SR-404 Signature. Red ring on the driver. Brown color by default.
The SR404 Signature is the current flagship Lambda from Stax, if you consider that the 404LE is a special edition that recently has been finished of its production. Moving up to the 404 Signature, you get rewarded with an overall improvement on build quality and materials. The U-shaped plastic that holds the driver housing is thicker, the leather headband is thicker, the pads is of a higher quality leather, the cable joint out of the driver housing is beefier, and the cable is wider. Overall, the build quality certainly has improved, although in terms of comfort and ergonomics, the improvements are less evident. The earpads are still made of artificial leather, but it’s a better quality pads that’s softer than the one in the SR-Lambda. Also, visible from the housing grille is a red ring on the driver that looks like the one you find in the SR404 Limited.
Before we continue, here are some photos illustrating the differences between the three headphones:
Beefier frame on the SR404 signature (left). The SR-404LE’s frame, headband, and housing is identical to the SR-404 Signature except in color and gold letterings.
Wider cable on the SR-404 Signature (left). Again the SR-404 LE also comes with the same wide cable.
Headband Comparison. Higher quality leather are found on the SR404s.
Top to bottom: SR-404LE, SR-404 Signature, SR-Lambda Pro. Quite a difference in cable, but surprisingly no audible improvement in technicalities.
SR-404 LE (left) with real sheep leather pads. SR-Lambda Pro (right) with vinyl leather pads. The dust-cover cloth on the 404LE is identical to the 404Sig, but different to the Lambda Pro.
The pads on the SR-404 Signature (right) looks like real leather, though it’s not.
Left to right: SR-Lambda Pro, SR-404 Signature, SR-404 LE
