[newphones]

I got my pair and would like to hear other's feedback and impressions of the budget model in the grado prestige line, the igrado's.
 
I'm certainly not here as a 'sponsor' or 'fanboy.' I welcome both praise as well as criticism of these headphones. Without further ado, here are some very early impressions:
 
1. build quality, from a strictly visual/esthetic perspective, looks to be absolutely rock bottom at first. The plastic moulds look low grade even by dollar tree standards.
 
2. fit is...well, interesting. If you don't position the pads correctly, you're in for a lot of discomfort. Once you do position the pads correctly, you realize that they place a lot of pressure on the ears. I believe I have grown accustomed to the fit very quickly, but initially, it's not easy to be positively impressed.
 
3. sound quality: out of the box, the sound signature seems to be almost exactly what I wanted: a happy compromise between the dark, bassy portapros, and the light airy koss ksc75's. It's been a long time since I've listened to ksc75's, but those seemed to have slightly steelier, more fatiguing highs.
 
The boost or coloration of igrado's is clearly higher than the upper mids, but it's not enough of a treble boost to make the phones sound shrill. There's definitely room there for more 'air' and sparkle. But again, with the tradeoff being that such a sound signature is far more likely to be fatiguing.
 
I only listened to a handful of songs at low volume, just to be on the cautious side.
 
I'll let you know how these burn in after 24-50 hours.

 

[KimChee]

I liked these when I owned them a long time ago, however I wish they had made a little nicer headband and one not street-style.  I have a weight lifter's neck so it never worked out lol.  I was shocked at how dark these sounded compared to the Grado 60s, especially considering they use the same driver.  

 

[HamilcarBarca]

Quote:

[...]
1. build quality, from a strictly visual/esthetic perspective, looks to be absolutely rock bottom at first. The plastic moulds look low grade even by dollar tree standards.
 
2. fit is...well, interesting. If you don't position the pads correctly, you're in for a lot of discomfort. Once you do position the pads correctly, you realize that they place a lot of pressure on the ears. I believe I have grown accustomed to the fit very quickly, but initially, it's not easy to be positively impressed.
 
3. sound quality: out of the box, the sound signature seems to be almost exactly what I wanted: a happy compromise between the dark, bassy portapros, and the light airy koss ksc75's. It's been a long time since I've listened to ksc75's, but those seemed to have slightly steelier, more fatiguing highs.

 
I have the Grado SR325is and I nearly agree with your assessment (but yours is of the iGrado.)
 
1. Build quality is well above Dollar-Tree standards. However, for $300, both attention to design and Q/C are definitely lacking.
 
2. Fit is haphazard. During the first few days of listening, they caused me significant discomfort. It didn't take long to get used to them. Recent, I've bent the headband a few times to make them snugger but, to repeat myself, the fit is  haphazard.
 
3. The sound signature is almost exactly what I expected and wanted. Unfortunately, I still experience "listener fatigue" after a few hours. I don't find the Sennheiser HD-650 or Beyerdynamic DT 990 Premium or T 70 fatiguing at all.
 
Even with these complaints, I must say that I really like them.

 

[Zasteba]

Quote:

 
I have the Grado SR325is and I nearly agree with your assessment (but yours is of the iGrado.)
 
1. Build quality is well above Dollar-Tree standards. However, for $300, both attention to design and Q/C are definitely lacking.
 
2. Fit is haphazard. During the first few days of listening, they caused me significant discomfort. It didn't take long to get used to them. Recent, I've bent the headband a few times to make them snugger but, to repeat myself, the fit is  haphazard.
 
3. The sound signature is almost exactly what I expected and wanted. Unfortunately, I still experience "listener fatigue" after a few hours. I don't find the Sennheiser HD-650 or Beyerdynamic DT 990 Premium or T 70 fatiguing at all.
 
Even with these complaints, I must say that I really like them.

I have to agree with the 'listener fatigue'. My ears were constantly brushing up against the driver housing...

 

[ElmersEAR]

I have had a pair of iGrados for about 5 years. The cord has been repaired twice then replaced with a cord from a pair of Coby headphones I bought for $1. Sad to say the Coby cord is far more robust has been much more durable than the stock cord.
 
I am mostly confused by headphone reviews. All those buzzwords to describe a reviewers subjective experience don't really tell me what I need to know. I've only found one good test that works for me. If after listening to the headphone for a while do I forget about the headphone and think only about the music? The iGrados are the least expensive headphone that passes the test.
 
On the downside the iGrados are the most uncomfortable headphone I have ever worn. Usually I have a high tolerance for uncomfortable headphones, but these phones pinched my head so hard I stopped using them for a while. The phones were even more uncomfortable, if that is possible, when I wore glasses.
 
I solved the comfort problem buy removing the phones from that torturous head band and mounting them on a headband from another cheap set of phones. This was quite easy to do and the phones felt great. Now I use my iGrados almost all the time. I love them.
 
Recently I re-installed the drivers on an old surplus military headphone band. Now the phones look truly unique, and are still very comfortable.
 
I'm always looking for broken IGrados. As long as the elements are okay they can be rebuilt and modified.
 
Bruce