Grado PS1000 - Headphones ( ear-cup ) Review

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(More customer reviews)I started to listen with Grado cans since I was in China years ago, from sr80, sr325, rs1, mpro, gs1000 until this ps1000. Among them gs1000 gave the deepest impressions, cause it's been so different from its predecessors by the huge sound filed plus the heavy bass, this mostly aroused my desire to own a pair of PS1000 which is 80% more expensive. PS1000 didn't show a striking or ,say comprehensive boost compared with GS1000. It has a little bit smaller soundstage and heavier bass than GS1000, but the good thing about PS1000 is It's a balanced headphone with high quality in playing back all kinds of music and at the same time preserve the grado-style sound, here I mean "passion". I am not encouraging you to buy it, but it is the best phone that grado has ever made.

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Grado is proud to introduce the new flagship of their headphone line, the PS1000. This hybrid design has an inner sleeve of a selected species of hand-crafted mahogany made by using an intricate curing process. Its outer housing of metal machined from a special non-resonant, very hard metal alloy utilizes a special processing and casting method to increase the porosity of the alloy. This combination of wood and metal insures that the earphone chamber has no "ringing" which might obscure detail or add coloration. The way the wood and metal housing moves air and reacts to sound vibrations is now virtually unaffected by transient distortions. Grado has also designed a new cable for the PS1000. The new eight-conductor cable design, utilizing UHPLC (ultra-high purity, long crystal) copper, improves control and stability of the total range of the frequency spectrum. The PS1000 also utilizes a newly re-configured voice coil and diaphragm design, resulting in unsurpassed speed and accuracy response. The cushion design creates the correct balance between the driver and hybrid housing to give the resulting musicality desired. The cushion design also makes the PS1000 one of the most comfortable to wear headphones in the world. Grado has taken all their knowledge and years of experience in controlling resonances and eliminating distortions and this has culminated in the development of their finest headphone ever, the PS1000.

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AKG Q701Premium Class Reference Headphones, Quincy Jones Signature Line Review

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(More customer reviews)I've gone through so many headsets. By far these are the best. In the past year I have gone through 4 pairs of beats by dres, a pair of solo's, and some of the in ear headsets. Beats kept breaking, solo's just aren't that comfortable and the in ear beats just don't stay in your ear, even with changing out the ear pieces.
Only complaints about the Q701, Quincy Jones signature line ones, if you consider this a complaint is that the cord is long, which is great I've always wanted have one as long as they are but it would be nice to have a shorter one as well. It's atleast 8 ft long even longer. Always wanted to have one that long but it's just a hassle if im at work using them. And it would be great if they came with or you could get a case for them.
Other than that, they are AWSOME. I never write reviews about products I have purchased, but had to say something about these. I have been trying to get a pair like this for the longest time. Even smelt like a new car or boat when I took them out of the box. And the music sounds AMAZING, and never had a pair as comfortable as these. The beats would hurt my ears after a while, but these don't even touch my ears and the adjustment works really well. Unlike my beats which would keep braking.
Final note, if you are willing to spent the money, I suggest these. Def. worth the money, I'm even thinking about buying another pair just for work so I don't have to cary them around with out a case.

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Music has never sounded better or closer than with the Quincy Jones Signature Series Q701 Reference Class Headphones. Sparkling harmonics,incredible low distortion and unequalled realism in the lower frequencies - it's the huge, airy, three dimensional sound that's been only available in the finest high end speaker systems and microphones. Now, we've engineered it into the most accurate and responsive reference headphones we've ever produced, the Q701. Hear music exactly as the artist intended.

