[Ramtha604]

Well, these are the 5 cans I'm currently having an eye on as candidates for my next HP Upgrade.

Of course my oldish CDP and Porta Corda won't do them any justice, but before buying new cans or a new amp I'll be getting a better source anyway, which I'm already looking for.

So what do these cans have in common? They're all in/around the $ 300 to 400 price range, are relatively easy to drive and should sound great. I'm planning this next HP purchase to my last one for quite a while. I'll certainly be taking my time for it and waiting for a good chance to pop up on the horizon.

I'm planning to wait with ordering any new phones (except maybe some cheaper open ones for portable use) till I've become accustomed to my new source with the Porta Corda and DT 250-250's so I can profoundly compare the improvements the new headphones and sooner or later afterwards the new amp will make (currently considering HA-1, HA-2, EMP and microZOTL, but that's another topic).

--------> So what do I want to know about this phones? Well basically I want as many opinions as possible on how these compare, what are their overall character traits, their strengths and weaknesses, what HP's are suited more for what kinds of music, what really distinguishes them from each other?

Anyone is invited to post, especially folks that own/have heard two or more of them. Amp recommendations are welcome, too of course.

Now post away! I reckon there's quite a number of people besides me, who are currently considering some of these!

edit: corrected ms-1 to ms-2 (counterpart of the 325)

 

[kelly]

CD3000: boomy, hollow - typical Sony sound, the wrong idea of "headstage"

SR-325: bright, harsh treble but quick transients

MS-1: have not heard, cousin to RS-1 which I have heard and found bright but smooth and nice otherwise, MS-1 is allegedly even brighter

W1000, A1000: *shrug* hopefully they are better than W100; I doubt they're as good as W2002 - since everyone else liked W100, I doubt I'll have any opinions to rely on with these and doubt I'll take the risk myself

What a horrible selection of headphones to compare. This is sure to be a thread riddled with internet warfare. Each of these headphones has loyalists and enemies and many of them tend to be quite vocal. But some of them are nice guys anyway.

 

[Ramtha604]

Quote:

Originally posted by kelly What a horrible selection of headphones to compare. This is sure to be a thread riddled with internet warfare. Each of these headphones has loyalists and enemies and many of them tend to be quite vocal. But some of them are nice guys anyway.

My guess is that any of these phones only sound good when matched with the right system. People with different systems (and tastes of course) will have different opinions, but that's no cause for internet warfare, if we can keep that in mind imho, it's good and necessary and appreciable (otherwise, what would we ever talk about?).

Be nice to each other and this thread will become a great source of information for everyone.

 

[joelongwood]

CD3000: Large soundstage, sounds open but looks closed, excellent bass, very sweet midrange, smooth highs. To my ears, these are very fast, lively headphones. These comments apply only if paired with the right amp. I use the EMP and love this combination. Oh yeah, and comfy as hell!
Grado SR-325: Look great. Upfront Grado sound in spades. Punchy bass, forward mids, and highs can be a bit harsh.with certain material. Excellent 'phones for good old rock & roll. These things work well out of just about anything, but really shine out of the EMP and Sugden. META42 is damned good as well.
MS-1......that's a $99 dollar headphone. Maybe you mean the RS-1, which is a $699 headphone that can be acquired used for around $400 or so. In any case, the RS-1 is a much smoother, warmer, and more refined headphone than the SR-325. It's rather thick, to my ears, in the lower midrange, which gives vocals a somewhat syrupy sound. I prefer this headphone with the Sugden, the RA-1, or a good old-fashioned CHA47. The CHA47 makes them sound a bit more dynamic and immediate.
Anyway, those are my thoughts on the subject, based on my 54 year old ears. That's most likely the reason I don't find Grados bright. Hope I've been of some help.

 

[ablaze]

joe: based on your 54-year-old ears

, how different (and in what ways) does the 3000s sound out of a meta42 vs a EMP?

 

[joelongwood]

Quote:

Originally posted by ablaze joe: based on your 54-year-old ears , how different (and in what ways) does the 3000s sound out of a meta42 vs a EMP?

To be honest, I've never tried the META42 with the CD3000s. My Meta is used for portable use, and the CD3000s are strictly stationary. But I'll give it try tomorrow night and post my impressions here.

 

[kelly]

Ramtha
I concede the issue of taste, of course (or lack thereof as the case is sometimes implied) but I have a different feeling on the issue of synergy. If the headphone doesn't sound good with a good clean low impedance solid state amp, it's not worth bothering to me. Tube amps can be a little trickier and I give a bit more leeway there.

joe
For some reason when I saw MS-1, I thought it was Allesandro MS Pro. What is MS-1 then?

 

[Ramtha604]

Quote:

Originally posted by joelongwood MS-1......that's a $99 dollar headphone.

My mistake, mixed up the MS-1 with the MS-2...

Quote:

Hope I've been of some help.

I liked your evaluations, very infomartive. Thanks to everyone else who has contributed so far, too.

 

[ablaze]

Quote:

Originally posted by joelongwood To be honest, I've never tried the META42 with the CD3000s. My Meta is used for portable use, and the CD3000s are strictly stationary. But I'll give it try tomorrow night and post my impressions here.

thanks mate

 

[joelongwood]

I'm pretty big on first impressions. I can tell rather quickly whether a particular headphone matches up well or poorly with a particular amp. For example, it only took about a minute to realize that, for my ears at least, the CD3000/Sugden combo was not too good. Thin sounding and almost shrill........way too bright for me. Butg when I plugged them into the EMP, I knew pretty quickly that the match was made in heaven.
Today I tried my portable 9V META42 that JMT built for me. And I could tell right away that it was a good match. The bass was full and rich, the vocals were extremely transparent (I like very realistic vocals), and the highs were smooth and well extended. There was no hint of the brightness that seems to plague the CD3000/Sugden combo. The CD was "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack, with a lot of guitars, banjos, and vocals. Everything sounded great. Just my opinion of course.

 

[LTUCCI1924]

ablaze
HI: I use my META for both portable and stationary use. My META is 5"x5"x1 1/2" So I don't think that it is to big for portable use but is great at home for home use also.

 

[The Quality Guru]

Quote:

Originally posted by kelly What a horrible selection of headphones to compare. This is sure to be a thread riddled with internet warfare. Each of these headphones has loyalists and enemies and many of them tend to be quite vocal. But some of them are nice guys anyway.

Kelly, dont worry, I ceased my incestant W100 fanatacism/loyalism immediately after I got the HP-2. And with what I have learned about the HP-2's sound, I don't think I'll be going the AT route again for a long, long time. A new digital or analog source and new cables are of higher priority than AT at this point in my journey towards audio nirvana.

 

[Hirsch]

Of the original headphones listed, the only ones I've owned are the SR-325 (hastily returned) and the CD-3000 (a part of my collection to this day). Guess which one I recommend?

Incidentally, I upgraded the interconnects on my Melos, and the W2002's are making a comeback. They were almost out the door, but I'm starting to like them a lot with that amp.

 

[kelly]

QG
The last thing you need is my approval but welcome to Team Overpriced Antique Headphones or something.

 

[Eagle_Driver]

Now I know why I didn't like the Sony CD3000's at the WOH tour... That headphone is far more finicky than even the Sennheiser HD 600 as far as the choice of headphone amps.