http://s533.photobucket.com/albums/ee334/baka1969/
Hi fellow headphone freaks!
I just received my Grado SR-225s that I purchased from another Head-Fi member in the mail on Monday. This is in addition to the Grado SR-80s I also possess. I want to do a review that will directly compare and contrast the two.
For this comparison, unless otherwise specified, I will use a Gen5 iPod as my source. When I first got the 80 I didn't have an amp. But to be fair I will do the comparison part of the review with the 80 and 225 that are amped with a Total Airhead by Headroom. I just did a review of the Airhead. Please read that if you want to see my thoughts on it. But I do want to tell you how the 80s sound without the amp because that's what my first impression was. Plus it will give people who never bought them before some perspective.
Both Grados are bone-stock with no mods. The 80 has about 50 hours on them and the 225 has about 100 hours. The amp has around 25.
I probably won't list all of the technical details or the specs of the Grados because they are so widely available. I probably won't use all the proper terminology to describe the sound. If I do, it's more by chance of it just seemly fitting.
What I will do is give my impressions of each of the headphones. I'll do my best to describe what they sound like and how it felt. I hope you enjoy it and can take something away from it.
I've always loved headphones. Or the idea of using headphones. They're so personal. They seem to involve you in the music more than loudspeakers can.
Laying in bed in total darkness with your eyes closed while listening to the Dark Side of the Moon album totally immerses you with 'phones on. You almost forget the outside world exists for those moments.
Because I love music and because I'm anal, I always want to further understand the artist's intent of the songs and albums they write and record. In order for me to know more I need to hear more of the music. Hear the detail. Feel all of it. The more I hear what the artist actually recorded the better I can interpret for myself the music's given meaning.
Plus I want to thoroughly enjoy the music and what better way than through a pair of quality cans?
I have been on a search for an improved sound I could get from headphones for some time over the years. I am not in any way an Audiophile. I just want extremely high quality sound and precise detail. Pretty much what most of us here on Head-Fi want. I had been using a Sony CD Walkman D-EJ368CK as my source before getting my iPod. The sound seemed passable. The weakest link to me was always the headphones.
I bought el cheapo 'phones almost on a weekly basis to seek better quality sound and more and more detail. I literally have a drawer full of them. None costing more than $20. Muddy or tinny or just all around crappy pretty much sums up what I had before. Being frustrated that I couldn't find anything of quality I settled of a listenable pair IEMs from Skull Candy. That is until I recently got my iPod.
My cousin had a 5th Gen 30g iPod he wanted to sell. He wanted a good price, so I bought it. I loaded my CDs onto it using the wav format. I've heard and read from others that Apple's Lossless (and other lossless formats) sound as good as Redbook. To my ear, wav just sounds fuller and no different than my discs. I sacrifice a lot of storage space but the results are superior and well worth it.
After getting the iPod my craving for audiophile sound kept growing. Since I now have a good portion of my music in a convenient package I found myself listening more often and for longer periods of time. Plus I thought about all the money I wasted on crap and decided that if I took all the money I threw away on bad stuff and invested in a pair of quality headphones I'd enjoy my music much better.
So I Googled simply 'best headphones' and a world of information was displayed in front of me. One of the many sites with terrific info was Head-Fi. So I lurked and learned for a while reading obsessively about all aspects of headphones. One name kept creeping into my cranium. Grado.
I liked everything I read about Grado headphones. I was impressed with the awards they've garnered over the years. Being built in the US was a plus. The detail that Grado brings out in music helped my liking toward their brand. There doesn't seem to have much pretension to them. They look retro-cool in a good way. Yea I heard they're on the bright side but I can live with that. And almost universally I heard that they are fun musically.
Now that I narrowed down the brand of cans, I had to decide which of them I would purchase. Understanding this was my first purchase of quality headphones I knew I wouldn't buy the flagship of the Grado line. Plus this was going to be primarily used with an iPod. I'm just not going to schlep around a $700 pair of cans with me. I also didn't want to go entry level either.
