Headphoneus Supremus Prolificus: Head-Fi's most prolific poster.
Hmm, have 300 very happy folks over the span of 20 years who have achieved the last 1% of satisfaction in our hobby, or have thousands of happy folks who've never heard something as great as the SR60. If John wants to spend his time appealing to a wide group of folks, introducing them to great sound, versus busting his arse to satisfy a small group of folks for the elusive golden ring (look at Qualia, they spent tons on that and imho it still doesn't beat the HE90), I think John's goal of spreading the love is perfectly fine. And he gets to spend time with his family to boot, can't beat that!
Hmm, have 300 very happy folks over the span of 20 years who have achieved the last 1% of satisfaction in our hobby, or have thousands of happy folks who've never heard something as great as the SR60. If John wants to spend his time appealing to a wide group of folks, introducing them to great sound, versus busting his arse to satisfy a small group of folks for the elusive golden ring (look at Qualia, they spent tons on that and imho it still doesn't beat the HE90), I think John's goal of spreading the love is perfectly fine. And he gets to spend time with his family to boot, can't beat that!
Very true
(Sorry, not much else to say but I definitely agree.)
:rs1smile:,
Abe
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He mentioned how he has demo'd the SR60's and the RS-1's to folks and there are plenty who can't hear the difference. Not that they would never be able to, but that they were completely content with the SR60's and walked away super happy. This is a testament to how good he has made the SR60's sound for their price.
That was why I was so impressed by the SR-80. I listened to my friends RS-1's, and was literally stunned by how good they sounded. So I said what the heck and went out and got some SR-80's (in my 'impulse buy' price range). I was totally impressed by how similar they sounded (from my memory of the sound, didn't do a direct comparison), with the same 'alive' or as others would say 'fun' sound. The fact that it was had for $80+tax (on sale at CSW), I had no regrets.
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Originally Posted by Zanth
The retro styling though is one that I think will be sticking around. They are completely unique in the market place, they are renowned for it (love or hate it) and they certainly fit the need of many.
I hope so. I think that is why Grado's have so much appeal. They look different and sound different. For me the 'different' is also a good thing. They both look and sound unique, and honestly I love them.
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Originally Posted by Zanth
I wouldn't want (personally) to just have an even more refined HP-1000. Some of course would
Nah, just let me score some old HP-2's(or HP-3's) and I would be happy. :rs1smile:
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Originally Posted by Tyson
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Zanth - As I previoiusly mentioned, I have an RS-1/RA-1 setup, and I love the Grado sound that it produces. In fact, I listen to the RS-1 for more hours than any of my other headphones, and I also find it to be the lightest and most comfortable of my headphones. But, IMO the RS-1's sound is not as good as that of the K1000, and not nearly as good as that of the R10. As for my repeated descriptions of the HE90 as the world's best headphone, I reached this conclusion as a consequence of reading lots of Head-Fi postings. I've actually never heard an HE90. As for our Head-Fi membership comprising only a very small base of Grado and other manufacturers' clientele, that may be true, but we comprise a really good statistical sample of what headphone users like. My suggestion remains, that John Grado delegate the responsibility to develop a new headphone (possibly an integrated electrostat/dynamic one that matches or exceeds the performance of the big O headphone, but at a lower price. During development of such a headphone, I suggest that the Grado person in charge should frequently listen to an HE90, in order to evaluate their new Grado headphone's performance. My personal interest is to promote having an HE90-quality headphone brought to market at a cost that's less than $3.5K. As part of my effort to achieve this end, I've forwarded written appeals to Sennheiser Corp., and to Grado Corp. through the vehicle of this thread, and also shortly to Koss Corporation. So far, I haven't had any clear response.
Zanth - As I previoiusly mentioned, I have an RS-1/RA-1 setup, and I love the Grado sound that it produces. In fact, I listen to the RS-1 for more hours than any of my other headphones, and I also find it to be the lightest and most comfortable of my headphones. But, IMO the RS-1's sound is not as good as that of the K1000, and not nearly as good as that of the R10. As for my repeated descriptions of the HE90 as the world's best headphone, I reached this conclusion as a consequence of reading lots of Head-Fi postings. I've actually never heard an HE90. As for our Head-Fi membership comprising only a very small base of Grado and other manufacturers' clientele, that may be true, but we comprise a really good statistical sample of what headphone users like. My suggestion remains, that John Grado delegate the responsibility to develop a new headphone (possibly an integrated electrostat/dynamic one that matches or exceeds the performance of the big O headphone, but at a lower price. During development of such a headphone, I suggest that the Grado person in charge should frequently listen to an HE90, in order to evaluate their new Grado headphone's performance. My personal interest is to promote having an HE90-quality headphone brought to market at a cost that's less than $3.5K. As part of my effort to achieve this end, I've forwarded written appeals to Sennheiser Corp., and to Grado Corp. through the vehicle of this thread, and also shortly to Koss Corporation. So far, I haven't had any clear response.
