[Amictus]

Today my GH-1 arrived. Lovely sound with my fiio X3 2nd. 

Sound is way better as I thought. Fiio drives them much easier than HD600.

Congratulations! They are really good headphones and will get better with time...

 

[james6333]

I got mine too. They sound nice. Right out of the box they sound fine.

First impression 10 seconds on my head.... this is a PS500e (which I also own).

Please keep in minded zero breaking at this point.

1 hour in:

From an IPhone/mojo with the GH1 and PS500e each running out of the jacks for quick switching. They are 98% the same headphone. The only difference I can tell is Mids are sharper on the GH-1, bass and treble are the same loudness. I FEEL like I hear less of the housing (less eco or reverb?) on the PS500e but it could just be the slightly sharper upper Mids/break-in, more time will tell. More to come on a head to head as I get used to them.

Switching the GH-1 from L to G pads the Mids recess a bit. Bass loudness is the same but quality is a little better/cleaner with less bloom. It is like moving your sub/large speaker into a bigger room. Bass weight is about the same. I don't want to comment on the highs yet. The PS500es highs are cleaner but I am hoping that is breakin. With the G pads on the Gh-1 the highs are a little hard/bright at this point straight out of the box.

All in all these are good and I am not disappointed but I think the PS500e is underrated. Stock I would take the PS500e over the Gh-1. With the G-Cush on the GH1 they sound like a PS500e with bigger better soundstage at the cost of brightness. It will come down to music choice I think.

I used two songs for the comparision

Kurt Elling' "Undun"
-audiophile grade song in every way. The Gh1/G sounds better with the added soundstage than the PS500e to me.

Bruno Mar "24k Magic"
-pop music with heavy bass. The more relaxed sound of the PS500e sounds better to me. I could turn them up a lot louder without bothering my ears to get the bass hitting harder and vocals to cut through the sound. I ended up turning the GH-1/G down a bit due to the highs getting harsh/forward.

 

[cygnusx]

I got mine too. They sound nice. Right out of the box they sound fine.

First impression 10 seconds on my head.... this is a PS500e (which I also own).

Please keep in minded zero breaking at this point.

1 hour in:

From an IPhone/mojo with the GH1 and PS500e each running out of the jacks for quick switching. They are 98% the same headphone. The only difference I can tell is Mids are sharper on the GH-1, bass and treble are the same loudness. I FEEL like I hear less of the housing (less eco or reverb?) on the PS500e but it could just be the slightly sharper upper Mids/break-in, more time will tell. More to come on a head to head as I get used to them.

Switching the GH-1 from L to G pads the Mids recess a bit. Bass loudness is the same but quality is a little better/cleaner with less bloom. It is like moving your sub/large speaker into a bigger room. Bass weight is about the same. I don't want to comment on the highs yet. The PS500es highs are cleaner but I am hoping that is breakin. With the G pads on the Gh-1 the highs are a little hard/bright at this point straight out of the box.

All in all these are good and I am not disappointed but I think the PS500e is underrated. Stock I would take the PS500e over the Gh-1. With the G-Cush on the GH1 they sound like a PS500e with bigger better soundstage at the cost of brightness. It will come down to music choice I think.

I used two songs for the comparision

Kurt Elling' "Undun"
-audiophile grade song in every way. The Gh1/G sounds better with the added soundstage than the PS500e to me.

Bruno Mar "24k Magic"
-pop music with heavy bass. The more relaxed sound of the PS500e sounds better to me. I could turn them up a lot louder without bothering my ears to get the bass hitting harder and vocals to cut through the sound. I ended up turning the GH-1/G down a bit due to the highs getting harsh/forward.

Nice write up. I had similar impressions. The highs can get harsh. I haven't heard the ps500e or the Ps1000e but would you say that the harshness you hear with the GH1 go away?

 

[james6333]

Nice write up. I had similar impressions. The highs can get harsh. I haven't heard the ps500e or the Ps1000e but would you say that the harshness you hear with the GH1 go away?

Go away on the GH-1 with break in? Not sure. Or are you asking if the PS500e fixes the Gh-1 harshness?

The PS500e was never harsh. I only found the GH-1 harsh with the G-Cush pads not the stock pads. The G-Cush pads push the vocals back a bit then I turn them up to hear the vocals better and the increased volume pushes the highs forward. I think pushing the Mids back is what gives it soundstage though.

I can try the PS500e with the G-Cush to see how they are but I am guessing the Mids will be farther back than the GH-/G with the same highs.

To me stock to stock the PS500e is a more refined than the GH-1. Again this is with NO break in and lots of time on the PS500e so things could change.

 

[cygnusx]

I haven't listen to the GH1 with the L cups in a while but your impressions seem inline with what I remember. I'll try switching back. I don't think the harness goes away. It's been a trade off for me since I wasn't able to find a hp other than grados that put a smile on my face in this price range. It was ether the rs2e, ps500e or the GH1 and I chose the GH1. Don't get me wrong I'm super happy with them especially with the type of music I listen to but I'm still keeping my eyes out for the next toy.

