I should have posted here
On a great source, and a great amp
the bowls really do not seem nearly as harsh/bright as people imaging
I have the RS-2's, but recently
I bought them to my bud's store who stocks alot of good equipment:
Rotel, Moon, Musical Fidelity, NAD
interconnects etc...
I tried the following from grado: SR80, SR225, SR325, Mine and the RS-1
i'll put this conflict to an end:
The grado's are a very effecient headphone and is very revelaing of source/equipment (though usually sounds quite good even with a generic pcdp )
anyways
I was a flat pad user for the longest time, when i just had my RS-2's with a TA and a generic sony cdplayer and crap ass interconnects
when using bowls, I did have the symptoms of well, a bit bright, puchy bass, and could even be grainy or sibilent
I liked my flats, better: warmer, smooth, still detailed, and bassy (i was more of a bass head)
after upgrading source to nad 540, getting air 3 ic's, a audio alchemy HPA-1 and a moon power supply
I found, the benefits of the bowl, were significant to the new equipment
more detail, more control, no grain, far better staging, and layering
Better resolution and dynamics, even more impact (as the bass is punchier)
then went to the store w/ flats and my rs'2 and of course all stock bowls on the other grado's
Used the MF TRI-Vista SACD and a Tri-vista 21 DAC, w/ Tara Air 1's and Kimber Silver Streaks
Used a RA-1, my HPA-1 and Xcan 3
and wow
yup, definately bowls are far superior as compared with the flats
And w/ the right Ic's and amp: the mf source, my HPA-1 and the Air 1's
it felt like the sound I liked of the Flats, warmer, smooth, yet remained bowl like with the punchyness and controlled bass, detailed, fast midrange and incrediable detail and resolution and this was throughout the entire Grado range
Not that the flats didn't sound better with the equipment, but honestly the sound from the Bowls were so amazing and far superior it literially was "better"
I was also at the store listening to quite a few other things, as I am in the market of speakers, again listening to some Monitor Audio GR 20's, Kef signature's, Vienna Betoveen, Martin Logan Prodigy through some pretty spectacular amps such as a MF Kilowatt
and quite honestly, the headphones that used the bowls, with the equipment I was listening to, was much more natural to the caliber of speakers I was listening to
not as wide, but did have the stage simular, but most noticably the detail yet again, as top range reference speakers have immaculate resolution and detailed, perhaps even more "british" than anything like the KEF or Monitor Audio
SO
my conclusion is this
The bowls are a superior pad
but
to encompass the resolution and "ability" the bowls can offer
you need fabulous equipment for it to sound to it's potential
My NAD 542/Air 3's/HPA-1 and power supply just sound medieocre compared to what I was listening to
So to convince a guy like John, who probably has the be all end all of source/amp/cables/power supply
He probably based his decision on what makes his headphones sound like "truely the worlds best headphones"
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