Moderator Headphoneus Supremus: Moderator and SHAman who knew of Head-Fi ten years prior to its existence
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikeg
Zanth - As I previoiusly mentioned, I have an RS-1/RA-1 setup, and I love the Grado sound that it produces. In fact, I listen to the RS-1 for more hours than any of my other headphones, and I also find it to be the lightest and most comfortable of my headphones. But, IMO the RS-1's sound is not as good as that of the K1000, and not nearly as good as that of the R10. As for my repeated descriptions of the HE90 as the world's best headphone, I reached this conclusion as a consequence of reading lots of Head-Fi postings. I've actually never heard an HE90. As for our Head-Fi membership comprising only a very small base of Grado and other manufacturers' clientele, that may be true, but we comprise a really good statistical sample of what headphone users like. My suggestion remains, that John Grado delegate the responsibility to develop a new headphone (possibly an integrated electrostat/dynamic one that matches or exceeds the performance of the big O headphone, but at a lower price. During development of such a headphone, I suggest that the Grado person in charge should frequently listen to an HE90, in order to evaluate their new Grado headphone's performance. My personal interest is to promote having an HE90-quality headphone brought to market at a cost that's less than $3.5K. As part of my effort to achieve this end, I've forwarded written appeals to Sennheiser Corp., and to Grado Corp. through the vehicle of this thread, and also shortly to Koss Corporation. So far, I haven't had any clear response.
I'm glad you enjoy the RS1/RA1 combo. Definitely light on the head. Quite comfortable for me as well. As for the K1000's, R10's or HE90's being overall better, if the RS-1 were paired with the Ear HP4 for instance, perhaps you would feel differently. Not that I'm saying you will instantaneously feel they jump to some super level that the others are apparently on, but that you will be getting the most out of the headphones. Regardless, there are many who feel the RS-1's are already better, so the sample size here may not be a good one, particularly because we don't represent a diversified demographic. We are predominantly male, predominantly younger, predominantly more educated, more discerning etc.
This is definitely not a typical overall market. If Grado were to sell in Best Buy for example, the demographic we represent would likely be 10%
I so agree with you for wanting the greatest phone ever for a decent price. With speakers we have so much competition it is ridiculous. Heck just look at the explosion in amps around this place. When Head-fi started we had a handful:
Grado
Headroom
Meier Audio
Stax
Sugden
Krell (though limited to one unit and itself extremely limited)
Sonic Frontiers (with their preamp which used Headroom's circuit)
RKV
Ear Max Pro
Ear-Yoshino
Holmes-Powell
I think that pretty well rounds them out. Of course we had the DIY's, so Kevin Gilmore designs, the CMOY, CHA47 soon after the META42.
Now we have so many and the competition is fierce. This is great for us because we are getting phenomenal sound for excellent prices. Competition stimulates growth and we certainly want to see the limits pushed! Perhaps in time it will happen from Grado.
Zanth - Thanks again for this wonderful thread, and for the terrific interview with John Grado. I'm sorry for posting my somewhat strident comments in your thread, but as you can tell, I am anxious to stimulate the development of the best possible headphones, at a reasonable price, for our Head-Fi community. As for your suggestion for driving the RS-1 with an Ear HP4 amp, I'll look into it, since I haven't encountered this amp before.
Moderator Headphoneus Supremus: Moderator and SHAman who knew of Head-Fi ten years prior to its existence
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikeg
As for your suggestion for driving the RS-1 with an Ear HP4 amp, I'll look into it, since I haven't encountered this amp before.
If I had the money, I would not hesitate to buy this amp. I feel that for Grados, the Ear HP4 and a modified Melos cover all the bases and push the limits of the phones (for my tastes) to a level unsurpassed by any other combinations that I have heard. I still want to hear some RS-1/HP-1/PS-1 balanced combinations say with the new Headroom Balanced Max, an SDS/XLR and a Headamp Gilmore Reference. Though honsetly I can't imagine how they could sound better than the Ear...and I have not even tube rolled the thing! Balanced though, this could be the holy grail for Grados. I need a balanced source first though.
If I had the money, I would not hesitate to buy this amp. I feel that for Grados, the Ear HP4 and a modified Melos cover all the bases and push the limits of the phones (for my tastes) to a level unsurpassed by any other combinations that I have heard. I still want to hear some RS-1/HP-1/PS-1 balanced combinations say with the new Headroom Balanced Max, an SDS/XLR and a Headamp Gilmore Reference. Though honsetly I can't imagine how they could sound better than the Ear...and I have not even tube rolled the thing! Balanced though, this could be the holy grail for Grados. I need a balanced source first though.
Hopefully John Grado will take a peek at the following survey, which suggests that Head-Fi members consider the Orpheus HE90 to reign supreme over all headphones - http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=130832
Wouldn't it be nice to see a Grado headphone rank right up there with the HE90?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zanth
Why these points? Because as much as many members may consider the HE90's the best, this is not the case worldwide. In fact, there are again plenty of people who think the RS-1's are the best, or the HD650's, or the Qualias etc etc. The best is simply a marketting claim. It can't exist because we all like different things. There have been plenty of direct comparisons of the Omega II system vs. the Big O where the Stax came out on top...to repeatedly declare the HE90 the best and demand an American company to do something better...well, if we were to poll all those in the world who have heard the RS-1's and the HE90's and we found that 30% felt the RS-1's were superior, John can actually sell to those 30% and better yet, sell to the other 70% if they are willing, because the HE90 is out of production.
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