 

[james6333]

I haven't listen to the GH1 with the L cups in a while but your impressions seem inline with what I remember. I'll try switching back. I don't think the harness goes away. It's been a trade off for me since I wasn't able to find a hp other than grados that put a smile on my face in this price range. It was ether the rs2e, ps500e or the GH1 and I chose the GH1. Don't get me wrong I'm super happy with them especially with the type of music I listen to but I'm still keeping my eyes out for the next toy.

Again these are not broken in so take it with a grain of salt. I am running both off the mojo so changing back and forth is very quick.

With stock pads on both the PS500e is less harsh and easier to listen too. To me ear they are not any darker. But I don't want to go into details until they break in (the pads soften too and could change things). In a store demo I would walk out with the PS500e.

I will try the G-Cush on my PS500e now.

 

[james6333]

G-Cush on the PS500e sounds Ok. Not sure if the highs sound natural though. Maybe a little tizzy. I am not good with highs lol. I listen to rock and hard hitting music.

The PS500e/G highs are less harsh and a hair less forward then the GH-1/G. Personally I would buy the PS500e over the GH1 at this point BUT I would not sell the GH-1 to get a pair of PS500e. They are more or less the same. Think HD800 vs HD800S only less so... different but the same. But some times little changes are worth it.

Mids are actually fine and seem more natural to me than the GH-1/G.

Since I am 950ish posts late I will be quiet now and let these break in using the stock pads.

 

[joseph69]

 

Go away on the GH-1 with break in? Not sure. 

Nice write up. I had similar impressions. The highs can get harsh. I haven't heard the ps500e or the Ps1000e but would you say that the harshness you hear with the GH1 go away?

 
The upper frequencies will definitely tame with sufficient burn-in…like all Grado's.

 

[james6333]

The upper frequencies will definitely tame with sufficient burn-in…like all Grado's.

Good to hear. I will give them a few weeks of burn in then compare them again.

 

[joseph69]

Good to hear. I will give them a few weeks of burn in then compare them again.

Glad you're initially impressed with the GH1.
Wait until you hit about 40-50hrs…then it all gets even better from there. 

 

[Lavakugel]

Using stock L-Cush. Will try to put my hands down to some G-Pads. If anybody has a pair left, pm me.

 

[cygnusx]

I put the L cushions back on last night and listen to a few songs. Then I put the G cushions back on to do a comparison.
1) Bob Dylan - Mr. Tambourine Man
2) Cowboy Junkies - Sweet Jane
3) New Order - Age of Consent

I have to say that for me I prefer the sound of the L cushions to the G cushions. The bass is deeper and tighter. Also, for me the vocals seem closer to me and less distant. Lastly, I feel like the highs were better tamed. The G cups are much more comfortable however. For me it's very much dependent on the type of music and amp used, that seems to determine which cup sounds better. I'm was convinced that the G cups sounded better a few months ago but now I'm not too sure. Both sound great....such difficult decisions we Grado fans face

 

[james6333]

I put the L cushions back on last night and listen to a few songs. Then I put the G cushions back on to do a comparison.
1) Bob Dylan - Mr. Tambourine Man
2) Cowboy Junkies - Sweet Jane
3) New Order - Age of Consent

I have to say that for me I prefer the sound of the L cushions to the G cushions. The bass is deeper and tighter. Also, for me the vocals seem closer to me and less distant. Lastly, I feel like the highs were better tamed. The G cups are much more comfortable however. For me it's very much dependent on the type of music and amp used, that seems to determine which cup sounds better. I'm was convinced that the G cups sounded better a few months ago but now I'm not too sure. Both sound great....such difficult decisions we Grado fans face

I also like the L-Cush better. There are more balanced in the Mids to highs. But I also chose the PS500e over the GS1000e in a back to back comparision. So if someone likes the airy tone of the GS line they will probably like the G-Cush better.

As the GH1 breaks in and I get used to it, it has become easier to tell the GH-1 and PS500e apart. I have to say I prefer the Mids of the PS500e. They are sweeter without the relative upper mid range forwardness/sharpness of the GH-1.

I find that when I switch between the two I turn the GH-1 down a click or two on the mojo due to the Mids. Turning the PS500e up a click or two the Mids have roughly the same presents but then I get a little more thump in the bass due to the increased volume.

All in all I am having a hard time justifying keeping the GH-1. Don't read to much into that. I really like the GH-1 but have to give the nod to the PS500e. They both sound about the same on good material and the PS500e helps with bad recordings (most of my music...)

Bass is extremely close but I do think I hear just a bit of bloom on the GH-1/L vs the PS500e that could be due to the different housings.

 

[kpfeifle]

Well I have been listening to my new GH1's pretty much non stop since I received them a few days ago. Probably have about 20 hours on them so far, not even close to being broken in. Just wanted to share that I had my first legitimate "shivers down the spine" moment...Julian Baker's Everybody Does. Wow, did that sound good! Can't wait to get some more hours on these, it's going to be a fun ride.

 

[james6333]

Well I have been listening to my new GH1's pretty much non stop since I received them a few days ago. Probably have about 20 hours on them so far, not even close to being broken in. Just wanted to share that I had my first legitimate "shivers down the spine" moment...Julian Baker's Everybody Does. Wow, did that sound good! Can't wait to get some more hours on these, it's going to be a fun ride.

I am giving it a spin now. This song is right in the sweet spot of where the Grados excel.