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Grado RS1i Reference Series Headphones Review

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(More customer reviews)I am extremely happy that Amazon.com started stocking Grado products.
To audiophiles, Grado is a very big name. Grado makes some of the world's best consumer turntable catridges, and makes some of the most notoriously fun, musical headphones out there.
The Grado RS-1 headphones are the second-most expensive Grado headphones on the market now. The PS-1 is a limited-edition headphone that is very seldom-made (but it is in production currently) that contains some of the best detail, fluidity, warmth, and excitement than any other headphone. However, the RS-1s are very close to the specifications of this headphone.
The Grado Reference Series 1 is, in my opinion, the true audiophile way to ENJOY your music. Others may say that they do not like the musicality, because it has a very colored sound. Audiophiles normally know that this is not good because it doesn't "faithfully" reproduce the information on your record/CD properly. However, I don't always want to sit there and listen to the minor details of my music. Sometimes I just want to rock out and enjoy myself as much as possible, which is where the Grado RS1 headphones take the responsibility of fulfilling this for me.
The RS1 headphones at first are going to look very cheap to those who are not familiar with them. The headband is leather, but it is thin. The earcups do not surround the ear at all, they just touch them. This is a very open headphone, so outside noise will come in, and your sound will leak.
But these are all very obvious and welcome shortcomings. This leads to a very good performing headphone. While they may not be as comfortable as the Senns, they are definitely faster, more enjoyable, and contain a much more fluid sound than the Sennheiser HD650s. If you want to listen to Rock on these headphones, particularly bands from the seventies and eighties, these are the best option you will have.
Another great thing about the headphones is that they are really easy to drive without the presence of a headphone amplifier. I have experienced, however, that with my Perreaux SXH-1 amp, it really improves the sound quality. Things that the Grado sound lacks are dynamic range and midrange neutrality, but the amp was able to tone down the midrange and bass was much more dynamic than before.
If you wanna have some of the best sound quality on the planet from a name you can trust, then you will want to go with a Grado headphone. Everything from Classical to Metal sounds amazing on these headphones. They are extremely versatile, are durable even though they look like they were from WW2, and, best of all, they are some of the best sounding headophones you can buy. Male vocals, drums, wailing guitars, you name it - Grado will reproduce it faithfully.
Some albums I recommend on the Grado RS1:
Pink Floyd - The Wall
The Doors - Morison Hotel
Todd Rundgren - Something Anything
Neil Young - After the Goldrush
Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick
Happy listening!

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What does the i stand for in the new RS1i from Grado? Improved, that's what! Featuring a new species of handcrafted Mahogany earpieces made using an intricate curing process; Grado has been able to optimize the tonal quality. The RS1i uses new upgraded dynamic transducers and the new 8 conductor cable design all in an open-air configuration, the cups being open-backed. The result is a smooth, controlled and coherent sound with detailed dynamics. Frequency response ranges from 12-30 kHz and the drivers are matched to 0.05dB. Weighing 9oz, the headphones are an example of the wonder of Mother Nature with a gorgeous, dark-colored Mahogany look.

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Grado GR8 In-Ear Headphones Review

