[ortho transplant]: T50rp drivers into V-Moda Crossfade (lots of pictures)
Jan 30, 2013 at 10:50 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 88

Armaegis

Modern Modder Man of Manitoba
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So crazy transplant in progress...
 
The drivers: the venerable T50rp
 
the shell: V-Moda Crossfade LP - chosen because it looks cool, and because it has a series of bass vents in the cup as well as a baffle port, similar to the T50rp shell
 
 
Well ok, let's start with the disassembly. Most folks are familiar with the first half...
 
Take the pads off and open 'er up
 

 
step 

 
Ok, the point of no return... I left the long wires because I didn't want to risk taking the iron to the solder pads on the membrane, so I'll attach wires-to-wires for the transplant

 
 
Now remove those three screws holding the driver down

 
After that, the only thing holding the driver is is two plastic tabs (I'm pointing the screwdriver at one)

 
What I did was put a flat head screwdriver between the tab and driver, and twist to push the tab outwards. Be careful you don't push down otherwise you'll scratcht he driver membrane. It's possible to remove the drivers without breaking the tabs, but most likely you'll break one of them. 

 
Ok, here they are...

 

 
 
Here's the Crossfade...

 
just pull the pads off, take out the SEVEN screws attaching the baffle to the cup

 

 

 
quick pic with a piece of paper representing the size of the T50rp driver. Hoo boy that's gonna be a tight squeeze.

 
detach the wires

 
at first I thought I was going to have to wiggle the knife around the driver, but then I realized that I could separate the black and silver pieces of the baffle

 
 
it's just a foam tape holding them together

 
hmm, how's that for a rough fit? if only it were that easy. Of the seven baffle mounting screws, only two remain uncovered. 

 

 

 
First things first, those mounting knobs have got to come off

 
a little bit of masking tape to protect the drivers

 

 
My instrument of destruction

 
chopped of the knobs

 
these little alignment nubs on the baffle have to go too

 
snikt

 
well that's a bit better

 

 
Oh crap, there isn't much clearance for those last two screws. I guess we'll have to shave the driver a bit more...

 
this was the probably the most unnerving part, as the blade gets awfully close to the membrane. Note the two holes: upper right and lowerleft. Also the baffle hole at the bottom. 

 
 
So now we have to do some creative chopping of the cup so the driver will actually fit inside. I marked the 5 baffle mounts that will be cut off, as well as two shield mounts that need to be shortened. Actually by the end of it, I also shortened the upper left and upper right shield mounts

 

 
 
Once all the pieces have been cut off...

I actually had to further melt down some of the solder on the board there to make more room. Every sliver of depth counts here.
 
All said and done, not too bad. There's a slight rise, but don't think I can feasibly cut out any more without risking damage to the whole cup. Maybe if I switched to a smaller dremel tip and started grinding instead of cutting... but I think I've done enough for now.
edit: went nuts with the dremel and filed down basically everything I could reach without compromising hull strength. If I were to do this again in the future, I'd probably use the grinding tool instead of the cutter to take down all the pegs

 
 
So this is what I was afraid of earlier. Without enough screws to hold the baffle down, it doesn't seal all the way around. I'll start with some tape, but at the end maybe I'll have to hotglue it or replace the foam foam tape or something. 
 

 
The next step is to attach the drivers to the baffle. I decided to use some contact cement. First step, align the drivers with baffle and cup, mark corners with a marker, then use tape to secure the placement of the driver relative to baffle. Flip the baffle over and mark the outline of the driver.

 
Apply contact cement and let sit until tacky before pressing them together. You can barely see it in the picture, but the outline of the driver is traced on the baffle so I know where to attach.
edit: sand down the mating surfaces with the dremel first to ensure a good contact bond

 
Clamp it down. Let sit overnight.

 
While we wait, let's go nuts with the dremel and start chopping out those pegs in the middle of the cup.

 
Soldered the wires together, used a bit of heat shrink to make sure things don't accidentally short together. 

 
Doesn't look to bad eh?

 

 
I put tape over the unused screw holes. I realized after that this is unnecessary since they're covered by the driver anyways. Meh. I used some hot glue to fill in the small edge gaps on the left and right side of the baffle hole. If I ever do this again, I won't shave the entire side of the driver but instead just the spot where the screws need the clearance. This should allow for a full seal around the baffle, though I'd probably use some hot glue just for the sake of assurance. 
 
I did put tape over the baffle hole (on the bottom). I found this increased bass response over having it completely open. I have not experimented with poking holes in it yet though.
edit: poked a pinhole into the baffle vent. Bass slightly improved. Got more of a rumble now. 

 
Put some acoustic foam into the cup directly behind the driver. The smaller patch on the bottom is the stock felt covering the cup vents. This helps cut down on a lot of treble reflection. I later also added roughly half a gram of twaron angel hair as filler into each cup, which tones it down further.

 
A shot of the driver. Later I also stuck a square piece of felt in front of it

 
Tada!

 
 
I still have tape on the bottom edge, but I'll have to figure something out. 
 
Jan 30, 2013 at 10:51 PM Post #2 of 88
Jan 30, 2013 at 11:28 PM Post #4 of 88
I have a feeling that T50rp driver ain't going to have much room to breathe in that housing, could result in a muddy sound unless you have various open ports for the ortho driver to breathe. 
 
Jan 31, 2013 at 12:15 AM Post #5 of 88
It's a *very* tight fit, but the cup does have vents at the back and a baffle vent as well. 
 
Jan 31, 2013 at 2:02 AM Post #8 of 88
If this operation is a sucess, and you made it in balance mode, pair with Alo RX Mk3. You have the ultimate portable can.
All the best to you.
 
Jan 31, 2013 at 2:31 AM Post #9 of 88
For the moment I've decided to leave the jack in place so I can simply plug in a 3.5mm cable. There's simply no room for a balanced connector though*, so if I go that route I'd have to hardwire it. 
 
*well, maybe if there were a pcb mount TRRS jack with semi-compatible pins as the current jack. Then I could hack in a trrs jack and figure out a way to connect the wires directly to the pins.
 
Jan 31, 2013 at 4:19 AM Post #11 of 88
Quote:
Other from cool looks is there other benefits...

 
For SCIENCE!
 
... and maybe bragging rights 
tongue.gif

 
Jan 31, 2013 at 12:26 PM Post #13 of 88
Excellent Armaegis! Good luck with the damping, it may prove difficult but at least the t50 is responsive! 
 
Kudos dude.
 
~M
 
Jan 31, 2013 at 1:09 PM Post #15 of 88
Thanks for the encouragement guys.  I glued the drivers to the baffle last night (flexible contact cement). Waiting for that to cure before going further.
 
Quote:
and bragging rights you get!
cool.gif

 
I'd reckon it's more portable as well. Wish I had M100 shells for this...
Pretty cool that the driver fits right in the silver baffle.

 
Ooh now a M100 shell would be nice. I like that collapsible frame. I don't recall if it's the same size as the crossfade shell though?
 
The M100 is still rather expensive though. I heard one and wasn't a big fan for the price. I'd rather take the M80. Now what I'd *really* like is a Beyer COP shell with the variable bass vents. There's one on the sale forums right now... but alas I must abide by my new rule this year to not spend any more money until I sell some stuff. Now, if someone wants me to do a transplant for them and sends me the parts... 
cool.gif
 
biggrin.gif

 

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