Before I bought The Alessandro Ms2e I searched high and low for a review,with none to be found.
I went ahead and purchased them anyways and here are my thoughts(and my first review,so be gentle)
About me: I am NOT an audiophile.I just really like music.I am a former drummer and DJ,and studied sound engineering in college,so my ears are better than the average Joe,but I'm no "Golden Ear".
Looks and Build
The Alessandro line is the same design as Grados.Retro style,which I am quite fond of.
The metal cups are quite heavy which lead to some comfort issues(more on that later).
The cable is quite thick,and too short IMHO to be a versatile headphone for home use,and too bulky for mobile use.If you're sitting next to your amp its fine,but the six foot cable prevented me from kicking back on the couch and enjoying them from my main system.
They seem quite sturdy,in a Grado way.
Amping/Source
When I first got these I have to admit I was a bit disappointed.They had more bass then I had expected and a slightly warmer sound too,but at the cost of them sounding slow.
Having bought them to be my go to Rock/Metal cans,I was kinda unimpressed.
However I started trying my different sources and amping options and my opinion on them changed.
Now,these do not need an amp to be driven.But they scale very well with more power and different sources.If you feed them from a warm source,they can have some nice bass.If you feed them from a bright source,they speed up quite nice without sounding hot or harsh.
Sound
In a word:Excellent!
Highs: are crisp snappy and present.Grados can be described as harsh and sibilant.I do not find these to be either.Forward but not uncomfortably so.
Mids: Oh those guitars!Thats why I bought them and they deliver! Guitars are brought forward in a very noticeable way.Individual plucks of electric and acoustic guitars are quite distinct in songs where I had not heard them prior.Keyboards have a very organic quality to them.Very upfront without overwhelming the rest of whats going on.Vocals are very nice as well.The Ms2e do acoustic guitars in an extremely lifelike,liquid way.
Bass: I wouldnt call these bass light,but they def arent bassy headphones.The bass is mostly tight and controlled,but doesnt dig super deep,but then again nobody buys a Grado based headphone to listen to EDM or Hip/Hop.A couple times Ive heard the bass get a bit loose,but nothing I'd single out as a flaw.
Some realtime listening impressions......
David Bowie "Fame" Instrument imaging is fantastic! You can really pickup on the intricate guitar work going on in the background.High hats sizzle,and Bowie is front and center,where he should be.
Rolling Stones "Sympathy For The Devil" hearing a woman talking in the beginning I'd never heard before.Maracas are quite present as is the piano.Keith's solo is very much an in-your-face experience.
Tom Petty "Breakdown" Snare is quite snappy in the opening.Finger sliding on the bass is quite audible.Backing vocals surround Petty's lead vocals nicely.
Rush "Limelight" Geddy Lee's intricate bass lines are quite tight and apparent.Pert's drumming is very easy to get lost in on this,snappy,articulate,fast.
Robin Trower "Bridge of Sighs" Oh my!...just wow!!!
Patti Smith "We Three" An emotional song.Vocals are quite forward and tom hits are actually thumping on this track.Piano is in the background here.
Queensryche "Jet City Woman" Opening bass is very tight,but as soon as the dual guitars kick in,its on!
Zakk Wylde "Sleeping Dogs" Zakks acoustic work comes out like liquid honey.Simply gorgeous.
Soundstage & Imaging
Soundstage isnt the widest nor deepest Ive heard,If youre really into a wide soundstage then these probably arent the headphones for you.However the music isnt all in between your ears in any way.Think hearing a band on stage in a smoke filled bar,as opposed to Madison Square Garden.
Imaging is quite distinct while keeping the song coherent in a very articulate way.
Comfort
These are not comfortable headphones.The metal cups are quite weighty,the headband has like zero padding,and although there are more comfortable earpads out there,I found the best acoustic quality came with the least comfortable pad.
These arent uncomfortable,just not comfortable.I have had worse things on my head,but comfort has never been a Grado selling point,and the same remains true here.If youre familiar with Grado comfort and they dont bother you,then you will find these just fine.Just do not expect a feathery pillow experience from these.
Conclusion
I sold my HD600s because I found them too boring for rock and too slow for metal.When I want a refined listen I reach for my Beyer T1s,but still rock and metal lacked that in your face grit that should come with these genres of music.The Ms2e delivers.Classic rock/folk/acoustic all sound magnificent....as rock should sound.
I would recommend The Alessandro Ms2e to anyone looking for a complimentary headphone to their collection.I find them best suited for guitar rock and acoustic.For metal they are really nice,but I still prefer my ATH AD2000s for that genre.They arent bad for other genres,but with better choices out there for EDM,hip/hop or any other bass -centric genres,I wouldnt call these "all-arounders"
These do not need an amp but they definitely upscale real well and appreciate some nice clean strong solid state amping.They can also handle EQing without getting wonky or boomy
They arent comfy for long listens,ninety minutes are about all I can take,and I wish the cable was longer.
In closing I bought these for rock and took a gamble because there werent any reviews on them out there,and after a rough start,I'm glad I kept them and fed them properly.
