Cityle's mods corner

I’m doing a lot of small DIY project/mods since the beginning of the pandemic, and wanted to share a little bit the process of doing them, or just the final product. So I decided to create this thread to document those various projects, as individual build logs would be overkill.

So welcome to my world, where some ideas I have, things I do, can be dubious at best! (but most of the time just lazy-ish)
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I will create different post for each project/ major evolution, but I’m just throwing here a DIY floating nightstand with integrated wireless charging I did several weeks ago. I didn’t really documented this project. Used this guide that I modified to have smaller night stand. Used a stained plank of wood that I had laying around. Sanded down the stain to go back to the original wood, cut the pieces. Then I had the bad idea to just do the openings on the side by hand, because I didn’t knew one of my uncle had a hand router. :sweat_smile: And I carved underneath to place my wireless charger.

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But seriously, I created this thread for headphones projects I’m working at the moment.

I’m refurbishing a Sony MDR-10RBT. It was the first headphone I ever purchased, that I abandon after buying my trustee Audio-Technica ATH-AD900x (could not withstand the sound of the Sonys after having the Audio-Technica). My sister was using it, but at some point the earpads were not staying in place.

The Sonys are using plastic rings with tabs that you’re supposed to keep when swaping earpads, because new earpads would not come with those rings. So at the end several plastic tabs broke with time and the rings could not stay in place anymore.

So I wanted to change that to have a “slide the pad over a lip” mechanism like normal headphones. Did so by using epoxy to create a base for the rings, sanded it, and glued the rings to the headphones.

And at the same time I disassembled the Sony MDR-10RBT

To paint them pink (Krylon Wild Rose + Aluminium)

Need to replace the drivers also, so I’m trying to find cheap decent Audio-Technica ones

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Nice desk mat :grin:

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Thanks ^^

And last entry for an ongoing headphone build. While looking for broken headphones for drivers for the previous headphone project, someone just offered me for free theirs ATH-ADG1X. He said the mic was broken and that it was accumulating dust in a drawer. But to my pleasant surprise, they were pretty much intact. The sole problem I could diagnosed was that the in-line control was just broken.

With those having pretty much the same drivers than my ATH-AD900x, and 50mm drivers being kind of oversized for the Sony MDR-10RBT, I decided to make those my work headphones and to make them bluetooth. :grin:

Sanded down the driver covers, mic swivel and the cups frames to paint them rose gold later on. Looking for a black/rose gold aesthetic.

Was thinking of using the bluetooth logic board from the Sony MDR-10RBT, as my sister never use the bluetooth, but it’s kind of big and would have resulted in a clunky mess inside the headphones, with the green PCB exposed.

So I received today Fiio BTA10, a bluetooth adapter for the ATH-M50x, as I assumed the curve radius would close to the curve radius of the cups frames. It’s close enough. So after some slight using of the vice bench, I was able to pry them open. The internal components are the best scenario I could imagine. Small battery and small logic board that can fit underneath the drivers covers. And the jack and microphone are wired, and not stuck to a PCB, so I can easily wire the drivers and the boom mic of the ATH-ADG1x.

However, When I wanted to lift the electrical tape to unscrew the board, a capacitor (?) broke off… So I will have to solve this problem…

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Cap or inductor?

The picture kinda looks like wire spooled around a core, which would signify inductor. But I can’t really tell.

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Then It would an inductor, as it’s a small wire spooled around a core. I’m not well versed in the board components terminology.

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Replaced the drivers of my sister’s Sony MDR-10RBT with ATH-M50 ones. Got for cheap a broken ATH-M50 (aka someone who didn’t knew how to solder properly and tried to do a detachable cable mod).

The drivers being 45mm, vs the 40mm of the Sony, I removed some material so the driver would sit flush, but not more than that. So the drivers sit higher than the original drivers. All assembled, the sounds seems like cavernous and a little bit distant, with some lack of body.

So I stuffed some cotton behind the drivers to see if it would change something, but does not seems to do much.

Would have maybe continue to work on that, and maybe go with a 40mm ATH-M40x drivers, but my sister like how they sound as-is, so that would be it. :man_shrugging:

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Update of the wireless ATH-ADG1x
I’m changing from my original plan, and I instead mimic a wireless mod of a similar Audio-Technica headphone, using a Fiio uBTR. For this, I’m using the buttons from a iPhone 6 to make the buttons for the headphones. I carved opening in one the cups frame for a USB C connection, power up and power down, and power button.

Then I painted the parts with my defective rose gold spray can, then clear coat for the rings for a matte finish.

I also passed, with some challenge, additional wires in the headband. The bluetooth receiver while be in the left cup, when the headphone jack and mic are on the right side. I’m doing that to keep a weight balance and distribute the clutter.

Therefore, the original 2 cables in the headband will be the LR- and L+ for the left driver, the same as without the mod, when I will use the headphones with the headphone jack.

The 4 additional cables will be for the Bluetooth adapter. 2 cables will be the R+ and LR- for the right driver, and 2 cables while be the MIC+ and MIC- for the mic.

For the mic, I already soldered two pairs of cables to it, one pair while be for the headphone jack, and one pair will be connected to the Bluetooth adapter.


Also, I soldered cables to the iPhone 6 button switch. I noticed I had to remove a thin layer of silicon to be able to solder on the pads next to the switch. It is the smallest soldering job I did but everything works.

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Last paint job of the year, my headphones paint was getting pretty wore down. Used paint for mirror, so normal it didn’t stick that well. Lasted about a year. Now this time the paint is an adequate one.



And also I fix my horrendous soldering job (forgot about that)


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I want to add some personality to my desk because I am finding it too boring/plain. So inspired by Calidrius’ setup, I’m building bookshelves to add to my desk to add some style. At the same time it will allow me do have a floating screen without having to pierce the wall.

I’m using the same leftover wood planks I used for my floating nightstand. Cut them to have my selves, sides and the backpiece. Plus I I crafted a dowel jig to do evenly paced holes on my shelves and side.


When I test fit them, I noticed the wood was too much warped for using only dowels, so had to glue them, but then I glued them leaning :sweat_smile: So I’m redoing the glue at the moment.





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I finished regluing (properly) the bookselves and added the crowns

Some touch up and wood filler for the gaps

Prepared the back plank

And everything assembled

Complete setup here

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I have that thing lol I kind of forgot. :sweat_smile: Well, another small project, I repainted my headphones last weekend. I painted two times in two years and the silver paint doesn’t seem to cut it. It even seems to react with the oil of the hands. So I painted the heaphones the same colour as my Gamecube and joycons. Barely had enough paint left in the can.




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