[GirgleMirt]

I'm curious, how many of you have ever compaired two identical products and found that they were different?

For example, one of the selling points of the Grado SR225 is that it has closer matched drivers: 0.05 instead of 0.1.

So theoretically, you could have two pair of the same headphone, say Grado SR80, and one could have 0.1 db of difference between each driver, and another pair of SR80 could have only 0.01 difference between both drivers! So you could have better pair of SR80! So it would be the luck of the draw in a way...

I know that for example in monitors, two of the same can be very, very different, one with perfect image, the other with visible defects..

What about headphones? Any of you preoccupied about it?

 

[greenhorn]

Quote:

Originally posted by GirgleMirt So theoretically, you could have two pair of the same headphone, say Grado SR80, and one could have 0.1 db of difference between each driver, and another pair of SR80 could have only 0.01 difference between both drivers!

Not only theoretically. It is like this and it is normal to be like this. This applies to every kind of industrial product.

 

[Beagle]

Quote:

Originally posted by GirgleMirt I'm curious, how many of you have ever compaired two identical products and found that they were different? For example, one of the selling points of the Grado SR225 is that it has closer matched drivers: 0.05 instead of 0.1. So theoretically, you could have two pair of the same headphone, say Grado SR80, and one could have 0.1 db of difference between each driver, and another pair of SR80 could have only 0.01 difference between both drivers! So you could have better pair of SR80! So it would be the luck of the draw in a way...

Preoccupied? I spend my days and nights constantly dwelling on this. If my headphones don't image properly I get right angry and throw objects about.

Well, not really but whenever I purchase a pair of Grado's, I alway demo the store pair against the sealed box pair and pick the best one. You'd be surprised at the small but significant differences in imagining from one to another when you do a direct A/B. Mind you, the demo pair might be broken in or slightly broken.

 

[pedxing]

Sometimes you don't even have to compare identical headphones to find the differences. For example, many of the cheaper sony headphones don't even matching left or right drivers.

 

[kwkarth]

When I bought my Grado SR-200s the dealer let me literally go through a case of them (they must have really wanted that sale) to get the pick of the litter...and let me tell you, there were CONSIDERABLE differences between them! I listened to every one of them and took the best sounding unit.

 

[SteeleBlayde]

Hah, you guys are lucky. I had to order all my cans over the web.

 

[kwkarth]

Hey, You're in Seattle. I bought my SR-200s from Magnolia Hi-Fi.
Of course now that they're big time they may not be as accomodating, but it doesn't hurt to ask. Come to think of it, I don't even know if they still sell Grado...
Anyway:
Locations in Washington:

Bellevue
425-747-0850
14404 NE 20th Street
Bellevue, WA 98007

Everett
425-513-2565
725 SE Everett Mall Way
Everett, WA 98208

Lynnwood
425-775-7288
4201 196th SW
Lynnwood, WA 98036

Seattle
206-525-1961
6308 Roosevelt Way NE
Seattle, WA 98115

Silverdale
360-698-8584
3126 NW Randall Way
Silverdale, WA 98383

Southcenter
206-575-0851
16600 SouthCenter Parkway
Southcenter, WA 98188

Spokane
509-467-4434
8016 North Division
Spokane, WA 99208

Tacoma
253-475-2330
6053 Tacoma Mall Blvd.
Tacoma, WA 98409

 

[kwkarth]

So SteeleBlayde,
Is your source of ATP from natural foods, or something else?

 

[greenhorn]

Quote:

Originally posted by kwkarth When I bought my Grado SR-200s the dealer let me literally go through a case of them (they must have really wanted that sale) to get the pick of the litter...and let me tell you, there were CONSIDERABLE differences between them! I listened to every one of them and took the best sounding unit.

Now that surprises me A LOT! It SHOCKS me actually!

It is normal to have differences between two drivers belonging to the *same* headphone (but just differences concerning the level, measurable in dB, not sound-quality differences), but I do not consider normal to have "considerable" differences between different units of the same headphone model (of the same age, kept in identical conditions etc.)!!!

If you are sure these differences were really important, than Grado stepped much lower on my scale of values.

Maybe reviews should then be made from now not just, let's say, on the *Grado SR 325 headphone*, but on the *Grado SR 325 headphone serial nr. XYW324*

 

[mecano]

Well i had two pairs of Grado 325(one black and one silver) and the black one had cleaner bass and was slightly more dynamic!

 

[Unclewai]

Nope they don't sell Grado anymore in Magnolia Hifi.
I talked with the sales rep a couple months ago when I went there to buy a pair of hd280.
He said there isn't a big enough market for grado headphones.

 

[SteeleBlayde]

Wow thats a nice list. I gotta check some of those out some time.

Quote:

So SteeleBlayde, Is your source of ATP from natural foods, or something else?

Its most definately not natural! I get it from some d00d who calls himself "Mitoch", and he pretty much keeps me constantly stocked up with the stuff. I've actually got a pretty good deal going with him...

If you want me to, I can hook you up...

 

[kwkarth]

Quote:

Originally posted by greenhorn Now that surprises me A LOT! It SHOCKS me actually! It is normal to have differences between two drivers belonging to the *same* headphone (but just differences concerning the level, measurable in dB, not sound-quality differences), but I do not consider normal to have "considerable" differences between different units of the same headphone model (of the same age, kept in identical conditions etc.)!!! If you are sure these differences were really important, than Grado stepped much lower on my scale of values. Maybe reviews should then be made from now not just, let's say, on the *Grado SR 325 headphone*, but on the *Grado SR 325 headphone serial nr. XYW324*

In all fairness to Grado, back in those days things were a lot wilder and woolier. Unit to unit variation was not at all uncommon, specially in the cheaper models (which the SR-200s were.) Manufacturing process is probably more repeatable these days. I bought my SR-200s back in the late 80's/early 90's and to this day they're one of the better sounding Grados I have ever heard. Back then even the physical appearance of the drivers used varied from unit to unit. The drivers in my 200s look identical to the drivers used in the HP-1's. Many did not, and looked similar to drivers used in cheaper models.

 

[kwkarth]

Quote:

Originally posted by SteeleBlayde Wow thats a nice list. I gotta check some of those out some time. Its most definately not natural! I get it from some d00d who calls himself "Mitoch", and he pretty much keeps me constantly stocked up with the stuff. I've actually got a pretty good deal going with him... If you want me to, I can hook you up...

Ah! Would his name be Mitoch Ondria?

 

[Rizumu]

Quote:

Originally posted by kwkarth When I bought my Grado SR-200s the dealer let me literally go through a case of them (they must have really wanted that sale) to get the pick of the litter...and let me tell you, there were CONSIDERABLE differences between them! I listened to every one of them and took the best sounding unit.

I hope I got a good pair then