[joeq70]

GS2000e Impressions Part 2
 
Here is a more organized breakdown of the things I liked and didn't like about the GS2000e
 
Build Quality/Aesthetics
 
Overall, the GS2000e is a handsome headphone that mostly looks and feels like a premium product.
 
Liked:
 
-The brown leather headband looks and feels high quality
-The wood finish has some depth and looks pretty nice
-The headphone is light on the head but still feels reasonably sturdy
-The included 4-Pin XLR to ¼" adapter is great.
 
So-so:
 
-The wood itself looks decent, but is fairly bland, especially when compared to the wealth beautiful choices for custom Grado cups and the impressive looking THX00 massdrop releases.
-The cable is sturdy and feels high quality, but is a bit heavy and can be unwieldy.
 
Comfort
 
Liked:
 
-Relatively light-feeling on the head
 
So-so:
 
-Leather headbands looks nice on Grados but I'm not sure it really does anything to improve comfort.
 
-The pads are Grado G-Cush. They are probably the most comfortable pads from Grado, but the GS2000e is still a good bit less comfortable than most other high end headphones.
 
 
Sound
 
I tried the GS2000e from a couple sources, including the AudioQuest DragonFly Red, which I recently acquired. My general feeling on the GS2000e is that with the right gear pairing, it could be a detailed, yet smooth and spacious listening experience. Fans of the HD800 who wished it was a bit more like a Grado will probably find quite a bit to like here.
 
Liked:
 
-Has that Grado “immediacy” to the sound
-Nice soundstage and instrument separation and placement.
 
-Tonal balance sounds mostly “right”
 
-Treble is detailed yet smooth.
 
Disliked:
 
-Is there bass? Yes. Is there enough bass? In my opinion, no. You just aren't going to get meaty bass out of a Grado. Swapping the pads to the flatted Ear Zonk G-Cush that I previously discussed helps remedy this, but you do end up sacrificing a lot of soundstage depth.
 
-The more I listen to Grados and my Magnums, the more I fall back into the trap of trying to turn up volume to get just a biiit more bass. This leads to fatigue and short listening sessions, unfortunately.
 
Conclusion:
 
The GS2000e is a very nice headphone, and one that I think would be a great headphone to include in one's stable. For me, though, I think I need a little more richness in the bass region for a headphone to be my daily choice, and it's just a little too pricey to use it as a part-time option.

 

[grizzlybeast]

I have the loaner that arrived Sat. I had a breif listen and lliked what I heard. I should compare them to the Elear since I have to ship them off soon. 

 

[musiclvr]

I have the loaner that arrived Sat. I had a breif listen and lliked what I heard. I should compare them to the Elear since I have to ship them off soon. 

:thumbsup_tone2: That would be awesome!

 

[grizzlybeast]

After really sitting down with them I could not understand the tuning. I am not sure if a full write up is a good idea. but here is a short one. 
 
 

GRADO G2KE

 
I have never really heard a Grado until the last meet I went to . I heard the PS500E and thought it was practically the worst headphone over 500 I have ever heard. The G2KE is a much better headphone but still is not for me. I was expecting an engagingly forward and punchy sound but this is not the case to me. 
 
I would like to break them down in the usual categories but let me start with what I felt was the big negative about these headphones. Everything lacked tonal weight and realism. There was not one time that I heard an instrument or voice and was able to settle down thinking it sounded like the real thing. Listening to other headphones and then going to those seemed like an obligation. The other loaner (not TTVJ) headphone I listened to was the HiFiman Edition X and I shared my gripes of it but it was still overall enjoyable. The HD800 is a bit bright and thin for me but that headphone is enjoyable on my rig and responds to it quite nicely. 
 
My rig is not dialed in yet but it is somewhat revealing yet has a warmth to it with very good depth and decent width.Imac>>Audirvana 2+/JRiver Media Center>>Lifatec toslink>> Metrum PAVANE>>Trafomatic HEAD 2 w/ Amperex USN-CEP 6922 (which have good width and a warmish yet detailed sound to them with extended highs). 
 
Even with the deep and layered qualities and warmth of my system, what I heard had flat tones to them. It sounds fake as if the music is clear but the texture and body of the instrument is missing. The 800 to me sounds more realistic and has denser tones. 
 
The bass is controlled, tight, fast, and present, just not at all solid and has no ability to slam. I have never heard bass as controlled as this that has no slam. 
 
