E2c mod... 56K warning

[kramer5150]

Heres a little mod I did to my e2c. Use a dremel and trim off the very last ~1/16" to open up the tube opening. Seems to improve treble and midrange presence. Bass doesn't seem as bloated as a result. I use the small soft tip and a govibe to amp. initial impressions....

 

[kramer5150]

Took the mod a step further, and dremeld off this ridge. This allows the sleeve to sit fartherw down the tube and hence brings the driver closer to the eardrum. Better bass impact and midrange dynamics results. Pics available upon request.

WOW... my e2c now has treble!! and it sits better in my small-ish ears.

initial impressions made groovin to some live Bryan Setzer Orchestra. Will do some Clapton unplugged tonight.

Garrett

 

[gshan]

Hey kramer5150,

I'm guessing there's less of that "tunnel" sound that is mentioned sometimes?

Another interesting mod.

-S

 

[mmmmcheese]

Awesome. What about getting the plastic in the driver housing when you dremeled it?

 

[kramer5150]

Yeah its my oppinion that the e2c sounds exactly like what it is.... a small speaker playing through a funnel... YUK!! Now you add a plastic end cap to the end of that funnel and knock a small hole into it for sound to poke through.

IMHO sound from a speaker almost always sounds best when it has an unobstructed, on-axis line of sight path to the eardrum. If anything obstructs those sound waves cancellation, and constructive/destructive interference results.

Thats all this realy is... increasing the unobstructued path for sound waves to oscillate freely.

I had to use caution, not to get crumbs into the phone. Fortunately the plastic starts to melt as you cut it, rather than flaking all over the place. So youre left with these "clumps" of small melted plastic, rather than shavings.

I did get a little in the tube, but its easy to use a sliver of paper towel, twist it, add water and scrub it out.

Happy with the result, dont feel as much need to upgrade now

Garrett

 

[mattigol]

Hey kramerdude,

that looks like a promising mod. Been using the E2c for close two two years now but less so in last few months, due to general fatigue of portable music. Sale is not an option either, the way mine look.

Please report back if your initial impression hold, then I will go for it as well.

Thanks! M.

 

[prona]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kramer5150 Took the mod a step further, and dremeld off this ridge. This allows the sleeve to sit fartherw down the tube and hence brings the driver closer to the eardrum. Better bass impact and midrange dynamics results. Pics available upon request. WOW... my e2c now has treble!! and it sits better in my small-ish ears. initial impressions made groovin to some live Bryan Setzer Orchestra. Will do some Clapton unplugged tonight. Garrett

Could this just be due to the enlarging of the exit hole?

 

[kramer5150]

Quote:

Originally Posted by prona Could this just be due to the enlarging of the exit hole?

possibly. once things for certain, obstructed sound is a BAD thing for audio reproduction. Not sure how much difference tube shortening really makes?

More impressions to come... stay tuned.

one other thing to note, if you have lots of flakey earwax this mod is not for you since youre cutting off the end that holds the wax screen.

Garrett

 

[kramer5150]

Spent some more time listening: T40 laptop, Phillips aurilium, govibeII
The Eagles, Millenium concert
Clapton unplugged
John Fogerty, Live Premonition...
The Police, Live 1984
SRV, Little Wing
Dreamtheater, Live @ Budokan
Queensryche, Empire
Eric Johnson, Venus Isle
Satriani, Live @ the Warfield

Mod works wonders to brighten up the very recessed e2c treble. Seems to liven up midrange tones too. Bass seems to resonate a little lower but its not as boomy and just a hair less impact in upper bass notes... but theres more impact to the lower octaves... A good thing IMHO. Bass notes resonate more, theres a bigger sense of "air" and acoustic space around bass notes, where before tones were just a heavy-weight thud. The thud is still there, its just at a slightly lower frequency, and theres just "more there" as the note decays.

Overall response is flatter across the spectrum, while still retaining the warm, foreward e2c mids... theyre just more detailed and dynamic now.

Noticeable step towards KSC75 realm, in terms of spectral balance and separation... but still not quite there. IMHO it still sounds compressed and lacks the spatial separation of either KSC75 or MS2. Soundstage is still not the e2cs strength.

Seems to isolate about the same.
Comfort is improved a little, as the body of the phone sits more snug to my ears. Also, tapering the tip of the tube helps reduce pressure exerted on the ear canal.

