The JVC HA-S500 thread.
Nov 16, 2012 at 8:29 PM Post #3,091 of 8,352
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It's real easy actually, just slot whatever part of the pad lip into the "cut", so that the lip is like halfway in the groove, halfway out, and turn the pad "away" from the groove, while lightly holding on to the first part where it's already in the groove. Once you complete a whole round the lip will pop into the groove easily! i cant upload photos due to newbie restrictions, but i made a short video on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CaDRTS4UrXs&feature=youtu.be
I sorta discovered it cus i was turning it the other way round and the lip got "caught" in the "cut" and i was wondering why the lip kept going in where i was pushing in and coming out the other side! duh...

 
OMG this is a ingenious idea!!! Now i got no excuse but to try musubi1000s mod in full, main reason for the delay was that putting those stock S500 pads on is a pain in the @ss. 
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Oh I see. Rick can get away with s500 blasphemy on this thread but when I suggest a headphone might possibly be better than the s500 on here, I get flamed for 3 days straight
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Well, we all know that our ricky boi is a lil' crazy in the head so we excuse him for that, but doc you of all people should KNOW better.
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ooohh blasphemy is suggesting that a cheapo Phillips is better than a cheapo JVC... you know.
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  .....  
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Well if it makes you feel any better it is technically a $175 cheapo phillips vs a $50 cheapo jvc.
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Thank you sir. I'll try to keep it updated as new stuff shows up.

 
A $175 phillips is STILL a phillips, rick was talking about a godly all time great Senn that are beloved by almost everyone so you be the judge of who is in the wrong here.    
 
It's not too late to repent, i wanna see these S500s back on the top of your list ASAP!!!
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Nov 16, 2012 at 10:14 PM Post #3,093 of 8,352
Absolutely no interest on the amazing new Toilet Paper Mod? I am in love with it right now, but on some recordings (it's only happened on 1), it has a little sibilance, but the trebel, mids, and bass are all just - improved! Take my review with a pinch of salt though, I got bored of these cans and didn't listen to them for a week, then decided to listen to them - right after I did the mod *facepalm*.
 
Nov 16, 2012 at 10:26 PM Post #3,094 of 8,352
Nov 16, 2012 at 10:30 PM Post #3,095 of 8,352
Quote:
Absolutely no interest on the amazing new Toilet Paper Mod? I am in love with it right now, but on some recordings (it's only happened on 1), it has a little sibilance, but the trebel, mids, and bass are all just - improved! Take my review with a pinch of salt though, I got bored of these cans and didn't listen to them for a week, then decided to listen to them - right after I did the mod *facepalm*.

What new toilet paper mod??? Thought stuffing the pads was the only mod involved paper, did i miss something here?
 
Nov 16, 2012 at 10:47 PM Post #3,097 of 8,352
What new toilet paper mod??? Thought stuffing the pads was the only mod involved paper, did i miss something here?

I opened unscrewed the 3 screws on each cup under the pads, and stuck 1/2 piece of folded toilet paper in behind each driver... let's call it the *insert good name here*
 
Nov 16, 2012 at 11:09 PM Post #3,098 of 8,352
I wonder if anything besides toilet paper would be better? Like sock cuttings, dynamat, or foam.
 
Nov 17, 2012 at 12:12 AM Post #3,099 of 8,352
Here's a guide for the Toilet Paper Mod (Thanks Superstylefacto for the putting on the earpad step!):

1) Get a piece of toilet paper.

2) Tear or cut it in half.

3) Fold 1 of the pieces in half, hamburger style.

4) Fold that piece in half the other way.

5) Fold that piece in half the other way - don't worry, this is the last time you have to fold it.

5a) It's small, but here's a size comparison:

6) Now get your JVC HA-S500's.

7) Take off the earpad on one side.

8) Unscrew the 3 screws.

9) Take off the driver.

10) Place your folded toilet paper piece in the earcup.


11) Put your driver back in.

12) Screw the 3 screws back in.

13) Put the earpad in the groove, and turn it clockwise.


14) Here's your half-modded HA-S500!

15) Do steps 7-13 with the other side.

16) Enjoy your improved HA-S500's!
 
Nov 17, 2012 at 2:07 AM Post #3,100 of 8,352
Absolutely no interest on the amazing new Toilet Paper Mod? I am in love with it right now, but on some recordings (it's only happened on 1), it has a little sibilance, but the trebel, mids, and bass are all just - improved! Take my review with a pinch of salt though, I got bored of these cans and didn't listen to them for a week, then decided to listen to them - right after I did the mod *facepalm*.

Improvements in the Mids and Highs? That probably means that the toilet paper is dampening the echo inside the plastic cups. Someone here did mention about how the S500 has very good drivers but the cheap plastic cups are not good because of the resonance.

Also somewhere 50-60 pages back someone mentioned a spike in the frequency graph because of the cup resonance. Or something along that line.
 
