[k00zk0]

Very interesting, all of this.
 
There is a mod kit on eBay containing some paxmate, plasticine and other interesting materials.
 
A crazy idea: How would the headphone sound with the cups completely removed (completely open driver back)? The baffle would still be weighed and/or damped.
 
I'm sure this can be tried while the phones are opened by reattaching the pads and holding them to your ears while the shells hang off away, cable permitting... amid a cable mod, this would be an interesting trial.
 
It is said these are current-hungry, but they are 50ohm. Do they require a bigger voltage swing, or what?
 
How do they sound with the starving student hybrid? I saw a recommendation earlier to stick with pure SS for this one.
 
Important: How bad is large power on/off thump or mild, short DC for orthos, this one specifically?
 
Makes me wonder why Foster doesn't fix the shell up professionally and release a 500 dollar phone. On note of the driver design, computer modelling was used to perfect the magnetic field (so, it seems like you should not drill more/bigger holes in the metal sheet).

 

[joelpearce]

Quote:

 
A crazy idea: How would the headphone sound with the cups completely removed (completely open driver back)? The baffle would still be weighed and/or damped.

Might be a bit tricky to attach the headband...
 

 

[hans030390]

Any attempts at making them open headphones have been met with pretty poor sound, from what I've read.

 

[proid]

Quote:

Very interesting, all of this.
 
There is a mod kit on eBay containing some paxmate, plasticine and other interesting materials.
 
A crazy idea: How would the headphone sound with the cups completely removed (completely open driver back)? The baffle would still be weighed and/or damped.
 
I'm sure this can be tried while the phones are opened by reattaching the pads and holding them to your ears while the shells hang off away, cable permitting... amid a cable mod, this would be an interesting trial.
 
It is said these are current-hungry, but they are 50ohm. Do they require a bigger voltage swing, or what?
 
How do they sound with the starving student hybrid? I saw a recommendation earlier to stick with pure SS for this one.
 
Important: How bad is large power on/off thump or mild, short DC for orthos, this one specifically?
 
Makes me wonder why Foster doesn't fix the shell up professionally and release a 500 dollar phone. On note of the driver design, computer modelling was used to perfect the magnetic field (so, it seems like you should not drill more/bigger holes in the metal sheet).

I'm currently using t50rp with MSSH and it sound good.

 

[k00zk0]

Quote:

Quote from Wikiphonia:

As was the case with the T50, there are two versions of this model. The early ones have thick but very lightweight earpads with a flat face and the headphone has very little bass. The second version (T50RPv2) has a thinner, rounded-face earpad (see photo) which results in a normal amount of bass and a broad midrange hump in the response curve. The newer version allows modification to flatten the response; the earlier version can only produce bass with extremely heavy bass equalization.

I am sure you are all talking about the T50RP V1, right?
 
Is there any benefit to spending the extra 50 dollars on the Mk2/v2 if I will likely add the 25 dollar SRH840 earpads? Is there ANY difference between T50RP and T50RPMkII except for the earpads?

 

[rhythmdevils]

I don't think you could easily find the v1 anymore, they have only been selling the v2 for a while now.  Every T50rp from a reputable dealer will be v2.

 

[b0wl1ng]

Quote:

Very interesting, all of this.
 
There is a mod kit on eBay containing some paxmate, plasticine and other interesting materials.
 
A crazy idea: How would the headphone sound with the cups completely removed (completely open driver back)? The baffle would still be weighed and/or damped.
 
I'm sure this can be tried while the phones are opened by reattaching the pads and holding them to your ears while the shells hang off away, cable permitting... amid a cable mod, this would be an interesting trial.
 
It is said these are current-hungry, but they are 50ohm. Do they require a bigger voltage swing, or what?
 
How do they sound with the starving student hybrid? I saw a recommendation earlier to stick with pure SS for this one.
 
Important: How bad is large power on/off thump or mild, short DC for orthos, this one specifically?
 
Makes me wonder why Foster doesn't fix the shell up professionally and release a 500 dollar phone. On note of the driver design, computer modelling was used to perfect the magnetic field (so, it seems like you should not drill more/bigger holes in the metal sheet).

My experience is that a neutral solid state amp works best, I have tried them with tube amps and a tube hybrid, they are both very good but detail and the magical 3D imaging is a couple of clicks better with S/S.
I would not class them as power hungry cans, though a decent amp is required to drive them to full glory.

 

[mrspeakers]

Quote:

Couple question, mostly directed at mrspeakers:
 
1. For your latest version of the Rastapants 2 w/ 840 pads, what exactly are the 5mm risers you stuff the pads with? Would tissue work as well?
2. I don't really want to do anything that isn't reversible, so I'm not too keen on removing the white felt from the driver... how much of a difference will this make in SQ?
3. Any pro-tips for a first time mod?
 
 
 
Oh yeah, is there anything I can do about unbalanced drivers? The left can seems a bit "louder", or more prominent. It's not to the point where it's unlistenable, but its definitely noticeable.

Hi....
 
