This isn't a full write-up by any means. These are just minor impressions.
Source: Mac Pro to a Benchmark DAC-1 USB
Amp: RSA Apache
Headphones: Grado PS1
The system that I have now, I've owned for a few weeks, I've done my best to let the amp burn-in, as it's the newest component in the chain. I've hit the 50 hour mark, the bass has really begun to open up, but I don't think I've hit the full-potential as of yet. I've only had limited experience with other Grados (SR-125 and another PS1). The music is encoded in MP3, VBR...
Impression #1: FinKL 1
Listening to track 4 + 6 brings back memories of high school. This was 90's-2000 kpop at its finest. I'm not going to go into details about the individual tracks. If you've listened to FinKL 1-3 the voices haven't changed all that much between the albums. You know exactly who can sing and who can't. As is usual of kpop of this era, it's full of electronic beats and odd synth effects which serve to distract the listener from the vocals (I think this was done purposely because most of the talents were chosen for looks rather than their ability to perform.) If you choose a headphone with flubby bass, it would only serve to further distract you from the music, and on the PS1 I don't experience that. Instead I'm left with every reason why I stopped listening to kpop. Now I'm not experienced in the Grado house sound, since I've had limited experience. If someone else can chime in to let me know if the PS1 accurately portrays that sound, please do. My impressions are limited to this headphone.
Impression #2: Koyote 2
Track 2, I forget the name, I do remember pretty much every korean singing this song in noraebang though. Again, this song came from the same era, so it's again full of the synth effects, same fast-moving beats that made it a staple at nearly all korean dance clubs. On the PS1, I'm experiencing the same issue I had with FinKL. Too much detail = too many distractions, although at least the singers in this group had some talent in the vocal department.
Impression #3: Jinusean 2
Ok, I remember the name of this song, it's How Deep is Your Love. Yeah, they sampled from the Bee Gees song. I think this song was very enjoyable on the PS1. The beats without the overuse of synthetic instruments made the song flow much better, with not so many background distractions to take away from Jinu's smooth voice and Sean's rapping. The duet meshes well, even with the corny sound effects.
Recommendation: If the PS1 is the epitome of the Grado sound, I would not recommend it to listen to kpop. There is just way too much synth, the females sound like screeching chalkboards, and with all the distracting sound bites, you have a tough time focusing on the music to really enjoy it. Back in high school I played my kpop from a pair of Sony G72s, and I think the reason why I enjoyed the music (wasn't because I didn't have an immature perception of music,) it was because the G72's flubby bass masked all the problems present in Korean pop music present. I suppose I might've had a better experience listening to the above with my HD650s, as it rolls off the highs. But I think I'll let this experience stay in the past as a fond memory.
Conclusion: I remember watching shows like Airwolf and MacGyver when I was kid. I thought they were super cool with Airwolf's crazy rocket launchers and turbo boosters, and MacGyver's ingenuity to use a garden hose and some netto to make an ant repellant suit. However nowadays, it just doesn't seem the same. Maybe it's lost its coolness, its luster, its wow-factor. I suppose the same with kpop. I haven't listened to korean pop music in 10 years, and turning it back on, I just didn't have the same head-bopping, booty-shaking experience I did before. The PS1s certainly exposed the weaknesses of the genre, usually masked by the equipment that most kids used to listen to their music. I spoke to my friends and my roommate regarding the direction of korean pop, and they all tell me to give new kpop a try. Well, if it's the same direction that old jazz went with smooth jazz, I'll take a pass and turn on Dave Brubeck and Charles Mingus and let the good times roll.
