[thelostMIDrange]

i'm always on point. I just expand it a little to include everything............The he500 is clearly the better headphone in every may, measured and real world listening, when properly amped. That's the point right. It's true, but boring.

 

[WhiteCrow]

I'm just saying you tend to have a zealot attitude when it comes to grade verses anything and tend to start arguments in threads. I'm not saying I don't do this or other people don't do this but you just drag it out SOOO much.

 

[thelostMIDrange]

maybe what you call 'dragging out' I call going into. Is there something wrong with a little heated debate and give and take?  Everything I've said is directly relatable back to the main point and the OPs original concern. At least I put a little thought and individuality in my comments. Being a little different is not a crime yet

 

[stacker45]

 
Quote:

i'm always on point. I just expand it a little to include everything............The he500 is clearly the better headphone in every may, measured and real world listening, when properly amped. That's the point right. It's true, but boring.

 
So really,what you're saying is that the he500 sounds better to you,on you're system,but the PS500 might sound better to me,on my system,don't forget,headphones don't produce any sound by themselves,they're part on a system.
 
Measurements are important up to a certain point,if a system has a lot of treble,pairing it with headphones that have a rolled off treble,will probably sound better to more peoples,than headphones with a flatter frequency response.

 

[Gwarmi]

 
 Here's a thought...
 
 Grado drivers still going strong after 20+ years with daily use, case in point HP-1000 - FACT.
 
 HiFiMan He-500 drivers still going strong after more than 5 years? Erm....maybe, hopefully.

 

[detoxguy]

So by this logic nobody should ever buy anything from a new company? Don't get me wrong I love Grados but this comparison is pointless. HiFiMan makes a great product and they may very well hold up for years and years but since the company itself is only a few years old there's no way to know. 
 
Grado has been around for decades but they also have their fair share of driver failures etc. just like every other company. Not every pair lasts 20 years. 
 
This post is about PS500 or HE500, and IMO the HE500 is the clearly superior headphone. That being said the rest of the system must be considered as the HE500 likes a nice high power amp whereas the PS500 is less picky. It also can be said that despite this my go to Grado amp (MAD Ear+ HD) is significantly more expensive than my Lyr....
Quote:

 
 Here's a thought...
 
 Grado drivers still going strong after 20+ years with daily use, case in point HP-1000 - FACT.
 
 HiFiMan He-500 drivers still going strong after more than 5 years? Erm....maybe, hopefully.

 
 

 

[Gwarmi]

 
Quote:

So by this logic nobody should ever buy anything from a new company? Don't get me wrong I love Grados but this comparison is pointless. HiFiMan makes a great product and they may very well hold up for years and years but since the company itself is only a few years old there's no way to know. 
 
Grado has been around for decades but they also have their fair share of driver failures etc. just like every other company. Not every pair lasts 20 years. 
 
This post is about PS500 or HE500, and IMO the HE500 is the clearly superior headphone. That being said the rest of the system must be considered as the HE500 likes a nice high power amp whereas the PS500 is less picky. It also can be said that despite this my go to Grado amp (MAD Ear+ HD) is significantly more expensive than my Lyr....
 
 

 
 
  I like the way that HiFiMan are tackling the Head-Fi way - forward. However, too much enthusiasm can be a bad thing.
  Personally, I think Monsieur Fang has too many products on the go, none of us are any the wiser as to how many backers
  or professionals are under his thumb but the general impression I'm getting is that he's trying to do too much eg,
  Headphone amps, a varied headphone line and DAPS in a very short amount of time.
 
  Sign of our rushed times - build it now - but some basic principles in development and design remain unmovable catalysts.

 

[detoxguy]

And the HE500 is still a great headphone that IMO is a better headphone than the PS500. 
 
What does product line, company history etc. have to do with the purpose of this thread? You'll have to pry both the RS1i and the HE500 out of my cold dead hands to get them away from me...
Quote:

 
 
 
  I like the way that HiFiMan are tackling the Head-Fi way - forward. However, too much enthusiasm can be a bad thing.
  Personally, I think Monsieur Fang has too many products on the go, none of us are any the wiser as to how many backers
  or professionals are under his thumb but the general impression I'm getting is that he's trying to do too much eg,
  Headphone amps, a varied headphone line and DAPS in a very short amount of time.
 
  Sign of our rushed times - build it now - but some basic principles in development and design remain unmovable catalysts.

 
 

 

[Gwarmi]

 
Quote:

And the HE500 is still a great headphone that IMO is a better headphone than the PS500. 
 
What does product line, company history etc. have to do with the purpose of this thread? out of mYou'll have to pry both the RS1i and the HE500 out of my cold dead hands to get them away from me...
 
 

 
 Mate tangents lead to interesting, wise conclusions is what I have to say about that! 

 
 Your very statement is what I'm referring to - you love them both, for very different reasons I'm presuming - there is a difference though, your beloved
 HE-500 remains coveted on Head-Fi and recommended by geek forums but the HiFi community has lauded jack, squat, naught on the thing - your
 RS1i on the other hand is a legendary headphone - acclaimed by the HiFi community at large, it has won many awards - Yes, by individuals who get
 paid to evaluate HiFi gear. No, John Grado does not have enough spare funds to pay off journalist bribes.
 
 In the context of this thread - it comes down to only one common thing - if portability and ease of use from common DAP's and other consumer devices
 is a primary criteria then the PS500 is the choice, if not then the HE-500 is still a contender.
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

[detoxguy]

Truth. However the reviewers are starting to take notice. I just read a huge PDF buyers guide and the reviewer stated he preferred the HE500 to the HD800. I'm pretty sure the link is somewhere here on head-fi but I'm on phone now and can't remember where.

