anyone finds the small amount of sibilance on the 1540 annoying at higher volume... Try lowering 10k and 12.5k (on 31 band EQ) by 1 - 2.5db and they have zero sibilance, sounds different at first but its good because they still sound good at higher volume.

 

[Change is Good]

Ended up trying the stock pads back on the 1540, once again, because I REALLY want to like them out of sheer comfort. Thing is, I wasn't wrong when saying it sounds... just... average. I don't know what it is about the alpha pads that totally transforms headphones, but man. No lie when I say the sound matches its price with a proper seal. Love the alcantara pads, but the lack of isolation really handicaps its potential.

 

[nicholars]

Ended up trying the stock pads back on the 1540, once again, because I REALLY want to like them out of sheer comfort. Thing is, I wasn't wrong when saying it sounds... just... average. I don't know what it is about the alpha pads that totally transforms headphones, but man. No lie when I say the sound matches its price with a proper seal. Love the alcantara pads, but the lack of isolation really handicaps its potential.

 
What are the differences in sound with different pads?
 
I noticed that the leakage with the stock pads is good and the isolation is not terrible.

 

[WhoIsThis]

It could just be the size and shape of your head is different from the other posters. That would explain the differences in comfort and fit.

 

[CyberAthlete]

Warning: my vocab sucks, so i'll try to explain best i can. In a briefest of brief reviews:
 
Source: 44Khz/16-bit wav files (straight off CDs I own, no downloads) and 320kbps MP3 of the same WAV files
Sound Card: Sound Blaster Z (upgrading to ZXR this Saturday, 3/22.2015, thank you NewEgg)
MP3 Player: iRiver IHP-140
 
At low-moderate volumes: 9.5/10 (90% of my listening will be done at these levels)
At high volumes: 7/10 (10% when I get carried away by a tune)
 
Reasons for such score: As long as you keep the Shures at low-moderate volume they shine. Great treble presence, bass, vocals and mids are present and forward. If you are coming from and compare them to very mid-forward headphones such as HD 598 you may think that the mids here are ever so slightly recessed, but on their own hard to tell.
 
Very very subtle U-curve to the sound but it's what makes the headphones fun with everything. I feel the U-curve becomes more prominent the higher the volume goes and thus the lower score at really high volumes.
 
At high volumes I feel the higher frequencies are stronger while the bass isn't able to increase in the same proportion. Thus it ends up being a bright headphone at volumes over 70%. Also there is audible distortion on bassier tracks (such as Jay-Z: Empire State of Mind) at louder volumes. People have responded in the forums about what causes it, but for me, i think the driver just can't handle it. It gets pretty fatiguing pretty fast at loud volumes (for specific tracks that might be a little trebly to begin with).
 
The sub-bass also doesn't slam you at higher volumes like it does in the M50s or the A900x. But the soundstage and overall presentation of sound is a league above what the A900x and M50s can produce. Don't get me wrong for the price both are great, but if you do move up to the Shures, you will get better of almost everything. Not everything mind you (that would be the perfect headphone, and like the perfect woman, doesn't exist). But what is perfect to you? That's all that matters.
 
Games/Movies: 9/10. Loved it. Sound stage, bass, clear and present treble and mids
 
I also own the HD-650 and these are easier to drive and thus sound better with amps, MP3 players and sound cards that don't do 50+ Ohm headphones well. I will be getting the Sound Blaster ZXR because it has a high gain mode and a different amp than the one in Sound Blaster Z and test them out side by side again. But off the equipment I have right now I feel that the SRH1540 delivers more.
 
I may look to get the HD 700 since the SRH1540 covers all my basses (pun intended) in most genres. And I may want a specialist headphone for orchestral and vocal tracks. I may forgo the bass of the HD 650 and go for a less veiled sound (from what I've gathered on the forums) in the HD 700.
 
Tracks used for the review:
Jay-Z: Empire State of Mind
Pearl Jam: Alive
Def Leppard: Animal
Michael Jackons: Billie Jean
Bruce Springsteen: Streets of Philadpelphia
Morgan Page: Believe (fav track from that album)
Frank Sinatra: Fly Me To The Moon
Ludovico Einaudi: Divenire (from the album "Live in Berlin")
Pink Floyd: High Hopes
The Lord of the Rings: Concerning Hobbits (From "Fellowship of the Ring")
The Shawshank Redemption: Compass and Guns
Kings of Convenience: Misread, and Gold In The Air Of Summer (two from one of my all time fav bands)
http://grooveshark.com/s/Gold+In+The+Air+Of+Summer/6GBDIh?src=5

 

[doctorjazz]

I found had to replace the pads, have a small head, didn't get a good seal.

