[joseph69]

  Hello everyone. I've had the sr325i's for a couple of years now and really love them. I avoided the forums because I didn't want to cave into upgraditis without disposable income. Now that I have some.. I was wondering, what would be the next Grado's headphone to get in keeping with the sound signature of the 325?
 
I mainly listen to metal with a small amount of classical and soundtrack.
 
Currently using the xonar essence stx but thinking about upgrading to a woo audio wa7 firefly.
 
I've been reading threads like this one http://www.head-fi.org/t/442125/what-i-think-gs1000-vs-rs1-vs-rs2-and-vs-sr80/15, and it seems the RS1 would be a nice upgrade to the 325. Would that be a common opinion?
 
Thanks in advanced for any suggestion and input.

I purchased the SR80i's then the SR325is's and recentely purchased the RS1i's. IMO, out of the 3 headphones the 80 and the RS's have a more similar sound signature than the 325's. The 325's to me have a totally different sound signature from all of the Grado/Alessandros I've heard. I was hesitant to buy the RS's, because of the price difference, but I'm glad that I did. It is smoother, with a wider sound stage, more detail and more instrument separation with a nice all around bass presence, clear mid-range and smooth high frequencies. To me, you really can't compare the 325's to the RS's, they are both very different (both being very good sounding headphones, as well as the 80's). But like I said they definitely have a closer sound signature to the 80's than the 325's. I still own the 80's and the 325's, because to me they are all different sounding, I don't feel one is better than the other, just different. I was always curious about their sound signature, so like I said I finally purchased them and I'm glad that I did. I even purchased a MAD Ear+HD (which was shipped today) to drive them to push the envelope even further, because from what I've read these are an excellent combo together. So yes they are a nice (totally different sounding headphone). It is really up to you to say if it is an upgrade for YOU. Hope this helps you. 

 

[whirlwind]

  Hey, for anyone that is interested. I recently did a blog about the history of Grado. It's such an interesting story when you look into it!
 
Anyway here is a link to the blog.
 
http://adairacoustic.tumblr.com/post/62895933074/grado-labs-from-the-kitchen-table-to-the-world

That was a great read...thank you for that.
 
 

  Hello everyone. I've had the sr325i's for a couple of years now and really love them. I avoided the forums because I didn't want to cave into upgraditis without disposable income. Now that I have some.. I was wondering, what would be the next Grado's headphone to get in keeping with the sound signature of the 325?
 
I mainly listen to metal with a small amount of classical and soundtrack.
 
Currently using the xonar essence stx but thinking about upgrading to a woo audio wa7 firefly.
 
I've been reading threads like this one http://www.head-fi.org/t/442125/what-i-think-gs1000-vs-rs1-vs-rs2-and-vs-sr80/15, and it seems the RS1 would be a nice upgrade to the 325. Would that be a common opinion?
 
Thanks in advanced for any suggestion and input.

I went up the same upgrade path that you are thinking about.
 
I have never looked back, since I pulled the trigger.
 
At first, I was not too sure if I liked the RS1i better or not....after a couple of weeks, it was pretty clear that the RS!i was the phone that I wanted.
 
I  really liked my 325i, and I still recommend it for a rock headphone in the $300 range.
 
Think of the RS1i as more detailed, more refined , more precision..

 

[bassboysam]

I'm regretting selling my 325. I thought the RS1 would be a better version of them but in reality they are two very different headphones. I'll probably snag a pair again at some point.

 

[dwayniac]

I just upgraded to the 80i from the old 60 and can definitely hear a difference for the better. I don't see myself getting higher end model but I would do the wood cups and/or a different cable.

 

[sling5s]

   
That can be a hard question to answer. The Grado lineup contains several models, and there are differences between them. But, to answer your question generically because I've owned the Magnum v.4 drivers in the past in wooden cups -- The Magnum would fall somewhere between the SR-325i and the RS1i.  The sound would be better than the 325i, but quite possibly not quite as refined as the RS1i.  When I had mine, I also had the Grado HF-2.  I thought the Magnum v.4 edged it out by a slight margin, so I ended up selling my HF-2 at the time.

I've had the Full Magnums V.4 in aluminum and they were way more refined and detailed than the RS1i.  But what they lacked was the "soul and timbre" or the RS1i.  They just were not as "musical". 
Later I tried the Magnums V.4 in Mahogany (from turbulent) and they were also more refined and detailed than the RS1i.  But not as much as the ones in aluminum.   The Aluminum made the V.4 hyper detailed and clean in sound.  But it lacked a certain musical timbre that "wood" possessed.  So what did I prefer out of the three?  The Magnums V.4 in mahogany.   It had the refinement of the Magnum and "soul and musicality of the RS1i.  

 

[SJWorne]

I have come across some SR60 headphones that have a black mesh on them instead of the white mesh... does this mean anything or is this simply another 'normal' SR60?

 

[JW Santhem]

RS3 Prototype back in 1995

Mine!
 
http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/3613/r3zy.jpg
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/9783/9i2i.jpg
http://img593.imageshack.us/img593/3311/mll9.jpg

 

[joseph69]

I just upgraded to the 80i from the old 60 and can definitely hear a difference for the better. I don't see myself getting higher end model but I would do the wood cups and/or a different cable.

Nice! I would definitely put wood cups and the (L) cushions on them. What a difference this made with my SR80i's!