The mids are recessed, and while not super recessed, lack a real lower midrange and midrange proper. The singers are right in my ears almost shouting like they have no ceiling or depth. It is hard for me to describe this. What is appreciable is the sheer transparency to them but it is like you can't hear around them. Only at them. Very 2D sound image 
 
The treble is clear and detailed but swishy and peaky. It may be smooth compared to the HE-5Le in texture but it is even more boosted. 
 
The soundstage had good height, but the center image was a little too up close. If they had an inner warmth to them I wouldn't mind this forwardness but it was a cold and shrill forwardness. I was hoping for some depth but really didn't hear it. The imaging was flat out horrible to me. 
 

Build/comfort

ouch....I know it is a Grado thing but I did not expect it to feel so cheep in my hands. I have only heard a lower tiered grado. The Grado cushions are kinda cool and allow a lot of ventilation. Even though they are really on-ears and I was expecting the cushions to provide a deeper ear cavity, they are decently light and comfortable. I really liked the idea of the hardwired balanced cable that it shipped with. 
 
 

Conclusion

Not for me at all. 
 
I feel bad because Todd at TTVJ is awesome and I want to like them because of that but he didn't make the headphones. I would very much like to thank him for running the loaner program and always being a nice guy. Recommended Vendor, I just can't recommend the headphones to a non Grado fan. 
 
~ Grizz. 

 

[Maxx134]

After really sitting down with them I could not understand the tuning. I am not sure if a full write up is a good idea. but here is a short one. 

At first I thought maybe your pads arent fully in place, but if that were the case, you would have noticed.

Sounds to me like ear coupling.
Maybe you didn't get a proper fit.

Did you try the impedance selector on that amp?
That could explain things.

That is a very nice amp, and my current project amp used same type power tubes,
but I also found better tubes so PM me I can suggest you an even better drop in replacement.

 

[thinker]

  After really sitting down with them I could not understand the tuning. I am not sure if a full write up is a good idea. but here is a short one. 
 
 

GRADO G2KE

 
I have never really heard a Grado until the last meet I went to . I heard the PS500E and thought it was practically the worst headphone over 500 I have ever heard. The G2KE is a much better headphone but still is not for me. I was expecting an engagingly forward and punchy sound but this is not the case to me. 
 
I would like to break them down in the usual categories but let me start with what I felt was the big negative about these headphones. Everything lacked tonal weight and realism. There was not one time that I heard an instrument or voice and was able to settle down thinking it sounded like the real thing. Listening to other headphones and then going to those seemed like an obligation. The other loaner (not TTVJ) headphone I listened to was the HiFiman Edition X and I shared my gripes of it but it was still overall enjoyable. The HD800 is a bit bright and thin for me but that headphone is enjoyable on my rig and responds to it quite nicely. 
 
My rig is not dialed in yet but it is somewhat revealing yet has a warmth to it with very good depth and decent width.Imac>>Audirvana 2+/JRiver Media Center>>Lifatec toslink>> Metrum PAVANE>>Trafomatic HEAD 2 w/ Amperex USN-CEP 6922 (which have good width and a warmish yet detailed sound to them with extended highs). 
 
Even with the deep and layered qualities and warmth of my system, what I heard had flat tones to them. It sounds fake as if the music is clear but the texture and body of the instrument is missing. The 800 to me sounds more realistic and has denser tones. 
 
The bass is controlled, tight, fast, and present, just not at all solid and has no ability to slam. I have never heard bass as controlled as this that has no slam. 
 
The mids are recessed, and while not super recessed, lack a real lower midrange and midrange proper. The singers are right in my ears almost shouting like they have no ceiling or depth. It is hard for me to describe this. What is appreciable is the sheer transparency to them but it is like you can't hear around them. Only at them. Very 2D sound image 
 
The treble is clear and detailed but swishy and peaky. It may be smooth compared to the HE-5Le in texture but it is even more boosted. 
 
The soundstage had good height, but the center image was a little too up close. If they had an inner warmth to them I wouldn't mind this forwardness but it was a cold and shrill forwardness. I was hoping for some depth but really didn't hear it. The imaging was flat out horrible to me. 
 

Build/comfort

ouch....I know it is a Grado thing but I did not expect it to feel so cheep in my hands. I have only heard a lower tiered grado. The Grado cushions are kinda cool and allow a lot of ventilation. Even though they are really on-ears and I was expecting the cushions to provide a deeper ear cavity, they are decently light and comfortable. I really liked the idea of the hardwired balanced cable that it shipped with. 
 
 

Conclusion

Not for me at all. 
 
I feel bad because Todd at TTVJ is awesome and I want to like them because of that but he didn't make the headphones. I would very much like to thank him for running the loaner program and always being a nice guy. Recommended Vendor, I just can't recommend the headphones to a non Grado fan. 
 
