Can anyone suggest good audiophile headphones? Grado's?

Archived from groups: rec.audio.high-end (More info?)

On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 17:21:53 +0000, Billy Shears wrote:

> I'm looking for a nice pair of audiophile headphones priced between
> $150.00 to $300.00 (no more). I don't have a great deal of knowledge
> about high-end headphones but I was hoping someone could suggest me
> something that they've had experience using. I'll be mainly using
> these for listening to vinyl records and more so along the lines of
> classic rock than any other genre of music.
>
> I've been looking around the internet and reading reviews, etc. on
> good audiophile headphones and it seems like I keep coming back to
> products by Grado Labs; website: http://www.gradolabs.com/. It seems
> mutual that they produce uncomfortable headphones, but that it's the
> price to pay for the highest quality sounding product. Has anyone used
> any of Grado's stuff and is it any good? I've had my eye on their SR
> 225's and their SR 325's. The SR 325's look absolutely great and I
> would be willing to invest that money if I knew for sure it was worth
> it. I've read that some people think they are [SR 325's] overly bass
> driven, thus only really good with hip-hop like music. Is this true at
> all? Or will they still work great with presenting classic rock
> sounds? Other than that I've heard really good things about Sennheiser
> headphones too; Grado and Sennheiser sounded like the two best
> companies out there in the audiophile world. If anyone has used
> another headphone, that would be great to hear about them too. I
> haven't really looked at headphone amps either but I've noticed that a
> lot of people suggest them if you are going to get high-end
> headphones. Are headphone amps necessary to get your money's worth?
> And are there any anyone could suggest? I know that's a lot of
> questions but any input would be highly appreciated, since I'm not
> looking to blow $300.00 on something I don't want or that is over
> priced. Thanks.

As a small project studio owner as well as a musician and audiophile I
will tell you that you must go and listen to headphones for yourself
before you make a choice.

They all look good in print!

Personally, as a person who wears cans a good deal of the day when I am
working an uncomfortable set of phones is like a speaker that sounds great
but requires you to remodel your home in order to use it.

Bottom line is don't even consider a set of cans that feel uncomfortable
on YOUR ears because you will be miserable.
Don't listen to anyone's test reports, try them out for yourself.

My collection includes some Sony 7506, MDR6's, AKG 240's and a couple of
Sennheisers complete with yellow foam pads.

I would offer up AKG's being that you like rock music.
They have good low end and are extremely comfortable.
They are also pretty neutral compared to say the Sony's which have a real
crisp high end which is useful for hearing defects in recordings but is
tiring for general listening.


Try and stick with either closed or semi-open designs because they
typically offer better bass response than totally open air designs.

As far as Grado is concerned they make an excellent product and many
people that come to my studio bring grado's with them.
Personally I find that they don't sit well on my head

Maybe my head is out of shape

Seriously though, take a CD and give a listen.


--
Elliot Zimmerman
"Life is Precious"

Archived from groups: rec.audio.high-end (More info?)

On 4/28/04 12:27 PM, in article HXQjc.49228$GR.6944288@attbi_s01, "jwest"
<jwest@nyc.rr.com> wrote:

> Those are both good choices. I have the senn 580. I describe it as full
> range but a trifle "polite". They need a good headphone section/amp to
> sound their best. Grados are also very good, try them both, then decide. I
> think headroom has a 30 day try out period. Order both then keep the pair
> you like best. www.headphone.com.

Yikes! If he does that he might end up keeping them both!!!!! :-)

Seriously, though, I tried a SEN 580 and a Grado 225 and kept the Grado - it
didn't seem quite as smooth (though smooth enough for classical) as the Sen,
but boy did it sound good!

And I can power it right from my CD player with a 1/4" to 1/8" adapter. I
didn't care for the 60, 80 or 125 Grados.

Archived from groups: rec.audio.high-end (More info?)

We sell both Grado and Sennheiser products and they are both quite
nice. They do have the differences already noted. Ergonomically it
really boils down to how they fit as the Grado sits on the ear and the
Sennheisers cover the ear. Different people find them to feel more or
less comfortable, but only once in a blue moon do I ever hear anyone
actually complain about either being so uncomfortable that they don't
use them. Actually 99% of all the Grado customers love them and have
no complaints at all. We have sold over six pair to one customer who
gives them away as gifts and he reports the reason is that everyone
that gets a pair loves them. The Sennheisers are heavier and cover the
whole ear and half your head. I am not a heaqphones person as I prefer
to listen to loudspeakers for several reasons, but I do have good
hearing and can appreciate a nice sounding pair of cans.
Sonically the Grado phones are more pure in tone and this bears out in
them being more efficient and lower in distortion/coloration. They
have a much more pronounced midrange althouth they have excellent bass
and high frequency response and resolution. The Sennheisers sound
warmer, fuller and duller by comparison so they are easy to listen to
and some people prefer that with pop music. You may like the added
bass richness for classic rock ala Zepplin. I like the Grado sound
best for it's clarity and for the money it's no contest. There is
something to say for the warmth and the fit of the Sennheisers and if
you are willing to spend a bit more (there is a lot more material that
goes into making the Sennheisers) then you can get a set that has a
nice resolution as well as the heavy build, but not at the same price
point. They are clearly different designs and both really should be on
your short list. AKG is another brand that offers great performance,
but also can suffer from the lack of efficiency as the Sennheisers.
You will find that the Grados work with more types of players to a
higher level than the other two types. The AKG and Sennheisers can
really sound nice if given a really nice preamp to drive them, but
that being the case they are somewhat demanding. They are also fairly
expensive yet deliver a fine quality product.
-Bill
www.uptownaudio.com
Roanoke VA
(540) 343-1250

"Billy Shears" <dvdalord@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:REwjc.30363$0u6.5322877@attbi_s03...
> I'm looking for a nice pair of audiophile headphones priced between
> $150.00 to $300.00 (no more). I don't have a great deal of knowledge
> about high-end headphones but I was hoping someone could suggest me
> something that they've had experience using. I'll be mainly using
> these for listening to vinyl records and more so along the lines of
> classic rock than any other genre of music.
>
> I've been looking around the internet and reading reviews, etc. on
> good audiophile headphones and it seems like I keep coming back to
> products by Grado Labs; website: http://www.gradolabs.com/. It seems
> mutual that they produce uncomfortable headphones, but that it's the
> price to pay for the highest quality sounding product. Has anyone
used
> any of Grado's stuff and is it any good? I've had my eye on their SR
> 225's and their SR 325's. The SR 325's look absolutely great and I
> would be willing to invest that money if I knew for sure it was
worth
> it. I've read that some people think they are [SR 325's] overly bass
> driven, thus only really good with hip-hop like music. Is this true
at
> all? Or will they still work great with presenting classic rock
> sounds? Other than that I've heard really good things about
Sennheiser
> headphones too; Grado and Sennheiser sounded like the two best
> companies out there in the audiophile world. If anyone has used
> another headphone, that would be great to hear about them too. I
> haven't really looked at headphone amps either but I've noticed that
a
> lot of people suggest them if you are going to get high-end
> headphones. Are headphone amps necessary to get your money's worth?
> And are there any anyone could suggest? I know that's a lot of
> questions but any input would be highly appreciated, since I'm not
> looking to blow $300.00 on something I don't want or that is over
> priced. Thanks.
>