Just make sure you buy the perforated pads (that are on the Noire by default) in case you buy the 2 Closed, that makes it a Noire in red and more natural sounding than stock tuning imo.
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Is aliexpress legit? And how do i decide from which buyer should i buy?
ali themselves are fine sometimes they get sketchy sellers though
if you can buy from a seller thatâs been on there for over 2 years and has good feedback
I bought from 2 different sellers they both seemed fine - the only thing i would warn about the super cheap ones is that they come without an adaptar ring - just an adhesive , take a good look before you buy
there is a seller who is selling for 410 dollars with 5 star reviews and 18 sold. Could he be legit?
If you are talking about the headphone itself its possible but since you are talking hunderds of dollars i wouldnât risk it and just buy from amazon/adorama or whatever - its another 80$ but its peace of mind and a solid warrenty.
as far as pads this is the seller i got mine (with an adapter ring)
I want them shipped to uk tho
Aliexpress doesnt really care 
it just takes a while
as far as amazon, here is a an amazon UK link
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Wow these are probably the best pads there are - but I think a bit steep on the price (for me at least).
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Ladies and Gentlemen, we got them! Got them from âSmart Audio Storeâ on aliexpress, paid like $30 for both, got the non perforated sheepskin and velour, the mounting rings are perfect fit, thereâs other stores with apparently the same pads for cheaper but thatâs the one I trust.
Anyway my 5 minute impressions, both are more comfortable than stock and both fix the treble tizz, but my immediate impression is bass and mids are just tighter with the sheepskins, Iâd say go for those, unless you really hate the feeling of sheepskin, I usually avoid it cause they get hot but these headphones are soooo open I donât mind. Also the velours might reduce treble a bit more havenât tested enough, but yeah I basically donât wanna ever take off the sheepskins already.
Edit: Actually yeah the treble might still be a bit too fresh for me with the sheepskins, if youâre into horribly bright black metal like me you might prefer the velours, just get both and try imo, for most music the sheepskins are probably better.
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Iâd say try the perforated well 
Ive tried the solid and perforated, and personally prefer the perforated though i havent tried the Valor .
donât they get too bright? I was afraid of that thatâs why I got the solid ones, the velours are definitely more mid centric, a bit less bass and less treble
IMO no they are crispier but not too bright while still keeping the bass tight
Congratulations on a great find. Itâs nice when someone finds a good product that doesnât cost stupid amounts of money. Fortunately for me I like the XS as is, so I donât really need them. But at that price, I might just give them a shot anyway.
Hi everyone, been looking on these heavily the past few days as I am just tired of my he400i not able to store my giant ears in them. Iâm running a JDS Labs Atom/D10 stack and I cannot seem to grasp any general consensus about the XSâ efficiency. Thought Iâd just ask myself, will the Atom be able to power them well? I am not really looking to spending extra on an amp.
From memory I think theyâre sliiightly harder to drive than the 400i, you should be fine if your current amp does well with those but people will tell you you need 20million watts.
Iâd tell you to just pad swap but the ones I liked on the 400i arenât on sale anymore and I never tried brainwavz xl on those, itâs probably worth the upgrade anywayâŠ
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Thanks! Iâve been looking at pad options for the 400i however I donât think thatâd do the trick. For what itâs worth, HD6XX are too small for me and the one super popular pair of Brainwavz is too, feel like itâs just a matter of shape, I have gigantic ears and Ananda-sized pads will not fit.
So hard to have any general understanding of how power hungry they are since I have seen plenty people saying Atom will suffice.
Well I have the he400i-s as well. 400i is more demanding than the XS or the he-4XX. I think you should be good. These new diaphragms on the XS are thinner, and certainly more efficient.
As for the pads, I know itâs a bytch to get the right ones to go, without affecting the sound.
So far, Iâve gone with some standard AliExpress Fostex clone pads, but the ones on the th610 or Denon 5000, which have a larger opening than the th-x00 or EMU pads. Real cheap, below $10 stuff, that may help you in some way. I also had some success with - Steelseries Sibera pads, which are even smaller, but sounded pretty darn good - though aesthetically, may give a person OCD as theyâre smaller than 100mm and look funny - though sound better than stock. But again, you may have fit problems as the holes may still be smaller for your gargantuan (your words) ears.
I have the Brainwavz XL pads. As much as I yearn to use them, they have thoroughly disappointed me with every single one of my cans and are just residents in my storage box. I cannot recommend these to anyone, and I simply wont - the 110mm size is a terrible fit for a proper seal on any cans - Hifimans, Fostexes, Monoprice Monoliths, Beyers⊠nothing sounds good or fits well. Yes theyâre comfy, but beyond that, itâs either the terrible seal or the increased driver distance - or both, that screw things up.
But the XS is not just a fit improvement thing alone - they ARE a clear upgrade to the 4X0 series Hifimans.
Anyhow, larger Hifimans would be a way to go - but I quote you: " I have gigantic ears and Ananda-sized pads will not fit"âŠ
Ananda/Arya/He1000/EditionX/XS - all are the same size. If these large Hifimans wonât fit you, I donât know what will.
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Wow, really? Opinions on these never fail to surprise me. This is very interesting. Thanks a lot for this. Very deeply eyeing these nowâŠEverything that people say about their sonic performance also seems like itâd be to my taste.
I apologize for being unclear - I meant Ananda sized pads would not fit on the 400iâs. Therefore I feel like it would be a wiser choice to get new headphones which are bigger. I have looked for other pads but none really look like theyâre that much bigger and I do need some special treatment, would be way easier to know if I could find opening dimensions but itâs not info thatâs displayed everywhere. Shape seems to be key. My ears are certainly large but if XS wonât fit then I am some kind of mutation, which I highly doubt!