Thunderpants (T50RP mod) Group Buy

[bobeau]

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Thanks, they look gorgeous, but unchanged?... anything changed about their anatomy? Those are Thunderpants1-MKII after all

 
They are, but Smeggy refinished the cups because the finish was peeling, redid the baffles/pads (LCD-2 -> O2) and tuned for better bass, recabled, and redid the connectors to the cups, which now have some sort ball joint swing-arm attached.
 

 

[bobeau]

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Nope. I concur with you. They are great for what they are. I think they are overpriced a little bit. They should be no more than $400. I don't have any regrets buying them though. Nor do my co-workers.

 
I think they're priced about right, considering the amount of labor/boutiqueness of the product alone.  But based on fidelity, we're saying a closed headphone almost approximates a $1000 open headphone, one that's even more big/cumbersome and considered one of the better values out there.  Aren't they a relative value when you take that into account? 
 
Let me put it another way.  Even one of these fully kitted out w/ O2 pads and exotic wood/woodwork will come out less than a Denon 7000, and that doesn't even use real leather, and I doubt the Denon stands a chance sonically... perhaps a Lawton Audio one does, but then you've doubled the price.  Yet the D7000 is quite a popular headphone.  

 

[sbradley02]

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I think they're priced about right, considering the amount of labor/boutiqueness of the product alone.  But based on fidelity, we're saying a closed headphone almost approximates a $1000 open headphone, one that's even more big/cumbersome and considered one of the better values out there.  Aren't they a relative value when you take that into account? 

Don't even have to take that into account, IMO. I have compared them heads up to the Denon AH-D5000 ($1000) and the Audio Technica ATH-W5000 ($1200). To my ears the Thunderpants come out on top across the board (though both the others are fine headphones). What closed headphone that costs less than $1000 is better than the TP1?

 

[devouringone3]

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They are, but Smeggy refinished the cups because the finish was peeling, redid the baffles/pads (LCD-2 -> O2) and tuned for better bass, recabled, and redid the connectors to the cups, which now have some sort ball joint swing-arm attached.
 

 
Wow this is great, thank you. I want my Thunderpants to have O2 pads and this newer joint also!

 

[sbradley02]

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Wow this is great, thank you. I want my Thunderpants to have O2 pads and this newer joint also!

I went the opposite direction - O2 to LCD-2 pads, in fact mine were the first fitted with the latter. Both are excellent and have their pluses and minuses.

 

[devouringone3]

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I went the opposite direction - O2 to LCD-2 pads, in fact mine were the first fitted with the latter. Both are excellent and have their pluses and minuses.

 
Okay you got me unsure now, which pads between those two to choose. I would definitely prefer the color black, actually.
 
Maybe I can just wait to buy a Stax headphone to have Stax pads... I know that I will never buy a LCD-2-3 so... (because I have no need for a headphone of this type, Open- I have Grado, Orthodynamic- I have T50RP)

 

[bobeau]

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Okay you got me unsure now, which pads between those two to choose. I would definitely prefer the color black, actually.
 
Maybe I can just wait to buy a Stax headphone to have Stax pads... I know that I will never buy a LCD-2-3 so... (because I have no need for a headphone of this type, Open- I have Grado, Orthodynamic- I have T50RP)

 
They're both black and look pretty similar to the naked eye, the LCD-2 pads are a bit bigger (mostly deeper IIRC) and firmer.  According to earlier in this thread it sounds like Smeggy isn't currently using the brown pads.
 
I am noticing quite a dramatic change in bass but I imagine it's 90% attributable to the tuning rather than pads themselves.  Something was pretty off on them before, I think they were rushed out the door prematurely as quite alot on my order was incorrect.

 

[devouringone3]

Wouldn't the Stax pads be more desirable then? if softer and less big/cumbersome.
 
The problem is that they let your ears touch the drivers?
 
Which ones are the less angled?
 
Actually I think I would prefer the Stax ones, if Smeggy has them in black. But the black Stax pads from Joynetcafe on eBay (not the default Stax pads, that comes with their headphones) has pleather around their ear-contact surface, is this an issue? LCD-2's sure are full genuine leather.

 

[bobeau]

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Wouldn't the Stax pads be more desirable then? if softer and less big/cumbersome.
 
The problem is that they let your ears touch the drivers?
 
Which ones are the less angled?
 
