[subtle]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nirvana1000 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Better then the PS1000?!

No.

 

[mikenyc]

Mine arrived on Friday. I listened for a few hours Friday late afternoon and a few hours today. They have been running continuously, so have about 20 hours on them now. I have found that much of the previous commentary fits with my view / ear of things.

Build: I have to agree that the build is not what you would expect from a 400+ headphone. Mine have some nicks on the cup. The mesh fabric cover on the the driver facing the ear is very slightly frayed around the edges and just barely covers the holes. I expect this will need attention at some point after a lot of use. Not really that concerned overall on this. I did not buy them for the way that they look.

Sound: I previously owned 225i's. These are smoother right out of the box, but did not really blow me away. Definitely have the Grado sound but smoother at the top, even before any burn in effects. The bass is only a little more than my fully broken in 225s. Would definitely not use the term bass monster at this point, but also would not consider them flabby either. Overall I like the balanced sound top to bottom and look forward to the improvements. I am optimistic that this will be the Grado for me based on initial listening.

 

[reorx]

After listening to my HF2s for a week on bowls, my TTVJ flats finally arrived.

After 3 days on flats, i conclude i prefer bowls.

With the flats, the sound is much more in-your-face, and the bass is more bone-rattling. What little soundstage the bowls provided is obliterated by the flats, and the listening experience is sooo much more upfront and visceral. Now this type of experience is good for some types of music (live music, acousitic guitars, chamber music), but for everything else, I prefer the bowls, as uncomfortable they are to my ears.

But im not letting go of my flats just yet...not when my pair is still burning in. Ill make another comparison when it passes the 150+ hour mark ...which may take a while since i dont actively burn my pair in, i just use my listening sessions as the burn in.

Now to save up for a pair of salad bowls....

 

[K3cT]

I find it curious that eventhough the HF2 is on the brighter side of things, it has close to zero sibilance.

 

[mikenyc]

After 70+ hours of burn in, I am really loving this phone. Really accurate tone as others have noted here. The bass is a little more prominent and tight. Still not a bass monster, but very balanced in my opinion. I have just really enjoyed listening to these today (Alison Krauss, Lenny Kravitz, Diana Krall, Porcupine Tree, Massive Attack, Miles Davis, and Eric Clapton to name a few). I guess that is what we are really looking for in a headphone. After my recent conversion from two channel, I think that I am really hooked on headphones now. Might have to spring for a Mapletree sooner than I had planned.

 

[cafe zeenuts]

Some impression with the Grado HF2…

Balanced Grado HF2(Stock bowls) with LD MK6 “NO” 100ohm adapter;
The Sound very raw and in your face with booming bass, headstage is very close and congested. But electric guitar was awesome… Didn’t gain anything by going balanced, overall sound is similar to single ended.


Balanced Grado HF2(Stock bowls) with LD MK6 100ohm adapter;
Totally transform the HF2 into something else. First is booming bass is gone, bass is now punchy and well control. Headstage is now deeper and wider, airy and 3D like. The same effect as you get from going balanced for the HD650 from single ended mode. Superb intrument seperation, the mids are now more transparent and high is smooth.


Balanced Grado HF2(Jumbo pads) with LD MK6 100ohm adapter;
The Jumbo pads have improve the headstage further, the sound are more refine and very balanced. Very comfortable, the highs on jumbo pads are brighter than the bowls.

The Grado HF2 with the Jumbo Pads are best combo IMO but YMMV…

Overall the Grado HF2 (jumbo pads) is a great headphone with the 100ohm adapter, not as accurate or detail as the HD650. But they’re great for rocks, pop and guitar jazz genre. The HF2 is a excellent addition to anyones collection with HD650. Senns HD650 for classical and Jazz and HF2 for rock,pop, etc etc… Can’t really go wrong with this setup IMO….

Cheers

 

[cafe zeenuts]

Even tho the HF2 are consider a darker phone then other grado headphones. I would not recommanding a pairing with colder sounding source and amps with the jumbos pads on HF2 it can sound bright in some circumstances.

 

[DoYouRight]

what 100ohm adapter are you referring to?

 

[Currawong]

My pair, which recently arrived, started out with loose bass and rough mids and treble, and have settled with tighter bass and smoothed out elsewhere. This happened very quickly, within 24 hours of use.

What's surprising for me is that, unlike the HF-1, which had a treble that was annoying with anything other than a fairly expensive amp, the HF-2 are more forgiving, sounding reasonable even out of an iPod, more so even than an ESW10JPN IMO. Now I understand why some people have even downgraded their amp when using them because a big, beefy amp isn't necessary for them.

I am a bit disappointed about some dents in one of the cups on mine, as well as the "Head-F1", but good sound is more important ultimately.

 

[cafe zeenuts]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DoYouRight /img/forum/go_quote.gif what 100ohm adapter are you referring to?

A DIY 4pin xlr 100ohm adapter. I use 4 X 51ohm resistor, one for each pin and one male neutrik 4pin xlr and one female 4pin xlr connector. Just solder the resistors in between the connectors.

 

[Covenant]

Ok, I'm not sure if the burn-in just reached critical mass, or if some minor tweaks I've made to my rig have made a radical change, or if its just my mood, but the HF-2 are sounding excellent tonight.

I had a few qualms about them over the last week, they seemed to have lost alot of their former grunt, with reduced dynamics and a somewhat 'polite' character that I didn't like. They seem to have got over that now and are hitting as hard as I want them to again.

 

[iponderous]

^ Sounds like brain burn-in rather than headphone burn-in to me. No offence but I'm sceptical of these "perceived" changes in sound signature that people report with their headphones. I regard it as the audio equivalent of the placebo effect.

 

[KevinR70]

I am very pleased with my HF2's. They sound nice out of the amp section of my Marantz CDP, they sound nice out of my portable predator amp, and they really sound nice plugged into my Zana Deux amp. The fact that they are worth more now than what I paid is icing on the cake. I've owned RS1's and GS1000's and prefer the HF2's over both. The HF2 has a better bottom end and takes a little edge off the top compared to the RS1 and 1000s, which I find too bright at times.

 

[spahn_ranch]

30 hours on my HF2. While I would like to hear my 500 hours RS1i with tubes, I'm in no great hurry to disconnect the HF2 from RA1. To convey my enjoyment so far with the new fones, this pops up:

JULES
We happy?

No answer from the transfixed Vincent.

JULES
Vincent!

Vincent looks up at Jules.

JULES
We happy?

Closing the case.

VINCENT
We're happy.

P.s.
John, Todd, Jude, name a Nobel prize you may fancy sharing. PM for details.

 

[The Uam]

Quote:

Originally Posted by spahn_ranch /img/forum/go_quote.gif 30 hours on my HF2. While I would like to hear my 500 hours RS1i with tubes, I'm in no great hurry to disconnect the HF2 from RA1. To convey my enjoyment so far with the new fones, this pops up: JULES We happy? No answer from the transfixed Vincent. JULES Vincent! Vincent looks up at Jules. JULES We happy? Closing the case. VINCENT We're happy. P.s. John, Todd, Jude, name a Nobel prize you may fancy sharing. PM for details.

Well said.... Well said...
Anyways, they made it to the post office! I'm going to get them in a couple minutes... ITS SOO EXITING!!!!

Edit: They just came in and are on my head right now... I am stunned...