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(More customer reviews)The sound of the Grado earphones is very good. It is balanced. It is not weak either in the upper end or in the bass. The sound production seems very accurate, but also really fun. These earphones have that Grado sound which is very lively. I have used them both for classical music and jazz. They are surprisingly good in classical music. They are very clean sounding. I listened to them on an Ipod with a Leckerton headphone amplifier which is under $200.00. It comes with three different sizes of ear gels, but none was quite big enough for me to achieve a good seal which is necessary for proper bass response. I used a T 400 Comfort Foam Tip which did the trick for me. I noticed that Westone, Shure and Etymotic all include foam earpieces to ensure that their earphones achieve a good seal. If a listener (particularly a newbie to high end earphones) first tries earphones and does not get a good fit, they feel cheated or at least very disappointed. Hopefully, Grado will see fit to include some alternative foam tips in their packaging for future models.
The best thing about these earphones is that they have a very good sound stage. I listen primarily to jazz and classical music. Both are essentially "acoustic" in nature. You can actually detect "sound stage" and placement of instruments with these earphones which I believe is not very common in earphones.
The individual earphones ae very compact which is very convenient. There are three negatives to these earphones. The packaging is very sparce. It comes with the standard three ear gels which are always too small for me to get a good seal. Secondly, the earphones do not come with a little carrying case. This is a mistake. They could have a small pouch like comes with the Etymotics if they wanted to save money. After all, they are portable for people on the move. The investment is too dear to not want to take care of them. The good news is that there are a few sources for inexpensive zippered cases. If Grado included a carrying case, it would complete the picture for me. Don't be discouraged though. You can buy a very cheap carrying case. It does improve the comfort and sound experience. Lastly, the wiring seems to get tangled rather easily. I am using an old Shure case with a spool in the middle to wrap the cables around to ensure that they do not tangle. Even though the wiring can easily tangle, the wires are not particularly "microphonic" in that they do not seem to actually magnify the sound of the wires rubbing against anything while you move. The Klipsch Image is a wonderful tiny earphone where the wires are extremely microphonic which can be irritating.
PS. I recently got some black flex tips which allows me to get a good seal with the earphones. I got them on Sweetwater from the Amazon website. It is great because the tips have a rather large opening which makes it easier to put slip them onto the Grado earbud and the Audio Technica earbuds. It provides another alternative along with the Comply Comfort Tips which are wonderful.
All in all, these earphones really sound fun. That Grado sound is like a terrific desert.

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A proprietary wide bandwidth moving armature design provides the listener with unsurpassed performance. Small size allows earphone to nestle well within the ear canal, maintaining an excellent air seal for improved bass and reduction of outside noise without causing discomfort.

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Grado Prestige Series SR225i Headphones Review

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(More customer reviews)I'm a grad student with no money and inexplicably picky tastes in audio equipment. Having acquired a high-end digital stage piano, I've spent the last few months piecing together a suitable setup for home use; in my case, 'suitable' means near-reference grade, but at a cost not exceeding what I can pilfer from Sallie Mae's purse.
Despite the fact that I play and listen mostly at night, I viewed headphones in proportion to their size: reluctantly, I splurged on a $30 pair of Sony oil-barrels.
But after a few weeks of headaches and ringing ears, I headed down to a boutiquey little sound emporium in Boston, having committed myself to spending $100, once and for all, on some SR80s.
Given the opportunity, though, I sat down in a studio and worked my way through the entire three-figure-price spectrum of headphones.
Grado yielded the most promising batch of candidates, but I was surprised at the variance among them: the product specs you read online for Grado really fails to emphasize this. The SR80s were everything I had expected, but then, the SR125s were identifiably more adept at rendering distinct voices within a choir.
Then, foolishly, I clamped on a pair of 225s: bass pours into your head with effortless clarity, background instruments that I never even heard on my old ear-traps were not only present, but warmly textured, etc. When I got them home, $175 later, I decided to baptize them by fire with a mix of Beck and Ben Folds Live, which I find stubbornly muggy at high bass and volume.
The 225s have revealed a completely unknown layer of instrumentation in some of my favorite Beck tracks -- I don't just mean there's a new cello back there: I mean there's a flute, a panpipe, a tapdancer, and a fat booger hanging out of the cellist's nose. As for the live recordings of Ben Folds, not only did the bottom-end piano hold up amidst the hum of the crowd, but you can actually hear people talking to each other in the audience in a couple of tracks that were recorded, it's now evident, in a small theater.
And as for my own piano, I can say that playing through headphones is no longer less desirable than through a set of very commendable Infinity speakers -- especially when I have the phones plugged into my amp instead of the piano itself.
I don't care how broke you are: if you listen attentively to your music -- and you have a quality home amp or receiver to drive these headphones to their potential -- you will not look back,
You might, however, benefit from calling around town... the internet isn't always the best deal for these sorts of products.

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The SR225i has an increased airflow by 50% which is achieved through an improved rear metal screen and closer matched drivers. The result is an enlarged soundstage achieved from closer driver tolerances, while the improved rear screen frees the headphone from colorations.

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