Grado SR125i Headphones

I've own/owned every single pair of Grados except the PS1000's. In general, they're great. But the only ones to disappoint are the iGrados (which were a joke), and the SR125. 
 
If you look at the freq. graph on headroom, there is a strong dip in the midrange near the 5KHz range, compared to, say, the SR80i or the SR225i. What the... Grado?
 
Midrange consequently ain't too great. I'm not saying these are horrible, just not the typical Grado sound you'd expect. And you can spend more (SR225i) or less (SR80i) money and get a better phone either way.
 
I'd personally recommend the extra $50 to upgrade to the SR225i's, which, imo, are the best sound quality to price ratio for any grado. 

These headphones are quite good, and have really great highs.  They are an improvement over the SR-80i, with a more balanced and bright sound with better articulation.  For the money, they are quite good.  
 
These headphones do need to be broken in a bit.  The highs start off a little harsh and tinny, but end up pronounced, but more balanced.  They also need to be amped to get the full sound.  Without an amp, they are dead.  With an amp, they are brought alive, and have more bass and highs.
 
The place where the SR-125i's really shine is in the mids and highs.  They are bright but accurate.  and they have a little punch that really adds to music.  They also have good direction and and have a very bright sound.
 
The bass, however, is lacking.  It is there, but more for support than the main exhibition.  It retains a very crisp sound and also has a little punch to make it stand out. This sounds really good depending on what type of music is being played.  Music from the band This Town Needs Guns (a math rock band) sounds incredible on them.  
 
Soundstage is another  point to consider.  Its pretty much not there.  This makes the SR125 much better for certain  types of music compared to others.  They really sing on most rock music, but when it comes to acoustic music, like Sun Kil Moon, a lot is lost in translation.  That type of music really begs for a large soundstage, which the 125's don't have.
 
The worst thing about these headphones is the fact that they are not very comfortable at all.  The headband really digs in after a short while listening.  I have found that this discomfort can be overcome by placing a sock between the headband and my head.  It makes the headphones much more enjoyable, but looks rather odd.
 
I got the chance to compare these headphones to the Grados Labs SR-80i, and I prefer the SR-125i greatly.  The SR-125's seem much brighter and better balanced than the 80i, 
The main reason I purchased these headphones is to act as a counterpoint to my Audio Technica ATH-A700s, which have a massive soundstage.
 
Something to note: The SR-125i's have a large, thick cable and a 1/4 inch connector, so a 1/4 inch to 3.5mm connector is needed.

 These babies can sing. That's all I can say. I had never tried a pair of Grados before these and I'm pretty shocked (in a good way.)
 
 The box leaves some to be desired, a pizza-box style box, with an image of a pair of Grado woodies on it. It has a GRADO headphones name in vintage-ish blue/purple/orange, and a quotation reading "truly the world's finest." Nothing too special, but boxes aren't what headphones are all about
 
 Opening the box I was greeted by my sexy new cans in a piece of foam cut out to fit the headphones. They definitely looked nice. Vinyl headband, retro but solid looking plastic build, and an incredibly thick cable. They looked a little flimsy, but after feeling them my worries abated a little bit. It smelled kind of weird though, don't know why.
 
 The sound out of the box was good. Not quite to the level of astounding, but better than anything I had heard before. The highs were great. I can't say sparkly, because they weren't they were just natural. It sounded a tad shrill at first, which eventually mellowed out.
 
 The bass is what the prestige series generally get picked on for. I have to agree, there is not much in the way of quantity of bass. There's a nice little thump but definitely not much in the way of quantity. Quality, on the other hand, is alot better. the bass that is present is nice, textured and not over emphasized.
 
 The mids are where these really shine. Again, I won't call these smooth mids or anything, just natural. Guitars sound perfectly life-like. My favorite song (Map of Your Head, by Muse) is acoustic guitar orientated, and never in my life have I ever heard it sound this good.
 
 The soundstage is.... well, almost non-existent. Not necessarily in a bad way, because the imaging itself kind of makes up for it, but it definitely sounds fairly left/right orientated.
 
 Clarityis good on these, especially after quarter modding. Detail retrieval is substantial for what I thought was a more "fun" orientated pair of headphones, and the sound seems very effortless, never really getting congested, and always maintaining good seperation
 
 You don't need an amp with these, but I do notice a slight improvement, which is nice.
 
  I've had minor comfort issues, and of course these leak sound like most grados .
 
 In summary, these are great entry level headphones

The bass is somewhat weak, but very well controlled. The SR125i is easily better than the SR80i, though I question how much of the clarity is due to the 8 conductor cable over the 80i's 4. Compared to the SR225 (non-i) I could not tell much, if any difference. The 225 did have the L pads, which, given my experience with the S, I wish I had tried. Outside of that, I believe the slight (very slight) improvement is probably partially due to the 225s metal grill. The plastic seems like it could be somewhat restrictive by comparison, though given that, a 125i and a bit of fun modding one of the most modder friendly headphones out there seems a better bet than a 225. The 225i may have convinced me otherwise, but the only other option in store at the time (besides the 80i, 125i, and 225) was an RS 2, which I didn't even try due to fear I'd like it and not be able to afford it.

I LOVE listening to music on these cans!  However, I can only do so when home alone it seems.  As with all open phones they can produce quite a bit of sound outside of your ear.  Music has a wonderful punch and brightness when heard through these, and they are very easy to drive without a headphone amp.  I would certainly purchase another pair of Grados in the future!