[up late]

only use mine for music. haven't had your problem but the w3000anv sounds damped to me with the leading edges of notes softened. that's part of its charm i guess but i've heard cleaner more dynamic sounding cans.

 

[Maxx134]

I have had trouble in the past with my w3000anv and I think I may have solved my problem. .
I had an issue with my small head where I didn't get full sound unless I pressed on the beautiful wood cups(!).

Enter the "Alpha Pads"

Compared to stock pad on the right..
It should make a noticeable change like the J$pads...
I hope for the best lol

 

[Maxx134]

Initial impressions very different and depending what you like may be better or not, but different, not worse because of intensity details more noticeable.
Bass texture and size increased almost at a majestic level of finesse.


Mids no longer as prominent and seemingly more integrated or pushed back to sound balanced with rest of spectrum.
Less intimate and More sound stage but still not at level & size of my th600 soundstage.

Trebles two things..
Lower trebles seem in line with mids.
Upper highest trebles seem increased,
Leading to an apparent sense of more details,
The similar effect my th600 has with upper trebles.

So in effect you have a more authoritive balanced can with more impact yet less prominent mids more flat overall sound less audio-technica and more like a reference sound.

I am handing it over to my family member for his ear comments without telling him anything except it's a different sound. ..

Edit:
Ok they said the mids were slightly more recessed than flat compared to the higher amount of bass and trebles.
They liked the treble and bass was excellent. More clear and defined slight boost over stock

 

[walfredo]

Just got a Svetlana.  Eager to receive it and try...  

 
The alpha pads look interesting too.
 
Anything that gives the W3000 more space sounds a good idea...

 

[zorin]

Initial impressions very different and depending what you like may be better or not, but different, not worse because of intensity details more noticeable.
Bass texture and size increased almost at a majestic level of finesse.


Mids no longer as prominent and seemingly more integrated or pushed back to sound balanced with rest of spectrum.
Less intimate and More sound stage but still not at level & size of my th600 soundstage.

Trebles two things..
Lower trebles seem in line with mids.
Upper highest trebles seem increased,
Leading to an apparent sense of more details,
The similar effect my th600 has with upper trebles.

So in effect you have a more authoritive balanced can with more impact yet less prominent mids more flat overall sound less audio-technica and more like a reference sound.

I am handing it over to my family member for his ear comments without telling him anything except it's a different sound. ..

Edit:
Ok they said the mids were slightly more recessed than flat compared to the higher amount of bass and trebles.
They liked the treble and bass was excellent. More clear and defined slight boost over stock

Maxxie, I think you got a bit mixed up with your impressions, probably not enough of the caffeine in your bloodstream on the day. How is it possible that with the new pads
A - W3000ANV is more balanced when the mids are pushed back ? If the mids are less prominent then headphones are less balanced. To begin with, W3000ANV's mids do not 'stick out' at the expense of bass and treble sections, these headphones have wonderfully even sound with only about 5 dB bass lift to compensate for the lack of the bass volume and force that is due to listening to music in a limited way when the sound goes directly to ear canal. The mids are perfectly in line with the bass and the treble. The bass is a bit emphasized but it does not interfere with the mids. 
B - How can the sound of the modified W3000ANV be more 'flat' when the bass and the high treble are more prominent, when the frequency response becomes less even, less flat ? Did you have an impression that W3000ANV have 'unbalanced' FR and that the new pads fix the problem ?  

 

[r one]

My 2 cents :
if you want a better response in the bass section with more soundstage due to more laidback mids, i'll recommend to use the W3K with the violectrics V800+V200 as i do since one month. It's the best way i've heard with the delicious w3000..Mids little more backward and incredible bass response is exactly what violectrics give to the w3000.I would not have thought it might sound that way...an end game set up for him and for my taste...really try.

 

[up late]

Maxxie, I think you got a bit mixed up with your impressions, probably not enough of the caffeine in your bloodstream on the day. How is it possible that with the new pads
A - W3000ANV is more balanced when the mids are pushed back ? If the mids are less prominent then headphones are less balanced. To begin with, W3000ANV's mids do not 'stick out' at the expense of bass and treble sections, these headphones have wonderfully even sound with only about 5 dB bass lift to compensate for the lack of the bass volume and force that is due to listening to music in a limited way when the sound goes directly to ear canal. The mids are perfectly in line with the bass and the treble. The bass is a bit emphasized but it does not interfere with the mids. 
B - How can the sound of the modified W3000ANV be more 'flat' when the bass and the high treble are more prominent, when the frequency response becomes less even, less flat ? Did you have an impression that W3000ANV have 'unbalanced' FR and that the new pads fix the problem ?  

if the mids are forward to begin with then reducing them should balance the sound. w3000anv has forward mids imo so maxx134's post makes sense to me.

