[pcf]

Quote:

 
You listen to the HP 1000i all the time??? or you've literally moved away from Grado, and keep your collection safely locked in the attic?
 
You would call it a Grado break or do you really prefer, I don't know, your Stax, or your LCD-2?
 
 
Also please check your profile's bulletin board I asked a question that might require you to take back out your SR325 (with HP 1000 drivers) and any HP1 or 2/-i to compare to or maybe you won't need to do that at, if you already noticed that contrasting aspect of your these two headphones. Basically my HP1 sounds almost twice as loud (~3 dB, very noticeable, it's flagrant) as my SR325-0, at a given volume.

I use my HP-1i almost all the time for music. The other two pairs of HP2i are stored away as back-ups. Joe is working on another pair of HP2 for me.
I do use the Stax from time to time, they are great. My LCD2 is collecting dust somewhere in the house. 
The only problem I have is that the HP1000 are not practical for my work. I need close headphones. At the moment I use my Sony V6 and sometimes the Edition9. Might look into getting some good close back headphones in the near future. 

 

[devouringone3]

Sweet , me too. I think the HP 1000 does it right in all aspects, and is very competent in most area. It's not trying to push or emphasize any part of the spectrum, extension can be great (but you need to have good fit [to "focus" the music] with the headband; I just realized that I was missing all the deep bass of my HP1, so I moved to my SR325-0 [with lesser clamp] temporarily). It's giving you music, with openness, clarity, fullness, and more on the analytical side of things, to show everything there is to you, or to the studio engineer. You crank the volume and not get punched in the face by treble peaks, and bass is never stomping on the rest of the music.
 
Personally I also love the Grado format (effective design > aesthetics), comfort, pads that doesn't affect the sound, driveability, cups pivot on every angle, very durable. 
 
Which are why I decided to settle, buy a back-up, and give the rest of my money to Joe so that he upgrades my NOS HP2. I'm really glad I did.
 
 
Oh, the best closed (all rounder) headphone are the Fostex TH900, I'm almost sure they are, lol (okay... IMO).

 

[pcf]

I am interesting in hearing the Fostex, they might leak too much sound just like my Denon though.

 

[Chefguru]

Sweet , me too. I think the HP 1000 does it right in all aspects, and is very competent in most area. It's not trying to push or emphasize any part of the spectrum, extension can be great (but you need to have good fit [to "focus" the music] with the headband; I just realized that I was missing all the deep bass of my HP1, so I moved to my SR325-0 [with lesser clamp] temporarily). It's giving you music, with openness, clarity, fullness, and more on the analytical side of things, to show everything there is to you, or to the studio engineer. You crank the volume and not get punched in the face by treble peaks, and bass is never stomping on the rest of the music.

Personally I also love the Grado format (effective design > aesthetics), comfort, pads that doesn't affect the sound, driveability, cups pivot on every angle, very durable. 

Which are why I decided to settle, buy a back-up, and give the rest of my money to Joe so that he upgrades my NOS HP2. I'm really glad I did.


Oh, the best closed (all rounder) headphone are the Fostex TH900, I'm almost sure they are, lol (okay... IMO).

Did you happen to get your hp-2i back from joe yet? Some people were waiting super long as of recently just wanted to know if the process has been expedited yet.

 

[devouringone3]

Quote:

I am interesting in hearing the Fostex, they might leak too much sound just like my Denon though.

 
TH900 owners said they leaked more or less equally, oops . I didn't know the Denon AH-D bled music, but it must be due to their low isolation.
 
 
Quote:

Did you happen to get your hp-2i back from joe yet? Some people were waiting super long as of recently just wanted to know if the process has been expedited yet.

 
Oh yeah pcf has been waiting quite a lot already for his last pair, but I think Joseph (on the phone) is aware that he's not in a hurry to receive it (because he already has a couple to listen to in the meantime, lol), recstar has been waiting for his upgraded pads since January.
 
Mines weren't expedited yet, it's been 35 days, but it's okay it'll take the time it'll take. I will definitely give you all my impressions (in the HP2i/ii thread) and A/B it with my stock HP1, as soon as it arrives.
 

 

[pcf]

I have been waiting for a few months also. Apparently my pair is close to being done or at testing/breaking in stage. Joe hasn't been feeling too well recently so everything has slowed down a bit. With his birthday celebration coming up this week, I would expect him to take a little rest as well.
I am not in a hurry for mine really. 

 

[parbaked]

Quote:

Well done Pal! Lots of great info here.
Just want to add that there was another version of the black SR325 which had the HP1000 drivers which came after SR300. 
 
Black 325 with HP1000 drivers.
 
