A Strange Semi-Vintage RS-1: Now with Pics

[Mercuttio]

So I recently bid and won this auction:

Grado RS-1 Headphone & RA-1 Amp

They arrived today, in separate boxes.

I know from the seller that these headphones were purchased in 1999, and shortly thereafter the owner partially lost his hearing. They were boxed up, and left in a closet until now, when I bid on them.

Now, I'm not expecting "Super-Vintage" because there's no light brown headband, and no wooden box. However, these have pink / reddish drivers and gold L & R lettering.

I'll put up pics soon, but I'm pretty excited about this find.

 

[foo_me]

Congrats and welcome to club!
Have you heard a vintage pair before to know the difference?

 

[Uncle Erik]

Congrats on the great find! Somehow, I knew you'd pick up another.

 

[Mercuttio]

Quote:

Originally Posted by foo_me /img/forum/go_quote.gif Congrats and welcome to club! Have you heard a vintage pair before to know the difference?

I heard a vintage pair at a meet once in someone's house. It was notably better than my 2005 pair that I had at the time. More like an HP2 in terms of resolution and decay. You have to sit for a little longer for the picture to snap into focus, but when it does it's incredible. The treble is also a bit less "shouty" than newer versions, though some could see this as a downside.

I don't have the 2005 RS1 to compare anymore, but these exhibit that more HP2 sound from what I recall in the test tracks I've listened to so far.

 

[RockCity]

Hey Mercuttio, I saw these when the listing was first posted. I'm not sure if these are true vintage because of the housing characteristic. The easiest way is to look at the font. The "Reference Series Headphones" part makes a 220' swing. On vintage RS-1's they are nearly 180 and have the tails on the R's.

 

[Mercuttio]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RockCity /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hey Mercuttio, I saw these when the listing was first posted. I'm not sure if these are true vintage because of the housing characteristic. The easiest way is to look at the font. The "Reference Series Headphones" part makes a 220' swing. On vintage RS-1's they are nearly 180 and have the tails on the R's.

Yeah, that's what I thought at first too.

However, the gold L & R and the black mesh inside / red driver seem to point otherwise. I've never seen a model like this... it could be some sort of strange cross-over.

 

[vcoheda]

i saw these too. no wooden box though, right?

maybe semi-vintage then?

 

[Mercuttio]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vcoheda /img/forum/go_quote.gif i saw these too. no wooden box though, right? maybe semi-vintage then?

Yeah, not true-vintage because they're missing the brown headband and the box. But some sort of weird in-between generation hybrid... check out the pictures.

 

[tintin47]

That is weird. I have also never seen a box with that font/packaging. This may be from the generation right after they had to stop using the wooden boxes because they lost their supplier, hence the holdover green foam from the wooden box generation. The packaging and the model itself could be from the in between period when they were trying to figure out the final packaging and whatnot. Don't know what to say about the subtle design changes, though. (headband...)

It is very beautiful, though.

 

[nikongod]

Nice score on the old RS1/RA1 pair.

mine have pinkish/redish drivers too.
The mesh looks like it was white at some time in my set though.

 

[DefectiveAudioComponent]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mercuttio /img/forum/go_quote.gif ... these headphones were purchased in 1999, and shortly thereafter the owner partially lost his hearing...

that's not such a great sign.... (but they look great... enjoy!)

 

[madmax7]

Nice!

 

[Mercuttio]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tintin47 /img/forum/go_quote.gif That is weird. I have also never seen a box with that font/packaging. This may be from the generation right after they had to stop using the wooden boxes because they lost their supplier, hence the holdover green foam from the wooden box generation. The packaging and the model itself could be from the in between period when they were trying to figure out the final packaging and whatnot. Don't know what to say about the subtle design changes, though. (headband...) It is very beautiful, though.

I think they stopped doing wood boxes in like... 97? 98? Not sure. I've seen one other box like this on an RS1 in a picture once. HP1 / HP2 / HP3 used to be packed in boxes like this, and then John's entire line was. Even the wood box RS1 used to come with an outer box like this, I believe.

*shrug*

They sound great though. Slight grattle in the right cup at first with super deep frequencies, but a gentle blow in the back of the phone cured that. Hopefully it was just dust and won't come back.

The only flaw is that one of the small screws that holds the metal ring around the wood cup is a little stripped so that cup is slightly loose. Holds fine for now but no harm in putting a new one on. I'll call Grado in the morning and see if I can pick up a replacement screw.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DefectiveAudioComponent /img/forum/go_quote.gif that's not such a great sign.... (but they look great... enjoy!)

Heh. It was unrelated. I felt really bad though... he had kept them for a long time hoping that his hearing would return to normal.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nikongod /img/forum/go_quote.gif Nice score on the old RS1/RA1 pair. mine have pinkish/redish drivers too. The mesh looks like it was white at some time in my set though.

Are yours true vintage? With the box / brown headband etc? I thought all the mesh in older pairs was black.

 

[Henmyr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mercuttio /img/forum/go_quote.gif I think they stopped doing wood boxes in like... 97? 98? Not sure. I've seen one other box like this on an RS1 in a picture once. HP1 / HP2 / HP3 used to be packed in boxes like this, and then John's entire line was. Even the wood box RS1 used to come with an outer box like this, I believe. *shrug* They sound great though. Slight grattle in the right cup at first with super deep frequencies, but a gentle blow in the back of the phone cured that. Hopefully it was just dust and won't come back. The only flaw is that one of the small screws that holds the metal ring around the wood cup is a little stripped so that cup is slightly loose. Holds fine for now but no harm in putting a new one on. I'll call Grado in the morning and see if I can pick up a replacement screw. Heh. It was unrelated. I felt really bad though... he had kept them for a long time hoping that his hearing would return to normal.

So, do they sound like the vintage you heard before?

 

[Mercuttio]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Henmyr /img/forum/go_quote.gif So, do they sound like the vintage you heard before?

I think so. It's been two years. I do know that they're not pushed forward like the 2005 pair I had. It's more midrange. The midrange reminds me a little of jjcha's HP2 that I had for a few months in 2006. Exceptionally smooth. I tried them with both flats and bowls, and they're definitely better with flats.

EDIT: They're also very clear, all the way through. The depth exists in a way that isn't exactly a soundstage, but I can still gauge distance and get a feeling for the way things are layered.