[ford2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by maultar /img/forum/go_quote.gif Sighhh still waiting on my black leather. In the meantime when i went to purchase leather sewing supplies i got a hold of some red leather (scrap bin) and stitched up the elastic headband. However i don't think it suits the earphone without me repainting the cups. Tell me what you guys think. Imageshack - img0091q Imageshack - img0092fh Hmmm turned out to look a little orange in the pic.

It might be worth while looking at shortening the elastic when you do it,I have new headbands on both my CD3000's and the clamping force is a lot tighter with the new ones.
I am going to drop my old bands into the local leather shop and get him to make them,he say's about $40 for each one.

I use a strip of foam to [ in effect ] tie the two bands together when on,this stops that tendancy they have to pivot on the headstrap.By altering the size of the foam you can change the position where they sit on your ears as well.
I use the foam on my stock one's as well.

 

[maultar]

Hmmm i actually don't have any problems with the clamping force of the headphones. It's loose but it isn't going to fall off unless i start thrashing my head. Also i'm not quite sure how to go about taking the elastic off. Its inside this foam layer which i don't want to break. How did you get it off?

Okay after a few hours the bass has returned and the clarity and instrument separation has been much improved. Similar to what the cardas cable did for my modded hd600s.

Leeperry i would suggest a cable upgrade as it did the most to improve the sound. Mucking around with foam etc on the cups didn't change much. I even tried the headphones without the cups on and the effect on the bass was not all that drastic. Soundstage took a hit though.

Want my leather soonnnnn. One of my father's mates who is a tailor said that he'd try and make me a pair of lambskin leather earpads. The pleather ones just make my ears feel hot and sticky.

 

[leeperry]

well yeah the cd1k/cd3k share the same drivers/ear pads/minijack, but the cups are much emptier on the cd1k(when you take off the stock foam donut, which is thicker than on the cd3k)...this allows a wider SS(Germania found out the exact same thing as I did).

Plus I found the bass response too strong on the cd3k I sold you...I read a quote of Steve Hoffman here on head-fi saying that what matters is the "mids" to get proper click-free vynil playback, and I'd tend to agree. I used to own a DT770/600Ω and I'm really not looking for beefy bass at this point(well, it was a lot tamer on the DT770/600Ω than on the 770Pro, no comparisons!), and I especially don't want to solder anything whatsoever in my beloved cd1k(that I've been owning since forever)

what do you need to sew leather btw? a big needle and some extra beefy wire? I'd like a fully reversible mod, I don't really like the idea of using glue to put the new headband tbh.

I'll keep the cd850 as a spare if anything goes terribly wrong w/ my cd1k at some point...like for instance the cardboard that's in the headband assembly, it's very stiff on the cd850 but not really on the cd1k..plus I got a big head, so I really wanna keep it as loose as it is right now.

I'll work on cutting 2 pieces of black lambskin to make a new headband, and all I'll need will my gf sewing the damn thing on

 

[maultar]

Yeah once i get a chance i might experiment with some wood cups. Does anyone know what wood is used in the r10? It looks like cherry to me.

You think the bass is too strong? I think it is just right. If you don't like strong bass i definitely recommend the akg k701s which are really great apart from missing a bit of midbass. My friend has a pair of dt770s 250ohm with woodies and i find the bass to be absolutely overpowering on those. It's definitely got a smily face curve on its freq response. Huge overpowering mids with in your face highs and the mids are no where to be seen. Don't know what the 600ohm versions sound like.

When you say that the cd1k is much emptier do you mean that the cups are bigger or that there is more space because there is less foam? I have taken out the original foam and all that is int here is the sound absorbing foam that covers the entire cup. I am pretty sure that is the same stuff that Germania used as it looks very similar. I didn't actually notice any difference in soundstage with the original foam and without the original foam after applying the sound absorbing foam.

I didn't have any reservations about soldering but yeah if your not into that then so be it. I do think that the cable makes quite a lot of difference though. In my opinion it makes the phones much clearer. Instruments are now more clearly defined and the sound from each is distinct from the other. Before the recable, the cd3000s had a tendency to muddle things together during passages where many instruments would be used together.

