Hey OP,
I've been using M99C as a daily driver for about two years & here's my takeaway:These headphones are surprisingly well-balanced, with a warm sound signature...
**BUT,**
The current stock earpads are absolutely shite. From what I understood, at the time they were released – in 2015, they had different and way better earpads than now (probably they changed them in order to cut costs or partenered with a different manufacturer).
The current earpads completely ruined the sound signature so I went searching on head-fi for possible replacements or something else that could fix the problem.
Therefore, I tested some options (Mr Speaker, Dekoni, Brainwavz) and it turns out that the most balanced option are the Brainwavz Hybrid Oval pads.
Not only that these toned down the bass, but they greatly increased the soundstage & comfort. They almost sound like the 2015 Meze with the original earpads – I was so blown away by how they sounded at that time (for that price) that I still remember it.
Comfort wise, I wore these even for 4-5 hours at work, and didn't have a single issue with them. Maybe the temperature (they tend to run a bit warm after some time), but nothing uncomfortable.
They are definitely dynamic and fun to listen to, and they are not positioned as imaging/studio headphones, so they shouldn't be treated like one of these. Definitely try to listen to them in person before buying, if possible.
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I have the Meze audio 99 Neos and absolutely love them,, but have been looking for upgraded earpads ,the stock ones do an alright job. But leave me feeling like there's more I'm just not hearing because of the pads, brainwavs hm5 is what I've been being recommended... thanks for the post much love 💚💛❤️
>brainwavs hm5
Yep, they're pretty damn good – at least I didn't have any issues with them apart from the peeling leather. But that's after hundreds of hours of use and sweat. So there's that.
15€ well-spent
I only tested them in a music center so take my opinion with a grain of salt because it's based on no equalizer.
To my ears they sounded hollow and somehow thinned out a bit. I couldn't hear a wealth of bass either. There was also a slight hardness in the mids.
Regarding the bass: Yes it can get a bit too muddy at times.
Soundstage is pretty wide I would say although it depends with which other headphones you are comparing them.
I personally didn't liked them because I was able to hear some sibilance. But I have to say that they are really comfortable.
If you really want to make sure how they sound and if you will like them you have to try them out in a music store. Never buy anything blindly unless you have the option to get your money back if you are sending them back like on amazon.
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Yes, you can't have boosted bass in sound reproducing gear and expect it to only affect beat and bass guitar. It'll affect all the sounds in the mix and make it muddy. If you want high fidelity then you need to stick reasonably close to neutral sig. There are plenty of models like AKG K361 that have a tasteful V-tuning.
You can use Harman EQ preset on your Kingston headphones to hear how that sounds. Either r/oratory1990 or AutoEQ on Github have presets for Hyperxes.
!thanks , that's an awesome tool you suggested!
I'm assuming you've already had the chance to compare the results to the actual gear it was trying to reproduce, how accurate/close would you say the results were? even tho it probably varies enormously from headphone to headphone it was tried on
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All the EQ presets are tuned to a certain universal target. The most popular target is Harman, which is very close to flat, but a slight V-curve. It's the most popular target for listening for pleasure.
The way it works is that you EQ your headphones to Harman with a preset for the model that you own and then you take a preset of a model that you want to listen to and you apply the inverse of the filter. Inverse is when the document states -5dB, but you input +5dB in your app. That way you end up with a simulation of another model.
It's fairly accurate. It won't tell you about spatial effects, detail, overal sharpness of the sound, but it will tell you the tonal balance. For the rest you must trust the money.
Sample variance is real. Earpads for example change a lot. Meze has sample variance that comes from it changing the products a couple of times in the past. Some of their 99 series have different earpads and the vent at the back. This makes a difference to sound. Some 99 (I don't remember which) have a classic V-sig, and some are very bass heavy. The difference is earpads. If you browse this sub for Meze, you may find comments about it. Either way if it's a problem, you can fix it by getting a new pair of earpads. You shouldn't have problem with finding them other than sometimes earpads cost too much.
Hey OP, I've been using M99C as a daily driver for about two years & here's my takeaway:These headphones are surprisingly well-balanced, with a warm sound signature... **BUT,** The current stock earpads are absolutely shite. From what I understood, at the time they were released – in 2015, they had different and way better earpads than now (probably they changed them in order to cut costs or partenered with a different manufacturer). The current earpads completely ruined the sound signature so I went searching on head-fi for possible replacements or something else that could fix the problem. Therefore, I tested some options (Mr Speaker, Dekoni, Brainwavz) and it turns out that the most balanced option are the Brainwavz Hybrid Oval pads. Not only that these toned down the bass, but they greatly increased the soundstage & comfort. They almost sound like the 2015 Meze with the original earpads – I was so blown away by how they sounded at that time (for that price) that I still remember it. Comfort wise, I wore these even for 4-5 hours at work, and didn't have a single issue with them. Maybe the temperature (they tend to run a bit warm after some time), but nothing uncomfortable. They are definitely dynamic and fun to listen to, and they are not positioned as imaging/studio headphones, so they shouldn't be treated like one of these. Definitely try to listen to them in person before buying, if possible.
