DIY Audio Discussion - Headphone and Gear Mods

DIY Audio & Modifications
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In August 2022 I bought a Korg Nutube evaluation board:

Nutube 6P1 02
Nutube 6P1 021920×1440 319 KB

It’s a pain in the neck to use a bare electronics board resting on bubblewrap, so I made an open-format sandwich case:

Korg with Case 01
Korg with Case 011920×1441 387 KB

Korg with Case 02
Korg with Case 021152×1535 475 KB

Korg with Case 03
Korg with Case 031920×1054 227 KB

Functions and Wood Cutouts: I considered cutting a large square hole in the top, but realized this wood is very thin and easily warps or breaks. So, I switched to making only necessary holes. These include:

  1. A rectangular view port for the Nutube – it lights up and serves as a power indicator too
  2. A large oval for the left and right tube distortion level knobs – they each click into four positions
  3. A small oval hole to reach the Nutube activation / bypass switch.

The main power switch is shown in the last photo, along with the L and R output jacks and volume matching pot.

Costs and Materials: About $10 for a craft board and rubber feet, and I have another $10 in a box of brass hex hardware (but used only a fraction for this project). I already had a lot of tools and materials on hand, including my prior Bottlehead Crack black walnut dye, charcoal, linseed oil wood finishing brew. I darkened all the hardware with bluing paste, and this turned the brass brown.

Build Notes:

  • Critical viewers will see my wobbly lines, as I did this with an electric hand drill and Dremel-style tool. I cut the craft board pieces by hand with a box cutter (they are very thin). Everything was hand fit to the Korg board using cut-and-try, and I had to cut relief areas under the top where the caps stick up to level the top wood.
  • Hobby store craft boards don’t hold finishing details well. This wood is dyed and oiled – I was going for a vintage and organic style rather than the plastic look of modern poly finishes. I sanded several times with 3000 grit paper, and it looks a lot better than it did previously.
  • Once upon a time I was critical of open build cases, but realized they are a lot better than no case at all. The evaluation board arrived with four drilled holes perfect for a Raspberry Pi style hex sandwich, and I struggled to find a commercial case that would fit but not be too bulky.

Bonus: I found a microfiber cloth to match my avatar photo!

5 Likes
22

Another topic to revive

So I was reading @system 's review panning the Sennheiser HD-660 S2, and noted some references to the drivers that Senn used in them. And saw that there had been a new line developed in the early 2000s. And that the drivers in my old original HD-580s not only predate that, but apparently are similar to those still used in the HD-650.

(Harrrumph - but the 580 sure doesn’t have the detail or anything else as nice as the 600 or 650…)

I really don’t listen to the 580s - maybe once a year. They’re boring, and I almost always have something better in every way.

and then I thought …

I wonder if there are replacement drivers available for the HD800S, and would those fit in the 580, perhaps with the help of some soft UV resin???

Now that would be a fun project. For those with actual knowledge… Is this feasible? It would be a hoot to have old 580s that sound good.

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I see Senn won’t sell the driver assembly in the US, but I have found it online and the shop will ship.

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IIRC, some of the 800’s improvements over the 600 came from cup size. Does size equate to finer control over nuances? Bigger is better?

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I was just going to comment that is such a MCP attitude, and you did it for me…

But you get to a basic question - will the 800S driver fit in the HD-580 Precision?

I was just able to trick CoPilot into telling me that the HD-580 drivers are about 40mm and the HD-800S are 56mm. I suggested a 3D printed adapter, but with that degree of difference, I suspect there would be cutting also. I’ll have to measure the 580s when I’m next in State College where I keep them.