[sml1226]

It looks like a Pro-Ject Head Box II except it's backwards and missing the logo.

 

[BizFromQC]

I tried a hand drill but cracked the side of my cup so.... couple of minutes later and some CA glue I was back with a half-finished semi-hole. In the end, a coping saw, by hand was the best way to go at it, at least for me.
 
Quote:

For a CDN distributor of parts, I would think Solen (QC based in MTL) or http://www.partsconnexion.com/ (based here in Burlington ON) would do the trick to avoid border fees or high shipping - though I would comment that many times the shipping cost combined with lower prices in the US is the way to go, especially if dealing with an agreeable party who will send items to you USPS.
 
Back to the mods for the 60's.
 
Having complained that the 2 inch hole saw generated a hole too loose to press fit the stock front cup on my Grado's, I dug around in my speaker building box, and located my circle cutter - a variable sized cutting device perfect for use in a drill press, capable of making holes anywhere between 1-5 inches or so.
 
Some trial and error later, and I have some East Indian Rosewood cups that are the right size (with minimal Dremel work) for a press fit with the stock Grado cups.  I received some of Tenzip's screens, and those should go right in there too.
 
Now we are getting somewhere - but I struggle with how to cut the 1/2 holes to allow the cables to escape - on my test cups, I have split off pieces of the edge of the cup, trying to use my drill press to cut a hole 1/2 or so centered on the edge.
 
My next thought is to clamp my 2 cups together, and drill down the middle of them, thus creating a 1/2 hole in each.
 
Is that how you guys do it, or are you using a Dremel, or did you mill that in before cutting the cups etc?

 

[BizFromQC]

I think i'm convinced, I'm going to build an a47 amp.
(this is slightly off topic but this thread has it all 

)
 
 
Quote:

Yeah, that was me. I'd recommend splitting the boards if you're doing a desktop build. Also, since you have the space, I'd upgrade to an alps pot (I think they call them blue velvet). It's still a beginner's project, and is really quite inexpensive, so why not. Go for it, and let me know how it sounds.

 

 

[hi-fiber]

*edited*

 

[BobSaysHi]

Quote:

I think i'm convinced, I'm going to build an a47 amp.
(this is slightly off topic but this thread has it all 

)
 

I'll be building one too, mine will be portable, though. I might change the design a little bit, I'm not 100% sure.
 
/offtopic

 

[Bilavideo]

 

Somebody proove this?, i just mout this afternoon, i like it, but i dont know if i note some frecuencies rare, like piano sound.

Cabillas, you are one clever Grado aficionado.

 

[Bilavideo]

 
Star date: 2.22.11.  Kirk here.  Been to planet Halfass Seven.  It's a dry and barren land, full of snafus that will reach up and bite you in the spandex.  I killed a connector today, though it was a Radio Shack connector making it unworthy of life as we know it.  I should have listened to Spock, who said it was illogical to make a miniplug with a conductive sheath.  He suggested I use the extra cocobolo to make something classy.  I suggested he shove some cocobolo where the sun doesn't shine.  
 

 
But Spock had the last laugh, if you can call it that when referring to somebody who prides himself on having the emotional depth of a pet rock.  No wonder that crack squad of engineers at "the Shack" included a little cylinder of plastic to insulate the wiring from the walls of the connector itself.  I found it to be about as useful as a box of bandaids in a nuclear silo.  I hate fighting with crappy little parts whose low cost is turned inside out when you factor in all the valuable time lost discovering you'd just bought a warm box of dog vomit.
 
 
So, I improvised.  Switching to a standard stereo jack, I finally found a solution - at least a temporary one till I find a better quality source for plugs.  Until then, I shall salute the full-sized plug and its virtue of being slightly less prone to such disasters.  Here's to you, bigger plug.

 

[sharkz]

Man those look awesome. What size aluminum is that (ID and OD)? Are those full coco rings inside them? I might have a decent aluminum source, so I am curious if I can get some tubing similar to that.
 
Unrelated, does anyone know what the size of the gimbal on the upper Grados (RS1, 2) is? I was wondering if it would be possible to get some PVC or some other material to replicate the ring that surrounds these upper models.

