[CreditingKarma]

Dont think so , its just a bad design , mine is OG and the O ring snapped also , because of age or dry condition ,
i would never pay 250$ for a peace of rubber so i did a home fix , ugly but it works

It is $150 for a new headband.

 

[GU1DO]

It is $150 for a new headband.

Sorry 150$ had the same emotional effect on me as the 250$ last time i checked so 250 stuck in my mind
i only need the rubber ring , headband is perfectly look new , so 150 is just crazy for 2 peaces of rubber.

 

[ken6217]

Dont think so , its just a bad design , mine is OG and the O ring snapped also , because of age or dry condition ,
i would never pay 250$ for a peace of rubber so i did a home fix , ugly but it works

It can’t be a bad design if they don’t all break. No one knows what the percent is unless a poll istaken of all owners. People usually post when they have a problem, not when they don’t have a problem. You’re not gonna get somebody to post out of nowhere saying, hey I have a headphone band and it didn’t break.

In addition, I think it’s safe to say from reading comments here that a lot of people don’t just place the headphones on their head and call it a day. They play around with it trying to figure out the best positioning, and most likely those rubber rings are not made to be stretched, pulled, twisted, etc.

 

[Hoegaardener70]

It is $150 for a new headband.

still a lot of money.

It can’t be a bad design if they don’t all break. No one knows what the percent is unless a poll istaken of all owners. People usually post when they have a problem, not when they don’t have a problem. You’re not gonna get somebody to post out of nowhere saying, hey I have a headphone band and it didn’t break.

In addition, I think it’s safe to say from reading comments here that a lot of people don’t just place the headphones on their head and call it a day. They play around with it trying to figure out the best positioning, and most likely those rubber rings are not made to be stretched, pulled, twisted, etc.

Well, headphones at this price point must be built for longevity. And a rubber ring at this pricepoint is not a good design decision. At least do neither focal nor stax use rubber rings as part of their design. Or any other part which breaks because of normal wear and tear over the years.
What it comes down to is what abyss makes of this now.

 

[SteveM324]

still a lot of money.


Well, headphones at this price point must be built for longevity. And a rubber ring at this pricepoint is not a good design decision. At least do neither focal nor stax use rubber rings as part of their design. Or any other part which breaks because of normal wear and tear over the years.
What it comes down to is what abyss makes of this now.

I don't own an Abyss but I have considered buying a TC. I'm an engineering specialist in the automotive industry and I specialize in attachments (mainly fasteners but also clips, clamps,o-rings, etc). O-rings are designed to seal joints, they're not designed to stretch and suspend a load. I think a simple fix would be to use elastic. Rather than spend a $150 for a new headband, I would get some black elastic that girls use for hair ties, cut it to the length desired, and get some crimps and a crimping tool to crimp the ends together. You can even use a little bit of glue inside the crimp before crimping. The crimping tool would be the most expensive piece of the fix but it won't cost $150. You can buy elastic on-line or at an arts and crafts store. I think elastic would last longer than rubber o-rings for how Abyss is using them. Just my 2 cents.

 

[ahossam]

I dont mind if they put headband and they might break, the problem is the replacement headband is too expensive.

 

[ken6217]

still a lot of money.


Well, headphones at this price point must be built for longevity. And a rubber ring at this pricepoint is not a good design decision. At least do neither focal nor stax use rubber rings as part of their design. Or any other part which breaks because of normal wear and tear over the years.
What it comes down to is what abyss makes of this now.

Those headphones don’t have the adjustability as Abyss to change the sound and so there’s no reason to play with them. Obviously the design is different, and there’s a reason for that.

As I mentioned above, no one knows what % breaks without taking a poll of all users. Like anything else, you’re only going to hear from the people who had them break, and not the ones that don’t. Also go through the thread and look T all of the users that have found creative ways to screw around with the band to get a personalized fit. Velcro and zip ties to name a couple. With most companies altering or misusing a product would make any claim invalid.

I’ve had my 1266 since the first week of December. That’s going on 6 months. I listen to them multiple times a day, and hang them on the stand suspended by the headband. No broken rings.

 

[ekfc63]

An alternative would be to redesign the headband so that the "O" ring is not captive. This would prevent wasting a perfectly good headband and facilitate cheap and easy "O" ring replacement.

I've had my TCs since October 2019 with no "O" ring problems so far. If and when one snaps I'll be giving superglue a try.

 

[ken6217]

An alternative would be to redesign the headband so that the "O" ring is not captive. This would prevent wasting a perfectly good headband and facilitate cheap and easy "O" ring replacement.

actually that would be a good idea. Instead of having it stitched, maybe a snap. This way if the O ring breaks, just unsnap it and buy a spare O ring.

 

[tholt]

Seems to me its enough of an issue to enough people that Abyss should take notice and address it. We have a right to be more critical of a $5k headphone than something less expensive. And the O ring is what, a few cents worth of part? And it plays an absolutely critical role in the overall design. I'm with @SteveM324 re: O rings meant to be seals, not 'rubber bands'. That is their intended purpose.

An alternative would be to redesign the headband so that the "O" ring is not captive. This would prevent wasting a perfectly good headband and facilitate cheap and easy "O" ring replacement.

I think at the very least, this is a great idea. Having us have no alternative except DIY or buy a new headband because an O ring breaks is a little tough to swallow.

 

[ken6217]

Obviously no one knows what someone else is doing when using their headphones, but I find it very hard to believe that taking the headphone and placing on your head and not effing around with it is going to break and O-ring.

 

[zenworm]

Have about 10 hours so far on my brand new TC and have buzzing of left driver (only left, right is fine) on certain bass frequencies. Shows up in electronic/rap, songs like Fantasy by the xx at the 1:20 mark. Here's a video where you can hear the buzzing pretty clearly:

It's more pronounced if the left cup is farther away from my ear, but still there if it's close. I'm working with Joe on this right now and his recommendation was to continue the burn-in but wanted to see if anyone had seen (well, heard) anything like this before.

 

[tholt]

Obviously no one knows what someone else is doing when using their headphones, but I find it very hard to believe that taking the headphone and placing on your head and not effing around with it is going to break and O-ring.

You're saying that people shouldn't play around with fit and adjustment?

 

[ken6217]

You're saying that people shouldn't play around with fit and adjustment?

That’s not what I’m saying. There’s adjusting the position of the headphone, and then there’s screwing around with it. Twisting the O-ring and doubling it up, using zip ties, using Velcro is screwing around with it. Go back through the thread and see how many people have their own tricks of how they adjust it.

I mean think about it. You’re an O-ring that is rather thick, holding a headband on with not really that much tension, and then you place it on your head. How would that break under such circumstances? It would have to have a cut or nick in it to begin with for that to happen.

 

[F208Frank]

I do not think people should worry too much yet. Though the headband is perhaps bad in terms of longevity design, I am pretty sure Abyss chose the design for sonic/adjustment purposes at the time. You can tell in their videos they put much thought into every aspect of the headphone. Sometimes things are overlooked and slipped through my guys.

Some members have reported that Abyss replaced (not sure if free of charge) when asked when the headband has broken.

To be honest, if Abyss chose not to replace when it is a known issue, they would he only hurting themselves long term and I do not really see them taking that stance.

If someone has a head band breaking via O ring and when asking for replacement to get denied, then people should worry.

Just my 2 cents on tuesday while still in bed @ 2:15PM eastern time. Lol.