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Just listened to some Fostex T50RPs today... WOW!

Sep 20, 2011 at 4:44 PM Post #2,656 of 11,346
Got a pleasant surprise from the mail lady.. the O2 pads arrived!
 
 

 

 
The comfort is NO JOKE.. just awesome.  I could wear these ALL day & night.  My ears do not touch the drivers at all but aren't so far away to smear the soundstage or "hollow" the sound:  perfect fit to me.  Despite the ridiculous amount I paid for them (~$155 USD).. I have no regrets whatsoever.  My reasoning: if these phones are intended to compete with phones 10x their cost, might as well shell out a little (relative) dough for pad comfort.
 
The 003 leather pads have a very similar fit & feel to the O2 pads.. but the O2 pads are softer (yes, my 003 leather pads are extensively broken in considering I've had the 003 for over a year).  If you're handy with the needle & can get the 003 leather pads to fit on the T50RP, you can save some change and get a very comparable fit and feel.. if you're like me and don't want to hassle with it, the O2 pads are well worth the premium, require no modding (the slide right on and hug the phones perfectly, like the stock pads), and have a better fit & feel than the 003.
 
I'd love for some suggestion on dealing with the lower midrange spike I'm having.. I can hear just how spectacular the midrange could sound on these.. bass is not an issue, it goes deeeeeep, textured lusciously, but it's a little slow. but they're quite one dimensional, too thick, warm, and dark right now.
 
Sep 20, 2011 at 4:55 PM Post #2,658 of 11,346
Wow, look good.
 
They should have been cheaper than that.. I've seen them for 120 shipped somewhere recently..
 
 
 
Sep 20, 2011 at 5:20 PM Post #2,662 of 11,346
hennyo said:
Thanks for taking the plunge. How do they image? Is your "one dimensional" after the mods?
Click to expand...


Imaging and soundstage is just fine.. not excessively wide.. but not narrow and claustrophobic.. everything sounds to be accurately spaced & positioned.. but the midbass issue I'm having is making it a little difficult to locate instruments that live in the midrange.. it's too liquid and warm.  I'd say the soundstage is wider than average, it compares favorably to the 003 (a phone that has excellent soundstage for a closed phone) and is perhaps wider.
 
The honky warmth remains though.  I'm thinking it's going to come down to playing with the felt pad on the back of the driver (perhaps going with different material?) and the cup vent adjustment.  I've got the vents completely uncovered, atm.. the bass is massive and has excellent punch.. but the midbass dominance & spike is at it's most.  Covering the vent with my fingers reduces it some but it also reduces the lower bass presence.  Even with the vents covered with my fingers, that midbass prominence is prevalent relative to how the rest of the frequencies adjust.
 
BTW, I'm impressed by how well these pads seal but don't clamp or hurt your ears/head.. fantastic.
 
Sep 20, 2011 at 5:22 PM Post #2,663 of 11,346
Fostex T50RP Mods:  
 
I followed mrspeakers' Rastapants plan with just a few changes.  
 
1. I chose to not apply plasticine to the tiny spaces directly surrounding the drivers.
 
2. I did not remove the dust cover from the ear side of the drivers because in a prior mod I could not hear a difference and I like the "stock look" better.
 
3. I placed a clear plastic "softtouch" Bumper reflex dot over the center grid square on the back of the drivers before gluing a 1" square of felt to the back of the drivers.
 
4. I have not yet tried the Shure 840 ear pads.
 
5. I used Paxmate to seal 3.75 of 4 bass ports instead of electrical tape.
 
 
I am listening to these right now and they sound wonderful.
 
 

 
Plasticine in baffles for mass loading, stock white felt intact, Paxmate Plus in cup for resonance reduction.  The stock black bass port felt is intact for the moment but will be peeled off soon and all but 4 mm of the top slot covered with Paxmate.  You can see this dampening felt at the bottom center space directly beneath the central compartment housing the main attachment screw used for securing the headband hanger to the cups.
 
