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Orthodynamic Roundup - Page 188

post #2806 of 18847
6/5/08 at 12:12am
And two holes blocked sounds juuust right. I think I've finally finished modding
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Gear mentioned in this thread:

Yamaha Stereo Headphones
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Fostex T50RP Closed Ear Stereo Headphones
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post #2807 of 18847
6/5/08 at 12:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by GuyMe View Post
And two holes blocked sounds juuust right. I think I've finally finished modding
Nice, you'll have to do a complete summary for future reference.
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post #2808 of 18847
6/5/08 at 12:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by scompton View Post
I don't really want to glue things together because if something doesn't work, I don't want to destroy the drivers getting them out. I really haven't thought of a way to hold the drivers in place in PVC without glue.
You could make a pair of plates with polyethylene or nylon and screw the plates together with the drivers sandwiched between.

-john
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post #2809 of 18847
6/5/08 at 1:09am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by GuyMe View Post
And two holes blocked sounds juuust right. I think I've finally finished modding
Excellent. That's the way it's supposed to work. And as far as I know, that's about all you can do to a YH-1 without messing something else up.

Try some bass boost, see if you can find an electrostat to compare them to, see if they sound right at all volume levels, try some binaural, try different amps; get to know them.

Scompton, what about hot glue? Holds stuff in place, peels off when you're done.

Facelvega's absolutely correct about the density of felt being of the essence.
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post #2810 of 18847
6/5/08 at 2:44am
About the dual driver build...

I think it's still possible to use wood. It just would be harder since you'd have to turn the wood thinner to minimize weight. The only real problem I have is that I don't know how thin I can turn it before I compromise structural integrity or I encounter strange acoustic properties.

The plastic idea sounds interesting given that most headphones are made of plastic anyway. Anyone know of any strange acoustic properties of plastics? It may sway my decision on build materials.
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post #2811 of 18847
6/5/08 at 3:29am
Note you can get all sorts of plastics there -- various densities and various types of materials. Heck, you can even get blocks of Teflon there.

Same for the foam web place. They have various types and densities.

-john
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post #2812 of 18847
6/5/08 at 4:24am
Not particularly asking about the variety but more about the characteristics and quirks when used for audio applications.
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post #2813 of 18847
6/5/08 at 4:29am
Quote:
Originally Posted by FooTemps View Post
About the dual driver build...

I think it's still possible to use wood. It just would be harder since you'd have to turn the wood thinner to minimize weight. The only real problem I have is that I don't know how thin I can turn it before I compromise structural integrity or I encounter strange acoustic properties.

The plastic idea sounds interesting given that most headphones are made of plastic anyway. Anyone know of any strange acoustic properties of plastics? It may sway my decision on build materials.
The wood itself isn't the problem, it's the actual drivers. It's surprising how heavy a pair of those are hanging on your ears. Mounting them in 1/4" 5-ply doesn't add much weight at all. Depending on design and execution the wood adds only a minor amount. I'm going to be making another dual attempt and I think I'll be able to pull it off this time now I have more experience.

As to plastics, ABS is pretty robust, not too brittle and reasonably inert acoustically for phones. PVC (like ear muffs) is softer and even more dead than ABS, the lack of rigidity generally leads to thicker walls.
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post #2814 of 18847
6/5/08 at 5:10am
Smeggy, you've turned enclosures on a lathe right? Is it difficult? I'm still trying to design the isobaric chambers (if that will even work), but when it comes to the actual building I have no experience with turning stuff on a lathe. I know that machining metal is different so all my screwing around with metal parts in shop really don't help me here.
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post #2815 of 18847
6/5/08 at 6:05am
The hardest part is the insides, the outer body isn't overly difficult. I don't know what tools you have but trying to turn an accurate hole for the drivers is difficult to get right. Especially if it's deep like it'll need to be for an isobaric chamber. Deep and narrow holes are a pain. In the end I decided to buy a drill press and some Forstner bits to simplify life.

