Sol
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Post by Sol on Dec 20, 2007 10:56:52 GMT
I'm sitting here working away from home (well not exactly workoing while I'm posting this of course) listening to Kris Drever on my Cowon A2, to a cheap and cheerful portable amp, and into my Grado 325i. Perefctly fine sound, but not the best. nayhow .. this is the first time I've listened to the Grados for a while as I favour the HD650's thorugh the 2008 Solo at home.
jeesh i hadn't realised how much the Grados hurt your bloody ears. Any tips anyone on making these fekkers more comfortable?
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Post by PinkFloyd on Dec 20, 2007 12:47:55 GMT
You can change the pads (bowls, flat, HD414 etc.) or you can simply sell them and invest in a pair of ATH-W1000 which are a lot more comfy on the old noggin. I had a pair of SR-325i and must admit they were the most uncomfortable 'phones I have ever placed on my head.
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Sol
100+
loves motorcycles !
Chief Technical Numpty
Posts: 135
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Post by Sol on Dec 20, 2007 13:42:23 GMT
[ You can change the pads (bowls, flat, HD414 etc.) or you can simply sell them and invest in a pair of ATH-W1000 which are a lot more comfy on the old noggin. I had a pair of SR-325i and must admit they were the most uncomfortable 'phones I have ever placed on my head. After spending so long with the HD650s I have to agree Mike ... maybe I'll try the change of pads ... but a search of the web, and I cannot find any flats, I have bowls (the standrad pads), and ebay pulled up some HD414 pads for a tenner delivered .. so I stumped up for those. We'll give them a try before I shell oyut on some replacement headphones.
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Nigel
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Post by Nigel on Dec 20, 2007 14:26:10 GMT
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Post by dc on Dec 20, 2007 23:14:08 GMT
flat pads are said to be quite uncomfortable aren't they?
the most comfortable being the grado comfy/soft pads
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Nigel
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Post by Nigel on Dec 24, 2007 12:56:20 GMT
I ordered some of these yellow pads as well Sol. Do you use as supplied, or cut some holes in them?
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Post by merton on Dec 24, 2007 20:10:48 GMT
tghe ttvj flat pads are best for grado... but grado does suck.
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Post by PinkFloyd on Dec 24, 2007 22:21:07 GMT
I ordered some of these yellow pads as well Sol. Do you use as supplied, or cut some holes in them? Either or Nigel, whatever sounds best to your ears. If you are going to cut a hole make it a penny size hole bang in the centre of the pads.
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Post by PinkFloyd on Dec 24, 2007 22:27:14 GMT
You and I must have very similar ears Merton, either we are both deaf and missing out on something or we both have good hearing..... not sure which but to my ears the Grado 'phones sound way too in yer face. I have only experienced the SR-325i, SR-225, SR-125, SR-80 and SR-60 (of all of those I prefer the SR-225) sure they sound nice but after a while they make me want to throw myself out of a window ;D According to a few it's the "amp" that's the problem and not the 'phones...... ;D
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leo
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Post by leo on Dec 24, 2007 22:39:37 GMT
I've only heard a few Grado's, , no idea what models they was, all I know is that the sound was not to my taste at all! almost sounded cheap to my ears
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Post by merton on Dec 24, 2007 22:46:03 GMT
it's been nearly 5 years since i had the ms2's, but i recall them sounding rather hard and cold. i must say, i think hard and cold sound comes from not having certain low end frequencies transmitted... these frequencies being the ones that give you a sense of space and warmth. they were uncomfortable too. the sound stage was large at times froms side to side though. just not in any other direction. i don't understand peoples desire for sparkle at the top. to me it sounds very unatural and means that some other frequencies are missing. cymbals don't sparkle. they shimmer... i don't think i've heard many instruments that do sparkle cept maybe certain bells and such.
isn't the solo supposed to be a warm amp?
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Nigel
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Post by Nigel on Dec 25, 2007 9:30:47 GMT
My opinion differs. The way they play music - it just flows. Forget about poor soundstages. What's the point of a soundstage if you can't hear the music?
I'm approaching 250 hrs of burn in on the 225's & using the Green Solo I'm beginning to think they have the Senns well & truly licked.
"Far too much audio equipment sounds unnaturally pretty: Hi-fi systems that produce 'smooth' or ‘liquid’ hi-hats and cymbals are inherently wrong. Hi-fi systems that produce 'soft' snares are equally wrong. A cymbal is in effect a bit of sheet metal formed into a slightly conical profile that is repeatedly hit with a wooden stick... sweet, smooth, delicate... yeah right. A snare drum is a metal or wood cylinder with a taut tuned skin on the two flat ends, with a series of tensioned metal springs on the underside, picture this construction in your mind, now hit it hard with a wooden stick. Did you get a soft sound? Audio systems with great gobs of bass may at first seem impressive, but try following the actual tune the bassist is playing, or hearing how the bass line grooves in with the drums. Slow fat bass is wrong bass."
quote from tony.lonorgan/flatearth/
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Post by dc on Dec 25, 2007 10:17:05 GMT
i appreciate their merits, but i believe their pitfalls outweigh the benefits
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leo
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Post by leo on Dec 25, 2007 14:34:10 GMT
Long as your happy Nigel I wouldn't call them all bad just because the ones I've heard didn't suit, like with every manufacturer theres always going to be a few in the range thats poor
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Nigel
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Post by Nigel on Dec 25, 2007 15:09:12 GMT
Nice one Leo.
