[Cousin Patty]

My friend listened to my SR225's the other day hooked up to my iriver's line out and xmoy amp. He really liked what he heard and now he wants to get a pair of 225's. But I dont think he wants to buy an amp (I dont think he really believes they do anything) and he only listens to 128kbps mp3s from the headphone out of his creative DAP. Would he be better off getting a lower model Grado? Maybe an SR60 or 80? Will he even like the 225's with his setup?

 

[Uncle Erik]

Sure, why not if you're not paying for them? Send him along to HeadRoom or TTVJ to get a pair. He'll figure out whether he needs an amp or not. And if he buys, be sure to tell him about Head-Fi.

 

[Naris]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Erik Sure, why not if you're not paying for them? Send him along to HeadRoom or TTVJ to get a pair. He'll figure out whether he needs an amp or not. And if he buys, be sure to tell him about Head-Fi.

Be sure to mention that TTVJ and Headroom both have 30 day audition periods, so that if he tries the SR225 and if he's not satisfied with his setup as compared to yours (or he feels it wasn't worth it), tell him that the something like the SR60 or SR80 probably would be better with stuff recorded at that low bitrate and sans amp, and that he should return them and get the lower end model.

He is, after all, your friend... and why would you want your friend wasting money if he can't get his money's worth?

 

[Cousin Patty]

Yeah maybe if he doesnt like the way they sound, it may be a good way to convert him over to headphone amps

 

[Blitzula]

With a portable player and the 128 encoding, an SR60 would be a much wiser start.

 

[cheechoz]

All the Grados will benefit from good amplification, but moving to a lower end model isn't going to make a difference if he is using it straight out of his DAP! He might not like the sound of the lower end Grados, as the 225 is the warmer of the lower range!

 

[warpdriver]

The bass of the SR225 is superior to the others amped or not just because of the design of the grille, the bass is so much quicker. Even out of a DAP, I can tell the difference between the 80 and the 225. But whether he could notice the difference at twice the price, is another matter.

 

[F107plus5]

I have never heard the SR225, but from what I've read they sound like a very "comfortable" sounding set of Grados.

A pair of cans which are also more "comfortable" but yet quite a bit less expensive and may be worth a look, are the Alessandro MS-1.

The sensitivity of the MS-1 is a bit higher as well, making an amp even less a requirement.

 

[DevilDog]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cousin Patty Would he be better off getting a lower model Grado? Maybe an SR60 or 80? Will he even like the 225's with his setup?

Question #1. No. Even at that bit rate the 225s will sound better, but not much.
Question #3. Yes.
But I like the idea of the MS1s. Hopefully, the end result of this will be that he uses higher bit rate mp3s. Just ask him to AB some.
And then he'll need an amp and then....

 

[cmirza]

Using Grados with 128kbps mp3s seems like a waste. If he does go through with a pair of Grados, hopefully he'll rerip his music.