Thanks to the continued generosity of purk, I've been borrowing the Grado sr325 (NOT the new 325i; I haven't heard it yet) and sr200 since Friday. I also have on hand my old sr225. Additionally my memory's still relatively fresh on a recently sold set of rs2's, and I owned the hp2's a few months back.
First thing I did this weekend was plug the new cans up to the big rig: Meridian G08 -> HGA silver lace ICs -> Singlepower SDS (2x Sylvania VT231, 1x RCA VT231). Hmm, that was a mistake. The SDS is a wonderfully smooth tube amp, but it's also ruthlessly detailed & revealing if your other components aren't up to its level. It has a habit of making anything less than an hd650 (w/ upgrade cable) sound like a toy. I first heard this phenomenon with the hd600; unfortunately the sr325 and sr200 also fell victim here. It doesn't help that my L3000 was nearby for quick comparison
Discouraged, I gave up one the grados for the day.
Fortunately, the very next day the voices in my head decided that I should throw together a decent computer rig with all this extra heads...er, hardware I've got lying around
Now, I've never really been happy with a computer rig, even for casual listening (as I'm apt to do while at the computer). In my earlier days of headfi, it was the discouragement with my RME PAD based system that drove me to standalone CD players. However, this weekend I was feeling a bit adventurous (not quite enough to leave the house though ) so I forged ahead despite the specter of certain doom...er, I mean possible failure. Eventually I settled on this chain: ESI Juli@ soundcard -> Bogdan Silver Princess ICs -> Sugden Headmaster -> sr325 w/ vwap pads (Note: I've tried the sr225 and hp2 each with bowls, flats, vwaps. bowls will never agree with me, so all comments below only apply to flats and vwaps).
Lo, it was good! It wasn't an all-around top-notch, neutral hifi sound. It was a fun, groovy sound that I'd never experienced from my computer before. It was a rockin' sound. This is what I had imagined (dreamed?) grados would sound like (based on everyone's descriptions) before I actually heard my first grado (the sr225).
I've recently been listening to Megadeth - Cryptic Writings and The Craving, Alice in Chains - Jar of Flies, Blue Man Group - The Complex, Evangelion - Refrain (import), the Macross II soundtrack, and the Macross Plus soundtrack, all of which do great in this setup. Drums have an incredible snap. Bass is very tight and fairly deep (not subterranean like the L3000 but then what other headphone does that). Bass lines are very nicely resolved; they don't get muddled or confused like the sr225 does. Excellent slam and dynamics (definitely much better than sr225 & 200). Great speed and detail for a grado (again, much better than 225 & 200). Yep, it's a little tipped up in treble, but not too badly - I can tolerate it, and I'm fairly sensitive to bright cans. Acoustic guitar has a wonderful crispness to it. Metal percussion has a nice ping to it. Electric guitars are crunchy and raw; they can really wail when they need to. Soundstage is not large, as to be expected for a grado without bowls (and not in some crazy balanced configuration). However, it's large enough to not feel claustrophobic and to give room for instrument to have some space around them. For some reason I'm having issues with the sr200 rendering a very compressed soundstage in this same rig - it's almost like: draw a straight line from one ear to the other, though your head; sound will only appear on this line. Probably just bad synergy - I don't remember having this much of an issue on the SDS. Odd.
Now what the 325's don't do so well - well, they're not smooth (ala vocals). At all. They're kinda harsh and gritty in fact. They don't try to be smooth, lush, warm headphones like the RS2. In fact, this is the least smooth of all the Grados I've mentioned. Groovy! Why? Because my L3000 does smooth/lush/warm way better then any of these grados. For my secondary computer rig, I don't want something that will just remind me that I've got a much better headphone in another room - I want something that will give me a good, fun casual listen without regrets The signature of the sr325 is distinct enough to succeed where the others have failed me. Anyways, while vocals aren't too smooth, they're not at all veiled, which makes them ok for most hard rock/pop/metal. One last problem is the comfort - they are heavier than the plastic/wood grados, which does affect the comfort. Also, the forward & bright sound is a bit more fatiguing. I've been able to pretty easily deal so far due to the fun factor, but it will take more time to determine if this will become a bigger problem for me.
