Torpedo

I still don't qualify as orthonut, but I might hehehe. I've been reading posts at HF and here about the T30, but seems they're not as popular as other models, and didn't find much information about tweaks to improve the sound. I've been doing my little experiments and I've noticed that placing the driver a bit further from the ear but keeping good seal (I used a set of CD3000 pads over the phone "as is") makes the bass more balanced to the rest of the spectrum and gives a huge amount of air and more natural decay to the treble. However the midrange suffers and gets a slight honky coloration, losing body and the right timbre they have IMHO. I suppose I'd need to make the current pads a bit thicker and also more comfy by using a material more skin friendly than the plastic it uses. Have you performed any pads mod or replacement on the T30? I also think that some benefits could be obtained by damping a bit the enclosure internals to get rid of a small resonance at about 50Hz, but I fear that overdamping could make the bass too fast to sound natural. Also some reflective material on the driver's back might increase the treble output, but I wouldn't do that until I had changed the pads, since using thicker ones already brings the treble out. Any suggestions will be very welcome. I'm not a DIYer to make my own enclosures, which I feel would be the optimal solution, and also making a less clamping headband which allowed drivers twisting to fit the ears skew to the frontal plane. Have you "transplanted" the drivers into another enclosure like Beyer's or any other with success?

Congratulations Andy, you did a great job cleaning them. If it weren't for the cable and urethane issues, you could stick a new set of pads on them right now

Smeggy, any tips to make those T30 a bit more comfortable? I received mine a couple of days ago and I'm liking what I'm hearing, but the damn things give sore ears pretty quickly. And I'm not specially finicky about that, I can wear the Grados for hours. Also some comments about how similar/different are the TR50RP and T30 would help to make my mind up about getting a pair of TR50. Thanks.

I'm not a 650 fan, but quite one of the HD600. The X10 have the same type of timbral presentation, but a bit more bassy and darker on top. I find them very enjoyable for listening on the go. I like them better than any other IEM I've tried, but I don't think they qualify as High end. In fact IMHO high end and IEMs is an oxymoron.

Oh, it's the first post in this second page. Never mind

Yep, that's what I said in my post starting this page, but looks like I didn't express it clearly enough.

LOL not really. The issue is that I'm not being able to fully make myself understood. IMO an electrically digital signal would be something that isn't a continuous waveform. Something like pulses, clicks, or bursts as in Morse transmission. Any other signal which has a voltage continuity changing against time, no matter it's just between two voltage values, no matter it's shape is a sine, square, sawtooth, but has that continuity, I'd consider it analogue. Under such view the wave of the SPDIF output is an analogue square wave with changing period, which by FFT analysis could be converted into a sinewave with a lot of high order harmonics. But as I said before, it's only a matter of personal interpretation and I'm in no way trying to mean the information contents of the SPDIF output signal is analogue, it's digital information that needs decoding to be converted into true audible analogue. I hope this leaves my point clearer. In any case you're perfectly entitled to disagree

Bluebliss, I changed myself my bass-light R10's pads a few months ago. I got the spare set from Craig. After removing the old pads, I had a situation similar to yours, with all the old adhesive stick over the metal ring, with some parts of the leather inner sheet (which looked like cloth) still glued in some areas. Then I was able to see the shape of the orange rubber rings around the drivers. Mine were quite OK, the rubber was aged and not elastic, but still in place and doing its function. I spent about one hour to clean the old adhesive on each driver. It took that long for the extreme care I put in not damaging the wood, the driver and the rubber. I used nail polish removing fluid (acetone) which acted better as solvent than alcohol, and used an old cloth piece to apply it and wrap away the adhesive and pieces of the pad. I needed to slightly rub in some areas with a wood wedge (like an ice cream spoon) to remove the thicker adhesive areas but being very gentle to the metal ring. Once I had the metal ring completely clean, smooth and tidy, I placed the new pads in place, which is not easy, you need a steady hand to get the two small pins into the minute holes of the frame at the first trial. Otherwise you'd need to remove the already glued pad, and you very likely would have a situation very similar to the initial one In your case it'd be a bit more complicated for having to clean the holes in the wood housing and getting a new rubber ring in place, but IMO the whole thing is quite feasible being patient and careful, so if you're going to ask Alex to do it for you, I'm quite confident he'll manage to return your R10s in good shape and perfect function. I guess the guy who got your R10 thought that the pads would stick again in place after his looking at the rubber rings, but once he noticed he had fucked up them, the rubber inside was a complete mess, and he had managed to spread the old adhesive over the wood housing, he panicked and left the thing like that. I don't blame him for trying, but for not finishing the job, it's not that difficult and getting a new set of pads for a surgeon isn't that expensive. I had never made such thing he did to your R10

That's the theory, and then there's what SPDIF outputs throw. As I see it, the signal is analogue for being a constant wave, there are no 0 and x Volts states, but a continuous waveform changing from a voltage point to another. Abruptly and with a square shape, but in essence not very different from a sinewave. Anyway, it's just a matter of interpretation, the real point is that the SPDIF wave is under the same transmission conditions that would affect any other analogue signal carried by a IC.

