Grado Fan Club! - Page 366

Quote:

Originally Posted by stacker45 

 

It's not often that peoples will openly admit to beeing fanboys,so i guess you deserve some credit for admiting to it,as for threads regarding the GS1000is,i'm not surprised since they're probably the least loved Grados. 

Well, he's more to Stax fanboy than Grado fanboy actually 

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudi0504 

Hi All
I Am Grado fanboy , i have Grado HF 2 First batch and Alessandro Grado MS pro .
Yesterday i just Bought Grado GS 1000 i
I Wonder why In head Fi do not have thread For Grado GS 1000 i ?
I have found Only Short Mini review :
http://www.head-fi.org/t/569895/mini-review-grado-gs1000i
http://www.head-fi.org/t/425570/gs-1000i-review

 

Om, from all of your current set-up (include portable and desktop), which set up you found has the best synergy with GS1k? This Grado is famous for their picky amping.

My GS1000s haven't seen much action since i got my PS1000,but with all this talk about the GS1000 lately,and Focker who recently bought a pair,so today i decided to give them a go at a $1 thrift store LP a compillation of old french (my main language) songs,played on my vintage Yamaha YP-D6 TT with a $50 Audio-Technica cartridge,and straight from the headphone output of my old Yamaha CA-610II.

So,needless to say,i didn't give them much of a chance to 'reimpress' me,and still,i was pleasantly surprised of how good they actually sound,the thing is,all is fine as long as i don't switch back and forth from the GS1000 to the PS1000 with the same song.

I have a theory as to why many peoples never liked the GS1000s,i believe it as to do with the theory of relativity,in other words,it depends where you're coming from,i use to own Sennheiser's HD-600s,who are known to have a big soundstage but a slightly veiled sound,so,when i compared them to the GS1000 not only was the soundstage big,but the sound was much more detailed,so obviously,i was impressed,they were my first Grados and the beginning of a wonderful journey.

That beeing said,i can understand why someone who already owned Grados,say RS1s,therefore used to an intimate sound signature,would be disapointed by the ressessed mids of the GS1000,and even if the newer ''i'' model brings the mids a little closer,they're still very different from the RS1is,or any other Grados for that matter,exept of course the PS1000s.

I sure would like to know what you guys think on that matter.

My 325is are breaking in nicely.  I can see why many love these cans.  They don't seem to be bright like the 325i version.  Wonderful sound.

I agree with the notion that the GS1ks are more of a "different" Grado sound than a flagship type sound. I will admit that they have grown on me and I actually am enjoying them quite a bit, but I still give the edge to the 500s. I love that you were firing up some vinyl, Stacker....I've been in the research phase of an analog system since I've never had one...it's really been an education. I'm hoping to add a vinyl source here in the coming months, and a big part of the reason why is because Grado's cartridges are arguably better than even their headphones....so I'd love to have another excuse to send them some money. I'm not all that close to pulling the trigger yet, but I enjoy reading about those who are pairing vinyl and headphones....especially Grados :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Focker 

I agree with the notion that the GS1ks are more of a "different" Grado sound than a flagship type sound. I will admit that they have grown on me and I actually am enjoying them quite a bit, but I still give the edge to the 500s. I love that you were firing up some vinyl, Stacker....I've been in the research phase of an analog system since I've never had one...it's really been an education. I'm hoping to add a vinyl source here in the coming months, and a big part of the reason why is because Grado's cartridges are arguably better than even their headphones....so I'd love to have another excuse to send them some money. I'm not all that close to pulling the trigger yet, but I enjoy reading about those who are pairing vinyl and headphones....especially Grados :)

I would argue that there are better carts out there than Grado, but they do have their merits.

Quote:

Originally Posted by scootsit 

I would argue that there are better carts out there than Grado, but they do have their merits.

Well, yeah, but people say the same thing about their headphones....I just can't help but be curious if their carts have the same appeal to me as their headphones do, you know? 

Quote:

Originally Posted by obobskivich 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Focker 

Well, yeah, but people say the same thing about their headphones....I just can't help but be curious if their carts have the same appeal to me as their headphones do, you know? 

Well, they'll certainly match with your GS-1000:
http://www.gradolabs.com/page_cartridges.php?item=6cab761eea50a3a98932b3273d71af67
http://gradolabs.com/page_cartridges.php?item=53b517f77e1e353e24b10a8844ca504c

Wood. Lots of wood.

Their carts use a totally different system than any other brand, they're moving iron as opposed to moving coil or magnet. I would say that for the same money, a really good moving magnet or high output moving coil would likely sound better. The new Ortofon 2M series gets incredible marks, as do things like the Dynavector. I love the now discontinued Dennon 160, which can be sent to Soundsmith for retipping, and basically they turn it into a new, even better cart. I think that once upon a time, the Grado line was probably about the best of the best, and it still is spectacular, but other, newer offerings have them beat. Also, Grados don't play nicely on many direct drive decks, where they pick up noise, so you need to make sure that your deck is Grado-friendly. For example, the venerable Technics SL-1200 cannot take a Grado, else the result will be pretty terrible. You also need to make sure the compliance of whatever cart you get plays nicely with the compliance of your arm.

