Orthodynamic Roundup

[i_djoel2000]

Quote:

They look fantastic

 
Could you post some close-up shots of the ear pads? I have never seen any really good close-up pictures that show what they should look like when new. That could be very useful for less lucky people who need to restore theirs...
 

 

i have bleached the glossy surface, and left with the soft furry surface now. the pleather feels sticky and leaves mark on your ear when you are using it. maybe it has deteriorated after 40 years being kept in the box. so the appearance of the earpads now is not exactly look like the original one..
 
but i can post some pictures if you're still interested. but i need some times since i don't have a good camera on hand at the moment

 

[leeperry]

I see the MSRP was 20GBP? How does it sound? I always wonder whether there were some killer sounding phones back in the 70's? They had fantastic music, but not so fantastic phones from what I can see. I genuinely enjoy listening to 70's music in full remastered glory on my hifi(by nowadays standards) rig.
 

 

[kwkarth]

Quote:

Still probably better to have the driver creating the V-shaped response though rather than the enclosure no?

Shape of curve notwithstanding, the voicing of any given headphone is a largely subjective matter.  Remember there is no flat line in listening to headphones because our hearing system FR differs depending upon whether we're listening near fiels, free field, diffuse field.  There is a great variance.  To that, you add a heaping dose of personal preferences.

 

[kwkarth]

Quote:

I see the MSRP was 20GBP? How does it sound? I always wonder whether there were some killer sounding phones back in the 70's? They had fantastic music, but not so fantastic phones from what I can see. I genuinely enjoy listening to 70's music in full remastered glory on my hifi(by nowadays standard) rig.
 

 

Koss Pro-4s come to mind from that era, then there was the Sennheiser 414 that started the open headphone revolution...  The Koss cans in the photo might have been the quad cans from Koss.  I used to have a pair.  Basically 4 x Pro4 drivers.
 
What were the European cans that competed with the Pro 4s from that era?  They were white, sealed back, comfy, sounded good, etc...
 

 

[DefectiveAudioComponent]

Quote:

i have bleached the glossy surface, and left with the soft furry surface now. the pleather feels sticky and leaves mark on your ear when you are using it. maybe it has deteriorated after 40 years being kept in the box. so the appearance of the earpads now is not exactly look like the original one..
 
but i can post some pictures if you're still interested. but i need some times since i don't have a good camera on hand at the moment

As long as it's still possible to see how it was put together, then a few photos would be nice.
 

 

[sachu]

Quote:

I see the MSRP was 20GBP? How does it sound? I always wonder whether there were some killer sounding phones back in the 70's? They had fantastic music, but not so fantastic phones from what I can see. I genuinely enjoy listening to 70's music in full remastered glory on my hifi(by nowadays standards) rig.
 

The case design, pleated kapton diaphragms and the rubberized magnets i would say is just such a great recipe. The wharfies as i have said before are still state of the art.
 
 To my ears, the wharfedales slaugther every other vintage ortho and a coupleof variations of the newer head-direct orthos.. 

 
 
All the above of course when they are driven properly. Other than the AMT headphones this is as inefficient as it can get for headphones.

 

[leeperry]

 

Koss Pro-4s come to mind from that era, then there was the Sennheiser 414 that started the open headphone revolution...  The Koss cans in the photo might have been the quad cans from Koss.  I used to have a pair.  Basically 4 x Pro4 drivers.
 
What were the European cans that competed with the Pro 4s from that era?  They were white, sealed back, comfy, sounded good, etc...
 

These ones?
 
That's the same musician(Francois de Roubaix) as on the top picture, using the same phone I think:
 
His music sounds devilish on the T50RP, he was a multi-instrumentist and so ahead of his time that it's actually scary. He's like a Morricone on steroids. He had a multi-track recorder and would record all the instruments one by one, and what is scary is that he only had 4 tracks on his recorder, so he had to set the volume of each of them once and for all...ah anyway, you can't explain genius.
 
I'm just amazed when I watch remastered movies from the 60's in full blown pristine HD, noone ever saw those movies like this before! Back in the 70's, the average joe was using a crappy vinyl deck I guess, but did they have killer sounding orthos already?

 

[Sim1]

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These ones?
[...]

These must be Beyerdynamic DT-100, widely used in recording studios. After many years still in production.
 

 

[Kabeer]

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i have bleached the glossy surface, and left with the soft furry surface now. the pleather feels sticky and leaves mark on your ear when you are using it. maybe it has deteriorated after 40 years being kept in the box. so the appearance of the earpads now is not exactly look like the original one..
 
but i can post some pictures if you're still interested. but i need some times since i don't have a good camera on hand at the moment

Exact same thing on my one, pair was supposedly nos in a loft. Not ideal conditions. All pleather had flacked and the remaining had all turned to horrible goo, making the pads like horrible sticky tar. I washed and washed them in soapy water to no avail, not sure how to get it out.
 

 

[scompton]

Quote:

He had a multi-track recorder and would record all the instruments one by one, and what is scary is that he only had 4 tracks on his recorder, so he had to set the volume of each of them once and for all...ah anyway, you can't explain genius.

Here's a video of Les Paul recording without multitracking. http://www.gibsonlespaulelectricguitar.com/uncategorized/les-paul-mary-ford-on-omnibus-7min-version-with-jokes-2

 

[leeperry]

it reminds me of this: http://video.mytaratata.com/video/iLyROoafttZJ.html
 
and Dub FX does the same stuff, live in the street:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiInBOVHpO8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEPEleJVjOo
 
He then did a studio album, but the magic was gone IMHO.

 

[scompton]

Similar, except Les Paul couldn't loop.

 

[nickchen]

Quote:

Exact same thing on my one, pair was supposedly nos in a loft. Not ideal conditions. All pleather had flacked and the remaining had all turned to horrible goo, making the pads like horrible sticky tar. I washed and washed them in soapy water to no avail, not sure how to get it out.
 

I see myself making my own pads in the long run, I'm afraid those AKG and Beyer pads I normally handle with won't solve every acoustical and hygienical problem...
 
 

 

[i_djoel2000]

@nichken: you have wharfedale isodynamic as well?

 

[nickchen]

Not yet...I'm still a greenhorn in respect of vintage orthos.