Ars presents a mini-documentary on the low-profile, highly-regarded Grado Labs.
Read the whole story
Read the whole story
Some of the world’s most reknowned headphones, built in a Brooklyn townhouse
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wow i never though a company from 1st world country doing that 
in Indonesia there's dBE Acoustics and various unbranded headphone and speakers that also doing the same thing. They manually craft them
in Indonesia there's dBE Acoustics and various unbranded headphone and speakers that also doing the same thing. They manually craft them
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Cool story. I've got two sets of Grado's, alas the cheapies. SR80 and iGi. Both are seriously the best headphones/earphones that I've ever owned. I love them. Thanks, Casey, for the interesting write-up.
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i love grado headphones!! i got my first pair of sr60's back in high school and since then have fell in love with the open sound. someday i will save up enough for an RS1 or so. can't wait to get a pair of the new "e" model
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This story is one of those interesting departures from mainstream reporting to one of those niche areas I never had known about. A very good and interesting article. Ars would do well with more of these hidden gems of obscure technology articles. Thanks!
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Xevion and I reviewed the Grado SR-80 headphones for ArsTechnica (back in the day): http://meincmagazine.com/features/2005/03 ... dphones/7/
PS: @caseyjohnston: I'm totally jealous of your visit to Grado HQ!
PS: @caseyjohnston: I'm totally jealous of your visit to Grado HQ!
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I've got a pair of SR 225s that I've had for about 17 years. When they broke a couple years ago, Grado repaired them for a very reasonable fee. Whenever I'm in the market for expensive cans again, I'll be buying Grado.
You would not believe how much of your music you're missing with lesser headphones. Give them a try.
You would not believe how much of your music you're missing with lesser headphones. Give them a try.
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That last image in the article is captioned as "The SR60s, Grado's basic pair of on-ear headphones." However the image is of the SR80s
Great article though. Very interesting read, and I had no idea about these even though I was born in Brooklyn and have a lot of family there that I visit fairly often.
Great article though. Very interesting read, and I had no idea about these even though I was born in Brooklyn and have a lot of family there that I visit fairly often.
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As much as I love the sound (especially compared to other headphones I've had at the price), at least on the low end Grado's build quality is somewhat lacking. About 2 years ago I bought a pair of SR80i's based on recommendations here and on a few other tech sites. After about 15 months I started hearing occasional bursts of static in one ear. Close inspection showed that the freely spinning post used to attach the ear cups to the band had allowed one to twist around 10 or 20 times; apparently torquing the wires until they began to fray. Writing that off as operator error I bought a replacement pair; unfortunately despite being careful never to repeat my error with the first pair, they've started to develop the same problem after only 5 months, faster than any of the $10 no name pairs I bought when younger ever failed.
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I was on the verge of getting SR80i's. Their sound is mellow and amazing, but I ultimately settled on AKG Q701s.
IMO it's a niche product, even for audiophiles. Open back, on-ear headphones are serious compromises for both on-the-go and desk use.
IMO it's a niche product, even for audiophiles. Open back, on-ear headphones are serious compromises for both on-the-go and desk use.
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Great article, and great video. Shooting and editing was great. Casey did a good job as well, felt relatable. Kind of felt like I was watching one of those little side stories they do on Ask this old house.
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[url=http://meincmagazine.com/civis/viewtopic.php?p=27261325#p27261325:1vr7hup1 said:
Grado has a great repair policy. I think it cost me $45 to get a 17 year old pair of SR225's repaired. Maybe it doesn't make sense to shell out that much to repair some SR80i's, but for the more expensive sets, it's comforting to know I can get them factory repaired so inexpensively. My $200 investment in headphones 17 years ago has been money well spent.
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I've used Grados since I was kid (thanks to my dad being in audio sales), and have a pair of SR225s without pads and the wire covers dislodged from the casing. And while I loved the sound, those two points are my big issue with grados: the foam padding is uncomfortable for listing (and they disintegrate after a while) and their built quality isn't up to my standards (to be fair though, I have yet to meet a pair headphone that is).
I know there are aftermarket pads though, so one of the points is addressed.
I know there are aftermarket pads though, so one of the points is addressed.
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Having been a huge grado fan for a little while, this was very cool to see! Thanks for doing this, hope to see more like it in the future
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Grado doesn't need to advertise, their fans do a good enough job of that already.
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Actually the pictured model seems to be the SR80e - featuring the newest driver.[url=http://meincmagazine.com/civis/viewtopic.php?p=27261317#p27261317:317z943t said:
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The image in the article at the bottom showed an SR80e, not SR60s
I own a pair of Alexssandro MS1, which is a custom tuned from Grado drives, people say MS1 is more well rounded for general music than the vanilla Grados. Sadly the cord broke so only one side has sound, and I don't live in the US so I can't claim warranty.
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Actually, it looks like they just put up a new version of their site.[url=http://meincmagazine.com/civis/viewtopic.php?p=27261441#p27261441:1pa7gbl1 said:
EDIT: Never mind, I was on a different page on their site that uses a slightly different design.
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Honestly, when I look at my SR80is, I can't imagine them being built in any other type of environment than what the video showed. They have a definite "made by some dude in his garage" feel to them.
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Sadly, good headphones to me is like good wine. I can't make out the difference between a good one and an excellent one.
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Great article.
I've had the SR-60's for about 8 years; liked them so much I just bought the 325is. They do have the Grado sound, which isn't for everyone (nor are AKG, Sennheiser, etc.), but they are amazing headphones. Love the fact that they're made in the U.S., and they've held up really well over the years.
