[Ham Sandwich]

Quote:

The ones that sort of stick out at you pretty sharply.

The bowls a.k.a. L-Cush?  If not that then you've got the comfies a.k.a. S-Cush.
 
The comfies are easier to adjust for but the bowls are a bit more tricky.  The design of the bowls restricts the range of movement of the cans to rotate up and down on their little gimbal doo-dad.  The yoke and the back of the bowls get in the way and you only get a few degrees of movement.  Not enough movement to be able to get proper comfy fit.
 
Sooo... Bend the headband so the bowls can fit flat around your ears.  Follow the directions over at Headphile for "Adjusting Headband for Better Fit of C-Pads" (scroll down to the middle of the page).  The same goes for getting proper fit with the bowls and to a lesser extent the comfies.  Flatten the top of the headband and bend then in just above the rod holders.  Do the adjustment in front of a mirror and you'll see when you have it bent enough.  The bowls will fit flush around your ears and have a few degrees of rotation freedom.  Ah, comfy.  Well as comfy as Grado bowls can be. 

 

[Ham Sandwich]

 
Quote:

I can never get over the Grado brightness. I use HF-2 and MAD Ear+ HD, so bright is not something that should be present. Maybe my 16 year old ears are sensitive to higher frequencies? I am unsure. Oh well. Glad you like the MS-1. DT880 are fine. I think is is the mids on the Grado's that get to me. They are too upfront and dominant over the bass. It sorta makes my face cringe =/

You need to trade your HF-2 for a Denon.  

 
I have the SR325is which is bright even by Grado standards.  I have to be selective about what I listen to with it.  But that's also why I bought it.  It's strictly a "fun" can.  A can just for those Grado moments when I want to listen to the magic music on them.  When the music and the Grado sound are in synergy the result is "oh my gawwwddd grados" good.

 

[stang]

I am trading HF-2 for Denon D5000 half MarkL modded on Monday

 Just for a few weeks or so, I think.
 
Well about that Grado magic. The songs that I love I cannot stand Grado's with. They are too bright for my ears. I guess I am used to darker headphones.

 

[TheMiddleSky]

after adjusting headband, actually I feel bowl more comfortable than comfy
 
also, you can wash them to make them softer
 
and don't forget about pad from Senn HD414, especially with reverse quarter mod, it's comfort too (more than comfy pad)

 

[Ham Sandwich]

 
Quote:

I am trading HF-2 for Denon D5000 half MarkL modded on Monday

 Just for a few weeks or so, I think.
 
Well about that Grado magic. The songs that I love I cannot stand Grado's with. They are too bright for my ears. I guess I am used to darker headphones.

Try acoustic music and music with an acoustic flavor and style of recording.  It's acoustic music that I get more grado moments with than rock music.  Try Rodrigo y Gabriela with the Grados, especially songs from their self titled CD.  It's awesome on Grados of any flavor.  The cans just fill up and come alive with glorious Grado sound.  Grados were made for that music.  Bluegrass and contemporary bluegrass is also great on the Grados.  Skip, Hop & Wobble is great.  Bela Fleck Drive is great.  Edgar Meyer, Yo-Yo Ma, Russ Barenberg, Jerry Douglas, Mark O'Connor, Bela Fleck, Appalacia Waltz, music like that.  There's a pattern there, it's acoustic music.    For rock on the Grados I aim for the bluesy flavor of rock like The Allman Brothers Band and similar.  Eagles "Hotel California" from Hell Freezes Over is also Grado Good.
 
Yo-yo Ma and Edgar Meyer
 

 

[stang]

I own the Rodrigo y Gabriela CD. In fact, I bought it just because someone recommended them with Grados. I haven't listened to it for a while with my Grado's though. I will try when I am back home. But since I spent $1200 on the HF-2+MAD Ear+ HD, I don't want to have any doubts about my purchase. I will be lucky to probably get $700 of that back, hence I only want to trade it for something I truly love. I prefer my DT880+M3 combo ($600) more, so yeah, selling the Grado's shouldn't be too much of a hassle for me. Letting go of that amp, however, will.
 
For $1200, I could be a lot happier.

 

[Ham Sandwich]

 
Quote:

I own the Rodrigo y Gabriela CD. In fact, I bought it just because someone recommended them with Grados.
 

