[jxhyde]

 
hello 
 
i have bought a Grado sr325 and the result with my hifiman HM601 is not good : the music appears without good  bass and medium  . If i use the grado with my macbook the result is better.
 
so i think the hifiman is not really able to drive this Grado ( really it was ok with the sr80)
there are two possibilities :
-my minijack is not a good quality ?
- the Hifiman HM601 needs an amp to drive correctly this SR325 ? (i have read the contrarybut i do not know by myself)
 
what do you think about that ? 
 
is there a problem with the minijack connector or the result would be better with an amp ?
 
Sorry for my english 

 and many thancks for your help
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

[NA Blur]

It sounds like the HiFiMAN HM601 either has a poor DAC chip in it which is not doing your music any justice or more likely the output stage is weak as you suspect.  A portable amp will definitely improve this as it will supply more voltage to your headphones and a much more stable current to the drivers.
 
As to why a pair of Grado SR-80i and SR-325is would sound drastically different from a device does not really make sense considering all things are equal.  The sensitivity as well as impedance are exactly the same on both sets of headphones.  The big difference will be the bowl pads which I presume are on the SR-325is you are listening to.  They no longer filter the bass and capture the treble.  The comfy pads on the SR-80i filter the bass and roll of the treble a bit.  This is one of my main qualms with Grado headphones.  They all measure almost exactly the same.  In fact the SR-60i measures the best because it has the comfy pads.  The same goes for the SR-80i.  See the graphs below.
 
http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCompare.php?graphType=0&graphID[]=393&graphID[]=383
 
All of the differences can be explained due to the bowl pads being on the SR-325is and the comfy pads on the SR-80i.
 
To me Grado just slaps on a different pad and they charge more.
 
As for the mids I would not say they sound washed out, rather, they sound quite neutral.  It is often necessary or wanted to have a little +1 or +2 dB bump up from 200 Hz to 1200 Hz to give vocals, drums, and other mid-centered sounds a nice boost.  The Grado line are all pretty flat there.
 
If you want to experiment swap the pads from the SR-80 onto the SR-325 and check it out for yourself.  The bass will come back and you will lose some of the treble.

 

[jxhyde]

thanks for your answer but i have the same bowl pads on my two grado. 

 

[Aizura]

wear them correctly. I bet al people that find Grados to sound harsh are wearing them "around the ear"
Never mind, just read that you use bowls on your SR80 too.

 

[Chris J]

Interesting.
 
I have tried several different Grado from SR-80i up to SR-325i with an iPod.
The more expensive ones show how bad an iPod really sounds! but the iPod has no difficulty driving any of those Grados to a reasonable volume.
 
The HM601 appears to designed to drive IEMs only.
Their spec shows 30 mW into 32 ohms maximum, should be enough for Grados if you don't listen LOUD!
 
Personally, I would never use good cans like SR-325i with an iPod, personally I think they deserve a good sound head amp.
Like I said, that's just my opinion.

 
 
 

 

[jxhyde]

Quote:

Interesting.
 
I have tried several different Grado from SR-80i up to SR-325i with an iPod.
The more expensive ones show how bad an iPod really sounds! but the iPod has no difficulty driving any of those Grados to a reasonable volume.
 
The HM601 appears to designed to drive IEMs only.
Their spec shows 30 mW into 32 ohms maximum, should be enough for Grados if you don't listen LOUD!
 
Personally, I would never use good cans like SR-325i with an iPod, personally I think they deserve a good sound head amp.
Like I said, that's just my opinion.

 
 
 

i think you are right but my problem is that i have bought this sr325 for my hifiman, so what can i do now ? 
what kind of not too expensive amp can i have to drive correctly this headphone ?
(instead i note that on my macbook the result with sr325 is good) 
 

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,
 
Sansa Fuze for like $50 with a micro SD chip of 32gigs or so, for another $40. Good to go.
 
Very best,

 

[Tronz]

Quote:

Heya,
 
Sansa Fuze for like $50 with a micro SD chip of 32gigs or so, for another $40. Good to go.
 
Very best,

I don't think the Fuze would provide anymore power out of the HO than the HM-601 can. 

 

[Gwarmi]

 
 Stick with the iPod - sell the HiFiMan Hm601 to rustle up funds and get yourself a Furutech ADL Cruise portable amp.
 
 Just my two cents but it's the best Grado portable amp pairing I've heard just running out of a simple iPod Classic.
 
 Clarity, punch and definition are top notch.
 
 

[size=12pt] ADL Cruise Portable Headphone Amplifier[/size] [size=9pt] Alpha Design Labs Cruise Portable Headphone Amplifier 24/96 USB Input and Analog Line input • 3.5mm Headphone Output  Mirror-Polished Stainless-Steel Panel • Gorgeous Carbon Fiber Body • Elegant Appearance  Go [/size]

 

 

[bbophead]

 
All of the differences can be explained due to the bowl pads being on the SR-325is and the comfy pads on the SR-80i.
 
To me Grado just slaps on a different pad and they charge more.
 
 

Question:  How is it that my 325i with G-Cush sound different than my PS500 with G-Cush or are you limiting your evaluation to the models below the 325i?
 

 

[jxhyde]

hello the problem was with the minijack :
 
when i change it for the grado model the problem desapear and i can now listen my grado with my hifiman and it sounds great