kwitel
Headphoneus Supremus
- Joined
- Oct 10, 2005
- Posts
- 3,089
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- 17
Although this has been discussed many times before, Ive recently had an epiphany regarding headphones in general and id like to share my findings with you all-especially newbies like me.
First off, let me say that I am by no means a senior level audiophile, more like a graduating freshman. Furthermore, when I came here, I really had no clue what every one was talking about. The terminologies, the specifics and the assortment of products with which to choose from were all quite intimidating. However, due to the warm welcome and wealth of information provided by all whom encompass the Head-Fi community...im starting to no longer sound like an idiot. And, im also alot less wealthy, but thats a whole other thread.
Ive noticed that one of the most popular thread topics is first-time highend headphone buyer questions-which in many cases leads to problems with uncomfortability (is that a word?) This is most prevalent with Grado sr-60/80 buyers (i find that 125 buyers and up, usually know what theyre in for) and sometimes concerns the head-band, but mostly concerns the "comfy" mod or the "itchy bowl" dilemma.
Being the proud owner fo a pair of sr-80's, Ive tried all the options and ive finally found what works. Now as far as my epiphany goes...I must admit, when I first got the cans and was confronted with the pad issue all that was important to me was comfort. This was understandable, being that my ears were not yet conditioned to notice the sometimes intricate differences between the many choices for bowl and comfy replacements. However, ive recently started to notice tremendous changes in sound when both using different types of pads and moving the headphone around on my head to find the optimal listening spot.
For those who dont know, the sr-60 comes with the "comfy" pad, which fully covers the driver and is made out of relatively comfortable foam. On the other hand, the sr-80 comes with the "bowls", a denser and notoriously more uncomfortable foam that provides a "supra-aural" circle on the ear (doesnt surround the ear completely).
Now, im going to list the options that you have to better this situation. I hope to convey that comfort should not be paramount, rather you should find a happy medium between comfort and sound quality. When you know what to look out for as far as a change in the sound, it will ultimately make the decision process easier for you.
Comfies : (come stock with the sr-60)IMO, i would never use them, even if the sr-60's were the first and only headphones ive purchased. They are comfortable but they just dont do the Grado sound justice. If money is an issue and you dont want to buy new pads, you could try the "quarter mod". Take off the pads, put them on a table with the inside facing up. Place a quarter in the center and trace around a hole using a very sharp blade or xtacto knife. This will open up the soundstage a bit, give you somewhat of a more "airy" feeling and IMO brighten the highs and warm up the lows. You can use any of the following as well...
Bowls : (come stock with the 80's, 125's, and 225's...not sure about the 325). When you first put them on, they feel rather good. I found after and hour or so that the foam became way too itchy. To remedy this, take them off, and gently scrub them with some hand soap and warm water. DO NOT worry about the shape, you can scrub and squeeze as much as youd like. Rinse out the soap completely and try and dry them as best as you can by rinsing the water out and using a towel. Wait till they dry completely and put them back on. A number of things will happen. The foam is now noticably softer to the touch and a bit more flexible-allowing it to comform more to the contour of your ear. Due to this, the driver is now closer to your ear, eliminating a bit of soundstage but also deepening the bass tremendously. Again, you may notice a bit more brightness...
Sennheiser 414 pad : Although i find the washed bowls to best represent the Grado signature sound, the Senns are a terrific "second pair" or complete alternative. At only $7 shipped direct from Sennheiser's USA site, its basically a no-lose situation. If you do buy them, youll want to do the "reverse mod". Basically do the same thing you would do to the comfies, except now youd have two holes in this pad, the one you cut is the one that goes over the driver. Ive found that the Senns did more for me for sound than comfort. They bring my ears closer to the drivers, extending the bass and really taming the 80's highs. The highs of the 80-'s can get very fatuiging for me, especially when listening to hard rock, so I find these to be a great temporary fix. One complaint I have is that the ear opening is not large enought to clear the entire driver which may give a slight muffled effect and a noticable decrease in the soundstage. Theres a reason why John Grado wants us to you use the bowls. Also, due to the increased surface area of the Senn pad, theres more ear irritation after long sessions.
Ive found that what works best is to use the Senns for your aggressive music; Rock, Industrial, Hip-Hop and Electronic and the Bowls for your Classical, Jazz, Accoustic Guitar (classic rock) Ambient and Trip-Hop.
Flats : Can be purchased from Todthevinyljunkie.com and I believe come stock on the rs-1/2. Ive used them, but didnt find their performance to warrant the $30 price tag. Many people swear by them and say they are terrific for all around use. In my experience, I loved the extra bass but didnt like the decrease in soundstage. Im finding more and more that soundstage is becoming very important to me. If you can afford it, id pick up a pair just to have another variant of your headphones sound.
Well, i hope this has helped some of you new Grado users, I know it took me a while to really firgure out what worked best for me. Grados are amazing headphones; experiment with them until you find what works best for you.
