I'm a fan of Quadraphonic headphones and own a few.
My favorites are the goofy big Capeheart CH-4C phones I'm wearing in the pic below. They are large, comfy and ridiculous looking. They also sound like poop.
That's no surprise as the drivers are basically cheap transistor radio speakers. They sound just like you'd think, very midrange with odd peaks. (I have measurements)
So I have decided to swap out the original drivers with a set of 50mm Peerless headphone drivers. This takes a bit of adaptations, as the original diver are ~56mm in diameter. I've made some "calamari rings" out of dense white foam to mount them. This is working out well.
Question: Should I remove the plastic fins in front of the driver? I have Pioneer headphones with plastic parts in front of the drivers, tho not a full as these. Will these louvers make much difference? What are your thoughts?
My favorites are the goofy big Capeheart CH-4C phones I'm wearing in the pic below. They are large, comfy and ridiculous looking. They also sound like poop.
That's no surprise as the drivers are basically cheap transistor radio speakers. They sound just like you'd think, very midrange with odd peaks. (I have measurements)So I have decided to swap out the original drivers with a set of 50mm Peerless headphone drivers. This takes a bit of adaptations, as the original diver are ~56mm in diameter. I've made some "calamari rings" out of dense white foam to mount them. This is working out well.
Question: Should I remove the plastic fins in front of the driver? I have Pioneer headphones with plastic parts in front of the drivers, tho not a full as these. Will these louvers make much difference? What are your thoughts?
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Wow, those are huge. Does quadraphonic mean 4 drivers per can or 4 drivers total? I assume 4 per can but only see 2. I have some KZ ZS-6 IEMs that have two dynamic drivers each and two balanced armature drivers each for 4 drivers total. They sound very good - deep deep bass and very revealing highs. Nice CNC metal shell with screws to allow disassembly.
KZ Zs6 - Reviews | Headphone Reviews and Discussion - Head-Fi.org
But if yo mean two drivers per can, my recently purchased ESS 422H’s have a dynamic driver and an AMT tweeter for a two way headphone that sound absolutely beautiful. I have a thread on these.
Your cans take the unique style points though.
KZ Zs6 - Reviews | Headphone Reviews and Discussion - Head-Fi.org
But if yo mean two drivers per can, my recently purchased ESS 422H’s have a dynamic driver and an AMT tweeter for a two way headphone that sound absolutely beautiful. I have a thread on these.
Your cans take the unique style points though.
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These have 2 drivers per side with a total of 4 drivers for the headphones. Each is a discrete channel for Quadraphonic sound. Left, Right and the 2 rear channels. I also use them for surround sound. They have 2 stereo 1/4" connectors. One plug for front, one for rear.
Quadraphonic headphones are funny. AFAIK there were dozens of manufacturers during the Quad heyday. Radio Shack and Koss sold a lot. My Pioneer Quad phones are rather nice, the Koss aren't bad either, I have some JVC which sound very cheap. Oddly, all I've seen are 8 ohms. No idea why that would be, as 8 ohm headphones are somewhat rare. Most have a 2 channel / 4 channel switch on them and often a front volume control on each ear.
Your picture Looks a lot like the inside of mine, at first glance I thought it was. There is certainly enough room in either one to do a 2 or 3 way driver layout.
Quadraphonic headphones are funny. AFAIK there were dozens of manufacturers during the Quad heyday. Radio Shack and Koss sold a lot. My Pioneer Quad phones are rather nice, the Koss aren't bad either, I have some JVC which sound very cheap. Oddly, all I've seen are 8 ohms. No idea why that would be, as 8 ohm headphones are somewhat rare. Most have a 2 channel / 4 channel switch on them and often a front volume control on each ear.
Your picture Looks a lot like the inside of mine, at first glance I thought it was. There is certainly enough room in either one to do a 2 or 3 way driver layout.
I left the plastic grills in place. Added some foam on the walls to damp the plastic sound a bit. Filled with polyfill pillow stuffing.
Certainly better, but not brilliant. Still somewhat midrange forward on some albums. Or maybe it's a ringing. Oddly, the trailing off of sounds is very much more obvious, as well as recorded noise at the end of tracks. Gotta measure them.
FWIW, these Peerless drivers are LOUD.
Certainly better, but not brilliant. Still somewhat midrange forward on some albums. Or maybe it's a ringing. Oddly, the trailing off of sounds is very much more obvious, as well as recorded noise at the end of tracks. Gotta measure them.
FWIW, these Peerless drivers are LOUD.
I have un-fond memory of a KOSS "Quad" at 50-100 Ohms. It wasn't much good for "Quad" (we had 4-channel Crown and Teac recorders). It was not convincing for stereo. And drivers burned-out far too easy.
