Front damping will absolutely affect 5KHz. Good stuff usually works 1KHz and above. Sometimes even effects low end, though I suppose it's all relative.



Whether or not it's the answer here is an entirely different question. Not all headphones sound normal with extra front damping. Some do.



But, yeah, these results seem about right based on what I heard at RMAF. HFM has certainly done much worse.

"What the heck are you gonna do if you're on a picnic and have an ice cream, and the ants crawl on the ice cream? What are you gonna do? You're gonna eat the ants, because it's made out of protein. For your health!" - Dr. Steve Brule