Topic: Grado SR225 vs. Sennheiser HD-580

[Sean Gallemore]

the pics are totally diff

[Nick Culbreth]

the thing is, both the hd580 and the grado sr225 are aound $200.  the Grado R1's are in the range of $650 to $700.  closer to $500 more than the sr225.  but perhaps I should consider the sr325's or the r2's, or the hd600 or hd650's as well.  offhand, I can't recall how much more the hd650's were compared to the 580's.

you can get a pair of new hd580s off of ebay for around $150 and the new hd600s seem to go for around $250.  i've listened to both and the 600s sounded marginally better than the 580s, they're definately a more sturdy set of headphones since they're made of metal unlike the 580s which are made out of plastic.  i personally didn't think there was enough difference between the two to justify spending an extra $100.  i've heard good things about the hd650s (never actually listened to a pair) but they're much more expensive ($400ish).

my first upgrade on my playback was building a nice headphone setup and i couldn't be happier with my decision.  i think you'll get much more enjoyment out of a top notch headphone setup than you would out of a low end set of speakers.  i ended up spending around $400 on my headphone, amp, cable, and an extra set of tubes - i'd have to spend atleast 3x that to get a speaker setup even close to as nice as the headphones.  i know the 901 is out of my budget but if you can afford it, go for it and when you want to add a set of speakers you'll already have a kick ass d/a.

[jpschust]

[
my first upgrade on my playback was building a nice headphone setup and i couldn't be happier with my decision.  i think you'll get much more enjoyment out of a top notch headphone setup than you would out of a low end set of speakers.  i ended up spending around $400 on my headphone, amp, cable, and an extra set of tubes - i'd have to spend atleast 3x that to get a speaker setup even close to as nice as the headphones.  i know the 901 is out of my budget but if you can afford it, go for it and when you want to add a set of speakers you'll already have a kick ass d/a.

first off, as per a standalone d/a i dont know that id call it "kick ass", maybe really good, but thats not where the entirety of this piece of gear lies.  it lies in its ability to add amazingly clean gain on the pre side.  for 400 bucks, no you cant get a speaker setup with d/a and whatnot to equal what youd get from those headphones, but for 1200 or so yep you would :-)  I hold my ground!  Ni!

[Nick Culbreth]

first off, as per a standalone d/a i dont know that id call it "kick ass", maybe really good, but thats not where the entirety of this piece of gear lies.  it lies in its ability to add amazingly clean gain on the pre side.  for 400 bucks, no you cant get a speaker setup with d/a and whatnot to equal what youd get from those headphones, but for 1200 or so yep you would :-)  I hold my ground!  Ni!

i'll let you know about that when the maggies arrive and i find a suitable preamp and power amp.  

[JasonSobel]

I'm not familiar with the Grace amp myself but nothing sucks more than mismatching a headphone and an amp.  You might want to go lurk on head-fi for more info on that amp.

on Oade's old tech forum, there's some discussion on the 901.  there's one post by Mike Grace, in which he specifically recommends either the hd580s or the grados to use with the 901 amp.  I was seriously looking at those headphones before I read that, so after reading it, it certainly made me feel good about the choices, and took away the worries that these headphones might not be a good match for the 901.  I don't have the link handy now, because I'm at work.  if you go to Oade's old tech forum and search for "901" it shouldn't be too hard to find.

and gloco, in your opinion, are the Senn. headphones really "Veiled or hazy"  I've heard similar reviews about a more laidback sound, and less "fatiguing" than the Grados.  but I haven't heard that they are veiled or hazy.  please explain this further.  
again, I've listened to both headphones, although neither extensively, and not side by side.

thanks

[macdaddy]

I have heard the "uncomfortable" argument for the Grados, but honestly after owning the SR80s for about a week...I have definitely gotten used to it...and actually prefer it...

I completely agree. I have the sr125s, and you get used to the feel very quickly. And they sound very good...

warning - they also can get loud, so if you use them, be careful not to damage your hearing...

[George]

The 590s are different? Can you explain more, gloco? I'd been told they were more or less like the 580s sound but with a different feel on your head and a cord on only one side. I've only seen pics, though.

They are brighter than the 580's, 600's and 650's.  You might want to go lurk over at www.head-fi.org for a review of those cans.

