[Scornergy]

I purchased my Grado 225's almost 10 years ago.  Back then, everyone I knew were talking about grado vs sennheiser headsets and those that were made of money talked about Stax and thousand dollar or more amps.  Now, I hardly see anyone talk about Grado's headsets for anything except the cheap entry level SR60's.  What happened and When? 
 
I have a nice set of SR225's with a DIY impedance matched amp. 
 
What prompted this question was a desire to upgrade my setup came here, and not only were all the brands and models I knew discontinued, but the general consensus is "there's better elsewhere" and "poor build quality." 
 
Here's my "I want a better/upgraded system" post on the "buying headphones" thread:
 
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/529144/buying-headphones-seeking-guidance-don-t-start-a-new-thread-ask-for-advice-here/1575#post_7282745
 
Open to comments, suggestions, answers, etc.

 

[keanex]

I'm not sure what threads you're reading, but around here Grado are still considered "king of rock" though I prefer my Ad900 to the Sr225i. If you like Grado, look into the 325i, though I doubt you'll like them if the 225i caused fatigue. The Rs1 might be more palatable. There's others more expensive than that, but I think they'll run you out of your price range unless you find used GS1000.

 

[Melvins92]

king of rock. there is none higher

 

[JamesMcProgger]

Either they gone old and the other companies grew while Grado was trying to stay the same. Still, they have a pretty good reputation.

 

[joelpearce]

Like a few brands, they are unparalleled at what they do well, but it seems to be a fairly narrow range.  For some people, it's worth it.
 
caveat: I haven't heard the high-end Grados.

 

[nikongod]

I would say its more a reflection on head-fi
 
Its not that anything has changed in grado-land. Well the truly high end headphones cost more now, and sound worse than the older high end grados, but the real problem is the forum.
 
Where people used to discuss headphones here, and look for their next upgrade people now seem to be coming to head-fi to find an entry into the hoby and are totally happy with low-end-rubbish, and mid tier jokes. 

 

[desktophifi]

Grado's rep is good, most of friends i have (metal/rock lovers) enjoy their sound signature. Some also find them good for hip-hop (Higher end models)

 

[ArmAndHammer]

Grados are great for more than just rock. They do just about anything acoustic very well, jazz, blue grass, blues, folk...even some electronica does excellent with Grados as long as it isn't bass heavy. This is the case with my 325's at least...other models may vary.

 

[joelpearce]

Quote:

I would say its more a reflection on head-fi
 
Its not that anything has changed in grado-land. Well the truly high end headphones cost more now, and sound worse than the older high end grados, but the real problem is the forum.

While this post is a bit aggressive (I'm not looking for a fight), I definitely think that Grados do tend to hit one snag for people who are new to headphones or high-end audio.  They really shine with well-recorded, well-encoded music through a good source, and highlight the flaws in low-bitrate, compressed files delivered from an amp that can't handle complex passages.  Many of the headphones that generally get recommended to new arrivals are ones that are forgiving for lousy recordings, and thus don't shine as much on good recordings.
 
The best sounding headphones I own sound awful on poor recordings.

 

[keanex]

As a former Grado owner I have to say I don't think they are great cans to own as a single pair if you listen to a variety of genres. The Sr80i and Sr225i I owned and I kept them mostly for rock. I was very excited to hear my Sr225i after reading great reviews here, but sadly sold them on here 5 days later after determining that I liked my Ad900 better for everything, including rock.

 

[spaceconvoy]

Quote:

Where people used to discuss headphones here, and look for their next upgrade people now seem to be coming to head-fi to find an entry into the hoby and are totally happy with low-end-rubbish, and mid tier jokes. 

Don't forget those who need their hand held through every agonizing decision... I seriously just read someone asking which music he should play when he gets his new headphones. What is wrong with people?

 

[joelpearce]

Quote:

Don't forget those who need their hand held through every agonizing decision... I seriously just read someone asking which music he should play when he gets his new headphones. What is wrong with people?

I haven't been here that long, but I think every forum hits some serious growing pains as it gains popularity, gets flooded by new members, and the original users no longer find their needs being met.

 

[nikongod]

Forums do need to grow and cycle members, but the question is:
Is head-fi? There dont seem to be enough people interested in "finding their sound" to keep head-fi hopping with "new" as opposed to "right now"

 

[joelpearce]

Quote:

Forums do need to grow and cycle members, but the question is:
Is head-fi? There dont seem to be enough people interested in "finding their sound" to keep head-fi hopping with "new" as opposed to "right now"

I hear you.  I just wish finding my sound wasn't so expensive and time-consuming.  I feel like I'm so close, but I'm getting limited by both time and budget.  It's true, though, that there aren't enough discussions that get deep or detailed enough to be helpful.
 
I can't help but wonder if the new site features (forums, reviews, etc.) might help with that once more people get a chance to utilize them and figure out how to navigate them.
 

 

[nickchen]

With all the spectacular efforts that have been issued recently (The new Senn & Beyer flagships, the new high res orthos), Grado's backyard garage appearance has become a bit pale indeed. And I think more & more folks don't take them that serious any more. Another point is that their musical bandwidth is rather on the narrower side, they are first and foremost rockers, and rock and its subgenres become more and more grandpa music. And of course there's always the issue with Grado's **coughs** "cheerful" build quality.