[koporiko]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/AKG-K550-M...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649

Too good to be true?

 

[TheGiantHogweed]

Yes, just as fishy as the ones posted a few weeks back that were with the same pictures and same price... https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-akg-k550-impressions-and-discussion-thread.613707/page-172

I don't trust Ebay for a lot of things.

 

[SSandDigital]

Just posting what I did recently to my K553, not sure if I like it or not yet.

The rubber piece surrounding back of drivers, I cut out the back that has the two small holes so its a complete cutout. Then I removed the film covering the three holes in driver housing. I used the 3M paper tape to cover the 3 holes on both sides of the housing. And of course thicker memory foam earpads is a MUST.

Still deciding if I like this bassier sound. I don't think the mids or treble are comoromised, and I prefer hardware modding to EQ.

 

[TheGiantHogweed]

I'm guessing that the deeper memory foam ear pads only improve the sound/bass if people were having issues with the fitting with the originals. As I have found with both different Brainwavz pads I've tried, they clamp very firmly, and the bass is slightly less noticeable. But that is probably because the treble is a fair bit more sharp. This has sorted out an issue with my original K550s, but with my MkIIIs I'm now thinking I'm going to go back to the original pads. To me, they sound better and are more comfortable. Bass is a bit stronger and treble isn't as sharp. They leak a lot less sound too and I think that the stitching on the bigger pads is the problem here. The originals barely have any.
I'm wondering if I must have a huge head compared to many or something? I remember people saying that pressing firmly on the original pads increased the bass. I never noticed that. It was always good. You can tell the quality of the other pads are way better, but I've been using K550s for 4 - 5 years now, and the originals for me last up to 2 years no problem. I've still got a pair that I haven't used yet so may replace them soon. But when switching to the thicker pads, I find they clamp really hard and although I think i will be hearing what others here, they don't sound as good as how i hear the sound with the originals.

On my original K550s, I found that the white ring had come loose and that dramatically reduces the bass. I put PVC tape on and also tried micropore tape which is slightly better as it allows for a bit of air to escape through to the back. The problem with sealing them completely is that if any pressure gets put on the ear cup suddenly, it will lead to the driver getting forced in and out, which could cause damage. If you want to block them totally, I would certainly go for PVC tape over 3m paper tape. That stuff leaves some horrid residue once in has been in place for a while. Often needs some strong solvents to remove it. PVC tape is fine.

One thing I do agree on is that trying to improve the sound by earpads and other things is a much better way than using EQ. But I now think that if you don't have any fitting problems with he original pads, you are not going to to get any improvement of the sound by getting thicker pads. What I guess would be nice for me is getting some pads that are exactly the same shape as the originals, but far more well made.

 

[TheGiantHogweed]

Well, I've been using the XL Brainwavz pads for over a week now while travelling to work on the bus. I just am not keen on them for this use. After switching back today to my original pads, the bass was so much more noticeable and the treble wasn't as sharp. Was listening to the same band yesterday and today. But each day had different earpads. Yesterday with the Brainwavz, as i have almost all of last week, I've had the bass boost on my FiiO X3 right at the top. +10db. It boosts the bass at 100hz. That may sound crazy, but the band (Katatonia) has some pretty heavy bass drums on some albums and with these pads, even when the bass is turned up like this, the thump is a bit hollow and empty. When you listen to them on flat without EQ with all the vibrations on the bus with these earpads, it almost sounds like there is just a pair of tweeters on your ears. Just doesn't sound right. When I switched back to the originals today and listened to the same band, I turned the bass down a bit to +7db and that was much more noticeable than the brainwavs pads on +10. And without the treble being as harsh.

Like I've said before, It maybe people having problems with the fit of the originals that makes them say these brainwavs pads sound better. But if you have a good fit with the originals, these pads will make them sound more thin and harsh.

