Jon118
500+ Head-Fier
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Alright, time for my big review/comparison. I have the SR-660s and the SR-80s sitting beside me, and I fully expect the 80s to be better, but we shall see.
The setup is pretty basic, just my Zune, no eq, WMA at 192 KB/S, since it is a source I know well and since my amp is too problematic to trust, or maybe it's the interconnect. I'm not sure which since I have nothing that accepts mini input besides that amp to test it on. I realize this could hurt the Grados since they tend to do better with an amp, but I'll be keeping that in mind for my impressions.
First test song is Panic Attack by Dream Theater, pretty fast and fairly bass driven. Most songs will simply be ones I'm familiar with.
First up are the 660s. The first thing I notice is a lot of bass detail, but the bass isn't very deep. Again, the detail is surprisingly good as far as bass goes, but when the rest of the instruments come in everything seems to get a bit muddy. The recessed mids can be somewhat blamed for that, since the guitar seems to get lost somewhere in there. The mids will come out of the woodwork if the lower end quiets down for a bit, so it should be fine on most songs, but not this one. Highs don't seem to go quite as high as they should, the synth seems to be held down a bit. Just not as fun to listen to. Maybe I'm just imagining that though.
The SR-80s immediately show a lot of difference, the detail is still there in the bass, but when everything else comes in, there is a very shrill quality, which took a second to get used to. But clearly nothing is lost to these cans. The low end is less pronounced and everything else is clearly there. The sound isn't quite as full as the 660s, but it seems more correct, kind of like the 660s have changed the song itself. However this could be attributed to the lack of an amp, which might help fill it out. This could also be the lack of soundstage, which is one area where the 660s definitely have them beat so far. The highs sound great on these in contrast to the limited highs on the 660s, much more engaging and full.
The SR-80s win the first round. While we're on Dream Theater, the next song will be Overture 1928 and Strange Deja Vu.
Back the 660s, these are definitely easier to drive than the 80s, but they still seem to be veiled in comparison. That said the mids are shining a lot more with this selection than with Panic attack, this one is showing that these can do mids. Again, the highs seem held down, but the lows have a lot of impact and a lot of detail again, even though they are fairly veiled. Vocals sound very smooth, not as shrill as the Grados, which is nice. These cans are very enjoyable on this song, they are pretty musical in parts and quite likable. The only problem is that these seem very dependent on the song, which might make them too specialized to be truly good.
Once again, the Grados immediately sound sharper on the highs, and quieter, an amp would definitely help them in this department. On Overture 1928 these sound quite shrill on a few parts. This seems to fix itself as the song goes on, but these are not as rich sounding as the 660s here. The vocals are much more shrill, but not too terrible, not as engaging as the 660s though. Not bad though, fairly close. The Grados are consistent from song to song, which is something greatly in their favor.
I would give this round to the 660s actually. Next up is Rush, Spirit of the Radio.
Right from the start the 660s sound surprisingly good here. Good clarity for the pronounced bass, but without diminishing the high vocals or the guitar like these usually do. The 660s are very much in their element here, this round looks like it's going to be very unfairly one sided. Maybe I was just enjoying the song too much, but there wasn't much to fault from the 660s here, there is still a bit of a veil, but I really don't care right now, these just sound right in their element.
The Grados sound very clean, and while the guitar sound like it should, the bass is obscured by it. Geddy Lee sounds a bit sibilant though, but again, more true to form than the 660s. While this was more what the song should probably sound like and there is no question that the Grados were more accurate, the 660s were simply more enjoyable.
While the 660s seemed about perfect for this song and were hugely enjoyable, the Grados were to just too good to give the 660s the win, so I'm calling this one a tie. Lastly will be Yes, Close to the Edge, I always listen to my new headphones with this album, but I'll only be using the title track or this section would be as long as the rest of the review.
This song sounds as good on the 660s as it has on any other headphone, which is great to me, but nothing really special here. For the first time in this whole review I think the 660s actually sound true to the song. These sound strangely like I'm listening to the vinyl of this, not a badly compressed WMA file. Now that is a complete surprise coming from these. If they sound this good I'm just waiting to see what the Grados can do, since they have this habit of 1-upping the 660s. These were seriously phenomenal for this song on this player which is a huge and pleasant surprise. I'm liking these more and more.
The SR-80s have a very obscured bass compared to the 660s, kind of weak. Really, the bass actually seems muddy in comparison. It's very odd, the vocals have an awful echo in the first verse, it doesn't even sound like the same track. It seems like it is getting better as it goes, but still not as good as the 660s. I would say the sound is more accurate, but it really isn't, some parts are more accurate, but some are worse. There are some more details, like imperfections left over from age which is kind of neat to hear, but the 660s simply sounded better.
This round goes to the 660s.
As far as build goes, the 660s are pretty good for what you pay, a lot less plastic than I expected. But still, there is a lot of plastic, and the swivels for the ear-cups don't seem too strong. But I would say that these aren't bad for what you pay. For the record, these headphones are huge, see the picture for some size comparison with the Grados.
The Grados feel sturdy, like they can be tossed around without much worry, they are also much lighter and more comfortable to someone with a smaller head like mind. Very enjoyable for longer listening. They also let in more sound than the 660s and they leak more sound as well.
Of course this is all my opinion, but overall I would still give the 80s the edge, they are more accurate, more detailed, and definitely more comfortable to me at least and with more confidence inspiring build. That said the 660s actually gave the 80s a good run, I would say they are somewhere around 80-90% of the headphone for only 10% of the price. So yes, the Grados are better, but what did you expect? The 660s are not headphones to pass up, if you can find a pair buy them, they are simply the best for the money that I have ever heard, possibly the best for the money out there.
