JVC HA-RX900 modifications, a picture tutorial. (56k, forget about it...) - Page 2

Thanks TopPop for the mod info. I just tried a foam mod, although I used a much thicker piece of some I had laying around.
It kind of defeated the purpose of buying the 700's for a fun secondary can that can be used for Rock and more aggressive genres. Sure it tamed the bass, but I felt myself missing the messy thump, and agressive highs. Also felt like the soundstage emaciated a couple clicks.
Then again I didn't like the felt ring mod either, for much the same reason. If I want nuetral, I got the cans to do that too.
P.S. TopPop, how about those lousy Bears. Good day to turn off the game and crank some tunes.

Try a few cotton balls.

How thick was the foam? The foam I used was 1/4" with large cells. You can cut the foam with a very sharp knife.

Having opened these things several times now, I feel like I'm on the verge of stripping something. I dig the sound, as I mentioned previous. At first it was a tad harsh bass-wise, but I attribute that to AKG shellshock.
I should mention, although 700's really demand there own thread, the one mod I did think was nice, although I've since reversed it, at least till I feel I gave these thing a some real head time, is the extra cushioning mod.
I took those cotton balls and slip them under the pleather cups. These thing really need replacement pads. The 900's look thicker, but I would like to stick some of those cushy beyer ones on them.
I can see why some may like these mods though, but I stick by my stated preference. These thing are truly fantastic for the price, too bad they don't block out slightly more sound though, or seal it in. I like the fact it comes with a long ass cord that'll reach my receiver, but if I want to watch TV or a movie, I still have to keep the sound relatively low so not to disturb sleeping beauty.

You put the felt ring back too?

The cotton balls could have been used inside the cup.

You know, the only really apparent shortcoming is that the 900s just do not extend as far into the upper registry as higher end cans. Other than that, they are just a killer detail can in the mid range until they get a little muddy in the lower mid range and bass. This could be my interconnect and amp too. With better equipment than my modest setup, the sound should be noticeably different.

I will gain some perspective when my Stax get here.

Still a very good sound for the $$.

Not a prob. Again, not trying to steal from your 900 thread at all, just these cans go hand and hand lately.
And to Jaudio, yes I put the felt back. Keep in mind I tried the mod fairly early in the burn in process. I may snag them off again though and see if my first impressions stand true. I find the more I listen to these, the more genre specific they can be.
The great thing about either can is that they're both cheap enough I wouldn't think twice at least trying TopPop's recommended mods, especially considering the mods alone won't break the bank, and they're simple enough to try and undo.
P.S. Go any Ch. team that can get a W.

I've owned the 700's for a week now and at first they seemed OK. They were good with electronica, pop and hip hop but for rock it was a bit too bassy. The bass was a little too much, the highs were recessed and the mids as well making the overall sound muddy. Today I started experimenting with 2 extra pairs of Audio Technica AD900 pads I have. One was stock and the other pair were stuffed with cotton to make them fatter.

The AD900 pads fit like a glove. With the stock AD900 pads the mids and highs were much better and the bass was toned down.....alot. Now the bass was too anemic. I then put the stuffed AD900 pads on and there was that heavy bass again but the improved mids and highs remained. I Then started to pull out some of the cotton until the bass sounded right. Now the cans are better for rock as well as the other genres I mentioned earlier.

I think because of the thinner layer of material that is attached to the AD900 pads, which covers the drivers, the mids and highs opened up. The sonic characteristics of velour perhaps contribute as well. The stock RX700 pads have a thicker layer of that material that covers the drivers. I don't know; it's just a theory. Now the 700's sound way better to me and I believe for the price they cant be beat.

Now my ATH-M50s sound a little muddy compared to the RX700's. I cant wait to compare them when my new amp comes in.

Did the foam mod and cut out all of those little holes in both of the drivers. No dynamat yet.

Reading that they weren't as good as A900 cans and had bought these as a secondary cans for the A900. About two weeks of burn in had passed and I plugged this into my FrankenZero via optical. Wow, these things are absolutely incredible. Summary for them is they perform better then the A900. And I haven't mentioned money for the sound ratio on the summary.

Comparing A900 to HA-RX 900, it seemed as if A900's actually cut into the sound a bit too much with its slightly bright highs. And after hearing HA-RX 900, the mids of the A900 felt very recessed, hence not as much fun to listen to music as my HA-RX cans. These are just first impressions and already I prefer my HA-RX over A900's much, much more for music.

Only things that comes up in my mind now in which A900's might be better is that they have comfort. But the HA-RX is pretty comfortable anyways, so if you're not doing very long sessions of listening, there should be no problem.

I'd like to buy a dynamat sheet but if I wanted more weight and/or tighter bass which one would be better? I expect there to really be nearly no SQ differences and just go with the Extreme.

Mostly because Markl used that specific one in his mod. Also I wouldn't mind paying a few extra bucks in increase for slightly better comfort (less weight) then the original provides. Besides, these cans are not going anywhere for a while.

I've experimented slightly with the cans (Still no dynamat). The cheap looking plastic grill known as acoustic lenses are probably best left unscrewed. Now I can't really pin point what happens (Remove pads, unscrew lenses, put pads back on) and the differences it made but it seems that the most significant change in doing so actually makes the headphone less dark, give bigger soundstage, and better upper mids.

Remember Kramer mod for the KSC-75? That one required you to cut the foams and drill the plastic grill to give much better flow of air from the driver to the ear. Removing acoustic lenses is pretty much doing the same thing. I also have removed every single holes covered in foam in both drivers with a scalpel. Be warned the drivers are magnetic and I did get the scalpel stuck on the driver few times, but there really seems to be no audible SQ damage. Just something to note.