Grado GH-1 Discussion

[GreenBow]

  A couple shots of my brother and his GH1's that were given to him as a gift by me and my mom. We wanted to do something special for his 30th b-day and I think it was a pretty good choice. He's in the Air Force living in Germany and we don't get to see him often, so it's fun to do something special.


 
And with the G's

 
Excellent post Bonobo. We followed this story.
 
You pic of your bro also shows the way to wear Grado (L-cushion) with spectacles. Over the top; not under the pad.

 

[j0val]

What amp/dac is everyone using for their GH-1? I'm still looking for something around $300. I'm considering the Vali 2/Modi 2 uber combo, ODAC Combo, and Apogee Groove. Need something that would be easy to move around. Thinking about bringing my GH-1 to the upcoming SoCal CanJam to test out some gear, but i know that will be dangerous.

 

[SurvivorNVL]

You don't simply go to Canjam without already knowing you'll be leaving with a fresh mortgage and more Schiit gear than you can carry.

 

[j0val]

You don't simply go to Canjam without already knowing you'll be leaving with a fresh mortgage and more Schiit gear than you can carry.

That's what I'm afraid of, all the Schiit i might buy.

 

[ESL-1]

What amp/dac is everyone using for their GH-1? I'm still looking for something around $300. I'm considering the Vali 2/Modi 2 uber combo, ODAC Combo, and Apogee Groove. Need something that would be easy to move around. Thinking about bringing my GH-1 to the upcoming SoCal CanJam to test out some gear, but i know that will be dangerous.

Not really fitting all your question's parameters but if you can find a great deal or expand your budget a bit the ALO PanAm with Gateway power supply is a fantastic match with the GH1, a marriage made in heaven. It is distinctly a transportable. Check my profile to see my amplifier points of reference but when I chose to listen to my GH1 it will 9 times out of 10 be with the PanAm.

Have fun finding your preferred match, enjoy the journey.

 

[LTSFBH]

  What amp/dac is everyone using for their GH-1? I'm still looking for something around $300. I'm considering the Vali 2/Modi 2 uber combo, ODAC Combo, and Apogee Groove. Need something that would be easy to move around. Thinking about bringing my GH-1 to the upcoming SoCal CanJam to test out some gear, but i know that will be dangerous.

 
Can't speak about the GH-1 specifically, but my Asgard and Modi (optical) combo sounds great with 325e and PS500e, so might be a good match with Grado in general.

 

[j0val]

Not really fitting all your question's parameters but if you can find a great deal or expand your budget a bit the ALO PanAm with Gateway power supply is a fantastic match with the GH1, a marriage made in heaven. It is distinctly a transportable. Check my profile to see my amplifier points of reference but when I chose to listen to my GH1 it will 9 times out of 10 be with the PanAm.

Have fun finding your preferred match, enjoy the journey.

That PanAm looks great. Although, might be a little out of budget for right now. However, I'll keep it on my radar. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[j0val]

   
Can't speak about the GH-1 specifically, but my Asgard and Modi (optical) combo sounds great with 325e and PS500e, so might be a good match with Grado in general.

I was thinking about this, but the asgard may be too big for what i'm looking for. Schiit usually has a table at the SoCal CanJam, so i'll hit them up when they're down.

 

[gregorya]

You don't simply go to Canjam without already knowing you'll be leaving with a fresh mortgage and more Schiit gear than you can carry.

'cause, you know, Schiit happens...

 

[BootsandPants]

I've been getting back into this hobby recently after (somehow) remaining happy with my desktop setup for the past few years. I've always liked the Grado sound, and was able to spend a month with the RS1i and PS1k back in 2012. Loved them, but didn't stick with either one as my ultimate decision at that time. After being snared by the Headfi siren song again recently, I decided I needed a pair of Grados on my desk. This thread killed me, or I should say my wallet, and I ended up ordering the GH1 to scratch that itch. I think I got the last pair from Headroom, as they are now listed as out of stock; just in time I guess

 
They arrived last week and I was only able to listen to them for about two hours, but man, these things are great. I mainly put some Jose Gonzalez and Charlie Parr through them, but it sounded just like Jose and Charlie were sitting in the room playing for me while I cleaned. Unfortunately I'm on travel this week and don't get to listen to them, so they're hanging up to straighten out the chord while I'm gone, but I'm excited to burn these in and enjoy the sound along the way.
 
Does anyone have a good tube recommendation for these guys? I have a Garage1217 amp and would like to experiment with rolling a few different tubes to see what these sound like. Just looking for a good starting point. Thanks!

 

[Bonobo Loco]

  I've been getting back into this hobby recently after (somehow) remaining happy with my desktop setup for the past few years. I've always liked the Grado sound, and was able to spend a month with the RS1i and PS1k back in 2012. Loved them, but didn't stick with either one as my ultimate decision at that time. After being snared by the Headfi siren song again recently, I decided I needed a pair of Grados on my desk. This thread killed me, or I should say my wallet, and I ended up ordering the GH1 to scratch that itch. I think I got the last pair from Headroom, as they are now listed as out of stock; just in time I guess

 
They arrived last week and I was only able to listen to them for about two hours, but man, these things are great. I mainly put some Jose Gonzalez and Charlie Parr through them, but it sounded just like Jose and Charlie were sitting in the room playing for me while I cleaned. Unfortunately I'm on travel this week and don't get to listen to them, so they're hanging up to straighten out the chord while I'm gone, but I'm excited to burn these in and enjoy the sound along the way.
 
Does anyone have a good tube recommendation for these guys? I have a Garage1217 amp and would like to experiment with rolling a few different tubes to see what these sound like. Just looking for a good starting point. Thanks!

