[Bernard23]

Meantime, I'm hammering my cochlea to the tunes of AC-DC circa 1977 with my 325e and recently acquired JDS Element 2. What a monstrous combination for rock, it's absolutely brilliant.

 

[RyanT42]

Uh it’s a pre amp/power amp duo? With a dedicated phone amp stage in the pre amp?
Up to the mid 80‘s the build in headphone outputs were mostly designed to drive 200 -2000 Ohms Headphones.
There were some Marantz and Brauns having no problems with the low 32 Ohms of Grados at reasonable volume. And maybe some others.
If you think about connecting them via adapter cable to the end stages, be very careful with the volume knob with the LCD and forget about the Grados. And any warranty.
These power stages will not be designed for 70 Ohms. Even if 25 Watts appear very low powered today, Phones are driven in 20 mW (Audiobook at good/ok volume) and Voltage ranges between 1 and max. 8.5. Some a little higher. And music needs not only constant power, it has peaks. It needs additional air for sprints, much of that.
The problem with things like ZEN DAC is, they can reach a decent volume, but have no more, let‘s say this air for sprints, especially on such critical items like the Audezes are. The ZEN DACs both work pretty good on most headphones. Even on extraordinary good ones like RS1e or higher up the range.
SPLs like 104 dB @ 1 mW (1 kHz frequency generator sinus) are reachable in acoustically dead laboratories with a high sensitive measuring microphone directly on the diffusor. Less than 97 dB is hard to drive for most Android mobiles.
The funny thing is, current mode amplification (Bakoon, Questyle) or the weird circuitry used by Abacus acts a little different. Not so much in the absolute volume but in the … air for sprints.

No Dongle DAC and definitely no cable DAC has.
I can’t think about 50 mW from those things. The only chance I see is the Questyle M12.
But all those will drain the battery of the source.
(Funny thing: with the Grado SR325e I prefer the Dragonfly Red over the Cobalt. With the RS2e it’s the Cobalt.)
If it’s only USB, no SPDIF, maybe the Fiio Q3 can help.
Haven‘t tried with the LCD (...yet.) Classic Audezes are simply not made for On The Go.

For your planned usage I think it’s the RS-1X.
It would pair quite good with a ZEN DAC.

Off topic: I have seen Meier Audio has its winter sale. On all amps. You can save around a 1000 bucks on the Soul.

Thanks for the detailed reply. A lot of great info there!

For my home system the preamp and power amp are separate units. Each have a monitor out. I went through the manual for each and the preamp specifies high impedance phones only while the power amp manual stated that anything 8 Ohms or higher is fine. So I'll just have to be sure to plug into the correct rack!...and still be cautious.

I agree, I think the RS1x will fit my needs better but I still want to compare the two just out of curiosity to see how they differ. Bad news is the dealer I ordered the RS1x from updated me and said the ship date is pushed back until next Friday or the following Monday...torture!

I was checking out the Fiio Q1 but appears to be discontinued and then the Q3. Looks nice but I don't think it can do a line out like the Q1 can...the search continues.

Very interesting about the AQ dragon red vs cobalt...I'd love to compare those with the Grados.

Thanks again for the help and suggestions.

 

[Heyyoudvd]

I’m curious, what does everyone here do in terms of listening to a wireless-only device?

For example, I have an Apple TV 4K box, which I use for all my TV and movie watching. The Apple TV box does not have a headphone jack, so when I want to watch a movie/show with headphones, I have to use something wireless, like my AirPods Max.

What if I want to listen with my Grados?

Should I pick up a Bluetooth amp/DAC like a Topping DX3 Pro+? Some other option? Also, I’m guessing the Apple TV uses AAC, so how would the quality be if I’m receiving a Bluetooth signal via the amp/DAC?

Is there any better setup I’m not thinking of, in terms of how I should go about using my Apple TV with wired headphones like my Hemp and 6XX?

 

[Stevko]

They compliment each other nicely imho. The Sr225e is super exciting and fun, and the rs2e is less so but very refined sounding.

I will keep both.
Think I let the Philips X3 go. They are too sharp.
Too much cans

 

[Stevko]

I’m curious, what does everyone here do in terms of listening to a wireless-only device?

For example, I have an Apple TV 4K box, which I use for all my TV and movie watching. The Apple TV box does not have a headphone jack, so when I want to watch a movie/show with headphones, I have to use something wireless, like my AirPods Max.

What if I want to listen with my Grados?

Should I pick up a Bluetooth amp/DAC like a Topping DX3 Pro+? Some other option? Also, I’m guessing the Apple TV uses AAC, so how would the quality be if I’m receiving a Bluetooth signal via the amp/DAC?

Is there any better setup I’m not thinking of, in terms of how I should go about using my Apple TV with wired headphones like my Hemp and 6XX?

Good idea. BT give you 85% enjoy.
And you can feed your dx3 with full signal if you want,Critical listening.
Laptop is great

 

[Shane D]

I am just going through a several day session with my GH2's. I have really enjoyed them with my Violectric V220. Occasionally I put my Schiit Loki in the chain for giggles.

But I have to say that my iFi Pro iCAN really does fill these out!
Setting are; Tube mode, low gain, volume around 9:00, 20Hz bass boost and just a little bit of 3D fun.

I have been just going through my collection alphabetically, while changing headphones every week (LSA HP-2's, T60 Argons, HiFiman HE6se V2's and now the GH2's). No headphone sounds great with everything, but these really adapt to different genre's very well. And I suspect the problem pieces are more bad copies on my part than the headphone struggling.
Elton John, ELO, Etta James, Emphatic, Earth, Wind and Fire, Dorothy, Doobie Brothers, Deftones, etc.