Ive never been a real fan of the e2c's signature... dull and somewhat boring IMHO... seldomly gets my foot tapping. Post-mod however, I caught my foot stomping to some Fogerty bluegrass lap steel and Eagles tunes.

Here are some pics...
Hope someone finds this useful.

 

[prona]

kramer, have you tried the portmaster (ultrasoft + foamie) mod?

 

[kramer5150]

Quote:

Originally Posted by prona kramer, have you tried the portmaster (ultrasoft + foamie) mod?

I tried it before, I dont need that much isolation though so I just use the soft tips plain. It should work either way, but you might have to trim the foam down a little, with the shorter tube length.

Garrett

 

[fureshi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kramer5150 WOW... my e2c now has treble!! and it sits better in my small-ish ears.

kramer, how much did it improve the treble of these cans? i had these before and my largest complaint was how boring and veiled they sounded. at one point i also thought about cutting off the cups but didn't want a mod that was irreversible. if cutting off the cups lifts the veil then i might consider them again.

 

[kramer5150]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fureshi kramer, how much did it improve the treble of these cans? i had these before and my largest complaint was how boring and veiled they sounded. at one point i also thought about cutting off the cups but didn't want a mod that was irreversible. if cutting off the cups lifts the veil then i might consider them again.

Treble has improved significantly, to the point where I can easily see myself preferring these highly portable cans over my KSC75, even in situations where I dont need isolation. (You all know of my KSC75 love... so this is no easy feat for a little canalphone to accomplish). KSC75 treble is still more "airy", delicate and ambient.... but with the e2c mod at least I'm not always thinking... "Gosh I wish there were more".

They go for ~$60 on line... spend the time to mod them and they really do start to compete with other closed headphones in the $50-$70 range (V6, HD280).

As before, they MUST be amped. They are current hoggs that need a decent circuit to reach full potential.

**edit**
I'd really like someone else to try it out (let me know if I am way off base in what I'm hearing).... but cant possibly encourage it as it will void your warranty. And its not the easiest mod to do. One slip and you could slice up a perfectly good e2c... or a finger for that matter.

Garrett

 

[prona]

I've followed in kramer's footsteps and did this mod. I didn't use a dremel tool or anything. I just filed it down using a standard metal filer. I actually took off a little more than kramer did. At first, I was afraid that the tips would no longer fit, but they do, and they don't come off when I yoink them out of my ear.

I did notice a treble increase, but still not at all close to the ksc75 or the hd280. I don't have to equalize as much now on my zen xtra. But then again, this is all unamped. I'm still waiting for my cmoy to be repaired. When i had my cmoy, there was very loud hissing when using amping the e2c. I really couldn't stand that at all.

Also, kramer, when you say amped e2c, do you mean amped e2c + 75ohm adapter?

Quote:

Originally Posted by kramer5150 Treble has improved significantly, to the point where I can easily see myself preferring these highly portable cans over my KSC75, even in situations where I dont need isolation. (You all know of my KSC75 love... so this is no easy feat for a little canalphone to accomplish). KSC75 treble is still more "airy", delicate and ambient.... but with the e2c mod at least I'm not always thinking... "Gosh I wish there were more". They go for ~$60 on line... spend the time to mod them and they really do start to compete with other closed headphones in the $50-$70 range (V6, HD280). As before, they MUST be amped. They are current hoggs that need a decent circuit to reach full potential. **edit** I'd really like someone else to try it out (let me know if I am way off base in what I'm hearing).... but cant possibly encourage it as it will void your warranty. And its not the easiest mod to do. One slip and you could slice up a perfectly good e2c... or a finger for that matter. Garrett

 

[kramer5150]

Quote:

Originally Posted by prona I did notice a treble increase, but still not at all close to the ksc75 or the hd280. I don't have to equalize as much now on my zen xtra. But then again, this is all unamped. I'm still waiting for my cmoy to be repaired. When i had my cmoy, there was very loud hissing when using amping the e2c. I really couldn't stand that at all. Also, kramer, when you say amped e2c, do you mean amped e2c + 75ohm adapter?

Thats good to know Im not completely off base in what I'm hearing.

No adapter, e2c plugged directly into govibe.
Thanks for the impressions!
Garrett