Just got two pair of KSC75's for $20 on Amazon...think they will be good for the family!


(I didn't see the KSC35 as available.)   

Yeah, I think you can get the KSC35 drivers if you get the Sporta Pros, though you might be able to buy them directly from Koss. Closer to $45  tho

Bingo the sporta is the unsung deal here. Personally I prefer the 75 drivers on the sporta band as the band is malleable enough to bend into a terrific fit. Sometimes cheap works!

On the driver front. Here is the deal with which model uses what.
the KSC 75 and KTXPRO1 both use the same titanium coated driver.
The Porta Pro (Actually this is the PortaPro Jr. from 1985, but the Senior model died a quick death back then) the KSC 35 and the Sporta Pro all use the same driver. There are various colour  differences but the driver and enclosure are all the same.

The only one I never owned is the KTXPRO1 and they are up for 17.99 locally so I might pick up a pair just to see how the Koss headband works with the 75 drivers.

I would be extremely curious to see a Porta Pro CSD overlaid on a Sporta Pro CSD to see what actual difference the vented vs non vented back makes. It is certainly audible enough.

I will guarantee you those drivers are the same. The question that has really been nagging more than a few folks is why they sound soo much different as a clip or sporta. Thats why I am curious to see overlaid CSD charts of the brood.

I find no shrillness with the 75/Sportaband combo, but that may well be due to the amount of bending I put into getting the band where I like it and having the temple pads actually do something.  I tried the partsexpress type (I bought a bag O' headphones awhile back and there were a few with that headband) but found it did not clamp quite as well.
One thing I have not tried for who knows what reason is the actual Porta Pro band. I should give that a kick and report back on how that sounds.
 
It's funny when you look at the Koss site, for the price of a pair of 35's and shipping, you can hit the local box store and buy 2 pairs of Sporta Pros.

I have tried the (blue) drivers of the PortaPro on the KSC35 clip and the (black) SportaPro drivers on the KSC35 clip. The drivers can be pulled off easily and clicked in the other headbands/ear clip.
Problem is auditive memory is short and swapping takes time.
Personally all 3 drivers I could not tell apart on the KSC35 clip.
On the SportaPro clip they were all  sounding on the PortaPro just slightly less compared to the KSC35.
I would say the differences are marginal at best with MY 3 versions.

The reason the same drivers sound different is because (in my case) the KSC35 'seals' the best as they are pressed against my ears.
In the PortaPro band they rest against my head and as the drivers can tilt and have some depth adjustment can sit reasonably well against my ear.
The SportaPro headband, however, is quite rigid and because of this they do not 'seal' well against my ears making them sound bass shy and a bit shrill.

Of course with on-ears and clip types the 'seal' you get is VERY dependent on the SHAPE of the pinnae and thus also the sound. IMO the major reason why some find the 75/35 to sound best and others the PortaPro

I can hear slight differences between the 35 and 75 (didn't swap clips between those) but blame it on the way they are pressed against my ear (KSC75 is more pleasant over longer periods due to the 'adjustable' pressure of the silicone clip. Differences might also be from driver type (the membranes are not exactly the same as one of them is titanium 'flashed' after all)

Quote from: Solderdude on May 16, 2013, 09:41:57 PM

I have tried the (blue) drivers of the PortaPro on the KSC35 clip and the (black) SportaPro drivers on the KSC35 clip. The drivers can be pulled off easily and clicked in the other headbands/ear clip.
Problem is auditive memory is short and swapping takes time.
Personally all 3 drivers I could not tell apart on the KSC35 clip.
On the SportaPro clip they were all  sounding on the PortaPro just slightly less compared to the KSC35.
I would say the differences are marginal at best with MY 3 versions.

The reason the same drivers sound different is because (in my case) the KSC35 'seals' the best as they are pressed against my ears.
In the PortaPro band they rest against my head and as the drivers can tilt and have some depth adjustment can sit reasonably well against my ear.
The SportaPro headband, however, is quite rigid and because of this they do not 'seal' well against my ears making them sound bass shy and a bit shrill.

Of course with on-ears and clip types the 'seal' you get is VERY dependent on the SHAPE of the pinnae and thus also the sound. IMO the major reason why some find the 75/35 to sound best and others the PortaPro

I can hear slight differences between the 35 and 75 (didn't swap clips between those) but blame it on the way they are pressed against my ear (KSC75 is more pleasant over longer periods due to the 'adjustable' pressure of the silicone clip. Differences might also be from driver type (the membranes are not exactly the same as one of them is titanium 'flashed' after all)

I don't even need to press the free drivers against the ear to hear the drastic bass difference between my PortaPro driver and Ksc35 ones. The bass/lower mids just drowns out everything with the portapro driver even when it's hovering against the ear, completely different from the Ksc35 driver which has tons more clarity and less bass/lower mids. It's not even a matter of short-term auditory memory / swapping time, they are starkly different-sounding to me. Heck even the Ksc75s sound closer to my Ksc35 drivers than the Portapros ones.

I am not hearing the difference bare bones (no band no earclip just pressed against the ears). I wonder if there is something else at play here. Perhaps Koss modifying the drivers over time? Manufacturing defect in the grilles? I'm gobsmacked.