[dmbr]

I'm torn between these two pairs of ied's.

Would anyone who's had experience with both please give me a rundown on how they compare?

Thanks!

 

[Spyro]

I'm torn between these two pairs of ied's.

Would anyone who's had experience with both please give me a rundown on how they compare?

Thanks!

 
GR10:  Very mid-centric.  Sensational with vocals.  Very euphoric, airy presentation.  Nicely extended treble.  Bass is pretty good but lacks "weight" to it.  Overall presentation is strangely a little grainy sounding.  Not a deal breaker but worth mentioning.  Very nice sounding earbud.  Average sized soundstage due to mid-centric nature.
 
IE800:  More U-shaped but not wildly.  The treble is very detailed and extended but not harsh.  The IEM lacks mid bass (mid bass naturally creates "lushness")which makes the presentation insanely detailed from top to bottom.  Vocals are good but sound set back a little bit.  The bass is mostly a lower bass and very detailed and textured.  Soundstage is larger than GR10....very nice for earbuds. 
 
Cost difference aside......If you really like your vocals and perhaps acoustic music, GR10 may be the way to go.  With any other music choices I think IE800 is the better choice.  I think they are both pretty impressive but the IE800 maybe a little more so....because of it's bass.
 
Two (2) great IEM's.

 

[goodvibes]

Hard to say until we get more reports on the GR10e.

 

[Spyro]

  Hard to say until we get more reports on the GR10e.

???
 
He didn't ask about that IEM.  Either way...I assume it's pretty much the same sound and this is merely a marketing ploy by Grado to try to regenerate sales interest since they never have anything new to offer.  Yea, I guess that's sort of a slam on them but GR10 is a great IEM!

 

[goodvibes]

I never understand why members always think whatever a company does is a scam. The entire e series has genuine acoustic/material changes and that includes the GR10e which is the only currently available model (except for possibly the GR8e which doesn't talk about venting or new materials, don't know but you'd think if they were scamming the wouldn't ignore doing so on the GR8e as well). I like you Spyro but it's a very strong statement for something not heard. It's not like they raised the price or didn't genuinely try to make it better and you don't add high frequency extension with a vent. How successful the result will be known after some listens. Folks can like or not like any Grado product but the new 'e' models are different than the previous series. Even the original G series have been called rips but guess what? Their lighter cables hold up and their cases are the most comfortable available etc. Do folks think they just got lucky? Ya, that's the ticket!
 
Grado is a company that tends to get it pretty right the 1st time around and moves forward with refinement, not by reinventing something that doesn't need it. They don't make 'marketing' changes in sound or design. They do things like add an an e to the name to indicate a qualitative design change. The next time they make a marketing based bass monster phone will be the 1st. Scam? We're talking about a company that makes what may be the best cheap headphones and phono cartridges, ever.

 Their price increases over the years are few and far between and haven't come close to keeping up with the economy. Doesn't make them good or bad sounding for an individual but scam? Not so much. 

 

[Spyro]

I'm not slamming Grado anymore than I was confused why what Westone did with all of their changes in their line-up with ZERO, yes, ZERO mention or marketing.  I just don't get it.
 
I suspect Westone sales are pretty steady so perhaps they figured they didn't need to market or mention changes (???)  with all the offerings..... but Grado IEM market is nothing like Westone.  I just don't understand how you make a significant change and don't market it AT ALL.  It goes against everything I know about product promotion.  Hell, some companies offer you a lesser product but somehow market it to make you think you are getting a better product.

 

[goodvibes]

Damn them, giving descriptions of changes on their website and all that. Westone says a lot more under 'features' of specific IEMs. Grado puts all their in-ears on the same page and only has specs and a short paragraph for each. This is eye of the beholder stuff.

 

[willismith22]

I currently use IE 800's and have no complaints, however after buying a hifi system at  home I find myself not using me headphones as much. I ordered a pair of GR 10's and plan to sell my IE 800's if I am happy with the GR 10's. They will arrive this week, comparison coming soon