Tsiklon
Head-Fier
I see there's still a small handful of new T5050's on Ebay in Europe. Mine is 827. just arrived today.
I ordered a 15ft this morning, and it's already prepped to shipped. Now that was Fast! Thanks to Fog City Audio.
Did anyone comment on the driver differences? Are Fostex getting confused in their marketing department? If I recall the T60rp driver was different to the T50rp Mk2 driver, but the driver in the Mk3 and the T60rp are the same as far as I know, i.e. thicker paper with the square hole instead of the overall thinner paper in the Mk2. Are Fostex lying or is there some other difference?Has anyone measured these yet? And/or listened to these side by side vs the MK3s?
T60RP drivers in a T50RP, at around T50RP prices sounds tempting.
Confused as to why you took off the damping paper. When I did that with my stock t50mk3 it totally destoyed the sound. I don't remember why now but it was awful to my ears. Was very glad I was able to stick it back on...
^ Highs a tad peaky, bass a bit bloomy.
^ VS HD600 for reference
^ front-side vent foam seems like standard issue T50RPmk3 foam but I dont know
^ Inside the cups we have quality control unlike other variants. And cup damping.
^ mod1 = removing stock driver damping paper aka saying goodbye to resale value
^ mod1 VS stock
mod1 is tradeoffs for sure. Will continue modding then share impressions later.
Teaser: here is my T20RP mod frequency response in comparison which uses the same pads.:
^ Id wager the reason for difference in frequency response is either due the difference in airflow of front-side vent foam (t20rp foam being less dense and allowing more airflow), and/or possibly difference in cup grill seal (t20rp is the "open" variant so less seal). This is assuming drivers are still the same old same old, will compare designations on drivers later...
Sup.Confused as to why you took off the damping paper. When I did that with my stock t50mk3 it totally destoyed the sound. I don't remember why now but it was awful to my ears. Was very glad I was able to stick it back on...
I can't remember exactly tbh. I sold those, but just did buy another t40 yesterday lol. I tried it because I read a few comments saying it would improve them, but I remember maybe it sounded sort of "thin" kind of tinny maybe. This was with a totally undamped cup though.Sup.
No worries. We all perceive and prefer differently.
What was so awful to you exactly?
Positives to me were improved frequency response and increased sensivity.
The vents are actually not blocked in T50RP-50th.Do you think the essentially makes them t40rps because the vent hole is blocked?
Correct. Marketing may be referring to the balanced wiring or perhaps higher quality control standards…the drivers are identical.
The effect I imagine would be less dramatic on certain models particularly T40 because the cups are already sealed. And other mk3 models are different because they use different porosity foam on the front-side for acoustic damping. Also, the driver rear-side paper filter may be just as much about tuning acoustic impedance but also contributing certain reflection (?). The driver rear-side paper filter has also been documented to have poor quality control on mk3, some times the paper filter is covered in glue making the filter more like an impermeable wall.I tried it because I read a few comments saying it would improve them, but I remember maybe it sounded sort of "thin" kind of tinny maybe.
Thank you for the interesting comments. It was the T50rpmk3 I had previously, and it did have a load of yellow glue on the driver paper, but I still thought it sounded better with it on. I ended up turning that set into an Open Alpha.The vents are actually not blocked in T50RP-50th.
Correct. Marketing may be referring to the balanced wiring or perhaps higher quality control standards…
The effect I imagine would be less dramatic on certain models particularly T40 because the cups are already sealed. And other mk3 models are different because they use different porosity foam on the front-side for acoustic damping. Also, the driver rear-side paper filter may be just as much about tuning acoustic impedance but also contributing certain reflection (?). The driver rear-side paper filter has also been documented to have poor quality control on mk3, some times the paper filter is covered in glue making the filter more like an impermeable wall.
I did that too but ended up preferring stock enclosure by small margin.Open Alpha
If youre talking about driver baffle vent ports then youre talking about mk2 as they are non-existent on mk3... mk3 uses an updated venting system which I prefer, its the same system Foster uses in all their hi-fi biocellulose headphones (TH-X00 series). If youre talking about cup vents they yes they are covered but seemingly by the same porous felt used in regular T50RP which makes little to no difference ime*...including over the vent ports
Ill sell you mine (has driver paper filter removed). I just want to keep the leather support band to use with mk4. I was going to list on classifieds for around $75shipped.I was hoping to mod my new T40rp into something close to the 50th anniversary if i can find out what exactly is inside them
Thanks for the replies and link. Wow I didn't know there was going to be a Mk4! Interesting!I did that too but ended up preferring stock enclosure by small margin.
If youre talking about driver baffle vent ports then youre talking about mk2 as they are non-existent on mk3... mk3 uses an updated venting system which I prefer, its the same system Foster uses in all their hi-fi biocellulose headphones (TH-X00 series). If youre talking about cup vents they yes they are covered but seemingly by the same porous felt used in regular T50RP which makes little to no difference ime*...
*I think the big difference between T20RPmk3 and T50RPmk3 is not cup vents but actually the front-side vent foam (in front of driver, underneath pads) with the “open” T20RPmk3 having much more open/breathable foam allowing greater venting which is preferable imo. fyi, T60RP front-side foam is even more open/breathable than T20RP, but its been so long since had T60RP so cant say preference.
Ill sell you mine (has driver paper filter removed). I just want to keep the leather support band to use with mk4. I was going to list on classifieds for around $75shipped.
This thread has a bunch of measures you might find interesting for relative comparisons.
Really wanted to thank you for posting this. Picked up my T50/50s (#369 reporting in btw) in September and while I absolutely adore them, the cable situation has been a real struggle since I cannot stand the stock cables. Reached out to Hart early on with no luck, and tried a few, lets say...creative solutions but none were perfect. When all was said and done unfortunately the headphones ended up languishing mostly unused since October. Got the Fog City cable in and its perfect. Really glad to finally get to enjoy these headphones uncompromised, been enjoying them all week and they're just such a delightful addition to my little T50 collection.
Awesome and sorry about some of the grammar in that monster of a comment, I'll try to clean it up asap.Thanks for sharing the link with that cable, the shipping for the other suggestion to Australia turned me right off it but I might give the AliExpress option a crack