those are some sweet locking adjusters! grado should of course be already using such components instead of slipping plastic, but that would cut into the wine drinking and boating allotment of their profit use
Sorry no I haven't gotten to this yet. I still need to find out where that leather handband and stuff went. I ordered a new one from turbulent but I have no idea when it's going to arrive. Definitely will post pics when I get them though!
those are some sweet locking adjusters! grado should of course be already using such components instead of slipping plastic, but that would cut into the wine drinking and boating allotment of their profit use
I have Onyx Manta headband from turbulent. For me, it is slightly better quality than stock one, and much more comfort.
Nice stock replacement, but why it called "flagship headband"?
Thanks for your thoughts, I didn't expect it to be more comfortable, just better made. Is that because of padding or extra width? I ordered the coffee (dark brown) version, I think dark grey + brown would look pretty slick. I didn't quite understand the flagship thing either.
Turbulent labs headband have the same width, and noticeably thicker because of padding. Turbulent labs website calling onyx manta headband a "flagship headband", it is obvious overstatement.
P.S. Coffee Manta headband looks great! i'll be waiting for updates!
I have a pair of SR200s with HP1000 drivers. I love how they sound, but I am very tempted to give these drivers a new home: metal or wood or perhaps both. My biggest concern is that I will mess them up, but I am also concerned that there are no discussions/reviews of HP1000 transplants, and also that when SR200s turn up on the for sale forums, "unmodded" is always given as a selling point. I gather many of the SR200/HP1000s were modded in some way, but these never appear and I wonder if that is because they are sonic failures or simply because they are now deemed less collectible - or because they are so awesome that they are kept hidden from the world. But mostly I'm wondering if anyone has any experience transplanting HP1000 drivers into different cups and if they could share their thoughts.
My apologies if I posted in the wrong thread. I tried the "Joe Grado Mods" thread last week and got no response. "Grado ramblings" sounded appropriate... but now I see there are some serious and beautiful designs here. Nice work.
My apologies if I posted in the wrong thread. I tried the "Joe Grado Mods" thread last week and got no response. "Grado ramblings" sounded appropriate... but now I see there are some serious and beautiful designs here. Nice work.
Haha sorry to mislead you. I'm not familiar with the SR200s but I'm going to assume since you mentioned Joe Grado they're of the vintage collectable variety. Perhaps the rarity paired with collectability is enough to prevent you from hearing about any mods? There's always going to be those who prefer to keep vintage things original which is understandable and then there's the other camp that may be a bit weary of mods for fear that they aren't done right or are irreversible. I don't have experience modifying such headphones but my rule of thumb for modding collectable cars has always been it's fine so long as its 100% reversible. That's my happy balance that lets me get the change/update I crave while still being able to sleep at night knowing I can always change my mind later. Other than that it really depends on if you're buying something to keep and enjoy for yourself, or if you treat the object as some sort of investment (great if you like to upgrade frequently).
Anyways, if you're interested in talking more about potential mods for your headphones feel free to PM me.
I was just about to pick up some collars from McMaster (since my SR80 adjusters are too loose) when I bumped into this thread and saw how gorgeous these were. I'd love to see the finished product.
Count me in for a pair of those rodblocks; price no object.
Grado cup makers come and go (as does their customers); it's such a niche, within a niche, within another niche... Rhydon ventured in the full aluminum cups and gimbals project already, though he re-used SR325 shells/halves/outer slip-on (did not do a full redesign).
In silver (v1)
v4 (final)
And in black (v4 also).