 
 

 
Here, I have sparingly brushed acetone onto the metal grid beneath the stock white felt on the back of the driver.  I used an xacto knife to pull up one corner.  I had to apply a bit more acetone and slowly peeled off the white felt in one piece.  I saved these in case I want to go back to stock.
 
 
 

 
White stock felt almost off in one piece.
 
 
 

 
The stock black bass port damper felt is intact.  It is the smooth black square on the left side, center position of the cup.  I peeled this off in one piece and saved it for later use, if needed.  Paxmate Plus was applied to the cup bottom and sides.  On the driver picture you can see the "naked" rear side (cup side) after the stock white felt was removed; and the plasticine in the baffles.
 
 
 

 
On the left side you can see the reflex dot on the center grid of the driver.  It is nothing more than a clear plastic furniture bumper with adhesive back.
 
On the right side you see the Paxmate Plus.  Look closely at the piece of Paxmate just to the left of the center compartment and notice the notch cut out that exposes ~ 4 mm of the top bass port slot. The other 3.75 of 4 slots are sealed with this piece of Paxmate.
 
 
 

 
In this photo you see a felt square glued over the reflex dot and rear grid of the driver.  Note to noobies:  Very carefully lift the baffle and peak underneath to see where the wires run so you can position the baffle and open cup on your workbench without stressing the delicate solder points on the drivers - the orange area with the red and white wires.
 
 
 

 
Here, the baffle has been screwed down to the cup.  I fashioned a donut of Paxmate Plus to provide a better seal under the ear pads.  It's not pretty, but it is functional.  I had a heck of a time making this ugly donut.  I ended up using the ear pad as a template to make a "pattern" from a sheet of stiff paper that I placed over a piece of Paxmate.  Holding it in place over a piece of cardboard, I used an xacto knife to "saw" or "punch out" the donut.  Note the "pressure equalization vent" at 1 o'clock and that the donut does not cover any portion of the driver under the dust cover.
 
 
 

 
"Software" - From top left to right: blue felt, furniture bumpers, various glues, Claytoons 483 gram plasticine, 2 pieces of stock white felt removed from back of drivers, akasa paxmate plus, velcro with adhesive backing, 2 pieces of stock bass port felt, plastic furniture bumpers for reflex dots, black felt and electrical tape, felt furniture protection pads for reflex dots, box of spare parts.
 
 
 

 
"Hardware": T50RP's waiting for mods, Shure 840 ear pads, hot glue gun, and a some tools.
Not shown (yet) is my set of Smeggy Thunderpants awaiting driver transplant surgery and two more sets of T50RP's.
 
 
 

 
Radio Shack Sound Pressure Level meter with headphone adapter made from a DVD clear plastic spacer and duct tape.  When in doubt, duct it!  Set to Fast response, C-weighting, and 90 dB.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sep 20, 2011 at 5:48 PM Post #2,664 of 11,346


Quote:
flysweep said:
Got a pleasant surprise from the mail lady.. the O2 pads arrived!
 
 

 

 
The comfort is NO JOKE.. just awesome.  I could wear these ALL day & night.  My ears do not touch the drivers at all but aren't so far away to smear the soundstage or "hollow" the sound:  perfect fit to me.  Despite the ridiculous amount I paid for them (~$155 USD).. I have no regrets whatsoever.  My reasoning: if these phones are intended to compete with phones 10x their cost, might as well shell out a little (relative) dough for pad comfort.
 
The 003 leather pads have a very similar fit & feel to the O2 pads.. but the O2 pads are softer (yes, my 003 leather pads are extensively broken in considering I've had the 003 for over a year).  If you're handy with the needle & can get the 003 leather pads to fit on the T50RP, you can save some change and get a very comparable fit and feel.. if you're like me and don't want to hassle with it, the O2 pads are well worth the premium, require no modding (the slide right on and hug the phones perfectly, like the stock pads), and have a better fit & feel than the 003.
 
