[jersey_emt]

My current collection of headphones consists of the following:

IEM's:
Shure E500
Etymotic ER-4P (with P->S adaptor)

Full size headphones:
Grado iGrado
Grado SR-80
Grado SR-225
AKG K701

Headphone amps:
Meier Audio Corda HEADSIX
Xenos X1HA-EPC
Darkvoice 336i (with several sets of additional tubes)

Well, I've made two purchases that I think will round out my collection quite nicely.

First up is the Sennheiser HD580. I owned an HD555 for a short while and enjoyed the Sennheiser 'house sound', but needed to consolidate and ended up selling them after about 2 months of ownership. I found a pair of HD580's for sale here for a fair price and I jumped on it. This will be an excellent addition to my collection -- it has a very different sound signature compared to my Grados and AKG's.

Second up is something that I've been eyeing for quite some time: the legendary Grado HF-1's. However, the prices that they have been fetching have been completely unreasonable IMO. I did see some go for prices that are still high, but much lower than normal, and definitely fair. However, these have always went so fast. I got lucky and found one that was being sold (#439) for a very fair price, and just like the HD580's, I jumped on it with a vengeance. Now, with these, I will be selling the SR-80's and the SR-225's to help cover the cost of the HF-1's. While the price I paid was extremely fair, it was by no means cheap, so I need to recover some of the cost by getting rid of some of my lesser Grado's. I am keeping the iGrados for portable use, and the HF-1's will replace both the SR-80's and SR-225's for home and work use. So, if anyone is looking for a Grado SR-80 or Grado SR-225 keep an eye on the For Sale forums as these will be going up for sale once I receive my HF-1's.

The HD580's are in transit and will arrive tomorrow. The HF-1's have not yet shipped -- they will do so tomorrow -- so hopefully, I will receive them by the end of this week.

God, I can't wait!! Anybody else get as excited as I do when new, excellent headphones are coming your way?

I'll be posting photos and initial impressions as soon as each one arrives.
I have to say I am as giddy as a schoolgirl over this.

 

[boomana]

Congrats. You have a nice collection, and I can personally vouch for how nice the two you're adding are. I'm listening to HF1s as I type. Enjoy.

 

[XXII]

HF-1s are a great pair of headphones. I have a headphile modded HF-1 and with my current set up I don't feel the need to upgrade my headphones at all.

 

[MONVMENTVM]

Noo... Stop talking about how great the HF-1 are. I mean... they are, but I plan to sell mine soon, but you guys somehow make me feel bad about it and I'll probably regret selling them.

That's really hard...

 

[nickchen]

Wasn't too impressed by SR225 and SR325, but the HF1 was something I found astonishingly good.

 

[grawk]

The woodied HF1s are my end game dynamic headphones...

 

[jersey_emt]

And the HD580's have arrived!

Initial impressions are very good. Much warmer and 'round' sound compared to my K701's and Grados.

 

[jersey_emt]

After listening to the HD580's for several hours over the past day, my current impressions agree with my initial impressions. The sound is warm, round, smooth, and 'effortless' (and enhanced by the higher level of comfort compared to my Grados and AKG K701's). However, this does not come free; there is a price to be paid. That price is a less 'engaging' sound than my other full-size headphones. Not a real decrease in detail, but it definitely has the 'Sennheiser Shroud' often discussed here. Don't get me wrong, I think these headphones sound wonderful and I am very happy with my purchase and how the vast difference in sound signature of the HD580's greatly complement my AKG K701's and my Grados.

On another good note, my HF-1's have shipped! I may receive them by the end of this week, but it looks like early next week will be more realistic. I can't wait!

 

[rodentdog]

Congratulations. I have HF-1, and have owned HD-580. Sold them (the senn snooze). I used and loved senns for many years before I got the HF-1. I guess I've switched to Team Grado. The HF-1 are my favorite cans. I have my K-340 at Headphile as I type being upgraded. These will replace the HD-580's. Thinking about have the HF-1 headphiled in the future. Cheaper than therapy, I guess.

 

[LeonWho]

You lucky son of a ...

All I have (worth mentioning) are KSC75's.

 

[jersey_emt]

And my HF-1's have arrived! They are pretty much exactly what I expected -- a similar sound to my SR-225's, but more refined and smoother, without sacrificing detail or clarity.

Porcupine Tree (one of my favorite bands) sound absolutely stunning.

Pics to come!