Never tried tissue.  I used a firm closed cell foam I found at a craft store that was easy to cut, and just made some "crescents" with an exacto-knife.  I trimmed the ends down in thickness so there wasn't a big air-gap between the foam and the pad at the send of the foam.
 
If you don't want to take the felt of, my mod is essentially irrelevant.  It's quite dependent on doing it exactly.  I totally get the non-reversible thing, but I've been really happy with mine, and so far haven't done a non-reversible mod I liked enough to publish.  But I don't have the Fisher 003 pads to play with, and that may make quite a difference in the reversible implementation.  
 
Blue-Monkey has done a lot of work with a non-reversible, but I haven't heard them so have no idea how they work.
 
If you want to cut your teeth and make your own mods, the most important tip is try to make only one change at a time.  Every change creates multiple effects, and if you randomly start messing around you have no idea which mods do what, or how they interact.  The most important mod is using foam or other techniques to reduce internal reflections and standing waves.  Clay/dyanamat makes a smaller difference.  Other than internal damping, changing the pads and the interior driver felt (or leaving it off completely as I did) have the greatest effects on the sound, but unless you are incredibly skilled with a small knife it's non-reversible.  
 
 

 

[mrspeakers]

Quote:

Just about done with mods on one ear, will throw up pics when I get back on monday.  Mods are based on the RP2:

1. Plasticine inside surrounding the driver, paxmate ontop of the plasticine
2. Fatmat in the back of the cup, paxmate covering the entire back of the cup (covering both the vent and the center post)
3. 4ish Cotton balls torn up and clumped together in the cup.
4. 840 pads

 
Notes:

1. I left the black felt over the vent in the back of the cup
2. Left the felt on both sides on the driver intact (the white felt on the cup-side, and the black felt on the ear-side)
3. I didn't put any sort of reflex dot on the white felt on the driver.
4. Mrspeakers advises 6-7 cotton balls "teased and spread evenly in the cup", but I definitely could not fit that many in and still be able to close it.  I also don't really know what spread evenly is supposed to look like, mine just looks like a one big ball of torn up cotton.

 
So the left ear is completely stock, and the right ear is modded as above, and while I haven't sat down for an extended listen I am already amazed at the clarity and strength of the upper mids and highs.  Very detailed and clear.  The problem is the lack of presence in bass and lower mids.  I'd even go so far as to say the bass is practically nonexistent.  What do I need to do to fix this? I'm also not incredibly impressed with the sound of the 840 pads, although they are much more comfortable, it just makes the sound too distant.  I suppose it's worth stating that I've only listened off my ipod, and as soon as I get some AAA batteries at the store tomorrow morning I'll see if my airhead will have enough juice to make these sound any better (yeah I know I know, I've been trying to save up for a decent dac/amp)

If you left the stock felt on the driver that s the culprit on the bass.  Cotton balls vary hugely in size, so filled but not "packed tightly" is the appropriate amount.  If the balls were a lot bigger than those I used, it can choke the bass off.  
 
 
 

 

[mrspeakers]

Quote:

Figured I may as well chime in with my newbie efforts here.  I picked up the T50rp but the silverstone and 840 pads are on backorder for a week or two it seems, so I started tinkering without them.  Well, first I gave the stock cans an evening to familiarize myself with, and my impressions about them are the same as everyone else and their mom's: totally luscious mids, rolled off lows and highs, hugely dark presentation.  Responsive, nice imaging and decent soundstage, which I wasn't expecting from mostly closed phones.
 
I should have given myself longer to acquaint myself with the stock sound, since this was the only time I was going to be able to listen to 'A' in the A/B B/C C/D etcs that I knew would ensue... but screw it, after a couple hours I went to town with the screwdrivers and never looked back.
 
What followed was a flurry of irresponsible and mostly futile modding attempts using pretty much anything I had lying around the house.  Versions went like this:
 
v1: +plasticine damped baffles, +4-ply drier sheet square over driver w/ stock white felt intact
v2: 4-ply sheets pared down to 2-ply, +plastic reflex square over middle driver square, +4mm cardboard cookie on top of drier sheets, +1/4 in. low density memory foam on back of earcups
v3: -drier sheets on driver, -reflex square, cookie only thing left on driver, -memory foam from cup backs, +8-ply drier sheeting on backs and walls of cups
v4: -cardboard cookie, +1 teased cotton ball per ear cup
v5: -drier sheeting from back of cups, -cotton from cups, only plasticine damping is left
 
Starting with v1 and ensuing pretty much all the way through the experiments, the only change from stock was a significant bump in the 7-9ish khz range, fairly tinny and sibilant and not fun at all to hear crop up.  I thought this most probably had something to do with the various dingums I was gluing to the driver and kept fiddling with them trying to find a happy medium between stock and v1 peakishness, but it never diminished.
 
Really the only modification that persisted throughout was the plasticine-loaded baffles... I'd thought the mass loading was to stabilize the driver and tighten up the bass, not anything to do with the treble?  Is it conceivable it'd bring the highs so much forward like that?
 