I'd love for some suggestion on dealing with the lower midrange spike I'm having.. I can hear just how spectacular the midrange could sound on these.. bass is not an issue, it goes deeeeeep, textured lusciously, but it's a little slow. but they're quite one dimensional, too thick, warm, and dark right now.
Click to expand...


They look very, very nice! I must admit that I have been toying with the idea of getting O2 pads but the price is just such a turn-off.
 
$155 pads on $75 headphones....typical head-fi.
tongue_smile.gif

 
 
Sep 20, 2011 at 6:37 PM Post #2,666 of 11,346


Quote:
flysweep said:
Imaging and soundstage is just fine.. not excessively wide.. but not narrow and claustrophobic.. everything sounds to be accurately spaced & positioned.. but the midbass issue I'm having is making it a little difficult to locate instruments that live in the midrange.. it's too liquid and warm.  I'd say the soundstage is wider than average, it compares favorably to the 003 (a phone that has excellent soundstage for a closed phone) and is perhaps wider.
 
The honky warmth remains though.  I'm thinking it's going to come down to playing with the felt pad on the back of the driver (perhaps going with different material?) and the cup vent adjustment.  I've got the vents completely uncovered, atm.. the bass is massive and has excellent punch.. but the midbass dominance & spike is at it's most.  Covering the vent with my fingers reduces it some but it also reduces the lower bass presence.  Even with the vents covered with my fingers, that midbass prominence is prevalent relative to how the rest of the frequencies adjust.
 
BTW, I'm impressed by how well these pads seal but don't clamp or hurt your ears/head.. fantastic.
Click to expand...


The key to getting rid of that mid bass bump is to close the vent most of the way, assuming your mods are close to mine.  I'm not joking, mine is down to about 2mm of one slot of the vent.  It'll vary a LITTLE depending on which pads you use.  It tightens up the bass, too.  Any more vent caused the bass to be way too heavy, slow and created a lot of bloom in the lower mids, especially with the O2 pads.  
 
The mids had a bit of "shout" to them until I applied paxmate all around the ear-side of the driver, but that doesn't sound like your problem... 
 
The felt on the driver will have some effect too, but it's very unpredictable because the felt will vary so much since it's not designed for audio per-se, so probably lot's of trial and error that route.  
 
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Sep 20, 2011 at 6:48 PM Post #2,667 of 11,346
mrspeakers,
 
Just curious how does your ear-side paxmate set up look? Is it similar to the donut that bluemonkeyflyer posted, or did you apply it everywhere except directly over the driver?
 
I got my SRH840 pads today, so I can't wait to give them a spin tonight. I might try out the reflex dot sometime this weekend, although I find the treble just perfect right now..... 
 
Also, to everyone I sent acoustic foam, I got TONS of requests, and could not include enough for the inside of the cup AND the earside of the baffle without turning more people away than I'd like. So, I included enough for everyone to at least line the inside of their cups. I figured it was a good enough compromise. 
 
 
 
Sep 20, 2011 at 6:48 PM Post #2,668 of 11,346
lff said:
$155 pads on $75 headphones....typical head-fi.
tongue_smile.gif
Click to expand...


I know.. I had to laugh when I was ordering cause if you asked me two years ago if I would find myself doing this.. I would ask you to slap me cause it sounds so absurd.. BUT... well.. there is no but.. It's absurd and this place does strange things to (normally) sensible people.. this just isn't your average addiction.  
wink_face.gif

 
Back to the phones.. I've managed to severely decrease the Q of the lower midrange spike.. so it still exists, but it's more acute now.  It's been said a thousand times before: the cup venting has so much to do with it.  I've got the vent all but closed from the outside.. I couldn't even go with a 2mm x 2mm opening cause I noticed how much it widened the spike.  When the vents are completely closed, the spike is tamed fairly well (not completely)... the phone sound a little too forward though since lower bass suffers.
 
I'm going to line the vent with acoustic foam.. maybe poke a pinhole to see if this resolve the issue.  Also, going to go to the store to get a bumper to act as a "reflex dot."
 
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