Flat ear pads for Grado 325i headphones: very interesting

[Mr. Lin]

Not too long ago I bought a pair of Grado 325i headphones. Now that they're all broken in they sound fantastic, but I did complain here on AK that they're somewhat lacking in the bass department. Another AK member tipped me off about the flat pads that are available, explaining that they improve bass, although the trade off is somewhat weaker soundstage.

I got them this week, and I must say I'm very intrigued by how much of a difference simply changing ear pads can make. I switched back and forth for a while listening to the same song to get a good idea of the differences. As I was told, with the flat pads there's much more bass. I also read somewhere that the flat pads result in a more "in your face" sound, which is dead on. That sounds like a bad thing, but for a lot of music, particularly rock, it's not. Dynamics are a little better, in part because everything sounds closer.

I wouldn't say that one is definitely better than the other, although for overall performance the original bowl pads are probably the winners. I noticed the decreased soundstage right away with the flat pads, and they also lack the airiness and outstanding detail of the bowl pads.

I've found that certain pads sound better with certain types of music, which is something I can really get into, and I think a lot of people here understand. As I said, for rock the flat pads are generally better, same with chamber music, but orchestral music sounds better with the bowl pads. Another interesting observation: when I switched from CDP to cassette deck while using the flat pads, I immediately felt the sound had become too warm, to the point of being muddy, and this was with a more rock-oriented album.

Just thought I'd share this with you.


Dave

 

[roggom]

I had a similar experience going from my 60's to the 125's. I just swap them depending on the music I am listening to. Lately I have been listening to my headphone's alot because I'm big on DIY hybrids. Have you ever hear of the tilt-eq. This is one solution, although equilizaion is sometimes considered an audiophile no-no. I think it might be my next project. http://www.headwize.com/projects/equal_prj.htm

 

[Mr. Lin]

I had a similar experience going from my 60's to the 125's. I just swap them depending on the music I am listening to. Lately I have been listening to my headphone's alot because I'm big on DIY hybrids. Have you ever hear of the tilt-eq. This is one solution, although equilizaion is sometimes considered an audiophile no-no. I think it might be my next project. http://www.headwize.com/projects/equal_prj.htm

Interesting, and the circuits don't look too complicated either. One thing I've been considering is putting a Bottlehead Foreplay III tube preamp between source and headphone amp (which is the Grado RA-1). I already have the Bottlehead, but I haven't built it yet due to current space limitations, and I also have the Paramours. But I could probably find a way to fit the Foreplay in here.

 

[roggom]

That bottlehead looks like a cool project, maybe once I build my bankroll up a little.

Do you like Radiohead, they make for some good headphone listening, Hail to the Chief and Amnesiac have a cool mix of rock and some effects.

 

[Mr. Lin]

That bottlehead looks like a cool project, maybe once I build my bankroll up a little.

Do you like Radiohead, they make for some good headphone listening, Hail to the Chief and Amnesiac have a cool mix of rock and some effects.

Oh yes. "Hail to the Thief" is one of my favorites, but honestly I haven't listened to any Radiohead on headphones yet. I'm still new to the headphone thing, and right now I'm on a serious classical music kick, so that's mostly what I listen to on headphones.

Having had more time with the new ear pads I've noticed another drawback: they are not comfortable. The 325is are heavy headphones, and even the stock bowl pads start to hurt after a couple hours, but the flats become uncomfortable after about 45 minutes, unfortunately.

 

[roggom]

Oops that is right, Hail to the Thief, as far as the classical that is a great opportunity to virtually walk around the orchestra trying to make out each instrument. Have you listened to any binaural/holophonic recordings? They are available online for free also Pearl Jam and Pink Floyd had some albums cut with this technology.

 

[Mr. Lin]

Oops that is right, Hail to the Thief, as far as the classical that is a great opportunity to virtually walk around the orchestra trying to make out each instrument. Have you listened to any binaural/holophonic recordings? They are available online for free also Pearl Jam and Pink Floyd had some albums cut with this technology.

Never heard of that actually.

Just another note, it seems I now can't say absolutely that the flat pads don't work with cassettes, because I'm listening to a different one now and the flat pads brought a lot more life to the music when I switched over to them. So I guess it's recording dependent.

 

[roggom]

What happens if you listen to a metal-oxide tape in normal mode. Usually the noise threshold is heard, but my experience with the flats is the material filters it out a little. Just curious.

Holophonic recordings are super cool, someone posted the virtual barber shop in this forum about two months ago. with the music you feel like you are there live, although sometimes the soundstaging makes me feel like I am facing away from the stage.

 

[Mr. Lin]

What happens if you listen to a metal-oxide tape in normal mode. Usually the noise threshold is heard, but my experience with the flats is the material filters it out a little. Just curious.

Holophonic recordings are super cool, someone posted the virtual barber shop in this forum about two months ago. with the music you feel like you are there live, although sometimes the soundstaging makes me feel like I am facing away from the stage.

I don't know, but I can tell you I've really been enjoying the flat pads the past couple nights, because with some of my CDs it just sounds better.

 

[jeffsab]

It's interesting to read your observations, as today I auditioned all the Grados except the 325i. After deciding that I really liked the 225s the best because of their improved bass quality I put the SR 60s on, almost as an afterthought. I found them to be almost as good as the 125 and better than the 80. It must be the flat pad.

 

[Mr. Lin]

It's interesting to read your observations, as today I auditioned all the Grados except the 325i. After deciding that I really liked the 225s the best because of their improved bass quality I put the SR 60s on, almost as an afterthought. I found them to be almost as good as the 125 and better than the 80. It must be the flat pad.

Could be, but this isn't the first time I've read on here that someone auditioned the first three or four SR models and ended up preferring the 60s over the 80s, or the 80s over the 125s. I've only heard the 325i and the 60s, and there's a pretty big difference, but that's to be expected.

Just keep in mind that the flat pads the SR60s come with are not the same as the ones I'm talking about. Although I like the stock SR60 pads - I think they're really comfortable - they're widely considered to be cheap and inferior to the bowl pads, and the after market flat pads are $35 a pair and made of the same material as the bowl pads. I still haven't taken the time to try the flat pads on my Sr60s, though I imagine it would yield some improvement.