[Fvizeu]

Do you guys know if there are any differences on RS2e with pink and black drivers?

I just checked an ad here on Headfi for an RS2e and they have the pink ones

These are older than mine (they come on the blue pizza box, mine came on the new white one). My drivers are black (or grey-ish):

Does that mean anything regarding sound?

I have an old SR225 with pink drivers and I read somewhere that they are the same as the SR225e's.

Thanks!

 

[Damien Grief]

How well do grados pair with schiit stacks? Is there a particular amp that most agree has the best synergy?

They work great with them. I have a PS500e, Hemps, and SR225e and run them all through a Magni 2U and Modi 2U combination. They sound great.

 

[funkymartyn]

Do you guys know if there are any differences on RS2e with pink and black drivers?

I just checked an ad here on Headfi for an RS2e and they have the pink ones



These are older than mine (they come on the blue pizza box, mine came on the new white one). My drivers are black (or grey-ish):



Does that mean anything regarding sound?

I have an old SR225 with pink drivers and I read somewhere that their drivers are the same as SR225e's.

Thanks!

Hi ..just checked . My Sr225 are red drivers . And my new Rs2e in new white box look like a light purple ( not red ) . But on a certain light look more black ? Hard to tell.....lol

 

[johanchandy]

My Hemps definitely are not fussy. The old dt770s are pickier. I do wonder what they sound like with a LD1 or OTL.

I need to try them on my vintage receiver without the attenuator to see what they do with the high impedance.

My Hemps sound excellent out of my little dot 1+ with a Burson classic v6 opamp and upgraded tubes but that amp is really susceptible to EMI and ground loop issues, I get random crackle and pops and there's a constant static that reduces if I put my hands over the tubes(noticeable when music isn't playing, even though I keep my amp a bit away from them I have a ton of electronics on my desk). Just some things to watch out for if you plan to get that amp.

 

[Bernard23]

which models have 50mm drivers, and which ones have 40mm?

 

[frozenOx]

My Hemps sound excellent out of my little dot 1+ with a Burson classic v6 opamp and upgraded tubes but that amp is really susceptible to EMI and ground loop issues, I get random crackle and pops and there's a constant static that reduces if I put my hands over the tubes(noticeable when music isn't playing, even though I keep my amp a bit away from them I have a ton of electronics on my desk). Just some things to watch out for if you plan to get that amp.

Good to know. Not sure I'll pick one up though since I'm happy with everything I'm running right now and blew my budget on these and new IEMs.

I finally got a good listening session in with the Hemps and a vintage Technics SA400 receiver, high impedance high voltage output. That really kicks the bass in a lot. Adding a low impedance attenuator showed a huge difference in bass response. Same with the Atom, high gain you get more bass and low mids. High impedance mode on my LG G7 sounded similar though, so it might be a low threshold here but there definitely is one. The vintage receiver is much woolier and bloomy with the bass. Sounded nice with live, old jazz, classic rock, Iron Maiden. Not so great with At the Gates.

I did finally come across a few albums that sound bad on the Hemps so it's definitely not a complete package: Iron Maiden's Powerslave. Sounds thinner than usual. But just this one from them, Somewhere in Time and Number of the Beast sound good still. Of course it's my favorite Maiden album, but I play the vinyl of that with speakers when i want to hear it anyways. And also found that with a lot of metal I need to do a cut around 2K-2.5K Hz sometimes. but hey, metal production is all over the place. These definitely seem tuned to jazz, acoustic, live recordings.

I'm still in love with the bass on these. It is absolutely perfect to me. If I put on some synthwave it thumps. Kick drums sound like a mic'd up kick drum sounds with a good engineer at the console. Bass guitar is clear and not disappearing in the mix.

 

[Gippy]

which models have 50mm drivers, and which ones have 40mm?

50mm drivers were only introduced with the e-series, so anything older (before 2014) is 40mm. All e-series models with the larger cups is 50mm. The RS1e is also 50mm. Everything else is 40mm.

 

[audiobomber]

Using Grado headphones with a high impedance source severely reduces damping factor, i.e. the ability of the amp to control speaker motion, even to the point of negative damping. The result is poor transient response; the driver won't start and stop exactly when it should. I can't see this as anything but poor performance.

I highly value tight bass and lightning fast transients, which is what I get from my GH4 and Hafler HA15. I tried a Bottlehead Crack with an RS2e. Bass was bloated and sloppy, not a combo I could live with.

