[waynes world]

Lately I have been trying to balance (a) "listening to music with headphones" with (b) "not getting into too much poop from the family for being anti-social" lol. Most of my headphones satisfy (a) nicely but fail at (b) miserably. The only headphones that satisfy (a) and seem to handle (b) fairly well are the the ksc75's or sportapros - both on parts express headband. They are light, they look unobtrusive, they don't isolate too much, and they can easily be moved off of the ears (or put around the neck) when required. So I am using them quite a bit and happy to have them.

But onto my question: What other headphones are there that have the same light, unobtrusive profile and that sound better than the ksc75's/sportapros (on PT headband)?

 

[LaughMoreDaily]

Wayne's World, what kind of differences do you see between the KSC75 and the KSC35's (Sportapro)'s? I've heard there is more bass, is there anything else that is very cool?

 

[lynn snowduck]

Which silver cable is good to recable the KSC75 with?

It's available on EBay under " New audio silver plated cable for Koss porta Pro headphones"

 

[RASeymour]

Lately I have been trying to balance (a) "listening to music with headphones" with (b) "not getting into too much poop from the family for being anti-social" lol. Most of my headphones satisfy (a) nicely but fail at (b) miserably. The only headphones that satisfy (a) and seem to handle (b) fairly well are the the ksc75's or sportapros - both on parts express headband. They are light, they look unobtrusive, they don't isolate too much, and they can easily be moved off of the ears (or put around the neck) when required. So I am using them quite a bit and happy to have them.

But onto my question: What other headphones are there that have the same light, unobtrusive profile and that sound better than the ksc75's/sportapros (on PT headband)?

You may have reached nirvana. I'm continually surprised at how great the KSC75's sound.

 

[HPuser9083]

Hi all

They are exactly the same drivers, maybe you notice a difference because the ksc casing is larger

I had a blown driver on the portapro and had a ksc set lying around which I never used much because I disliked the ear clamps so I just clipped the ksc drivers onto the portapro lolol I guess the best of both worls now, I call them the PortaKspro lolol

Try using them with the PX200 earpads. Sig says the rest. Although I was mostly messing around when I stuck the KSC75 drivers on my Portapro headband.

 

[InfyAsiX]

But onto my question: What other headphones are there that have the same light, unobtrusive profile and that sound better than the ksc75's/sportapros (on PT headband)?

Absolutely. The're my most versatile headphone. I use them the most because of some of the best sound while being able to relax comfortably with physical lightness and less audio fatigue. Then for going running, walking or moving around without bone, cable conduction or isolation.

I've only got three headphones each for a purpose. An IEM for isolation and portability. DT-770 over ear with moderate isolation for finer critical listening. The fact is the KSC75 headbanded gets the most everyday use.

 

[carpman]

Hi all,

Most YouTube videos I don't really miss when they disappear BUT some, well ... a while back BloodyPenguin did an excellent one on how to remove and fit the Parts Express headband to the Koss drivers. Unless I was having a bad day it seems to have gone missing (there is a replacement out there, which I'm shamelessly using ... but, IMO it's not quite up to BP's high standard). I could just message the Penguin I guess, but I thought I'd try and publicly shame him into putting it back up. Or did YouTube's new censorship algorithms get carried away? Anyway, if you're out there BloodyPenguin - any idea what happened to it?

On a separate note, since many people (outside the US) seem to find the Parts Express headband from this place - I've extended our global reach to include:
Argentina, Australia, Brazil, New Zealand and Singapore.

Spreading modded joy to the world!!!

Cheers,
C.

 

[djray]

So, I retrieved my old pair of KSC75s from my drawer. To my surprise, the ear pads have completely disintegrated. All that's left is just... dust.

I originally bought these in 2009. I guess I'm not too upset about it since they only cost $16 back then. There's no point in trying to replace the pads. But still, I wish the pads don't just fall apart like that. :/

Well, it's just I'm rather turned off by the pad quality. Apparently these pads turn into dust after a few years and it's been reported elsewhere too. It seems pointless to keep on throwing $7-8 bucks into replacement pads if they just turn into dust.

It's perfectly serious.

The ear pads turn into dust after a few years. I just don't think spending half of what these earphones cost to get replacement pads are worth it when the pads are $7-8 and the earphones are $16. I just did some research, apparently ear pad disintegration is normal for these earphones. So, this is just a data point for people interested in these so they know what to expect.