I went ahead and purchased them anyways and here are my thoughts(and my first review,so be gentle)
About me: I am NOT an audiophile.I just really like music.I am a former drummer and DJ,and studied sound engineering in college,so my ears are better than the average Joe,but I'm no "Golden Ear".
Looks and Build
The Alessandro line is the same design as Grados.Retro style,which I am quite fond of.
The metal cups are quite heavy which lead to some comfort issues(more on that later).
The cable is quite thick,and too short IMHO to be a versatile headphone for home use,and too bulky for mobile use.If you're sitting next to your amp its fine,but the six foot cable prevented me from kicking back on the couch and enjoying them from my main system.
They seem quite sturdy,in a Grado way.
Amping/Source
When I first got these I have to admit I was a bit disappointed.They had more bass then I had expected and a slightly warmer sound too,but at the cost of them sounding slow.
Having bought them to be my go to Rock/Metal cans,I was kinda unimpressed.
However I started trying my different sources and amping options and my opinion on them changed.
Now,these do not need an amp to be driven.But they scale very well with more power and different sources.If you feed them from a warm source,they can have some nice bass.If you feed them from a bright source,they speed up quite nice without sounding hot or harsh.
Sound
In a word:Excellent!
Highs: are crisp snappy and present.Grados can be described as harsh and sibilant.I do not find these to be either.Forward but not uncomfortably so.
Mids: Oh those guitars!Thats why I bought them and they deliver! Guitars are brought forward in a very noticeable way.Individual plucks of electric and acoustic guitars are quite distinct in songs where I had not heard them prior.Keyboards have a very organic quality to them.Very upfront without overwhelming the rest of whats going on.Vocals are very nice as well.The Ms2e do acoustic guitars in an extremely lifelike,liquid way.
Bass: I wouldnt call these bass light,but they def arent bassy headphones.The bass is mostly tight and controlled,but doesnt dig super deep,but then again nobody buys a Grado based headphone to listen to EDM or Hip/Hop.A couple times Ive heard the bass get a bit loose,but nothing I'd single out as a flaw.
Some realtime listening impressions......
David Bowie "Fame" Instrument imaging is fantastic! You can really pickup on the intricate guitar work going on in the background.High hats sizzle,and Bowie is front and center,where he should be.
Rolling Stones "Sympathy For The Devil" hearing a woman talking in the beginning I'd never heard before.Maracas are quite present as is the piano.Keith's solo is very much an in-your-face experience.
Tom Petty "Breakdown" Snare is quite snappy in the opening.Finger sliding on the bass is quite audible.Backing vocals surround Petty's lead vocals nicely.
Rush "Limelight" Geddy Lee's intricate bass lines are quite tight and apparent.Pert's drumming is very easy to get lost in on this,snappy,articulate,fast.
Robin Trower "Bridge of Sighs" Oh my!...just wow!!!
Patti Smith "We Three" An emotional song.Vocals are quite forward and tom hits are actually thumping on this track.Piano is in the background here.
Queensryche "Jet City Woman" Opening bass is very tight,but as soon as the dual guitars kick in,its on!
Zakk Wylde "Sleeping Dogs" Zakks acoustic work comes out like liquid honey.Simply gorgeous.
Soundstage & Imaging
Soundstage isnt the widest nor deepest Ive heard,If youre really into a wide soundstage then these probably arent the headphones for you.However the music isnt all in between your ears in any way.Think hearing a band on stage in a smoke filled bar,as opposed to Madison Square Garden.
Imaging is quite distinct while keeping the song coherent in a very articulate way.
Comfort
These are not comfortable headphones.The metal cups are quite weighty,the headband has like zero padding,and although there are more comfortable earpads out there,I found the best acoustic quality came with the least comfortable pad.
These arent uncomfortable,just not comfortable.I have had worse things on my head,but comfort has never been a Grado selling point,and the same remains true here.If youre familiar with Grado comfort and they dont bother you,then you will find these just fine.Just do not expect a feathery pillow experience from these.
Conclusion
I sold my HD600s because I found them too boring for rock and too slow for metal.When I want a refined listen I reach for my Beyer T1s,but still rock and metal lacked that in your face grit that should come with these genres of music.The Ms2e delivers.Classic rock/folk/acoustic all sound magnificent....as rock should sound.
I would recommend The Alessandro Ms2e to anyone looking for a complimentary headphone to their collection.I find them best suited for guitar rock and acoustic.For metal they are really nice,but I still prefer my ATH AD2000s for that genre.They arent bad for other genres,but with better choices out there for EDM,hip/hop or any other bass -centric genres,I wouldnt call these "all-arounders"
These do not need an amp but they definitely upscale real well and appreciate some nice clean strong solid state amping.They can also handle EQing without getting wonky or boomy
They arent comfy for long listens,ninety minutes are about all I can take,and I wish the cable was longer.
In closing I bought these for rock and took a gamble because there werent any reviews on them out there,and after a rough start,I'm glad I kept them and fed them properly.