The setup is pretty basic, just my Zune, no eq, WMA at 192 KB/S, since it is a source I know well and since my amp is too problematic to trust, or maybe it's the interconnect. I'm not sure which since I have nothing that accepts mini input besides that amp to test it on. I realize this could hurt the Grados since they tend to do better with an amp, but I'll be keeping that in mind for my impressions.
First test song is Panic Attack by Dream Theater, pretty fast and fairly bass driven. Most songs will simply be ones I'm familiar with.
First up are the 660s. The first thing I notice is a lot of bass detail, but the bass isn't very deep. Again, the detail is surprisingly good as far as bass goes, but when the rest of the instruments come in everything seems to get a bit muddy. The recessed mids can be somewhat blamed for that, since the guitar seems to get lost somewhere in there. The mids will come out of the woodwork if the lower end quiets down for a bit, so it should be fine on most songs, but not this one. Highs don't seem to go quite as high as they should, the synth seems to be held down a bit. Just not as fun to listen to. Maybe I'm just imagining that though.
The SR-80s immediately show a lot of difference, the detail is still there in the bass, but when everything else comes in, there is a very shrill quality, which took a second to get used to. But clearly nothing is lost to these cans. The low end is less pronounced and everything else is clearly there. The sound isn't quite as full as the 660s, but it seems more correct, kind of like the 660s have changed the song itself. However this could be attributed to the lack of an amp, which might help fill it out. This could also be the lack of soundstage, which is one area where the 660s definitely have them beat so far. The highs sound great on these in contrast to the limited highs on the 660s, much more engaging and full.
The SR-80s win the first round. While we're on Dream Theater, the next song will be Overture 1928 and Strange Deja Vu.
Back the 660s, these are definitely easier to drive than the 80s, but they still seem to be veiled in comparison. That said the mids are shining a lot more with this selection than with Panic attack, this one is showing that these can do mids. Again, the highs seem held down, but the lows have a lot of impact and a lot of detail again, even though they are fairly veiled. Vocals sound very smooth, not as shrill as the Grados, which is nice. These cans are very enjoyable on this song, they are pretty musical in parts and quite likable. The only problem is that these seem very dependent on the song, which might make them too specialized to be truly good.
Once again, the Grados immediately sound sharper on the highs, and quieter, an amp would definitely help them in this department. On Overture 1928 these sound quite shrill on a few parts. This seems to fix itself as the song goes on, but these are not as rich sounding as the 660s here. The vocals are much more shrill, but not too terrible, not as engaging as the 660s though. Not bad though, fairly close. The Grados are consistent from song to song, which is something greatly in their favor.
I would give this round to the 660s actually. Next up is Rush, Spirit of the Radio.
Right from the start the 660s sound surprisingly good here. Good clarity for the pronounced bass, but without diminishing the high vocals or the guitar like these usually do. The 660s are very much in their element here, this round looks like it's going to be very unfairly one sided. Maybe I was just enjoying the song too much, but there wasn't much to fault from the 660s here, there is still a bit of a veil, but I really don't care right now, these just sound right in their element.
The Grados sound very clean, and while the guitar sound like it should, the bass is obscured by it. Geddy Lee sounds a bit sibilant though, but again, more true to form than the 660s. While this was more what the song should probably sound like and there is no question that the Grados were more accurate, the 660s were simply more enjoyable.
While the 660s seemed about perfect for this song and were hugely enjoyable, the Grados were to just too good to give the 660s the win, so I'm calling this one a tie. Lastly will be Yes, Close to the Edge, I always listen to my new headphones with this album, but I'll only be using the title track or this section would be as long as the rest of the review.
This song sounds as good on the 660s as it has on any other headphone, which is great to me, but nothing really special here. For the first time in this whole review I think the 660s actually sound true to the song. These sound strangely like I'm listening to the vinyl of this, not a badly compressed WMA file. Now that is a complete surprise coming from these. If they sound this good I'm just waiting to see what the Grados can do, since they have this habit of 1-upping the 660s. These were seriously phenomenal for this song on this player which is a huge and pleasant surprise. I'm liking these more and more.
The SR-80s have a very obscured bass compared to the 660s, kind of weak. Really, the bass actually seems muddy in comparison. It's very odd, the vocals have an awful echo in the first verse, it doesn't even sound like the same track. It seems like it is getting better as it goes, but still not as good as the 660s. I would say the sound is more accurate, but it really isn't, some parts are more accurate, but some are worse. There are some more details, like imperfections left over from age which is kind of neat to hear, but the 660s simply sounded better.
This round goes to the 660s.
As far as build goes, the 660s are pretty good for what you pay, a lot less plastic than I expected. But still, there is a lot of plastic, and the swivels for the ear-cups don't seem too strong. But I would say that these aren't bad for what you pay. For the record, these headphones are huge, see the picture for some size comparison with the Grados.
The Grados feel sturdy, like they can be tossed around without much worry, they are also much lighter and more comfortable to someone with a smaller head like mind. Very enjoyable for longer listening. They also let in more sound than the 660s and they leak more sound as well.
Of course this is all my opinion, but overall I would still give the 80s the edge, they are more accurate, more detailed, and definitely more comfortable to me at least and with more confidence inspiring build. That said the 660s actually gave the 80s a good run, I would say they are somewhere around 80-90% of the headphone for only 10% of the price. So yes, the Grados are better, but what did you expect? The 660s are not headphones to pass up, if you can find a pair buy them, they are simply the best for the money that I have ever heard, possibly the best for the money out there.
