[ruthieandjohn]

Thanks for the suggestion! The RS2e is definitely on my short list of what appears to be as safe starting point. Your detailed comparisons posted elsewhere were incredibly helpful, BTW. My reservation with the RS2e is simply buying something that I would likely want to sell off and upgrade (justified or not!) in short order if I liked them. So I'm at least considering starting a little higher. That's where the Professional/Statement split complicates things, especially without the benefit of local audition. To further complicate, the HF3 is starting to get mention, and initial comments seem quite positive. I know you just received yours, but are you able to share any earlier unofficial comparisons with other models?

Just a bit of quick comparative listening to the new HF3 and the RS2e...

To me they sound nearly indistinguishable. If I listen to one after the other, I find that the HF3 has a tiny bit more bass and even tinier bit less treble transparency, and maybe an infinitesimal smaller soundstage, than the RS2e. But I can only observe these nuances by switching between them quickly and listening to the music passage. If I were to just pick one up, I would not be able to tell which it was without rapid comparison.

 

[ericpike]

I'm really happy with my HF3 now, they offer a great deal of musical truth and impact, and they ARE an incredible value...but go with your musical gut.

Thanks everyone for all the guidance. Mortcola, can you comment on how the HF3 and RS2e are similar and different? Are they in the same league, despite the price difference?

 

[ericpike]

To me they sound nearly indistinguishable. If I listen to one after the other, I find that the HF3 has a tiny bit more bass and even tinier bit less treble transparency, and maybe an infinitesimal smaller soundstage, than the RS2e. But I can only observe these nuances by switching between them quickly and listening to the music passage. If I were to just pick one up, I would not be able to tell which it was without rapid comparison.

Thanks so much! That's saying a lot, given the price difference and $100 donation! I can't wait to hear what you think once you have a chance to put the HF3's through their paces.

 

[TooFrank]

My leather/merino hybrid pads arrived from beautifulaudio.biz - the owner / operator Silvian from NZ was terrific to deal with.

They did cost me $140USD + shipping, but my GH1's are the one set of cans that I will never, ever part with. The pads are simply the most comfortable Grado pads I've ever tried. They GH1's are feather light, but these make them an absolute treat to wear.

Sonically, I'm happy to report there's no negative effect whatsover. I would place the sound closest to the Sennheiser yellows with the quarter-mod. It doesn't have the airiness or slightly sucked-out mids of the G-Cush, but tames the highs ever so slightly.

10/10 would buy again. Oh, and they look amazing, IMO.

Congratulations, looks really nice. I recently bought the same in black for my GH2s. While the are very comfortable to wear, I haven’t made up my mind regarding the sound. Normally, I use the L Cush or sometimes the flat deluxe TVVJ pads. The new ones seem to soften/dampen the sound somewhat. They came with two types of foam to insert: a white soft more dense and a black more stiff and open material (larger mesh, I think it is called. Which do you prefer? Cheers

 

[ruhenheiM]

My leather/merino hybrid pads arrived from beautifulaudio.biz - the owner / operator Silvian from NZ was terrific to deal with.

They did cost me $140USD + shipping, but my GH1's are the one set of cans that I will never, ever part with. The pads are simply the most comfortable Grado pads I've ever tried. They GH1's are feather light, but these make them an absolute treat to wear.

Sonically, I'm happy to report there's no negative effect whatsover. I would place the sound closest to the Sennheiser yellows with the quarter-mod. It doesn't have the airiness or slightly sucked-out mids of the G-Cush, but tames the highs ever so slightly.

10/10 would buy again. Oh, and they look amazing, IMO.

looks stunning!

that turbulentlabs headband, is that the small or larger one?

Hi all - I stumbled upon Grado in my search for something with great PRaT (tuneful, fast, tight, bouncy, punchy, fast, forward, lively - pick your adverb) in the toe tapping Naim and Linn tradition. I've been reading as much as I can, but there's a lot of conflicting info out there! Is there a short list of current Grados (or others?) that I should try to audition? I'm just getting started, but my system at the moment is a Bluesound Node 2i streamer and Naim Headline amp with TeddyCap PSU. Thanks in advance!

try the low end grado first if you able to demo it, like sr60/sr80/sr125/sr225. for the high end, ps1000e still by far the best rock/metal headphone for me, if you have no problem with the weight and don't mind buying used one. easily the best headphone for toe tapping

but if you can't demo any of grado models. imo you can't go wrong with either sr60 or sr80

 

[ruhenheiM]

Just a bit of quick comparative listening to the new HF3 and the RS2e...

