Grado HP-1000 vs. Sony MDR-R10
Jan 8, 2004 at 1:12 AM Post #16 of 18
i've heard or owned all three of these setups. in my opinion, omega2/kgss is the best system easily. i wonder about your love of electronica though.

zanth seems to be more into electronic music than most people i know, and he really adores his ra-1/rs-1 combo for it. minya listens to lots of electronica too and he recently got stax 404's and really adores them.

i think the zotl amp isn't very great. it just doesn't have enough bass for me to enjoy it heavily (though the high-end was really incredible), but i imagine if you like electronic music you enjoy good bass response. i think grado hp-1's are easily better than r10's, but r10's are going to have that warmer sound with attempts to sound like speakers mixed in. the bass and mids are very warm with r10's, and there's a great sparkle in the highs that really works great for me with a lot of music, but after trying ti with quite a few amps, i just didn't hear much bass extension with it. grado hp-1 is flat and neutral as can be and is very extended for a dynamic headphone, but requires a good amp with a good signature and a lot of power to sound great (hp-1 basically sounds like whatever amp/source it's hooked up to).

kgss/omega 2 is phenomenal. it is easily the best setup i've ever heard, and when you consider that it can be had for around $3,000, the choice is quite easy to make. omega 2 is really transparent, incredibly fast, detailed, with incredibly deep bass response. it is the first headphone i've ever heard that really has what i would call a soundstage, and it changes with each recording. i think if i were a heavy electronic music listener, this setup would not let me down at all.

i didn't check your profile, but i sure hope you have a great source for any of the above setups.
smily_headphones1.gif
 
Jan 8, 2004 at 7:04 AM Post #17 of 18
Quote:

Originally posted by Jorg
OK, now I begin thinking of RS-1... Besides, does anybody know how are HD 650 with RA-1? Zanth, what amp do you use with your Grados? Wide soundstage is important for me, but the bass control is much more important. Chefguru, I think 6000$ for a headphone setup would be too much
rolleyes.gif
Yeah, it would be interesting to listen to Audio-technika. Hirsch, is MicroZOTL as dynamic, as SS amps? I thought that SS a much more dynamic... Allthough I've heard just a couple of them...

Thanks and
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V


I have the RA-1, and will get the HD650 in a few days. I'll provide some comments soon. I also have the RS1.
 
Jan 8, 2004 at 8:54 AM Post #18 of 18
Quote:

Originally posted by Jorg
Hirsch, is MicroZOTL as dynamic, as SS amps? I thought that SS a much more dynamic... Allthough I've heard just a couple of them...


A ZOTL with decent tubes is as dynamic as any headphone amp I've heard. As grinch has pointed out, the weakness is at the low end. The ZOTL has excellent highs, and a rather unique sound that can almost be ethereal. However, bass is soft, and it doesn't have the low end impact and definition of several other good amps. Still, it's a "magic combo" IMO with HP-1000. It's got lots of power to spare, which HP-1000 needs. I had a Melos and ZOTL next to each other for the better part of a year, and always went to the ZOTL when I just wanted to listen to music...any music. Ultimately, I sold my ZOTL when I got my Singlepower Supra. The Supra has a very similar signature sound, but less coloration and a much stronger low end.
 

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