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I finally did the blutac mod on the 007A. It has been noted in the Stax Thread by Spritzer and possibly by others that the 007A differs from the earlier 007 because it has an open space in the driver just above where the cable is fastened (i.e. just above the black at the bottom of the picture.
He has noted that plugging the space brings the 007A more in line with the 007 by pushing the bass response lower. As well, flatenning the spring which holds the earpad in place so the pad does not protrude out as far, reduces the lower bass peak.
Having now tried these mods, I can say Spritzer is correct on both of these points. Actually while I did plug the ports, I didn't permanently bend the springs, I just pushed the pads firmly onto my head to flatten them. Plugging the ports definitely pushed the bass down more but made a smallish bass peak somewhat more pronounced. Flattening the pads, reduced that peak quite effectively.
However, the effect is not as euphonic as one might expect. My first impression upon doing these tweaks was to think that the 007A sounded more like the Stax 404, which has a deeper bass response and somewhat of a bass peak. Unfortunately it makes the 007A sound more like the 404 in also having less definition. While the frequency response of the 007A is clearly improved by these mods, this comes at the cost of some of the 007A's best features, namely its ability to articulate details. There is noticeably less air and ambience coming through, and dynamics and details are lost. The phones also seem to end up with a mid frequency emphasis.
So basically I took the phones apart again and pulled the tac out. On reassembling these and plugging them into the 717 amplifier, they sounded again like the phones that I liked so much when I first got them. A neutral sounding phone with 1) a remarkable soundstage, with very precise, stable localization of instruments and voices, 2) great dynamic detail and 3) details of timbre I had not heard on any other phones.
Some of those who prefer the 007 sound over the 007A seem enamoured of tube amps, especially the more expensive non-Stax models (not that the Stax amps are particularly cheap). It may very well be that the 007 with a better amp does sound better than the 007A with a cheaper Stax tube or transistor amp. But how much of that is the amp rather than the phones? At any rate my impression is that the 007A is well matched with the 717.
I may try these mods again, but for the moment I want my original sound back.
This section below is an edit to clarify the effect of earpad orientation on the sound of these phones. I should note at the beginning of this thread that the ear pads have a "D" shaped opening. Now Stax says nothing about correct orientation in its manual, just adjust to your preference.
However, as you will see if you get to the end of this thread, my take on the orientation of the earpads of these phones differs from many others. I position the curved part behind my ear, because my ear is curved. Others position the straight section behind the ear. Those who position the straight edge behind the ear note that the pad is thicker/deeper there and that it fits many heads better and give a better seal. I would agree with that except that the earpad presses on the back of my ears. As regards the head-fit issue (as opposed to the ear-fit issue) you can of course bend the metal bands to get correct fit and seal.
I have tried both earpad orientations, bending the headband to get the best seal each time, and markedly prefer having the curved section behind my ear. However I have not tried all permutations of pad orientation, blutack and spring mod. I am very happy where I am right now with these phones. Possibly someone else would like to try these variations.
Finally, given what I hear with the changes in ear pad orientation, that some of the complaints about these phones come from having the straight edge behind the ear. I did not start out this way and liked the phones from the begining , although the spring mod made them better.

He has noted that plugging the space brings the 007A more in line with the 007 by pushing the bass response lower. As well, flatenning the spring which holds the earpad in place so the pad does not protrude out as far, reduces the lower bass peak.
Having now tried these mods, I can say Spritzer is correct on both of these points. Actually while I did plug the ports, I didn't permanently bend the springs, I just pushed the pads firmly onto my head to flatten them. Plugging the ports definitely pushed the bass down more but made a smallish bass peak somewhat more pronounced. Flattening the pads, reduced that peak quite effectively.
However, the effect is not as euphonic as one might expect. My first impression upon doing these tweaks was to think that the 007A sounded more like the Stax 404, which has a deeper bass response and somewhat of a bass peak. Unfortunately it makes the 007A sound more like the 404 in also having less definition. While the frequency response of the 007A is clearly improved by these mods, this comes at the cost of some of the 007A's best features, namely its ability to articulate details. There is noticeably less air and ambience coming through, and dynamics and details are lost. The phones also seem to end up with a mid frequency emphasis.
So basically I took the phones apart again and pulled the tac out. On reassembling these and plugging them into the 717 amplifier, they sounded again like the phones that I liked so much when I first got them. A neutral sounding phone with 1) a remarkable soundstage, with very precise, stable localization of instruments and voices, 2) great dynamic detail and 3) details of timbre I had not heard on any other phones.
Some of those who prefer the 007 sound over the 007A seem enamoured of tube amps, especially the more expensive non-Stax models (not that the Stax amps are particularly cheap). It may very well be that the 007 with a better amp does sound better than the 007A with a cheaper Stax tube or transistor amp. But how much of that is the amp rather than the phones? At any rate my impression is that the 007A is well matched with the 717.
I may try these mods again, but for the moment I want my original sound back.
This section below is an edit to clarify the effect of earpad orientation on the sound of these phones. I should note at the beginning of this thread that the ear pads have a "D" shaped opening. Now Stax says nothing about correct orientation in its manual, just adjust to your preference.
However, as you will see if you get to the end of this thread, my take on the orientation of the earpads of these phones differs from many others. I position the curved part behind my ear, because my ear is curved. Others position the straight section behind the ear. Those who position the straight edge behind the ear note that the pad is thicker/deeper there and that it fits many heads better and give a better seal. I would agree with that except that the earpad presses on the back of my ears. As regards the head-fit issue (as opposed to the ear-fit issue) you can of course bend the metal bands to get correct fit and seal.
I have tried both earpad orientations, bending the headband to get the best seal each time, and markedly prefer having the curved section behind my ear. However I have not tried all permutations of pad orientation, blutack and spring mod. I am very happy where I am right now with these phones. Possibly someone else would like to try these variations.
Finally, given what I hear with the changes in ear pad orientation, that some of the complaints about these phones come from having the straight edge behind the ear. I did not start out this way and liked the phones from the begining , although the spring mod made them better.