Overall I'm pretty sore about the lack of variation I heard between the mods but I did jump into the little stuff before doing the two biggest things I could have done (pads and acoustic foam).  I'll have to dig back into this project after the rest of the goods are delivered.

Chuckle...  The lack of variation you heard is because the three biggest changes you can make are real acoustic foam, new pads, and removing the rear driver felt (the latter is not reversible, and many mods require the white felt, or the absence, but you can't mix and match on this.  A mod without the felt just won't work with it, and vice versa).
 
If you want to hear big changes you have to make big changes.  Start with proper damping inside the cup and maybe new ear pads, killing resonances is more important than killing vibration in the plastic (clay).  Tune from there with the felt on, and if you aren't happy consider taking it off.
 

 

[mrspeakers]

Quote:

I am sure you are all talking about the T50RP V1, right?
 
Is there any benefit to spending the extra 50 dollars on the Mk2/v2 if I will likely add the 25 dollar SRH840 earpads? Is there ANY difference between T50RP and T50RPMkII except for the earpads?

The big difference, if I recall, was the change in pads that increased bass in the V1.  Very early in this thread there was a lot of discussion on this.  
 
 

 

[steelle]

Quote:

If you left the stock felt on the driver that s the culprit on the bass.  Cotton balls vary hugely in size, so filled but not "packed tightly" is the appropriate amount.  If the balls were a lot bigger than those I used, it can choke the bass off.  
 
 
 

Quote:

Hi....
 
Never tried tissue.  I used a firm closed cell foam I found at a craft store that was easy to cut, and just made some "crescents" with an exacto-knife.  I trimmed the ends down in thickness so there wasn't a big air-gap between the foam and the pad at the send of the foam.
 
If you don't want to take the felt of, my mod is essentially irrelevant.  It's quite dependent on doing it exactly.  I totally get the non-reversible thing, but I've been really happy with mine, and so far haven't done a non-reversible mod I liked enough to publish.  But I don't have the Fisher 003 pads to play with, and that may make quite a difference in the reversible implementation.  
 
Blue-Monkey has done a lot of work with a non-reversible, but I haven't heard them so have no idea how they work.
 
If you want to cut your teeth and make your own mods, the most important tip is try to make only one change at a time.  Every change creates multiple effects, and if you randomly start messing around you have no idea which mods do what, or how they interact.  The most important mod is using foam or other techniques to reduce internal reflections and standing waves.  Clay/dyanamat makes a smaller difference.  Other than internal damping, changing the pads and the interior driver felt (or leaving it off completely as I did) have the greatest effects on the sound, but unless you are incredibly skilled with a small knife it's non-reversible.  
 
 

 
 
Alright then, guess it's time to man-up.  One last question before I rip the felt off though, what are your thoughts about leaving the vent in the cup uncovered by cutting the square in the dynamat/paxmate, or punching holes in it.
 

 

[bluemonkeyflyer]

steelle
 
search the forum for my post with pictures on how to remove the stock white driver dampener in one piece. You can save it and glue it back on later, if you want to go back to stock.  Basically, use many small dabs of acetone to loosen the adhesive and use a sharp x-acto chisel blade to separate the dampener from the grid. 
 
good luck
 
Quote:

 
 
Alright then, guess it's time to man-up.  One last question before I rip the felt off though, what are your thoughts about leaving the vent in the cup uncovered by cutting the square in the dynamat/paxmate, or punching holes in it.
 

 

 

[iowercase]

Quote:

Chuckle...  The lack of variation you heard is because the three biggest changes you can make are real acoustic foam, new pads, and removing the rear driver felt (the latter is not reversible, and many mods require the white felt, or the absence, but you can't mix and match on this.  A mod without the felt just won't work with it, and vice versa).
 
If you want to hear big changes you have to make big changes.  Start with proper damping inside the cup and maybe new ear pads, killing resonances is more important than killing vibration in the plastic (clay).  Tune from there with the felt on, and if you aren't happy consider taking it off.
 

Oh I know, I know... Amazon estimated 2 weeks to restock the silverstone and I was too impatient!  Literally the next day I got a notification that my pads and foam had been shipped, so I won't need to do too much waiting after all.
 
I emailed David at Frogbeats about the Fischer pads and he sent me back an email explaining FA is making an "official" batch of 003 pads by the end of january and they should be available for purchase from distributors shortly thereafter.  Anyone who's gotten lucky with obtaining the pads so far ostensibly got their hands on an advance shipment.

 

[Twinster]

I believe every FA-003/2 headphone are shipped with a spare earpads. This is probably where those pads came from. 
 
Quote:

Quote:


Oh I know, I know... Amazon estimated 2 weeks to restock the silverstone and I was too impatient!  Literally the next day I got a notification that my pads and foam had been shipped, so I won't need to do too much waiting after all.
 
I emailed David at Frogbeats about the Fischer pads and he sent me back an email explaining FA is making an "official" batch of 003 pads by the end of january and they should be available for purchase from distributors shortly thereafter.  Anyone who's gotten lucky with obtaining the pads so far ostensibly got their hands on an advance shipment.