Actually I think I would prefer the Stax ones, if Smeggy has them in black. But the black Stax pads from Joynetcafe on eBay (not the default Stax pads, that comes with their headphones) has pleather around their ear-contact surface, is this an issue? LCD-2's sure are full genuine leather.

 
The main problem is the Stax cost nearly twice as much... I think the price is $80 vs $150.  sbradley02 found the Stax pads deform enough for him that he needed to replace after 6 mos.  I think this might be due to the design of the headphones, in that even on my small head there is some significant clamping force when using thicker pads.  On a larger head this might be more than the pads were designed for.
 
Your ears might touch the drivers.  I have enough clearance but it seems close on my upper ears.  They're both quite angled, but the LCD-2s are probably more severe.  If there's any pleather on either of these that's news to me, both seem to be full-grain leather.

 

[devouringone3]

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The main problem is the Stax cost nearly twice as much... I think the price is $80 vs $150.  sbradley02 found the Stax pads deform enough for him that he needed to replace after 6 mos.  I think this might be due to the design of the headphones, in that even on my small head there is some significant clamping force when using thicker pads.  On a larger head this might be more than the pads were designed for.
 
Your ears might touch the drivers.  I have enough clearance but it seems close on my upper ears.  They're both quite angled, but the LCD-2s are probably more severe.  If there's any pleather on either of these that's news to me, both seem to be full-grain leather.

 
That's a very important issue. I will consider the LCD-2 pads then, may they be firmer, even if you need to endure more clamping force!
 
I also felt like the LCD-2 looked more angled! If I buy that Quilted Maple available for sale, I will ask if Gary can sell me and install me some LCD-2s! pads, along with all the upgrade he has put in your pair lol, I hope he will take my money for it.
 
Thank you!

 

[sbradley02]

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The main problem is the Stax cost nearly twice as much... I think the price is $80 vs $150.  sbradley02 found the Stax pads deform enough for him that he needed to replace after 6 mos.  I think this might be due to the design of the headphones, in that even on my small head there is some significant clamping force when using thicker pads.  On a larger head this might be more than the pads were designed for.
 

Yes, this is why I switched. The Stax pads (I had the real deal, $155 black leather pads) crushed down significantly in 6 months. I am an extreme user, large head and dozens of hours use a week, but this just wasn't acceptable, so I switched to the LCD-2s, no perceivable crush down in the same length of time, and half the price should I ever have to replace. The LCD-2s require different porting than the O2s, once I tweaked that the bass came in just right. The LCD-2 pads deliver a little more top octave to my ears as well, overall I prefer the sound of them over the O2s, but both sound great, for me it came down to a question of longevity.

 

[bobeau]

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Yes, this is why I switched. The Stax pads (I had the real deal, $155 black leather pads) crushed down significantly in 6 months. I am an extreme user, large head and dozens of hours use a week, but this just wasn't acceptable, so I switched to the LCD-2s, no perceivable crush down in the same length of time, and half the price should I ever have to replace. The LCD-2s require different porting than the O2s, once I tweaked that the bass came in just right. The LCD-2 pads deliver a little more top octave to my ears as well, overall I prefer the sound of them over the O2s, but both sound great, for me it came down to a question of longevity.

 
IIRC Smeggy seemed to rate them overall tops earlier in this thread... a bit better on isolation/soundstage, probably because of the extra size and interior volume.  
 
I wonder if the change in range (more top, less bass) is because the of the more severe angle?  I also wonder if the extra bass I perceive is because I feel comfortable turning them up a bit more.  For me they lack fullness at lower volumes.

 

[devouringone3]

You guys knew two 2012 Thunderpants
 
Tari's: http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/SmeggyThunderpantsTP12012Tari.pdf
Draygon's: http://www.innerfidelity.com/images/SmeggyThunderpantsTP12012Draygon.pdf
 
had been measured by Tyll Hertsens?

 

[Radio_head]

Thanks for that.  Tyll didn't send me a link - should've checked his site.

 

[Mullet]

Looks to me the newer TP1s are different than the older one that was measured last year. Looks like they have a larger hump at 70-200hz. To me this would translate to MOAR bass. The other thing that pops out to me is the 30hz measurements. Perhaps, the bass isn't as tight? I would be interested to find out what pads are used with each measurement. I find my TP1s can have too much bass at times. If I were to compare them to my LCD-2r2s I'd say the LCD-2s get it right all the time, where certain bass heavy tracks with the TP1s are too heavy. Perhaps, it's the pads I'm using. I'm using the standard T50RP pads.