I don't totally regret getting these though. My original K550s are good with these. They have less treble than my MkIIIs so I don't mine the extra they give them. The bass isn't a problem either as I'm not somewhere full of vibrations and can just use a hardware Bass boost Swithc on my FiiO A3 that does a clean job of boosting it a bit. And as I'm sitting still, I don't get the irritation i got with these pads while using them on the bus. The one thing I don't like about them still though is that they leak more sound than the original pads. I don't mind this much at home though as I often use open backed headphones too.


I just find it interesting how much these ear pads can change the sound. I'm not sure weather it is extra treble making it seem thin on the bass or the other way round.

 

[episiarch]

I just find it interesting how much these ear pads can change the sound. I'm not sure weather it is extra treble making it seem thin on the bass or the other way round.

I think it is the other way round. I've tried a variety of pads and I have more than one K550 making it reasonably easy to compare across pads, and what I hear is a dropout of the lower frequencies either as the pads get "leakier" (velour or hybrid pad), or as the seal gets worse (a problem I don't have, but easy enough to simulate by slightly breaking the seal manually), or, roughly speaking, as the volume of air enclosed by the headphone against my head gets larger.

That last one does seem to be a pretty significant correlation in my experience, though I haven't tried the XL pads. But it holds for the stock pads vs. the Brainwavz ovals (distorted from their native ovalness by being put on the K550 and ending up with a bit more earspace than the stocks) vs. the Brainwavz non-XL rounds (still more earspace).

I still recommend the angled ovals as the best of the lot in my experience. But that's only my experience, so YMMV. A downside is that the angled pads, while not very big on the inside, are somewhat huge on the outside, honestly conspicuously so if worn in public.

 

[itchyears]

Tried some more comparisons today between the original pads on my (mk1s) and XL Rounded sheepskin Brainwavz pads on my (mk3s) and placed them flat on the desk from same source and volume and the original pads are better at noise isolation, however a flat table does not really create that K550 seal so I gently pushed both headphones down to recreated that seal effect as if it was around a ear and there both more similar in isolation now, but I would say the original pads are still 20% roughly better at isolation.

I did also try some A/B sound test, tbh there is not much difference between the mk1 and mk3 that I could spot, maybe a bit more bass on the mk3s but I felt it hard pressed to really notice any difference.

One thing I did notice is once again how important that 'Seal' is with the original pads the seal is harder to obtain since your ears are literally touching the drivers on the inside, but with the XL rounded brainwavz pads the seal is much better then the orignal pads are, I mean you could literally throw the brainwavz rounded XLs on and it seals around your ear perfectly each time since there is a wider opening and more gap distance between the ear and driver.

The seal does help define the instruments and soundstage better also, even if i push down on the original pads to get that seal a bit better it helps but its not like I could push some clamping force on to get that seal on always.

So really the only bad thing I could say is the isolation is a bit more weaker with the brainwavz XL rounded pads compared with the original pads, otherwise comfort & sound quality the rounded brainwavz XLs are good.

 

[jsavis]

When the original pads of my K550 (mkI) went to bad condition, I thought that I'll try to make an upgrade. After some searching I decided to buy the Brainwavz XL Sheepskin pads.

When the pads arrived I was really excited - the quality seemed excellent, soft leather, carefully stitched, easy to replace, felt very comfortable against head. Then I started to listen to some music and... what a dissappointment! It was immediately obvious that the sound quality had changed, and definitely for the worse. The highs were harsh, and the bass... hard to describe but it was as if the low bassdrum hits created kind of feeling of pressure in the ears. Very unpleasant.

I went almost right away back to my laptop and searched and ordered a pair of original type earpads (these: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Rep...869.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.69224c4dNcyNyP). They arrived a couple of days ago. Before replacing them I took one more listening session to confirm that I was not imagining the changed sound (no, I wasn't). Then I replaced them and listened to the same tracks again... and sighed in relief - the K550 sound quality that I had learned to love was restored.

These new pads are however not perfect either, they are a little bit smaller and thinner than the originals, so I can feel my ears touching the pads and/or drivers a bit more than before. So it may be that I still continue searching for new pads, but now I at least know what my goal is; I will not try to make any upgrade, but instead find pads that are as close to the original ones as possible.

