DonModded YH-100s

Very cool , I had actually thought of sending them back to Tak first but then I knew you wouldn't have them over the holidays. Still blows me away what 30 year old headphones can sound like..dB

 

I want them!

 

What is the Don mod? I have a stock YH100. Looking for modding ideas.

 

It is not a single mod , rather an approach to modifying these to achieve a set endpoint. Not all drivers are identical and from having played with about a dozen of these, no single fix works for them all. I never took pictures of this process but it is conceptually similar to most all other orthodynamic mods. ( the master of saying everything yet nothing at all )

..dB

 

Is that a Cylon powering them?

 

My experience has been the same. There is enough variability in these vintage headphones that no single mod works for all of them. Its more about the modding approach that we have learnt over years constantly tweaking these headphones,learning from the HF ortho thread, getting to know the effects of various materials and being able to foresee their effects and then just using the old 'trial and error' method to get the end result we were aiming for.

 

I was planning to start with changing the pads before cracking them open. Anyone ever try velour pads on the yh100 or the hp/yh 1?

 

The one thing you dont want to do is change the pads. The trick is to know where the screws are and gently push up the edges of the pad with a small flat screwdriver to expose them. There were guides on the ortho thread but Ludo's search tool is not updated.

Also try not to change the cable.

..dB

 

Okay thanks, good to know. Why shouldn't the pads be changed? I thought that the velours might bring down the bass and perhaps give the high end more air? I never sent my modded T20RPmkii for measurements, but to my ears, after replacing the pads with the HM5 velours, The mid bass was subdued and the upper treble really became present. Thanks for your reply. I'll start going through the giant ortho thread at HF.

 

Why?

 

You tease!!!

I'll grab these the first chance I get at the meet next week!

 

Pads - The flat worn out pads actually give these headphones a sense of soundstage. Most of my experience with on / over ear pads reduce this significantly and it changes the overall presentation of the headphone - not necessarily bad but not what I would look for knowing what they can sound like with stock pads.

Wire - this is probably more voodoo than science but there have been several experiences where the subtle bass texturing is lost but more resolution is gained in the mid - upper midst. I don't mind the mids a little more "grainy"/"organic" along with the bass detail. That said , my first pair had such perished wiring that I had little choice and I wired them with mogami starquad and loved the results.

@zero - if you want to recalled them, happy to do it too. If you have someone to do it - just make sure they open them gently / carefully.

..dB