OK, so I've been thinking, and I think I've run out of easy things to do to improve the sound. I can only think of adding more wood, but there's still a limit. The last thing I can think of is angling the driver similar to the way the T1 and HD800 angle their drivers. I haven't the faintest clue how to do it though, but that's the exciting part.
The simplest way I can think is to make some sort of platform out of wood and use the DT880 series pads. Like have a little more wood on one side and less on the other to achieve an angle. I say the DT880 pads simply because they are large enough to angle the driver with, and cost less than $50, and are comfortable as hell. It'd require a lot of work, but I think it'd pay off.
Any thoughts on this, Bill? I know you've owned the HD800, do you think it's worth doing?
Does anyone know the angle that either the T1 or HD800 angles their drivers at?
EDIT: here are a couple artsy-fartsy pics of the T1 so you can get the idea of what I'm trying to say.
EDIT2: I guess it wouldn't fit correctly on the headband after being angled either... I need to put a bit more thought into this, it's going to be tricky.
EDIT3:
According to this thread the HD800 is angled at 45 degrees and the T1 driver is angled at 15 degrees.
Here are my two cents, for what it's worth.
When you wear supraaural cushions, you are already angling the drivers to make them sit flush with ears that are angled. When headphone manufacturers speak of angling the drivers, they are speaking of running them off-axis so the aim is less point blanc and more angled with more of the sound reflected. Ironically, when you wear jumbos, which sit flush to your skull rather than your ears, you're already angling the drivers, which may be why Grado has sometimes suggested moving them forward or back, up or down, which gives you an adjustment in terms of exactly where you position these slightly off-axis drivers.
Having owned the GS/PS1000s, the HD800 and the T1, I'm more inclined to see the "angled driver" angle as just one more thing to grab the public. Then again, there may be something to it. I did something with a pair of computer speakers, having them aimed off-axis, where I ended up with at least the perception of a much wider soundstage. But those were drivers whose backwave had been contained by the speaker cabinet. I've tried to replicate this exact experience with Grados and found that the backwave interfered with my attempts.
The HD800 has the largest soundstage of any headphone I've purchased but that has little to do with the angle of the driver, which is only angled to orient it toward the ear - because the circumaural shell is flush with the skull. Much of its spaciousness has to do with suspending the driver above the ear and removing the normal seal blamed for standing waves. In this respect, Sennheiser was scooped by AKG, whose K1000 was doing it before anybody else.
You can create this same effect with a Grado and laugh in the face of the HD800 by throwing out the cushion and building a semi-permeable cage. Grado, in fact, does something like this with its jumbo pads, which are porous and transparent, making them a foamy cage of sort. The HD800 has an open, plastic cage which it fills it with a metal mesh fabric that negotiates a compromise between K1000 spaciousness and the need for some actual bass. This you can do. I've talked about it, hinted it, started on it, but have yet to actually do. I'd love to see somebody take the lead on it.
The whole reason for the HD800's "revolutionary" driver - with the ring magnet and doughnut-holed diaphragm (which is technically "larger" - at 55mm - but not so much so when you consider the big hole in the middle) is to avoid cone breakup by avoiding a cone. Why? Because you have to crank and crank and crank this driver to get any bass. That's the reason for the HF suckout and the filter. It's also why so many HD800 owners end up buying better amps and premium cables. To get that sense of space you have to be willing to kiss off a lot of bass. The HD800 drivers are meant to hum like a mother in order to produce their trademark sound. The downside is a lack of bass slam. The upshot is really nice grumble and a very spacious soundstage. Angling the drivers doesn't really have much to do with it, especially since the HD800 is angling them to orient them toward the ear - unlike Ultrasone with its holy holy-plate S-logic game.
Ironically, while the T1 does angle the driver, it has less soundstage than the HD800 because it employes a smaller, oval-shaped set of cups which constrict the "concert hall." The result is a warmer, thumpier, presentation but one I never liked as much as the HD800's. I do think, however, that the whole Grado pad arrangement could be thrown out and replaced with something better than foam.
Just my two cents. I'm not trying to respond to anti-Grado nastiness with pro-Grado nastiness. I think the HD800 and T1 are wonderful headphones and their quality is undisputed. What I dispute is the claim that either headphone represents much in the way of "revolutionary technology." I don't think of a ring magnet and a doughnut hole as "revolutionary technology," but then again, every dog has its day - and its due. It was, at least, a clever way to reduce cone breakup and unwanted resonance. If Grado could have done it - consistent with his product line - I'm sure he would have considered it. He didn't and now he's got to clean up the fallout. Perception has a tendency to dominate reality.
Creating a pad replacement, not just another pad, would be a neat trick. Pads are needed for decent bass but that seal does mute the high end. How one gets the best of both worlds is quite a topic worth exploring.
