Getting replacement drivers was indeed troublesome, however by no means impossible. Those who have been modding fostex headphones here on headfi for a long time should know that there are various channels to obtain them, such as through full compass systems or other audio equipment/replacement parts companies. With that being said, while I did at one point use drivers coming direct through foster/fostex, the tediousness of chiseling the drivers out from their baffles and the problems with using replacement drivers that have not been driver matched was becoming an issue, and consistency would become necessary if I were to want to make sure each unit I made was equal to one another. Thus, I would eventually cut out the middleman, and using information I obtained from friends and connections in the industry, I eventually started working with an oem manufacturer and receive supplies directly from them. Having said all of that, while I may have mentioned earlier on in my endeavors that I used fostex drivers, I would eventually begin to phase out that keyword with fostex driver equivalent, and eventually the more generic term "biodynamic driver". I have never tried to mislead anyone and I have generally always operated on a personal level rather than some sort of business entity. I am not some sort of scammer who has acted on false pretenses as some people, who have either acted in bad faith in the past (and there is plenty of evidence of them doing so), or those who do not know me and are simply parroting what they've heard from these bad actors, have claimed.
I initially did not intend on ever selling Philphone. It was made to fill in what I felt I had been missing, having been in the audio hobby for several years and yet never being able to settle or be satisfied with anything I had tried or purchased. Early on, I ran into many problems. I did not have the money or the equipment necessary for me to troubleshoot some things such as channel matching or tuning other than to use my own ears. I had many drivers sitting around at that point and figured that since I had friends with ties in the audio industry, I might as well build a couple of sets and send them to those who could give me measurements and feedback, and to my surprise, these early Philphone prototypes were very well received, and I was encouraged to start making them for others who were interested.
Now here is where the price discrepancies get addressed. At the time (roughly Fall of 2019), I was occasionally making detachable cable mods to fund my hobbies, an MH755 here, a KSC75 there. I was still going to school and I worked a job at the local UPS store. I was nowhere near established or well known enough to start selling any real product, so it wouldn't have made any sense for me to start selling something for too much, right?
So, when people first started catching on about my projects (friends, family, acquaintances), I started out with a price that I considered to have been fair enough for people who liked me and wanted to support what I was doing, and as early adopters. I operated solely based on a community level, and slowly people would come to know of me and my headphones through word of mouth. As time went on, the world was hit with the COVID-19 pandemic. All sorts of costs would go up, whether it be everyday necessities, materials, or shipping. Work hours were cut, and people were made to stay in their homes. As these costs would ramp up, so too did the demand for my headphones and services, so I would eventually come to rely on this as my primary source of income, and the early adopter prices that I initially offered would not suffice for the amount of time, labor, and costs that were required for me to keep everything going.
I hope this helps shed light on some things and that some of the questions that people have been asking about have been answered. Before my aspirations to start my a business to support myself and my family, I am an avid audio community member. All of the support I have been getting so far has been unprecedented, and I will always be grateful for all of my friends in the audio discord and reddit communities, as well as those in the industry. On the other hand, the animosity and vitriol that has been both subtly and unsubtly directed towards me and those who support me has been recognized, but I refuse to let that become an issue for me and I will soon be taking countermeasures towards these threats in order to protect myself. I hope that everyone is getting by well enough in these trying times and I am looking forward to when things will get better.
By the way, I will be attending Canjam SoCal 2022 this year, not as an exhibitor or press but as a regular attendee. So, if you see a random guy carrying around a Philphone that's been painted red, feel free to stop by to say hi!
