nefilim
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- May 27, 2004
- Posts
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Hi All,
I've had my Sennheisers HD580 (stock cable) for a few years now, along with my trusty & beloved Wheatfield HA-1 (about to receive a tube upgrade). A week ago I bought a pair of Grado RS-2s. I use my headphone system at the office, close to 8 hours a day. 200gig firewire drive, FLAC, Xitel Pro Link (still deciding on a DAC), Wheatfield, 'phones. I mostly listen to electronica (deep house, lounge, downbeat) but overall have a very wide taste in music, from Rammstein to Rachmaninov!
After a week of listening to mostly the Grados I've got a better idea of what I want but it's not met by either pair of cans. In a nutshell, the RS-2s have a nice lively dynamic presentation, punchy bass (although not as much extension as the 580s), a lovely immediate warm midrange, which is what attracted me to them most. They seem to do very well on well recorded strings, acoustic guitar especially. However, from the upper mids up they are scorching! When the recording is not perfectly suited to the RS-2s, it will beat you mercilessly with the mistakes. For instance listening to Morcheeba's Charango album, Sao Paulo, the snare drum rim shots are so hot, all texture disappears, it's just a painful whack. With the Senns it's somewhat more in the background but the wood on metal is identifiable and there's no wincing involved
I also find the RS-2s to compress much more in the upper registers at higher volumes than the 580s and also much more prone to exaggerated sibilance.
The RS-2s grabs you by the ears and shove the music down, which can be pretty exciting but after a few hours (or less) becomes rather fatiguing, especially with less perfect recordings. The Senns on the other hand is much more subtle and smooth in presentation, sometimes a little boring and in comparison to the RS2s subdued and somewhat veiled in the midrange, it does not have the immediacy of standing next to the musician. The trebles might be a little rolled off in addition to being somewhat recessed. While the RS-2s got my toes tapping here and there, the 580s woos me with smooth textures (if that makes any sense) and pleasant (and polite?) demeanor. I can listen to the 580s all day without fatigue. This is also contributed by the superior comfort (and build quality!!) of the 580s.
So what do I want? I want the 580s with the dynamic presentation and midrange immediacy of the RS-2s and touch more treble extension. I want the RS-2s with the smooth and textured upper mids & trebles and bass extension of the 580s.
So, where do I go from here? I have not heard the RS-1s, nor the HD600 (by all accounts to close to the 580s to give me what I'm looking for) or HD650s. I have not heard the 580/600/650 with upgraded cables.
Any ideas/advice/comments/rants/raves much appreciated!
Thanks,
Peter
PS. I really need to attend one of these meets, any SF Bay area meets happening soon?
I've had my Sennheisers HD580 (stock cable) for a few years now, along with my trusty & beloved Wheatfield HA-1 (about to receive a tube upgrade). A week ago I bought a pair of Grado RS-2s. I use my headphone system at the office, close to 8 hours a day. 200gig firewire drive, FLAC, Xitel Pro Link (still deciding on a DAC), Wheatfield, 'phones. I mostly listen to electronica (deep house, lounge, downbeat) but overall have a very wide taste in music, from Rammstein to Rachmaninov!
After a week of listening to mostly the Grados I've got a better idea of what I want but it's not met by either pair of cans. In a nutshell, the RS-2s have a nice lively dynamic presentation, punchy bass (although not as much extension as the 580s), a lovely immediate warm midrange, which is what attracted me to them most. They seem to do very well on well recorded strings, acoustic guitar especially. However, from the upper mids up they are scorching! When the recording is not perfectly suited to the RS-2s, it will beat you mercilessly with the mistakes. For instance listening to Morcheeba's Charango album, Sao Paulo, the snare drum rim shots are so hot, all texture disappears, it's just a painful whack. With the Senns it's somewhat more in the background but the wood on metal is identifiable and there's no wincing involved
The RS-2s grabs you by the ears and shove the music down, which can be pretty exciting but after a few hours (or less) becomes rather fatiguing, especially with less perfect recordings. The Senns on the other hand is much more subtle and smooth in presentation, sometimes a little boring and in comparison to the RS2s subdued and somewhat veiled in the midrange, it does not have the immediacy of standing next to the musician. The trebles might be a little rolled off in addition to being somewhat recessed. While the RS-2s got my toes tapping here and there, the 580s woos me with smooth textures (if that makes any sense) and pleasant (and polite?) demeanor. I can listen to the 580s all day without fatigue. This is also contributed by the superior comfort (and build quality!!) of the 580s.
So what do I want? I want the 580s with the dynamic presentation and midrange immediacy of the RS-2s and touch more treble extension. I want the RS-2s with the smooth and textured upper mids & trebles and bass extension of the 580s.
So, where do I go from here? I have not heard the RS-1s, nor the HD600 (by all accounts to close to the 580s to give me what I'm looking for) or HD650s. I have not heard the 580/600/650 with upgraded cables.
Any ideas/advice/comments/rants/raves much appreciated!
Thanks,
Peter
PS. I really need to attend one of these meets, any SF Bay area meets happening soon?