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Thinking About Buying Grado Prestige Series SR80e Headphones

WinterNight

WinterNight

Member
I was thinking about buying a pair of Grado Prestige Series SR80e Headphones. I was wondering if any of you guys have any experience with it. The main thing that I care about is if the ear cups fully cover my ears and blocking out sound. Do this Grado headphones do that? And obviously I also care about the sound.

Are these cans good, or are there any better ones out there? I have a budget of $100 US.
 
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No, they won't completely-block out the outside noise. So. if you're looking for something to help you forget about your classless, shamefully-sneaky, scumbag neighbors, I can assure you, from personal experience, these are NOT what you want. Ask me how I know this.

However, aside from that, I love the SR80's. But I also like the SR-style earpads. When my RS2's were appearing a bit light in the upper-bass (and they are), I removed the stock RS-style earpads and threw on the ones from the SR80's, and sure enough, I got my upper-bass back. I have the feeling I should have gone for the RS1's (Aren't they supposed to have a fatter bass/upper-bass? I seem to remember some reviewer calling them innaccurate and/or unrealistic", so I bought the RS2's... Plus, I only had $500).

The mids and highs will be to your liking for the price. The sound is not the issue. You get used to the fit of the pads, believe me. I personally prefer them very-much to the $99 Sennheiser HD-280's (I think that's the model... Too-tight on my head).
 
It's too bad that sound leakeage is a factor because, I onwn 5 pairs of Grados, among wich are, the SR80i, and the flagship PS1000. Grados give you the advantage of tailoring the sound simply by swapping pads, I have swapped the stock S-pad, for some flat pads that I bought from TTVJ on mine. The result is a little more clarity and extension in the bass, and a slighly softer treble.

Even after 3 years, my SR80i still impress the hell out of me, they sound great, regardless of price, so when you factor in their low cost, then they just become an absolute no brainer.
 
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Nope, Grados are open air and do not isolate noise. That said, I just love mine. I used to have a pair of Koss over the ear headphones that sounded pretty good and isolated noise quite well. They still make the Pro4AA, and if they sound as good as the old ones, it might suit you at about the same price as the Grados.
 
I just bought some of these because they *are* open air phones. I don't like to be sealed out of my environment. These aren't for you based on what you mention in your original post.

They are, otherwise, terrific headphones.
 
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wetshaver said:
I just bought some of these because there *are* open air phones. I don't like to be sealed out of my environment. These aren't for you based on what you mention in your original post.

They are, otherwise, terrific headphones.
Click to expand...

Yeah... Headphones are a real catch-22 situation... The most-natural-sounding designs are open-back.. The closed-back ones just sound wrong to me. And yet, I can really use some good closed-back ones for blocking the outside noises.

My formula right now is RS2i's with SR80 earpads, plus I add a decent amount of bass-lift on my Fisher 800C, like a good 25%... Works beautifully... I love that thing
 
Thanks everyone for the replies! After thinking about it, I think I am going to buy the Koss Pro4AA. They seem like the best fit for me. I just have one further question, what is the silver knob on one of the cans for?
 
This is my first post. I've got a lot of questions so I'll start by answering someone else.
Old guys like me remember some things. The fitting (silver knob) on the Koss Pro 4s were for attaching a microphone. Think PBX operator.
 
Everyone's right on point!

I have a set of Grado Labs SR60's and yes they let sound in and out, my wife is always yelling at me to turn them down but they sound great! and now I wish I would of got the 80's but I have a set of AKG 280's that completely keep sound in and they sound superb but also cost a bit more so like everyone said they are great cans but don't keep noise out, but for less than $100 I would get them. BigB.
 
I can't figure out the real-world difference between the 60 and the 80. They have the same specs as listed on Grado's site.

I have an older 60 (60i I think) and they're good. I don't know if the 80 is worth another $20.
 
It is. For a more balanced sound. I have the 60i and they're just a tad too bass shy.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
 
Starquest, when I bought my 80's recently I sorta wondered the same thing. I just figured they were likely a little more solid for the extra $20 or so. Didn't want to buy the bottom and didn't want to go up too far the food chain as I'm not a big headphone user. The 80's struck me like Goldilocks - just right.
 
There really isn't any headphone with in your budget that will do the job you want but there are a number of earphones that will. I have a set of Etymotic HF-3's, when you have them fitted properly the world goes away. Sound wise they are absolutely fantastic. I have an AKG K240 MkII's the comparison is difficult between the two. The sound of the Ety's is so accurate and personal, closed if you will. roll all of the windows down on you car at highway speed insert the Ety's and the environmental noise is all but gone, not safe of course. The K240's are open and with the sound coming from the headphone amp on my ASUS Xonar Essence is spacious as if you are in a music hall, you have to resist the urge to lift the cans off of your ears to make sure your loud speakers are not going. Some people find a properly fitted set of Ety's uncomfortable because they fit tightly inside your ear canal. You can have Etymotic fitted by an audiologist like a hearing aid.
 
A no brainer, a far as i am concerned, I own 5 pairs of Grados ranging from the SR80i, to the PS1000, and that $20 hurts far less than the $500 it costst to go from the GS1000i to the PS1000, add to that, another $75 in taxes on that $500 price difference, at least that is what it amounts to, here in Canada, and s puts it all in perspective nicely.

Even though I am lucky enough to own the limited edition, HP1000, wich some Grado owners consider to be, the "Holy Grail", of Grado headphones, and even after 3 years, I am still amazed by how good the SR80i sound for how little they cost.

$20 well spendt, if you ask me!.
 
I am looking for a flat frequency response, natural sounding pair of headphone. Will the Grado SR80i fit the bill?

I purchased a Sennheiser HD380Pro last year. It was a very comfortable can and even sounded good at first. But the bloated bass and the raised treble got to my nerve quickly. It just does not sound good to me. More search on the web show that the HD380 is the norm instead of an exception in today's headphone market. User seem to like the so called "full body" sound instead of a neutral one.

Your opinion on the any flat response headphone is greatly appreciated. (I am not ready to put down the $400 plus for a Sennheiser HD650.)
 
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