What are the best Grado's? - Page 6

Quote:

Originally Posted by pcf 

The best Grado I have heard is Joe Grado modded HP1000.

joe modded them? what did he do to them and how did it change them (and at what cost)?

Hi there,

Not sure if he's still doing it at the moment-He is 87 now.

Anyway, I had my HP1 done by him. He took everything apart;replaced the drivers with NOS HP000 drivers and tweaked them; put in a new cable. For the HP1, he also disabled the polarity switches to shorten the signal path. 

Cost was $2000 plus shipping for the whole thing(not including a new headband, that would be an extra $200).

Sound signature wise it is still a HP1000. I have another two pairs of HP2 (stock)to compare. He also sent me some recordings he made with his new microphone. The first thing I noticed was the mid. It was detailed and "real" (that's the best word I could find to discribe it if makes any sense). The bottom end was also extended further. I played Joe's own opera singing cd throught them and it sounded great. Since we know Joe Grado is such an opera lover, I bet he tuned his headphones with it.

Anyway, there is an interesting thread about this mod:

http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/428230/my-new-joseph-grado-hp2i

Joe still cares so much about these phones. I had to beg him to return the old drivers to me- he didn't want any HP1000 drivers to end up in the wrong hands(phones).

*Some reminders from Joe:

Don't leave the headphones in the box with the foam- especially the blue foam that came with older Grados. 

Put them in one gallon ziploc bags and hang them up.

Take the earpads off every few weeks and wash them in mild detergent. Air dry them afterwards.*

Cheers!

Paul

Quote:

Originally Posted by daveDerek 

joe modded them? what did he do to them and how did it change them (and at what cost)?

pcf, that's an impressive grado collection you have there!

It would have been more impressive if I had at least one Grado from the current production line. :-)

But I have a SR40 (too embarrassed to list that in my info)!
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjinh 

pcf, that's an impressive grado collection you have there!

Quote:

Originally Posted by pcf 

It would have been more impressive if I had at least one Grado from the current production line. :-)

But I have a SR40 (too embarrassed to list that in my info)!
 

What about those buttonless RS-1s? They seem to be reasonably current.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pcf 

*Some reminders from Joe:

 

Don't leave the headphones in the box with the foam- especially the blue foam that came with older Grados. 

Put them in one gallon ziploc bags and hang them up.

 

Take the earpads off every few weeks and wash them in mild detergent. Air dry them afterwards.*

This whole post is amazing, but since the above-quoted is the only bit that's actually practical for most of us... and it's NEWS to me!

Does the foam from the box break down and get places it shouldn't? And presumably the earpads need to be bone-dry before they get ziplocked into a bag.... is this bit advice the same for the RS-1s and all Grados with wood? That is, sealing them up in a ziploc?  Thanks.  I need to know more about care-and-feeding than I do. I bet I'm not the only one.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Choronzon 

 

 

 

Does the foam from the box break down and get places it shouldn't? And presumably the earpads need to be bone-dry before they get ziplocked into a bag.... is this bit advice the same for the RS-1s and all Grados with wood? That is, sealing them up in a ziploc?  Thanks.  I need to know more about care-and-feeding than I do. I bet I'm not the only one.
 

Yes to all of the above.

I put all my headphones in ziploc bags. One extra advantage of that is the cable can form a nice big loose loop inside the bag instead of being cramped into a small slot in most headphone boxes.

I never use those flat Grado carrying cases. They are too samll for both the headphones and the cable.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by jjinh 

 

What about those buttonless RS-1s? They seem to be reasonably current.

That's my newest Grado but they are not the latest "i" version.
 

GS1000 because they are the only hi-end Grado's that i heard maybe HF2 coming close this is for me my taste not from what i read.

I regret I've never had the chance to try a pair of HP1000s, HP-2s or any of those classics. Maybe one day I'll grab a pair off the forums and compare them to the Magnums.  Speaking of those, feking_ejit liked the original V1, which had a tone very like the 325is or RS-2 (but with a lot more detail) that he was disappointed that the V2s had a lot more bass and more tame treble. The V1s worked well with flats for this reason.  They were almost a kind of mini-HD-800 with bowls.  

The V2s are tonally very like the HF-1s, which I reckon are one of the best 2nd-hand headphone bargains available.  However, they are very considerably more detailed.  The bass seems a bit bloated at first, but seems to have tamed somewhat with use.  Rhydon reckons they need a couple of months use for best results as the driver doping cures. How much the changes will be the headphones and how much my brain adapting I'm not sure, but I'm liking them at the moment.  With well-recorded acoustic music, they have absolutely pinpoint imaging and their rendering of instruments is uncanny.  The V2s I haven't yet tried with flats, but they work, albeit strangely, with jumbo pads.

On the other hand, the HF-2s, which are great if you like their slightly darker tone, work very well with jumbo pads, though one may prefer to do the "chux mod" where you cover the driver with a circle of thin Chux cleaning cloth to tame the highs a tad. Flats are useless with them, however.  Sometimes I did enjoy listening with the HF-2s and jumbo pads instead of the HD-800s, as they were more entertaining, if not as detailed.  If the jumbo-pad HF-2s are really a mini-PS1000, then I totally understand why there's a bit PS1000 vs. HD-800s thing going on, as it all depends what style of presentation you prefer.

It would be an interesting comparison between HP100 and Magnum mod Grados.

I am interested in Rydon's mod too and have been following the thread quick closely. There seems to be some delays and communication issues so I am kind of holding back for the time being. Hope he gets everything ironed out soon.

@pcf -- big up for the "care and feeding" tips. Was this a sticky topic back when the old forum had stickies? It oughta be!
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by baka1969 

Congrats. Although Grados don't need a long burn in they'll benefit from around 20-40 hours worth. Wear them for a week and switch back to the 60 and you'll see where the improvements are. Enjoy. :)

Well after listening to these things a few days I have gone being underwhelmed to really enjoying them. I am pretty sure my 60's never sounded this good. I have listened to them quite a bit as well as just let them sit with music going through them. Not constantly, 6 or 7 hours at a time. So they probably have 30 or 40 hours of burn in at this point.

My only issue is that they do get uncomfortable. My left ear in particular gets really sore. I am sure I will end up soaking the bowls in some warm water with a little soap as has been suggested elsewhere, and trying the comfies from my 60's. But the sound they produce is the thing. The bass in both my 60's and these is really tight. It's more of a thwack than a thump and I'd say these have a lot more thwack. Overall these seem warmer and more detailed.

I'm wondering what the RS1's and HF2's sound like now. The PS100'0's are definitely out of my league. But for now I think I have a great set of headphones to enjoy.

HF2