Grado SR225e Prestige Series Open Backed Headphone

over several months. The reason I had so many of these are as follows: 1 - I love the Grado sound signature 2- The Grado SR125i developed Grattle / noticeable rattling coming from either one or both of the drivers. – I highly suggest Googling this before purchasing a set. So, as you can see, I liked the sound enough to go through 3 returns, before calling it a day. I purchased Beyerdynamics DT880 after this fiasco, and I have been happy with them, the build quality being superb. They have been on whilst cycling... in the rain. A few times as well. The thing is, you kind of miss the Grado sound signature and therefore, I saw that these headphones had an e at the end of their name. So I have gone into this with the hopes that e stands for no rattle. These headphones sound great, a ample amount of bass and clarity which is quite direct. I have had them for the couple of months and no noticeable rattling noise as of yet. A few points to note – The thick cables tangle after the Y joint, not sure what it is called. They can become uncomfortable after an hour of use or so around the back of the ears. In summary, I personally would give these 5 stars because I really do like the sound that they emit, and until I develop a problem with these headphones I would recommend these to anyone else. * *recommend for people who don’t mind noise leakage (Open Backed), the style – a lot of plastic, the thick cable – not ideal for out and abouting as you’ll find it weighing your head down.

A little background I previously owned a pair of Grado 80 I headphones which I loved. Unfortunately the right hand speaker unit developed a fault slight buzz when using. This did put me off replacing with new Grados and I have been using Bose AE2's which have been excellent. However I now use headphones more regularly and after reading positive reviews decided to dip my toes into the Grado pool again. I am really pleased and delighted with the Grado SR225e, yes they look a bit odd and retro but I use NAIM HI-FI so am used to and quite like unusual and eccentric design. There was a suggestion that they can tend to be a little uncomfortable, however I did not find this to be the case. They sit gently on the ears without to much pressure and like all headphones I have used there will be some listener fatigue but I find only after long use. Now the important bit the sound quality. I am not really sure about the need to "run things in" but these headphones sounded great out of the box and on first listen. Very dynamic and clear sound with rich base, good midrange and plenty of high end. In fact I would say that because of the detail and dynamics I am playing these headphones at a lower level than usual and still getting full musical impact. I have a very diverse taste in music and so far these headphones sound great on all types of music I have listened to. So in a nutshell great headphones and I hope to enjoy for many years litening to music with them.

Maybe I haven't given my pair time to wear in, but there are some passages of music, especially electric driven instruments, especially electric guitar, sound goes from shrill to shrieking, and I have to take my 'phones off. The treble sounds very harsh and will grate on my ears. Admittedly, I have 70/80's HI-FI equipment and maybe I need to upgrade my source. I have not, so far, listened to the Radio or computer driven music on my headphones, as I invariably listen to CD and Vinyl sources only, yes, mostly 70's recorded music. My pair do produce magical, beautiful music, better than various other headphones. They produce a lovely, enthusiastic sound, making my music ALIVE again. I have used many 'phones over the years, and they make other 'phones dull in comparison. My suspicions, however, you need 'audiophile' (I hate that word!) high end equipment to do these 'phones justice.

I didn't buy these headphones to complement my Cyrus and P.M.C. system but as a means to listen to Spotify on my computer - what overkill ! The quality of sound from these headphones is superb - a full and controlled bass,rich midrange,no harshness in the highs and a well balanced sound stage. Excellent sound separation. I picked some of my Spotify favourites at random ( and this is,what MP3 quality ? ) On Lester Young's " Stardust " you can hear the reed on his sax vibrating and a velvety double-bass accompaniment; the shimmering maracas in the background of Dizzy Gillespie's " Lover come back to me "; swish of cymbals an old E.L.O. track and details of Kate Bush's articulation and breathing on "50 Words For Snow " The build is bomb proof and, as on-ear phones go, comfortable to wear. If you want headphones that bring out detail in your music, I cannot recommend them too highly.

An interesting fact is, These headphones work best with the earpads that they came with. I tried other pads to improve the comfort, but no, the sound quality is greatly compromised.

Incredible stay at home headphones. Sound is really detailed in the mids and highs. More flat in the bass range. Not the best headphones to wear on noisy public transport, so I'd recommend usage at home. The listening experience is very enjoyable with these!

Very bright, harsh and screechy. I can get behind the idea of these headphones if they were being marketed towards people who have a hard time with hearing highs, such as the elderly, but I've seen so many people raving about how great they are. There's a lot of detail, but it's hard to enjoy it when the highs are so incredibly piercing. The sound stage isn't really there either, and the low end had a decent punch to it but actually seemed to distort whilst listening to bass-heavy music, which should not be happening with headphones at this price point. They're fairly comfortable given their very lightweight, but that's primarily due to the build quality as a whole being pretty dreadful. It's entirely made out of cheap plastic, and the cups are foam. After returning a set for a replacement to confirm that the awful sound wasn't just due to a faulty unit, it became clear that it's just a property of the headphones. Not recommended unless you ONLY listen to light female vocals and violins. They were both very enjoyable to listen to.