 

[etteoh]

@ Bill - awesome looking hybrid you got there man - and I don't mean the Prius
 
@ Sharkz - the gimbal on the RS-2 is the same as that of the Prestige series. Only the RS-1 has the full-moon metal/aluminium variant although I am not entirely sure what the dimensions are.

 

[Bilavideo]

 

Man those look awesome. What size aluminum is that (ID and OD)? Are those full coco rings inside them? I might have a decent aluminum source, so I am curious if I can get some tubing similar to that.
 
Unrelated, does anyone know what the size of the gimbal on the upper Grados (RS1, 2) is? I was wondering if it would be possible to get some PVC or some other material to replicate the ring that surrounds these upper models.

1. Thanks for the kind words.  The aluminum shells are 2.5" with 2" doughnut holes.  Both the front inners and the rings inside the large shells are cocobolo with a minimum of five coats of lacquer.
 
2. Why use PVC?  You could make the same rings out of wood or aluminum.  These rings are 3".
 


 
Quote:

@ Bill - awesome looking hybrid you got there man - and I don't mean the Prius
 
@ Sharkz - the gimbal on the RS-2 is the same as that of the Prestige series. Only the RS-1 has the full-moon metal/aluminium variant although I am not entirely sure what the dimensions are.

Thanks!

 

[sml1226]

Hey Bill, how closely does that band match the cocobolo? It looks close in the pics, but I assume the band is more red and the wood is more brown

 

[Connnorrr]

Bill, I gotta say I really dig those aluminum shells with the headband you have. Looks great!

 

[Bilavideo]

 

Hey Bill, how closely does that band match the cocobolo? It looks close in the pics, but I assume the band is more red and the wood is more brown

It's a pretty reasonable match.  The photo makes the red look lighter but they're actually more of a vibrant red.  Cocobolo, which can come out brown, is quite reddish.  I've got cocobolo that, after all of the lacquering, looks deep red.  I just thought the red headband would be more fun than jet black, brown or beige.
 

Bill, I gotta say I really dig those aluminum shells with the headband you have. Looks great!

Thanks, Connnorrr!!!  I made it for a friend of mine, a medical student at USF.  I was going to give them to him tonight but I had so many problems with the Radio Shack plug that I ended up breaking the mini and having to replace it with a full-size stereo jack.  Tomorrow, I will probably scour the area looking for better quality connectors than those sold through "the Shack."  
 
I'd like to install the aluminum rings but I need to find something local that would serve as a substitutes for the little plastic prongs in the plastic Grados.  I'd also like to install a pair of lock rods.  I've come to the conclusion that cans such as these need to be circumaural but I've lost my faith in the jumbos.  I actually think the whole headband needs to be redesigned with fatter, wider pads.  When you go circumaural, the gimbal becomes less relevant since the cups don't need to be adjusted to sit flush against the skull.  I also want to put in real-wood rod holders and look at a stabler way to connect the cups than to simply rely on a single rod per cup.

 

[wallace]

If it's alright with everyone i would like to propose a big THANK YOU to Bill,before he goes into full self destruct mode.

  Allot of us are getting more enjoyment from our Grados than we ever thought possible thanks to his inquiring and fearless approach to modding.I would never have thought of attacking mine with a Biro

.Lord knows where he will end up,but he seems to be having fun getting there.Best thread on the forum award.!!.??

 

[Bilavideo]

YOU CAN'T GET SOMETHING FOR NOTHING

 
Recently, Parts Express did something it has never done before: It sold a buy-out of 40mm mylar drivers, drivers that look eerily like Grado's.  The price?  $1.90/driver.  Thinking there might be something to this, I bought 100 and got the price reduced to $1.81/driver.
 

 
From the back, it's not entirely clear to what extent these 40mm drivers are on par with those Grado uses.
 

 
But, when you consider the sheer number of drivers available - at this price - I thought it was worth a sniff.  This picture, in fact, reminded me of this one:
 

 
But looks can be deceiving.
 


 
While part of the difference in size is a little bit of padding on the Grado, a bit of padding we can duplicate with a bottle cap . . . 
 

 
. . . the magnets are not the same size, nor are the voice coils.  Then again, the Grado driver's magnet looks bigger because of the magnet plate . . . .