the sundara is very different but also i would say more analytical. at least drier, more speed focused with a super clean sound. I think it can and is fun, but ymmv. It{s not musical if thats what ur after
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If you want to stay with the warmer sound of the HD650, then thereās the Audeze LCD-2 or LCD-2C. Hifimanās (except for the HE-500 and HEXv2 in my experience) tend to veer towards a neutral/neutral-bright sound signature.
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Ok folks. I bought my Sundara used (2018 pair) and I liked their sound but their comfort for me was annoying. So I decided to buy the new Sundara Pali pads from the latest revision. Theyāre much more comfortable than the old ones and sound ever-so-slightly better to me. For more info on that hereās a Headphone Show video about it.
But then I also had another idea: what if I switch the left and right pads and flip them upside down? Theyāre angled pads so it might make a difference. The line on the pads would be at the top instead of the bottom. And guess what? They were even MORE comfortable to me. There was less pressure towards the front of my face and it felt more evenly distributed. Obviously depending on your head this may not be as beneficial but to anyone with Sundaras I encourage you to give it a try!
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This works. At least for me. I hated the Pali pads and went so far as to get a pair of Dekoni Hybrids as replacements since they seemed the closest to the stock pads which do sound the best from what I have tried. When I swapped the pads and turned them upside down the issues I had with comfort all but disappeared and I get that sweet Sundara sound that made me love them in the first place. The Dekoni pads were not bad, and, as Zeos would say, are āgood enough.ā But if you have comfort issues with the Sundaras, like I did, I highly suggest you give this a try. This was a cool idea and, as I said before, it works really well for me.
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Recently gotten a Sundara but dust accumulated to the wire mesh. How can I clean it properly? I tried using a brush and cloth but I still canāt seem to remove it, or maybe im doing a wrong method?
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Hmmmm would it be the worst thing to use a vacume to suck it out? Iām not sure if the plates are removable is the issue because the sundara dosent have a traditional screw. (Also sound-wise hope ur enjoying it, i enjoy mine a fair bit)
Unluckily I donāt have a vacume even if turns out to be feasible. Do you think it will affect longetivity? If not I would just ignore it and hopefully nature will suddenly make it disappear lol.
Anyways for my initial impressions I felt I expected too much for soundstage (this is my first open back). But for certain tracks, and was surprised to even listen to youtube videos with audiences as it sounds so realistic. Probably unfair to judge sundara for soundstage since it isnāt really the best, but from what I have read/watched I thought it would be much of an improvement. In terms of sound signature, I thought it would be brighter, maybe it was my source sound, people might get pissed that I donāt use an amp&dac but i dont care, as long as it works itās fine, maybe down the line iād get one. On my phone it sounds warmer, while on my pc it sounds brighter and I like the sound there better. Bass is surprisingly good like the dyanmics part I love, itās not boomy and not anemic. Mids I felt to be normal, but felt more āwholeā and bit more natural. Highs was a nice journey, maybe I wished it was a bit brighter, for some frequencies, but overall the best thing I forgot to notice is the lack of distortion. Overall, maybe around 10hrs of playtime now, I like it, hopefully as I reach brain/physical burn-in it sounds even better. I feel like i am overwhelmed with detail and adjusting to an open back right now, so I think Iām still not enjoying it to its full extent.
Well, im not pissed, but id strongly recommend an amp for a planar. An asgard3 pairs well with the sundaras. Especially since you are getting two different sounds from phone and pc, you would be getting best of both,and some, with proper amplification 
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Your best bet for cleaning that may be a cleaning gel. Just search it on Amazon
Schiit products arenāt available in my country, if so import tax is high. So Iāll either get the FIIO K5 pro or a Topping. But yeah itās for a future upgrade, I canāt justify gettng it now. But I see the purpose of it. Thanks!
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Is it the slime looking thing? Would it not affect the drivers since it seems to be water based?
Well theoretically itās not supposed to leave any residue at all once you remove it. I havenāt tried it myself though
I see, I think Iāll just try and use a q-tip and clean each square manually since I tried it and it kinda works. But do you think leaving the dust there would degrade its longevity?
It definitely shouldnāt. Itās a dust guard and its doing itās job by keeping it off the driver
Phew okay, that removes a lot of my stress right now. Thanks so much!
Hmmm well each planar has fabric or something covering so that nothing enters. I wouldnāt worry too much but eventually do try to get it off just in case. Because protecting the drivers from dust is Def important. Thatās why every headphone maker puts some sort of material there.
Also read ur sound impressions noiceeeeee. I agree the sundara sound pretty dang good and natural, they are a pretty neutral sound sig altho a little bright (depending on what headphone u come from really). Nice to know that u enjoy them! I enjoy their bass too! I do recommend an amp eventually to bring more dynamics, slam, precision and speed but if you enjoy them off phones etc nothing wrong with that! Just more improvement really.
As others said planars really really really benefit from amps! Just know that if you ever feel like upgrading instead of buying another headphone invest in an amp! Makes a world of a difference
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Bad idea. The drivers are tensioned thin diaphragms and using too strong of a vacuum cleaner can cause them to tear. The mesh is doing its job as a dust guard.
If you are so paranoid about it, then someoneās suggestion of using a moistened q-tip isnāt such a bad idea. Just donāt let water drip into the drivers.
Do they sound better on balanced ,single ended or same??
Same response will apply to every headphone you ask aboutā¦
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So i have got an used Sundara with stock pads a few weeks ago. I like the sound so far, but i donāt trust the built qualityā¦
Also i would like to have more bass. I just bought the M1070. I have to burn them in and compare them against the nighthawks and sundara.
How big are the differences between the stock pads and palipads in the bass. Is there any chance to get the sundara more on like M1070 bass quantity level, which would be fun? From graphs on the net, i doubt that the palipads will deliver so much bass. But i would like to get some more info on that.
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