By the way, since this episode I've been reading through this thread. On page 167 member Dealux says: "Try to find the original pads. Headphone modding is stupid (for people who don't understand how headphones work or don't care). They are tuned to those specific pads so they'll perform worse with aftermarket pads."
Based on my experience with these Brainwavz pads I believe these really are words of wisdom.

Oh well, a lesson learned, the hard way...

 

[itchyears]

When the original pads of my K550 (mkI) went to bad condition, I thought that I'll try to make an upgrade. After some searching I decided to buy the Brainwavz XL Sheepskin pads.

When the pads arrived I was really excited - the quality seemed excellent, soft leather, carefully stitched, easy to replace, felt very comfortable against head. Then I started to listen to some music and... what a dissappointment! It was immediately obvious that the sound quality had changed, and definitely for the worse. The highs were harsh, and the bass... hard to describe but it was as if the low bassdrum hits created kind of feeling of pressure in the ears. Very unpleasant.

I went almost right away back to my laptop and searched and ordered a pair of original type earpads (these: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Rep...869.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.69224c4dNcyNyP). They arrived a couple of days ago. Before replacing them I took one more listening session to confirm that I was not imagining the changed sound (no, I wasn't). Then I replaced them and listened to the same tracks again... and sighed in relief - the K550 sound quality that I had learned to love was restored.

These new pads are however not perfect either, they are a little bit smaller and thinner than the originals, so I can feel my ears touching the pads and/or drivers a bit more than before. So it may be that I still continue searching for new pads, but now I at least know what my goal is; I will not try to make any upgrade, but instead find pads that are as close to the original ones as possible.

By the way, since this episode I've been reading through this thread. On page 167 member Dealux says: "Try to find the original pads. Headphone modding is stupid (for people who don't understand how headphones work or don't care). They are tuned to those specific pads so they'll perform worse with aftermarket pads."
Based on my experience with these Brainwavz pads I believe these really are words of wisdom.


Oh well, a lesson learned, the hard way...

Wow that is pretty much the complete opposite to what I experienced with the brainwavz pads and others, and I have 2 pairs of AKG K550 one with original pads and one with brainwavz to make the comparison easier. I did not notice much difference between either pads, but the seal on the brainwavz allowed that bit more clarity where as the orignal pads were more open so sound leaked out around the ear, I really forgot just how important that K550 seal is after using original pads for 5 years.

Sound is highly subjective so maybe even I am wrong but guess trust your ears, those pads you listed look very similar to the originals but if you are after the exact original K550 pads here are the details to get them:

Spoiler

email: hcgcustomersupport@harman.com

ask for AKG K550 ear pad replacements and state where you are from (US or UK etc), they will give you a local spare parts department with contact number one based in your country.



If your from UK or maybe Europe you can try here:
http://www.carradiorepairs.co.uk/contact_us.html

Call Angie : 01728 746500 since she doesn't really bother with replying to email request but you can try.
Ask for ear pad replacement parts for AKG K550

or :

The Part # is:3280M12020
The Part # is:3280M12010
Cost £19.50 with Vat + shipping

She has to get them from Belgium so it takes 3-4 working days to get to you.

Her full details are below:

Angie
http://www.carradiorepairs.co.uk/contact_us.html

Fullers Electronic
Technical Centre
Riverside View
Wickham Market IP13 0TA
e-mail: angie@kenwoodspares.co.uk
Spare Parts No: 01728 746500
(Note: This line is shut between 12pm-1pm)
Open:
Monday-Thursday 9.00-17.30 GMT
Friday 9.00-16.30

 

[jsavis]

Wow that is pretty much the complete opposite to what I experienced with the brainwavz pads and others, and I have 2 pairs of AKG K550 one with original pads and one with brainwavz to make the comparison easier. I did not notice much difference between either pads, but the seal on the brainwavz allowed that bit more clarity where as the orignal pads were more open so sound leaked out around the ear, I really forgot just how important that K550 seal is after using original pads for 5 years.