Depends on what kind of leather you get. I got some 1mm thick lambskin and sewing that with a regular needle is tough. I got a leather needle which has a triangular chisel tip which lets you part the leather much easier. Also look into getting some waxed nylon thread. I used wenzel thread which works pretty well.

Yeah the cardboard in the headband does definately lose its firmness with age. Still i find that after i redid mine, they are as comfy as before and not any looser. They aren't as stiff as i didn't transfer the plastic bit in the headband over.

Anyway i must say that i am very happy with the current sound of the cd3000s. I'm hoping to have another chance to listen to some hd800s and compare the sound stage/instrument separation. I remember being absolutely blown away by the hd800s in that department when i heard them at a meet.

 

[leeperry]

the DT770 Premium enclosure gives much less bass/compression/agressive sound than the Pro, and the 600Ω drivers have a much clearer/lean FR...but still the bass is too strong to my taste, still too V-shaped

but how's the isolation on the k701? it's bad on the cd3k and even worse on the cd1k, the dt770/pro felt like shooting headphones and the dt770/Premium was less isolated but still a hell more isolating than these SONY's!

well I did many tests w/ different shapes/thickness of foam in the cups on my cd1k, and w/o any of it the sound is just mids and uber-wide SS! the stock foam donut was thicker than on the cd3k and was killing the trebles altogether...so I've found a good in-between where the bass percussion is perfect to my taste! and w/ some slight EQ to kill ear resonances in foobar, I'm all set:

I meant the headband assembly(for lack of a better word), not sure how you'd call that..I meant the headphones assembly itself that goes around your head, it seems to be made of several layers of cardboard.

I will use two layers of black lambskin + one thin layer of plastic in the middle to make it a bit stiffer I think.

and BTW, try the Audio-GD HDAM if you get the chance, their SS on my cd1k has left me out of speech

oh ok, I saw some weird needles on google....wouldn't that do the trick? http://z.about.com/d/sewing/1/0/t/x/1/leather.jpg

yeah, I also found the sound muddy on this cd3k, my cd1k was just a hell lot clearer..glad to hear recabling it did the trick!

 

[maultar]

If you have a sewing machine then those needles look fine. I hand sewed mine because i don't have one and don't do very much sewing. You just need to find one which has a wedge shaped head i.e. not completely round like normal needles.

Yeah with the headband in mine the break down was like this. Pleather layer, cardboard, plastic, pleather layer. I only removed the cardboard but not the plastic layer when i made my new headband. I'll make another once the black leather gets in, the red just doesn't look right.

The isolation on the k701s is absolutely horrible. They are open and leak like no tomorrow. They are much much much worse than the cd3ks which leak quite a bit for closed cans but yeah k701s leak a lot. If you need something that isolates i would suggest looking elsewhere. Though being constrained to closed isolating cans will limit your options a lot.

Hmmm i'm using opa627s atm, i've heard good things about the hdams. Kind of want to get a buffalo32 dac but can't afford it atm.

Yeah the muddiness on the cd3k has definitely been cleared up by the cable. Haven't really heard any improvements to soundstage that some others have. Maybe they are confusing instrument separation with the soundstage? I guess the two are interrelated.

 

[leeperry]

oh yeah, OPA-Earth is just mind boggling...perfect SS on the cd1k, totally unbelievable

instruments/stereo separation is perfect, sound is not congested WHATSOEVER, it seems to perfectly match the reverb of the cups...to make up for a hell of a ride into hi-fi sound

it's more than 180 degrees actually, bass seems to come from your back...I will try Sun V2 and LT1028ACN8/LT1363, but my current LT1364+Earth combo is just beyond words. I'm not a cable believer, but I'm definitely a discrete op-amp believer now...all the bs on the burson page is very much true!

