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Grado sr60 vs. sr80

audio friend

audio friend

Active Member
Hello,

I've been on an audio kick lately, trying to get as much quality and warmth out of my music as I can for my money. Just got myself a vintage receiver for my old turntable, and now I'm looking at the Grado sr60 versus the sr80 to use primarily in the home. (I already have a Sennheiser PX100 for my portable-playing needs.)

I'm leaning toward spending a few more bucks and getting the sr80. And I'm wondering if anyone has any opinions on this matter. Since I joined the site, I've found people to be very helpful and informative in here.

Thanks for any insight.
 
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FWIW, I A/B'd the two models in the store and decided the difference was not worth $20 to me at the time. I bought the 60's and am happy with them. I prefer their flat, disc-shaped pads over the open-center funnel shape of the pads on the 80's.

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EDIT to add:
Another reason i prefer these pads is they tone down the sometimes harsh highs of the Grados. i put them on a set of 325s and found it a sonic improvement, YMMV however.
 
I have had both I think Brett is right the main difference is the pads. I am using my SR-80 donut pads from my defunct SR-80s or my SR-60is and I think being more open it makes them a *little* brighter, and lifting the cans from the ears a *little* wider soundstage. The difference is pretty subtle IMO. I'd say get the SR-60s and if you want to experiment order the SR-80 pads for them.
 
If you want warmth, you may want to consider something other than Grados. I have the SR-80s and the highs are a tad grainy. Perhaps I expected too much at that price point.

Bear in mind that I'm not a big head-fi listener.

Ken
 
Thanks for the help, guys. In the end I decided to go

with the SR80. After spending way too much of my time researching the matter online, I'm rolling the dice with SR80. I have actually tried the SR60 and thought they sounded awesome: very clear and rich, and comfy as well. But if I can get a bit more bass and perhaps a tad more detail with the SR80, which is what I've gathered from my online info compiling, I'm going to give it a shot. Will hear soon I guess.

Efficiency? I don't even want to get into that one. I have a gut feeling they'll make a good home-base set.

Oh, and I'm getting the SR60-style replacement pads, so I can experiment the other way around.

Thanks again!
 
I thought that the bowl type pads were much more comfortable than the flat "comfy" pads. The reason is that the bowl pads lift the hard, flat driver off of my ear, and nothing is resting against most of my ear. The "comfy" pads seemed to compress too easily and it was as if the bare drivers were pressing on my head.
I want to try the even bigger pads for the higher end grados (RS-1/2? I can't remember) but they are $$
 
audio friend said:
with the SR80. After spending way too much of my time researching the matter online, I'm rolling the dice with SR80. I have actually tried the SR60 and thought they sounded awesome: very clear and rich, and comfy as well. But if I can get a bit more bass and perhaps a tad more detail with the SR80, which is what I've gathered from my online info compiling, I'm going to give it a shot. Will hear soon I guess.
Click to expand...

Sounds good, be sure to let us know how it turns out. I wound up with the sr-60's, and don't regret it at all, although I also had a though choice between them and the 80's. Can't remember why I went with the 80's, probably just cost at the time, although a little extra bass would be a great touch, as the grados are mainly mid-high frequency can's. I think my 60's are pretty "warm" for just that reason, actually. Most importantly, just enjoy them:thmbsp:

Efficiency? I don't even want to get into that one. I have a gut feeling they'll make a good home-base set.
Click to expand...

Definately, the 60's, and as far as I know, the 80's (and others) are pretty easy to drive, a home system certainly will be able to, and I have used my 60's with a i-pod, and had great results:yes:.
 
Sir.Byrd said:
I thought that the bowl type pads were much more comfortable than the flat "comfy" pads. The reason is that the bowl pads lift the hard, flat driver off of my ear, and nothing is resting against most of my ear. The "comfy" pads seemed to compress too easily and it was as if the bare drivers were pressing on my head.
I want to try the even bigger pads for the higher end grados (RS-1/2? I can't remember) but they are $$
Click to expand...

