Thank You DUDE_500 for assisting me - very good of you to take the trouble.   My quest is very important and I need all the help I can get.   Thanks again.    Den.

Does anyone else have any doubts as to whether the 0.9 micron film from indoorspecialties.com is actually mylar? It doesn't heat tension, at all. You can blast it for minutes with a hot air gun and as long as you don't melt it, it'll return right to its original state. Any thoughts on what else it might be?

I don't think it's Mylar either. 
 
I've tried it so many times.  It sounded really good for a short while and then started to elongate and failed. 
 
Nowadays, I only use 3 microns Myar.  It's the best one for me so far.

   20 months ago I started this project, It took time to build some CNC machines and learn enough CAD/CAM.
Then started learning to build amps, Now back to headphones:
 
  Thanks to all the information in this thread I can report that they work really well.
These are a ruff unfinished prototype, but sound so good that I may never take them apart-
until they break.
 
  I'm using a DIY Firstwatt F5 to drive transformers while waiting to finish a KGSSHV.
 

 
80mm active area, .5mm spacing, 2um Mylar, 673 1.8mm holes in stator, officemax screen cleaner spray for coating.
 
using bias at about 500v, don't know cause I haven't built or bought a way to measure it yet.
 
when I get the housing design nailed down I will try to make something nice looking.
 
A Big Thanks to Wachara and notable others.....

Wow! Those look really nice! Welcome to the club. Please do post more info and pictures. Congratulations on your successful build.


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  The working ones are on the top of next photo.
to me they sound much better than anything here. the next best is some Lambda Spirit's.
These are more efficient and much lighter, more forward, much bigger sound.
will have to take some measurements, but will have to take them off to do it.
That might take a while.
 
  For the oval's I will have to build custom pads.. but have one driver working.
 


 

 

It seems like you have been playing with them all by yourself.

Those are really nice looking drivers. When you're done with these, please try the float clone version too. I really like them.


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I would really have loved to have the opportunity to come along and hear this stuff. Yeh dedication indeed.
If your creations sound anything like the original floats (one of my favorite headphones together with Stax). Do you find the sonic presentation completely different and unique to any other headphone past or present?
I have the Stax Sigmas but they still sound a little closed in compared to the Float.
I guess the nearest thing would be the Senn HD800 but still does not have quite the freedom and airiness of the Floats.
 
The original Floats do roll off somewhat at the bottom end, but the new Float QA's with the revised energiser transformer have supposedly improved the bottom octaves. I believe there are several sets of the QA's among headfiers over there. Have you had chance to listen as your design looks as though it borrows a lot from the QA's       
 
Quote:

chinsettawong said:

  Before going to the annual Thai DIY Audio meeting, I had to cover up the back side of the phones so that people would not stick their fingers inside and get a shock.  I looked around the house and finally decided to use my wife's stocking. 

  I actually heard a few people really like to use the stocking as a damping cloth on their ESL.
 

 
I took with me the new phones, the oval shape ones, and KGSSHV to the meeting.  Many people had never heard of electrostatic headphones before and were very interested to come and try my phones. 
 

 
 

 

 

 
Guess what?  About eight out of ten people who tried the phones like the sound of the new ones better.  However, they all complained that they looked very ugly.  I had to show them how JF looked and they all laughed.
 
Let me show you how crazy Thai DIYers can be.  We have a WE212 SE amp at the meeting.  The tubes are huge. 

 

 

 

 
The 845 tubes in front of WE212 look so small in comparison. 
 
Wachara C.

Click to expand...

Hi complin,
 
Thank you very much for your interest.  If you have a chance to come by Bangkok, you are most welcome to try all my headphones.  We have quite an active group of Headfiers here.  Many of us own electrostatic headphones.  Yes, I have tried the new QA float for a brief session.  I did like them.  However, It's too bad that they don't make them compatible with Stax ampliers. 
 
My float style headphones sound more relaxing than my other phones.  Yes, the bottom bass does roll off a little.  But they sound just like my electrostatic loudspeakers.  However, the phones are a little less efficient, and they need a powerful amp to shine.  KGSSHV and especially DIY T2 make them sing so amazingly. 
 
I'm thinking of making another pair of float style headphones.  This time I'll make them more efficient so that all Stax amps will be able to drive them easily.
 
Wachara C.

Yes I have been an electrostatic headphone user since the mid 1960's so you realise I like them a lot
 
Phones like the floats have such large drivers its going to be difficult to make them that efficient I believe. The later Jecklins and the QA's use 1200 volt bias voltage.
Having heard the new Float QA's what are your feelings regarding the bottom octaves? How do they compare to the Stax 007/009. I believe they need a meaty amplifier to make them sing 30/40 watts.
 