You can get the pads directly from Japan, ask Craig at Kuboten, I think he'd be more reliable than Mikhail. Regarding the foam... that's a tougher call, however I'm sure Alex would suggest you alternatives. To clean that mess up you just need care and patience, if you don't have the will to try, then Alex would be a good choice, I don't know, never dealt with him. I wonder how any person would open a pair of R10s he received on loan. What a shame. I'm sorry for you, good luck.

Yep, and square waves aren't analogue? What I'm trying to mean is the electrical signal is analogue in nature and what's digital to be decoded is the information it carries.

Paraphrasing Ken, Happy Bday Happy Bday. Have a great one you both.

Not very sure the data part of the SPDIF signal is square waves, that's initially what the pits and dots engraved on the shiny discs produce, but once those changes in the level are integrated to form the eye pattern wave and are later mixed with the clock data, it's not that simple. It's an AC signal looking pretty analogue. I have no authority mate, just some experience fiddling with gear, that's all. IMO there's nothing like true sound quality and musical results scaling with expense. I've used many different transports, from pro ones into CD recorders to vintage Theta laserdisc readers, going through boutique ones, inexpensive DVD-V players and midrange universal players. All I've learned is that generalizations cannot be made, and largely depend on the DAC you're using and the link between the transport and DAC. I've found really good transports that have excellent error correction and won't skip reading the worst condition CDs, that don't manage to really make music, just good sounds. Some others are very finicky about the discs quality, and won't read poorly pressed commercial CDs, but manage to sound really natural and fluent depending on the digital link you use. If any, the only conclusion I can take from that experience is that optical link mostly sucks music-wise. There are differences, that's sure, but to find them, and deciding if they're worth the cost, you first need the gear to put them in evidence, then using the recordings and music that may benefit from those differences.

I know, and to that I replied. The electrical signal isn't digital, it's not pulses or anything really "digital" it's an electrical signal showing volt vs time variation. Replying to the if I have A/Bd them, yes, I have A/Bed transports many times and they don't sound the same. There are differences even depending on the DAC used.

Hahaha, completely wrong mate, the electric signal coming out from a transport is entirely analogue, which is not to say that the information is analogue. Different things if you think about it carefully.

Aerius, you need to get some CCa tubes, either Siemens or Telefunken. Be patient and spot them from a reliable seller. They might get that bass right while keeping the midrange rightness you're loving so much. You might also be surprised for the improved detail over the Mullards/russian tubes and the dynamic slam. IMO that player deserves those tubes. If you cannot find them, then try Siemens or Teles E88CC istead. If you still cannot spot any, then JJ goldpins or Jan Philips can be a decent quite complete alternative. Thanks for the review

Glad you're enjoying it

ha, no that's "grave como el orto" aka "grave de mierda" > bass like the ass or bass like shit

LOL Oh well, in Spanish it's even worse since it's written "ortodin

I couldn't tell the difference between 24/96 and 24/88 either, but in between 24/88 and 20/96 it was slightly noticeable favoring 24/88. However I must admit that at that point we were really tired of comparing samples

Where just that then explain to me how we found the 24/88 recording more similar to the vinyl than the 16/44. Of course it's on the mix, but also the way you record onto digital and how you convert back into analog make a difference. Only good transfers from vinyl into CD can sound as good as the vinyl.

Not really more, but some parts of the information, specially the space related ones such as stage depth, performers layering, etc, in which vinyl is quite superior in general terms to digital, are much better portrayed on a well setup speakers system than by most phones. Maybe if you had had the chance to use the K1000 or R10 you'd have noticed some differences. Or not, the more I learn about audio the more convinced I am that everyone has his own ears and his own way to listen.

Looks sensible to me that they keep their plans secret until they've recovered all they invested into the HD800 R+D.

And what system were you using to listen? I mean that the system capabilities are very important to notice those differences. I'm sure we hadn't noticed them on most phones, and we needed a speaker setup to really be sure they existed.

Ha, if I'm producing 1000+ units of my new statement product, but I'm planning to use that technology offering 80% of the performance at half the price, I'd also be saying that I have no plans to do so until those 1000+ units are sold hehehe.