Nov 17, 2012 at 2:37 AM Post #3,101 of 8,352
Been reading these forums for a little while but first time posting!  Ordered a set a week and a bit ago after seeing this thread and can't wait for them to arrive!
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Nov 17, 2012 at 3:16 AM Post #3,102 of 8,352
I dampened the back of the drivers with some super sculpy as well as the back wall of the cups. I would have preferred to use felt, but i cannot seem to find it easily at any of my local shops. Insane. I Also put in a bit of that fibrous stuff you find in stuffed animals inside. I did this a while ago before burn-in had completed, so I don't really know what affect it has had on the sound. I like how they sound at this point in time, so I'm not going to be opening up and changing things.

My mids have opened up nicely with the burn-in and they highs no longer bother me as much. I can say these headphones are actually quite competent at Rock music now. I personally still bump up the mids a bit, but they aren't really lacking in the first place once burn-in has been done (combined with pad changes, I imagine).
 
Nov 17, 2012 at 3:26 AM Post #3,103 of 8,352
Here's a guide for the Toilet Paper Mod (Thanks Superstylefacto for the putting on the earpad step!):

1) Get a piece of toilet paper.

2) Tear or cut it in half.

3) Fold 1 of the pieces in half, hamburger style.

4) Fold that piece in half the other way.

5) Fold that piece in half the other way - don't worry, this is the last time you have to fold it.

5a) It's small, but here's a size comparison:

6) Now get your JVC HA-S500's.

7) Take off the earpad on one side.

8) Unscrew the 3 screws.

9) Take off the driver.

10) Place your folded toilet paper piece in the earcup.

11) Put your driver back in.

12) Screw the 3 screws back in.

13) Put the earpad in the groove, and turn it clockwise.

14) Here's your half-modded HA-S500!

15) Do steps 7-13 with the other side.

16) Enjoy your improved HA-S500's!


Hey you're most welcome, i'm surprised no one else discovered this hidden "feature" though being my first proper headphones, i don't know if other headphones have this groove as well, seeing as to how much you guys seem to swap around the earpads!
 
Nov 17, 2012 at 3:50 AM Post #3,104 of 8,352
Absolutely no interest on the amazing new Toilet Paper Mod? I am in love with it right now, but on some recordings (it's only happened on 1), it has a little sibilance, but the trebel, mids, and bass are all just - improved! Take my review with a pinch of salt though, I got bored of these cans and didn't listen to them for a week, then decided to listen to them - right after I did the mod *facepalm*.

Improvements in the Mids and Highs? That probably means that the toilet paper is dampening the echo inside the plastic cups. Someone here did mention about how the S500 has very good drivers but the cheap plastic cups are not good because of the resonance.

Also somewhere 50-60 pages back someone mentioned a spike in the frequency graph because of the cup resonance. Or something along that line.


now that you mention it, yeah the cups do vibrate a lot with my current set up of stock pads and taped vents.

Actually i can suggest a solution to the resonance, cuz awhile back i was restoring an old mini van and fitted it with a good philips head unit and MB Quartz speakers. Good system, but problem was my old van was a tin can, so a lot of the sound quality was lost from the resonance of the entire thin walls of the van, and during heavy rain, the audio was almost drowned out.

Then i decided to apply damping material to the entire van, including floor, doors, inside the doors and ceiling. Typical damping material from car audio shops are crazy expensive, so i source a similar material which was used for roof insulation, at a fraction of the price. They're basically the same thing, thin aluminum sheet lined with sticky black bitumen. Pretty heavy duty stuff, a roll of 10m x 1.5m weighed a good 30kg or 65-70lbs, almost strained my back carrying it!

Anyway to cut to the chaste, the result of the damping was AWESOME, as good as having installed an amp, and the van walls were much more solid, doors shut almost the way continental cars did, heavy and satisfying. It brought out the best of my audio system without busting a hole in my wallet, given my tight budget.

So what i suggest is, use something heavy duty to stick to the cups to stiffen them, so they can absorb the resonance better. Not just a piece of board or toilet paper, but some good, thick, industrial strength tape. The bitumen/alu sheet will work best, but it can stain plastics and fabrics, so take care when using it. I'd upload photos if i could, but i'm not sure how many posts i need to clock before the newbie restrictions are lifted
 
Nov 17, 2012 at 3:59 AM Post #3,105 of 8,352
I figure that's probably what is holding the s500s from being comparable with the higher end headphones, having thick, well insulated, well-damped cups instead of cheap thin plastic cups, considering the quality of the drivers in them. It's kinda like putting a GTR engine into a aston mini, the one Mr Bean drives.

I guess it applies to everything where SQ matters, from theatres to recording studios, cars, headphones, etc. You can have the best drivers and systems in the world but without a good, solid "enclosure" for it, it's just a lost cause.
 

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