[SHAMuuu]

Do you perhaps also have the Brainwavz round pleather pads?

No just sheepskin for hm5 brainwavs. I do have some pleather, but not brainwavs. I use thin pleather by Beyerdynamic on a 250 Linear I

 

[jon parker]

Just wanna share a revelatory experience I had with the HD 250. I haven't tried these pads on the 540 yet...Im frighted at how good they might sound !!
As far as the HD250 goes though, I have never experienced such a profound & upgraded change in any headphone though just using a different pad. )

Just popping in to share a recent find.

I have tried various pads on my Linear 1, beyer m pads, dekoni, AKG pleathers but my original pads always felt the best but sounded lacking due to seal failure thanks to cracking. These are very close to the stock feel, but they seal well even with glasses thanks to the dense memory foam with sheepskin. I moved to these pads on my older AKG a few months ago, I bought a few more pairs while still available to stick in a drawer and realised how close they were in size to the stock 250 pads and so tried them. Been using them for over a month and no going back. I agree with others that these are very sensitive to pad rolling especially if too deep, these tick all boxes for me.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07G5WVPR3?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

I have been using these pads for the last few days and I am blown away...speechless. I have often said, a tad tentatively that these are one of the best closed back headphones ever made. With these pads I would say that now with authority. Ive had a lot of experience with various pads but the difference that these pads make is nothing short of magical.
They have turned the already superb closed back headphones into something far beyond what I already thought was amazing. It would take too long to express all the qualities that they, combined with the already perfectly tuned HD 250 display but...
The separation of instruments in the mix is now 10/10 but what makes it particularly spectacular and what makes them now a top tier headphone is each instruments individual characteristics shine, each being given space to display their own qualities. This is something that only VERY expensive headphones can do
The soundstage, as is already well know with the HD250 sounds identical with the HD 540 (an open back headphone) but now combined with the separation and almost 3D presentation makes for an addictive experience
The bass, OMG the bass is THE best I have heard, warm, rich organic and perfectly 'calibrated' within the mix yet it never interferes with any other frequencies. It just sounds wonderfully warmly vintage tubes organic. (I am using a LittleDot 1+ upgraded tube amp though!)
The clarity of the vocals and details of everything is now extraordinary. Albums sound like I have never heard before
micro details are all there as well - even the tiniest insignificant sound can be heard - again amazing considering all the other things the headphone is doing

Until now, I had not been completely happy with the HD250. I could hear they were great but I felt they were certainly not reaching their potential. The closest pad I found that made them sound descent was a similar high quality memory foam. (Not sure what the pad make is though)
I put the old pads on a set of HD 540 to make room for these new ones on the 250 and actually it gave me a HD 540 that I hadn't' heard before!! - 3D holographic deep rich experience

So, now I have an essentially new and MUCH better HD 250 with these pads AND a completely new sounding HD 540 with qualities I haven't heard before with that headphone as well !!

So yeah, THANK YOU mr Catnip Mouse for sharing this

 

[dakanao]

The Sennheiser HD 540 Gold (Brainwavz round Sheepskin pads) actually sounds smoother in the uppermids but more sparkly in the upper treble than the HD 650 (2012) with the very cheap ebay cable… Vocals sound more present as well, but I'm not too sure about that. Possibly because of the better transient response, they seem more separated creating the impression they're more forward, which I was not expecting.

Gonna try them with the HD 650 cable tomorrow (I have the Canare and Mogami cables which are the best, but don't like the heavy weight of them dragging the headphones down too much for me) and see if they can outperform the HD 650.

I do like the sound and flexibility of the stock HD 650 cable, and a user on ebay sells the HD 650 cable shortened in length with a mini-plug, I think I'll buy that one.

 

[Narayan23]

Just wanna share a revelatory experience I had with the HD 250. I haven't tried these pads on the 540 yet...Im frighted at how good they might sound !!
As far as the HD250 goes though, I have never experienced such a profound & upgraded change in any headphone though just using a different pad. )

Inquisitive ears would like to know your take on how those pads sound with the 540, pad taste seems to be an individual thing but reading your enthusiastic report makes me think perhaps the pad debate might be settled once and for all, thanks for sharing Jon!