Before you make any decisions, I would advise you to call the needle doctor (needledoctor.com) to talk about what would pair best with your deck and your arm. Also, check the vinyl engine (vinylengine.com). The vinyl engine will provide all of the equations for determining which cart to use. Some carts and arms are designed and work best with different alignments, that is discussed there, as well as printable diagrams for the alignments, they also have printable strobe-disks. Easily the best vinyl site around.

So, while I appreciate the analogy to their cans, and the subjectivity therein, I think it's rather apples to oranges. Grado carts are good, but at the same price point, there are other carts that work with more decks, and sound better at the same time. There is so much that goes into a good sounding deck, and Grados agree with only a slim number of those decks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by obobskivich 


I would agree. The GSK are a good headphone, but they aren't really an "improvement" on the Grado sound, more of a change to it. I think that's the problem though, is that Grado sets them up as the "best headphone they know how to make" not as "here's something different for your consideration." If that were explained, and they were at parity with the RS-1 pricing (or if there was a less expensive version, like how there's a PS-500 and PS-1000, why not have a GS-500 that comes in hybrid plastic/wood and sits there with the PS-500 and RS-1?), I think they'd be far more popular.
Should note that I haven't heard the GS-1000i. Curious, but not $995 curious, how different they are.
Also, and this isn't meant to be any sort of attack - spaces after commas are common convention in English. Without them, it makes your posts hard to read.

No offence taken,the last thing i want is for my posts to be hard to read,but i'm not sure i understand what you mean,could you please use my post to show me an example of where i made the mistake(s) so that i don't keep repeating it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by scootsit 

Their carts use a totally different system than any other brand, they're moving iron as opposed to moving coil or magnet. I would say that for the same money, a really good moving magnet or high output moving coil would likely sound better. The new Ortofon 2M series gets incredible marks, as do things like the Dynavector. I love the now discontinued Dennon 160, which can be sent to Soundsmith for retipping, and basically they turn it into a new, even better cart. I think that once upon a time, the Grado line was probably about the best of the best, and it still is spectacular, but other, newer offerings have them beat. Also, Grados don't play nicely on many direct drive decks, where they pick up noise, so you need to make sure that your deck is Grado-friendly. For example, the venerable Technics SL-1200 cannot take a Grado, else the result will be pretty terrible. You also need to make sure the compliance of whatever cart you get plays nicely with the compliance of your arm.

 

Before you make any decisions, I would advise you to call the needle doctor (theneedledoctor.com) to talk about what would pair best with your deck and your arm. Also, check the vinyl engine (vinylengine.com). The vinyl engine will provide all of the equations for determining which cart to use. Some carts and arms are designed and work best with different alignments, that is discussed there, as well as printable diagrams for the alignments, they also have printable strobe-disks. Easily the best vinyl site around.

 

So, while I appreciate the analogy to their cans, and the subjectivity therein, I think it's rather apples to oranges. Grado carts are good, but at the same price point, there are other carts that work with more decks, and sound better at the same time. There is so much that goes into a good sounding deck, and Grados agree with only a slim number of those decks.

Appreciate the info. I'm still a ways off before I pull the trigger, so I'll keep your suggestions in mind for down the road. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by obobskivich 


And the color would be pink!

LOL

Quote:

Originally Posted by Focker 

Quote:

Originally Posted by scootsit 

Their carts use a totally different system than any other brand, they're moving iron as opposed to moving coil or magnet. I would say that for the same money, a really good moving magnet or high output moving coil would likely sound better. The new Ortofon 2M series gets incredible marks, as do things like the Dynavector. I love the now discontinued Dennon 160, which can be sent to Soundsmith for retipping, and basically they turn it into a new, even better cart. I think that once upon a time, the Grado line was probably about the best of the best, and it still is spectacular, but other, newer offerings have them beat. Also, Grados don't play nicely on many direct drive decks, where they pick up noise, so you need to make sure that your deck is Grado-friendly. For example, the venerable Technics SL-1200 cannot take a Grado, else the result will be pretty terrible. You also need to make sure the compliance of whatever cart you get plays nicely with the compliance of your arm.

 

Before you make any decisions, I would advise you to call the needle doctor (theneedledoctor.com) to talk about what would pair best with your deck and your arm. Also, check the vinyl engine (vinylengine.com). The vinyl engine will provide all of the equations for determining which cart to use. Some carts and arms are designed and work best with different alignments, that is discussed there, as well as printable diagrams for the alignments, they also have printable strobe-disks. Easily the best vinyl site around.

 

So, while I appreciate the analogy to their cans, and the subjectivity therein, I think it's rather apples to oranges. Grado carts are good, but at the same price point, there are other carts that work with more decks, and sound better at the same time. There is so much that goes into a good sounding deck, and Grados agree with only a slim number of those decks.

 

Appreciate the info. I'm still a ways off before I pull the trigger, so I'll keep your suggestions in mind for down the road. 

I'm no expert, but if you have questions or anything, I'd be happy to help, or steer you in the right direction.

Quote:

Originally Posted by scootsit 

I'm no expert, but if you have questions or anything, I'd be happy to help, or steer you in the right direction.

Thanks brother, I will certainly take you up on that. I knew literally NOTHING about vinyl as of two weeks ago, other than the fact that I LOVED the two high end vinyl rigs that I've heard in the last couple of years. I've learned a fair bit in the last week or so, but still have a long way to go. I'll definitley shoot a PM off to you once I get a little further along...really appreciate the offer!