[Mushrooshi]

Well, since discovering Head-Fi, I've been finding myself more and more curious about the world of audiophiles and good audio equipment. The first 'audiophile' purchase I made was on these iGrados, which I found shared the same drivers as the Grado SR60s, and have been well received by lots of members here, after the quarter mod and all. I've also acquired some audiophile vocabulary. Sooo:
 
 
the iGrados are, out of the packaging, have more punch, are far less muddled and flat, are more full, and the soundstage is very awesome. I can notice and point out a lot more instruments and sounds going on than on the iPod earbuds, where a lot of the instruments were muffled or muted. Something feels slightly missing about the highs though, its slightly veiled. Everything about it is better than the iPod earbuds, by far. The difference is night and day. Comparing them to my sister's headphones (Sony Piiq Triqiis, fashion phones), the sound quality comparison is the same but to a lesser degree. I can tell a difference, but its not as profoundly different. 
 
As for comfort, I can't wear them for more than an hour and a half. For styling, they aren't loud or crazy like Skullcandies are, and they aren't the most high-end-looking headphones. But they aren't crazy ugly for me either, and I'm planning to ear them in public.
 
Setup: (mostly) 320kbps MP3s >> iPod nano 6G >> iGrado >> Ears, volume between 25 and 60 percent, enjoying it at night without any noise disturbance except keyboard typing.
 
I wonder what headphones to get next though... perhaps something closed and won't make lots of noise?

 

[yifu]

M50s maybe? Its strange that you find the soundstage amazing on these as most people reckon that for an open can, they have zero soundstage. But my advice is not to get new headphones. Try out a cheap amp like the Fiio E5 which is only 20 bucks and then upgrade the DAC. You should hear a difference.
 
Quote:

Well, since discovering Head-Fi, I've been finding myself more and more curious about the world of audiophiles and good audio equipment. The first 'audiophile' purchase I made was on these iGrados, which I found shared the same drivers as the Grado SR60s, and have been well received by lots of members here, after the quarter mod and all. I've also acquired some audiophile vocabulary. Sooo:
 
 
the iGrados are, out of the packaging, have more punch, are far less muddled and flat, are more full, and the soundstage is very awesome. I can notice and point out a lot more instruments and sounds going on than on the iPod earbuds, where a lot of the instruments were muffled or muted. Something feels slightly missing about the highs though, its slightly veiled. Everything about it is better than the iPod earbuds, by far. The difference is night and day. Comparing them to my sister's headphones (Sony Piiq Triqiis, fashion phones), the sound quality comparison is the same but to a lesser degree. I can tell a difference, but its not as profoundly different. 
 
As for comfort, I can't wear them for more than an hour and a half. For styling, they aren't loud or crazy like Skullcandies are, and they aren't the most high-end-looking headphones. But they aren't crazy ugly for me either, and I'm planning to ear them in public.
 
Setup: (mostly) 320kbps MP3s >> iPod nano 6G >> iGrado >> Ears, volume between 25 and 60 percent, enjoying it at night without any noise disturbance except keyboard typing.
 
I wonder what headphones to get next though... perhaps something closed and won't make lots of noise?

 

[Mushrooshi]

Compared to what I've listened to so far, the soundstage is miles more protruding and present, but I haven't heard anything 'better' than iGrados yet, and I don't know if I have any friends who would have awesome cans for me to try out.
Quote:

M50s maybe? Its strange that you find the soundstage amazing on these as most people reckon that for an open can, they have zero soundstage. But my advice is not to get new headphones. Try out a cheap amp like the Fiio E5 which is only 20 bucks and then upgrade the DAC. You should hear a difference.

 

 

[yifu]

Well just about any decent open phone would have better soundstage than the igrados. For the price though, they are phenomenal. Perhaps you could find a headphone store near you, or maybe bestbuy or something so that you can try out other stuff.
 
Quote:

Compared to what I've listened to so far, the soundstage is miles more protruding and present, but I haven't heard anything 'better' than iGrados yet, and I don't know if I have any friends who would have awesome cans for me to try out.
Quote:

M50s maybe? Its strange that you find the soundstage amazing on these as most people reckon that for an open can, they have zero soundstage. But my advice is not to get new headphones. Try out a cheap amp like the Fiio E5 which is only 20 bucks and then upgrade the DAC. You should hear a difference.

 

 

 

[wje]

How can the standard iPod earbuds be compared to any headphone product?  Granted, I realize this might be the only comparison one might be able to make, I took the few seconds after my daughter purchased an iPod to try the earbuds.  I tried to properly position those white buds into my ear - yet, achieving a good position where the sound might be OK seemed nearly impossible.  I can't believe with all the $$ Apple invests in R&D into their products, they can't provide a better set of earbuds for their clients.  Heck, even the new iTouch 64GB @ $400 includes these horrible things in the package.  C'mon, Mr. Jobs, what do you say?  Can your company work on some better ear buds?  

 

[sml1226]

Keep in mind though guys, Apple charges $30 to replace those crappy iBuds if you ever decide (for some demented reason) to replace them upon their demise. So a pair of iGrados are, in reality, hardly expensive compared to the buds, the PortaPros are actually the same price as the iBuds.

I find the soundstage to be pretty enclosed in my SR-125is and they are held as quite a bit higher in that respect than the iGrados from what I've seen. Granted, going from cheap in ears or earbuds, anything outside your ear is going to present an improvement. I have heard some soundstage from my cheapo Philips SHE-9500s but only with a perfect seal, and even then, the focus on bass collapses that rather quickly.

Best Buy here, not saying a reasonable sized city in Texas wouldn't be a thousand times better, only carries Beats, PortaPros, and Sennheiser HD428s. I'd look for more of a specialty shop if you have the option. I love my little Senn/Grado shop here. Won't look elsewhere for phones (nobody carries AKG, Ultrasone, Beyerdynamic... or anything else around here).