I wish there was a high-end KSC75

Submitted by ihaxgamez t3_10n6jxn in headphones

Of all the headphones I have, some of which cost multi-hundreds apiece, I still use the KSC75 frequently. The ear hooks are great for lying in bed and the sound is so pleasant I can listen all day. I just wish it was higher resolution. I would buy a $100 KSC75 Pro with the same tuning and fit but better resolution.

I know I’m asking for an entirely new headphone to be created from scratch, it’s not as simple as I’m making it sound, but I want that product to exist.

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ColdsnapBryan t1_j67jyb5 wrote

I've pretty much endgamed KSC75 even though I've owned summit fit. Things you could try:

Original Grado 325 - higher quality drivers than the current new stuff. Just as clear as the KSC75 but with a bit more technicalities across the FR.

Radioshack Pro 35a (vintage) - Same titanium driver as KSC75 but for some reason it sounds more clear and technical. Only problem is they come with a cable that has a volume adjuster on it that kills clarity, once the cable is replaced they sound much better.

Eta Mini Open 1/2 - https://www.etaheadphones.com/headphone/o2.. I have the Open 1 and it's like a mix between a Porta pro and a Utopia. It's a very, very interesting headphone.

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AM5T3R6AMM3R t1_j67zzv0 wrote

Never seen or heard about these ETA Mini… tell me more, please.

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ColdsnapBryan t1_j69uc43 wrote

They are interesting for sure, I paid $200 for the first generation one and think that was a complete steal. I'm not sure how the $600 ones are in terms of value.

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sverek t1_j679rvg wrote

HD600?

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717x t1_j67jjtj wrote

Crazy you’re still on here lol. Saw you commenting all the time back when I started using Reddit around 2012 (had a different account)

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Solypsist_27 t1_j67uttd wrote

The hd600 is greatly tuned, but the mids are actually quite a bit different. If you check the fr of the headphones on crinacle.com, you will notice the hd600 has some elevation in the 1k area that the ksc75 lacks, added with a slightly laid back "middle-midrange" the ksc75 actually follows the target more closely than the hd600. I've played around with eq with my ksc75 and hd560s, and when eqing the hd560s to the hd600 target, if that's at all what they sound like, they're quite different from the ksc75.

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daddyyeslegs t1_j6hjk8e wrote

Do you mind sharing the EQ settings you use to mimic the hd600? And if possible, where you found the presets/what your process was to get those settings?

I'd love to mess around with my 560s into "demoing" other headphones, seems like a lot of fun.

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Solypsist_27 t1_j6hklb7 wrote

Here's the parametric eq setting I use for "hd560s-to-hd600" :

Preamp: -2.3 dB Filter 1: OFF PK Fc 38 Hz Gain -1.0 dB Q 0.500 Filter 2: OFF PK Fc 42 Hz Gain 0.4 dB Q 2.000 Filter 3: ON PK Fc 80 Hz Gain -0.6 dB Q 1.000 Filter 4: ON PK Fc 120 Hz Gain 1.0 dB Q 2.000 Filter 5: ON PK Fc 180 Hz Gain 1.7 dB Q 0.700 Filter 6: ON PK Fc 3200 Hz Gain 3.7 dB Q 1.800 Filter 7: ON PK Fc 3900 Hz Gain -1.0 dB Q 0.700 Filter 8: ON PK Fc 5600 Hz Gain -5.4 dB Q 1.400 Filter 9: ON PK Fc 8500 Hz Gain 2.6 dB Q 0.500 Filter 10: ON PK Fc 8700 Hz Gain -4.3 dB Q 2.000

The way I make it is through the crinacle headphone graphs tool site, in the equalizer section. To do this, first delete both the target and the headphone graph that comes up when you first open the site, then load in the graph of your headphone first, from the list (it's important that the first graph is that of the headphone you want to eq), then add the "target" headphone graph. Then, in the eq settings, there's a button that says "autoeq", that will match the fr of the first headphones (yours) to the one of the second (the "target"). Before clicking the button, you can add or remove empty filters from the eq settings to make the eq more or less detailed or "specific", even though it's not really that useful since the graphs you're using to do this are not those of your specific headphones, but of those that were graphed by crinacle, so a small amount of unit variance always occurs. Also keep in mind that eqing past 10k becomes unreliable, since the fr depends a lot on the specific headphone placement and the pinna gain of the articifial ear used to create the fr. So dont worry too much about it, and let the autoeq do its magic :)

After the eq is done, go ahead and delete the second headphone from the selection, and then in the eq section click on "export" to have the txt file with the parametric eq settings, like the one I've pasted here. Optionally, there's an option to download a txt file for wavelet, that will work as an autoeq preset once you import it in the app from your downloads.

