Fostex T50RP

[Za'afiel]

I was able to get my hands on a brand new pair last night. This isn't mine though. I'm doing burn-in duty for this one.

From the owner's manual (Japanese/English):

Fostex RP Technology

Outstanding features (shortened):

1. RP Diaphragm / copper foil etched poly imide film / 3000mW / neodymium magnet
2. Professional monitoring
3. Single detachable cable
4. High-grade ear pads and head bands
5. Dampened semi-open design / extended low frequency / clear mid/treble

Specs:

Damped semi-open RP dynamic
15-35kHz
50Ω
98dB/mW
100mW rated
3000mW max
133dB
390g
3m

These are still available on Amazon and B&H for less than $100 including CONUS shipping. JAC fees will clock in at around $20. That's $120 all in for a solid, studio-standard pair of orthodynamic headphones.

I seem to also have gotten the same new pads as dogears 2010 pair. So unboxing is pretty much exactly the same as doggy's. For reference, here's dogears' T50RP (v2) thread: http://www.headphiles.org/index.php/topic,617.0.html. Even the way the plastic wraps around the headphones is similar.

Since this isn't mine, no modifications allowed!

Impressions after 5 hours (HM-101>MiniMAX): Highly detailed, laid-back presentation, warm, wide headstage, non-fatiguing highs.

[RexAeterna]

awesome. i just scored a pair off of ebay for 53 bucks. it's used and slight tear on the right ear pad on the outside from owner trying to force the earpad back on but not very noticeable and so forth which is cool by me. i wasn't expecting to win the bid to be honest. i just did it out of spite since i been interested in pair for several months now but they were always out of stock or going for way above msrp. so i decided not to bother and started collecting all the AKG 240 models i possibly can instead.

finally won a pair though and for a good price. since it's coming from the same state i should get it within couple days hopefully. don't know if i'll plan on modding it at all and might use it strictly with my ipod.

[kenrs1]

awesome. i just scored a pair off of ebay for 53 bucks. it's used and slight tear on the right ear pad on the outside from owner trying to force the earpad back on but not very noticeable and so forth which is cool by me. i wasn't expecting to win the bid to be honest. i just did it out of spite since i been interested in pair for several months now but they were always out of stock or going for way above msrp. so i decided not to bother and started collecting all the AKG 240 models i possibly can instead.
finally won a pair though and for a good price. since it's coming from the same state i should get it within couple days hopefully. don't know if i'll plan on modding it at all and might use it strictly with my ipod.

Congrats 8)you're the one that bought the fostex just finish this morning, any diff between T50RP pro and T50RP MKII?

[dogears]

v1 and v2 is only the pads. so this should be v2 as well. congrats! let the tweaking commence

[RexAeterna]

yea,that's all i heard is the pads are different. i be testing them off speaker outputs of my 1979 kenwood kr-720 receiver(only receiver i have currently since both my sansui and yamaha crapped out on me so they need to get repaired) cause i have a little DIY female 1/4'' TRS connector to speaker output post box i made originally for my pioneer monitor 10's to be used off of speaker outputs without the need of re-cabling them.

[The Mistress]

Allow me to repost my impressions 

quick Fostex T50RP Impressions:

Build quality is very very durable yet lightweight. The rubber headband is very thick with what I felt is an embedded piece of metal inside. Pads are very comfortable, and the cups are easily adjustable using the copper bands. There's minimal to no pain or stress from prolonged wear. My gripe (and a positive thing at the same time) is the difficulty in detaching the cable from the headphones. Until now I can't unplug it (yes I am aware I have to twist it before unplugging  )

Just like how the Grados wowed me, the T50RP made me scream expletives at amazement. Okay, I'm exaggerating. 
But seriously, the Ariels have this amazing sound detail in them. Listening to Maaya Sakamoto's birthday Budokan concert (blu-ray rip, mkv video container at 720p resolution, AAC audio container), I was able to clearly recognize and separate the instruments playing on-stage. Maaya's voice was definitely divine. Slapping in some Dragonforce and Craig David tracks, I noticed that the Bass is present, but a bit on the thin side, just like my AKG K240S. Despite that, the clarity and the detail was simply the best I've had, next to the Grados or at par with it.

Perhaps the one problem with the Ariels is the cloudiness of the sound. That's the first thing you'll notice when using the Ariels. The sound feels "pushed back." However, unlike other muddy/cloudy cans out there, no detail is sacrificed, which makes listening still very much enjoyable. I noticed that the cloudiness is much more present when I connect it with my iPod+P4V2 setup. There was less of this when I connected the Ariels directly to my PC's headphone out. Perhaps the dark-sounding sig of the iPod contributes to this too?

With the Ariels in my lineup now, I don't think I can use the A-T SJ55 or the Philips SHP895 anymore. The SJ55 had this veiled sound sig that I did not really like, while the Philips were tiring to listen to after quite some time. I still cycle between the Grados, Slux 668b and the AKG from time to time.

Suffice to say, I'm enjoying my listening time using the Ariels.

And no, I won't be modding this in anyway. 