Inside Grado's rodblocks:
Indeed kdb650, only the right rodblock is intended to come off easily (as it has a slot to add/heat glue) when replacing/repairing the headband:
I have a pair of SR200s with HP1000 drivers. I love how they sound, but I am very tempted to give these drivers a new home: metal or wood or perhaps both. My biggest concern is that I will mess them up, but I am also concerned that there are no discussions/reviews of HP1000 transplants, and also that when SR200s turn up on the for sale forums, "unmodded" is always given as a selling point. I gather many of the SR200/HP1000s were modded in some way, but these never appear and I wonder if that is because they are sonic failures or simply because they are now deemed less collectible - or because they are so awesome that they are kept hidden from the world. But mostly I'm wondering if anyone has any experience transplanting HP1000 drivers into different cups and if they could share their thoughts.
I think they are kept hidden from the world because a) they are discontinued and b) still much loved and used as a neutral reference or workhorse even today. Owners have no incentive to generate hype around it, keeping the HP 1000 aftermarket relatively slow-going and stable.
SR100/200/300/325-0s are pretty much all unmodified and in my opinion the best bargain among discontinued flagships (I confidently call the SR100-0 a 98% HP 1000 and SR325-0 a 98.3% one). HP 1000 cups are being lined as part of the recent Purrin mod but the drivers remain untouched. One would be foolish to try fine-tuning something already flawless.
thelostMIDrange did transplant a pair of HP 1000 drivers I sent him to make wooden cups for (he didn't like the sound, thinks inert aluminum/plastic might do them better justice, even though he did try to optimize his Garcia Memorial design a bit by adding mass).
Count me in for a pair of those rodblocks; price no object.
Grado cup makers come and go (as does their customers); it's such a niche, within a niche, within another niche... Rhydon ventured in the full aluminum cups and gimbals project already, though he re-used SR325 shells/halves/outer slip-on (did not do a full redesign).
In silver (v1)
v4 (final)
And in black (v4 also).
Inside Grado's rodblocks:
Indeed kdb650, only the right rodblock is intended to come off easily (as it has a slot to add/heat glue) when replacing/repairing the headband:
I think they are kept hidden from the world because they are discontinued and yet frequently used by their owners as a neutral reference or workhorse even to this day; I use mine 8 to 16 hours daily, directly into my laptop. The HP 1000 is near-indestructible (yet relatively easy to service), drivers are plentiful and stood the test of time (fail rates are among the lowest). Owners have no incentive to generate hype around it, making this aftermarket comparatively stable.
SR100/200/300/325-0s are pretty much all unmodified and in my opinion the best bargain among discontinued flagships (I confidently call the SR100-0 a 98% HP 1000 and SR325-0 a 98.3% one). HP 1000 cups are being lined as part of the recent Purrin mod but the drivers remain untouched. One would be foolish to try fine-tuning something already flawless.
thelostMIDrange did transplant a pair of HP 1000 drivers I sent him to make wooden cups for (he didn't like the sound, thinks inert aluminum/plastic might do them better justice, even though he did try to optimize his Garcia Memorial design a bit by adding mass).
I have yet to report on this combo in a full-fledged thread.
Awesome post, thanks very much for sharing all of that. I really love the simplicity of the original Joseph Grado designs. I also didn't realize that's how the Grado rodblocks were constructed (with the o-rings)!
I haven't paid close attention to the Grado aftermarket but I can see why it'd be tough to stay in the game. It takes a hundreds of hours to develop anything even when its as simple as this. All said and done the only way to make it worthwhile is because you already wanted to do it for fun or if you can sell it for obscenely high prices. The second part is probably the biggest disconnect for most, with the one-off quantities prices to manufacture is beyond what most are willing to pay (not even accounting for profit). I'm still working on the project here and there in my spare time but the challenge has been is it possible to bring costs down to something appealing without sacrificing quality? If I can use an off the shelf screw for example instead of building a custom one that's $10 each (and keep in mind thats only one component of the design) then I'll be able to make something people can reasonably afford.
I've been building a shop with some of the machinery to prototype on my own so I promise these will be coming out at some point. I'm still around after all of these years somehow! Here's a picture of part of a mini lathe that just arrived in the mail just the other day for all of the non-believers. One of these days....
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
