[nofarewell]

found a Sony MDR-5A with 1/4 plug and 8' cable while cleaning up this weekend
looks like it's still working but needs new pads
Is it worth restoring or just trash?
Saw one on eBay listed for sale at $600
need to find the original walkman it came with
Weird

Oh God. Please send some pictures - among the first lightweight Sony over ears. Should sound fine.
Please tell me about the sound as well.

 

[Yoshirou]

found a Sony MDR-5A with 1/4 plug and 8' cable while cleaning up this weekend
looks like it's still working but needs new pads
Is it worth restoring or just trash?
Saw one on eBay listed for sale at $600
need to find the original walkman it came with
Weird

Had a pair of 7a's, worth keeping, id say you should recable on the cups since the cable that comes with them (to me) can be a bit side heavy. You can just put porta-pro YAXI pads on them, but they would fit better if you 3d printed some simple rings to put on the cups (44mm).

 

[Mellowship]

Definitely get them and keep us posted

I got them from the bottom of a moldy drawer in my country house.



They had to be properly cleaned and fitted with PortaPro foam pads.

I remember the original pads were very frail and would rot in a couple of years, but they were easy to find back in the 90s.

I would pair these with my Sony cassette Walkman back in the day.

I also remembered that this pair went to the Sony official dealer to recable. I believe the original cable was a single round one with three wires. The cable currently on these is a double coaxial, but still a Sony cable.

As for the sound... I really didn't remember that they sounded as good as they actually do. They are very neutral and have an excellent imaging and separation. They are also very smooth. They are more precise than the PortaPros and the PX-100, but less fun than the PortaPros.

Thank you to @nofarewell for the MDR-44 appreciation. I will be using these a lot.

 

[nofarewell]

I got them from the bottom of a moldy drawer in my country house.



They had to be properly cleaned and fitted with PortaPro foam pads.

I remember the original pads were very frail and would rot in a couple of years, but they were easy to find back in the 90s.

I would pair these with my Sony cassette Walkman back in the day.

I also remembered that this pair went to the Sony official dealer to recable. I believe the original cable was a single round one with three wires. The cable currently on these is a double coaxial, but still a Sony cable.

As for the sound... I really didn't remember that they sounded as good as they actually do. They are very neutral and have an excellent imaging and separation. They are also very smooth. They are more precise than the PortaPros and the PX-100, but less fun than the PortaPros.

Thank you to @nofarewell for the MDR-44 appreciation. I will be using these a lot.

Cool! Try them with more amping, maybe they'll react nicely to higher power. My MDR-62 definitely does

 

[lyticale]

Receiver: Marantz Model 2015
Headphone: Universum Model Unknown

 

[CJG888]

Receiver: Marantz Model 2015
Headphone: Universum Model Unknown

Those Universums will be a rebrand of something else. IIRC, Universum was the own brand of the catalogue retailer Quelle.

 

[GREQ]

Those Universums will be a rebrand of something else. IIRC, Universum was the own brand of the catalogue retailer Quelle.

Now that you mention it, they do vaguely resemble the Sansui SH15... but somehow I doubt it has any relation.

 

[lyticale]

Wharfedale Isodynamic Headphones

 

[CJG888]

70s-tastic styling…

 

[MacMan31]

Receiver: Marantz Model 2015
Headphone: Universum Model Unknown

This looks awesome! I bet it sounds are great as it looks. I would love to have a vintage amp like Marantz or Pioneer. I'm likely getting a Pioneer SX-880 this week.

 

[oneula]

Oh God. Please send some pictures - among the first lightweight Sony over ears. Should sound fine.
Please tell me about the sound as well.

sorry about the bad cell phone photos.
found some replacement foamies online but I prefer the comfort of the yaxi pads.
Bunch of audio relics, Zune HD, iPod Classic, Blackberry Playbook, Sony walkman headphones.
I have an iPod Nano watch and a couple of iPod shuffles lying around somewhere.
Wish I could found the original walkman for the quick photo
watching the Ceelo Green "I can't go for that" jam of Live froim Darryl's House on the Playbook as I type

 

[nofarewell]

sorry about the bad cell phone photos.
found some replacement foamies online but I prefer the comfort of the yaxi pads.
Bunch of audio relics, Zune HD, iPod Classic, Blackberry Playbook, Sony walkman headphones.
I have an iPod Nano watch and a couple of iPod shuffles lying around somewhere.
Wish I could found the original walkman for the quick photo
watching the Ceelo Green "I can't go for that" jam of Live froim Darryl's House on the Playbook as I type

Beautiful piece
Drive it with some high res stuff, I think your ears will be grateful.

 

[lyticale]

Pioneer Monitor 10

 

[DTgill]

Vintage Grado GS1000

 

[StarFox132]

Receiver: Marantz Model 2015
Headphone: Universum Model Unknown

Wow, love the look of that Marantz! I'm a Marantz fan for my home theater audio gear.