Given the price of decent wood it worked out cheaper to spend $150 on these tools than wasting expensive wood by cutting the holes inaccurately. Now I waste less wood and get it done faster and more accurately.
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post #2816 of 18847
6/5/08 at 6:25am

More than you ever wanted to know about an obscure Italian felt

Quote:
Originally Posted by wualta View Post
Glad to hear you solved that mystery. Who'd've guessed we'd run up against a cultural felt difference! What is the thin felt called, if not felt?
It's called "panno lenci", "lenci cloth". It's a kind of thin, very supple, very dense natural fibers felt. It's pretty tough to cut, as the fibers are very dense and you need sharp scissors or it becomes a mess of half-cut fibers sprouting in all directions. It was designed to make dolls (not only the doll clothes, but every part of the doll), and first produced in 1919 in Turin.



It's easily available in a variety of colors, and does not cost much (I seem to remember I paid about 4 or 5 euros for 1.5 sq. mt.). I use it to dampen the earcups vents, as its suppleness allows it to follow most contours easily, but it worked great as damping on the Pro30s drivers, with the only addition of some opencell foam.
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post #2817 of 18847
6/5/08 at 3:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by smeggy View Post
Nice, you'll have to do a complete summary for future reference.
I'll whip up a pictorial runthrough tomorrow.

Quote:
Originally Posted by wualta View Post
Excellent. That's the way it's supposed to work. And as far as I know, that's about all you can do to a YH-1 without messing something else up.
What about comfort mods? The latest I've skimmed from this thread is that the sony squishy pads and hd25 squishy/velours were the only suggested replacements. I know in circumaurals velours tend to be basskillers, is it as much a problem with the yh1? I suppose you could tape mod them...

I got some ATH electrets with leather pads that might fit, but I should probably give them a proper listen before vandalizing them.

Quote:
Try some bass boost, see if you can find an electrostat to compare them to, see if they sound right at all volume levels, try some binaural, try different amps; get to know them.
Right now the yh1 is my go-to phone for fast intense music. They lack the seductive powers of my AKGs, but obliterate them when it comes to more visceral listening. Why do people get Grados instead of orthos

I intend to get a tube amp soon, perhaps that will level the playing field.
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post #2818 of 18847
6/5/08 at 4:04pm
I find the Yamahas to be comfortable as is. I don't have my HP-1 at work, but aren't the AT pads pretty much identical? BTW, I can guarantee that ATH-7 pads aren't leather, since I have a pair with the surface vinyl flaking off. Whenever I use them, my wife asks what the black stuff is in my ears hours later.

If you want discomfort, try the T30. I think the comfort would be better if the ear cups could swivel. I'm thinking of buying an pair of those old, Grado-like, crystal radio headphones and do a head band transplant. Has anyone have any idea what the span is in the yoke of one of those?
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post #2819 of 18847
6/5/08 at 4:29pm
Got my drivers from ericj today. Now I just need time to do something with them.
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post #2820 of 18847
6/5/08 at 4:39pm
Thread Starter 
Three cheers for ericj!

Yeah, the T30 is an object lesson in how to make a headphone that's almost but not quite wearable by human beings. The earcups swivel, but just enough to drive you nuts, not enough to be comfortable. That level of sadism takes design genius and at least two college degrees.

The ATH-6/7/8 pads are indeed the same thickness as the Yamahas and were very nice when new, very much like the wonderfully supple crinkly skinlike coverings on the Stax SR-X Mk 3. Once they touched human skin, however, they began to deteriorate. I have a NIB ATH-6 with intact pads, and of course I can't wear them, but that's okay, because the ATH-6 has a sound that attracts skunks.

A truly good headphone will differentiate between amps. Far from levelling the playing field, it will insert hillocks.

That panno lenci stuff looks very useful. I wonder what the equivalent in the US would be..

.
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Gear mentioned in this thread:

Yamaha Stereo Headphones
$Too low to display at
See it »
Fostex T50RP Closed Ear Stereo Headphones
$110 at
See it »
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