 

[Bernard23]

50mm drivers were only introduced with the e-series, so anything older (before 2014) is 40mm. All e-series models with the larger cups is 50mm. The RS1e is also 50mm. Everything else is 40mm.

Thank you! So my 325e has 50mm drivers, and the Hemp 40mm if I've understood correctly. Interesting that there is more than one pad used with the different drivers, but presumably the other variables to consider are cup and bowl size, so no need for a standard pad / driver combination.

 

[frozenOx]

Using Grado headphones with a high impedance source severely reduces damping factor, i.e. the ability of the amp to control speaker motion, even to the point of negative damping. The result is poor transient response; the driver won't start and stop exactly when it should. I can't see this as anything but poor performance.

I highly value tight bass and lightning fast transients, which is what I get from my GH4 and Hafler HA15. I tried a Bottlehead Crack with an RS2e. Bass was just sloppy, not a combo I could live with.

I'll confirm that, wasn't horrible though, that receiver is better with the higher impedance cans and very good with planars. Most of the time during the day i'm using an Apple USB-C dongle or my LG G7 phone they sound excellent. Volume at 10/100 with the dongle and no bass complaints. At night if I'm listening I switch over to the Atom, but haven't heard such a huge difference with the Atom and the Apple dongle/LG G7 to warrant buying another SS amp for work listening. Might grab that little SMSL amp for 40USD off drop though.

 

[Fvizeu]

Thank you! So my 325e has 50mm drivers, and the Hemp 40mm if I've understood correctly. Interesting that there is more than one pad used with the different drivers, but presumably the other variables to consider are cup and bowl size, so no need for a standard pad / driver combination.

What @Gippy meant by larger cups are the GS and PS series (except for the PS500e) and the RS1e

But I guess the smaller ones (RS2e and below, SR325e included) on the 'e' series are 44mm actually

 

[El Sordo]

Wow, I’ve been away from this thread for a while after all my raving about the Hemp back in July/August. I can see by many recent posts that Hemp mania is running wild at this point! Recently sold my HiFiMan Aryas and probably will be returning the Focal Radiance I’ve been trying. Hemp is still magical.

When I first read about the Hemps when they announced them people were mostly making jokes about them and I didn't have much interest. After reading some more reviews, I decided to pull the trigger. Glad I did because they quickly became my favorite headphones. I'm having trouble finding anything I even slightly dislike about them. Maybe the comfort could be a little better but these headphones are so light even the less comfortable flat pads aren't bad.

My gf thinks they're a tad obnoxious due to how much sound they leak though. I think they leak more than all other Grados I've had, though I don't know how, they're all basically the same enclosure design. But when I have the MS2i and these hooked up and playing at the same volume they are noticeable louder outside. A bit odd.

 

[YtseJamer]

When I first read about the Hemps when they announced them people were mostly making jokes about them and I didn't have much interest. After reading some more reviews, I decided to pull the trigger. Glad I did because they quickly became my favorite headphones.

Haha, me too. I have owned a lot of Grado headphones since I have been in this hobby, and the Hemp are my favorite to date.

 

[reivaj]

When I first read about the Hemps when they announced them people were mostly making jokes about them and I didn't have much interest. After reading some more reviews, I decided to pull the trigger. Glad I did because they quickly became my favorite headphones. I'm having trouble finding anything I even slightly dislike about them. Maybe the comfort could be a little better but these headphones are so light even the less comfortable flat pads aren't bad.

My gf thinks they're a tad obnoxious due to how much sound they leak though. I think they leak more than all other Grados I've had, though I don't know how, they're all basically the same enclosure design. But when I have the MS2i and these hooked up and playing at the same volume they are noticeable louder outside. A bit odd.

How would you compare the MS2i and the Hemp? Just curious here as a MS2i owner myself.

 

[ParaLoganGrado]

R.I.P. Alexi Laiho. One of the best shredders ever. Child of Bodom was the first band that got me into melodic metal and heavier stuff in general. He was only 18 when they released their first album in 97, only 20 in this album. Started playing the violin before his teens and switched to guitar just a few years later -- can't deny the many classically inspired riffs! He's been rated one of the best metal guitarists and front men for the past 2 decades across many publications. I know metal isn't the most popular genre on this forum where a lot of us appreciate SQ and production quality, etc. But I can't deny this guys talent: