spritzer Posted May 2, 2008 Author Report Posted May 2, 2008 You'll want rid of it then. I upgraded my kettle to Nordost at Patrick82's recommendation and it made my pasta taste much better, biggest improvement was tea though, bags tasted like the best loose leaf. Blah Nordost is just some silver plater copper crap in teflon. If you want really great tea I recommend the Acrolink 7n PC-OCC cables.
Smeggy Posted May 2, 2008 Report Posted May 2, 2008 Blah Nordost is just some silver plater copper crap in teflon. If you want really great tea I recommend the Acrolink 7n PC-OCC cables. I'm sending my kettle to Alex for Bi-Wiring as I have twin outlets. Not only will my tea taste better, it will boil twice as fast.
spritzer Posted June 19, 2008 Author Report Posted June 19, 2008 I just got my Beta22 earlier tonight and after fixing some major shipping damage (transformer came loose and took the PSU board with it) I had to try it with the Fostex T-50v1. These very rare phones simply love power (they are rated for a maximum of 2w ) and the Beta22 doesn't disappoint turning them into a mini SR-007 with plenty of tight, controlled bass which is slightly "tubby" on some tracks and an extended and slightly shrill treble. I'm sure some of this is due to the amp but I'll know for sure once I clean up the signal path a bit and perform some other upgrades. The most surprising thing is the soundstage as it has depth (for a supra aural at least) and it's on par with the SR-X Mk3 Pro. Some more impressions tomorrow as I have to be at work in less then 6 hours and I need the sleep...
Dusty Chalk Posted June 19, 2008 Report Posted June 19, 2008 Damn, do you know if Eifl sells anything like that? Are those NOS only, or does Fostex have some sort of new production equivalent?
spritzer Posted June 19, 2008 Author Report Posted June 19, 2008 Damn, do you know if Eifl sells anything like that? Are those NOS only, or does Fostex have some sort of new production equivalent? Mine are from the original 1978-1980 production run and they are rare as hens teeth. There was a later version (called the v2) which isn't supposed to be as good but they show up more often and there are a few OEM versions as well. There is a current T-50RP but it's supposed to be an utter turd and has nothing in common with the insane driver design of the original. It's not that surprising though as if the v1 T-50 was made today it would be very expensive (600$+)
Dusty Chalk Posted June 19, 2008 Report Posted June 19, 2008 Alas. What about non-Fostex -- is anyone else making full-range drivers that don't weigh 0.3kg? Or is 0.3 kg reasonable (the lightest I found on the eifl/Fostex website)? Most of them weigh >1kg, anyway, and aren't designed to be worn as headphones.
spritzer Posted June 20, 2008 Author Report Posted June 20, 2008 Alas. What about non-Fostex -- is anyone else making full-range drivers that don't weigh 0.3kg? Or is 0.3 kg reasonable (the lightest I found on the eifl/Fostex website)? Most of them weigh >1kg, anyway, and aren't designed to be worn as headphones. I don't think anybody is still making any dipole ortho drivers which would suit our needs (loose diaphragm and strong magnets) but the SFI drivers on ebay are really good and I'm sure that Steve will come up with some cool donut design for them . Those drivers are 32ohm but ericj on HF is selling some 120ohm units he managed to find which are even more power hungry. I have 4 of those sitting on my desk but no time to test them as of yet. None of those drivers do come close to the level of insanity built into the T-50 drivers with its "serpent" diaphragm and strong magnet bars. It's also one of the few orthos to be fully open backed. I'll try and take some pics over the week end but I'm not sure I'll have the time.
swt61 Posted June 22, 2008 Report Posted June 22, 2008 spritzer where did you manage to find a Fostex T-50v1? That and the Yamaha YH-1000 are the two phones I'd trade my penis for. I'm infinitely jealous, especially hearing how well they play with the β22. No real surprise there though, as the Donuts are a perfect match.
spritzer Posted June 22, 2008 Author Report Posted June 22, 2008 spritzer where did you manage to find a Fostex T-50v1? That and the Yamaha YH-1000 are the two phones I'd trade my penis for. I'm infinitely jealous, especially hearing how well they play with the β22. No real surprise there though, as the Donuts are a perfect match. It was on eBay some months back. They even posted the link in the ortho thread but there was very little interest. I think they went for 150$ or something minuscule like that and are worth a lot more then that based on sound quality alone. They even came with the original Fostex storage case (cheap vinyl thing) and look brand new. The Beta22 is really the only option for driving these very inefficient phones and the end result is nothing short of spectacular.
luvdunhill Posted June 22, 2008 Report Posted June 22, 2008 It was on eBay some months back. They even posted the link in the ortho thread but there was very little interest. I think they went for 150$ or something minuscule like that and are worth a lot more then that based on sound quality alone. They even came with the original Fostex storage case (cheap vinyl thing) and look brand new. The Beta22 is really the only option for driving these very inefficient phones and the end result is nothing short of spectacular. dude, quit the hype (until I find one). I saw one on Ebay and it went for $250-ish and I think $235 was my max bid. That was probably 1 year ago though.
spritzer Posted June 22, 2008 Author Report Posted June 22, 2008 dude, quit the hype (until I find one). I saw one on Ebay and it went for $250-ish and I think $235 was my max bid. That was probably 1 year ago though. I'll stop. Don't worry though if I manage to find one it will be on the first plane to Texas. Now if a YH1000 crosses my path it's a different matter...
swt61 Posted June 22, 2008 Report Posted June 22, 2008 I'll stop. Don't worry though if I manage to find one it will be on the first plane to Texas. Now if a YH1000 crosses my path it's a different matter... Make sure that's Port Aransas, Texas, and not Austin!
