[ArchDragoon]

Umm... so Dekoni Elite Sheepskin Earpads for MDR-7506 would also fit MDR-M1ST right ?

 

[equalspeace]

earcups look to be about the same size. only way to know for sure is to try it. i've been using the brainwaves velours with good effect for a while now and pretty much settled on those for use w this HP

 

[Sheep3000]

earcups look to be about the same size. only way to know for sure is to try it. i've been using the brainwaves velours with good effect for a while now and pretty much settled on those for use w this HP

Ah, how would you compare the brainwaves velours to the brainwaves sheepskin?

 

[equalspeace]

Velours are the way. They complete this headphone imo.

And if yous really want to bring the best out of the M1ST get a 3.5 mm or 4.4mm balanced Blue dragon cable (the M1ST runs really well balanced). I run the zx300 docked -> Silver Dragon USB -> CMA Twelve Master -> M1ST. The sound through this rig is marvelous. I think many people in this community don't realize what a wonderful tonality these headphones have. It's just about perfect to my ears, but def too warm with the stock cable and too closed in with the stock pads. It's almost as if Sony kind of obscured the beauty of this gem with those accessory pieces. Through trial and error I think I have the right set up now.

 

[Sheep3000]

Velours are the way. They complete this headphone imo

Ah cool! How would you describe the sound change in comparison to default pads? :0

 

[equalspeace]

Ah cool! How would you describe the sound change in comparison to default pads? :0

Omg ahaha where to begin. let put it like this these headphones are capable of sounding like an HD600 with better bass imo. the velours allow them to accomplish this.

there's almost no soundstage with the stock pads. this is the biggest change brought about by all of pad mods. but the BW velours really give the nicest soundstage i heard out of all the pads i've tried - decent width and some really nice layering is brought about as well. the bass hits nicely too

 

[Sheep3000]

I've also found myself falling asleep to the default tonality of these headphones- they're so intimate and relaxing. Perfect for before bed listening.

I wanted the yaxi's for a more monitor-like analytical sound. Would you say the yaxi's do that (tonality aside)?

 

[equalspeace]

Yes, to an extent. But the Yaxis sounded unnatural to my ears

 

[Sheep3000]

Yes, to an extent. But the Yaxis sounded unnatural to my ears

Ah, well if the tonality is anything like the default pads, then I'll be more than happy with them. The default pads sound very natural to my ears, with an accurate, narrow but deep soundstage. If it's anything like that, then I'll be happy with this purchase.

 

[alpha80]

Umm... so Dekoni Elite Sheepskin Earpads for MDR-7506 would also fit MDR-M1ST right ?

No.
M1st is slightly different.
You can swap them but one will be too loose and the other too tight.

 

[ArchDragoon]

No.
M1st is slightly different.
You can swap them but one will be too loose and the other too tight.

Ouch... Good that you reply before I order it. Thanks.

 

[Sheep3000]

Anyone have any frequency response measurements of the M1ST's with the Yaxi pads made for the headphone?

 

[Sheep3000]

Joining the bandwagon!

Between the OEM all-pleather pads and the YAXI hybrid pads (alcantara + pleather), i very much prefer the latter as they offer more space between the drivers and my ears. When I first tried them on, straight from the box, I heard some channel imbalance, perhaps because the drivers were resting on my rather large ears at a sub-optimal angle (the audio image i was getting was non-centered, even though the track i used to test the headphones had center imaging); I even thought that maybe something was wrong with the drivers themselves. But after replacing the OEM pads with the YAXI pads, the problem was immediately solved.

I'm coming from a pair of MDR-Z7M2s and I feel like I am able to get 80-85% of the enjoyment/experience with the M1STs minus the weight and size. And since I also have the MDR-1AM2s, I can just use the supplied 4.4mm cable with my NW-WM1A when outside the house (and I thought they sounded okay, but not as dynamic/punchy when paired with my desktop setup, i.e., an RME ADI-2 DAC FS paired with a Tom Christiansen HPA-1 amplifier).

I also have the MDR-CD900ST, a modded pair c/o Cartonode Engineering (the ones I have are the CE-02, with detachable cables and the hinge system a la MDR-7506), and I don't think the M1STs improve drastically over the CD900STs. That said, I welcome the slight bass boost with the slight smoothening of the treble (the latter made the CD900STs a fatiguing listen for long hours). If you already have the CD900STs, then getting the M1STs might be redundant. Even so, if you have the budget to accommodate both headphones, why not?

I can't recommend the M1STs enough. I should've bought them sooner!

How would you say the Yaxi pads sound on the M1ST vs the stock pads? (channel imbalance aside)

 

[Tsiklon]

Ohh FYI if you have an MDR-1AM2, the balanced cable that comes with that is perfect for this. It’s the same pin out.

 

[Sheep3000]

Ohh FYI if you have an MDR-1AM2, the balanced cable that comes with that is perfect for this. It’s the same pin out.

Sadly, not about to purchase another headphone and balanced usb dac for a marginal improvement to the output of this headphone.. (which is already efficient enough to be run out of a phone). My phone's amp/dac is already very clean with -108db THD+N levels. And isn't balanced only necessary when you need extra power to power your headphones..? I'd assume that things like pad changes, eq and (potentially) amp colouration would matter a little more when it comes to sound than whether the connection is balanced or not. Would I be correct to make this assumption?