Hey listen, on the technical specifications for the Green Solo, the output impedance (driving impedance) is listed as being 33 ohms. As you know the Grad's nominal impedance is 32 ohms. Does this make the Green Solo very nearly the perfect impedance match or am I missing something?
Incidentally, the 2007 Solo's output driving impedance is listed as being 120 ohms.
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Post by PinkFloyd on Dec 25, 2007 22:09:44 GMT
Nice one Leo. Hey listen, on the technical specifications for the Green Solo, the output impedance (driving impedance) is listed as being 33 ohms. As you know the Grad's nominal impedance is 32 ohms. Does this make the Green Solo very nearly the perfect impedance match or am I missing something? Incidentally, the 2007 Solo's output driving impedance is listed as being 120 ohms. 32ohm output impedance is what Grado choose for their RA-1 headphone amplifier so, yes, 32ohm is probably the best match for the Grado headphones. Have a go of the CMOY I built you with them Nigel, it's pretty well known that the Grado 'phones work best with pretty simple amps (just ask Rick!) and, as you can see, the Grado RA-1 amp is about as simple as you can get! In fact....... as simple as a CMOY ;D Just having a listen to Santana through my SR-225 / Solo 2007 (120R output impedance) and they are actually very good.... it's just the comfort thing that gets on my nerves (and I have a fancy hand made leather headband on my pair too!)..... if only they'd sit nicely on the head I'd probably wear them a lot more. Build quality pretty prosaic and there are a few things you can do to improve the sound even further Nigel. First thing to do is remove the two SR-225 badges from the metal grilles, they're only there for show and serve no acoustic purpose at all. The second (more adventurous) thing you can do is the epoxy resin mod.... I'll take some pics of mine to give you a better idea but basically you seperate the housing (you'll see when you're seperating it just how "loose" it is) you run a bead of epoxy resin along the edge of the inner housing and then reassemble inner and outer housing and wait 20 minutes or so for the resin to cure..... be warned, you'll never be able to seperate the two again.... the housing will now be one solid enclosure for eternity. You can add a supplementary bead of epoxy resin to the outer edge of the join (I did) it won't be noticeable when you refit the pads and IMO makes for a belt and braces seal. Forgot to mention..... when you're under the bonnet you'll note at the cable entry points that the cable has been secured with hot melt glue..... the few pairs of Grado 'phones I have experienced have always had either one (or both) of those cables coming loose as the hot melt glue "blob" parts company with the enclosure quite easily. It's quite easy to remove the glue blobs and, once removed, drizzle some epoxy resin over in place of the glue...... even better if you score the enclosure with a craft knife before flooding the entry points with epoxy.... this will ensure a bullet proof bond and no way will those cables ever become loose. Remember though........ if you do all this you have effectively glued everything together and should one of the drivers fail you'd have to make one hell of a mess to access it. Sonic improvements are not vast but noticeable.... as with everything audio, damping and mass play a part in the overall scheme of things.... they definitely sound a lot more refined with the epoxy "mods" and there's no random "creaking" when you move your head... worth doing IMO.
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leo
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Post by leo on Dec 26, 2007 1:31:52 GMT
Bloody hell those circuits are very close indeed! could knock one of those RA1's up in no time
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Post by PinkFloyd on Dec 26, 2007 1:45:27 GMT
could knock one of those RA1's up in no time
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leo
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Post by leo on Dec 26, 2007 1:51:28 GMT
can't you sleep either
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Post by PinkFloyd on Dec 26, 2007 1:55:56 GMT
Nope..... it's a bugger eh?
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Post by PinkFloyd on Dec 26, 2007 1:57:06 GMT
What's your number I'll give you a ring?
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leo
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Post by leo on Dec 26, 2007 2:04:18 GMT
Nope..... it's a bugger eh? One of those nights I think when I'm wide awake
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Post by PinkFloyd on Dec 26, 2007 2:05:35 GMT
Nope..... it's a bugger eh? One of those nights I think when I'm wide awake Same here.. pm me your number and I'll give you a buzz
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leo
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Post by leo on Dec 26, 2007 2:08:42 GMT
What's your number I'll give you a ring? That would be a bad idea, missus would kill me this late she can nod off in 10 minutes and usually moans at me if I stay up this late so I'm sat here listening to tunes on low through the headphones
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leo
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Post by leo on Dec 26, 2007 2:10:21 GMT
I'll give it ten minutes before its come and get your arse in bed
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