Grado RS-1 vs PS-1 vs GS1000 - Page 2

Although $1400 was the original retail price, I've seen a few used PS-1s going for around $2000 lately. They are pretty much on par with the L3000 these days.

I feel a Bay Area mini-meet in the making

A Head-Fi Meet attendee with "iamdone" as nick is kind of an oxymoron.

I just think it would be refreshing to hear some things for myself instead of this blind buying that we always do. I don't have the space either as I'm in a glorified apartment they call a Condo but am happy to bring gear somewhere!

iamdone - I know this is a bit off topic but how do your GS1000 compare to the HD650/Zu specifically for classical?

The K-1000's are better than the PS-1 to me and not by a litte bit. When I got home I listened to my GS-1000s on my system to compare to iamdones, then to my K-1000s and it seemed to easily differentiate itself from all 3 phones that we were trying that same day. I believe you can get them for under $1K. And with the extra grand you can get a CD player and amp to go with it.

The L3000’s are on par with PS-1? Not from what I’ve read. I am definitely interested in trying the HP1,2 and L3000.

I felt the RS-1 was a value, the GS-1000 was priced about right, and the PS-1 was overpriced at $1,400 (used), but if people want to spend $2K, have at it. I imagine collectors might be driving the price up just like vinyl collectors are jacking up prices for us audiophiles with turn tables like myself.

Unfortunately, I’m in the same boat space-wise. I had to turn down hosting a mini meet with some people in Berkeley because I had plans to move. Those plans have been delayed.

Since we aren’t in a rush to do this. I’ll start to think about options. I would love to bring my K-1000s and amp/source. Also, there is a gentleman in Sacramento that has K-1000 with upgraded cable that was interested in letting me hear them, so...

I think there would be enough people to make something happen down the road.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that the PS-1s deserve to be priced at $2000. I'm only stating what seems to be the current price for them (more or less. There is always people making more or less money for them).

I do prefer the K1000 over the PS-1 too (only from the EAR V20, though). And I prefer the L3000 over the PS-1 too. However I can see people prefering the PS-1 to both of them. Because the PS-1 does some things that no other headphone can do. And if these things are important for you, and there are around 160 available... you probably will end paying for them.

I have the K1000 and the L3000 and still find the PS-1 has a place in my collection. It sounds amazingly good unamped, it has the best bass apart from the L3000 (without the coloration and sometimes "closed" feeling the L3000 can have). I must say that I've been attending live concerts pretty much all my life and there is something really "real" about the timbre of the PS-1s. It sounds more "real" than most high-end cans, apart from a some bass hump that usually compensates the lack of bass on some systems. Besides, it is the best can you can get in foldable form (great for hotels and trips). So yes, I can see people paying $2000 for them. Not because they worth it, but because there is nothing better for some applications/circumstances/tastes. As usual, offer/demand law applies.

EDIT: Forgot to mention that "PS-1 on par to L3000" was price-wise as both seem to command similar prices these days. I won't enter in "pseudo-objective" discussions about which is better. For what is worth it, I'd choose the L3000 for most (but not all) applications/music, but I can see why some people might prefer the PS-1 over the L3000 (and this, by far). Actually I know of some.

Nice post

haha this thread almost seems like a dialogue with us back and forth. I guess it is useful though for those interested so why not ...

There was a pretty big difference. If/when we have the meet, I'll bring my front end. Of course things were stacked in my favor as I listened not only to some harsh redbook CDs but also high quality SACDs (beleive it or not my TT gets even better than both). There's no way around it, a CD player will make a big difference, SACD player bigger still, and vinyl the biggest. Hopefully one day a PC as a front end will compete, but I have yet to hear one that does.

That being said, considering the uber convenience that you have, and the fact that rock music isn't usually recorded or mixed very well except for probably 10% of it compared to classical or jazz, I don't want to lead you down a path that may frustrate you in the end just for that last bit of audiophilia. It's already too late for me

One example is the siblance in that rather bad recording that you played for me. It had a peircing ssss that would clearly make it unlisteneable on the GS-1000 and the RS-1. It even sounded bad on the PS-1 but seemed more rolled off or attenuated in the treble which helped, but also made me wonder about the accuracy of the PS-1 (sounded too smooth for a bad recording). I went home and tried a couple of my worst recordings with siblance and there was no peircing high frequency like that. I did hear the annoying sssss, it just didn't hurt or peirce through. I think the source was the difference considering the nice amp and dac that you have. It also makes me realize why the GS-1000 and K-1000 have such a different affect on people.

That being said, I don't think any of the 3 blew any of the others away and any differences were marginal. Maybe we should have just stuck with the RS-1 and had a reasoneably priced phone that frankly I preferred over the PS-1, GS-1000 on more than a couple of songs.

Agree with everything you said - except I preferred the timbre on the wooden Grados more. Sorry I thought you meant performancewise between the L3000 and PS-1. I know what you mean about no other headphone being able to do what the PS-1 does, but that's the case with most phones. I think we agree that pure sound refinement and weight, while sacrificing soundstage give the PS-1 it's place which was why I was interested since the GS-1000 can sound thin like the RS-1. That's why I kept my Senn 600 for a meaty midrange.

Agreed, if I had your setup, and listened to mostly rock, I would pick the PS-1 also. It may not have made sense valuewise, but there was definately a difference in refinement, and since when does the law of diminishing return stop audiophiles? I don't know if getting a high priced DAC would be worth it. Yours had a nice analog sound to it, and your amp was definately one of the better solid state amps I've heard for headphones. I really think you have a nice system, so don't feel that I wasn't impressed