Dusty Chalk Posted June 23, 2008 Report Posted June 23, 2008 (edited) spritzer where did you manage to find a Fostex T-50v1? That and the Yamaha YH-1000 are the two phones I'd trade my penis for.That's not saying much, considering you could fashion an ebony replacement for it. Or purpleheart heh-heh. Edited June 23, 2008 by Dusty Chalk
Smeggy Posted June 23, 2008 Report Posted June 23, 2008 I'd love to find an affordable T-50 V1, in fact, I'd go as far as to trade Steve's penis for it too. It seems very well respected (the phones not the penis). A well designed modern ortho could theoretically make a fantastic phone. The tech is there, it only needs someone to dew eet. Until then, we have limited options, at least the SFI drivers are cheap. I'm half way through modding a K240 fosterfone to fit some of the 120 Ohm SFIs.
spritzer Posted June 23, 2008 Author Report Posted June 23, 2008 Make sure that's Port Aransas, Texas, and not Austin! I think I'll just let you guys battle it out. I'd love to find an affordable T-50 V1, in fact, I'd go as far as to trade Steve's penis for it too. It seems very well respected (the phones not the penis). A well designed modern ortho could theoretically make a fantastic phone. The tech is there, it only needs someone to dew eet. Until then, we have limited options, at least the SFI drivers are cheap. I'm half way through modding a K240 fosterfone to fit some of the 120 Ohm SFIs. The technology is already there and we could do some amazing things with 1um Kapton and some very strong magnets. It could be the planar phones for the masses but the biggest hurdle is to make them as comfortable as a Lambda so more excursion is needed. The T-50 isn't bad but they are heavy enough to be a bit of an ear-crusher. I've some 120ohm drivers sitting here but haven't had time to do anything with them. Are you going to use the mounting plate on the 120ohm drivers or simply cut it off?
luvdunhill Posted June 23, 2008 Report Posted June 23, 2008 I think I'll just let you guys battle it out. I'm closer
swt61 Posted June 23, 2008 Report Posted June 23, 2008 That's not saying much, considering you could fashion an ebony replacement for it. Or purpleheart heh-heh. Not to mention it's been gathering dust for a while. I've some 120ohm drivers sitting here but haven't had time to do anything with them. Are you going to use the mounting plate on the 120ohm drivers or simply cut it off? He's built a swanky new baffle from plywood. It looks awesome! http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/orthodynamic-roundup-111193/index300.html#post4371223
Smeggy Posted June 24, 2008 Report Posted June 24, 2008 I wouldn't say swanky, but it'll do the job Just waiting for the drivers to turn up so I can put it all together. I already broke the connector tabs on three of my 32 ohm drivers screwing around. As to the plate mount on the SFI. I don't know what it looks like yet so I'll have to see when the get here. I know one thing, the K240 will be a lot heavier and more solid when I've finished with them
spritzer Posted June 24, 2008 Author Report Posted June 24, 2008 I wouldn't say swanky, but it'll do the job Just waiting for the drivers to turn up so I can put it all together. I already broke the connector tabs on three of my 32 ohm drivers screwing around. As to the plate mount on the SFI. I don't know what it looks like yet so I'll have to see when the get here. I know one thing, the K240 will be a lot heavier and more solid when I've finished with them There is a black frame around the 120ohm drivers, much like a speaker mounting with 4 holes in the corners. The drivers are either pressure fitted into it or glued in place. They were obviously intended to be uses as tweeters How can you break off the tabs? I've been messing with them quite a bit but all the drivers are intact though I always bend the tabs so that they face backwards on the drivers.
Smeggy Posted June 24, 2008 Report Posted June 24, 2008 Let's just say I'm not the most cautious or careful when messing about with cheap stuff. Especially when I know more are easily available. I've tried so many configs now, some requiring tight and awkward spaces that the pins get bent way more times than they were ever designed to take.
Duggeh Posted June 24, 2008 Report Posted June 24, 2008 The black frames are friction fit. (Mine arrived today, no can do with them until the second set of Goldrings and the K500 get here).
spritzer Posted June 24, 2008 Author Report Posted June 24, 2008 I really need to go headphone shopping to find some fosterphones and cheap headphone cables. The 120ohm drivers are perfect to cram into a Lambda housing but those things just don't want to die!!! I've managed to fix everything thrown at me...
Duggeh Posted June 24, 2008 Report Posted June 24, 2008 Get that wooden lambda housing made for the Airbow drivers, then stick the SFIs into the old Airbow housing in a line driver. Presto!
Smeggy Posted June 24, 2008 Report Posted June 24, 2008 Yeah, stupid stax. Anyway, the Koss UR 20(?) is in bits now and they look like ideal candidates for a closed SFI. The baffles have cutouts to angle the driver and are shaped to fit the ears properly and are large enough for big-ass cups. I did a pad taper mod on them so it'll keep the drivers close to the ear and will probably work really well with the mounting plate. The K240 version will be open and felt damped. We'll see which ones win.
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