I've had the SR-60's for about 8 years; liked them so much I just bought the 325is. They do have the Grado sound, which isn't for everyone (nor are AKG, Sennheiser, etc.), but they are amazing headphones. Love the fact that they're made in the U.S., and they've held up really well over the years.
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I have a Grado cartridge in my storage locker waiting for me to find the time to rebuild my LP12.
I was aware of the headphones, but never tried them out, my old faithful Sony MDR7506's have been in daily use for years and apart from now using after-market ear cushions, they have been an unbeatable combination of amazing sound quality, comfort and durability.
I may just order a set of Grado's though, I like the hand built 'thing'
I was aware of the headphones, but never tried them out, my old faithful Sony MDR7506's have been in daily use for years and apart from now using after-market ear cushions, they have been an unbeatable combination of amazing sound quality, comfort and durability.
I may just order a set of Grado's though, I like the hand built 'thing'
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Love these, hopefully price doesn't skyrocket too much now that these are in the public view. Use to be just those in the business and headphone audiophiles that knew about this company.
That said good audio should be shared and celebrated.
That said good audio should be shared and celebrated.
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Great read! I would have never thought any of that stuff is done here in the States anymore. Nice to see someone enjoy their work enough to not want to sell out to the next company to offer.
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I own a pair of PS1000. Fantastic headphones although a bit uncomfortable to wear. I wish Grado would improve in that regard.
Sadly my music tastes lately have shifted and they don't get a lot of usage these days.
Sadly my music tastes lately have shifted and they don't get a lot of usage these days.
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I have some SR80s. The sound is incredible and I wore them all the time. Unfortunately they are also rather fragile and my son managed to break the headstrap connection by sitting on them once.
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Great write up!
Having spent a lot of time auditioning these, I'm not sure I agree with the lack of low end criticism they routinely get. In fact, in many circles if you want good kick, Grado 60s-80s are where you start.
About 5 years ago, I know that the sweet spot for low end was the 225 series. There was a distinct difference between the 225 and the 325 in terms of low end punch, but I never had an opportunity to vet any of these against their holy RS1000s.
I know that if I needed another pair of cans in my life, the 225s would be my first stop.
Having spent a lot of time auditioning these, I'm not sure I agree with the lack of low end criticism they routinely get. In fact, in many circles if you want good kick, Grado 60s-80s are where you start.
About 5 years ago, I know that the sweet spot for low end was the 225 series. There was a distinct difference between the 225 and the 325 in terms of low end punch, but I never had an opportunity to vet any of these against their holy RS1000s.
I know that if I needed another pair of cans in my life, the 225s would be my first stop.
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Maybe someday I'll own Grados, but when I was looking for new ones a month ago, I just couldn't pull the trigger. The open back design and the resultant lack of sound isolation and thin bass, combined with the inexpensive materials made them unsuitable for office use, dailies, or anything except a quiet room, frankly.
But they are extremely lightweight and sound wonderful in a quiet space, if a tad bright. 'Hand-made in some house in Brooklyn' definitely adds to their charm.
For now I settled on revitalizing an old pair of MDRs for the office and some Viso HP50s for serious listening, and couldn't be happier with the result.
But they are extremely lightweight and sound wonderful in a quiet space, if a tad bright. 'Hand-made in some house in Brooklyn' definitely adds to their charm.
For now I settled on revitalizing an old pair of MDRs for the office and some Viso HP50s for serious listening, and couldn't be happier with the result.
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[url=http://meincmagazine.com/civis/viewtopic.php?p=27261401#p27261401:1gt7i45i said:
I didn't know that; probably worth a shot at least. Pair #2 should still be under warranty, so I've been meaning to find their support address for the last week or two anyway.
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[url=http://meincmagazine.com/civis/viewtopic.php?p=27261325#p27261325:npb6gyoo said:
Dunno why you're being downvoted. I had a pair of SR60's and loved 'em, but experienced pretty much the same thing. It became second nature to occasionally reach over and untwist my Grados.
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[url=http://meincmagazine.com/civis/viewtopic.php?p=27261867#p27261867:3byvcjqm said:
The open back and lack of isolation were a large part of why I bought them for my work phones. Crush your ears to your head to block outside noise style phones make hearing anyone knocking to try and get your attention or fire alarms difficult to hear; and at non damage your hearing volume levels the amount of sound that leaks out isn't a problem. When I take them off and set them facing down on my desk 2-3 feet from my head the sound is just barely across the threshold of perception.
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Cool article.
Grados have good sound, but the round cups always hurt my ears after a while (and I don't have big ears). Something to do with the way they press my ears flat against my head.
Picked a pair of Senn HD555s (preferred the sound and the comfort) over the Grado SR 60 and they've been serving me well for 5+ years.
Grados have good sound, but the round cups always hurt my ears after a while (and I don't have big ears). Something to do with the way they press my ears flat against my head.
Picked a pair of Senn HD555s (preferred the sound and the comfort) over the Grado SR 60 and they've been serving me well for 5+ years.
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Have my SR-60 cans on right now. One of the best entry level priced headphones you can find.
What it lacks in comfort and "style," it more than makes up for in audio quality.
What it lacks in comfort and "style," it more than makes up for in audio quality.
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What a welcome and unexpected article! I've been a happy user of Grado's low end headphones and cartridges for some time now.
I agree that SR-60s can be uncomfortable for extended use and are not well-suited to noisy environments like an office. I still love 'em.
I agree that SR-60s can be uncomfortable for extended use and are not well-suited to noisy environments like an office. I still love 'em.
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