Among all the headphones out there, Grado probably invites more worship and hatred than anything else. It also stands unique among the rest of the pack due to its iconic, simple and durable design, and the range of customisation one can bestow upon the headphones thanks to the modular construction.
In comparison to other circumaural headphones, the Grado mode of operation is different. while most headphones have a driver located at some distance to the ears, set in a frame that is covered with a carefully selected acoustic material, grados sit very close to the ears, with no surround of Acoustically tuned material. this principle was invented by AKG and first used in the K240 whose passive radiators were made of a material that was acoustically transparent at certain frequencies, allowing the taming of unpleasant boominess. the HD600's surround of Acoustic Silk was often blamed for the dark nature of the sound in different climates, as the material would shrink and expand. The same headphone was improved upon just by the use of the metal mesh in place of the silk on later models. Bass ports, vents and such are all based on this principle.
The Grado headphones on the other hand, have none of that. What i have learnt from head-fi is how the pads and driver enclosures make the sound what it is. it seems the pads on the Grado units are responsible for some of the acoustic filtration done by the radiators and vents on other headphones. Just see how pad rolling and tape mods affect the sound. therefore, the pads are an integral part of the design of the entire headphone, and due to this, it is not entirely unjust of Grado to charge what they do for spare pads even if is just a piece of foam. the housings are more analogous to a speaker enclosure, and true to this, Grados(for Me) have the most Speaker-like Presentation I have experienced.
Bottomline 1 - Don't like Grado? Well, nobody's shoving them down your Throat. Just sell them and move along, don't rant on about them here.
Bottomline 2 - Own a Grado at least once. Learn about how they operate, and mod the cheaper models to tune them to your sonic preferences.
Bottomline 3 - John Grado knows what he is Doing. by getting a GS1k or PS1k You are paying for somebody's careful and meticulous selection, tuning and development effort, not just larger housings and bigger pads.
just throwing this out there, no intention to start anything unpleasant. would like others to join in and discuss...
In comparison to other circumaural headphones, the Grado mode of operation is different. while most headphones have a driver located at some distance to the ears, set in a frame that is covered with a carefully selected acoustic material, grados sit very close to the ears, with no surround of Acoustically tuned material. this principle was invented by AKG and first used in the K240 whose passive radiators were made of a material that was acoustically transparent at certain frequencies, allowing the taming of unpleasant boominess. the HD600's surround of Acoustic Silk was often blamed for the dark nature of the sound in different climates, as the material would shrink and expand. The same headphone was improved upon just by the use of the metal mesh in place of the silk on later models. Bass ports, vents and such are all based on this principle.
The Grado headphones on the other hand, have none of that. What i have learnt from head-fi is how the pads and driver enclosures make the sound what it is. it seems the pads on the Grado units are responsible for some of the acoustic filtration done by the radiators and vents on other headphones. Just see how pad rolling and tape mods affect the sound. therefore, the pads are an integral part of the design of the entire headphone, and due to this, it is not entirely unjust of Grado to charge what they do for spare pads even if is just a piece of foam. the housings are more analogous to a speaker enclosure, and true to this, Grados(for Me) have the most Speaker-like Presentation I have experienced.
Bottomline 1 - Don't like Grado? Well, nobody's shoving them down your Throat. Just sell them and move along, don't rant on about them here.
Bottomline 2 - Own a Grado at least once. Learn about how they operate, and mod the cheaper models to tune them to your sonic preferences.
Bottomline 3 - John Grado knows what he is Doing. by getting a GS1k or PS1k You are paying for somebody's careful and meticulous selection, tuning and development effort, not just larger housings and bigger pads.
just throwing this out there, no intention to start anything unpleasant. would like others to join in and discuss...
