[rgs9200m]

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Hi sir Mister Mahler, very nice and extensive reviews out there. But i have this in my mind. I know that Grado PS500 is not a flagship headphone, but closer to it I think, care enough to comment about it, or maybe you already made reviews with this can but haven't yet browse them. Are they good in your opinion and at par with other high end grados or shall i say LCD 2/3. because im very much interested to know more about the ps500. I heard great reviews about it. another thing, its probably the most logical headphone that i can buy next to rs1. Or maybe if my wallet permits(as you have said before), the LCD2.

 l love my GS1000i phones. They are nice and balanced and direct and refreshing but not raw or pushy.
I sold the PS1000s b/c they had annoyingly pushy, too-resonant bass and piercing upper mids.
'never heard the PS500s.
I still like my LCD3s better, as they are very refined and unique in the headphone world, but I could live
with my GS1000is (tube amped) as my only phone if I had to.
So there.

 

[DavidMahler]

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Hi sir Mister Mahler, very nice and extensive reviews out there. But i have this in my mind. I know that Grado PS500 is not a flagship headphone, but closer to it I think, care enough to comment about it, or maybe you already made reviews with this can but haven't yet browse them. Are they good in your opinion and at par with other high end grados or shall i say LCD 2/3. because im very much interested to know more about the ps500. I heard great reviews about it. another thing, its probably the most logical headphone that i can buy next to rs1. Or maybe if my wallet permits(as you have said before), the LCD2.

Sonically, the PS500 has a lot in common with the PS1000.  I did review it, though I don't own it.  The PS500 is a very good value from Grado, though when compared against other less expensive headphones from other manufacturers, I still come away with the impression it is too expensive.  But then one compares it to the PS1000 and it's certainly a better value.
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I am wondering something.... In video, if we talk about games, we are almost at the step where you cant say real from non real image (if prerendered ofc). How far are we in that in audio?
I have the HE-400 and while i do notice its unnatural, its still amazing for the untrained ear.
 
I wonder how far further we can take this audio quest. ( i mean "We" as humans).
On a side note i will be probably getting a HD600 after i got a shot at testing them.
This review is really great, but my dreamed shattered when i saw the prices for the higher end HPs in my country.

It's hard to compare.  Speakers emulate natural sound more accurately than headphones.  I would venture to say that there are speakers capable of fooling the brain completely given the right acoustic space (and a good recording).  I also think a good headphone (highly transparent) can fool the brain if the recording is a recorded binaurally and the listening volume is not too loud.  People tend to listen to music at a louder volume than real acoustic sound.

 

[seanmark]

David,
 
I joined Head-Fi just to thank you for your phenomenal reviews! I appreciate your time, effort, and dedication on this project. As a member of several forums (musical instrument & music recording/ production) I've never seen anything this comprehensive. I'm especially impressed with how thorough you were. As a result your reviews have been a very useful guide for me despite the fact that our rankings would no doubt be different (as would most anybody else's). Incredible job, hats off!

 

[roguegeek]

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Originally Posted by waynes world /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
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Reading through the ATH-AD2000x/1000x/900x/700x thread again and I can't help but wish you could try a pair of ATH-AD900x's since they seem to improve on the ATH-AD900 a lot (that might be exaggerating but from what I've read, people have liked them a lot).
 
What do you plan on adding next to the list? I don't follow up on this thread enough to know what's been happening so far.

 
+1! I'd love to see David get his hands on the ad900x.

 
+2. I have heard nothing but great things about the AD900X and how it's been a very nice update. Considering the praise in this comparison on the AD900, I am dying to know what David thinks of the update.

 

[MacedonianHero]

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Hi sir Mister Mahler, very nice and extensive reviews out there. But i have this in my mind. I know that Grado PS500 is not a flagship headphone, but closer to it I think, care enough to comment about it, or maybe you already made reviews with this can but haven't yet browse them. Are they good in your opinion and at par with other high end grados or shall i say LCD 2/3. because im very much interested to know more about the ps500. I heard great reviews about it. another thing, its probably the most logical headphone that i can buy next to rs1. Or maybe if my wallet permits(as you have said before), the LCD2.

The PS500s and RS1i are my favourite John Grado headphones. But I'm sorry to report, they are not in the same league as the LCD-2/3. Sorry, not even close. They are very coloured headphones that don't perform well from a technical standpoint (bass roll off, large mid-bass hump and square waves that look like anything but square). They are very musical and can be very seductive to listen to and could make a great compliment to more natural/neutral headphones. 

 

[Dubstep Girl]

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The PS500s and RS1i are my favourite John Grado headphones. But I'm sorry to report, they are not in the same league as the LCD-2/3. Sorry, not even close. They are very coloured headphones that don't perform well from a technical standpoint (bass roll off, large mid-bass hump and square waves that look like anything but square). They are very musical and can be very seductive to listen to and could make a great compliment to more natural/neutral headphones. 

 
+1
 
the PS1000 is probably the only one that can compare, to the LCD2! (i do love and enjoy grado headphones as well, but they can't perform as good as Audeze)

 

[MacedonianHero]

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+1
 
the PS1000 is probably the only one that can compare, to the LCD2! (i do love and enjoy grado headphones as well, but they can't perform as good as Audeze)

I wouldn't compare the PS1000 either. Heck I think the PS500s and RS1i's are the better headphones. 

 

[stacker45]

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I wouldn't compare the PS1000 either. Heck I think the PS500s and RS1i's are the better headphones. 

 
I have compared the RS1i, PS500, GS1000 and PS1000, and on my sound system, the PS1000 came out on top. It just goes to show how much, taste , hearing and system compatibility, play an important role in our appreciation of all these headphones.
 
Two days ago i went to the Montréal Hi-Fi show, where i had the chance to hear many flagship headphones, and i believe that the PS1000 can easily be compared to other flagship models.

 

[Maxvla]

PS1000 compares to flagships from 10 years ago.

 

[MacedonianHero]

I have compared the RS1i, PS500, GS1000 and PS1000, and on my sound system, the PS1000 came out on top. It just goes to show how much, taste , hearing and system compatibility, play an important role in our appreciation of all these headphones.

Two days ago i went to the Montréal Hi-Fi show, where i had the chance to hear many flagship headphones, and i believe that the PS1000 can easily be compared to other flagship models.

Certainly with regards to taste that is true. But with regards to technical ability, the rolled off bass (and a lack of any real sub bass), recessed mids and way too much peaky and strident treble really had me thinking these headphones weren't worth the high price of admission. Especially when I preferred the PS500s. The one area the ps1000s excelled for me however was they portrayed a good sound stage when compared to other Grado headphones.

 

[TwinQY]

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PS1000 compares to flagships from 10 years ago.

The HE90/R-10/K1000/Omega were "flagships" from more than ten years back 

 
So those are pretty high accolades 

 

[Maxvla]

R-10, Omega and HE90 were discontinued, K1000 isn't that great. I'm talking about HD600/650, K701, DT880, etc.

 

[stacker45]

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Certainly with regards to taste that is true. But with regards to technical ability, the rolled off bass (and a lack of any real sub bass), recessed mids and way too much peaky and strident treble really had me thinking these headphones weren't worth the high price of admission. Especially when I preferred the PS500s. The one area the ps1000s excelled for me however was they portrayed a good sound stage when compared to other Grado headphones.

 
Those are pretty harsh comments, i guess that's the risk was taking, speaking good about the PS1000 out of the shelter of the Grado fanclub.
 
For my part, i think that the LCD2/3, HD800, T1, and HE500 are all very good sounding headphones, i just happend to prefer the PS1000.
 
And speaking of high price of admission, i feel the same way about the Stax 007/9, they're good, but overpriced., especially when you consider that they need a dedicated headphone amp.
 
The PS1000 on the other hand could sing even if they were plugged directly in a canary's butt.

 

[pp312]

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The PS1000 on the other hand could sing even if they were plugged directly in a canary's butt.

 
If you manage to do that, don't forget to take pictures.

 

[TwinQY]

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The PS1000 on the other hand could sing even if they were plugged directly in a canary's butt.

I don't think the resident bird administrator would appreciate the abuse of his fellow compadres.