~ Grizz. 

My opinion of this headphone is likely the opposite of yours, your source must be total crap otherwise i don't understand this review

 

[joeq70]

My opinion of this headphone is likely the opposite of yours, your source must be total crap otherwise i don't understand this review

I think it is all quite relative. He stated that he had never really heard a Grado before, and if you look at what he uses and enjoys--it's generally headphones with a rich tone and robust bass. I used to have complete disdain for any headphone that exhibited any amount of grain or veiled details, but after having owned numerous headphones with smoother treble and bigger bass, I have a much more balanced taste when it comes to these things. grizzlybeast's impressions of the GS2000e remind me of the reaction I had to my first audition of the LCD-2 after owning Magnums for years--total disgust at the lack of resolution and the compressed sounding vocals.

 

[grizzlybeast]

@thinker
I have a Pavane
and trafomatic head 2
 
look em up

 

[Maxx134]

[CONTENTEMBED=/t/809914/grado-gs2000e-loaner-program/105#post_12785013 layout=inline]<a data-huddler-embed="href" href="/u/136887/thinker" style="display:inline-block;">@thinker</a>
[/CONTENTEMBED]
I have a Pavane
and trafomatic head 2

look em up

yep they quite nice units.
Have you looked into the output settings on that amp.?

I remember reading it had selectable output impedance which would explain thing's. .

 

[grizzlybeast]

 

​
I have a Pavane
and trafomatic head 2

look em up

yep they quite nice units.
Have you looked into the output settings on that amp.?

I remember reading it had selectable output impedance which would explain thing's. .

of course. If i didn't my impressions of the bass and would have taken a big hit. I said the bass was tight and controlled just had no weight.
 

Im not a noob. Before I plug any headphone in I research the impedance first and then listen with my ears to find it a good match. 
 
Part of my perception could have been having the Kennerton Vali, Utopia, HE 5LE, and Elear next to it. 
 
The Vali has better imaging but has a more congested sound, yet the sound images are very large, separated, bold, and lush with some over development in the lower mids and mudd area. However the G2KE is more transparent for sure but definitely sounds a lot flatter in dimension, less solidity throughout the Frequency Range than any of the above, and is the most plastic sounding. I have heard worse for balance for sure and its detail retrieval is commendable. Like @joeq70 it is all relative. 
 
The Grado has more air overall than a lot of headphones and it is clear and open. It sounds like what people go for when they remove the grills etc from a headphone.  It is just not spread out, the instruments and vocals lack the realistic body that makes the sounds believable, It also lacks the dynamics of any of the above, and the separation is decent but the layering sucks.
 
I'll just rule out any possibilities of it being my gear or something weird and  conclude that the sound wasn't for me. Maybe they are for someone else. That is totally fine. 

 

[ruthieandjohn]

Wow! No postings on this thread for 10 days! Did someone abscond with the GS2000e?

If I understand, these are the first and last folks and their dates to review the GS2000e, on the entire roster:

AudioAddict Done - June 8
Wormsdriver Done
JoeDoe Done
joeq70 Done
Grizzlybeast Done Aug 7
pbui44
Oteil
Daeder
Gunnerwholeife
Kpfeifle
Reddog
Allanmarkus
Ruthieandjohn
Zive
Harry Manback
csdread

So five folks in the 59 days between the first and last, or 12 days per user (including shipping). So csdread will post his review on about 132 days, or Dec. 22... just in time for Christmas.

 

[wormsdriver]

That's it, I'm getting my pitchfork and torch! what the heck is going on around here!?

Jk guys, looking forward to more impressions, let's keep this train rollin'

 

[Todd]

Hi All,
 
The headphones are on their way to Oteil and should be there any day now... Lets remember to be gracious to each other and the reviews... not everyone enjoys the same things in a headphone and I want the reviews to be honest and what they heard. If we all liked the same thing, there would be one headphone that we all owned...BORING!
 
Todd

 

[pbui44]

Sorry for not posting anything, I had the GS2000e and just sent it off, but I also had the HD800S the week before as well. I will be posting impressions, as well as comparisons, for both later on the appropriate threads soon.

 

[grizzlybeast]

  Hi All,
 
The headphones are on their way to Oteil and should be there any day now... Lets remember to be gracious to each other and the reviews... not everyone enjoys the same things in a headphone and I want the reviews to be honest and what they heard. If we all liked the same thing, there would be one headphone that we all owned...BORING!
 
Todd

Thanks Todd... Because it was you who sent the loaners I really wanted to praise them but I appreciate you encouraging honesty... I really do. You are the best.