Please dont hesitate to correct me where I need correcting...
Enjoy!
-Kwitel
First off, let me say that I am by no means a senior level audiophile, more like a graduating freshman. Furthermore, when I came here, I really had no clue what every one was talking about. The terminologies, the specifics and the assortment of products with which to choose from were all quite intimidating. However, due to the warm welcome and wealth of information provided by all whom encompass the Head-Fi community...im starting to no longer sound like an idiot. And, im also alot less wealthy, but thats a whole other thread.
Ive noticed that one of the most popular thread topics is first-time highend headphone buyer questions-which in many cases leads to problems with uncomfortability (is that a word?) This is most prevalent with Grado sr-60/80 buyers (i find that 125 buyers and up, usually know what theyre in for) and sometimes concerns the head-band, but mostly concerns the "comfy" mod or the "itchy bowl" dilemma.
Being the proud owner fo a pair of sr-80's, Ive tried all the options and ive finally found what works. Now as far as my epiphany goes...I must admit, when I first got the cans and was confronted with the pad issue all that was important to me was comfort. This was understandable, being that my ears were not yet conditioned to notice the sometimes intricate differences between the many choices for bowl and comfy replacements. However, ive recently started to notice tremendous changes in sound when both using different types of pads and moving the headphone around on my head to find the optimal listening spot.
For those who dont know, the sr-60 comes with the "comfy" pad, which fully covers the driver and is made out of relatively comfortable foam. On the other hand, the sr-80 comes with the "bowls", a denser and notoriously more uncomfortable foam that provides a "supra-aural" circle on the ear (doesnt surround the ear completely).
Now, im going to list the options that you have to better this situation. I hope to convey that comfort should not be paramount, rather you should find a happy medium between comfort and sound quality. When you know what to look out for as far as a change in the sound, it will ultimately make the decision process easier for you.
Comfies : (come stock with the sr-60)IMO, i would never use them, even if the sr-60's were the first and only headphones ive purchased. They are comfortable but they just dont do the Grado sound justice. If money is an issue and you dont want to buy new pads, you could try the "quarter mod". Take off the pads, put them on a table with the inside facing up. Place a quarter in the center and trace around a hole using a very sharp blade or xtacto knife. This will open up the soundstage a bit, give you somewhat of a more "airy" feeling and IMO brighten the highs and warm up the lows. You can use any of the following as well...
Bowls : (come stock with the 80's, 125's, and 225's...not sure about the 325). When you first put them on, they feel rather good. I found after and hour or so that the foam became way too itchy. To remedy this, take them off, and gently scrub them with some hand soap and warm water. DO NOT worry about the shape, you can scrub and squeeze as much as youd like. Rinse out the soap completely and try and dry them as best as you can by rinsing the water out and using a towel. Wait till they dry completely and put them back on. A number of things will happen. The foam is now noticably softer to the touch and a bit more flexible-allowing it to comform more to the contour of your ear. Due to this, the driver is now closer to your ear, eliminating a bit of soundstage but also deepening the bass tremendously. Again, you may notice a bit more brightness...
Sennheiser 414 pad : Although i find the washed bowls to best represent the Grado signature sound, the Senns are a terrific "second pair" or complete alternative. At only $7 shipped direct from Sennheiser's USA site, its basically a no-lose situation. If you do buy them, youll want to do the "reverse mod". Basically do the same thing you would do to the comfies, except now youd have two holes in this pad, the one you cut is the one that goes over the driver. Ive found that the Senns did more for me for sound than comfort. They bring my ears closer to the drivers, extending the bass and really taming the 80's highs. The highs of the 80-'s can get very fatuiging for me, especially when listening to hard rock, so I find these to be a great temporary fix. One complaint I have is that the ear opening is not large enought to clear the entire driver which may give a slight muffled effect and a noticable decrease in the soundstage. Theres a reason why John Grado wants us to you use the bowls. Also, due to the increased surface area of the Senn pad, theres more ear irritation after long sessions.
Ive found that what works best is to use the Senns for your aggressive music; Rock, Industrial, Hip-Hop and Electronic and the Bowls for your Classical, Jazz, Accoustic Guitar (classic rock) Ambient and Trip-Hop.
Flats : Can be purchased from Todthevinyljunkie.com and I believe come stock on the rs-1/2. Ive used them, but didnt find their performance to warrant the $30 price tag. Many people swear by them and say they are terrific for all around use. In my experience, I loved the extra bass but didnt like the decrease in soundstage. Im finding more and more that soundstage is becoming very important to me. If you can afford it, id pick up a pair just to have another variant of your headphones sound.
Well, i hope this has helped some of you new Grado users, I know it took me a while to really firgure out what worked best for me. Grados are amazing headphones; experiment with them until you find what works best for you.
Please dont hesitate to correct me where I need correcting...
Enjoy!
-Kwitel
