[RogueWolfe]

Thanks! Is there any foam discs you would recommend?

 

[RogueWolfe]

Ok so after listening for a day I must say I'm not a huge fan of the Akg sheepskin pads. I find them less comfortable for my ears - and treble seems a tad harder and idk - it lost a bit of the original timbre, the space, the air so to speak. Still great sound but the original pads had a different characteristic.

I think I'm gonna try the 560 pads next - they look closer to the original...

It's these ones here right?

https://de-de.sennheiser.com/zubehoer-hd-560-hd-560-ii-ohrpolster

Do they fit without tweaking? Thanks.

Also - after having become such a great fan I think I'll pick up a 250 linear II as well. I need closed back from time to time... They have the same pads right?

 

[jon parker]

Ok so after listening for a day I must say I'm not a huge fan of the Akg sheepskin pads. I find them less comfortable for my ears - and treble seems a tad harder and idk - it lost a bit of the original timbre, the space, the air so to speak. Still great sound but the original pads had a different characteristic.

I think I'm gonna try the 560 pads next - they look closer to the original...

It's these ones here right?

https://de-de.sennheiser.com/zubehoer-hd-560-hd-560-ii-ohrpolster

Do they fit without tweaking? Thanks.

Those are the right ones
In terms of tweaks, All you need to do is to add small rolled up bits off electrical tape to the back of the ring or pads if they dont fit perfectly. (sticky side on the outside!!)
The fit seems to vary between models - they all fit but not all click in all the way. Im not sure it makes much difference though as there is always a good 1/4 of the pad sealed inside the cup
The sheepskin pads sound quite different on the early and the late 540's Ref 1's Also of course depends on your source

Keep at it - when you find they right synergy for you, you will be in Audioheaven

 

[RogueWolfe]

Cheers much appreciated. It's the highs that probably bothered me the most. Don't get me wrong it still makes the headphone shine - just a little bit too pronounced for me on the highs. I'll give the ovation ones a try...

Already lurking on a few 540 Ref I on eBay. What's the verdict on the golds? There is a couple up that seem to have nice condition pads on them. Then again they are three times the price of a ref I and I don't care about the looks particularly.

Can you actually buy the rings as a spare part? Would make switching a lot easier..

 

[jon parker]

Cheers much appreciated. It's the highs that probably bothered me the most. Don't get me wrong it still makes the headphone shine - just a little bit too pronounced for me on the highs. I'll give the ovation ones a try...

Already lurking on a few 540 Ref I on eBay. What's the verdict on the golds? There is a couple up that seem to have nice condition pads on them. Then again they are three times the price of a ref I and I don't care about the looks particularly.

Can you actually buy the rings as a spare part? Would make switching a lot easier..

The Golds are like the Ref 1's but tuned more . . . .professionally? So if you have the ears to hear it then are a bit more refined. The drivers are matched etc
They are the best of the 540 range although 'best' might be suitable to the more experienced mature ear !?
You cant buy the rings - I do have the image needed to 3D print them o_0 but I dont have a 3D printer
You can find very cheap beaten up headphones and take the rings - BTW even though it LOOKS like it on some of them - in fact you can remove the pads from the rings. The seal is often almost invisible!

 

[RogueWolfe]

I just checked on the 430 replacements you can buy from sennheiser. They seem to come with rings...

https://m.thomann.de/de/sennheiser_hd430_ersatzohrpolster.htm


Mhm if I have the mature ears? I am very happy with my ref II and I think I'll try to get a cheap ref I for comparison first.

 

[jon parker]

I don't mean any disrespect by saying 'mature' ears. I just mean the differences are quite subtle

Ive had a look - I have a new pair of the HD 430 pads + a vintage, softer version of the 430 pads which have the rings on them
I would be happy to sell them to you for a bit cheaper if that helps?
i can post pics tomorrow - when the sun is out!

 

[RogueWolfe]

Oh I didn't feel you meant disrespect! I used to go to shoot outs of different gear a couple of years back. After a couple of meetings I realized I have a pretty uncommon taste / hearing to others. "Don't you hear the difference?" Me :"Oh you changed something?"


Thanks for the offer I'll gladly take you up on it.

 

[dakanao]

Cheers much appreciated. It's the highs that probably bothered me the most. Don't get me wrong it still makes the headphone shine - just a little bit too pronounced for me on the highs. I'll give the ovation ones a try...

Already lurking on a few 540 Ref I on eBay. What's the verdict on the golds? There is a couple up that seem to have nice condition pads on them. Then again they are three times the price of a ref I and I don't care about the looks particularly.

Can you actually buy the rings as a spare part? Would make switching a lot easier..

The Golds have a higher resolution and more refined sound, more controlled treble etc.

Sound signature seems relatively the same to me as my now sold HD 540 Ref 1, just more refined

 

[RogueWolfe]

I just got a ref 1 - was curious about the difference to my ref II. It already has the pads from the ref II - will report back.

The gold is tempting - but I'll just check the ref 1 out first.

That rabbit hole is deep lol.

