devouringone3 said:

You're not the first one (http://www.head-fi.org/t/277545/grado-hp1000-just-a-musical-instrument) returning to this headphone after a while and being impressed by it's "musicality".

Personally I feel like they are hyper speedy/fast, almost as if the music was shining like a beam of light or even focused like a laser. Kind of like two guitars playing in harmony, versus having just one. It has to do, mostly, with either or both of these two features (more than with the actual cups, because the SR325 and SR100 with HP-1000 drivers retained the magic pretty well to my ears).

(First I was thinking it had to be because of the creases radiating out of the center of the dome; the "star": )



(But very recently some Head-Fier discovered that the diaphragm on the front of the driver was connected [either directly or indirectly] to the black part on the back; he witnessed it vibrating like a piston, together with the diaphragm, as he raised the volume to risky-high intensity)




(Both of these features are unique to this driver as far as I can tell from searching for similarities with other headphones' driver for almost a year now)


To get the most bass out of them you put a layer of 3M Scotch Tape (the clear one) around your flat pads.


The fail rate on these is really low, I have only heard of one (I think it was the driver at fault, but I'm not even if it wasn't due to misuse or cable connection problem). I don't really know about letting them sit unused for long periods of time, but I do know that these things are made to be used . My main HP2 pair has rested never used from 1992 to 2012 (when I bought it from its first owner) and it sounds fantastic . Mylar, the material most headphone driver's diaphragm are made out of, is chemically inert and has good "creep resistance / structural integrity", I don't know how to call that property. Also, the HP-1000 drivers were the best product of an old-timer Japanese microphone and (now ex-) driver technology company (that Joe commissioned to make to his requirements)... and Japanese stuff is always quite durable.

I personally keep my four HP 1000 (and other Grados) in a relatively stable temperature, low humidity room, in a giant ziploc bag partway opened, in a box with a changing color (orange->dark green) silica gel pouch, away from sunlight and dust. But I make sure they can breathe and come out to play every once in a while . I remove the foam pads for storage.

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fuzzybaffy said:

Well... back when I was in high school (pretty much ten years ago), I was sort of into headphones, and owned and selled quite a few. Sennheiser HD-580's, Sony MDR-CD3000's, Grado RS-1's, and I somehow was eventually able to get a hold of the Grado HP-1's. I'm guessing they were easier to get back then.

I sold off the HD-580's and the CD3000's, and gave the RS-1's to my dad, and kept the HP-1's to myself. But with going to college, moving out of the house, and going to South Korea for a while, I kept the HP-1's stored somewhere, and never bothered looking for them. Well, I just went into the storage to look for these, ten years later (without much hope of finding them), and I eventually did.

And... wow. Maybe it was because I was younger back then, and didn't really appreciate neutrality or clean sound (I think I was more attracted to the more "obvious" and "forward" sounding CD3000's and the RS-1's), but these are actually quite better than I remember. In fact, they sound amazing.

The mids are absolutely surreal, and almost, quite literally, sound something like it was made from another planet. It's definitely not something you'd expect to hear from regular headphone drivers. Anything you hear afterwards (like the HD-650's I just got today), just do not sound as "real" or "impactful", in terms of the mids, as they do with the HP-1's.

I don't know how to explain it... there's just something about the way the sound moves with the HP-1's that gives it some kind of "velocity" or "movement" that sounds very natural, and not electronic or artificial.

My guess is the actual housing of the drivers have a LOT to do with the sound. It's akin to the way the material and shape of guitars, violins, cellos, flutes, etc. change the way the instruments sound. It's as if the headphones themselves are actual instruments, rather than just miniature speakers housed in plastic/metal. And the metal housing of the HP-1's give it that kind of smooth, yet super impactful feel of the mids. It's as if they sound as they look.

This is only the mids and the treble, with the HP-1's, though. I've only done just cursory, few-minute listening sessions with the HP-1's the past couple of days (because I want to preserve them), and the bass wasn't something that immediately stuck out to me. It was all about the voices and the soft instrumentals. My God.

Still, I think for overall, everyday listening the Sennheiser HD-650's that I just got today might be a little better. Both because of comfort, and the overall, pleasing sound signature.

It's just, the HP-1's have quite a character, and I think they're something special and amazing.

Also, does anyone know whether it's bad to just keep headphones stored away, and not use them for long periods of time? I've nearly not used the HP-1's for years, but, they seem to be ok. Is it like automobiles, where if you don't use them for long enough, all the parts just kind of loosen up and not work as well?

If anyone knows, please let me know!

At any rate, I hope this, yet another, post gives a pretty good glimpse on the Grado HP-1. I'm sure there are a lot of posts out there on these phones. But, I think another doesn't help. =D If anyone has a chance to grab a pair of these, they definitely should... unless the seller is demanding thousands of dollars.

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