[false]

To make life even easier for you here is an another way to check. Its so easy it I could cry...

1. Right click any wma and select "properties"
2. There will be two tab's available. Select "summary"
3. On the summary there will be and "advanced" option. Press that button.
4. Scroll to the bottom of the summary and check you bit rate.

It should look like this...

Once again, even with WMA files the lower the number, the worse the sound. 128 kbps is NOT GOOD. Even with all the other gear everyone else in the the thread suggested, if your source audio files are crap, they will still sound like crap on good equipment. With your RS-2's you get to hear just how NOT GOOD your mp3's (or wma's) are.

 

[Norbert]

and yet...I cannot help but feel that we have been played.

 

[hentai]

Though i am a singapore citizen , i can't help but to say " creative sucks"

Audigy sucks to the core.

 

[lini]

cinnamonandgravy: While the Audigy only is a mediocre source at best, it's not really off in frequency response - so it might be a good idea to try the equalizer of the card after you've given your Grado some half-decent burn-in: If you need to make a lot of adjustments there in order to make it sound right for you, chances are very high that you'll never like your Grado and that you'd better look for a differently balanced headphone...

Greetings from Hannover!

Manfred / lini

 

[MD1032]

cinnamon, calm down. We're just trying to help you out here. I have experience with computers and Grados, so maybe I can help. The soundcard is completely the issue here. If you do some simple things I can guarantee you'll love the sound:

Creative soundcards are very lacking in sound quality on the whole. I haven't heard newer A2's, but I've heard they're still bad. Grados are low-impedance, but they take a lot of current, and if you use a soundcard's output by itself, the bass will be tremendously lacking and the sound will be very shifted towards the treble in comparison to an amped source.

1) Get the flat pads.

These will make a final and extremely significant push towards the bassier side. In fact, they almost muffle the treble in comparison to the bowl pads, but then again, with a bad source, you've got so much treble to start with that you need to dumb it down. They're a lot of money for a pair of pads, but trust me, the performance gain is worth every penny.

2) Buy a Chaintech AV-710 soundcard.

This card is your friend. It's only 25 bucks, but use its high quality output mode and couple it to an amp and you've got a great source. You can probably get away with running this card alongside your Audigy2. I ran mine with my TBSC simultaneously for a little bit once.

3) Buy an amp.

Look around in the For Sale forum under Amplification. I bet you could get a nice cmoy or Go Vibe off of someone for under $100. Post a new thread with a "WTB" (want to buy) title and explain what you want, and people will send you PM's with offers. This amp is what will really make the difference. Once you give the Grados the current they want, you will really notice a large difference in the overall fullness of sound, not to mention the bass.

You could also buy a really nice portable amp from guys like JMT.

If you do those three things, the difference will astound you. Hope I've helped.

 

[Trogdor]

I don't think the flat pads is really a good first step here (for me it makes these cans even worse because it accentuates the bass and sacrifices the mids).

I agree with everyone that buying a $500 pair of headphones to stick into an Audigy 2 is not going to yield optimal results. However, Grados are indeed meant to be driven by any reasonable source (even the Audigy) and you CAN get an idea of their sound signature even with your setup. So there is a chance you may not like the Grado house sound.

With THAT said, I wouldn't trust your setup with a 10ft. pole to make any long term decisions about what sucks and what doesn't. Your RS-2's are certainly more accurate and detailed then your $30 earbuds.

My advice:

1. Check your source and bit rate in which your are ripping music. If you are ripping music at 128kbps then this will cause some sound degradation.
2. Let the RS-2's burn in for at least 24 hours which will smooth out the sound and I guaruntee will sound less harsh.
3. Listen to various different types of music to get a feel for what you like and don't like about them.
4. Write a candid, respectful review on Head-Fi
5. If you still don't like them, return them. If you find them more pleasant but not fantastic, invest in an amp (RA-1 is a great amp with Grados)

 

[cinnamonandgravy]

there, pixies at a manly 1023kbps, and not some crappy 128. and ive decided to keep the headphones, because they sound amazing high. thanks.

 

[twc5964]

Have you thought about getting the Grado amp for the rs2's also...it would help a lot just as Trogdor mentioned....just food for thought !

 

[cinnamonandgravy]

yeah im in the market for an amp. i need to research different makes more though.

 

[Dr.Sade]

They sound great with the GRADO headphone amplifier. I don't know
if there is way to integrate the headphone amp into a system that is suitable for you. Someone here would know how to put it all together, if it makes sense in the first place.

 

[cinnamonandgravy]

thanks dr sade, but youre roughly 114 posts too late; thats all been covered. sorry if that sounded rude at all.

 

[Clutz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cinnamonandgravy yeah im in the market for an amp. i need to research different makes more though.

The Millet Hybrid amp supposedly pairs pretty well with the Grados. I cannot speak to the sound of the Grado's or the Millet Hybrid, let alone the two of them together. The parts for a Millet Hybrid are pretty cheap (around $80US including the case- but not including a power supply - a power supply would probably add another $20). So, you could probably find someone to build it for you with a minimal set up for between $130 to $150.

Personally, I'm not entirely sure it's worth spending the money on getting a Cmoy once you have a pair of RS-2s. A Cmoy will improve the sound a noticable amount over the source unamped - but there is simply no comparison between the CMOY and a half decent headphone amplifier. Spend a little more and get a half decent headphone amplifier - something along the lines of a MINT, or PIMETA at the minimum. Though I think that you should probably reasonably consider getting a Gilmore Dynalo, PPA, or M3.

 

[cinnamonandgravy]

what is a better sound card? the x-fi or e-mu? and why?

 

[cinnamonandgravy]

is the grado head amp considered great by any means? it has a hefty price tag for the dc version, over $400.

 

[Clutz]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cinnamonandgravy thanks dr sade, but youre roughly 114 posts too late; thats all been covered. sorry if that sounded rude at all.

Actually, it does come off as rude. If you knew when you posted it that it might sound rude, then perhaps you should've considered not posting it or revising it prior to posting.

You come on to a message board asking for advice / assistance, then when help is offered you fail to acknowledge that others are offering you the benefit of their experience AND you get snotty about it.