Funny, I had a pair of SR-80's and always had the bare plastic right up against part of my ear. Those headphones hurt my ears after about ten minutes of listening. It's a shame, I really wanted to like those headphones but in the end I can't even remember how they sound, just discomfort.
 
Seems to be a slight tilt away from the SR80 here, but that' OK. Another question:

What if I were to use them with my iPod. I know I won't get the full drive of my home system, but would the phones eat away my iPod battery more quickly than say my Sennheiser PX100's? Or am I just talking smack?

Thanks.
 
audio friend said:
What if I were to use them with my iPod. I know I won't get the full drive of my home system, but would the phones eat away my iPod battery more quickly than say my Sennheiser PX100's? Or am I just talking smack?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

They will a little faster, but not by a dramatic amount. Both sets of headphones are 32 ohm, but the grados are 98Db per mV, and the sennheisers are 114Db per mV. Not a huge difference, but the px-100's are slightly more efficent, and will thusly play the same volume while drawing less power. In the real world, I doubt there is enough difference to pick one over the other, apart from preference.

The px-100's are pretty well regarded as well, I considered getting them as well:yes:.
 
Thanks for the helpful info!

33&athird said:
The px-100's are pretty well regarded as well, I considered getting them as well:yes:.
Click to expand...

I'm not as well versed in headphones as you are, but I would highly recommend them. Deep, warm sound, and perfect for on the go. And quite comfy.

Cheers.
 
I went with the 60s vs the 80s, already knowing that the 60s were more than good enough for my purposes with headphones. I actually regretted it a little - the $20 extra dollars didn't seem like much in hindsight. I still haven't heard the 80s though, only the 60s and some of the higher models.

Just a side note: while I think most claims about break-in periods are greatly exaggerated or just plain bunk, grado isn't kidding about their cans. They were literally painful right out of the box. I was going to send them back but I went ahead and left them playing on the desk all day as directed and all was well. What is the deal with that?
 
I listened to both and liked them both. I bought the 60's and have been very happy. I primarily use them with a Cowon D2 (tiny audio player) full of flacs (lossless compression files), and I feel there couldn't be much better in portable audio. I have huge ears (according to wife) and the 60's feel wonderful no matter how long I have them on.
 
I just got the Grado sr80i's! (note the "i") It's really early on, but so far so good; they sound great!

There's no donut hole in the ear pads. Perhaps that was part of the update of the "i"?
 
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I have the "old" sr80's. My son liked them so much he asked for some for his birthday. I bought him the sr80i's. I think they are more comfortable and sound slightly better.

I've been very happy with mine and I hope you enjoy yours. I also agree that they sound much better after breaking in a little.
 
audio friend said:
I just got the Grado sr80i's! (note the "i") It's really early on, but so far so good; they sound great!

There's no donut hole in the ear pads. Perhaps that was part of the update of the "i"?
Click to expand...

Yes, I believe so. When they updated the sr-60's, to the 60i' (which I own) I think they changed the pads as well. It also seems like after the "i's" you couldn't get the plain ones unless it was second hand. I'm not sure, but I think the i line may have had a bigger enclosure, although the driver was unchanged; don't take my word on that though.

Either way, it's at least as good, and supposed to be better than the plain 80's. Enjoy them, i'm sure they sound great, and over time may even sound better (as the driver loosens up):thmbsp:.
 
When I bought my SR60s (ages ago) I thought they sounded better than the 80s and even the 125s. Then I read a reviewer in Stereophile say that the 60s sounded better than the top of the line cans, so I felt very validated in my opinion.
 
I bought a pair of SR60's a couple years ago and I like them very much. Can't tell you how they compare to the 80's but I'm quite happy with the 60's.
 
The SR80's really need a good headphone amp to get the best out of them:music: REALLY come ALIVE !!!:thmbsp: Minus's;opened back,no good for
travelling, every one around can hear your music:thumbsdn: uncomfortable;
the headband needs too be "bent". also are some-what fragile, the plastic
breaks easily.
 
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