[thedeathreaper]

hey guys.
im planning to get headphones for under $250 and really interested in the grado line because of all the research i've been doing =D. But as i was going to go for sr225i, they would by my first good pair of headphones, I just hope i won't be jumping the gun by going straight to it. I do appreciate good music eg i get extremely irritated listening 2 low end mp3 bitrates. My portable mp3 is an ipod classic, almost all my songs are above 192 kps mp3 though no flac. I just want good headphones that won't require me buying a whole studio or anything to make it sound its best. So question is 
should i get the sr80i or sr60i as a lead in to headphones
or skip straight to sr225i?
thanks.

 

[nickchen]

Grados and Alessandros don't scale as much as other brands when you pick "higher" models. In other words, the "better" the model, the worse is its bang-for-the-buck ratio.
 
I suggest you take a look at the Alessandro MS1, there you'll get SR225 performance for SR80 price, and a better genre bandwidth.

 

[TheMiddleSky]

Vote to get the MS1i, and you can use the rest budget for portable amp, or if you don't want to using amp, you can try to start do some mods to your MS1i (from changing the pads, replace the housing, try the distancer, etc). 

 

 

[thedeathreaper]

hmmmm ive been reading that ms1i is like the sr125i? and ive heard alessandro arent as fun
but these may be my only headphones for probably 3 years, so i really want something that won't have me craving a better sound.
sighhhhh decisions are so hard these days
so my toss up is between ms1i and 225i 
not toooo concerned about bang for buck, but just good sound
btw im in australia where there r literally no headphone listening shop places that im hearing about. Soo im relying on you guys here =D

 

[thedeathreaper]

Also TheMiddleSky what is housing and distancers? sorry for being so new to this..

 

[kite7]

Quote:

Also TheMiddleSky what is housing and distancers? sorry for being so new to this..

Look here, this thread will explain it all
 
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/323271/alessandro-ms1000-and-ms-ultimate-diy-modding-56k-warning

 

[thedeathreaper]

hahah wow that is awesome.... well i bought the ms1i =D
thanks guys
ms1000 sounds so coool
ill try it out wen im bored with ms1i

 

[Mr Joboto]

Very good choice

 

[maggior]

If you get SR-80i's or SR-225i's, I think you will be happy from a sound quality perspecitve.  However, between the two there are comfort/usability issues you should also consider:
 
- SR80i come stock with flat "comfy" pads; the 225s have bowls.  Some find the bowls less comfortable and can't use them for long listening sessions.
- SR80i has an 1/8" plug, the 225s have a 1/4" plug requiring an adapter to connect to a portable player.
- SR225i cord is thicker than the SR80i cord, making it more awkward to keep out of the way.
 
I find that the 225s sound better than the 80's, but not by a huge margin.  They certainly aren't twice as good as my 80's.  It's a subtle improvement that could be overcome by the other issues I point out depending on how much you are bothered by them.

 

[TheMiddleSky]

Quote:

hahah wow that is awesome.... well i bought the ms1i =D
thanks guys
ms1000 sounds so coool
ill try it out wen im bored with ms1i

that's a nice choice 

 

[Kevin Brown]

I recently did a shootout between the SR80i's, the SR125i's, the MS-1i's, and I had previously extensively listened to the SR60i's (before I bought the 80's).
 
I didn't like the MS-1i's as much as I thought I would.  All of the 60's, 80's, and the MS-1i's had a similar midrange and highs.  The "Grado sound" if you will.  The MS-1i's were not any less harsh than the others.  But the MS-1i's had less bass than the 80's and the SR125i's.  In terms of bass, the SR60i's and the MS-1i's sounded very similar to me.
 
And I think the SR125i's have slightly smoother mids than all the others.
 
If you've already ordered the MS-1i's, that's cool.  But listen for the bass impact.  I didn't think it had much.  I am NOT a basshead, but I thought the MS-1i's didn't have enough low frequency response.  If you get the chance, you should really try and compare them vs the other Grado's.
 
Somewhat similarly, I am slowly moving up the Grado line, and while I do think there was a very large difference between the 60's and the 80's, the 80's have much better bass IMO, there was a lot less difference between the 80's and the 125's, with the 125's have a less harsh midrange.  I do hope to get the 225i's soon, and it'll be curious how they compare to the 125i's. 

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

Grados and Alessandros don't scale as much as other brands when you pick "higher" models. In other words, the "better" the model, the worse is its bang-for-the-buck ratio.
 
I suggest you take a look at the Alessandro MS1, there you'll get SR225 performance for SR80 price, and a better genre bandwidth.

Boy my ears don't agree w/ you there.  Better genre bandwidth yes due to the more neutral sig but noticeably less refinement and harsher overall presentation.

 

[TheMiddleSky]

for me, the bass at SR60i and MS1i is not similiar, MS1i has better bass for sure 

 

[nickchen]

Quote:

Boy my ears don't agree w/ you there.  Better genre bandwidth yes due to the more neutral sig but noticeably less refinement and harsher overall presentation.

Problem is: Theoretically, we shouldn't discuss the way a MS1 sounds - there is just too much quality spread (and Grados are the same). Being germany's Gradessandro grey eminence, I have listened to approx. 2-3 dozen exemplars meanwhile, the variaties are frightening. 3 of 4 sound roughly alike, but the 4th can end up almost anywhere...

  Luckily, all sound great, in their own way.