Audio Technica ATH-M40X

Waterfall (CSD) L + R
Frequency plot: Left, Right
The ATH-40X is the cheaper ( 100.-) brother of the M50(X).
It differs VERY much from the ATH-M40fs in looks, comfort, size and above all sound.
Below the frequency plot of the ATH-M40X. There seems to be a little quality control / matching issue
going on here. I measured it several times and in several positions and even reversed it on the test rig
and the (substantial) difference between L and R is really present. 4 dB difference in the 100Hz-400Hz
region is a bit strange. According to some reviews and Audio Technica this headphone is flatter than
the M50X and indeed it sounds flatter than the M50X but still has big bass. Personally I like a bit of
bass so dont mind it IF there werent that much difference between L and R.
Product variance or issue ?
The headphone sounds better than it measures and has a (somewhat fatty and elevated) bass but no
warm sound. This is caused by the dip between 200Hz and 1kHz. This gives voices a clear sound
and because the FR drops off above 2kHz there is no shrill sound. The highs are clear and soft but
the details (the part above 10kHz) is elevated too much but not annoyingly high. The overall sound is
good albeit a bit on the bassy side and the treble is smooth but a bit artificial.
The CSD (Waterfall plot) shows some short lived resonances around 4kHz, 8kHz and 16kHz. No idea
if it is a coincidence but theses frequencies are harmonics. No deal breaking long lived resonances
but also no remarkable performance.
Time to experiment with pads, felt, wool, filters and other modifications.

What's immediately apparent is the difference between L and R driver between 100Hz and 500Hz.
The only obvious difference between L and R cups is the presence of the headphone socket inside the
cup. Also it could be (small) difference in the cup volume but 4dB is a bit much for this.
I opened the headphone and on the inside covered the
socket with malleable eraser to seal any leaks.
NO difference in FR. stock, socket sealed with eraser

Next I opened up the rigth cup and placed a lump of malleable

eraser in it of the same size as the connector.
No difference in FR (NOTE: FR limited to 5kHz in this plot).
Next attempt is by stuffing the cup (the Left
channel) with densely packed sheep wool.
Again, NO difference in FR. The small
difference between 5k and 8k could point to
reflections being damped better. It certainly
didn't change the bass (which I hoped it
would do). There seems no effect in the lows
the reason for this may be that the cups are
completely closed.
Swapping pads L and R did not do anything.
What effect do the 'vents' in the
cups have ?
Stock, Vents blocked from the
inside with malleable eraser.
It seems to have an impact
between 1kHz and 4kHz.
The sharp dip at 8kHz could
also be caused by incorrect
positioning, the 1-4 kHz change
cannot.
Underneath the pads there is an acoustic transparent foam which 'lifts' the pads a bit. This enables the
sound to pass through the vents underneath the pads and make it into the 'ear chamber'.

stock, foam under pads removed

stock, a double layer of foam under the pads

Removing the foam Increased the lower mids, a double layer decreased the lower and upper mids.

The top and (above 10kHz) is giving a 'fake' sense of details and the shimmer off cymbals and violins
gets a slightly 'artificial' and unnatural effect.

stock, with 2mm felt in front of the driver

stock, with electronic filter.

The felt lowers the 10kHz peak and does not change the FR up to
5kHz. The side effects are the dip in FR around 7.5kHz,
(measured it a couple of times) and doesn't lower the 15kHz peak.

The electronic filter (shown on the right) lowers the bass and addresses the peaks only. The
headphone sounds more natural.

Pads have a profound impact on the sound. Below some experiments with different pads (left channel)

stock pads, Tascam TH-02 pads

stock pads, Fostex T50RP pads

stock pads, Beyerdynamic DT770 pads

stock pads, Shure SRH-840 pads

stock pads, Shure SRH-940 velour pads

stock pads, SRH-940 pads + 2mm felt

The Shure SRH-940 pads seem to perform well when the peak is lowered using a 2mm thick felt.
The sonic signature is quite flat right down to 40Hz and extends beyond 20kHz. There is a dip around
3.5kHz but this is present in a lot of headphones and not as annoying as dips in other frequency
bands. Results of this mechanical/acoustical modification is shown below (right, left)

Result: 2 ways to modify the ATH-M40X

A: keep it stock and use the electronic filter (doesn't change the L-R differences).
B: Use SRH-940 pads and 2mm thick felt in front of the driver.
As a bonus, and oddly enough, the L-R difference seems to be much smaller as well.
Solderdude @ http://diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com/