Grado RS1s

[PJPro]

Updated post above with pictures and added a few comments too.

I'm working on the sound.

 

[PJPro]

JohnDuncan:PJPro:I wore my graduation suite.

Was it from DFS?
LOL. Only just got this.

 

[PJPro]

Rig

EAC->Flac->Foobar2000->WASAPI (Vista SP2)->SB Xtreme Gamer->True Colours Industries Coral->Beresford TC-7510 (Mods 21 & 21 pt2)->Lindy Audio Premium Gold->DIY GS Novo.

Review

Listening to Money, by Pink Floyd, the RS1s provide an increased separation of the instruments over the SR80s. The highs are much clearer without being harsh....Gilmour's guitar work being particularly improved. The soundstage is wider than the SR80s.

Listening to Angel, by Massive Attack, the RS1s handle the driving bass in the opening section with more poise and control than the SR80s and there's more of it. The repeated click (drumstick against rim?) is crisp and clear.

I was going to continue in this vein for a few more tracks, to illustrate my points, but decided to cut it short. Why? Well, I've done a fair bit of "critical" listening with these phones now and felt they were a significant improvement over the SR80s. However, doing direct comparisons on short sections of a track proved that the differences are not as great as I thought.

It's true to say that the RS1s may not be fully run in yet. The seller reckons he had about 30 hours on them. My SR80s took much more than that to fully settle down (200hrs?).

So, what's the bottom line (to date)? The RS1s are about £650 new (Audio Affair), with the RS80s coming in at around £100. That's 6.5 times more than for the RS1s....and they aren't 6.5 times better sounding so, personally, I wouldn't buy them new.

So what do you do if you want new (rather than secondhand). The RS1s are supposedly built using the same design as the SR325s but using different materials. So, if new were the only option, I'd try out a pair of these.

I think this experience has underlined for me the fantasic value of the SR80s. Yes, the RS1s are an improvement but its not the night and day difference I was expecting.

 

[idc]

Audio Merchants in Glasgow were adament that to get an improvement over my SR80s the minimum was the SR325s, and even then..... You have backed up that advice. As well as running in, could it be, since all Grados have the same sort of build, ohm rating, sound signature, that they just do not sound as different as you would expect?

 

[PJPro]

Of course, I am not, or ever claimed to be, a golden ears. What I would say, though, is that the RS1s do sound better in a way that I have difficulty in explaining. But still not 6.5 times better. Not even twice as good.

Unless you're flushed or have critical listening tendencies, stick with the SR80s (which I think are very good value now that I've heard the RS1s). If you see a pair of RS1s going cheap (<£350), as I did, then they are worth the money.

 

[idc]

I paid £170 for my AKG K702s off ebay, when the RRP was (is?) £250. I was thinking that my next upgrade would be to something like the RS1s. Now I think I will have to save up some more, or get some electrostatics, but I would want to audition first.

 

[SpiceWeasel]

I wonder if a better headphone amp would get more out of the RS1's ? In the awards issue the Novo was recomended for headphones £400 or less, if the retail is £650 on the RS1's maybe a better amp might bring them to life.

 

[idc]

SpiceWeasel:I wonder if a better headphone amp would get more out of the RS1's ? In the awards issue the Novo was recomended for headphones £400 or less, if the retail is £650 on the RS1's maybe a better amp might bring them to life.

Spice Weasel, PJ made his own amps, they will be brilliant.

 

[PJPro]

Well, the amp I used was the DIY GS Novo. I think it's on a par with the SSMH.

Damn! Looks like I might need to build a new amp. b22 or M3? Hmmm. I've still got those power amps to finish. And the lightspeed attenuator. Then there's the DAC. There just isn't enough time!

 

[SpiceWeasel]

You can rely on me to throw a spanner in the works.
Are you going into buisness PJPro? You could do a good trade selling some of your projects when the upgrade bug bites

I have to say though that I admire your DIY skills PJPro, one minute you are building headphone amps and now you want to up the ante and build yourself a BMW

 

[PJPro]

I rather liked the idea of the b22

 

[SpiceWeasel]

Oooooh
Can you build it before the end of 2012? Maybe we can charter your plane to escape the end of the world

 

[PJPro]

That may be a challenge too far. If you look closely at the nose of the aircraft, you'll notice a little smudge just below it. That's a scale representation of me!