To me they sound nearly indistinguishable. If I listen to one after the other, I find that the HF3 has a tiny bit more bass and even tinier bit less treble transparency, and maybe an infinitesimal smaller soundstage, than the RS2e. But I can only observe these nuances by switching between them quickly and listening to the music passage. If I were to just pick one up, I would not be able to tell which it was without rapid comparison.

any chance to compare it with previous hf models? especially hf-1

 

[ruthieandjohn]

any chance to compare it with previous hf models? especially hf-1

From this post, I developed a table that prefers the RS2e over the HF1 (I didn’t have the HF2 yet at that time). Hence, the similarity of the HF3 to the RS2e suggests that I would also prefer the HF3 over the HF1. Haven’t had enough hours on the new HF3 to do more detailed comparison yet.

 

[audiobomber]

Hi all - I stumbled upon Grado in my search for something with great PRaT (tuneful, fast, tight, bouncy, punchy, fast, forward, lively - pick your adverb) in the toe tapping Naim and Linn tradition. I've been reading as much as I can, but there's a lot of conflicting info out there! Is there a short list of current Grados (or others?) that I should try to audition? I'm just getting started, but my system at the moment is a Bluesound Node 2i streamer and Naim Headline amp with TeddyCap PSU. Thanks in advance!

The GH4 compares with the PS-500 and RS2e on SQ and price, just a slightly different flavour. I bought the GH4 because it was on sale for a great price in Canada. I've had frequent access to a friend's RS2e. As to which I prefer, it mostly depends on the amp and music.

I've never heard the PS500 but from reading the GH4 review on Major H-Fi, I suspect I would like it better. Maybe not $250 better, which is the difference in cost I would have had to pay. Anyway, no regrets, I love the sound of the GH4 through my Hafler HA15 amp.
https://majorhifi.com/grado-gh4-review/

 

[Mightygrey]

Congratulations, looks really nice. I recently bought the same in black for my GH2s. While the are very comfortable to wear, I haven’t made up my mind regarding the sound. Normally, I use the L Cush or sometimes the flat deluxe TVVJ pads. The new ones seem to soften/dampen the sound somewhat. They came with two types of foam to insert: a white soft more dense and a black more stiff and open material (larger mesh, I think it is called. Which do you prefer? Cheers

Confession - I thought the other mesh inserts included in the box were storage/packing foam for structural integrity of the package.

I NEARLY through them out...let me take a look.

 

[Bob Ley]

The GH4 compares with the PS-500 and RS2e on SQ and price, just a slightly different flavour. I bought the GH4 because it was on sale for a great price in Canada. I've had frequent access to a friend's RS2e. As to which I prefer, it mostly depends on the amp and music.

I've never heard the PS500 but from reading the GH4 review on Major H-Fi, I suspect I would like it better. Maybe not $250 better, which is the difference in cost I would have had to pay. Anyway, no regrets, I love the sound of the GH4 through my Hafler HA15 amp.
https://majorhifi.com/grado-gh4-review/

Damn, now another headphone amp to look for! How do you like the Hafler?

 

[Amish]

Let us not forget the HF3 is worth a buy. For the price, I don't think you can do better in the Grado line.

 

[audiobomber]

Damn, now another headphone amp to look for! How do you like the Hafler?

I needed a headphone amp to fit into my main (speaker-based) audio system. I happened to see that the local Pro Audio shop had the HA15 on sale at an amazing price. The Hafler's XLR and RCA inputs, dual headphone jacks and RCA pass-through made it an ideal physical match. I favour neutral-sounding gear, and reviews indicated that the Hafler should match my preference.

I've used this amp with the Grado SR60, GH4, RS2e and Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro. It seems to impart no character of its own, never adding or subtracting anything, has enough power for virtually any headphone, build quality like the proverbial brick. The HA15 is about as close as I can imagine to a straight wire with gain. If neutrality is your preference, I highly recommend it.

 

[Bob Ley]

I needed a headphone amp to fit into my main (speaker-based) audio system. I happened to see that the local Pro Audio shop had the HA15 on sale at an amazing price. The Hafler's XLR and RCA inputs, dual headphone jacks and RCA pass-through made it an ideal physical match. I favour neutral-sounding gear, and reviews indicated that the Hafler should match my preference.

I've used this amp with the Grado SR60, GH4, RS2e and Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro. It seems to impart no character of its own, never adding or subtracting anything, has enough power for virtually any headphone, build quality like the proverbial brick. The HA15 is about as close as I can imagine to a straight wire with gain. If neutrality is your preference, I highly recommend it.

Thanks. Would you say $260 is a good deal?

Wondering how it would compare to a HeadAmp Gilmore Lite mk2?

 

[audiobomber]

Thanks. Would you say $260 is a good deal?

No doubt, that is good price and value. MSRP was $450, IIRC?

 

[Bob Ley]

No doubt, that is good price and value. MSRP was $450, IIRC?

Looks like $449.00
Know anything about HeadAmp Gilmore Lite mk2?