Yes, low-Z was very common in mass-market headphones. In fact I think the first "stereophones" used that same pocket-radio speaker you found in yours, and so did a lot of imitators. KOSS did move to a 50r capsule but not wow! better, and IMHO less robust.
This is a parallel universe to Telco and Professional headphones, which tended to 300r-2k (line impedances) and some of better performance.
I remember when "32 ohms" was about the last thing you would ever find.
> How did 32 ohms become so common for headphones, then?
Two words. Walk. Man.
Figure minimum two penlight cells, 3 Volts DC, 1V AC. Figure much more than 10mW but never 100mW power. 1V in 32 Ohms is 30mW, a fine number for listening to classical while walking or playing tennis. Leaving room for up-market players with four cells or driven-common and >50mW.
Walkman was introduced in the US 40 years ago this June.
Two words. Walk. Man.
Figure minimum two penlight cells, 3 Volts DC, 1V AC. Figure much more than 10mW but never 100mW power. 1V in 32 Ohms is 30mW, a fine number for listening to classical while walking or playing tennis. Leaving room for up-market players with four cells or driven-common and >50mW.
Walkman was introduced in the US 40 years ago this June.
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Ohh boy, I just saw the photos
You wont make them sound good no matter what you do...
Ditch the two drivers design IMO and make your own case out of something, if you have a 3D printer print your case or just use online 3D printing services.
I think these headphones use the similar or the same drivers and sound seriously good. Personally, I would not give the amount of money they are asking for it.
But with the decent Tymphany drivers you have, you don't need anything else to tune the nice sounding headphone.
I definitely won't be giving up the 4 channel set up. The extra channels open up the sound a great deal and help take the sound out of the center of my head. Normal headphones are just too claustrophobic for me, too small sounding. I'm trying for a more open, bigger sound - and I'm getting close.
But it's true that these headphones might never sound great. Not ready to give up yet!
But it's true that these headphones might never sound great. Not ready to give up yet!
I would definitely cut those awful grills in front of the drivers.
Btw, are you using equalizer APO to adjust the channels?
Some headphones do have better presentation of open space than the others.
Ever tried Sennheiser HD800?
Btw, are you using equalizer APO to adjust the channels?
Yes, awful spatial distortion is the biggest deficiency in any headphone. Comes with the territory unfortunately...
Some headphones do have better presentation of open space than the others.
Ever tried Sennheiser HD800?
I've had something out of the HD6xx series, I think. I liked them. I also like my Fostex for the tonal balance, but the 4 channel phones are more fun. Oddly, the Koss which were the first I bought have over/under drivers. Closed works better for me, to keep my music to myself.
I use JRiver to to the up-mix if the source is 2 channel. Or down-mix if it's 5.1. I do have equalizer APO and should try it to up-mix for YouTube and other stuff.
I use JRiver to to the up-mix if the source is 2 channel. Or down-mix if it's 5.1. I do have equalizer APO and should try it to up-mix for YouTube and other stuff.
If this is how you are trying to solve the issue of in-head localization, I'm sorry to say you're barking up the wrong tree. It has long since been proven that multi-driver headphones Do. Not. Work. What you may actually need is HRTF processing, possibly with headtracking thrown in, Smyth Realiser style. Not actually sure what a Realiser A16 costs right now, introductory pricing was under $2000 but things may have gone up since then. They never were cheap but as far as I'm aware it's about the only system that works really well (other headtracking systems typically have the downside of perceptible lag).
JRMC is supposed to offer an "audiophile-grade" crossfeed, whatever that means - better than nothing.
JRMC is supposed to offer an "audiophile-grade" crossfeed, whatever that means - better than nothing.
I do want a Realiser, but it's not in the budget right now. Sure wish I'd known that Scott Wurcer had one before he got rid of it - I'd have bought it from him. I've been trying to DIY one, but with no luck so far. I did hear a generic HRTF version from DTS that worked surprisingly well but it never hit the market.
The Quad phones do, almost, eliminate the in head localization. The sound has moved from all inside my skull to an area about 15cm outside. But I cheat a little with the JRiver Effects that adds some reverb. Sounds more like speakers in a room and I consider that good progress. For me it's much more enjoyable and less fatiguing than normal headphones.
Thanks for the comments, I'll keep banging away at it.
The Quad phones do, almost, eliminate the in head localization. The sound has moved from all inside my skull to an area about 15cm outside. But I cheat a little with the JRiver Effects that adds some reverb. Sounds more like speakers in a room and I consider that good progress. For me it's much more enjoyable and less fatiguing than normal headphones.
Thanks for the comments, I'll keep banging away at it.
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