[KUNXV]

Hello Head-fiers!
I'm new here, and i've been doing research here in head-fi for weeks for the right headphones for me. I've found some good candidates, but I live in the Philippines, and most of the time the headphones I found suitable for me here in head-fi are not available here. I'm a college student and I listen to genres like rock, pop, and metal. I like punchy, tight bass for ex. red hot chili peppers songs. I really like hearing detailed bass in rock songs, because I play bass guitar and I need it for learning basslines in songs.

my budget is around $100. I'm using the headphones at home and at school. I'm plugging it to my Samsung Galaxy Fit smartphone (no amp).
 
I've searched for local sellers and here's what I found that I think suits me:
 
Grado SR60i: Brand new, costs PHP 4.7k ($109-ish) here in Philippines, with personal warranty
 
Alessandro MS1i : used, 8 months old(according to seller), modded(wooden liberators, wooden cups) price is PHP4.5k ($104~)
 
 
I really want to try the famous 'Grado sound', which is supposedly good for rock music. Which one do you think is the better choice? TY in advance

 

[wje]

The opinion has often been stated here in the forums that the Allesandro MS1i is more along the lines of the Grado SR-125.  For the money, it is quite a good headphone.  I've owned a few pair, and my daughter currently has a pair, in stock form.  I've offered to modify hers in various ways, but she's declined all of my options to do so.
 
I think in your case, with the MS1i, you'll be getting a pair of headphones that have been broken in and feature the wooden cups for potentially better bass.
 
Enjoy!

 

[KUNXV]

Thanks for the reply sir. I have another question, do you think a smartphone is good enough in terms of sound quality? I don't have any available source of music except my phone. 

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

Thanks for the reply sir. I have another question, do you think a smartphone is good enough in terms of sound quality? I don't have any available source of music except my phone. 

 
Heya,
 
Depends on what kind of music you're after and the quality playback you want to achieve.
 
I'd suggest you look into an inexpensive Sansa Clip+ or Fuze.
 
Very best,

 

[KG Jag]

The Grado/Alessandro lines are very efficient.  However, i won't call either of these cans that you are considering to be bass oriented cans.  that said, the MS1 is an outstanding open can in the great Grado family.  It may be the best buy in both lines.
 
A good neutral-ish can that is made to play out of  almost any portable music producer is the Sony MDR-ZX700.

 

[shaneotool]

You mention you play bass guitar.
That's funny because I used to have the MS1 headphones, and no lie, my reaction to them was, "who kicked the bass guitarist out of the band??"
 
I found the bass to be almost non-existent, - forget about listening to the bass line in a rock song.
 
You may love the "grado sound," but it wasn't for me.  Just prepare yourself for the possibility that you may have to buy and sell several headphones until you find the sound you like.

 

[KUNXV]

Quote:

You mention you play bass guitar.
That's funny because I used to have the MS1 headphones, and no lie, my reaction to them was, "who kicked the bass guitarist out of the band??"
 
I found the bass to be almost non-existent, - forget about listening to the bass line in a rock song.
 
You may love the "grado sound," but it wasn't for me.  Just prepare yourself for the possibility that you may have to buy and sell several headphones until you find the sound you like.

That's sad, because I always listen to 'bass heavy' rock bands like RHCP, iron maiden, etc. Maybe I'll just pass on Grados this time.
 
I also forgot to mention that I'm also using the headphones for travel, so Grados are not really suitable because they say that its open and leaks sound, so I'm going for IEMs. I recently found a shop that sells some cheap Brainwavz, Sennheiser, Audio Technica, Soundmagic, Superlux, JAYS and MEE brand IEMs. I read in the forums that this brands have nice sound quality for the money. Do you think these brands have an IEM where you can really hear the bass guitars? budget is around PHP3000($70)
 
btw sorry for my english, It's not my native language 

 

[KG Jag]

Quote:

That's sad, because I always listen to 'bass heavy' rock bands like RHCP, iron maiden, etc. Maybe I'll just pass on Grados this time.
 
I also forgot to mention that I'm also using the headphones for travel, so Grados are not really suitable because they say that its open and leaks sound, so I'm going for IEMs. I recently found a shop that sells some cheap Brainwavz, Sennheiser, Audio Technica, Soundmagic, Superlux, JAYS and MEE brand IEMs. I read in the forums that this brands have nice sound quality for the money. Do you think these brands have an IEM where you can really hear the bass guitars? budget is around PHP3000($70)
 
btw sorry for my english, It's not my native language 

 
You might want to repost on the section of the forum that pertains to IEM's and portable cans.

 

[KUNXV]

Quote:

 
Heya,
 
Depends on what kind of music you're after and the quality playback you want to achieve.
 
I'd suggest you look into an inexpensive Sansa Clip+ or Fuze.
 
Very best,

My music files are all in 320kbps format, I'm into rock, some pop, and metal.
Do you think the difference in sound quality between music from smartphones and other 'dedicated' portable music players like Sansa Clip+, ipod nano, etc are big enough to consider?

 

[SONIC BOOM]

Quote:

My music files are all in 320kbps format, I'm into rock, some pop, and metal.
Do you think the difference in sound quality between music from smartphones and other 'dedicated' portable music players like Sansa Clip+, ipod nano, etc are big enough to consider?

depends what smartphone

 

[KUNXV]

Quote:

depends what smartphone

My smartphone is samsung galaxy fit. so what do you think? I don't want to buy a decent headphone while having a crappy source

 

[KG Jag]

Quote:

My smartphone is samsung galaxy fit. so what do you think? I don't want to buy a decent headphone while having a crappy source

 
I'm not familiar with the music capability of your particular phone.  However, generally a good (and efficient) closed can in $70 to $125 +/- U.S. street price range will be a good match.

 

[KUNXV]

Thanks for the replies head-fi people. I have a question if you don't mind about the impedance matching between the source and the headphone. My professor once said that if the headphone's impedance does not match the source's impedance, it will not sound good ie to its fullest potential. What can you say about this? Do you think I should consider this before purchasing a headphone?