 

[jon parker]

Inquisitive ears would like to know your take on how those pads sound with the 540, pad taste seems to be an individual thing but reading your enthusiastic report makes me think perhaps the pad debate might be settled once and for all, thanks for sharing Jon!

I will get to it soon - I just had arrive a NOS 1980's vintage headphone turn up that Im listening to a lot at the moment - One of my other top 5 headphones of all time

 

[hanouk]

Would these pads be ok with HD250 Linear I / II and HD540 Reference 1 ?

https://www.thomann.de/fr/sennheiser_hd430_ersatzohrpolster.htm

As from what I've seen, only early HD540s came with pleather pads (correct me if i'm wrong)

Some people mentioned these Ebay chinese pads : https://www.ebay.fr/itm/Replacement-Ear-Pads-Cushion-For-HD250-HD540-HD560-HD-250-540-560-II-Headphones/251387223412?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&var=551122534930&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

Which ones would be the best between them and the genuine HD430 pads ? The Chinese pleather pads dont really seem very thick based on pictures.

Too bad genuine HD250 / HD540 pleather pads seem discontinued, afaik only HD560 ovation pads are still available, and rather pricey (39€).

 

[myusernameislove]

Would these pads be ok with HD250 Linear I / II and HD540 Reference 1 ?

https://www.thomann.de/fr/sennheiser_hd430_ersatzohrpolster.htm

As from what I've seen, only early HD540s came with pleather pads (correct me if i'm wrong)

Some people mentioned these Ebay chinese pads : https://www.ebay.fr/itm/Replacement-Ear-Pads-Cushion-For-HD250-HD540-HD560-HD-250-540-560-II-Headphones/251387223412?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&var=551122534930&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

Which ones would be the best between them and the genuine HD430 pads ? The Chinese pleather pads dont really seem very thick based on pictures.

Too bad genuine HD250 / HD540 pleather pads seem discontinued, afaik only HD560 ovation pads are still available, and rather pricey (39€).

Read my report on pads - few pages back. These HD430 pads with simple foam mod I describe there as well sound best on HD540 to me so far. The mod is necessary because without it they do not seal, and it lacks bass horrendously. The pads from amazon that mouse mentioned are on its way now to me.. so they will be added to the list soon. For HD250 I prefer most wayng_yifei's pleather pads with Foam mod as well. They are more bassy sounding, and foam mod makes their profile a bit higher, which completely removes their weird mids and weird space and then they start to sound perfect. HD250 needs some additional bass, therefore wang's pads are better, while HD540 loves airy pads and exceptional heighs, and HD430 pads are a bit better in that department.

Early HD540 came with fabric pads (fabric replacement pads are on its way to me as well) that had pleather ring where it touches face. Later HD540 had velour pads. Read about my unsuccessful attempt of adding such pleather ring to original pads - glue destroyed its sound. It must be stitched in my opinion, and it must be made from softer pleather to attain only a slight change in sound of fabric pads.

 

[sennsay]

