Question regarding sound quality of Alessandro MS1i

[Milkis]

Hello,
 
I recently bought an Alessandro MS1i (mostly after seeing reviews of it posted on this and other communities), and I'm wondering if the problems I'm having is specific to the MS1i or whether or not there is a possibility of me having a "defective" headphone for whatever reason.

The thing is that the headphones have weird piercing sound, usually when it comes to electric guitars, keyboards when they hit a high range, and other things like Bells. It's piercing enough to hurt my ears, and honestly I can't see why this is so hyped up as being "detailed" when these kinds of sounds are bugging me enough. I don't know enough about high/mid/low etc or headphones in general but if it's loud enough you can hear this piercing sound especially when electric based instruments are played x_x I think in terms of details my now dead Sennheiser CX500s outperformed it by far.
 
I don't use an amp, and I plug my headphone directly to the computer. This is mostly a problem when I have the music "loud" (well, it's not loud to me but the louder it is the more obvious and piercing this is). 
 
Is this typical of Grados? Or is it just my specific pair of headphones? The headphones are < 10 hours old atm, will this improve over time, or is it defective and should I see if I can get a replacement? 

Thanks for your help X_X;;;

 

[matthewh133]

I think that you may just be sensitive to high frequencies. The high frequencies of the Grados are why some people love them, and why some people hate them. Maybe Grados aren't for you? They may improve with burn in for you, so give them some time, but if they don't work out maybe consider something like the Beyers or Senns. Good luck.

 

[tdockweiler]

I've found that they don't usually get better after burn-in. I've had my SR-80 for at least 5 years and nothing has changed really.
I also hate the piercing highs on some rock music with Grado like headphones.
 
I've found that the SR-60 mod works for the SR-80 and seems to tame the highs a bit. Enough for my liking. I can now listen to them for hours without any problem. I think the mod may work for the MS1, but not 100% sure.
 
If they're new and you can still return or sell them, that may be best.
 
I sure the heck enjoy my SR-80 a lot more now, especially now that they actually have bass.
 
Right now they're now getting close to being one of my current favorite headphones. They still hurt my ears due to the design, but it's worth the pain.

 

[MomijiTMO]

 
 
Grados are not for you. The Senn house sound (if there is one) might appeal to you. I found my HD650 to be quite different to the MS1.