[Puddleglum]

I've gotten the general feeling that they aren't the same price/performance ratio as the HD650 is, but that doesn't tell me a whole lot. I've gotten quite used to my SR80's, and have grown to like the Grado sound. Compared to the HD650's and/or my SR80's what things do the RS-1's do well and not so well?

 

[elephant6rawk]

I've been wondering this as well.

Also, which is better, the Grado RS-1s, or the Alessandro MS-Pros?

They're in the same general price range, and look just as good.

 

[tiberian]

i had them before...they are good headphones if you can get them used. still hd 650s + zu mobius destroy them badly.

 

[Ross]

Personally I think the RS-1s are just bad - muddy and colored. I'd take the SR80s over them any day, and the 225s are my favourite Grados. I still prefer the Senn 650s over all of them, however.

 

[tuatara]

just to prove that I'm obviously cloth eared I preffer the RS1 to the 650s.
When I had a pair of HD650s for a trial over some days I invited some interested friends over to try and all 4 of them liked the SR225s better than the Senn(didn't have the RS1s then). The real eye opener was a track by English Folkie Richard Thompson which had a prominent saxophone weaving around the guitar line, well at least on the Grados it did, with the 650s the sax just vanished, still looking for it.

Going by the established wisdom here to get the best from the 650s you'll also need a cable upgrade which brings the price difference back somewhat.

For every positive posting with a question like this, you'll get a negative. In the end I gave up searching the threads on Headfi and checked out some of the RS1 reviews on the internet from people who weren't team this or that,more chance of getting an unbiased opinion that way.

 

[TrevorNetwork]

I like them, but they could never be my primary headphone.

 

[Sugano-san]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ross Personally I think the RS-1s are just bad - muddy and colored.

I completely agree with this. Obviously choosing headphones is a matter of taste, and some may even enjoy the RS-1's sound. I didn't, and not for lack of tryin', I should like to add. I ended up selling mine.

As to price/performance ratio, you may want to have a look at Headroom's value rating for the RS-1s. They give these phones 2.5 out of 5 possible value points. That's astonishing, considering that they make a living from selling headphones, and they should have an incentive to boost the sales of expensive headphones such as the RS-1s.

You may also want to click here and read Headroom's description of the RS-1s' character. They basically say that they measure much worse than the HD-650s, sound "assertive" and "colored" with "flaws", that they "do not exhibit nearly the tightness of bass and overall articulation of the HD650" and on the whole do not sound "as perfect as the HD-650s", but instead more "close" than the latter and could therefore serve as an "exotic" and occasional "treat".

Todd the Vinyl Junkie gives them 5 out of 5. Why that is I don't know, he may simply be a more business-oriented person.

People will tell you that everything changes for the better with Todd's overpriced ($30 for a pair) flat pads, but to me that has always been like trying to fix the performance of an inherently bad car by putting on expensive tires. Yes, the sound clearly changes with different pads, but the fundamental flaws remain, and it also brings up the question why Grado are offering to the public a product for $695 that doesn't even come with the proper pads for the job.

 

[tom hankins]

I prefer the HD650 over the RS1 on all fronts. Build quality, sonics, comfort, and most of all they are only around half the price. I would buy used if I was going for the RS1. That way if your not happy with them you will get your money back. If your into the Grado sound they might be just what your looking for though.

 

[Spent&Bent]

n/m, bad day.

 

[bangraman]

The RS-1 have a more upfront, engaging sound without the 'grato' of the SR80. The bowl pads supplied with the RS-1 attempts to make then 'hi-fi' phones and I don't think this is what the RS-1 is about. A replacement for flat pads reduced the soundstage further to a 'middle of the musicians' feel and jazzed up the performance. The RS-1 is not incredibly articulate but it does do the job.


