Orthodynamic Roundup - Page 68

Mine are labeled 3406 on the drivers, date code 7A3 so june 83.

Maybe it's a serial number? except there are at least two of each. *shrug*.

So I'm officially a member of team ortho as my T50 just showed up. They are in great condition and really look like they are new. The bad news is that the only dynamic amp I have on hand, Corda Aria, doesn't really have the balls to drive them so the bass is very rolled off but rest is just wonderful. They won't challenge any of the higher end Stax models but they are up there amongst the best headphone purchases I've made. I'll let them cook over night and do some extensive listening tomorrow.

Two questions, they have a split arc assembly with a few mm gap between them so that makes them a Mk1 or Mk2 and can I get new earpads for them anywhere?

Split headband would be Mk1.

I don't believe anybody has an earpad like that for sale anymore. You might be able to make a T20v2 earpad fit, fostex sells them for $7.50 in the US.

http://www.fostexusa.com/store/cart....category_id=61

You'd have to find a european distributor, though.

Thanks for the info. I was hoping Fostex was as good as Stax for servicing vintage models but I'll try some of my contacts in Japan and see if they can find some for me. I won't need replacements for many years but as a compulsive collector, I must have backups...

What really stands out is their vocal performance and the smooth top end. They can be bright when it is called for and have bite but they are very smooth and neutral. The vocals have the same projection quality as the good electrostatics but the soundstage is pretty small so some mods are in order and the cable has to go.

hi, I just bought a yamaha hp-1 and is there a way to remove the glued on earpads without damaging them. I really like to perform a damping mod. Also these thing rocks. I use them more than my HD580. This is my favorite can of the moment even without a damping mod.

The trick is to not remove the earpad.

What you do is peel back the earpad only where you need to in order to get at a screw.

For reference, here's a picture of a yamaha headphone with the earpad removed:

http://home.hccnet.nl/joop.nijenhuis...1/RHP1P039.jpg

so you'll peel back one wide spot right above where the cable enters, and three narrow spots that line up with the other screws.

Then you just kind of lift up the edge of the pad and poke in the screwdriver.

For removing the pads without damaging them, just be ridiculously careful. Slowly peel them back and maybe use a blade to just push the adhesive off the face of the headphones. That's how I do it. After the first time, it gets easier to remove the double sided time.

Another update on the YH-100 drivers. They're back in the stock configuration in the original housings and such.

My train of thought was to use some solvents(alcohol or nail polish remover) to weaken the glue but was afraid of damaging the leather.

I have a Audio Analogue doing Stax transformer duty and a vintage Kenwood KA-7100 in the next room. I'll be sure to hook up the Kenwood later and I'll try to find a TRS socket for the Puccini. I really want to buy/build an amp that can drive these things and Sun Audio VT25 with a few mods might be a cheap and effective way to do so because the iron is top shelf Tamura. Put in some 7n7's, better components and connectors, Stax transformers and bias circuit, a volume pot and it becomes a very versatile amp. There is even the 3+3w 2a3 version.

I'll definitely try and so how the backwave acts undamped. It's almost always there for a reason to tame some part of the sound spectrum but it's worth a shot.

I'm not hoping to find any spare drivers but they could, like Stax, have a large stock of earpads for the vintage models especially since they were intended for the pro market. I'll let you know if I find any and ff I find any NOS T-50's I'll drop you a line. Every ortho enthusiast should have at least one of these.

Btw. congrats on the Headphoneus Supremus title.

Edit: I've cleaned them throughly and while I had them open removed the damping pads. It's pretty clear after a few minutes why they were put there in the fist place or to tame a bit of very high HF nastiness. It's like a subtle etch or reverb but isn't doesn't bother me all that much. The rest is all very good news. They have a soundstage now, quite similar to a badly amped Stax SR-007, so it's like a piece of rope stretching from ear to ear slightly above the eyes. The midrange on the whole is improved with better vocals but there might be a few spots where it is recessed but it's too early to tell. The bass is vastly improved to say the least. While it doesn't really extend more, it gains a lot in bloom and presence. It's a bit anemic stock and I blamed it on the Corda Aria but it's clearly the damping that is at fault. I've been running some really nasty bass test tracks that I use on the elctrostats and the T-50 passed them with flying colors. They would even challenge the two Omegas with the right amp in bass presence but I doubt they could do the extension.

Only time will tell if the damping stays out or not but for the time being it's definitely out.

While not really headphone related I picked up a pair of Monsoon multimedia speakers for free at a yard sale. I think I'm a confirmed planer-phile they have that nice fast sound and planer vocal "rightness" sound. Their not anything crazy special and they are just hooked up in conjunction with a pair of dynamic bookshelf speakers and a sub. They sound like they have potential but they are just too big to stick a head band on and make into a head-speaker. A head speaker was my first thought when I saw the Monsoons.

As far as cans go I've reduced the reflex dot on the Pro-30s and they sound a bit less hard. Over all I would say that removing the metal badge on them is a worthwhile mod, but seing that I have two pairs it's not a big risk. I think they even look kind of cool all black and sci-fi cool.

It's becoming more and more obvious that I need an amp with some balls or eggs that is headphone friendly. Kind of curious about the Yamaha amps that are labeled for use with orthodynamic use. My only concern is that they are vintage solid state and I still have a bit of a prejudice against for some reason. The Pro-30s are fine driven out of most things but a bit of extra juice would be cool. I'm thinking that if I found an amp that was capable of driving the AKG-340s well the Orthos would be served by that amp as well.

Waiting to see what comes from Hagerman, the Little Dot Tripath headphone amp and I have a feeling that RWA may be working on a headphone amp. I guess I'll just wait to see what comes out in the next little bit unless my patience gets the best of me and I pull the trigger on some random purchase.

Just wanted to let people know, since I've finished building it (electrically at least), the AMB Labs Mini3 v.2 pocket amp - in the gain=8, high performance configuration - does a Fine job of driving the HOK80-2.

Fed by the line-out jack on my iRiver H120, it goes all the way to Loud before clipping. You won't be able to blow your ears out, but you won't be dissatisfied by the fine punch of this eensy little amp.

With Sony pleather pads on the HOK, the driver sealed to the baffle with bluetak, and the baffle clip holes covered with electrical tape, I'm hearing plenty of bass, too, of the tight sort that the HOK gives you at least.