 

[zorin]

if the mids are forward to begin with then reducing them should balance the sound. w3000anv has forward mids imo so maxx134's post makes sense to me.

W3000ANV have no forward mids at all. You have been either fooled or conditioned to hear normal mids as "forward". Most headphones today have recessed mids and many got used to this unbalanced FR presentation, they have been brainwashed to hear recessed as normal. Those who got used to the perverted sound of 'U' or 'V' shaped frequency response then hear normal mids as "forward". In fact it is bass end of the spectrum, and not the mids, that is a bit more prominent and sticks out of the well balanced FR line of W3000ANV. These headphones present mids as they should be and I would even say that the vocals could be a small step more forward but I won't complain, the position of the mids is practically perfect. If you imagine a band in a club or in a small to medium hall, the singer is in the middle and in front of the instruments, he or she sings in front of the rhythm and drum section. To the sides and behind the singer are guitars and other instruments. A normal and decent headphones should present this musical spacial arrangement as it is recorded. W3000ANV, God bless these headphones, give the correct image of the instruments on stage. Finally, we have first rate closed headphones that do not push vocals to sing FROM BEHIND the bass and the drums ! The singer stands and sings in front of the band, close to you, as it should be. Even better, how nice it is when an enchanting woman's voice is not smothered by banging and thumping and sings to your year. I waited long time, years, for closed headphones like W3000ANV.
If you prefer recessed mids, if you think that the singers should be kicked to the back of the stage and sing from there then you are in the wrong forum. There are Denon and Fostex headphones for those who do not consider human voices in music important enough to be treated properly. The vocals in those headphones sing from the holes in the mids. Mister, you have a wrong opinion about W3000ANV, they have balanced FR and their mids are not "forward", they are plain normal. Please adjust your 'opinion'. 
P.S. To Hell with headphones with recessed mids. 

 

[Maxx134]

? Did you have an impression that W3000ANV have 'unbalanced' FR and that the new pads fix the problem ?  

Yes exactly..
I posted in past I had a problem with my cans and now realize it was the stock pads were just worn flat and not giving me the seal I needed.
Now with the alpha pads I hear everything much better.
More detailed nuances in whole spectrum.
Bass it probably how you hear it as my old stock pads didn't give me that seal.
I was comparing at the time to my th600 and my mind was "adjusted" to its "U" shaped sound so coming back to these gave me the impression I stated..

I still believe the Alpha Pads are the best choice over J$pads or stock..
If you or anyone like to hear I am bringing them to the NY meet ..


Edit:
They now sit on my head properly without any rubber band tricks,
and I can now say my head is not too small lol.

 

[up late]

gotta disagree with you there herr zorin. part of the reason for it sounding mid-centric is due to its bass roll-off. not saying there's anything wrong with that but it is what it is. w3000anv is a nice can but its fr don't look or sound balanced imo.

 

[Maxx134]

I have to say I am actually very impressed with the bass "quality".
It seems to defy explanation where it sounds tight and light yet deep and heavy when called.
Very natural and realistic tone.
That's why I hope any owners with the w3000anv can make it to the NY meet and compare.
I really like the Alpha Pads and listened a few days now to make sure it wasn't just because it was new to me..

 

[dallan]

Best closed headphones to me but I agree that if there is any issue at all maybe the bass is just slightly rolled off, although the v200 helps with that.

 

[Maxx134]

... ... ...
P.S. To Hell with headphones with recessed mids.

Lol I get what your saying, actually also enciteful about how the stage perception changes with frequency response.
I had a few monitor cans which were fairly balanced or flat,
but unfortunately, a lot of popular music today, seems to sound better with any other shape than flat (!) Lol.


The way I see it is each cans signature is like a different pair of prescription glasses, where you see the music differently.
Sometimes you need "reading glasses" (closed cans) and sometimes you need "distance" (open cans)..
So I think we can get close to what genres of music we need it for, but no can will be all for everyone...
Maybe

 

[r one]

Best closed headphones to me but I agree that if there is any issue at all maybe the bass is just slightly rolled off, although the v200 helps with that.

+1 with dallan

 

[up late]

not knockin' the w3000anv - it's a sweet can. i'm no expert but looking at the pirates fr chart the mid-bass hump starts to roll off at around 100 hz followed by a steep drop of close to 10db at 50 hz. it doesn't go deep and sounds bass lite to me. got no issues with bass quality tho.