Lafayette F-990
Apr 12, 2007 at 4:57 PM Post #2 of 8
No, but, given their age, we can generally surmise that they are typical 70's paper cone headphones.

At their best they probably sound a bit like cardboard vibrating in a plastic bowl.

The 70's were a very dark era for dynamic moving-coil headphones until they started trying to use very light-weight plastic diaphragms in geometries that looked more like a microphone than a speaker - and that's the design theory that nearly all moving-coil headphones have used ever since.

Edit: It looks like head-fier "Bob A" used to own a pair.
 
Sep 19, 2008 at 12:26 AM Post #3 of 8
Quote:

Originally Posted by ericj /img/forum/go_quote.gif
No, but, given their age, we can generally surmise that they are typical 70's paper cone headphones.

At their best they probably sound a bit like cardboard vibrating in a plastic bowl.

The 70's were a very dark era for dynamic moving-coil headphones until they started trying to use very light-weight plastic diaphragms in geometries that looked more like a microphone than a speaker - and that's the design theory that nearly all moving-coil headphones have used ever since.

Edit: It looks like head-fier "Bob A" used to own a pair.


I just got a pair of these this week. They sound like a million bucks to me!! Nice solid bass and crisp highs. I took a flashlight to em and from what I can see they are "loudspeaker" looking drivers. The headphones have 3 inch drivers! These headphones date from around 1969-1973-ish. These things sound way better than any plastic microphony transducers I've ever heard.
 
Sep 19, 2008 at 2:22 AM Post #4 of 8
Quote:

Originally Posted by Trance88 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I just got a pair of these this week. They sound like a million bucks to me!! Nice solid bass and crisp highs. I took a flashlight to em and from what I can see they are "loudspeaker" looking drivers. The headphones have 3 inch drivers! These headphones date from around 1969-1973-ish. These things sound way better than any plastic microphony transducers I've ever heard.


Perhaps, but you're new here. And i don't doubt that they're better than your MDR-V150.

I see you live in Grand Rapids. If you were to make friends with Wualta, he could show you some of the best attainable headphones out there.

Which is not the same as the alleged best headphones in the world, but all of those are in the $1000 on up category, typically.

It's easy to be seduced by a headphone that can present solid midbass and some kind of lower treble which doesn't also completely fail at everything else.

Here's the thing. That's all most people want - the boom & tizzle.

Most people, if you put a solidly good pair of $100 headphones on their head, have some vague recognition that it perhaps sounds a little bit better, but they can't understand or vocalize it past "that sounds nice."

As you move up into the $200-$400 range, their opinion is the same or slightly worse, because this is where headphones start catering to specific tastes.

The $100-$200 range is the most problematic for the uninitiated because you run into headphones like the K501, which don't produce boom or tizzle, but are still widely regarded as being quite good.

Here's the thing. Most people don't care, or don't experience music in a way that is improved by increased fidelity, or simply can't hear the difference.

But some people can.

If you turn out to be one of the people who cares and can tell the difference, we can ruin you financially by helping you learn how to use your ears.

If you want to see what the beginning of that road looks like, scrape together $20 and buy a pair of Koss KSC75's. like from here:

Amazon.com: Koss KSC75 Titanium Clip Stereophone with 15-25,000 Hz Frequency Response: Electronics
 
Sep 19, 2008 at 4:00 AM Post #5 of 8
Quote:

Originally Posted by ericj /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Perhaps, but you're new here. And i don't doubt that they're better than your MDR-V150.

I see you live in Grand Rapids. If you were to make friends with Wualta, he could show you some of the best attainable headphones out there.

Which is not the same as the alleged best headphones in the world, but all of those are in the $1000 on up category, typically.

It's easy to be seduced by a headphone that can present solid midbass and some kind of lower treble which doesn't also completely fail at everything else.

Here's the thing. That's all most people want - the boom & tizzle.

Most people, if you put a solidly good pair of $100 headphones on their head, have some vague recognition that it perhaps sounds a little bit better, but they can't understand or vocalize it past "that sounds nice."

As you move up into the $200-$400 range, their opinion is the same or slightly worse, because this is where headphones start catering to specific tastes.

The $100-$200 range is the most problematic for the uninitiated because you run into headphones like the K501, which don't produce boom or tizzle, but are still widely regarded as being quite good.

Here's the thing. Most people don't care, or don't experience music in a way that is improved by increased fidelity, or simply can't hear the difference.

But some people can.

If you turn out to be one of the people who cares and can tell the difference, we can ruin you financially by helping you learn how to use your ears.

If you want to see what the beginning of that road looks like, scrape together $20 and buy a pair of Koss KSC75's. like from here:

Amazon.com: Koss KSC75 Titanium Clip Stereophone with 15-25,000 Hz Frequency Response: Electronics


I know I'm very inexperienced as far as listening to different headphones and such but these Lafayettes cream my Sony MDR-v150's. I've also got a pair of Fostex T-50RP's that have the clearest most defined sound I've ever heard in a pair of headphones, I got em for around $75.

I wish I could show you these Lafayette phones because I believe they're better than you think!

Right now I'm taking classes at the local college for a degree in music recording so I will be learning all about proper sound.
 
Sep 19, 2008 at 4:15 AM Post #6 of 8
Those Lafayette's were made by a company that did a lot of OEM work for department stores and specialty shops, and identified themselves as "SONIC" when selling for themselves.

I'm pretty well acquainted with their product line and have a few examples of their paper cone drivers around the house. Including, I'm pretty sure, a dual driver design with a crossover in the earcup.

I'm fairly confident that the F-990 wouldn't meet my standards based on prior experience with their manufacturer.
 
Sep 1, 2014 at 11:07 AM Post #7 of 8
HI Eric j,
 
You are wrong about the duel driver setup. Just got my NOS f-990 in hand today and open it up look inside it.(Sorry I still can not post pictures)
There is no crossover, just one big driver almost 10cm in diameter inside and it sounds dark to me with resonance but natural tone with punchy bass.
Overall I think it is a unique design and part of the headphone history. It did worth to have in my vintage collections.
With its big cup which left plenty of space for modify, I am sure it will be a fun project. Sure it is not k701 or hd650(which I own both and more) but the potential in it is only limited by our ability and budget. just my.02 cents.
 
Kuan
 
Sep 10, 2014 at 3:14 PM Post #8 of 8
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