I have been in conversation with Manfred Stein the owner of Quad in Germany about his new amplifiers for the Float QA. I assumed that they would have a native bias supply driven directly from the integrated amplifier. However he says that in his opinion the Float QA still needs the step up transformers to perform correctly. So his new amplifiers just drive the original step up transformers but are integrated into a single box!
 
Andreas Rauenbuehler in Germany http://www.high-amp.de/html/frame.html has designed a dedicated amplifier which will drive both stax and the Jecklin Float. Below is a copy of the schematic for his 1200/100 volt bias supply
 

©Copyright Andreas Rauenbuehler​

 
Quote:

chinsettawong said:

  Hi complin,
 
Thank you very much for your interest.  If you have a chance to come by Bangkok, you are most welcome to try all my headphones.  We have quite an active group of Headfiers here.  Many of us own electrostatic headphones.  Yes, I have tried the new QA float for a brief session.  I did like them.  However, It's too bad that they don't make them compatible with Stax ampliers. 
 
My float style headphones sound more relaxing than my other phones.  Yes, the bottom bass does roll off a little.  But they sound just like my electrostatic loudspeakers.  However, the phones are a little less efficient, and they need a powerful amp to shine.  KGSSHV and especially DIY T2 make them sing so amazingly. 
 
I'm thinking of making another pair of float style headphones.  This time I'll make them more efficient so that all Stax amps will be able to drive them easily.
 
Wachara C.

Click to expand...

Hi complin,
 
Unfortunately for me, I had only tried the QA float for only about 5 minutes.  I only remembered that they sounded really nice.  I didn't do a direct comparison between them and other headphones.  But, I guess, since there's no seal, the very bottom bass wouldn't be so clear as headphones with sealed earpads. 
 
I think QA float drivers have thicker spacers than mine.  There is nothing wrong with using high bias voltage except that you can't use them with a lot of dedicated electrostatic headphones amplifiers.  And I realy feel that's a pity.
 
I might reduce the width of the driver by a few millimeters and increase the length a little.  With narrower width, I can reduce the spacer thickness down to 0.5 mm, and that'll make the phones more efficient.  I'm sure they'll sound really nice too. 
 
Wachara C.

I think that the driver design is exactly the same as the original Float PS2 which is 1200 volt. Perhaps more modern materials have been used.
I believe where the changes have been made in how the drivers have been mounted, the headband and the step-up transformer.
Personally I prefer the original style of the float, for me a timeless and futuristic design that will never date. The new style looks rather DIY  for a commercial product. Its a pity they did not up date the original by using say carbon fibre, 3D printing etc.
I know that kiertijai has a set of the QA's and he has been very impressed with them
 
Quote:

chinsettawong said:

  Hi complin,
 
Unfortunately for me, I had only tried the QA float for only about 5 minutes.  I only remembered that they sounded really nice.  I didn't do a direct comparison between them and other headphones.  But, I guess, since there's no seal, the very bottom bass wouldn't be so clear as headphones with sealed earpads. 
 
I think QA float drivers have thicker spacers than mine.  There is nothing wrong with using high bias voltage except that you can't use them with a lot of dedicated electrostatic headphones amplifiers.  And I realy feel that's a pity.
 
I might reduce the width of the driver by a few millimeters and increase the length a little.  With narrower width, I can reduce the spacer thickness down to 0.5 mm, and that'll make the phones more efficient.  I'm sure they'll sound really nice too. 
 
Wachara C.

Click to expand...

There are at least 3 pairs of QA float around here that I know of.  Do you mean that you prefer the boxing helmet style headband?
 
I actually like how K1000 places its drivers on the headband.  I think I might do something similar for my next ones. 
 
By the way, do you prefer QA float over other electrostatic headphones?
 
Wachara C.

It was pointed out to me that stators that are double-sided copper will be vastly more temperature stable and remain way flatter compared to single sided in the long term. I haven't tried this yet, but maybe I'll make one side double sided and see if I can hear a difference. Even if there's no apparent difference, it certainly can't hurt and is the technically better way to build them. I believe the sr-007 is double sided.

The stators of SR007 are indeed double sided. They are plate thru holes. The stator thickness is about 0.7 mm. They are thin and strong.

The way I see it is that the extra copper on these stators leaves them with higher capacitance. That's why SR007 sounds not as bright as other Stax models.

It would be interesting to try though.

Wachara C.