That might have been me. 
It's a CD that I think Grado should include in the box with every Grado cause it just makes Grados sound so good.
 
 
Quote:

For $1200, I could be a lot happier.

 
Yeah, that's a problem when you aren't able to audition gear before buying. 
 
Grados are tricky.  They aren't going to be magic for everyone.  Headphones with color like that just aren't going to work for everyone.  But how do you know before you try?
 
The Denons are similar.  They've got some color as well as a unique sound presentation and style.  It's not going to work for everyone.

 

[dizzyraider]

Hahaha, I also have Rodrigo y Gabriela in my play list. It does sound fantastic with the Grados.

 

[stang]

Quote:

 

That might have been me. 
It's a CD that I think Grado should include in the box with every Grado cause it just makes Grados sound so good.
 
 
 
Yeah, that's a problem when you aren't able to audition gear before buying. 
 
Grados are tricky.  They aren't going to be magic for everyone.  Headphones with color like that just aren't going to work for everyone.  But how do you know before you try?
 
The Denons are similar.  They've got some color as well as a unique sound presentation and style.  It's not going to work for everyone.

Yes, I think it was you that recommended that album.
 
Yeah, about trying gear before buying: For $1200, I could have bought K1000 (which I LOVED at the meet I recently attended) and a Sonic Impact T-Amp and a few LP for my cheap $100 turntable. K1000 are generally $900-$1100. Anything over $1000 for a stock K1000 is IMO very expensive. Heck, a stefan art equinox recabled pair were on ebay for $999 and didn't even sell. Yes, the seller had good feedback. I have also seen a pair go for about $700 that included original box. High serial number, though. Finding a pair with low serial number (bass heavy) is difficult and always turns out to be very expensive. Well, at least for now I know the Stax O2 and K1000 are on my to buy/try again list.
 
Lol sorry for the thread derail, I suppose we should try to get back on topic of Grado's...I think everyone should try SR-225 with a tube amp and Rodrigo y Gabriela and their favourite album if they can. It will give you a great indication of how Grado's are going to perform and sound. I was very happy wth my SR-225 when I owned them. Great beginners headphones.
 

 

[VALIENTE]

Gradossssssss rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrocks!!!

 

[wind016]

Grados are for old people. They sounded GREAT when i had ear wax in my ears.

 

[Ruffle]

Quote:

Grados are for old people. They sounded GREAT when i had ear wax in my ears.

Well by the time Grado decided to make headphones, I think himself and his engineer were already half deaf old geezers.  But if you haven't noticed, a lot of the Grado fans are old...

 

[wind016]

mhmm...  i heard. the fact that he tunes the headphones by ear should be a warning for those that are young. honestly, they sound ridiculous to me. maybe ill appreciate it when my hearing starts to go too.  for the mean time, i think using Grados could actually hurt my hearing...

 

[Ruffle]

Quote:

mhmm...  i heard. the fact that he tunes the headphones by ear should be a warning for those that are young. honestly, they sound ridiculous to me. maybe ill appreciate it when my hearing starts to go too.  for the mean time, i think using Grados could actually hurt my hearing...

I agree.  But this is Head-Fi and Grado is a long time sponsor.  I sometimes like to think this is a Grado forum with some discussion of other headphones.

 

[dizzyraider]

Whoa Whoa Whoa!
If the sound isn't for you doesn't mean it's only for old people. Kind of jumping to conclusions. I'm in my mid 20s (27 to be exact) and I like the Grado sound. By no means am I losing my hearing, my hearing is perfectly fine. I admit that the Grado's don't sound great with every genre of music, but I find myself enjoying the sound with many of the music I listen to.
 
My violin teach back in the days played in an orchestra and she was in her late 50s. She had the sharpest hearing as she can hear every note that is misplayed. She can also tune the violin perfectly fine with her ears (violin has pretty good highs). I understand that people do lose some of their hearing with age, but I'm sure there are also those that retain a lot of their hearing ability. Just because Grado are tuned by ear, doesn't automatically mean that they sound the way the do because the guy tuning it is "half deaf" (probably not even true). Instead, think about that they sound the way they do because it was designed to sound that way. I'm sure many folks here under 30 enjoys the Grado sound as well.
 
No need to categorize all people who enjoy Grado as old... (don't call me old...not yet)