EDIT: Found it. http://media.avguide.com/Desktop_Audio_2012.pdf

 
Quote:

And the HE500 is still a great headphone that IMO is a better headphone than the PS500. 
 
What does product line, company history etc. have to do with the purpose of this thread? out of mYou'll have to pry both the RS1i and the HE500 out of my cold dead hands to get them away from me...
 
 

 
 Mate tangents lead to interesting, wise conclusions is what I have to say about that! 

 
 Your very statement is what I'm referring to - you love them both, for very different reasons I'm presuming - there is a difference though, your beloved
 HE-500 remains coveted on Head-Fi and recommended by geek forums but the HiFi community has lauded jack, squat, naught on the thing - your
 RS1i on the other hand is a legendary headphone - acclaimed by the HiFi community at large, it has won many awards - Yes, by individuals who get
 paid to evaluate HiFi gear. No, John Grado does not have enough spare funds to pay off journalist bribes.
 
 In the context of this thread - it comes down to only one common thing - if portability and ease of use from common DAP's and other consumer devices
 is a primary criteria then the PS500 is the choice, if not then the HE-500 is still a contender.
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

[Alexnova]

Just got the Grado PS500. I'm sad to say that I am not impressed. I know it needs time to burn in, but this is just my initial impressions.
 
No you don't need an amp to drive them, but if you want that "pop" instead of it being a little muddy an amp is highly recommended. For example Lil Wayne's "Tie My Hands" feat. Robin Thicke has a pretty nice expansive soundstage with just the right pop in the drums to make it kick.
 
The problem is removing an amplifier lessens the soundstage considerably and some of the mids can be just a tad muddy.
 
I wasn't too happy with the bass response. Considering the PS500 has been touted as being more bass heavy than the rest in the Grado line, I was anticipating some really good bass but some of it seems cut to my ears. I think this is where these headphones are not good for hip hop, you might hear just a tad of the bottom but it sounds heavily muzzled and restrained. I felt I had more of nuanced bass with my Klipsch X10 IEMs that provided just a bit more body than the Grado's.
 
If you want an analytic headphone and are used to the Senns like I am, stay away from these phones. That may be part of the issue, since I have been listening to Senns for years. I'm just not a fan of the sound signature.
 
Now that being said, I do understand why Grado's have a cult following because I can see those just loving the signature and it really is an acquired taste. It's not for me and I know it sounds like I'm knocking them, but to my ears this is not the phone for me. This was my first and probably last Grado cans I'll purchase, but I hope one day I can listen to their other flavors and maybe it will change my mind.
 
As far as aesthetics goes, I like the vintage look. To pay for $45 dollars for foam is ridiculous (I have the G-Cush) though. I was really concerned with the adjustable pieces being cheap, but they are fine.
 
I'm going to return these to pick up the Hifman HE-500s.
 
If those don't work, then it's back to the original plan on getting the Senn 650s.

 

[WhiteCrow]

Quote:

Just got the Grado PS500. I'm sad to say that I am not impressed. I know it needs time to burn in, but this is just my initial impressions.
 
No you don't need an amp to drive them, but if you want that "pop" instead of it being a little muddy an amp is highly recommended. For example Lil Wayne's "Tie My Hands" feat. Robin Thicke has a pretty nice expansive soundstage with just the right pop in the drums to make it kick.
 
The problem is removing an amplifier lessens the soundstage considerably and some of the mids can be just a tad muddy.
 
I wasn't too happy with the bass response. Considering the PS500 has been touted as being more bass heavy than the rest in the Grado line, I was anticipating some really good bass but some of it seems cut to my ears. I think this is where these headphones are not good for hip hop, you might hear just a tad of the bottom but it sounds heavily muzzled and restrained. I felt I had more of nuanced bass with my Klipsch X10 IEMs that provided just a bit more body than the Grado's.
 
If you want an analytic headphone and are used to the Senns like I am, stay away from these phones. That may be part of the issue, since I have been listening to Senns for years. I'm just not a fan of the sound signature.
 
Now that being said, I do understand why Grado's have a cult following because I can see those just loving the signature and it really is an acquired taste. It's not for me and I know it sounds like I'm knocking them, but to my ears this is not the phone for me. This was my first and probably last Grado cans I'll purchase, but I hope one day I can listen to their other flavors and maybe it will change my mind.
 
As far as aesthetics goes, I like the vintage look. To pay for $45 dollars for foam is ridiculous (I have the G-Cush) though. I was really concerned with the adjustable pieces being cheap, but they are fine.
 
I'm going to return these to pick up the Hifman HE-500s.
 
If those don't work, then it's back to the original plan on getting the Senn 650s.

Uah....Grados are not for rap/hip-hop of anything electronic. The PS500 may be the most bassy of the Grados but they are not bass-centric headphones.

 

[Alexnova]

Well I would say much of my bulk of music is rock/pop/jazz, but I listen to hip hop rather frequently as well.
 
Yes it works for rock very well, but even on rock the bass isn't where I want it to be.
 
No big deal.

 

[customNuts]

Quote:

Anything over 60Ω is a bad design? Too much detail and you lose realness?  Too much extension and you lose midrange?  Where are you getting this stuff?

x2! Pretty ridiculous.

 

[musiclife]

Quote:

So by this logic nobody should ever buy anything from a new company?
 
 

 
It depends on the person, and it can seems like a risk indeed. But the saying is, the more risk, the more you can gain..