I heard so much acclaim about the SR-80 and hell they're $100! It's a natural to start off with these as not only a beginning to the Grado line, but as an introduction to audiophile level sound.
Coupled with a catalog from Music Direct I made the leap into the world of high-end headphones. I ordered a pair of Grado SR-80s.
Prior to the arrival of the SR-80 I was carefully selecting which music, songs and segments I would listen to while first testing out the amp. It's no surprise or secret that I'm a Pink Floyd fan. Their music just happens to be perfect for testing out audio equipment. With the excellent music production, wide array of styles, and the fact that I know almost every note, it just makes logical sense. I use other groups and songs but Floyd is used for most of it.
The very first exercise I give all equipment is listening to the song Wish You Were Here. Paying particular attention between the 30 second and 1 minute mark. The cough, sniff and sigh should be fairly easily picked up by even mediocre playback sources, headphones and especially amps. It's quiet, but it's there. However, before the cough and in between the sniff and sigh are very subtle details that most can miss. You can hear swallowing, movement, breathing and smacking (I don't know the exact term used for the sound that's made when your lips part or your tongue moves around inside the mouth or across the lips, but you get the idea) that is extremely difficult to detect. It's very subtle and it's in the mids.
After three days of eagerly awaiting, my new pair of headphones arrive at my door. A brand spanking new set of Grado SR-80s. I opened the shipping box and saw a nice box with the housings displayed proudly through little windows. Sweet. The box that they come I'm is big. Not I'm an obtrusive way at all.
I opened the box and my first thought was how cool they look. I took them out of their box and marveled how thick the cord is. Talk about girth. About 1/4 thick. It feels like quality. The cord splits to a 'Y' and they run to each housing. The cord is around 6'.
Most of these Grados are made from a black plastic. It seems appropriate and doesn't offend me in any way. The exceptions are the antennas and headband which use metal. And the transducers.
My eye caught the antennas that are on top of each of the transducer housings and attach to the headband. A tab connects it and the antennas are used to adjust the height to fit your noggin. Man they look great.
The headband cover is a thin strip of vinyl that seems suited to it's job.
The transducer housing is about 2" in the back and slightly larger in the front to accommodate the bowls. These headphones, like all current Grados, are open headphones. That means the transducer housing is open from the front and the back. A grill in the back protects them. The transducer housings are attached by hinges and can be removed from the headband. This can perform an important function. Since the housings can pivot 360 degrees there is a chance they can bind the cord or it can become twisted if you're not careful. But if you remove them from the hinges, the housings can be easily unwound and replaced on the hinges. It's not been an issue with me.
The pads, affectionately called bowls, are made of foam. They seem to me to be made of the same foam that the Grado box has inside. These bowls are supposed to supra-aural and sit on top of your ears. They actually go all the way around mine. I guess I have tiny ears.
The link at the top has pics of my headphones. Take a look after you read the review to see more.
After I looked the 80s over and admire the appearance I decide it's time to play music through them. That is the purpose after all.
I plug thoses babys right into my iPod and selected the song. The difference was drastic and immediate.
At the very beginning of the song (Wish You Were Here) the man on the radio says "The discipline remains mercifully". The 'ly' sound at the and of mercifully is usually difficult to detect and muddled with lesser phones. With the Grado 80s they came through clearly. Wow what a transformation.
When the 30 second mark arrived it was evident that these cans would be stellar from a detail perspective. The vocals come in at around the 1 minute mark and the clarity is just stunning. 2 minutes in and drums and a cymbal CRASH! Absolutely no clipping.
I played different songs and segments studying the analytic side of the Grados. Seeing how much detail they would reveal within the music. At almost every turn I discovered something new in the songs I thought I knew. I was excited.
While testing also more of the personalities of the 80s were making themselves known. Along with the detail, the separation of the instruments was becoming more apparent. No longer were songs a mix of sound but of actual instrumentation. While playing the dueling bass line on the song One Of These Days off Pink Floyd's Meddle album you can now detect the two separate bass guitars playing together and tell them apart.
