[daltonlanny]

After reading this thread with great interest, I have decided to buy two pairs of Sennheiser HD540 References from headfi member marshallmole.
One is a 600 ohm HD540 Reference 1, and the other is the HD540 Reference II.
Cannot wait to try them out and do some earpad  comparisons.
I currently have a pair of Sennheiser HD650's with a 650 LE Stefan Audio Art cable, a pair of Sennheiser HD600's with Signal Cable Silver Reference cable, and modded AKG Q701 to compare them to.
Can't wait.

 

[o0CosmoMemory0o]

Silver cables don't give detail, they give an unnatural, harsh treble (distortion/glare) as most studio mastering is done with equipment that uses copper interconnects. OFC interconnects give a natural tonal balance.

 

[daltonlanny]

I respectfully disagree.
The Signal Cable Silver Resolution doesn't sound harsh, unnatural, or have glare at all, but sounds very natural, detailed, and open.
OFC copper also sounds really great, but can also add some unnatural warmth.
My Signal Cable Silver Rez interconnects sound extremely close to the source.
The headphone jack on my Marantz SA8001 is very good and accurate with the Sennheiser HD600/650, and the only interconnect that makes my HeadAmp GS-1 headphone amp sound closest to that headphone jack when using the SA8001 is the Signal Cable Silver Resolution interconnect going from the SA8001 to the GS-1.
It is the best sounding interconnect under $500.00 that I have ever tried, and I have tried many.

 

[Mahay]

Be warned that the majority of the hobby of hi-fi is plagued by BS; most of it is a misinformed dogma that is not to be trusted. Money don't mean nothin' and neither does the technology that is marketed. It is the APPLICATION of that technology and the attention to rational engineering that makes the difference. Science must be used to pin down the answers and listening will reveal if the science got it right. Analytical mathematics only tells you so much; you still have to listen to the equipment to verify that the reality supports the theory.

Totally agree with you. Hopefully the HD540 will find its place back among audiophile headphones again. Gotta purchase a spare before the price goes too crazy 

.

 

[Mjolnir125]

So what have people decided with regards to which currently available sennheiser earpads produce the best sound for the reference II? Is it the HD430 pads?
 
Also does anyone have a source for those contact springs? I am thinking they might be the same kind as those in the HD580 onward, but I am not sure and I don't know how to get those ones either...

 

[o0CosmoMemory0o]

I think that I now have a spare driver for the HD540II but I need to double-check.
 
With regard to earpads on the Ref II...
 
I tried HD250 pleather pads and I thought they significantly reduced the performance. =/
 
I did briefly use those fabric original HD540I pads on the II but I wasn't keen on the imaging they provided. =/
 
Then I tried the HD560 pads, transplanted in the HD540 binding rings and had a listen. Sounded much better but the denser foam and backing plastic of the HD560 pad seemed to reduce the size of the stereo image somewhat, in my opinion. =/
 
Currently trying the HD560 foam in the original HD540II velour skin. Really great sound but still not fully satisfied with the stereo imaging. Maybe I need a more porous (less dense) foam??
 
I shall have to try out the HD430 pads next or try putting its inner material into the HD540II velour skin. If not, I'm going to have try foam from another source...
 
Alternatively we could all contact Lin Irvin at Sennheiser and request that they make a batch of HD540II velour pads for purchase. They might just grant our wish if there are enough of us driving the demand forward. If we're really enthusiastic about it, we might be able to get them to produce more than just the pads...

 

[moriez]

  I tried HD250 pleather pads and I thought they significantly reduced the performance. =/

 
Seconded.
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by o0CosmoMemory0o /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
Maybe I need a more porous (less dense) foam??

 
Maybe.. you need a HD800 after all ^^
 

  Alternatively we could all contact Lin Irvin at Sennheiser and request that they make a batch of HD540II velour pads for purchase. They might just grant our wish if there are enough of us driving the demand forward. If we're really enthusiastic about it, we might be able to get them to produce more than just the pads...

 
As much as I like the sound of genuine pads it's wishful thinking. An Excell sheet with twenty signatures just won't do the trick. I'll seriously doubt it to say the least but count me in nevertheless. How do we contact this man?

 

[o0CosmoMemory0o]

It's a lady, I believe.
 
Email: lin.irvin@sennheiser.co.uk
 
Ideally, there needs to be at least a couple of hundred of us show an interest otherwise they probably won't take any notice.
 
We'll need to link her to head-fi threads like this one and my thread on GSPAudio, so that she can show Sennheiser in Germany that hi-fi enthusiasts are genuinely interested in vintage models such as the HD540.

 

[moriez]

Allrighty. Spamming her mailbox one by one doesn't seem a good approach for none of us. An Excell master-list with our names makes more sense. Can only think of that for the moment.. ?

 

[o0CosmoMemory0o]

We could make a head-fi thread with the title: "If you would like Sennheiser to manufacture spare parts for the HD540 Reference II such as velour earpads, please reply to this thread with a '+1'..."
 
If we get at least 200 '+1' replies on the thread, we can forward the thread to Lin Irvin and she would inform Sennheiser in Germany.

 

[moriez]

Could work. Let's see what others here think.

 

[moriez]

Guys, I have a few 540 and 540 II parts on offer. In this case I rather mention it in the thread than on the FS forum. What's in store:
 
2 x 540 driver/housing/silver ring
2 x 540 II driver/housing/silver ring
1 x 540 headband/pad
1 x 540 cable (fatty plug)
 
All goodies went to our man ''down South'' rocksteady65!

 

[GREQ]

I promised more over-enthusiastic ravings about the HD520 when my earpads arrive, and they arrived!
 
I've only been listening with the new pads for about 40 minutes, flipping through tracks and genres, and I'm having a very tough time finding something I don't like about what I'm hearing.
This is of course compared to my usual diet of HE-500, Momentum, DT-990, T20RP MKII etc...
 
Subjectively, the upper mids are a tad forward, and the bass rolls off a touch too early, but that's not to say it's weak or ins't there.
Objectively... these are pretty damn great. 
 
These sound really awesome at lower volumes. (and that's not a joke about how the less you hear it the better you feel ^_^ but that they don't choke with less input) 
I think there might be some distortion going on with busy tracks or bass-heavy mixes... but it's almost negligible.
There is also a slight lack of resolution and texture overall, especially in the bass, and there isn't enough percussive impact and dynamics to compete with high end modern headphones.
Easily better than any vintage K240 variant overall. Soundstage and sense of air are very musical. 
 
I am going to keep two big eyes out for all of it's siblings. 
I think these are the lightest, most comfortable headphones I've ever owned, and will easily rival my vintage DT990 and T20RP for head-time.

 

[Mjolnir125]

If anyone has any totally electronically broken HD540 II driver units let me know; I need to replace those plastic inserts that have the cloth/paper backing on them but I can't seem to replicate the paper the original units use (the closest paper I have tried is too sealing). All I need is that plastic driver cover with paper backing, since my actual driver units work fine.

 

[o0CosmoMemory0o]

You may as well buy the pair of HD540II capsules that Moriez is offering. The springs and covers of his drivers probably won't even need to be touched so you can keep your current drivers as spares in case a fault develops later on. I bet he is happy to let you have them at a bargain price.