[Ranma13]

Hey guys, I'm scheduled for Lasik surgery, which means I'm getting back into the headphone world. I used to own a pair of RS1i's which I loved, but due to the pressure, my ears pressed against the legs of my glasses and I couldn't listen to them for more than 30 minutes without experiencing severe earlobe pain. I had to end up selling the RS1i.
 
Now that I (hopefully) will be glasses-free, I'd like to repurchase a pair of Grados, but the landscape has changed slightly since then. Apparently Grado has come out with a new model, the PS500, which is $100 less than the RS1i. The price difference isn't a big deal to me, but the sound difference is. I mainly listen to trance, pop, and dance. My only complaint with the RS1i (aside from the comfort issue) was that, sometimes, for particularly sibilant songs, the midrange hump made those parts very shrill.
 
Can someone point out the advantages and disadvantages of the RS1i over the PS500? So far I've read that the PS500 has more mid-bass and slightly recessed mids compared to the RS1i, but I can't tell if that's something I'd like or not.

 

[Biscuitz]

Quote:

Hey guys, I'm scheduled for Lasik surgery, which means I'm getting back into the headphone world. I used to own a pair of RS1i's which I loved, but due to the pressure, my ears pressed against the legs of my glasses and I couldn't listen to them for more than 30 minutes without experiencing severe earlobe pain. I had to end up selling the RS1i.
 
Now that I (hopefully) will be glasses-free, I'd like to repurchase a pair of Grados, but the landscape has changed slightly since then. Apparently Grado has come out with a new model, the PS500, which is $100 less than the RS1i. The price difference isn't a big deal to me, but the sound difference is. I mainly listen to trance, pop, and dance. My only complaint with the RS1i (aside from the comfort issue) was that, sometimes, for particularly sibilant songs, the midrange hump made those parts very shrill.
 
Can someone point out the advantages and disadvantages of the RS1i over the PS500? So far I've read that the PS500 has more mid-bass and slightly recessed mids compared to the RS1i, but I can't tell if that's something I'd like or not.

Do you want an agile, airy sound or a meaty, powerful sound? Agile -> RS1i.  Powerful -> PS500.
 
Also, the RS1i is quite a bit more comfortable due to the weight difference.

 

[Ranma13]

So the PS500 is significantly heavier than the RS1i?

 

[Biscuitz]

Quote:

So the PS500 is significantly heavier than the RS1i?

Relatively heavier, yes. 255 grams vs 332 grams. The PS500 is 30% heavier than the RS1i.

 

[stacker45]

Quote:

Hey guys, I'm scheduled for Lasik surgery, which means I'm getting back into the headphone world. I used to own a pair of RS1i's which I loved, but due to the pressure, my ears pressed against the legs of my glasses and I couldn't listen to them for more than 30 minutes without experiencing severe earlobe pain. I had to end up selling the RS1i.
 
Now that I (hopefully) will be glasses-free, I'd like to repurchase a pair of Grados, but the landscape has changed slightly since then. Apparently Grado has come out with a new model, the PS500, which is $100 less than the RS1i. The price difference isn't a big deal to me, but the sound difference is. I mainly listen to trance, pop, and dance. My only complaint with the RS1i (aside from the comfort issue) was that, sometimes, for particularly sibilant songs, the midrange hump made those parts very shrill.
 
Can someone point out the advantages and disadvantages of the RS1i over the PS500? So far I've read that the PS500 has more mid-bass and slightly recessed mids compared to the RS1i, but I can't tell if that's something I'd like or not.

 
Having compared both the RS1i and the PS500, i would say that the RS1 are more treble oriented while the PS500s are more bass oriented. I believe that the PS500 are more forgiving of bad recordings, they have a tube sound to them that makes long listening sessions less of a problem.
 
As far as comfort goes, i don't believe that the PS500 extra weight is significant enough to make them uncomfortable. But being a PS1000 owner, i'm use to wearing very heavy headphones, so take my comment with a grain of salt.
 
Don't forget that even tough the RS1i cost $100 more than the PS500, they come with a 15 foot extension and a 1/8'' adapter.
 
Hope this helps.