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Solypsist_27 t1_j6hkphl wrote

Small addition : in the original txt file, there are some line breaks at the end of each "filter settings", which are not displayed here correctly since I'm using the reddit app. I'm not sure of how copying and pasting it will work, but I guess it should be fine, otherwise you can just do the process again by yourself

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daddyyeslegs t1_j6j067h wrote

Wow, thank you for the super detailed answer! Excited to mess around with this

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cap7ainskull t1_j6763f3 wrote

ksc35 . Just use the ksc75 clips and trust me the quality of that monster is insane

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Stig1990 t1_j67srny wrote

I got the Grado rs1 and koss ksc75. I'm thinking about selling the rs1 and just jeep the ksc75... The rs1 does sound better for music but not by a lot imo. For gaming I think the koss is way better.

I feel you.. A better koss ksc75 would be great!

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Coalbus t1_j6f49uz wrote

I was actually shocked how good the KSC75 (with headband) are for gaming. I got accused of X-ray vision in splitgate but the Koss’s are just really good for hearing enemy positions.

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wonko1980 t1_j68b7ux wrote

Get a second KSC75 and do the Kramer mod … I love mine

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kachoo_ t1_j6a9u4g wrote

I'd even 1 up you on this one, I want high end koss PERIOD

I love every product I've bought from koss (maybe an exception here and there), but their engineers are just trolling us at this point. I'm fully convinced that they're acting maliciously on purpose to make the shittiest most fragile headphones as possible. Some of the oversights are so blatant with easy solutions that it's hard to think that it's a coincidence. Kph30i headband failure and KPH40 adhesive failure are all but guaranteed to happen within a year of ownership. 12 months of moderate daily use will break at least 60% of the time if not more.

I know your post is focusing on sound improvements, which I'd like to see improved upon as well, but i'm not throwing over $100 on anything until koss can pull up their pants and get their shit together, regardless of how good they sound.

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ihaxgamez OP t1_j6ail2p wrote

Luckily haven’t had that happen to me, but agreed.

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nahmanidk t1_j6b4dmf wrote

Yea Koss knew PortaPros like to pull people’s hair out and break pretty easily 40 years ago. They have a warranty but it costs money to ship them back, so people just buy a new set instead. I don’t know if it’s more profitable this way. But the fact that they still don’t have removable cables shows they don’t give a shit.

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Xelatsok t1_j67d4s5 wrote

Yuin G2A or G1A if you are lucky to find them bc they are out of production

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Saberknight4x t1_j67lqr3 wrote

I seem to be finding links of them in stock on AliExpress and on penonaudio

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miles971 t1_j67mckx wrote

Gamers spend $100 for a headset, when there’re way better headphones for soundstage and imaging, for half the cost.

Yes all Koss 60ohm drivers.

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FromWitchSide t1_j6c9jog wrote

I don't know about KSC75, but Koss Porta Pro are beyond bad when it comes to soundstage and imagining :P

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miles971 t1_j6cgokn wrote

What hps you tried and has better imaging?

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FromWitchSide t1_j6cn2cp wrote

HD555, HD558, HD595, HD598, HD599, HD600 and more

In the price range crappy SR850 or actually good, used HD430. Even some gaming headsets like crap from Plantronics.

Cheaper I guess even crappy Koss KPH7 which plays with only a narrow band of midrange or, I'm even scared to mention, boxy sounding $3 Shini S-520 seem better. Koss Porta Pro might be the worst one I have ever owned in that regard, although for just "tried" there might be some competition (HD201, Barracuda HP1, cheapest circumaural Philips).

Not to mention earphones, not only cheaper Qigom S300 White Lotus or Paiaudio PR1 destroy it, but even $9 FAAEAL Snow-Lotus 1.0 or $6 Iris Ancestor.

I will give Koss Porta Pro a really nice velvety low end which is usually unavailable for the price, and also low clamp force, but thats it (well treble are actually quite decent when there isn't anything else to interfere), certainly not imagining or soundstage.

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miles971 t1_j6cvx65 wrote

All of the 5-series are known for having decent imaging (same drivers obviously).

I haven’t experienced any of the cheap ones you’ve mentioned, but it’s good to know they’re good options out there.

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ihaxgamez OP t1_j6a1nok wrote

I read all your replies, thanks for the suggestions! I’ll check them out

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fuzeebear t1_j696w2j wrote

KSC75 factory nodded for detachable cables would be nice. Not sure they'd recoup the investment to make that happen though, it's a niche product

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