So awesome, with very present bass. Hmmm.

 

[j0val]

I’ve had the RS1x for a couple weeks now and I still am impressed with them. And this is after selling my Empyreans, which I loved. I feel like the rs1x is a headphone that shows you something different each time.

The sound is still quintessential Grado, with some welcome enhancements. The top end is resolving and airy, while being not fatiguing (my volume is is typically between 65db and 70db). The overall sound is at the perfect nexus of warmth and slight darkness, but is still engaging. While the soundstage is not the widest, instrument separation is still incredible. Listening to Santana’s “Evil Ways” via Qobuz, each instrument had their own lane to play and made the experience more musical through its superb timbre.

The RS1x is the best Grado I’ve owned. I’m interested is seeing what Grado can do with their statement series and the new x driver.

 

[Stardock7]

I have a slightly cheek request, but you'll see the logic. I'm after some closed back phones that will give a similar clarity and detail presentation as Hemps; what would be some reccomendations to consider? If I had the choice I'd like a flatter bass response, but that might be expected anyway with a closed back design. Budget is similar to 325x

I have wondered this same thing. Want a better travel headphone and Grado's annoy the people next to you on an airplane. I have tries many closed back so for and none seem to do it.

 

[murphythecat]

i grabbed the last pair of rs2x in canada!

first impressions.... werent these suppose to be bright?
they seem fast, very uncoloured bass it seems but indeed not a bass heavy headphone. Very early impressions though! ill be back in a week or two!


build quality seem very good
and the wood contrast is amazing looking. beautiful cans

 

[murphythecat]

I already had written about the RS1x a couple of weeks ago. I now have an RS2x which I am running and will try to add those impressions also. Check around the thread, there a number of impressions and a few comparisons too.

bump?

 

[jonathan c]

I have wondered this same thing. Want a better travel headphone and Grado's annoy the people next to you on an airplane.

…ask those next to you in the airplane what they would like to hear then don the headphones …

 

[Joaquin Dinero]

I have a slightly cheek request, but you'll see the logic. I'm after some closed back phones that will give a similar clarity and detail presentation as Hemps; what would be some reccomendations to consider? If I had the choice I'd like a flatter bass response, but that might be expected anyway with a closed back design. Budget is similar to 325x

I like my Final Sonorouses (I have the II and the VI) as a proxy for my Grados when I cant use Grados because noise.

 

[RyanT42]

I’ve had the RS1x for a couple weeks now and I still am impressed with them. And this is after selling my Empyreans, which I loved. I feel like the rs1x is a headphone that shows you something different each time.

The sound is still quintessential Grado, with some welcome enhancements. The top end is resolving and airy, while being not fatiguing (my volume is is typically between 65db and 70db). The overall sound is at the perfect nexus of warmth and slight darkness, but is still engaging. While the soundstage is not the widest, instrument separation is still incredible. Listening to Santana’s “Evil Ways” via Qobuz, each instrument had their own lane to play and made the experience more musical through its superb timbre.

The RS1x is the best Grado I’ve owned. I’m interested is seeing what Grado can do with their statement series and the new x driver.

Can’t wait for mine to arrive. Are you preferring the G pads vs the L pads? What differences do you hear?

Also, what’s your Schiit setup you have rockin’ there? Lyr, Lokius and BiFrost? Can’t quite see the names excellent looking setup!

 

[j0val]

Can’t wait for mine to arrive. Are you preferring the G pads vs the L pads? What differences do you hear?

Also, what’s your Schiit setup you have rockin’ there? Lyr, Lokius and BiFrost? Can’t quite see the names excellent looking setup!

Thanks! I definitely prefer the G pads. I feel like they increase the soundstage a bit and tame the highs slightly more (RS1x is by no means a harsh headphone, even with the L pads - I just prefer a darker sound). Above all, the G pads are much more comfortable than the L pads…no contest. I would recommend having the G pads on hand and ready to go when your RS1x arrives.

You got my Schiit setup exactly right. Lyr 3 with a Shuguang Treasure tube, Bifrost 2, and Lokius. I couldn’t ask for a better setup to complement the RS1x.

 

[movinIron]

I’m curious, what does everyone here do in terms of listening to a wireless-only device?

For example, I have an Apple TV 4K box, which I use for all my TV and movie watching. The Apple TV box does not have a headphone jack, so when I want to watch a movie/show with headphones, I have to use something wireless, like my AirPods Max.

What if I want to listen with my Grados?

What about using a Bluetooth Receiver?
I cut 2 feet from the RS2e‘s garden hose, originally for the use with the A&K Jr. Later I switched 3.5mm TRS to 2.5 TRRS for use with the KANN. For my seldom ‘TV‘- and slightly more often tuner-use with headphones I switch between A&K XB10 (neutral, more powerful) and Fiio BTR (warm, darker).
The Audiolab M-DAC Nano works by (detachable) upsampling to 32 bit/384 kHz which sounds impressive.
Try to connect them with ‘Audio Share‘ to the Apple TV 4K.
(Haven’t heard the Ifi GO blu yet, but the xCAN was great with Grados.
The cut 2 feet now serve as 2.5 - 3.5 Adapter.)

…
Is there any better setup I’m not thinking of, in terms of how I should go about using my Apple TV with wired headphones like my Hemp and 6XX?

Possible to use SPDIF/USB out from the TV/Beamer?