I'm an owner of the ESP/950s, and I was very excited to see the Massdrop version. Velour earpads would be a wonderful upgrade to the thin protein leather earpads on the ESP/950. The other thing I'll say is that these headphones really need a bit of EQ to sound their best. They also improve when paired with a higher-end amplifier like a STAX, though you'll need to make a custom cable to use one (Massdrop STAX adapter please?) I suppose that a really high-end option like a HeadAmp Blue Hawaii would take these headphones to an entirely different level. The construction is cheap plastic, but it is light, and this does not compromise sound quality in any way I'm aware of. At $500, these are a steal!
chunkyipaI think most people know this already, but while we can't offer Massdrop prices, we do have the ESP-95X to Stax adapter cables in stock.
The cables are all hand made. The parts from Koss and the connectors have almost doubled in price so we had to raise the price 6%. We also have the ESP-95X/950 Vesper pads in stock.
Darin_Fong_Audio@Darin_Fong_Audio Have you thought about selling the cable as a conversion (core charge) instead of a standalone cable. As in, "Send us your Koss extension cable, we'll convert the male end to Stax and return it to you".
Bobtheman@Bobtheman , Yes, we can do conversions of your existing extension cable. I just figured most people would not want to give up their extension cable. Also, the cost of the cable is mostly labor, so the cost for the conversion of an existing extension cable would be around $100 plus shipping.
RocketJSquirrel63@RocketJSquirrel63 - I can't comment on the Massdrop version, but I'm guessing that the bass might be a bit better if the earpads seal better. The comfort would almost certainly be better. Hopefully someone who has heard both can comment.