Who knew, eh, that so many pad configurations were required for differing ears/temperaments/cables and so on I did not enjoy any pleather pads with my HD250's (300 ohm), still much preferring the BD 800 pads from eBay 'wang', for both ear space and a balancing of the over abundance of bass energy (Mogami cable, not thin stock).
The 'wang' pleathers are not leaving my HD540 Ref1s and I have had further revelations in the last two days of not only how stunningly fine these HPs are, but also the QP1R/Mimby/Magni 3 combo can truly be, as excellent as I thought it already was.
A few years ago I made up my own version of the very HQ Slinkylinks pure silver ICs I regularly use, just to see what I could come up with. Buying some five 9s pure silver 0.25mm wire (same size as used in the Slinkys), Teflon tubing and another set of the very fine Bullett plugs. The S'links cable uses two strands of the fine wire per conductor, created in such a way (I couldn't emulate their technique) that the wires cross and touch each other only for the bare minimum of times per length (very few!) with only air around them in their plastic tubing (a particular kind, they don't like the sound of Teflon, apparently), are silver soldered to the single conductor Telluric copper earth pin and central signal pin. The outer plastic sheath container both of the dual conductors is then welded in some way to the plastic base of the Bullett plug. Considering the potential fragility of the very this silver sire, these cables have lasted perfectly for around 9 years, being pulled in and out of connecting jacks hundreds of times and are still like new. I, again, couldn't emulate all of this tech, encasing my two conductors per cable in some black plastic braid, nowhere near as strong as the Slinkylinks, but I've had no issues with them as I've been gentle at all times with these extremely light cables (0.5M), holding them by the plugs only.
A post on the Australian 'stereonet.com.au' site regarding simple home-made cables got me to bring them out and have another go with them on my newer systems, as I hadn't used them for years, other than very briefly. In earlier systems I found them to be very pure in their SQ, yet not as organically alive as the Slinkys are, so I rarely used them and they were most likely barely even run in, silver cables seem to take a loooong time to really settle down.
So, I popped them between the Mimby and Magni 3, plugged in the Ref1s .......... and was simply stunned, eyes wide open! What the ...! True, they don't have quite the complete lowest bass to top end balance of the Slinkys, but why am I hearing even more top end detail in absolute purity of tone? The lowest bass has less warmth, yes, but every bit as much detail even with the slightly lessened weight, focus and impact speed is exemplary and that applies all the way up to the very top. Sublime transparency! Where I've spoken often as the Slinkys and Schiit stack being an open book, it's now as if I've stepped through a pair of clean glass doors (yet again) and into fresh air, where there is nothing at all between me and the instruments/musicians/soundstage. Ricki Lee Jones' brilliant Naked Songs (Live) became even more of a revelation last night, image focus of such incredible clarity it's difficult to explain, alive, pure, gobsmacking micro dynamics that brings instruments alive in yet more detail than I'm used to, voices too, diction to die for. I began searching for more albums with percussion featuring in them, jazz, Chesky discs, The Who, The Mamaku Project, WOMADELAIDE Live from 2005, others, I'm working my way through some more today. Wow! I can easily dismiss (most of the time) a reduction in lower bass sheer weight and warmth if the instruments sound so alive and focussed. Timing, also exemplary. I could go on .... astounded. I suspect that these cables may yet fill out a touch, as they wouldn't have 100 hours on them and the Slinkys didn't settle into their current sig for at least 200 hours.
Once again, the 30 year old Reference headphones from Sennheiser have more to give and greater musical tales to tell. The soundstage has become even more 3D, with musicians and instruments having an even clearer open space in depth and height between them ... astonishing.
I suspect it's not necessarily that my home made cables are 'better' than the Slinkys, (although they may be in some ways), more in that there may be a tonal balance interaction that is allowing the Ref1s to show me more of what they truly can do, which is quite a revelation in itself! The Ref1s and my skull do an even greater disappearing act, it's like I can feel they are there only very lightly, as if they are now slightly out of phase with the music, as if the Slinkys with the Schiit stack couldn't do that brilliantly already. I'm stunned. Not only by what the Ref1s have revealed, but it also means that the little beautifully made silver boxes from Schiit Audio are simply out of sight value far beyond their price!
Next task is to put my little cables between the audio-gd R2R-11 as a DAC/pre and out to my homebuilt highly upgraded HP amp. And then with the Elekit Tube preamp and .... something, probably the same HP amp. I also suspect, now that I have heard my Schiit stack in a new light, that many folks are not getting anything like what is possible from their own stacks.
In case anyone asks, no, my home made silver cables are NOT shielded. They are completely and utterly silent - as are the unshielded Slinkylinks - nada, zilch, nothing, no noise at all. Even the Mogami rep told me the other day that they don't like shielded cables for speakers and I know of other companies that find shielding ICs closes in the top end to varying degrees. Years of experience with my own cables, shielded and unshielded, show me that this is so often the case, even with my shielded pure silver solid core-conductored White Zombie La Cacanya cables - White Zombie make (made) a version of this cable without the shielding and have a slight preference for that one.
The value of on-line forums means I now have a whole new and refreshed view of my Schiit stack and Senn HD540 Ref1s. Bring it on!

 

[myusernameislove]

still much preferring the BD 800 pads from eBay 'wang'

these (DT880)?

 

[sennsay]

Oops, yes, that's them

 

[hernandoco]

these (DT880)?

Oops, yes, that's them

So do you guys just remove the plastic ring mount from the HD540 pads and then glue it onto the replacement pads?

I actually have the original pads but like most of them out there, the leather part that touches your head is gone. It's pretty much just entirely cloth but that's also falling apart as well. I tried the factory original HD430 pads on the HD540 but I don't like the added mid range and bass.

