[carboncopy]

Slightly off-topic.

Does here (in the Grado group) have anyone experience with the Dan Clark Ether 2?

It seems to be the only planar-magnetic headphone which has a somewhat agreeable weight.

Why I am asking here? It do really love the Grado sound and this could a common ground to refer to.

My biggest fear is, that they are boring in comparsion to my Grados (RS2e, HEMP). But are they? Any thought are welcome...

 

[Bernard23]

I had some time to kill so I decided to give some of the AutoEQ profiles a try. AutoEQ calculates its profiles from public frequency graphs. Oof, the AutoEQ profile for the GS3000e pretty much sucked the life out of it. The Hemp profile was better but still not good enough compared to my own tuning by ear. I guess I just don't prefer the Harman target.

EDIT: Added comparison pic. Faded line is AutoEQ, darker line is what I run. Grado's secret sauce is the 2khz boost and to EQ that down is heresy!

That's an interesting tool. I tried to offset the Hemps FR curve with EQ in MusicBee player with some success, if only the graph hinted at where to focus the changes. I found that a ~5K lift is crucial to removing the slightly dark / veiled presentation compared to the rest of the Grado range. From the experiments with pad rolling, it seems that the distance of the driver to your ear is the most critical parameter.

 

[Gippy]

Can someone explain what the deal is with the 2k treble peak that is exhibited on every Grado is? It’s definitely part of their signature sound but I’m wondering what instruments I’m hearing that interacts with that treble peak?

2khz is upper mids. It makes everything "in your face" and it's most apparent with electric guitars and female vocals. Too much of it and vocals will sound harsh and shouty even when they're not supposed to be.

Can you post your (GS3000e) EQ settings?

Spoiler: CODE

Channel: all
Preamp: -14 dB
Filter 1: ON PK Fc 10 Hz Gain 5.1 dB Q 0.3
Filter 2: ON PK Fc 30 Hz Gain 4.8 dB Q 0.8
Filter 3: ON PK Fc 60 Hz Gain 9.2 dB Q 0.6
Filter 4: ON PK Fc 90 Hz Gain 3.2 dB Q 1.6
Filter 5: ON PK Fc 110 Hz Gain 1 dB Q 1.6
Filter 6: ON PK Fc 180 Hz Gain -1.8 dB Q 1
Filter 7: ON PK Fc 400 Hz Gain 0.5 dB Q 1.8
Filter 8: ON PK Fc 500 Hz Gain 6.5 dB Q 0.7
Filter 9: ON PK Fc 1000 Hz Gain 4.3 dB Q 0.8
Filter 10: ON PK Fc 1500 Hz Gain 1 dB Q 1
Filter 11: ON PK Fc 2000 Hz Gain 7.5 dB Q 0.8
Filter 12: ON PK Fc 3000 Hz Gain 0.5 dB Q 1.5
Filter 13: ON PK Fc 4000 Hz Gain 3.5 dB Q 2
Filter 14: ON PK Fc 6000 Hz Gain -3.2 dB Q 2
Filter 15: ON PK Fc 7500 Hz Gain 3.4 dB Q 0.8
Filter 16: ON PK Fc 9000 Hz Gain 2 dB Q 1.5
Filter 17: ON PK Fc 12000 Hz Gain 3 dB Q 1
Filter 18: ON PK Fc 16000 Hz Gain 5 dB Q 1.5
Filter 19: ON PK Fc 20000 Hz Gain 2 dB Q 2
Filter 20: ON LPQ Fc 22000 Hz Q 1

Note that I also use my Pro iCAN's analog tweaks set to XBass 10hz and 3D 90°, which add fullness and soundstage. If you feel the sound is too thin, increase the 180hz filter. If you feel everything is too shouty, feel free to reduce the 2khz filter from +7.5 to +6 or +5. Best comfort level is about 75dB SPL. I don't think this sound signature works if you turn up the volume to full blast.

 

[534743]

So here's my RS2e with the Shipibo pads. Together with the Chord Mojo i have recently often preferred the PS500e because the RS2e has become a little too trebly with it. This is solved with the Shipibo pads. Way less treble and basses are still good. So i guess they would go well with the SR-series.

I would not really say that they sound like L pads. The RS2e sounds more like my Oppo PM-3 now. Not bad at all but really toned down highs (for Grado standards). I guess the pads don't have to be broken in so this is my final verdict

 

[534743]

For a lack of a better word: the Shipibo pads sound "vinyl" to me in my setup. For some songs they eat too much treble but for example The Beatles sound great with them. It's fun to listen with them. But maybe they are just a novelty? Only time will tell.