While on the subject of bass, remember I'm playing this WITHOUT the amp, the bass is a little lacking. Of what there is, its tight with no slop, but more subtle all the same. I listen for the bass guitar in songs and with the 80 it's soft. I'm not a huge fan of booming bass but more would have been appreciated.
Another aspect I noticed was how quick the attack is. It's immediate. This is highlighted with drums. Both on the skins and the cymbals. You hear the impact of the sticks and it just reverberates through as it finishes. The sound isn't just of a cymbal or of skin. There are stages of sound.
All the instruments have this quality while listening to the 80s hearing a bow across the strings of a cello like on the song Atom Heart Mother to hearing fingers strum guitars.
Another trait that I detected was the brightness. Not overpowering to me but evident. Along that path is the fact I was getting a consistent sibilant behavior from these umamped Grados. That part did annoy me. I guess love isn't without it's trials.
One pleasant thing is the increased amount of soundstage. Instead of tight constraints of my head, the space opened up within the music. Spatial. This is probably one of my favorite parts. This is what put me in the center of the band. I didn't just feel as if I was a third party listening to a song, I felt involved as a part of the music.
Oh yea, you better be listening to excellent production and recording quality because these cans will weed out the trash.
At this point you might be wondering about the Grado SR-225? I will get to that. But I am building the groundwork of what I believe to be what Grado is. You will see it is all worth the journey. Well, at least I hope you do.
The 80s play music wonderfully. They are so inviting. But I just KNEW there was more. So I did two things. I got an amp and I got a another heaphone from the Grado stable.
The amp is the Headroom Total Airhead. I had been hearing about how efficient the SR-80s are. How they don't need an amp. Let me just say that it's only partially true.
Yes you can go through your musical listening experience without using an amp to drive your 80s. And you would be happy with the sound. But I will say that having the Airhead made a significant improvement in almost every aspect of listening. I won't redo my review of the AH here. Please read it in the portable amp section.
I will say though that music filled out. The soundstage expanded quite a bit further. Ever more detail was discovered. The sibilant behavior all but disappeared. The bass just blossomed. And the brightness was subsided.
I'd go as far as saying that that Airhead takes the headphones from being simply great to spectacular.
But I knew that there is even more. Better. And I was right.
So I ordered the SR-225 from a member of the Head-Fi community.
The only aesthetic difference is that the back of the transducer housings are a metal mesh instead of the black plastic ones and the 1/4" plug instead of the 80 that has 1/8".
The Grado SR-225 is in every single way an upgrade to the SR-80. You might think I'll do another 1000 words on the virtues of the 225. I don't need to.
Everything the 80 does the 225 does even better. There is a bit more detail. A good deal more bass. The separation of the instruments is just something to behold. These headphones are more balanced than it's little brother. The soundstage is sinful. It's like you're on a small stage with the musicians. You can directionally place everyone in the band.
It's funny how quickly you can adapt to incredible sound. After a day listening to just the SR-225 I put on the 80 to remember something and the significance in sound can't be ignored.
They aren't different cars by any means. Think of the Grado SR-80 as a Mercedes E Class with a 6 cylinder engine. It's a great car. Who wouldn't want one? Now think of the Grado SR-225 as that same car with the 8 cylinder AMG package. You just can't go back to the 6 cylinder. I know I can't.
And now the SR-80 is in it's box. The SR-225 is on my head.
I have a few suggestions of songs that you might not of heard that are amazing through
The Grados.
Pink Floyd: Atom Heart Mother (Atom Heart Mother)- this is a progressive orchestral piece.
Pink Floyd: Astronomy Domine (London Live 1966/67)- this is an extended jam version that is very jazz like in structure
Pink Floyd: Julia Dream (Relics)- a very etherial psychedelic song
Pink Floyd: Echoes (Meddle)- an incredible journey this song will take you
Thank you very much for reading
PS- Yep written on my BlackBerry Pearl
