Just listened to some Fostex T50RPs today... WOW! - Page 2

That was true until Faust2D bought one a year ago and it had different ear pads. Basically, if you buy a new one that isn't old stock, they're good. Smeggy still repotted them into a wooden cup, but others have had very good luck with simple mods.

BTW, in Japan, the ones with the new pads were renamed T50 RPn.

Hrmm this does sound interesting. Pianist, just out of curiosity which shop did you go listen to them? The reason I am asking, I'll be heading to TO for a few days in the next 2 weeks. If I have time, I might go check them out.

The T50RP (newest version) is a decent sounding pair of headphones, but I preferred my two vintage Fostexen, my modded T20v2 and the T40v1, when I still had all three. The drivers are quite hampered by the stock enclosures and there's no easy way to remove the drivers and put them in something else so I gave up and sold my pair. They are definitely much more efficient stock than any of the vintage orthos due to powerful neodymium magnets.

where do you get them that cheap? over here it´s 300$???

Over here? Where is that? Sweden? In that case the RP is about 150 usd.

Did a fast search, and found a shop that sells them for $59. They do not ship outside of the US though. As usual we who live in Europe have to bleed, if we want the fun stuff .

Yes it´s quite common sadly... 2x retail price and more in general.

I haven´t found it cheaper then 275$ approx over here in Sweden. I am done with my headphone purchases but for 60$ plus shipment I could certainly afford giving it a try . 275$ not a bloody chance!

You haven't done much of a search then.... It's easy to find for 145.

Europeans should go for some awesome vintage European orthos like DAC's Grundig or Dual that we don't see here in the US.

And you are not helping with my research by linking . 145$ is still a bit much though

Where to buy from?

Yes, PMB did make some fine orthos... but they are not as common as the Yamahas :-( And they do require a LOT of work.

The T50 might still be the best alternative in Europe even though it costs a bit more over here. Intropris.se - Tryggt, snabbt och billigt...

But things being more costly here, the new top tier orthos by Audeze and Hifiman might also be more reasonable since even the cheap stuff is costly.

How do they compare sound-wise to the K1000, HD800... at least the ALO/Fatpipe recabled K702?

Looks like people are saying that they have the best mids at any price! wow!

Usually Ebay. As with all things vintage and rare, it requires a healthy amount of persistence and patience. And most orthos require some modding to sound good, so don't expect good sound right off the bat.

I am looking at the Fostex headphone page and its not really clear whether one or the other of their models is supposed to be the best overall. The all look to be identical in appearance. The T50RP seems to be able to take more juice, I wonder if that means it is a different driver and thus the higher retail price?


* Patented RP Technology
* Newly developed RP Diaphragm with copper foil etched polyimide film and neodynium magnet construction for accurate and natural acoustic sound reproduction
* Single entry locking 3 metre ‘copper construction’ cord
* Padded ear cushions for maximum sound isolation and deep bass reproduction
* Wide, self-adjusting headband for superb comfort and extended wearing periods
* Compatible with all analog and digital formats

* T20RPmkII
* Frequency Response: 20Hz - 30kHz
* Max Input 2000 mW
* Impedance 50 ohm
* Semi-open type construction offers rich low frequency sound whilst maintaining all the nuances of vocal performance
* Excellent transient characteristics
* Ideal for professional use in commercial recording studios

* T40RPmkII
* Frequency Response: 15Hz - 30kHz
* Max Input 2000 mW
* Impedance 50 ohm
* Enclosed type for excellent sound reproduction. Also prevents feedback into the mic at recording sessions
* Ideal for professional use in noisy environments, the first choice for DJ work and broadcast sound engineers

* T50RP
* Frequency Response: 15Hz - 35kHz
* Max Input 3000 mW
* Impedance 50 ohm
* Damped semi-open type for extended low-frequency and clear mid / high frequency reproduction
* Superb quality and perfect for commercial recording use and critical listening applications

edit: Just a little curious tidbit. I was looking at the High Res photos they have of the headphone models on their website, and found that they used the same photo for all 3 models: T40RP, T20RP, and T50RP and just photo-shopped in the name on the headphones in each picture (also turned the T50RP photo sideways and gave the adjustment bars a gold tint), but every other lighting highlight, spec of dust and blemish on the headphones is exactly the same in all photos... lazy marketing department...