Edit: I took out my Koss PortaPros and interestingly, the ear pads on those also disintegrated. I'm guessing the PortaPros ear pads use the same material as the KSC75s.

This just happened to me.

I took out a pair of broken KSC75s (left side, no sound) that I had in a drawer and stupidly proceeded to try them on without looking at the pad. The result? Icky black dots all over my ears!

What Maywind says about contemplating over the $7-8 for replacement pads is valid considering that the KSC75s are around $16. For my needs, I think I'll try out some pads that others have recommended online such as the Plantronics Supras (already quarter-modded) or the venerable HD414 canary yellow pads.

I'm wondering if the cause of the disintegration is due to humidity.

 

[djray]

If you're buying the PartsExpress headphone from Amazon.com, according to recent reviews, the headband has changed.

An Amazon reviewer posted a photo of the new headband and it still fits, but looks more awkward:
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71cbaMKb0GL.jpg

A user on /r/headphones noted that "the ends of the metal band are enclosed in cheap plastic and the whole thing is very flimsy":
https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/6gyfx6/headband_for_koss_ksc75/djhcy9s/

Just a FYI.

It looks like you lose some of the slight, rotating ability for the driver that the old PartsExpress headband used to have. Although, I'm purely speculating at this point.

 

[carpman]

Thanks for the info !!!

They look completely different. I'll check with Parts Express before re-ordering. Maybe I'm getting old, but everyone seems hell bent on breaking things that don't need fixing!
All I can say is the ones I'm stocking don't look anything like that.

This is the image Parts Express still have for the Parts Express Mini Stereo Lightweight Headphones with 4 ft. Cord:

Perhaps it's a rogue seller? Who knows. But thanks again for the info.

Cheers,
C,

 

[carpman]

This is from one of those Amazon reviewers with the later version:

QUOTE
I can confirm that the Koss drivers do snap in to the PartsExpress headband and have sufficient grip while allowing drivers to pivot freely.

[...] The item I received does look slightly different than shown on the product page, but these appear to be more aesthetic and otherwise similar. I purchased this headset and the Koss headset in October 2017 and can confirm that currently the two are a fit.
/QUOTE

Hmmmm.

C.

 

[FieldingMellish]

I’ll have to try one of the mods indicated in this thread.

 

[carpman]

If you're buying the PartsExpress headphone from Amazon.com, according to recent reviews, the headband has changed.

An Amazon reviewer posted a photo of the new headband and it still fits, but looks more awkward:
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71cbaMKb0GL.jpg

A user on /r/headphones noted that "the ends of the metal band are enclosed in cheap plastic and the whole thing is very flimsy":
https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/6gyfx6/headband_for_koss_ksc75/djhcy9s/

Just a FYI.

It looks like you lose some of the slight, rotating ability for the driver that the old PartsExpress headband used to have. Although, I'm purely speculating at this point.

I contacted Parts Express regarding this and was assured the ones in their warehouse were the old style - but they wouldn't address the Amazon customer images. So don't know what's going on there. Pleased to say we've just received our latest batch and they are indeed the good ones:

On a separate note - I know plenty of users of this headband have used this with the Porta Pros - we had a guy whose Porta Pro attachment didn't fit - the guy's on Head-Fi so may have asked about this on a Porta Pro thread - just wondered if anyone else had an issue or knew anything about this freakishness.

So all good regarding the Parts Express headband - at least when picked up from us - not sure about Amazon.com - but that's their problem.

Cheers,
C.

 

[Willber]

Good news.

 

[Happytalk]

The reason the porta pros didn’t fit is likely because the user pulled out the small headphones from the parts express headband (headphones) and may have bent the part that you click the porta pros etc into. It’s hard to bend it back without breaking it. I always have a couple extra headbands around. The break easily. For a while traveled with them in a hard case! Now I just pop them out before slipping them in my bag. There is an eBay seller that sells the headband for $2.50 plus like $2-3 shipping. There is also a headfi-er that sells them (in the U.K.?). Parts express has always been overpriced.

In response to an earlier comment asking about sportapros vs ksc75’s in the parts express headband. I have always had both. I always reach for my sportapros. The ksc75 is nice, but compared to the sportspros they have granier treble and are just more dry and less natural. The sportapro on the parts express headband is ideal. Very natural, and more hi fi to me. Slightly more bass too. Worth the extra $5-10 in my opinion.