 
 

Do all the SR325 have plastic inner sleeves? Just curious if the HP1000 drivers are also glued plastic inners.
The wiki history doesn't mention plastic for the older SR325.
Thanks

 

[devouringone3]

Yes, vaguely the same shape of the Magnum aluminum inserts, but with no screw hole and plastic, made with Grado ABS plastic molding machine. Drivers are glued in place, just like that of a RS-1 but the glue seems harder, almost a cement, and is near-opaque and greenish yellow colored. Also it is/was more viscous (when applied and before drying), as it formed a slightly elevated (sometimes with depressed sections) circular-bubble/ring around the driver, instead of seeping almost completely into the space between the wood and the driver on a RS-1, RS-2 or PS-500-1000, HF1-2.
 
The same prevails for the SR1-2-300 but the inserts goes less deeper (and is shorter, not too stick out).

 

[parbaked]

Quote:

Yes, vaguely the same shape of the Magnum aluminum inserts, but with no screw hole and plastic, made with Grado ABS plastic molding machine. Drivers are glued in place, just like that of a RS-1 but the glue seems harder, almost a cement, and is near-opaque and greenish yellow colored. Also it is/was more viscous (when applied and before drying), as it formed a slightly elevated (sometimes with depressed sections) circular-bubble/ring around the driver, instead of seeping almost completely into the space between the wood and the driver on a RS-1, RS-2 or PS-500-1000, HF1-2.
 
The same prevails for the SR1-2-300 but the inserts goes less deeper (and is shorter, not too stick out).

Thanks for the info!

 

[Valicious]

This was an awesome read.  I've talked to multiple people who knock Grados for looking stupid, but I love the vintage design.

 

[SemiAudiophile]

they should've made this the grado fan club thread!

 

[parbaked]

Quote:

they should've made this the grado fan club thread!

+1 - D3 has a great balance of grado fan and realist. Valuable and enjoyable!

 

[devouringone3]

, you guys are super kind, thank you!
 
I started of as a Grado user (already big fan of the way they looked too, and also of the lower profile/smaller scale Grado, as a company), exactly one year ago when I bought my RS1 used on this forum, on the 11th of September (2011)! I really can't get enough of the Grado headphones you see in my signature... it's my collection but I rotate and use them all, above all my other few non-Grado headphones, and I'm satisfied this way. I've decided to stop seeking for headphones until I'm rich enough to afford Stax (which, knowing myself, I know that I will fall in love with them, there again). But I chose Grado to be my represent and archetype of all dynamics, and I'm staying with it (because I genuinely love it). I like the HP-1000 because of it's cool looking black star drivers and better measurements, but really I love all my Grados ("very much") equally. They all have a slight different flavor and charms; but I'm pretty sure I would love the present time Grados just as much, or the Magnums if I need a driver replacement one day. I'm definitely planning on purchasing a PS-1000 (or it's successor), but since it's not discontinued like the HP-1000, I will let some years go by to see what Grado will do in the future (releasing a golden PS-1000 anniversary edition, they would totally win me over ).
 
I've moved and begun University and I'm a bit busy. I reorganized my priorities and ultimately I can't spend as much time on Head-Fi... but I still reply to PMs and to my favorite, email-subscribed threads ... I'm a bit less into Grado but I've read pretty much all that there was there on the internet about them so (not so much really) so I'm monitoring, and my flame is still burning vividly.
 
Lately we've had a sale of a Grado speaker (released in 1961 according to the History), with very nice images, and I'm adding one to the first thread! parbaked also noticed it and posted it in the Grado fan club (in which I don't participate anymore ). 137.50 dollars for the winner, that's quite a good price for what you get. I've read three people from different forums, one on Head-Fi (that are all living with their pair) who were saying that it sounded like a HP-1000: super balanced, super smooth, and surprisingly not old sounding at all (which contradicts it's vintage appearance).
 
 
Since I'm in a dark room in a basement right now, and that it might get humid, I've chose to let most of my Grado collection at my moms house, safely stored. The only headphone I brought is my SR325i , I listen to it everyday while doing homework when I can't concentrate (thinking of other things, being distracted) or when it's noisy in the kitchen outside (we're 5 in that basement)... or just to play air guitar and sing release my crazy... and it could be at school too! Grado are quite portable for fullsizes, as long as you're not annoying anyone in a library

 

[-Shadow-]

Great post and super read, devouringone3.
 
Being a new Grado owner (SR80i), I really enjoyed the read and found the information very useful. Now all I have to do is decide if I want to go with a vintage pair for the next ones or get the newer ones....lol
 
Thanks again for the time and effort!!

 

[devouringone3]

The pleasure is mine! Be aware that most older Grados cost more than twice the SR80i, so it's a different ballpark you need to be ready for .
 
When they got released the SR80 and SR60 were relatively cheap compared to the rest of the Grado line up at the time. This hasn't changed much today, but vintage second hand Grado market price surpassed their own MSRP, and can be more expensive than a brand new PS-1000 today. If you're really lucky though, you can still find some vintage Grados for cheap from owners who don't care much about what they're worth on this forum.