[George]

and gloco, in your opinion, are the Senn. headphones really "Veiled or hazy"  I've heard similar reviews about a more laidback sound, and less "fatiguing" than the Grados.  but I haven't heard that they are veiled or hazy.  please explain this further.  
again, I've listened to both headphones, although neither extensively, and not side by side.

thanks

Yes, they definitely are veiled a little, it's almost like there's extra padding over the diaphragm disguising upper frequencies...that's what i mean by "veil" and "hazy."  The upper frequencies seem tamed (or rolled off?)which makes the headphones much less fatiguing than Grado cans for instance, which are very bright in comparison.  A lot of people blame the stock cable which come with the headphone, since their are aftermarket cables that do seem to remove this "veil" and bring out those upper frequencies to the forefront (based on comments and reviews at head-fi).  Check out www.headphone.com and click on the cables link, you'll see some aftermarket cables, be forewarned, they are quite expensive.  

[JasonSobel]

well, for those of you who are interested in what I decided to do, here goes...

first, I found a dealer in Boston that had the entire Grado line for me to listen to.  I asked to listen to the sr225's, the sr325's, and the rs2's.  I found the difference between the sr225's and the 325's to be subtle.   then I put on the rs2's.  huge difference, and I noticed it right away.  (fyi, I didn't listen to the rs1's)

ok, at this point, I know that I've got to compare the Senn HD600's to the rs2's.   the Tweeter store in Harvard Square had the hd600's on sale for $270, and they had a full money back for 30 days thing.  so I bought them, and went back to the Grado dealer with the Senn. in hand to do my comparison.

I'm not very good at describing sound, but here are my thoughts anyway.  The Grados are much more exciting to listen to.  They really seem more "up front" (whatever that is supposed to mean), but the sound definitely jumped out at me a lot more than the Senn. cans.

so I returned the hd600's on my way home, and I am now a happy owner of the grado rs2's

while all this was going on, I was checking out prices on the grace 901.  Oade was able to sell me an open box 901 that had been used for the stereophile review, w/ full warranty, for 100 bucks less than it would have been.  it will be here early next week.  

I'm psyched!

[George]

well, for those of you who are interested in what I decided to do, here goes...

first, I found a dealer in Boston that had the entire Grado line for me to listen to.  I asked to listen to the sr225's, the sr325's, and the rs2's.  I found the difference between the sr225's and the 325's to be subtle.   then I put on the rs2's.  huge difference, and I noticed it right away.  (fyi, I didn't listen to the rs1's)

ok, at this point, I know that I've got to compare the Senn HD600's to the rs2's.   the Tweeter store in Harvard Square had the hd600's on sale for $270, and they had a full money back for 30 days thing.  so I bought them, and went back to the Grado dealer with the Senn. in hand to do my comparison.

I'm not very good at describing sound, but here are my thoughts anyway.  The Grados are much more exciting to listen to.  They really seem more "up front" (whatever that is supposed to mean), but the sound definitely jumped out at me a lot more than the Senn. cans.

so I returned the hd600's on my way home, and I am now a happy owner of the grado rs2's

while all this was going on, I was checking out prices on the grace 901.  Oade was able to sell me an open box 901 that had been used for the stereophile review, w/ full warranty, for 100 bucks less than it would have been.  it will be here early next week.  

I'm psyched!

Well, what did you plug both headphones into?  If you used the headphone jack out of a source then yeah, the Grado's will sound leagues better.  The Senn's needs a amp and top it all off...burn in.   Congrats though, i'm sure you'll love the RS-2's!

[JasonSobel]

they store with the headphone had some real nice equipment there, not just headphones.  they had 4 or 5 listening rooms full of good stuff.  so they had a headphone amp for me to use.  I forget exactly what it was though... granted, the hd600's weren't burned in. but hey, the grado's just really jumped out at me as being the better set of phones.

[George]

they store with the headphone had some real nice equipment there, not just headphones.  they had 4 or 5 listening rooms full of good stuff.  so they had a headphone amp for me to use.  I forget exactly what it was though... granted, the hd600's weren't burned in. but hey, the grado's just really jumped out at me as being the better set of phones.

Hehe, that's cool man.  Now prepare to get the urge to listen to your entire music collection over again!