Quote:
Originally Posted by GoRedwings19
I think one of the reasons why the GS seem to appeal to you is they match nicely against your source. IIRC you have the ML 390s?
So the issues that some headfiers have with the GS doesn't appear in your setup. Or they simply just don't like it.
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Definitely not liking something is fine, but blanketly stating something is X Y or Z without hearing it in every setup is a fault. I'm known for criticizing the R10's because in all the setups I have heard them, they have been rather thin and strident. Had this been only with my front-ends I could say...well, my sources suck for the R10's, but when this has been with a myriad of sources AND amps, many to be among the best going (in terms of amps) I was led to a conclusion. But! It seems MANY people
run to Single Power amps to get the most out of the R10's and I have no doubt that with the right source and right amp, these very sensitive and transparent phones can shine. I've never heard a Single Power amp, let alone one paired with R10's, so in this way I can't blanketly state they necessarily exhibit X Y or Z all the time.
Why bring up the R10's? Their nature is very similar to the GS-1000's. There will be immediately WOW signatures that hit one in the face, but the true beauty of each phone is the subtleties they exhibit. In this way, Audiofiler is dead on claiming the GS-1000's are dryer than the RS-1's (and particularly dryer than PS-1's) and closer to the HP-1000 series in this regard. Their wider soundstage and excellent imaging can really knock one's socks off, but it is their sensitivity and transparency that makes them a picky phone. Because of this, they aren't going to be as "plug 'n play" as other Grados, even the RS-1's.
How many times have I read that the RS-1's are 15% better than the 60's (or rather, the SR-60's are 85% as good as the RS-1's..see Goodcans.com for an old ref on this ) or that the RS-1's don't necessarily need an amp because they are so easily driven.
Volume =! easily driven. That is, just because a phone gets loud doesn't mean the source/amp is driving it properly. Certainly folks have learned this with the RS-1's and it goes at least doubly so with GS-1000's. Grados need a lot of current, but not that much power. This is key to remember. In fact, I would say, HP-1000's require the most current of any phone made, and then it likely goes through the Grado line-up (electrostats excluded). Yet in terms of power, K-1000's require the most, then maybe Senns and so on. This new headphone is going to reveal flaws very quickly on par with R10's and Qualias I would suppose, to the effect that one is going to have to system match much more carefully than previously with other Grados. Now, some amps are just as good with the older Grados as the GS-1000 but the sources could be a problem.
This sucks for many, and I'm not going to spread FUD that GS-1000's only work with 5 figure sources, but they might not work that well with a mediocre soundcard to an average DAC to an okay amp etc., etc.
Of course, in the end, some may just hate them anyway, but at least hook them up to something that will really show them off. Audiofiler has done this, so have I as have others. They seem to be quite happy with them, as am I.