 

[kmhaynes]

RS2e arrived today from fellow forum member with about 100 hours on it already. Duel with the GH2 will start in earnest tomorrow. Very close in sound from just an hour or so comparing with music I know best. More later ...

 

[RedSnapper69]

RS2e arrived today from fellow forum member with about 100 hours on it already. Duel with the GH2 will start in earnest tomorrow. Very close in sound from just an hour or so comparing with music I know best. More later ...

I have GH2's and have a pair of GH1's arriving in the next couple of days. Intrigued to hear how they differ/compare

 

[gregorya]

RS2e arrived today from fellow forum member with about 100 hours on it already. Duel with the GH2 will start in earnest tomorrow. Very close in sound from just an hour or so comparing with music I know best. More later ...

"In this corner, we have the crowd favourite Cocobola Kid, in the other corner, we have the Mahogany Marvel...."

 

[TheMiddleSky]

2k is where Midrange hands off to Upper Mids. Boosting 2k can generally give more presence to snare drums, guitars and vocals... "Air" are the uppermost frequencies, way above 2k...

I think snare drum should be below 2 kHz. It's true for the upper mid and guitars though (these are what Grado famous for).

 

[audiobomber]

I think snare drum should be below 2 kHz. It's true for the upper mid and guitars though (these are what Grado famous for).

Snare drum frequency range extends as high as 10kHz:
Pulse, 200 Hz
Smack, 2 kHz
Wires, 5 kHz
Head, 7 kHz
https://blog.sonicbids.com/the-engineers-guide-to-the-perfect-snare-sound#:~:text=Ideally, it should work closely,900 Hz–2.0 kHz range.

 

[Deolum]

Can anyone confirm that the GS1000e is a freaking diva? It legit sounds so crappy on so many systems and if you fix one thing even if its only a cable it suddenly sounds glorious. I never had such swings between most liked and least liked headphone before.

 

[ajm87]

Can anyone confirm that the GS1000e is a freaking diva? It legit sounds so crappy on so many systems and if you fix one thing even if its only a cable it suddenly sounds glorious. I never had such swings between most liked and least liked headphone before.

So your saying replacing the cable on GS1000E makes it sound better? What cable did you use?

 

[Deolum]

So your saying replacing the cable on GS1000E makes it sound better? What cable did you use?

No not in the Grados cable. I mean a cable in the setup. Or source components like streamer, better Ethernet connections etc.

 

[Gippy]

Can anyone confirm that the GS1000e is a freaking diva? It legit sounds so crappy on so many systems and if you fix one thing even if its only a cable it suddenly sounds glorious.

Welcome to 50mm driver land lol. The GS3000e is sensitive enough that I heard USB power loop noise going into my amp, despite my DAC claiming to be able to filter it out. Switched to an optical cable and the noise was gone. I also re-terminated from 1/4" to XLR4 just so that I could run the amp at lower gain. That's why I recommend people stick to the 40mm driver models unless you really love tinkering.

 

[Heyyoudvd]

Sorry if this has been covered but is there any reference guide that breaks down all the differences between the Grado models?

I know the website lists a few technical facts about each, but there are a lot of things that I’m unclear on. For example:

1. What’s the difference between the ‘i’, ‘e’, ‘is’ and old no suffix models? For example, I have an old SR60 from almost 20 years ago and I noticed that the current SR60e is MUCH thicker. Does the deeper chamber of the SR60e vs the SR60 make a difference? What other differences are there between the different lines?

2. Does Grado use one driver across the entire product lineup? If so, does that mean the sound quality just comes from the material differences? And if there are multiple drivers, is there a reference that shows which models use which?

3. I’m a little confused by the breakdown between Prestige, Reference, Statement, and Professional. Going up the lines, you start with plastic (60e through 225e) and then you move to metal within the same line (325e), then you switch lines and go to wood (RS2e and RS1e), then you move to another line that’s still wood (GS1000e, 2000e, 3000e), and then you switch lines and go back to metal (PS500e and PS2000e). The whole hierarchy doesn’t make sense to me.


Basically, I’m trying to wrap my brain around how the Grado lineup works. Is there anything that sort of clarifies all of this? Is it actually getting better as you go up the line?

Another reason I ask is because it seems like the most acclaimed headphone in the lineup might be the RS2e. I’m wondering if that’s just a price/performance thing or if it’s actually viewed as better than its big brothers, as Grado has at least 6 headphones that are more expensive than the RS2e.

Is there a method to this madness or am I overthinking all of this?