 

[sennsay]

Hey Guys - as this multiyear / 170 Page Thread made me really curious about these vintage headphones I bought a 540 Reference II from a classified ad. Wow. Thanks everyone who contributed to this awesome thread. I enjoy my 540's very much. Classical Music, Jazz, Bluesrock - all sounds fantastic and involving. I am by no means a headfi pro, as I rarely listened to music with headphones before the kids came. So I'll spare you descriptions. Idk I always look for a natural sound with lots of space and seperation for all instruments / singers involved in the music. Perfect match this HD540 for me.

Running them in a Musical Fidelity MX-Dac, Aries Mini, Schiit Vali 2 chain. Perfect fit for me.

Well - the first step down the rabbit hole has been taken. First thing I'll definitely have to experiment with is pads. While they look fantastic on the outside the foam inside is pretty much thinned out. No idea of course how dense / thick these are originally?

I condensed a short list from the several pages / posts concerning replacements. I didn't note the 430 as the overall opinion seems to be they change the sound to the worse. Here is what I gathered:

Brainwavz

FeyJen AKG 240 Pads

560 Replacements

wang_yifei pads (pleather or velours)

From the different descriptions I guess I'll give the wang_yifei and the Feyien Pads a shot. Those linked in the images are the ones referenced right? Thanks!

Did I miss an important option (outside of DIY)?

Also my listening place is unfortunately a bit far away from the amp, so a longer cable is needed. Any suggestions? 3M will do just fine.

Again: thanks for all the posts, trials and findings etc.

No, looks like a good choice to me After trying several pads, for me the pleather 'wang' versions are staying on my HD540 Ref1s, they are not only very linear in their response, they also allow for a big and open soundstage, where the headphones themselves seem to disappear. I will look forward to your hearing how you go. I think I may have discovered at least part of the reason why; the new versions of the Abyss Diana Phi CC cans have newly designed pads which open out on the inside, allowing for not only more ear space, but a greater expanse of the soundstage. The pleather 'wang' pads have a similar design, whereas the velour/Brainwavz etc are squarer on the inside and narrow the s/stage, lessening the effect of 'no-cans'. To me, this is why the improved Focus A pads on the HifiMAN HE400S are still nowhere near as open as the HD540/pleather pads/Mogami cable, despite their improved overall response.

 

[RogueWolfe]

The 560 pads arrived today. It took some fine tuning and fiddling but they actually fit in pretty good. Bass is definitely less full and present - but it does give the same space and air to the sound I loved with the original pads. Someone called it "timbre".


I'll have to listen to it more though...

 

[RogueWolfe]

My ref 1 arrived just now. This is interesting - its the 600 ohm variant. But it has the pads from the ref II? The pads are actually in a very good condition on the first look. Now let's see how it sounds!

 

[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

Ok, one ebay guy sent me his used grey velour HD560 pads, and I get that, why he says these are the best pads for HD540.
The argument for it goes like this: HD540 is a reference headphone, and therefore it suffers from being tuned to more bass and sharper sound with pleather pads, or blunted with unsuitable material as Memory foam is. These headphones show their timbre very much only with very soft wrap material as velour or fabric, that is filled with "non-memory foam" sparse foam. That is why old grey velour pads sound so good, because the foam is sparse (thin) in them. The timbre is exceptional with them. There is no comparison to it, forget wang's pleather pads, that make your HD540 sound too universal and bass heavy. They are the closest how pleather can get to timbre. I tried new Sennheiser replacement HD560 velour pads as well, and the magic is missing, because the foam is not sparse enough. You really need old foam, and then soft velour or fabric wrap to get to the magic. So how to get there without buying all HD560 headphones that are sold on ebay and get their old worn pads from them? Wel,, there is a solution to this . Buy fabric option of these pads https://www.ebay.com/itm/Upgrade-leather-Cushion-ear-pads-for-AKG-K701-K702-Q701-Q702-K601-k612-k712/322924921469?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&var=512043796368&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649 . Then demolish it = tear the back plate off and remove and throw away the memory foam. Then get a soft sparse foam (not memory foam) from some cheap hifiman pads (or from used pleather pads), put it into the fabric wrap and glue it back close to its original shape with textil or shoe glue (I even glued the rings there) The resulting pad will not be as tall becaue such foam does not hold the shape as well as memory foam, but it will sound much better - less veiled, better then somehow bright and thin sounding original Sennheiser replacement HD560 velour pads, you will get 90% of sound of grey HD560 stock pads. Still, some sweetness of timbre and shape of space is missing, but it is a close call. There you go. No need to buy and resell HD560 headphones, unless you want full 100%.


I will further experiment with cotton wool filling instead of sparse foam.

 

[RogueWolfe]

To state the obvious - It's really too bad they don't sell the original replacements. Your theory holds up for my ears. I can second these impressions from my (limited) listening experience with the pleather and 560 pads.

I did like the timbre of the 560 replacement pads best so far. And I kind of had the same impression - that the cans need pads that can "breath" the sound. Guess that's the way they were engineered.

Have any of you tried the velour pads from Wang? I ordered those together with this pleather pads...