The HD650 doesn't really take well to being contorted beyond what it is, which is a fairly laid back phone. Technically the HD650 may be the superior of the two, but it does not do upfront that well. I use a Zu cable purely for the purposes of compatibility with other Head-Fi members but I think that the HD650 doesn't need an aftermarket cable as much as the HD600.


I put the two phones in the same general sonic class (irrelevant of price) for entirely different reasons. However when you factor in the price and the indifferent industrial design of the RS-1, then as a product it's outclassed quite badly by the HD650. It's certainly the only other sub-$1,000 phone which can make the ATH-W2002 look like a bargain. Nevertheless I think it's worth trying... used if possible.

 

[jpelg]

I think they (along with their Alessandro MS-Pro counterparts) are the best, current-production headphones going for under US$1k. At their current used prices (<US$500) they are a terrific value, imo. Senns just don't do it for me *shrug*.

I guess I am as 'cloth-eared' as tuatara

 

[elnero]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpelg I think they (along with their Alessandro MS-Pro counterparts) are the best, current-production headphones going for under US$1k. At their current used prices (<US$500) they are a terrific value, imo. Senns just don't do it for me *shrug*. I guess I am as 'cloth-eared' as tuatara

Ditto

While I haven't actually heard the HD650's the RS-1's have suited my preferences far more than anything else I've come across to date which includes Audio Technica W100 & W1000, Sony CD1700, Sennheiser HD280, HD580, HD600 with Clou Red, Oehlbach and Silver Dragon replacement cables. Although I would like to try the HD650's based on my previous Sennheiser experiences I can't imagine I would suddenly prefer the laid back character to the Grado's more upfront nature.

One thing to be careful of is the RS-1's can be very picky about associated equipment but properly matched in a synergistic system and they are something to behold.

 

[Snufkin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpelg I think they (along with their Alessandro MS-Pro counterparts) are the best, current-production headphones going for under US$1k. At their current used prices (<US$500) they are a terrific value, imo. Senns just don't do it for me *shrug*. I guess I am as 'cloth-eared' as tuatara

Likewise

The HD650 to my ears is an incredibly dull headphone, it has technical merits but is far from what I'd consider ideal, plus there's no way I'm spending big bucks to ship to an aftermarket cable in the hopes it'll turn a headphone I really dislike into a completely different headphone when I can get a completely different headphone buy BUYING a completely different headphone.

I like the MS-Pro, they have a few flaws to their sound that I'm happy to live with because they aren't a big character of the sound.

 

[NotoriousBIG_PJ]

Come on dudes, us rs-1 lovers arn't cloth ears, we just have different preferences (maybe if we were comparing highend electrostatics to rs-1, but senn's hah). The rs-1 is not perfect, but the senn's have plenty of problems of there own. Like gaps in their soundstage that require crossfeed to fix (3 blob effect) and the veil, which goes away if you remove the inner padding over the driver, but then you are left with really harsh highs. To me this veil is what gives the senns their sense of articulation, so I thinks its best left there. And they happen to give every recording the same soundstage, and its a stage I don't particularily like. The senns are not as fast as the rs-1's either, although they are by no means slow.

The rs-1 is the only current grado with an actual soundstage in my opinion, but you need good equipment to bring it out. It has a warmth in the mids that you may or may not like, but it sounds natural enough to me. Its also the smoothest grado (very smooth highs) but is too bright for me with bowl pads. The grado line is all about prat and to me the sound just plane rocks. Head bobbing fun all night that I haven't grown tired of in 2 years of grado ownership.

edit: oh yeah, the senn cans are more comfortable then grados once you loosen their clamp

Biggie.

 

[bootman]

Biggie pretty much nailed it.

If you like the lower end Grados then the RS-1 will be the best of the bunch.
(save for the PS-1 which I can't count since I've haven't heard it and the
HP-1000s which I have but they are not widely available.)

Just remember, they deserve a high end source and amplification,
(just like all other high end cans) to get the absolute best out of them.

If one only use them with a portable's headphone out, for example,
you can't expect them to sound at their best.