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
My last controls installation for the last month gives me something new and never experienced by me before....

Really the listening position at regular distance (8 feet and few inches) my lazy-boy chair extended and my ears at equal height with my tweeters, is on par with the nearfield position (3 feet)...

A bit more detailed in nearfield, but more pulsating in regular position, i listen to incredible bass for a 7 inches driver.... My room is so tightly controlled after these 2 years of mutiple listening experiments than i enjoy bass that i feel with my body.... Mission cyrus 781 speakers was very well known for their good bass and it is true....( No the walls dont vibrate but i dont need that to listen to cello or even organ )

If the 3 embeddings are Key of audio experience, the acoustic embedding is the more spectacular one.... People upgrade without knowing that at all....

A "reviewer" even say to me not long ago that acoustic controls importance are exagerated ! Think about that and think why he said so.... Because he was blinded by top of the line costly electronics, and never feel any lack in his own room... But someone who has never explore acoustic controls has no way to imagine what he lost by not doing so.... Believe me acoustic is the more important part of audio....Especially when your system is low cost.... People with high cost system feel that they are there in the top spot, without knowing better.... It is an illusion, electronic design matter, but much less than acoustic....
UPDATE

"Twin fans combing sound room enhancer"

For few days now i listen to my room in nearfield and regular position, with 2 fans beside (2feet) each speakers, and 2 other fans firectly in front of them each side of my listening chair 8 feet from them...

Each 4 fans are modified with a cone bell or 2 in the center with a small and also a bigger herkimer diamond in the center of the metal plate enclosure...

Boy! for the price paid( i already owned them for the summer and for years) the acoustic is now , at last, to my absolute liking....

I liked it before, but the nearfield position was my best... Now the 2 positions being slightly different are never mind on par ....

For peanuts ANYBODY can transform his room, i prove it here....Be creative, dont listen to anybody except your ears...

You will know when you would reach the top of the mountain because it is no more possible to stop any music .....

Enjoy the sound, listen to the music we need it in this darkest hour....

My best to all....

I cannot imagine now how i will improve that except by upgrading .... But i dont have the money and frankly it is no more a need born of frustation...

I am happy like never, my dream of Hi-Fi comes true....

I am proud of myself....

I wish to all the same fun i had.... Thanks for reading my rants....
update:

"Twin fans combing sound room enhancer"


I replace the big Herkimer Diamond 334 inch stck with nano one in the plumbers cone bell cap in the center of the enclosure of the fans...

I just recived some by the mail... :)

Small H. D. are more powerful than the big one for sound.... Better higer frequencies resonance....

my best....    
Update

"Twin fans combing sound room enhancer"


In audio listening experiments are the ONLY way....

I made a mistake replacing the 2 little herkimer diamonds stick on the 2 fans in front of the speakers by some nano one...

The little one seems to gives more details but the sound is less well textured in de mid frequencies...There is no more details with them, it is an illusion... Then i replace by the 2 H.D. sticks... Immediate relief the sound very well textured in the mids frequencies the most... No lost anywhere...Evident comparison with the same files with bass piano and xylophone...(Renee Rosnes trio "beloved of the sky")

That was the good initial formula....

Question to all :
Why the replacement of 2 nano H.D. by 2 sticks 3/4 inch makes a so great audible impact in a room?

Dont work too hard to answer....

The professional passive negative one will have already their unique answer ready: placebo...

The more serious one probably dont have any answer, even the acoustical engineer.... If not, i want to hear one answer about that....


mahgister,

i just read through most of this thread. Quite  the Journey. I am a fan of maximizing what you have. I have replaced many of the internal components within my audio gear with better quality and found the results to be worthwhile. I may try some of these tweaks as well. 
Mostly I just wanted to say one of my goals in life is to be a consummate gentleman- a goal you have clearly already reached. Thanks for being a benchmark for the rest of us.