If the DT880 fits diameter-wise fits, I wanted to experiment with the Dekoni pads. Specifically the fenestrated pads. It's pretty thick. Not as thick as the original HD540 but thicker than the HD430. Hopefully that'll be enough thickness that it doesn't muddy the sound, but add a little bit of warmth and bass from the more sealed leather pads vs the stock cloth.

 

[sennsay]

You can just slice the rings off the old pads, yes. They should just slide right inside the pockets of the new pads ... if they have them, you might want to try double-sided tape first up if they don't have pockets, before gluing them on.
Good luck with the Dekoni pads, I hated them on the HD540s and lasted very little time on there, as did the similar Brainwavz. Most of the fine qualities of the HD540s vanished (for me), to be replaced with an over-warm thickness and very rolled off highs. Yuk. But that was me and my systems. The HD540s are worthy of far more. The only 'benefits' I could find with those other pads mentioned was the comfort, while at the same time feeling closed in and losing the fabulous openness I have now with the pleather pads. I suspect the Dekoni's and brethren may be better suited to closed-back HPs, though certainly some people love 'em.

 

[myusernameislove]

PADS PADS PADS

I compared most of pads that I own now with my HD540 Reference 1 600 Ohm headphones.
I recommend pads no. 2 (enhanced), 6 (enhanced) and 1 (stock pads).

For no. 1 I had to use regular thin foam inserts to reduce spikiness of highs. For all other pads I chose very thin cloth inserts from ebay user messihinmessiher to keep as much highs in sound as possible or no foam inserts at all..


+++ = best (heavenly)
++ = good (heaven entrance)
+ = with flaws (may suit some genres)

++++ (above heaven)

Reserved for modified pads and tuning them close to original stock experience (fabric pads with pleather top ring). Also stock HD560 velour pads were not tested (at least one user prefers them to everything else).

+++

2 (enhanced) - insert 0.5cm wide foam ring into the bottom part of pad no 2 to increase height and seal for a better space and tighter bass and to undo weird quality of mids od pads no. 2. The result is more bassy than that of enhanced pad no. 6. Excellent pairing with brighter and cleaner amps. I use pads no.2 (enhanced) on my HD250 Linear 1 and pads no.6 (enhanced) on HD540.

6 (enhanced) - glue a 0.5cm wide foam ring with a small amount of a textil glue to the bottom part of pad no. 6 to increase height and seal for a MUCH higher amount of bass than with original pad no. 6 and to achieve a bit better quality space while still keeping the tonality a bit brighter and the sound less bassy then the sound with enhaced pads no. 2. The result has more highs (but also less body) and the sound is very close to reference neutrality ideal. Excellent pairing with warmer and darker amps. After while: space still is not ideal - a bit less precise placement of instruments or slightly distorted highs I would call it. Very enjoyable listen though.

1, stock HD540 Reference 1 pads with exchanged filling (taken from cheap Hifiman pads) and stitched back together (fabric, tall profile, without pleather top ring, but with ) - even more clear than wang_yifei's pleather pads. Spikier highs, very neutral sound (some of you may actually prefer little warmer sound of no.2 and no.3 pads). Space is exceptional and imaging is precise. Exceptional tonality and technical mastery. Although tonality is perfect, and bass is not missing in the sound, it's bass is not as easily identified as with all of the other pads (no.2, 3, 4, 5) and therefore I take one star down in bass quality.. Quality of highs ++++ (yes, here it shines), amount of highs +++, quality of mids +++, quality of bass ++, amount of bass ++, quality of space +++, technical excellence (ability to display texture of notes - you need very clean sound and good quality bass for this to work, amount of aftersounds, sweetness of sound) +++.

++

2, replacement pleather pads from ebay user wang_yifei (soft pleather, flat profile) - almost perfect, better (tight) bass than no.1. Unfortunately its middle frequencies sound weird in comparison to stock pads (no.1), but if you do not have those for comparison, you may not even notice it. Space is as exceptional and imaging as precise as no.1. Sound is a little warmer and also more sharp than no.1. Quality of highs +++, amount of highs +++, quality of mids ++ /a little too tin can sounding/, quality of bass +++, amount of bass ++, quality of space +++, technical excellence +++.

