I have had my Grado SR225s for some time now, around 14 months, and when I went to listen to them two days ago I noticed that the left headphone did not work. I have tried everything that has been suggested in past posts including using different systems, different interconnects, different sources along with other things, none of which have worked. I phoned up a local Grado dealer and they said that they can not repair them, another problem is that I got them second-hand so I don't have the box or reciept. Has anybody else had this problem? and if so, how did you manage to fix it? Thank you
Grado SR225, left headphone is dead?!?!?!
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Hi there!
If one side of the headphone is dead (and not "scratchy") it's highly unlikely that you have damaged anything serious, but probably suffering nothing more than a connection break. This can occour in the jack plug itself which is easy to fix, or the actual wires connected to the driver, a little more tricky to fix but no more than a few minutes work with a fine soldering iron and a steady hand.
If on the other hand the cable itself has been stretched or wound too tightly, it can be a ****** to find exactly where the breakage is.
The way I troubleshoot headphones is pretty straightforward, first open up the suspect side of the headphone to make sure the two cables are secure.
Then apply a signal directly to the two driver contacts to see if there's any life in the driver or if it is indeed shot.
Providing it works, then it's just a matter of elimination as to where the break is.
Next step is to open the jackplug.
If this is one of those sealed jobbies, then I'm afraid you'll just have to chop it off and solder a new one on, that solves 95% of the cases I've ever come across.
If it still doesn't work (!) get another cable from an old set of headphones or fashion one from some good quality cable and then replace the entire cable run.
Any half competant hobbyist or repair guy can carry out said work in less then 30 mins.
Hope this helps, they are superb headphones and will be worth the effort to fix.
If one side of the headphone is dead (and not "scratchy") it's highly unlikely that you have damaged anything serious, but probably suffering nothing more than a connection break. This can occour in the jack plug itself which is easy to fix, or the actual wires connected to the driver, a little more tricky to fix but no more than a few minutes work with a fine soldering iron and a steady hand.
If on the other hand the cable itself has been stretched or wound too tightly, it can be a ****** to find exactly where the breakage is.
The way I troubleshoot headphones is pretty straightforward, first open up the suspect side of the headphone to make sure the two cables are secure.
Then apply a signal directly to the two driver contacts to see if there's any life in the driver or if it is indeed shot.
Providing it works, then it's just a matter of elimination as to where the break is.
Next step is to open the jackplug.
If this is one of those sealed jobbies, then I'm afraid you'll just have to chop it off and solder a new one on, that solves 95% of the cases I've ever come across.
If it still doesn't work (!) get another cable from an old set of headphones or fashion one from some good quality cable and then replace the entire cable run.
Any half competant hobbyist or repair guy can carry out said work in less then 30 mins.
Hope this helps, they are superb headphones and will be worth the effort to fix.
Hi, thank you for the advice. I have been able to look through the grill on the headphone with a little torch, the connections looks very solid in there and I was also able to use an electrical tester on the connections through the grill as well, that too shows me that there is a signal going to the driver. So do you think there is anything I can do, either sending it to a specialist or even anywhere that I can get a spare driver? Thank you.
Exactly what signal did you test for?
If you merely tested for resistance across the two terminals while the headphones were unplugged and that was OK, this means the element is still intact.
There could still be a break in the connection cable or the jackplug.
Did you actually test for an incomming music signal?
If you can detect a music signal at the terminals but no resistance when unplugged from the amp, that's different.
In that case, although the connections on the driver may indeed look OK there are two tiny wires that go from the back of that contact to the actual coil and if one of those have come off then it will need surgery.
That really is a rather delicate job so as long as you can track a music signal right to the element, you have successfully narrowed the problem down to either a loose coil wire or indeed a completely blown element.
Depending on your electronic competance, it may be wise to seek a professional workshop if you are not 100% confident about how to proceed!
If you merely tested for resistance across the two terminals while the headphones were unplugged and that was OK, this means the element is still intact.
There could still be a break in the connection cable or the jackplug.
Did you actually test for an incomming music signal?
If you can detect a music signal at the terminals but no resistance when unplugged from the amp, that's different.
In that case, although the connections on the driver may indeed look OK there are two tiny wires that go from the back of that contact to the actual coil and if one of those have come off then it will need surgery.
That really is a rather delicate job so as long as you can track a music signal right to the element, you have successfully narrowed the problem down to either a loose coil wire or indeed a completely blown element.
Depending on your electronic competance, it may be wise to seek a professional workshop if you are not 100% confident about how to proceed!
I managed to test a signal through the speaker cable from my amp directly to where the headphone meets the input cable. There is still no life in the driver though, but just before and after it broke, the driver would work when it was moved around. This is why I think that it is the connection within the driver as it has just died, and surely it wouldn't just spontaneously blow the driver?!?!
Now that you mention it worked when you moved it, it is more than certain that it is indeed one of the wires that connects the moving coil. Again, this can be repaired with patience and a steady hand if you are competant at fine soldering. I''m sure the company that manufactures/distributes this can help, but unfortunately the pricing of spare parts and labour sometimes make it more worthwhile to replace the item with a new model.
Sorry, I have only just had time to look on the tinternet and see your reply, I sent them off today, Friday 5th June. I sent them to Armour (I believe one of their team is currently on the forums), they said it will cost £35 plus any spare parts, fingers crossed it is only a connection problem. But I don't mind paying up to, or around, £100. I like the headphones that much!!! Should be back within 2-3 weeks, let's hope it is sooner.
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