Welcome back. The more knowledgeable people have been neglecting to answer so I'll pop in to say what I've learned.

While I've not been able to hear all of these, the most common recommendations I've seen for these will depend on your budget of course, but what I'm seeing recommended more than anything is a Schiit amp/dac stack or some combination of gear from Woo Audio. 

The particular stuff you get will of course depend on your budget. The Schiit Bifrost/Lyr2 combo runs about $800-$930. Woo Audio gear is more expensive and more like 'endgame' gear. They have options from cheap to (very) expensive based on what you'd want to spend. The WA6 gets a lot of praise. If I had $2k to spend on an amp I'd get a WA22. It's super badass. That's not including whatever DAC you go with.

Honorable mention: If you'd want something that's less expensive and portable, check out the Chord Mojo. It's $600 retail.

By the way if you want specific advice on amplifiers I'd check out the amplifier forum. Good luck and happy hunting

 

[TraceStar]

I've been getting back into this hobby recently after (somehow) remaining happy with my desktop setup for the past few years. I've always liked the Grado sound, and was able to spend a month with the RS1i and PS1k back in 2012. Loved them, but didn't stick with either one as my ultimate decision at that time. After being snared by the Headfi siren song again recently, I decided I needed a pair of Grados on my desk. This thread killed me, or I should say my wallet, and I ended up ordering the GH1 to scratch that itch. I think I got the last pair from Headroom, as they are now listed as out of stock; just in time I guess

 
They arrived last week and I was only able to listen to them for about two hours, but man, these things are great. I mainly put some Jose Gonzalez and Charlie Parr through them, but it sounded just like Jose and Charlie were sitting in the room playing for me while I cleaned. Unfortunately I'm on travel this week and don't get to listen to them, so they're hanging up to straighten out the chord while I'm gone, but I'm excited to burn these in and enjoy the sound along the way.
 
Does anyone have a good tube recommendation for these guys? I have a Garage1217 amp and would like to experiment with rolling a few different tubes to see what these sound like. Just looking for a good starting point. Thanks!

You can check out the Project Ember Tube Rolling thread. I'm using the Project ember II with dual Zenith 6J5 tubes with my GH-1.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

[MacedonianHero]

  Welcome back. The more knowledgeable people have been neglecting to answer so I'll pop in to say what I've learned.

While I've not been able to hear all of these, the most common recommendations I've seen for these will depend on your budget of course, but what I'm seeing recommended more than anything is a Schiit amp/dac stack or some combination of gear from Woo Audio. 

The particular stuff you get will of course depend on your budget. The Schiit Bifrost/Lyr2 combo runs about $800-$930. Woo Audio gear is more expensive and more like 'endgame' gear. They have options from cheap to (very) expensive based on what you'd want to spend. The WA6 gets a lot of praise. If I had $2k to spend on an amp I'd get a WA22. It's super badass. That's not including whatever DAC you go with.

Honorable mention: If you'd want something that's less expensive and portable, check out the Chord Mojo. It's $600 retail.

By the way if you want specific advice on amplifiers I'd check out the amplifier forum. Good luck and happy hunting

While I agree with your Schiit stack recommendation, I would however recommend another amp from the Lyr or Lyr 2. Just too much power for Grado headphones. The Asgard 2 is quite good for those on a budget. I might recommend it with power hungry orthos. If anyone can snag a used Mapletree Audio tube amp, I'd jump all over one. The Chord Mojo is fantastic as an amp/DAC all-in-one solution too!

 

[LTSFBH]

  While I agree with your Schiit stack recommendation, I would however recommend another amp from the Lyr or Lyr 2. Just too much power for Grado headphones. The Asgard 2 is quite good for those on a budget. I might recommend it with power hungry orthos. If anyone can snag a used Mapletree Audio tube amp, I'd jump all over one. The Chord Mojo is fantastic as an amp/DAC all-in-one solution too!

I recently got a MAD Ear+ HD and can attest to how well it works with Grados. The 325e and in particular the PS500e pair extremely well with it.

 

[whirlwind]

 

  Welcome back. The more knowledgeable people have been neglecting to answer so I'll pop in to say what I've learned.

While I've not been able to hear all of these, the most common recommendations I've seen for these will depend on your budget of course, but what I'm seeing recommended more than anything is a Schiit amp/dac stack or some combination of gear from Woo Audio. 

The particular stuff you get will of course depend on your budget. The Schiit Bifrost/Lyr2 combo runs about $800-$930. Woo Audio gear is more expensive and more like 'endgame' gear. They have options from cheap to (very) expensive based on what you'd want to spend. The WA6 gets a lot of praise. If I had $2k to spend on an amp I'd get a WA22. It's super badass. That's not including whatever DAC you go with.

Honorable mention: If you'd want something that's less expensive and portable, check out the Chord Mojo. It's $600 retail.

By the way if you want specific advice on amplifiers I'd check out the amplifier forum. Good luck and happy hunting

While I agree with your Schiit stack recommendation, I would however recommend another amp from the Lyr or Lyr 2. Just too much power for Grado headphones. The Asgard 2 is quite good for those on a budget. I might recommend it with power hungry orthos. If anyone can snag a used Mapletree Audio tube amp, I'd jump all over one. The Chord Mojo is fantastic as an amp/DAC all-in-one solution too!

+1 to the Mapletree Audio amp, Peter!
 
The MadEar is wonderful with Grados and switch to a higher gain tube and it is wonderful with 300 ohm cans...a fantastic amp, and one with a very musical tone....a tone to die for.
 
A real workhorse of an amp that synergizes well with high and low impedance headphones.