My 2 cents

there you go xD

[RexAeterna]

i got mine in this morning and done some listening.

first impression on how they look was,is they clearly look much better in person compared to seeing them in pictures. they are built very well also. the pads are thin and soft..only thing i did not like.

i tested them just straight headphone jack of my amp and i only get any sort of volume out of them with dial past 1 o' clock...these are hard to drive despite their 98db claim. i then hooked them up to my DIY 1/4'' TRS to speaker output box and hooked it to the speaker outputs of my amp. much much better. barely can get to 9 o' clock and better clarity and bass response. midrange though suffered from cup resonance i noticed right away and had a warmness to them. the bass was tight and the treble and air frequencies were amazingly real. the cymbals,hi-hats,ect sound real with no artificial sizzle with any type of graininess that most dynamics do.

when i first bought them though i hated how they touched my ears. i tried stuffing them with cotton to push them out but they kept falling off,so i took my sextetts leather pads off and put them on the fostex and stuffed with cotton. much better clarity and resonance tamed down a bit in the midrange but still was warm and not natural sounding to me and the slight resonance was getting to me after hour of listen,so i took the cups and stuffed them with cotton balls and wow what a major change in sound. the clarity increased across the spectrum,no more warmness in the midrange and cleaned up with amazing clarity,bass tighten as well. i was shocked by the major improvement i had experience. the cups had zero dampening material in them...nothing at all. no wonder they suffered greatly from resonance issues. simple stuffing solved everything and now they are crazy good! i love them now. best 53 bucks i spent.

 

[dogears]

^Comparisons please TIA.

[RexAeterna]

with what? my sextetts? i actually plan on doing some but after dampening these and changing the pads it's hard to take them off now. i got them to sound clean the way i want them to. fostex has amazing drivers in these. they just suffer from major cup resonance and pads are way too thin for me and pretty horrible. drivers were touching my ears.

[dogears]

With anything, heehee. The sextett would be a very good benchmark
People at hf.org are getting very good results with Shure 840 pads

[RexAeterna]

yea or the stax o2 pads. i would like to get them instead. so far i'm getting good results with my 240 pads. plan on getting fiberglass or mineral wool and replacing the cotton balls inside. i should get much better results with that. i don't think i'll plan on making any new cups for them since i find the current stock enclosure fine but has no dampen material in it at all.

i still wasn't expecting much from these but all the hype of them and what extra dampen can do to these actually lives up to it. i just thought they were full of it haha but they were right this time around. the drivers inside that fostex use are amazing but the cup enclosure is horrible with no dampening at all.

[RexAeterna]

compared to my sextetts lp real quick on my speaker outputs of my kenwood kr-720 amp. fostex were running off speaker outputs as well. i was so shocked and couldn't explain it but the fostex had better clarity than my sextets lp. there is more noticeable air and detail on the fostex as well. bass much leaner and tighter. not accentuated in  between the mid-bass and lower cloud region like my sextetts lp are cause they give much more bass impact. midrange clarity is much better on the fostex as well and has amazing midrange detail. can't explain it but i didn't realize how much potential these headphones have. planer drivers are defiantly showing what they can do on these. this all just from swapping the pads and stuffing the cups with cotton balls as well that improved the fostex greatly.


right now in a bit gonna do quick comprehension against 240DF. i always make it quick cause i only need five minutes or so cause i hear difference immediately with speakers and headphones and can hear what i like and don't pretty quickly.  just not great at explaining what i hear cause i don't know those fancy audiophile terms and only know what: sub-bass,bass,mid-bass,lower-cloud,upper-cloud,lower-mid,midrange,upper-mid,treble,top and air are from a pro audio terms.

 

[dogears]

It's no hype that I can assure you
Cloud?!
I haven't using my tweaked Golden Pawstex for quite some time now Been using my stock Silver Pawstex (with double stock pads) most of the time plugged into my Dared MP5 I don't mind if the bass is not so deep --- this way it sounds very natural. Very musical setup

[RexAeterna]

i'm pretty accustomed to actual dampened bass so i know what's so to heard and felt. bass is suppose to be different on headphones as well compared to speakers. i think most still don't know what real bass is like it seems . what is silver pawstex? never heard of it.

i found some mineral wool from some old speakers i had,cut it up and stuffed in the ear cups with cotton over the mineral wool, and it certainty did make a difference even more. these are my new favorites right next to my 240DF's. after completely eliminating resonance and putting new pads on these have so much speed,air and detail it's pretty ridiculous. the bass is super detailed and tight as well like my df's and the clarity is as good too. i also threw in some my favorite sub-bass tracks from DJ fury and Young Jeezy(God i hate that name lol) and it has great extension down to 20hz and doesn't accentuate and part of sub-bass,bass,mid-bass,lower-cloud(150hz),upper-cloud(250hz) at all.  these are really great and make one hell of a studio headphone after damped. i haven't tested them on my ipod yet since i can't find the plug so i do not know how effcient they are but they can handle lots of power....i mean lots of it cause i have them driven off of speaker outputs.

gonna rewire these in the near future with a balanced 4-pin XLR like rest of my headphones. they have great imagery and pretty expansive soundstage after you give the cups better absorption but i think making them balanced might improve them more maybe and will eliminate cross-talking.   

[dogears]

silver = t40rp2
'gold' = t50rp2
pawstex = dogears' tweaked fostex