Hello everyone, I just joined and wanted to quickly jump in. I don't know how often I'll be posting because I don't know how often I'll be buying new phones/equipment, but I figured I would start off with a bang.
My trip to the headphone shoppe:
I found a store here in Boston MA, thanks to HF, who carried a plethora of grados and AKGs. Since I am looking mainly for a portable phone, I decided to try out the Grados. My initial intention was to try only the two I was inerested in (The RS-2 and the 325i) but couldn't hold back. I decided to try the 325, the 325i, the RS-2, SR-80, SR-60, and the GS-1000. I had tried the RS-1 a week prior so I didn't feel it necessary.
I started the show off with an old set of 325s. They were everything I expected in the sound. They were lacking some of the warmth I remembered hearing in the RS-1 but were nothing to scoff at. The soundstage was a bit wider than I had been lead to believe, but I did my test using specifically "wide" songs. The highs were good to my ears, and the lows were more realistic than powerful. They were not as heavy as I had imagined either. overall, a nice phone.
I then moved to the SR-80. I really had no intention of purchasing this phone so I gave it a fairly quick demo. While it was nice, it lacked musical depth. It did not sound as true to life as the RS-1 or the 325. When describing the sound, my best way of putting it is that it sounded like I was listening to a recording. While they preformed very well, it wasn't enough.
The SR-60 too was lacking, but sounded very similar to the SR-80. At least to my ears it did. I didn't demo the two enough to pick up on any large, noticeable differences.
Up next came out the GS-1000. Before putting them on, I was told by the gentleman working that the sound "pretty much like the k701". I didn't hear it that way. The GS-1000 was very smooth, the soundstage was exactly what I would want in a phone (not too spacious, but not like I have IEMs in) but the attack wasn't there. If these phones were half the price, they would be a beautiful deal, but at close to 1k, they just don't seem worth it. They are warm and smooth, but they didn't feel as detailed as what I had heard earlier.
Up next was the RS-2 (with flats). Wow. That is my best response for these phones. These were warmer than the RS-1s I tried earlier, and the bass was there. When listening to the RS-1, I found my self noticing the separation of percussion instruments, and how they sounded life like. On the RS-2, I was focused on the texture of guitars, the roundness of the bass and the forward, clean sound of the vocals.
The RS-2 had seen it's fair share of burn in, being an older model, but these were exactly what I want in a phone. Nothing shrill in the highs, nothing muddy or over done in the lows, and the mids are beautiful.
The end of my trip concluded with the sexy and HEAVY 325i. These things are much heavier than the 325, or at least it seemed so by the end of my journey. This particular pair had not seen any burn-in so the highs were very crisp and the sound was a little sharp. For a phone with no burn in, they sounded nice but were oddly difficult to have rest comfortably on my head.
All together, I feel as though the RS-2 is the best value grado is providing right now. The RS-1, at 200$ more does not seem worth it, unless you have those golden ears and really need that extra "whatever" they provide. In closing, I really need to buy a pair of those RS-2s but I don't know if I can go over 400$ (personal info for you). As a step down, I think I still might find a happy home in the 325is if they warm up to sound like the 325s I tried.
anyway, hello and thanks for reading.
My trip to the headphone shoppe:
I found a store here in Boston MA, thanks to HF, who carried a plethora of grados and AKGs. Since I am looking mainly for a portable phone, I decided to try out the Grados. My initial intention was to try only the two I was inerested in (The RS-2 and the 325i) but couldn't hold back. I decided to try the 325, the 325i, the RS-2, SR-80, SR-60, and the GS-1000. I had tried the RS-1 a week prior so I didn't feel it necessary.
I started the show off with an old set of 325s. They were everything I expected in the sound. They were lacking some of the warmth I remembered hearing in the RS-1 but were nothing to scoff at. The soundstage was a bit wider than I had been lead to believe, but I did my test using specifically "wide" songs. The highs were good to my ears, and the lows were more realistic than powerful. They were not as heavy as I had imagined either. overall, a nice phone.
I then moved to the SR-80. I really had no intention of purchasing this phone so I gave it a fairly quick demo. While it was nice, it lacked musical depth. It did not sound as true to life as the RS-1 or the 325. When describing the sound, my best way of putting it is that it sounded like I was listening to a recording. While they preformed very well, it wasn't enough.
The SR-60 too was lacking, but sounded very similar to the SR-80. At least to my ears it did. I didn't demo the two enough to pick up on any large, noticeable differences.
Up next came out the GS-1000. Before putting them on, I was told by the gentleman working that the sound "pretty much like the k701". I didn't hear it that way. The GS-1000 was very smooth, the soundstage was exactly what I would want in a phone (not too spacious, but not like I have IEMs in) but the attack wasn't there. If these phones were half the price, they would be a beautiful deal, but at close to 1k, they just don't seem worth it. They are warm and smooth, but they didn't feel as detailed as what I had heard earlier.
Up next was the RS-2 (with flats). Wow. That is my best response for these phones. These were warmer than the RS-1s I tried earlier, and the bass was there. When listening to the RS-1, I found my self noticing the separation of percussion instruments, and how they sounded life like. On the RS-2, I was focused on the texture of guitars, the roundness of the bass and the forward, clean sound of the vocals.
The RS-2 had seen it's fair share of burn in, being an older model, but these were exactly what I want in a phone. Nothing shrill in the highs, nothing muddy or over done in the lows, and the mids are beautiful.
The end of my trip concluded with the sexy and HEAVY 325i. These things are much heavier than the 325, or at least it seemed so by the end of my journey. This particular pair had not seen any burn-in so the highs were very crisp and the sound was a little sharp. For a phone with no burn in, they sounded nice but were oddly difficult to have rest comfortably on my head.
All together, I feel as though the RS-2 is the best value grado is providing right now. The RS-1, at 200$ more does not seem worth it, unless you have those golden ears and really need that extra "whatever" they provide. In closing, I really need to buy a pair of those RS-2s but I don't know if I can go over 400$ (personal info for you). As a step down, I think I still might find a happy home in the 325is if they warm up to sound like the 325s I tried.
anyway, hello and thanks for reading.
)
