Audio What earpads for Audio Technica ATH-M40X?

DanteErodov

DanteErodov

Level F
Hello folks, I am happy owner of Ath m40x for the past 4-5 years & absolutely love their sound signature & am really happy with what they have to offer.

Unfortunately, the ear pads have completely worn out now & I am looking for a replacement. I had procured Shure HPAEC840 as a replacement for this purpose due to the general consensus online that these are the closest to the stock ear pads but found them to change the sound signature very drastically to the point that I stopped using the ear pads all together. Since than I have sold the Shure pads & started using the original worn out pads as they still sound a lot better than what I was getting with the Shure but they don't as good as they used to for sure.

The way I see it, I only have 3 options now & would love to hear your inputs regarding the same? Should I
  • Try some other replacement brands? Any suggestions? I am bit apprehensive in this as various ear pads that are available online have very questionable sound profile & as stated earlier I am very perceptible to the sound changes & cannot shrug them off.
  • Try to procure the original pads(Audio Technica HP-EP)? Problem with this is that these are not easily available, specially in India. I think it will cost me at least around 2.5-3k to procure them & I am not really sure if I should be spending this much money on ear pads. I have also read reviews that these are not as good as the originals but still sound the closest to them. What do you guys think? Has anyone purchased them & at what price?
  • Sell these headphone & upgrade to something new. Not sure about this one as I am not sure what would be a good upgrade over these. I obviously don't want to spend too much money & would request your suggestions with various pro & cons.
Eagerly looking forward to responses from all audio experts in this area.
 
Judging from the lack of responses it looks like there is no clear answer to my queries.

Anyways, can you guys still recommend headphones which you think would be an upgrade over the m40x & not too expensive. I can spend up to a max 10k over what I am able to sell the m40x for if I do end up going this route.
 
You can try these - earpads
it will also change the sound signature, but can be tried.

No point in procuring original pads for 3k.
Better buy some other headphones.
 
i had purchased generic earpads off of amazon few yrs back for my ath-m50x. they have stayed intact (though i dont frequently use the headphones).
 
dazzwilliams said:
You'll find answers in 'Indian Audiophile Forum' group on Facebook
Click to expand...
Unfortunately I am not on FB so...

Synth-Pop said:
You can try these - earpads
it will also change the sound signature, but can be tried.
Click to expand...
I think these are way to big & thick & will have more significant sound changes, also they don't have a return option so wouldn't want to spend money on them.

Synth-Pop said:
No point in procuring original pads for 3k.
Better buy some other headphones.
Click to expand...
Yeah, that makes sense & is what I am leaning towards if I can't find stock pads at relatively cheap prices.

As stated before, do recommend upgrade options over m40x within 10k-12k budget. I use my headphones for 70% music & 30% games, so music quality is a primary requirement. Also, I run my headphones through a FiiO BTR1K dac/amp & it can support 16-100Ω headphones.
 
Hifiman HE400SE and DEVA are some good planar headphones within your budget, some positive reviews are available for these headphones.
Another good option is Sennheiser HD559 but I am afraid you may not like Sennheiser though it's a good headphone.
I love audio technica and I can understand how is M40x. Honestly but it's difficult for me to switch to some other headphones.
currently using AT A700X and DSR7.
DanteErodov said:
I think these are way to big & thick & will have more significant sound changes, also they don't have a return option so wouldn't want to spend money on them.
Click to expand...
Yes, sound changes are noticeable specially a bit lacking low end punch, but enhanced comfort at the same time.
 
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