Sound is highly subjective so maybe even I am wrong but guess trust your ears, those pads you listed look very similar to the originals but if you are after the exact original K550 pads here are the details to get them:

Spoiler

email: hcgcustomersupport@harman.com

ask for AKG K550 ear pad replacements and state where you are from (US or UK etc), they will give you a local spare parts department with contact number one based in your country.



If your from UK or maybe Europe you can try here:
http://www.carradiorepairs.co.uk/contact_us.html

Call Angie : 01728 746500 since she doesn't really bother with replying to email request but you can try.
Ask for ear pad replacement parts for AKG K550

or :

The Part # is:3280M12020
The Part # is:3280M12010
Cost £19.50 with Vat + shipping

She has to get them from Belgium so it takes 3-4 working days to get to you.

Her full details are below:

Angie
http://www.carradiorepairs.co.uk/contact_us.html

Fullers Electronic
Technical Centre
Riverside View
Wickham Market IP13 0TA
e-mail: angie@kenwoodspares.co.uk
Spare Parts No: 01728 746500
(Note: This line is shut between 12pm-1pm)
Open:
Monday-Thursday 9.00-17.30 GMT
Friday 9.00-16.30

Yes, it's interesting how differently people find the changes in sound with different pads.

Regarding my own experience, my guess is this: I had actually very good fit and seal with the original pads, because I have a relatively big head and I have also bent the headband for better clamp. So when I changed to the Brainwavz XL's there was no significant, if any, change in the seal, and the whole feeling of different sound quality was caused by the bigger air space inside the pads and longer distance between ears and drivers.

However, those who have had bad fit and seal with the original pads may feel something very different with new pads, as the differences in the sound are mainly caused by the improved seal.

Oh, many thanks for the information about the original pads!

 

[itchyears]

Yes, it's interesting how differently people find the changes in sound with different pads.

Regarding my own experience, my guess is this: I had actually very good fit and seal with the original pads, because I have a relatively big head and I have also bent the headband for better clamp. So when I changed to the Brainwavz XL's there was no significant, if any, change in the seal, and the whole feeling of different sound quality was caused by the bigger air space inside the pads and longer distance between ears and drivers.

However, those who have had bad fit and seal with the original pads may feel something very different with new pads, as the differences in the sound are mainly caused by the improved seal.

Oh, many thanks for the information about the original pads!

Yeah that makes sense especially if you improved the clamping force to gain that proper seal, my first pair of K550s are very loose and lack the same clamping force so I don't really get the same seal as I do with my other K550s with brainwavz pads.

I may find after a few months or years my newer K550s get loose so will have to remember to gently bend them to improve the clamp/seal effect.

Yeah no worries, there the authorized AKG spare parts retailer based in UK but different countries probably have similar outlets.

 

[491838]

You guys should check out the Etymotic ER3XR. It's a single driver BA IEM but it has significantly more detail than any of the AKGs and is very neutral\balanced with more sub bass than the K550 just for $140.

 

[episiarch]

You guys should check out the Etymotic ER3XR. It's a single driver BA IEM but it has significantly more detail than any of the AKGs and is very neutral\balanced with more sub bass than the K550 just for $140.

I'm an Ety lover who uses K550 as my full-sized close can of choice, and this recommendation makes sense to me.

 

[itchyears]

You guys should check out the Etymotic ER3XR. It's a single driver BA IEM but it has significantly more detail than any of the AKGs and is very neutral\balanced with more sub bass than the K550 just for $140.

Hi thanks for the suggestion, I was looking for IEMs since I still like the idea of cranking up the volume a bit more to enjoy music in late hours which you can't fully do with the K550s as much.
Do you find others in the room or family members are still able to hear your music at higher volumes on your ER3s ?

I don't know if you can ask someone else in the house if they can hear you while you are listening to some music perhaps, thanks !

 

[itchyears]

I'm an Ety lover who uses K550 as my full-sized close can of choice, and this recommendation makes sense to me.

Hi do you also notice better clarity and detail over your K550s ?

Not sure if you can answer or comment on my above question either cheers