 

[stacker45]

I know that this is the headphone forum, but since it's the Grado fan club thread I figured that this might be somewhat interesting to some of you.
 
A few days ago, I bought a very nice, and rare, Grado HPA-2 headpnone amp from Parbake, who, may I say, is a very nice guy, and boy, can he pack a safe box, I've never seen so much bubble wrap, I swear they could have droped that box from the plane in mid air, and it probably would've hit the ground and bounced right back in the plane. I have tryed to post a pic, but I couldn't do this right, if my life depended on it, sorry.
 
According to him, the HP1000 and HPA-2 combination could very well be an endgame setup for me, now,, considering how much I love my PS1000/Little Dot 1+ combo, this was a very tall order to fill.
 
All my listening has been done using battery power, so I have yet to try AC power.
 
So far I'm very impressed by the HP1000/HPA-2 combo, Joseph Grado sure knew what he was doing, and he didn't do things half assed, don't forget that we are talking about 20 years old components here.
 
I wouldn't say that the HP1000/HPA-2 are better than the PS1000/L D 1+, but they're certainly just as good, and that's fine by me.
 
<a href="http://s305.photobucket.com/user/Stacker45/media/Photo896_zps15733783.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/nn216/Stacker45/Photo896_zps15733783.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Photo896_zps15733783.jpg"/></a>

 

[stacker45]

Double post, not surprising, Damn!

 

[stacker45]

Triple posts, my personal best, so sorry guys.

 

[wje]

I just upgraded to the 80i from the old 60 and can definitely hear a difference for the better. I don't see myself getting higher end model but I would do the wood cups and/or a different cable.

 
Keep in mind, there were a few iterations of the SR-60. The very early version is the one we've been discussing.  That model has the pink colored mesh over the drivers.  In this earlier iteration of that model, it seems that Grado really put some good effort into the sound quality.  I'm not implying that it will really smack any of the other models because I have more testing to do.  However, from what I've heard has been quite good with respect to performance.
 
I'd be willing to be that Grado realized some of their headphones on the lower end were possibly cannibalizing some of the sales of higher end models.  It seems that once that was noted, they scaled back the sound and capabilities of the lower models which ran though the later version of the SR series as well as the newer "i" series.  I also have the Alessandro MS1i headphones, too.  In my comparisons between those and the SR-60 that I have, the SR-60 is placing some really good competition up against the MS1i and surpassing it in several areas.
 
Is the SR-60 that I have a headphone that would blow the RS1i away?  I don't think that's possible.  However, during my use of them last evening as well as at work today, they certainly were not those who had the anemic sound of the SR-60i, SR-80i and SR-125i that I remember.
 
However, I'd like to close with the real reason why we're here.  It's all about the music.  We seek improved methods that will get us closer to our music.  Plus, when I comment in a positive manner on a model, I don't want to ever imply that the members here should rush out and buy a pair.  Normally, I'm just relaying my personal experience and how the interface between my music (Jazz and Blues) has been enhanced with some recent discoveries.  I won't push my opinion on others and tell them to run out and buy model "X" asap.  Just a viewpoint is being shared and the viewpoint provided certainly doesn't mean a direct endorsement for any product in particular.  

 

[whirlwind]

  I know that this is the headphone forum, but since it's the Grado fan club thread I figured that this might be somewhat interesting to some of you.
 
A few days ago, I bought a very nice, and rare, Grado HPA-2 headpnone amp from Parbake, who, may I say, is a very nice guy, and boy, can he pack a safe box, I've never seen so much bubble wrap, I swear they could have droped that box from the plane in mid air, and it probably would've hit the ground and bounced right back in the plane. I have tryed to post a pic, but I couldn't do this right, if my life depended on it, sorry.
 
According to him, the HP1000 and HPA-2 combination could very well be an endgame setup for me, now,, considering how much I love my PS1000/Little Dot 1+ combo, this was a very tall order to fill.
 
All my listening has been done using battery power, so I have yet to try AC power.
 
So far I'm very impressed by the HP1000/HPA-2 combo, Joseph Grado sure knew what he was doing, and he didn't do things half assed, don't forget that we are talking about 20 years old components here.
 
I wouldn't say that the HP1000/HPA-2 are better than the PS1000/L D 1+, but they're certainly just as good, and that's fine by me.
 
<a href="http://s305.photobucket.com/user/Stacker45/media/Photo896_zps15733783.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i305.photobucket.com/albums/nn216/Stacker45/Photo896_zps15733783.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo Photo896_zps15733783.jpg"/></a>

 
Congrats...that is awesome.....and yes, I could see that being an end all system.

 

[SHAHZADA123]

  Thank you, it is shipping with 2x12B4A and 1x12AX7 tubes. I purchased it for my new RS1i's.
I assume you own one, what tubes do you use?

GE 5 Stars 5751. Great synergy with RS1 & PS500 but not so much with the PS1000s
Will be getting a Sylvania 5751 Triple MIca Black Plates shortly
 
Didn't quite like the 12AX7s. 

 

[whirlwind]

  GE 5 Stars 5751. Great synergy with RS1 & PS500 but not so much with the PS1000s
Will be getting a Sylvania 5751 Triple MIca Black Plates shortly
 
Didn't quite like the 12AX7s.

 
I have my eye on a Sylvania 5751 triple mica black plate as well.........once you receive yours, please report back 
 
I have a 5751 Sovtek Russian tube at the moment
 
The detail and instrument separation is off the hook.