First impressions:
The MS-2 sound more evenly balanced (more uniformly integrated across the frequency spectrum) and "settled" than the SR-325i. They also sound more evenly "scaled," dynamically, than the SR-325i.
After preliminary a/b-ing, one could argue that the MS-2 also sound more "alluring" (e.g., vocals feel more liquidy, full, warm and human) in the midrange--right now, at least, with easy pop being spun. However, the MS-2's relative lack of openness can make them sound congested at times, just a tad glary, and even slightly sluggish with some songs. There's a roundness to the MS-2's tonal quality that can venture into bluntness, suggesting a slight captivity or pent-up quality to the music being played.
The SR-325i definitely sound more nimble and extended, brighter--but neither harsh nor hashy--and more percussive, i.e. more "Grado-ish." What they apparently lack in the midrange compared to the MS-2, the 325i deliver at the treble and bass ends with improved authority/control, more sense of detail, and at a brisker pace. In a few words, the 325i have more of a "leading edge" quality to their presentation. [Added, 02/09/08: The more time I spend with the 325i, the more I realize that they really don't go much lower, if at all lower, than the MS-2. It's the treble extension, and the corresponding gap/relative occlusion between treble and bass that creates a smacky, but not necessarily extended or even weighty and authoritative, "bass" response from the 325i.]
With the 325i, I heard Ana Caram's voice emerge from a point nearer the "top" of its source; it sounded more nasal and front of the throat; with the MS-2 more gutteral and back of the throat. With the 325i saxophones sound more reedy; with the MS-2, more "bell-y." With the 325i guitar plucks sound more from the fretboard; with the MS-2, more from the body. Low bass was tighter and more dense with the 325i; midbass a bit more present with the MS-2 (w/a slight tendency to be over-diffuse on some mixes). These comparisons merely exemplify the 325i's more forward, overall signature, but it's a "dual-front" forwardness that projects from either end of the frequency spectrum and lends a distinctive "sculpted" character to vocals/instrumentation.
Caveat:
Keep in mind that I optimized my tube choices to "tighten and brighten" the MS-2's stock signature, which at times can tend toward maximum entropy--with everything directionally reverting to a homeostatic middle-ish sound. These tube choices may very well have tended to exaggerate the 325i's inherent brightness and tightness. With the 325i, 1x RCA 6SN7GT & 2x Raytheon 6SN7GT may fare to better render the Grado's "stock" sound (even though it's being deliberately manipulated with tubes!).
Wow! This is a tough one, though! These are two different, but equally endearing, pairs of headphones. It will take a while longer to settle on my simple majority-of-the-time favorite. Anyway, it's a real treat to have the Alessandro MS-2 and the Grado SR-325i in-house!
Meanwhile, the RAL/K701 still gets top billing. By comparison, the detail from either the MS-2 or the SR-325i sounds surfacine, veneerish, not rendered from deep-in-the-grain of the music like the RAL/K701 do. : )
************************************************** ********
Source: EVS-modded Oppo 970HD
Amp: Bada PH-12 w/1x Tung-Sol 6SN7GTB & 2x Sylvania 6SN7GTB
Cable: EVS IC-100 interconnect, MAC Source and HC power cords
Tweaks: DakiOm Feedback Stabilizers (in every possible place), ebony damping blocks, Herbies ebony domes, DIY "Cloud Nine" suspension system, Marigo Signature CD Mat, Bedini Ultra-Clarifier (dual beam), Infinity Audio shorting plugs
Music: Hiroshima: "Go"; Ana Caram: "Bossa Nova"; Pat Metheny: "Secret Story"
The MS-2 sound more evenly balanced (more uniformly integrated across the frequency spectrum) and "settled" than the SR-325i. They also sound more evenly "scaled," dynamically, than the SR-325i.
After preliminary a/b-ing, one could argue that the MS-2 also sound more "alluring" (e.g., vocals feel more liquidy, full, warm and human) in the midrange--right now, at least, with easy pop being spun. However, the MS-2's relative lack of openness can make them sound congested at times, just a tad glary, and even slightly sluggish with some songs. There's a roundness to the MS-2's tonal quality that can venture into bluntness, suggesting a slight captivity or pent-up quality to the music being played.
The SR-325i definitely sound more nimble and extended, brighter--but neither harsh nor hashy--and more percussive, i.e. more "Grado-ish." What they apparently lack in the midrange compared to the MS-2, the 325i deliver at the treble and bass ends with improved authority/control, more sense of detail, and at a brisker pace. In a few words, the 325i have more of a "leading edge" quality to their presentation. [Added, 02/09/08: The more time I spend with the 325i, the more I realize that they really don't go much lower, if at all lower, than the MS-2. It's the treble extension, and the corresponding gap/relative occlusion between treble and bass that creates a smacky, but not necessarily extended or even weighty and authoritative, "bass" response from the 325i.]
With the 325i, I heard Ana Caram's voice emerge from a point nearer the "top" of its source; it sounded more nasal and front of the throat; with the MS-2 more gutteral and back of the throat. With the 325i saxophones sound more reedy; with the MS-2, more "bell-y." With the 325i guitar plucks sound more from the fretboard; with the MS-2, more from the body. Low bass was tighter and more dense with the 325i; midbass a bit more present with the MS-2 (w/a slight tendency to be over-diffuse on some mixes). These comparisons merely exemplify the 325i's more forward, overall signature, but it's a "dual-front" forwardness that projects from either end of the frequency spectrum and lends a distinctive "sculpted" character to vocals/instrumentation.
Caveat:
Keep in mind that I optimized my tube choices to "tighten and brighten" the MS-2's stock signature, which at times can tend toward maximum entropy--with everything directionally reverting to a homeostatic middle-ish sound. These tube choices may very well have tended to exaggerate the 325i's inherent brightness and tightness. With the 325i, 1x RCA 6SN7GT & 2x Raytheon 6SN7GT may fare to better render the Grado's "stock" sound (even though it's being deliberately manipulated with tubes!).
Wow! This is a tough one, though! These are two different, but equally endearing, pairs of headphones. It will take a while longer to settle on my simple majority-of-the-time favorite. Anyway, it's a real treat to have the Alessandro MS-2 and the Grado SR-325i in-house!
Meanwhile, the RAL/K701 still gets top billing. By comparison, the detail from either the MS-2 or the SR-325i sounds surfacine, veneerish, not rendered from deep-in-the-grain of the music like the RAL/K701 do. : )
************************************************** ********
Source: EVS-modded Oppo 970HD
Amp: Bada PH-12 w/1x Tung-Sol 6SN7GTB & 2x Sylvania 6SN7GTB
Cable: EVS IC-100 interconnect, MAC Source and HC power cords
Tweaks: DakiOm Feedback Stabilizers (in every possible place), ebony damping blocks, Herbies ebony domes, DIY "Cloud Nine" suspension system, Marigo Signature CD Mat, Bedini Ultra-Clarifier (dual beam), Infinity Audio shorting plugs
Music: Hiroshima: "Go"; Ana Caram: "Bossa Nova"; Pat Metheny: "Secret Story"
If you have a possibility, try to make a comparison between the combos:
