[Marco2]

Thanks for the info Martin. I will try the attenuation out. Got my DAC connected to the CD input at the moment so will need to swap that over to a different input and have an experiment.

Listened to Iron Maiden Live After Death last night with the RS-1 + Flats and the Cyrus and it was pretty good indeed. Will keep putting the hours on the Cyrus see if it gets better.

I like the tonal balance seems nice and even, it had nice bass weight and I was impressed with the dynamics and punch. Treble is kept in check and not too bright.

 

[MartinB]

Marco,
Very interesting to hear your impressions! I'm thinking of getting a PSX-R soon too.
I listened a lot yesterday and even though I like the flats I find them very uncomfortable and my ears are hurting. So I switched to unmodded HD414 yesterday and Grados combined with these pads have to be the most comfortable cans available

I have tried bowls, flats, modded HD414 and unmodded HD414 pads and came to the conclusion that I like the unmodded HD414 very much. It's big advantage is of course the comfort but I also loved the soundstage and how it handles female vocals.

 

[Marco2]

The PSX-R certainly made a big diference when using for my speaker rig. All my testing with headphones as been since using the PSX-R so I could not say what difference it makes for headphone usage.

Assuming you use the amp in your main speaker rig it will not be wasted money even if it does not do much to the headphones.

I did some more listening with the bowls and I still can not get on with them, unless a recording is quite warm and dull they are just simply too thin and bright sounding for my tastes. Just ordered 2 pairs of 414 pads and will give them a go.

Martin, how do you find the bass wieght and treble with the 414's ? I am kind of hoping they might be the middle ground between the bowls and the flats.

 

[MartinB]

Currently I don't have a serious speaker rig, but will have in the future. When you're starting to buy Cyrus it seems kind of hard to go with anything else too..

I don't like the bowls either. Can't really see why John went for them over the flats. The highs really are unlistenable with them and I can't blame any recordings here. Unfortunately I have to say that the HD414 pads are not middleground between flats and bowls. They are warmer and bassier compared to the flats. They move more in to the Sennheiser direction. Might not work for all music, but I like them for the most of the things I listen to. + They are so comfortable!!

 

[Marco2]

The non standard component sizing of the Cyrus kit does mean they do not visually mix well with other manufacturers components.

Watch out too, Cyrus boxes multiply. I started with 1, now have 6 and hope to upgrade with some power amps and then PSX-R those. They multiply exponentially before you know it !!!

It does look nice when you have a rack full of Cyrus boxes though

Still keen to try the 414's, a cheap enough thing to try, nothing ventured nothing gained. I can't believe the difference the pads make on the Grado's, literally night and day IMHO.

When I get home from work today I am going to swap my input over and try this whole sensitvity thing out.

 

[MartinB]

Marco,
Well, if you have a PSX-R you have a full size unit and I think it's allright to mix, but maybe not as easy as with other brands..
What I like about Grado's is that some pads can change the sound to dramatically. Harder to do that with Senn's or Beyer's..
Looking forward to your further impressions!

 

[cyrus1313]

seems this thread is a two ppl conversation. I should not bother, but the name of the amp is interesting. Cyrus~~lol~~

 

[MartinB]

You're welcome

 

[Gilly]

is the output circuitry for the headphones the same on their preamp, the pre vs2?

http://www.cyrusaudio.com/product.asp?ProductID=89

there is a volume control on the front, and a dedicated phones button, so im thinking it might just be the same, i dont really need the power amp side of the 8 amp, and dont fancy the extra £300 it costs over the preamp.

 

[MartinB]

Gilly,
Yes, I think so. If you want a pre amp the pre vs2 is an option.

 

[seroxatmad]

Hi

Can anyone mail me pics of the cyrus internals...the pics dont display for some reason.

John

 

[MartinB]

Hello John,
They should be up again now!

 

[MartinB]

Marco,
Any more impressions?

 

[Marco2]

My 414 pads arrvied today so I am going to give them a try when I get home from work. Will let you know how I get on.

 

[Marco2]

Well a few more hours clocked up on the Cyrus. No real changes to report with more burn in. Quite pleased with the 414's, the flats sounded a bit muddy on the Cyrus at lower volumes and the 414's have removed that. Soundstage is immediatly improved, treble is more prominent letting more detail and resolution through. Bass weight is pretty well judged to.

In my system the 414 pads seem to have pretty much done what I had hoped for, in that they take what I personally consider the strengths of flats and bowls and turn them into a good all round set of pads.

Listened to a few favourite albums this evening and I would say the Cyrus is performing quite well. Whilst it is not the most refined and composed sounding amp, and may not handle complex passages as well as other amps it sounds pretty good with the Grado's overall. Good job from Cyrus I would say, the headphone stage is a welcome addition to there products which are obviously not specifically designed with headphones in mind.

Still need to try the attenuation, I hope this improves it further. Got some Rothwell attenuators lurking somewhere, might try them as well. Maybe this will help make it sound a bit more refined and composed.