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Left channel dies occasionally

post #1 of 4
7/1/11 at 11:25pm
Thread Starter 

Hi,

 

I've got a huge problem with my Grados sr 225i I ordered from the USA and that I got delivered here in Italy yesterday. The left channel dies occasionally depending on how I move the headphones. Sometimes it sounds weaker than the right one whereas sometimes it just sounds fine. I am sure it's the headphones because I've also got a pair of AKGs k702 and they're fine. I am hugely disappointed for I live in Sicily and the headphones will have to go through customs again if I send them for repair.... I will have to spend a disproportionate amount of money and frankly, I'm not quite sure it will be worth it, I believe it's just something slighly disconnected or loose inside (a wire mayble??). Could somebody tell me if it's possible to open the headphones up and try to fix them myself? Instructions on this matter would be very much appreciated. I've invested 200 bucks on this set of headphones and you can all imagine my disappointment :(

 

Thanks.
 

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post #2 of 4
7/2/11 at 12:31am

 

It is very possible to open up and repair your Grados. And in fact, once you get them open you might be tempted to start making other modifications to it smily_headphones1.gif
 

There's a continuing discussion on Grado mods here: http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/560806/sr60-mod-part-ii

 

 

But if you just want to get your headphones open to re-solder the bad connection, this is the relevant part...

(this is assuming the loose connection is at the headphone driver, and not at the plug)

 

Quote from Bilavideo in the old SR60-Mod thread:

OPENING UP YOUR SR60i

 

Fortunately, the SR60i is one of the easier Grados to open up.  Its cups are held together by rubbery glue that's heat-sensitive.  Softening the glue is simply a matter of steaming the cups till the glue loosens up.  I've ruined a few shells by putting them in boiling water (bad idea).  You don't need a full boil, just steam.  A few minutes of a shallow steam bath will do the trick - at least with the SR60i.

 

23-streaming.jpg

 

I filled a teapot with water, got it hot an d steamy and then poured a shallow layer of water into a cake pan.  That's the objective.  Of course, to place my cups in steamy water, I had to first prepare them.

 

26-unhooked.jpg

 

The minimalist design of the SR60 makes it easy to take apart.  The forks that connect the cups to the headband just clip on - and what clips on can as easily clip off.

 

25-unhooked.jpg

 

Okay class, quick question: Which side would you want your cups facing when they hit the water?  Top side up or Poseidon Adventure?

 

22-steaming.jpg

 

If you said, "Top side up," you should register to vote.  But I digress.  

 

20-inside.jpg

 

Give it just enough time to do its thing and you'll be able to pry your Grados apart WITH YOUR BARE HANDS.  (Chuck Norris can do it without the steam.)  It's a little drippy but it wipes right off, revealing undamped plastic chambers, the magnet plate, those holes we want to pop and some wiring we're going to mess with before this story is over.

 

19-inside.jpg

 

18-pieces.jpg

 

 

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post #3 of 4
7/2/11 at 12:35am
Wow! Excellent tutorial!

And I completely agree that you have a bad solder joint somewhere. But now you know what to do. smily_headphones1.gif

Yoga Flame, would you mind dropping that into the Wiki? It's a great contribution. smily_headphones1.gif
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post #4 of 4
7/2/11 at 1:01am

Sure thing :)

http://www.head-fi.org/wiki/how-to-open-your-grado-headphones

 

Credit must go to Bilavideo for the original writeup. I quoted it here rather than just linking because the old thread is now locked. And also, it's quite long.

 

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