I had the v5 in Cabillas cups and they sounded great even before any amount of significant burn-in time. This was my 4th pair of "Grados" and every single time I ended up selling them just because open phones don't work in my household/office (don't know why I keep going back to new builds!)...

The circle is now complete, I present to you my finished pair of Magnum X headphones pimped out with Cabillas cups, Canare cable, G-cushion and Sony headband. Bonus points for the mix of acetone (removed the Sony lettering) and Grado pads smell.

  Along those lines, there's nothing stopping someone from sanding down the lettering and gluing the veneer on there directly instead of multiple layers which may present its own challenges...   Process could be; remove the ring, sand the lettering, glue veneer on ring, cut out excess...

Well here we go, music to my ears! Not the final build but already these bad boys are blowing me away. Stock Grado headband, reverse quarter mod comfies, cabillas cup and canare cable. The fit of the X drivers in the cup was great. After sanding the interior of the cups, all I had to do was...

I always wanted to try the G-cushion before but their price is a little number in Canada (65$ + tx at the local audio shop). So when I found a deal for a pair that had been used for a few hours only for cheap, I jumped on them. I may end up going back to L-cushion but at least I will have...

Just got an "Attempted Delivery" notification from Canada Post, my Magnum X are here! That means they'll be available for pickup tomorrow at the local post office. I can't wait to get the soldering iron out and give them a go... I am still waiting on my G-Cushions and have yet to make a final...

300 is quite a deal. Factor the cost of the drivers, cups, headband and cable is close to 300 in parts alone. A headphone that performs in the same league as the rs1 and ps500 at a fraction of the cost? If I wasn't building mine now, I'd jump on that in a heartbeat.

Thanks for the detailed write-up on the headbands. Lots of things to consider...

Wayne, is that a different leather headband on those final pics or is it just the lighting/angle? Can you elaborate a bit on your impressions on the Grado stock headband with a j$/turbulent labs leather upgrade vs. the Sony one if you can? Thanks

Very nice indeed. Thanks for the sound impressions, it's nice to see one can build a very nice sounding headphone for the investment. Now if only the mailman could bring my drivers ...

  I'll take one for the team and take them off your hands    While there's still no sign of the X drivers at my place, I did get a nice little package from the postman today.  

I ordered mine on the 15th and it's at "ordered and dispatched" on DHL. No info still on Canada Post. Not too worried though I'm sure it'll go on a boat/plane at one point in time... Meanwhile we'll have to live vicariously through Wayne's build ;-)

I'll take good care of them :-)

Also got my order in for some Turbulent X drivers over the week-end and got the tracking number today. Also on its way is a pair of wooden cups and cable from the man himself, wje. Can't wait to get all the parts together. I'll post pictures here in the coming weeks when it all comes together...

It is definitely heavier than your average pen but it's got a nice weight to it, not too heavy, just enough to know you have a quality instrument in your hands :-) It is a rollerball, not a ballpoint. Here's two more I have with me at work. Pardon the crappy pictures taken with a cell phone. I...