In summary, I'm really digging the prospect of putting some 325's into full-time duties for my computer rig - no it's not mean to compete with the L3000/SDS/W2002/ha2002 big rig. I've been through a ton of gear at this point, and I think I've started to recognize good synergy when I hear it. In the fairly high-end class, the at-ha2002 & ath-w2002 have amazing synergy. The L3000 & SDS also have incredible synergy. In the not-quite-so-high-end class, I believe the ESI/Headmaster/325 combo has very very good synergy. I'm not yet sure how much of a role the ESI plays in this synergy, or even if a better source would improve things quite a bit. Later this week I may hook the 325/Sugden up to the G08 and see where it takes things. I am enjoying the 325 more than the rs2, however I may not have used a good synergistic match for the rs2 - I was using it mainly with a Max; I've heard Blorton report that it's awesome with the RKV. It's been a while since I've had the hp2 - While I can't say the sr325 is the better headphone (the hp2 was incredibly smooth and had an undeniably flatter frequency response), I'm not sure I'd enjoy the hp2 more if I had it back (though again I may not have had the best synergy - used it mainly with an hr2). While synergy's obviously very important, the sr325 is the first grado that really made me feel like "rocking out" to a grado, and for that I'll always have a warm spot in my heart for it
First thing I did this weekend was plug the new cans up to the big rig: Meridian G08 -> HGA silver lace ICs -> Singlepower SDS (2x Sylvania VT231, 1x RCA VT231). Hmm, that was a mistake. The SDS is a wonderfully smooth tube amp, but it's also ruthlessly detailed & revealing if your other components aren't up to its level. It has a habit of making anything less than an hd650 (w/ upgrade cable) sound like a toy. I first heard this phenomenon with the hd600; unfortunately the sr325 and sr200 also fell victim here. It doesn't help that my L3000 was nearby for quick comparison
Discouraged, I gave up one the grados for the day.Fortunately, the very next day the voices in my head decided that I should throw together a decent computer rig with all this extra heads...er, hardware I've got lying around
Now, I've never really been happy with a computer rig, even for casual listening (as I'm apt to do while at the computer). In my earlier days of headfi, it was the discouragement with my RME PAD based system that drove me to standalone CD players. However, this weekend I was feeling a bit adventurous (not quite enough to leave the house though ) so I forged ahead despite the specter of certain doom...er, I mean possible failure. Eventually I settled on this chain: ESI Juli@ soundcard -> Bogdan Silver Princess ICs -> Sugden Headmaster -> sr325 w/ vwap pads (Note: I've tried the sr225 and hp2 each with bowls, flats, vwaps. bowls will never agree with me, so all comments below only apply to flats and vwaps).Lo, it was good! It wasn't an all-around top-notch, neutral hifi sound. It was a fun, groovy sound that I'd never experienced from my computer before. It was a rockin' sound. This is what I had imagined (dreamed?) grados would sound like (based on everyone's descriptions) before I actually heard my first grado (the sr225).
I've recently been listening to Megadeth - Cryptic Writings and The Craving, Alice in Chains - Jar of Flies, Blue Man Group - The Complex, Evangelion - Refrain (import), the Macross II soundtrack, and the Macross Plus soundtrack, all of which do great in this setup. Drums have an incredible snap. Bass is very tight and fairly deep (not subterranean like the L3000 but then what other headphone does that). Bass lines are very nicely resolved; they don't get muddled or confused like the sr225 does. Excellent slam and dynamics (definitely much better than sr225 & 200). Great speed and detail for a grado (again, much better than 225 & 200). Yep, it's a little tipped up in treble, but not too badly - I can tolerate it, and I'm fairly sensitive to bright cans. Acoustic guitar has a wonderful crispness to it. Metal percussion has a nice ping to it. Electric guitars are crunchy and raw; they can really wail when they need to. Soundstage is not large, as to be expected for a grado without bowls (and not in some crazy balanced configuration). However, it's large enough to not feel claustrophobic and to give room for instrument to have some space around them. For some reason I'm having issues with the sr200 rendering a very compressed soundstage in this same rig - it's almost like: draw a straight line from one ear to the other, though your head; sound will only appear on this line. Probably just bad synergy - I don't remember having this much of an issue on the SDS. Odd.
Now what the 325's don't do so well - well, they're not smooth (ala vocals). At all. They're kinda harsh and gritty in fact. They don't try to be smooth, lush, warm headphones like the RS2. In fact, this is the least smooth of all the Grados I've mentioned. Groovy! Why? Because my L3000 does smooth/lush/warm way better then any of these grados. For my secondary computer rig, I don't want something that will just remind me that I've got a much better headphone in another room - I want something that will give me a good, fun casual listen without regrets
The signature of the sr325 is distinct enough to succeed where the others have failed me. Anyways, while vocals aren't too smooth, they're not at all veiled, which makes them ok for most hard rock/pop/metal. One last problem is the comfort - they are heavier than the plastic/wood grados, which does affect the comfort. Also, the forward & bright sound is a bit more fatiguing. I've been able to pretty easily deal so far due to the fun factor, but it will take more time to determine if this will become a bigger problem for me.In summary, I'm really digging the prospect of putting some 325's into full-time duties for my computer rig - no it's not mean to compete with the L3000/SDS/W2002/ha2002 big rig. I've been through a ton of gear at this point, and I think I've started to recognize good synergy when I hear it. In the fairly high-end class, the at-ha2002 & ath-w2002 have amazing synergy. The L3000 & SDS also have incredible synergy. In the not-quite-so-high-end class, I believe the ESI/Headmaster/325 combo has very very good synergy. I'm not yet sure how much of a role the ESI plays in this synergy, or even if a better source would improve things quite a bit. Later this week I may hook the 325/Sugden up to the G08 and see where it takes things. I am enjoying the 325 more than the rs2, however I may not have used a good synergistic match for the rs2 - I was using it mainly with a Max; I've heard Blorton report that it's awesome with the RKV. It's been a while since I've had the hp2 - While I can't say the sr325 is the better headphone (the hp2 was incredibly smooth and had an undeniably flatter frequency response), I'm not sure I'd enjoy the hp2 more if I had it back (though again I may not have had the best synergy - used it mainly with an hr2). While synergy's obviously very important, the sr325 is the first grado that really made me feel like "rocking out" to a grado, and for that I'll always have a warm spot in my heart for it
). Certainly more bass than the sr225; plus it's got better resolution and slam to boot. The rs2 does have a nice warm lush sound that's quite good. It's also smoother and more refined than the 225, and yes the soundstage is a bit more spacious. It's just that it was a bit redundant in my stables since now I've got the (admittedly much more expensive) L3000 which does all these things better (and more) IMO - that's what prompted me to sell them in fact. The sr225's only stuck around since I've been too lazy to sell it 
Maybe now I won't have to go through that again 
