[en] Alloys of Fe₄₉Co₄₉V₂ (Hiperco Alloy 50) (Hiperco is a registered trademark of CRS Holdings, Inc.), both annealed and thermally aged, were studied using anomalous synchrotron x-ray and neutron powder diffraction. Rietveld and diffraction profile analysis indicated both an increase in the structural order parameter and a small lattice expansion (∼0.0004 A) after aging at 450 degree C for 200 h. In addition, a cubic minority phase (<0.3%) was identified in the open-quote open-quote annealed close-quote close-quote sample, which increased noticeably (0.3%→0.8%) as a result of aging. The presence of antiphase domain boundaries in the alloys was also revealed. These results directly correlate with the observed changes in the magnetization behavior and challenge the notion that a open-quote open-quote fully close-quote close-quote ordered Fe endash Co alloy demonstrates optimum soft magnetic properties. copyright 1996 American Institute of Physics