[Jesse Peters]

My suitemate had a pair of 325i's we contrasted with my RS-1's. The 325i's are very musical and it's good for getting into the music but at times it can be fatiguing. My suitemate was dissapointed in the lack of bass extension and on some songs, the placement of the instruments. I would highly suggest upgrading to the RS-1's, or if Etys are you thing, then the Etys. Good luck.

 

[EX-S]

switch 325i's driver to rs1's ,maybe you can get a nice sounding....

like HP-1000!??

I dont know , but I will give a try next week~~

 

[ex0du5]

When I compared the RS-1 to the SR325i...the RS-1 sounded soooo much sweeter. Was really quite an experience to get to listen to these.

I will, however, be purchasing a pair of Alessandro MS-Pro, as I want a more balanced solution.

 

[adanac061]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ex0du5 /img/forum/go_quote.gif When I compared the RS-1 to the SR325i...the RS-1 sounded soooo much sweeter. Was really quite an experience to get to listen to these. I will, however, be purchasing a pair of Alessandro MS-Pro, as I want a more balanced solution.

x2 . At a meet yesterday I had a chance to listen to the rs1 and gs1000 on my exact system from home that I listen to the 325i's.

The rs1's blew them both out of the water. Strangly the 325i and the gs1000 sounded similiar, except the gs1000 had more soundstage , more air.

The rs1 on the other hand is in a different league, almost perfection (on my system).

 

[Barry]

Interesting that you found the 325i and GS1000 similar. When I listened, both cans were pretty much out of the box and I found the GS1000s terrific and the 325is pretty shrill. Ended up buying the RS-1s.

I have run the RS-1s for about 50 hours and they have mellowed out nicely. Did the 325is change a great deal with break-in?

If so, I suggest that wae5 burn them in for about two or three days and see what he thinks.

 

[wae5]

The more I listen to the 325is the more I think they were made with me in mind. I have other good cans (SR60s, Ety4P/S, 501s, 701s, 2200s, Stax LPs, etc, etc) but with the 325is I feel I've finally come home. I'm old and and my HF hearing is taking a nose dive so what's bright for you may be just right for me. I find the synergy between my Pany SA-X55, an all digital all the time receiver (which I use only with phones) and the 325i is what I've been searching for so why do I persist in asking about R2s? Simply because if the RS2s are even brighter, clearer, more detailed and transparent than the 325is then I want them. However, from what I've read the RS2s are more true to the music. This is what I call replicating the classical concert hall experience. In this domain instruments are not heard as separate and distinct but meld into a wall of homogenized sound. This is sometimes called listening from the 30th row and Sennheisers do this so well they're the phones most often recommended for classical music. While this purist approach may be the way classical music should be heard it's not the only way it can be heard. You can hear these different approaches in the various ways classical music is miked and recorded. Classical audiophile labels like Hyperion, Chandos, Telarc, Reference Recordings, Dorian, Bis, Stereophile Recordings and Delos (to name but a few) produce recordings that let us hear singers, choirs and instruments as individual voices which are then combined by our brains into a whole. This unique ability to capture clarity, detail and transparency is what makes Grados so special, so surreal and so much fun. If the SR2s offer even more of this kind of experience then I want them and explains why I'm so curious about them.

 

[spinali]

I've got to confess that my reactions - and not to denigrate yours - were quite different. I heard the same clarity, especially with the rendering of the snap of the snare drum, which was almost magical. The sound was only coherent when I put on flat pads, as TTYJ suggested; but then the treble suddenly diminished, leaving me without the detail I craved.

Nonetheless, you descriptions make me want to hear these phones again.

 

[wae5]

I use flats too but my clear as laser light, all digital receiver brings up the highs so it compensates for the flatness of the flats. Many would find this combo painfully unlistenable, but for me it's sublime. Another thing going against 325i received wisdom is my 325is are so comfortable I sometimes forget I have them on. Sorry for the rant but another of my 325i "magic moments" is roaming about the house with its cord wrapped around my neck like a snake and dangling from the end is a 2G Shuffle sounding just as good as any portable amp I own. The 325is are so efficient I'm glad I didn't spring for an expensive Doge amp before hearing them!

 

[unclejr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wae5 /img/forum/go_quote.gif ... While I listen mostly to classical music I prefer Grado’s lap dancing gaggle of soloists to a more “realistic” wall of homogenized players. Should I keep the 325is or move up to RS2s because they're even more dynamic, transparent and FUN? Since I only have a month to decide time's of the essence so please respond quickly.

Awesome. I am surprised to find that, for my listening preferences, I agree. Thus the GS1000s are not appropriate. Sorry if I might have missed it, but are you considering any RS-1s? After my most recent fight with decisions to move into the reference series (or Statement), I think that if you're going to go with RS-2s, you might as well go for RS-1s and save some money in the long haul.* You know you wanna.

*Of course, many other opinions on this matter exist.

 

[Davesrose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wae5 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Simply because if the RS2s are even brighter, clearer, more detailed and transparent than the 325is then I want them.

I'll make this simple....no the RS2s are not brighter or more detailed then the SR325i. Now Grado fans will say they sound better. In my own experience, the more expensive Grados offer fuller sound. But the SR325i is the most colored Grado I've heard: it's the prime example of the Grado house sound. When you get up higher, Grados start sounding more like Sennheisers

I'm a Sennheiser for classical person myself, but for whatever reason you're finding the SR325i natural. I say keep enjoying it! If you want more detail, maybe think about a source or amp upgrade.

 

[wae5]

Dave, thanks for confirming what I thought may be true: Grados become more Sennheiserian as Grado lightens your wallet. In a conversation at a local Grado store I quipped people are seduced by the SR60’s sound and expect this excitement to grow as you climb Grado's ladder. This is not necessarily so. You could say Grado has two lines: The SurRealistic and Realistically Superior. I want my Grados to fulfill the promise of the SR60s and think 325is do just that. So if I want the RS sound I have 701s and Stax for that. I’ll be keeping the 325is after all because I can’t imagine anything else sounding so outrageously fun as it dangles from the end of my shuffle. (While some would like to think my last sentence isn't vaguely pornographic, it is.)