Skip to main content ↑ ↓

Notice

Please note that most of the software linked on this forum is likely to be safe to use. If you are unsure, feel free to ask in the relevant topics, or send a private message to an administrator or moderator. To help curb the problems of false positives, or in the event that you do find actual malware, you can contribute through the article linked here.
Topic: Koss 'The Plug' Headphones (Read 4251 times) previous topic - next topic
0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Koss 'The Plug' Headphones

First off, I searched the forums a couple of times but was unable to find any thread that already covered this topic.  I apologize if this is an old subject--blame it on me being a n00bie 

Anyways, I'm looking into getting a pair of Koss' "The Plug" headphones, for use with my Iriver IFP-180T and RioVolt SP250.  The Headwize forums describe two different modifications that both improve the sound quality and fit of these plugs.  Has anyone here performed either of these mods, and if so, was/were they worth it?  I'm not too worried about the potential work involved in either method, but more concerned about just how necessary each mod is.

As a reference point, I listen to --alt-preset standard mp3's.  I currently own a pair of Koss KSC50's, and I consider the sound these clips produce to be excellent, especially for portable use.
[span style=\'font-family:Arial\']and god, she created civilization (mlc)[/span]

Koss 'The Plug' Headphones

Reply #1 –
I own The Plugs and have read about the modification, but I have not modded them, so I can't tell you what the benefits are.  If you have any other questions about them, I can probably answer those, though since I bought a pair of Sony D66 Eggos recently, I haven't listened through my Plugs at all.
WARNING:  Changing of advanced parameters might degrade sound quality.  Modify them only if you are expirienced in audio compression!

Koss 'The Plug' Headphones

Reply #2 –
Any thoughts/criticisms of the headphones would be wonderful.  Would you buy them again assuming you didn't have a new pair of Eggos?

I'd just up and grab a pair, what with their being so cheap and all, but $15 is still an investment for a college student 
[span style=\'font-family:Arial\']and god, she created civilization (mlc)[/span]

Koss 'The Plug' Headphones

Reply #3 –
Quote
First off, I searched the forums a couple of times but was unable to find any thread that already covered this topic.  I apologize if this is an old subject--blame it on me being a n00bie  :rolleyes:

Anyways, I'm looking into getting a pair of Koss' "The Plug" headphones, for use with my Iriver IFP-180T and RioVolt SP250.  The Headwize forums describe two different modifications that both improve the sound quality and fit of these plugs.  Has anyone here performed either of these mods, and if so, was/were they worth it?  I'm not too worried about the potential work involved in either method, but more concerned about just how necessary each mod is.

As a reference point, I listen to --alt-preset standard mp3's.  I currently own a pair of Koss KSC50's, and I consider the sound these clips produce to be excellent, especially for portable use.

I have a pair of Radioshack clone (they're identical but w/ the unuseful mute switch) and I have heavily tweaked them  B)
what can I say, it's the funniest and strange pair of earbuds I ever bought    'cause you _really_ can tweak any of the parts, and every mod can change dramatically the sound of them
I think they have very nice drivers w/ very cheap construction, so this is the reason, I think, why so many people do mods on them...
I made these mods:
1. and very important, change the foam plugs w/ a pair of classic yellow noise-block earbuds (naturally u have to make a hole in them)
2. block the ventilation from the little holes on the back of earbud (u have to open it) w/ a piece of sticker
3. put little pieces of foam rear the base of rubber ear-canal (so when u plug it, the foam is fixed)
4. if you can, change the rubber ear canals w/ something harder (it's difficult to find this, but w/ some electrical wire stuff...)

do NOT remove the soft glue that fills the hole in the centre of driver (like a headwize-mod says); I experimented it and the sound became awful (only bass and mid-bass), and use the foam and different types of noise-block cushions for tuning the freq.balance...
now I have a great sounding (for its price) pair of earbuds: basses are tights and well defined, highs are crisp and mids are ok... let's say, mids are a little "backsitted" giving an overall "loudnessy" sound, but w/ rock & pop music this can be an advantage 
in conclusion, a senn mx500 is surely better,ok, but it costs much more, and don't forget the satisfying of reaching better sound through modification   

IMHO worth every eurocent 
ah...I used it w/ my grrrrrreat iriver IMP150  B)
MAX il bYOndo

Koss 'The Plug' Headphones

Reply #4 –
I had a pair of Koss Plugs, listened to them before modding, listened to them after modding, got a pair of Ety 4Ps for my birthday, and sold the Plugs. Are they a good bargain? Yes, if a) you're willing to mod them somewhat and use an EQ to do the rest or B) you're willing to mod them for a fair while until the sound is much more balanced.

Because these suckers use drivers that seem to me (correct me if I'm wrong) like regular earbud drivers, they sound awfully bass-heavy, as "all that sound" gets funnelled directly into your ear canals, whereas the Etymotics simply are much more refined and designed around the premise of the canalphone.

Stock Plugs, I found, were just not up to par. There are a few things that have to be done:
a) make new foamies (I'm sure you can find instructions on doing this)
B) seal the backs (I taped shut the holes behind the driver and even put a very thin slice of foam in-between, although I'm sure that wasn't necessary at all)
c) find some wire (I was lucky enough to find that a particular generic brand of cotton swab which had a plastic mid-section fit perfectly) to extend the length of the canal itself to match the foamies that you make (don't cut short the foamies, as that simply ruins your isolation, and thus your sound) and secure it
d) put a thin slice of something like earpad material (getting cheap replacement earpads is pretty easy) and stretching it across the plastic end of the canal before putting on the rubbery tube works, although it'll take a while to tweak the sound, trust me. Then I put the extension into the rubbery part

Truthfully, I never found the Plugs to be worth it. The bass was always too muffled, the highs were almost non-existent without a fair amount of fixing, and the mids were far from crystal clear. My opinion is that if you want something cheap, go with the Koss KSC-50s, PortaPros or SportaPros. If you can still find them anywhere, the KSC-35s (I'm not sure if that really was the right number, but I'm referring to the model that the 50s replaced) are a better fit and lighter than the 50s, thus leading to a tighter low-end (I owned the 35s and loved them--until I blew the left driver). If you can spare more than $100 USD, then get the Ety 6s, but if money is no object, simply go with the 4Ps with a good portable amp for the maximum sound.

Spending anymore would lead to full-sized headphones, which is, of course, a totally different topic.

Koss 'The Plug' Headphones

Reply #5 –
thanks for the feedback, everyone 

it sounds like the mods are essentially prerequisites to acceptable sound, and after reading Pio2001's recent headphone post, the Plugs seem less and less like a worthwhile investment/project.

again, i appreciate all the help.
[span style=\'font-family:Arial\']and god, she created civilization (mlc)[/span]