Miracles in Audio, by luck, by good choices,by design or by tweaking...


I owned a low cost headphone for many years, the Fostex TH7B, first version( a new one close version exist Fostex TH7BK), semi-open headphone...I was never completely satisfied by any headphones I ever owned: Hifiman 400, Stax basic lamda, Stax 5 gold,Akg 340,Akg 701, beyerdynamic 990, and T150... Because in each of them with all their qualities I never listen to at the same times, a confortable headphone with natural timbre and voicing, with a good imaging and a realistic soundstage(not too close to my ears)...


For the last days I tweaked this Fostex, to damp his internal resonance I used sorbothane, I put some shungite stones at the exterior part of the cups and I use some Herkimer diamond in the interior pads( 3 at 120 degree) … Now this low cost headphones crush all my others if I sum all his qualities... For example his mids and voicing cannot beat the AKG 340 but among all my other headphones it is the best that is near that mids and it is more confortable, and with longer cable than the 340...His imaging is better and more realistic than the 340 etc etc...It is the same if I compare with the others...


His most important qualities is natural timbre and clear imaging,very precise pinned point accuracy and natural, so clear it crush for that ALL the others to dust...In the French audio circle the reviews were more than very positive few years ago...Diapason d’or and choc Classica...I am not the only one impressed buy the ratio quality/price... But remember that thesae reviewers dont tweak their headphone...The difference between before and after the tweaks are staggering...


Yes Miracles happens in Audio: cost is under 100 American dollars... Few years ago they cost me 50 bucks new... I never dreamed that I will go back to headphones...


I will enjoy your miracles stories of any kind ….My best to all...
128x128mahgister
Having the advantage of coming from the future I think I can say without fear of contradiction that the statements such as the room is a component or the room is part of the system don’t go nearly far enough. They are truisms, I don’t think you’re going to get too much argument about those statements. But, hang on to your hats 🧢 - in reality the 🔜 entire world 🔙 is part of the system. The sound of a system is influenced by obvious external factors like time of day, day of week, weather, traffic, radio and tv and cell phone signals AND by 🔜 information fields 🔙 that - unlike radio signals - do not (rpt not) attenuate over distance. Thus, some classes objects around the world affect the sound of YOUR system. And connections to external sources of communications themselves are BAD for the sound as well as books, magazines, your CDs and LPs themselves are BAD for the sound. Ironic, no? Yes, I realize these ideas are new and maybe weird but remember, I’m from the future.
I think that you are right G.K. but we must begins somewhere and addressing smaller problems than the " all external factors" that’s are at play in sound perception... And beginners like i was not long ago dont know this truth that is self evident for you about room-speakers-ears...And last but not least I can speak only of what I experiment myself to begins with like any beginners...My best to you...
One remark about my "singing resonators" grid set of ten quincunx or sextile buckets...

My room is relatively small 14 feet by 14 feet and 11 feet high...I think that in a way bigger room my metal buckets resonators would be less efficient to controls the imaging and way less spectacular if working...Then take that into account in the equation...My best to all...