8, replacement AKG pleather pads from Amazon by FeiYen (thick pleather, memory foam, low profile) - less highs than both 2 (enhanced) and 6 (enhanced), less clear in highs, but more robust body and more bassy tonality-wise. Better in that department of increased bass than less clear sounding Brainwavz pads no.4. They sound pretty mellow, and therefore are still very enjoyable, but contrary to them they lack their crystal clear highs. Quality of highs ++ (soft), amount of highs ++, quality of mids +++ (very mellow), quality of bass ++ (softer), amount of bass +++ , quality of space ++, technical excellence ++ (less clear, much less real window into music - they take HD540 to the fun V shape level of sound that usually HD560 excels in, but gone is the crystal clear and neutral sounding open window into the music).

3, replacement Sennheiser HD560 Ovation / Ovation II Earpads (Black) from Audio Sanctuary (velour) - softer sounding, near to perfection. One could argue that timbre is better with this softer kind of sound. Definitelly more relaxed and less sharp. Quality of highs ++, amount of highs ++, quality of mids +++, quality of bass ++ (softer), amount of bass +++, quality of space ++, technical excellence ++ (softness takes half of this perfection away, but there is still enough of it for you to enjoy).

+

4, replacement Brainwavz memory foam pads. Oval. (thick pleather, tall profile) - more bass, too much (it muddens the sound). Main problem of it is, that it does not have that natural sound that most of us love with HD540. Space and imaging is also broken (mediocre). Could be good choice for modern music. Quality of highs ++, amount of highs ++, quality of mids ++, quality of bass ++, amount of bass ++++, quality of space +. technical excellence ++ (hidden).

5, stock pads from HD250 linear II - (soft pleather, tall profile) - natural sound, but too dull for my taste. Space and imaging is mediocre, hint of dullness muddens space and timbre. If you like a little more bass and also want a little compromise in natural sound character, this could be your choice. But it sounds too dull to me. Quality of highs ++, amount of highs ++, quality of mids +++, quality of bass ++, amount of bass +++, quality of space ++. technical excellence + (dullness kills most of it).

6, replacement Sennheiser HD430 ear pads. Colour: Black. (soft pleather, medium to flat profile) - very clean, almost bright as it lacks bass, but otherwise sound is perfect. Space and imaging is a tiny bit behind that of wang_yifei's pleather pads. Too bass light. Quality of highs +++, amount of highs +++, quality of mids +++, quality of bass +++, amount of bass +, quality of space ++, technical excellence + (it is clean, but because it lacks bass it cannot show muscles).

-

reserved for mediocre pads

1 (destroyed), glue bit of pleather to the front part of the pad. The glue kills it. Before it was glued and only placed on the front, it sounded well - maybe better than original. High amount of glue made it sound too bright. If you want to try this mode, stitch the pleather ring to the pad instead. And do not use too wide ring. Use as narrow ring as it was originally narrow.

--

7, (added 3.1. 2019) Brainwavz hybrid pads (thick pleather on sides and velour top, tall profile) - their tonality is even bassier then Brainwavz memory foam pads (4), and at the same time their sound is muddier than any pads in the test so far (from no. 1 to no.6). They just destroy everything that these headphones do well. Quality of highs -, amount of highs +, quality of mids +, quality of bass - (soft and muddy), amount of bass ++++, quality of space ++, technical excellence - (muddy).

---

reserved for worst ever pads

AKG pads no.8 from Amazon added to the list. I still prefer more 2 crystal clear options on the top of the list.

 

[dakanao]

AKG pads no.8 from Amazon added to the list. I still prefer more 2 crystal clear options on the top of the list.

I have the foam rings installed the wang pleather pads. It was a pain to make them that thin when you don't have a sharp knife.

I do notice more details and clarity to the sound, while not taking away from the smoothness at all. Very natural sound now, smoother and with more upfront vocals than the HD 650.

 

[myusernameislove]

I have the foam rings installed the wang pleather pads. It was a pain to make them that thin when you don't have a sharp knife.

I do notice more details and clarity to the sound, while not taking away from the smoothness at all. Very natural sound now, smoother and with more upfront vocals than the HD 650.

Thanks for telling us. Glad you like it. I was not 100% sure if there is real change, but Icame to conclusion that it did something to the mids and the change was positive, and more natural. Ps I used scissors.