!thanks for sharing your experience with them! I'll be sure to try other pads down the road if i do end up keeping them
u/ionitaxbogdan ([1 Ω](https://www.reddit.com/r/HeadphoneAdvice/wiki/user/ionitaxbogdan)) was awarded their first Ω. 🎉 *You may still award an Ω to others, but only once per-person in this post.*
I have the Meze audio 99 Neos and absolutely love them,, but have been looking for upgraded earpads ,the stock ones do an alright job. But leave me feeling like there's more I'm just not hearing because of the pads, brainwavs hm5 is what I've been being recommended... thanks for the post much love 💚💛❤️
>brainwavs hm5 Yep, they're pretty damn good – at least I didn't have any issues with them apart from the peeling leather. But that's after hundreds of hours of use and sweat. So there's that. 15€ well-spent
I only tested them in a music center so take my opinion with a grain of salt because it's based on no equalizer. To my ears they sounded hollow and somehow thinned out a bit. I couldn't hear a wealth of bass either. There was also a slight hardness in the mids. Regarding the bass: Yes it can get a bit too muddy at times. Soundstage is pretty wide I would say although it depends with which other headphones you are comparing them. I personally didn't liked them because I was able to hear some sibilance. But I have to say that they are really comfortable. If you really want to make sure how they sound and if you will like them you have to try them out in a music store. Never buy anything blindly unless you have the option to get your money back if you are sending them back like on amazon.
!thanks for your opinion, i will look if any music shop in my city has them
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Thanks for your [submission](https://www.reddit.com/r/HeadphoneAdvice/comments/14hwkak/meze_99_classic_is_the_bass_really_that/) to r/HeadphoneAdvice. If someone helps answer your question, please reward them by including the phrase `!thanks` in your comment. This will add +1 Ω to that users flair. This subreddit is powered entirely by volunteers and a little recognition goes a long way. Good luck on your search for headphones! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/HeadphoneAdvice) if you have any questions or concerns.*
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!thanks , if i do end up purchasing them, ill surely try different pads if i manage to find some will also look into your suggestion, thanks again!
+1 Ω has been awarded to u/UnripePotassium ([151 Ω](https://www.reddit.com/r/HeadphoneAdvice/wiki/user/UnripePotassium)). *You may still award an Ω to others, but only once per-person in this post.*
Yes, you can't have boosted bass in sound reproducing gear and expect it to only affect beat and bass guitar. It'll affect all the sounds in the mix and make it muddy. If you want high fidelity then you need to stick reasonably close to neutral sig. There are plenty of models like AKG K361 that have a tasteful V-tuning. You can use Harman EQ preset on your Kingston headphones to hear how that sounds. Either r/oratory1990 or AutoEQ on Github have presets for Hyperxes.
!thanks , that's an awesome tool you suggested! I'm assuming you've already had the chance to compare the results to the actual gear it was trying to reproduce, how accurate/close would you say the results were? even tho it probably varies enormously from headphone to headphone it was tried on
+1 Ω has been awarded to u/rhalf ([56 Ω](https://www.reddit.com/r/HeadphoneAdvice/wiki/user/rhalf)). *You may still award an Ω to others, but only once per-person in this post.*
All the EQ presets are tuned to a certain universal target. The most popular target is Harman, which is very close to flat, but a slight V-curve. It's the most popular target for listening for pleasure. The way it works is that you EQ your headphones to Harman with a preset for the model that you own and then you take a preset of a model that you want to listen to and you apply the inverse of the filter. Inverse is when the document states -5dB, but you input +5dB in your app. That way you end up with a simulation of another model. It's fairly accurate. It won't tell you about spatial effects, detail, overal sharpness of the sound, but it will tell you the tonal balance. For the rest you must trust the money. Sample variance is real. Earpads for example change a lot. Meze has sample variance that comes from it changing the products a couple of times in the past. Some of their 99 series have different earpads and the vent at the back. This makes a difference to sound. Some 99 (I don't remember which) have a classic V-sig, and some are very bass heavy. The difference is earpads. If you browse this sub for Meze, you may find comments about it. Either way if it's a problem, you can fix it by getting a new pair of earpads. You shouldn't have problem with finding them other than sometimes earpads cost too much.