OPA627 is also supposedly amazing, but one benjamin a pop when you can get an Earth for $25 seems rather high...and discrete allows more processing than a tiny piece of waffer.

check the top of this PDF that explains in details the difference between discrete/IC's: http://go.head-fi.org/?id=475X763&ur...2F990-2007.pdf

maybe you could use the OPA627 as DAC output buffer, and then the HDAM on top of it? so you'd get the OPA627 sound plus the HDAM SS

okidokie, I'll go hunt for triangular needles and make the headband of my dreams through the end of the week

 

[ford2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by maultar /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hmmm i actually don't have any problems with the clamping force of the headphones. It's loose but it isn't going to fall off unless i start thrashing my head. Also i'm not quite sure how to go about taking the elastic off. Its inside this foam layer which i don't want to break. How did you get it off? Okay after a few hours the bass has returned and the clarity and instrument separation has been much improved. Similar to what the cardas cable did for my modded hd600s. Leeperry i would suggest a cable upgrade as it did the most to improve the sound. Mucking around with foam etc on the cups didn't change much. I even tried the headphones without the cups on and the effect on the bass was not all that drastic. Soundstage took a hit though. Want my leather soonnnnn. One of my father's mates who is a tailor said that he'd try and make me a pair of lambskin leather earpads. The pleather ones just make my ears feel hot and sticky.

Yes the pleather pads do get a bit hot and sticky after awhile,these pads on ebay are firmer than the pleather one's and are a lot cooler.
At the present exchange rate $18 au,I now have 3 pairs of them,nothing like a few spares.

Link::Replacement ear pad ear cup for SONY MDR-CD3000 earpads - eBay Noise-Canceling Headphones, Headphones, Headsets, A V Accessories Cables, Electronics. (end time 06-Nov-09 13:13:19 AEDST)

 

[maultar]

Great i ordered a pair of those hoping that they would be decent replacements as i plan to take apart one of the earpads so that a leather one could be made.

Glad to hear that these are firmer. I find the ones on the cd3000 to be too soft and as a result because of the pleather, they heat up very quickly. I'm used to using velour cups anyway so i guess i have to adapt.

Just another update on the recable and i have to say, though i am definitely a cynic when it comes to cables, the extra degree of clarity the SPC gives is just awesome. Definitely improved the cd3000s the most compared to germania's suggest mods which in my opinion did little to change the sound signature. I think that the stock cable is just way too thin. Maybe if they used heavier gauge cable there wouldn't have been a need to recable them.

 

[leeperry]

hehe, I asked that seller if he could make them in genuine leather...but he told me that we'd have to order at least 500 pieces.

I'd be interested in your feedback about these pirate pads, but honestly I love the genuines...the only problem is that they turn into cornflakes after +9 months, but I got spares

anyway, I've found some heavy duty black wire and some big needles that are supposed to be used on carpets and such...so I'll fullfill my dreamy black lambskin headband anytime soon

 

[maultar]

lol wow... 500 pieces... i think jeremy who makes the jmoney pads would do a run of them if we could get 50 pieces organised.

black wire? i assume you mean black thread right?

 

[nickchen]

Peew...too much to read. Cable upgrade & orange leather, definetely not my cup of tea.

BTW, leather doesn't necessarily be stiched, industry glue is sufficient to fix leather parts with each other.

 

[leeperry]

yep, I meant sewing wire.

well, I really don't wanna englue the two metal "belt" holders...sewing sounds more reasonable

 

[ford2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by maultar /img/forum/go_quote.gif lol wow... 500 pieces... i think jeremy who makes the jmoney pads would do a run of them if we could get 50 pieces organised. black wire? i assume you mean black thread right?

Would be great if we could find someone to make them,I would be in for a couple.The main problem with the pleather pads is that they are to soft,depending on position your ears can touch the driver covers.With the firmer pads this is not a problem.
The pic is my stock pair with the ebay pads fitted,as you can see a perfect fit.

 

[maultar]

Still waiting on those ebay pads. The originals go flakey extremely fast. I got them in as new condition and while i have been a bit rough with them disassembling the headphones multiple times, i can't see them last more than a few months of regular use.

The leather i got is super soft so hopefully my tailor friend can do something with it.

Here are some pics of my headband refurb.









And here are some pics of the recable:





Really want wood cups for them now. The gray ones are ugly.

Lol the pics are pretty horrible. I should probably invest in a camera but i could better use the money elsewhere if you know what i mean