 

[Jackson9696]

Warning: my vocab sucks, so i'll try to explain best i can. In a briefest of brief reviews:


I may look to get the HD 700 since the SRH1540 covers all my basses (pun intended) in most genres. And I may want a specialist headphone for orchestral and vocal tracks. I may forgo the bass of the HD 650 and go for a less veiled sound (from what I've gathered on the forums) in the HD 700.

Nice right up! If you are looking for an upgrade I would definitely recommend the hd700! That is of course if you can handle their treble peak. I had and loved the shure 1540 when I had it,(bought it twice in the course of a month) but the hd700 is just in a league above in terms of pretty much all technicalities.

 

[nicholars]

  Warning: my vocab sucks, so i'll try to explain best i can. In a briefest of brief reviews:
 
Source: 44Khz/16-bit wav files (straight off CDs I own, no downloads) and 320kbps MP3 of the same WAV files
Sound Card: Sound Blaster Z (upgrading to ZXR this Saturday, 3/22.2015, thank you NewEgg)
MP3 Player: iRiver IHP-140
 
At low-moderate volumes: 9.5/10 (90% of my listening will be done at these levels)
At high volumes: 7/10 (10% when I get carried away by a tune)
 
Reasons for such score: As long as you keep the Shures at low-moderate volume they shine. Great treble presence, bass, vocals and mids are present and forward. If you are coming from and compare them to very mid-forward headphones such as HD 598 you may think that the mids here are ever so slightly recessed, but on their own hard to tell.
 
etc etc..........

 
Try my suggestion above... On 31 band EQ lower 10 and 12.5khz by 1.5-2.5db and they are not bright at high volumes. Low / mid volume flat EQ is best but if you want higher volume then that small amount of EQ works very well. Give it 10 mins to get used to the difference.

 

[WhoIsThis]

Out of curiosity, outside of the stock pads and the Alpha Pads, has anyone else tried any other pads?
 
It sounds like Angled Pads seem to address the somewhat excessive bass, and perhaps it is worth opening the cans up to apply Dynamat.
 
 

 
At low-moderate volumes: 9.5/10 (90% of my listening will be done at these levels)
At high volumes: 7/10 (10% when I get carried away by a tune)
 
Reasons for such score: As long as you keep the Shures at low-moderate volume they shine. Great treble presence, bass, vocals and mids are present and forward. If you are coming from and compare them to very mid-forward headphones such as HD 598 you may think that the mids here are ever so slightly recessed, but on their own hard to tell.
 
Very very subtle U-curve to the sound but it's what makes the headphones fun with everything. I feel the U-curve becomes more prominent the higher the volume goes and thus the lower score at really high volumes.
 
At high volumes I feel the higher frequencies are stronger while the bass isn't able to increase in the same proportion. Thus it ends up being a bright headphone at volumes over 70%. Also there is audible distortion on bassier tracks (such as Jay-Z: Empire State of Mind) at louder volumes. People have responded in the forums about what causes it, but for me, i think the driver just can't handle it. It gets pretty fatiguing pretty fast at loud volumes (for specific tracks that might be a little trebly to begin with).
 
The sub-bass also doesn't slam you at higher volumes like it does in the M50s or the A900x. But the soundstage and overall presentation of sound is a league above what the A900x and M50s can produce. Don't get me wrong for the price both are great, but if you do move up to the Shures, you will get better of almost everything. Not everything mind you (that would be the perfect headphone, and like the perfect woman, doesn't exist). But what is perfect to you? That's all that matters.
 
Games/Movies: 9/10. Loved it. Sound stage, bass, clear and present treble and mids

+1
 
I agree with this.
 
I have always viewed the optimal performance at low volume as a good incentive to protect one's hearing (this headphone does seem to distort more at higher volumes).
 
For a closed headphone, this pair of cans is pretty awesome at watching movies and playing games - the high soundstage (for a closed headphone there are times it approaches some open cans) is good for gaming and it is closed, which prevents distractions like a loud GPU at high fan speed. It's also pretty good for most film soundtracks. Equally important, it's very comfortable, which can be important for long gaming sessions.