[BigBadWolf]

"Home of the Audiophile", just across the street from Canadian Tire (Steeles and Yonge area, Toronto), has a excellent inventory of quality products. I went in to audition the Grado SR60s and was treated very courteously. Although I had listened to them before, it was just in passing and had not had a lot of time with them.

They had the 'phones hooked into an amp (something Mark II- it's tube-based) and had me listen to a recording of Diana Krall. Man, what beautiful-sounding cans! I know, I know they've been well-accoladed from many sources over the years, but man, they sure do deserve it!

Almost night-and-day against my Portas.

[Edit]

The shop owner told me of a tale where a gentleman came in to buy a pair for his wife's iPod. Some time later, the owner asked the gentlemen if she was happy... he ended up keeping them and shelving his high-end Senns, his wife never realizing what had happened!

 

[Duncan]

Glad that you like the Grado sound

Are you gonna pick up a pair?

 

[The_Mac]

It was probably an MG-Head MK-II, which is a great headphone amp, just a lot of people don't like it much with the Grados... Try them on something solid state with a REALLY low noise floor and be ready for a new experience all together.

 

[Blitzzz]

What else do they carry there? Yonge/Steeles isn't too far from me, I might go check it out.

 

[kramer5150]

Portapros have very smooth, mellow mids and highs relative to any Grado.

Congratulations on your find!! Its very rare around here for one to be satisfied with a $70 headphone.

Garrett

 

[BigBadWolf]

Really liked the SR60. I would say it's a nice intro to the Grado sound, but $109 CDN vs. $59.88 (powermax.com) is a somewhat HUGE difference in price. Sometimes I envy Americans for their ability to buy cheap!

Duncan- I would love to buy it now, but having no cash means I'll have to pick it up sometime next month! This is definitely going to be my next hp purchase (if I don't get the KSC35s first).

The_Mac- Thanks for the info. Didn't know Grado's sound better with a solid-state amp. He did say he's having a sale on that Mark II, and he has a TON of other amps up for sale... very expensive some of them!

Blitzzz- He has a LOT of high-end speaker set-ups, you can buy audiophile-quality cables, amps, sources, and music. Although, they do NOT carry Sennheiser. The owner strongly believes in Grado.

Kramer- Yes, I agree the Portas have fluid and non-fatiguing mids and highs, yet the Grado's offered me a tidbit of extra detail that I haven't yet heard from my Portas. The cymbal hits were especially stunning and very clear. Maybe it was because it was amped??? If that's the case I'd have to bring my Portas along the next time I go!

 

[MrCookie989]

I just tried out the SR60s and I must say I was impressed, they seemed much brighter and clearer then my PX100s or my Portapro (RIP). Good stuff

 

[fewtch]

Although it's been awhile since I've heard SR60s (sold mine a couple years ago) I think the Portapro is actually more detailed. I clearly remember SR60's lack of detail... I listened to scratchy vinyl records with them, because clicks/pops were less emphasized. Probably the most undetailed can I've ever owned.

 

[mahlerfan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fewtch Although it's been awhile since I've heard SR60s (sold mine a couple years ago) I think the Portapro is actually more detailed. I clearly remember SR60's lack of detail... I listened to scratchy vinyl records with them, because clicks/pops were less emphasized. Probably the most undetailed can I've ever owned.

Yeah I think that they're overhyped myself. A defn. improvement over $20-30 cans, but not the best sub-$100 cans by a long shot imo.

 

[fewtch]

Don't want to give the impression I think they're bad headphones. Some of the deficiencies of the Grado sound seem particularly emphasized at this price point tho (harshness, lack of detail in particular). I never figured out what all the hoopla is about, but doesn't mean they won't be magical for someone else.

IMO it's worth noting that Portapros are usually listened to unamped from relatively crappy sources, and Grados from much better sources. This is to be expected of course, since portapros are portable (right there in the name) and Grado SR-60 really doesn't work as a portable headphone.

 

[Steve999]

MrCookie989, I have all three and that's about how I feel.

I feel the SR60s are middle of the road for detail, maybe a little more detailed than average. The sound is nice because there is some degree of brightness but without sibilance, and the bass is still nice and punchy. I think the price of holding back on the sibilance is losing a little detail. I feel it's about $200 of sound quality for about $70. With stock pads there is no way I hear as much detail in the PX100s or the portapros. The Senn HD414 pads help the PX100s and portapros quite a bit. But as you get the drivers of the PX100s and portapros away from the ears, you get a lot of sibilance as well as detail. To keep the harshness away you need to keep the (older) PX100 or portapro drivers right up on the ears, which emphasizes the bass. The SR60s have much more sonically balanced drivers in this regard, in my opinion. For something with much less detail than the SR60s but more expensive try the AKG 240S.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrCookie989 I just tried out the SR60s and I must say I was impressed, they seemed much brighter and clearer then my PX100s or my Portapro (RIP). Good stuff

 

[fewtch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve999 MrCookie989, I have all three and that's about how I feel. I feel the SR60s are middle of the road for detail, maybe a little more detailed than average. The sound is nice because there is some degree of brightness but without sibilance, and the bass is still nice and punchy. I think the price of holding back on the sibilance is losing a little detail. I feel it's about $200 of sound quality for about $70.

Hey, sound quality is measured in '$' units, the same as money is? What a coincidence!

(P.S. I strongly disagree, but to each their own opinion).

 

[BigBadWolf]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fewtch Don't want to give the impression I think they're bad headphones. Some of the deficiencies of the Grado sound seem particularly emphasized at this price point tho (harshness, lack of detail in particular). I never figured out what all the hoopla is about, but doesn't mean they won't be magical for someone else. IMO it's worth noting that Portapros are usually listened to unamped from relatively crappy sources, and Grados from much better sources. This is to be expected of course, since portapros are portable (right there in the name) and Grado SR-60 really doesn't work as a portable headphone.

A lot of people have been saying the the Portas get much better when amped, so maybe my comparison on the two was not totally fair. I really should bring in my Portas the next time I visit the store for a true comparison.

I just liked the Grado sound: not so "harsh" like people are saying, they do provide nice mids and highs. I think they are not as detailed when I think about it, but the drivers do sit a bit further from the ear that the PortaPros. One thing I'm not that big on is the soundstage of the SR60s; I really think the Portas shine in this category. The Grado's have pinpoint sound and really don't have much in the way of spatialization like the Portas do. It's amazing what the Koss drivers can accomplish in this regard.

 

[fewtch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigBadWolf One thing I'm not that big on is the soundstage of the SR60s; I really think the Portas shine in this category. The Grado's have pinpoint sound and really don't have much in the way of spatialization like the Portas do.

Agreed. Soundstage is probably the most important aspect of headphones to me, which is one reason I sold the SR-60s. That "pinpoint" quality just seemed strange, not only unlike speakers but unlike most other headphones as well. Another is that I did hear harshness with some music, and experienced ear fatigue as well... this one is gonna vary from person to person. I heard harshness on certain songs even with Grado HP-2's and high end gear, so maybe it's a quality of Grado drivers.... I dunno.

I should have just kept my mouth shut and stayed out of this thread...

Sorry about that, don't want to spoil anyone's enjoyment of a legitimate sound that really just doesn't appeal to me.

 

[music_man]

"Hey, sound quality is measured in '$' units, the same as money is? What a coincidence!

(P.S. I strongly disagree, but to each their own opinion)."

fewtch,amen!

music_man.