clear as clear for sound . if your after a bass cannon look elsewhere. if only grado would make the cables detachable as its the same thickness as my vacuum cleaner and in my opinion just a tad too long for use walking round on portable player , even if it was a different price. if the cables a problem for you check out the grado GW100 wireless . its basically this headphone with bluetooth and detachable cables.

these headphones sound sublime, and represent phenomenal value. for over 15 years, i have owned sublime, accurate and yet warm sounding Grado RS-1 that i *love*. my ears are used to their warm, yet accurate sound and staging. i got the SR225e to use at work, but as a test plugged them into my home system, straight out of the box, without breaking them in, it is obvious they are (a) more easily driven than the RS-1, meaning they will play louder (great for being driven out of something like the Audioquest Dragonfly, which is my intended use); and (b) have punchier bass than the RS-1. on the other hand, as of now and without break-in, spatial resolution is smaller than the RS-1. nevertheless, considering the price differential, the SR225e is absolutely amazing, and will only get better as it breaks in some. absolutely recommended. musical, revealing, and lively. comfort level is fantastic due to the lightness. these are totally open cans so if you listen to loud music in an open office they're not the best choice. nor if you want noise isolation. but as a pure music engine, please hook them up to a worthy source so you can listen what they are truly capable of. PS on 1/22/15: 3 months into ownership, these are the only headphones i use at work, connected to a Cambridge Audio DacMagic Plus. the combo provides me hours of joy, listening to classical and jazz and new age, typically in FLAC format using JRiver Media Center. thoroughly enjoyable - even at very low volumes i hear a lot of detail and spatial resolution, but what i love is the fact i take in the entire performance because despite their accurate nature they are warm. PS on July 2018: I love the 225 so much I decided to check out the 325e. Don't bother. At least that is my opinion. I have a collection of headphones reaching from the 225e's $200 to $700 and above. I am not saying the 225s are better. But to me they deliver everything, and they are super comfy. *Maybe* they're better. I love them. PS2 on the 325e: It is odd because they claim the exact same specs, but the 225e I have play louder than the new 325e I received. makes comparing difficult, but reveals that Grado may have some issue with delivering consistent specs at times? i am not complaining if i happened to get the best 225e ever built. it's just odd there's such an obvious discrepancy with the sound level when the published specs claim there shouldn't. at this point in time, i rate the 225e far superior to the 325e. it really sounds louder and better - but again, this may be down to fluctuation. PS3: i also own 20 year old Grado RS-1, which i will always keep. i also owned Grado PS-500 for a while. I love the Grado sound. That said, my recommendation is - stay with the 225e. They are amazing. they do sound better than the PS-500 and the 325e (which i bought expecting improvement, and was underwhelmed with, because the 225e sounded better by every criteria), and they sound better than the RS-1 (which i will always keep, they were amazing in their day, and they provide me with a benchmark of how audio has come).

Los mejores auriculares que he tenido. El sonido es maravilloso. Desde mi punto de vista destacan los medios aunque en general hay un balance correcto en todas las frecuencias. Buenos bajos y agudos no estridentes. Los he probado con música High Res tanto con rock (iron maiden) como con música clásica (Mozart) y no flojean en ningún caso. El punto a mejorar es la comodidad. Aunque muchos de vosotros, como yo, estaréis dispuestos a sacrificar un poco de comodidad por el placer de un sonido puro y equilibrado.

Grado produce una vasta gamma di cuffie hi-fi. Queste SR225e sono di ultima generazione e non tradiscono minimamente le aspettative. Posseggo un'ampia gamma di cuffie, sia chiuse che aperte, come anche le Grado SR60e, AKG etc. Queste SR225e sono davvero straordinarie e possono essere usate con grande soddisfazione anche su lettori portatili privi di amplificazione (meglio se nutriti con file FLAC lossless). La qualità di rendimento acustico di queste cuffie è incomparabile. La trasparenza e la brillantezza di ogni singolo dettaglio arrivano a colpire le orecchie senza mai affaticare, godendo di un'esperienza d'ascolto impareggiabile per il prezzo a cui vengono distribuite. Sembra quasi di sentire le orecchie 'pulsare' in rispoista alla musica, e lo stage sonoro non è da meno: ampio, naturale, sembra di essere di fronte a due altoparlanti hi-fi, o in mezzo ai musicisti mentre suonano. Sono aperte, anzi, apertissime. Il che significa che dall'esterno chi vi è vicino non sentirà semplicemente quello che state ascoltando, ma direi proprio che potrà 'partecipare' visto che suonano quasi come due mini-altoparlanti. La stessa cosa vale al contrario: non vi isoleranno per niente dall'ambiente circostante, inutile dunque l'acquisto se prevedete di utilizzarle in metro la mattina mentre andate a lavoro o all'università. Cavo molto lungo e pesante, non adatto a mio parere a usi troppo 'mobili', queste Grado 225 sono da intendersi per un ascolto pensato, poltrona a sera inoltrata, magari attaccate a un bel vinile audiofilo: in questo modo vi riveleranno nuove cose su dischi che già avete e che ri-scoprirete in numerosi dettagli rivelati grazie all'estrema trasparenza di questri strumenti di riproduzione. Altamente consigliate.

Great Product, lives upto the hype, these are open back and will sound very different from closed back headphones. I'm taken aback by the clarity of the sound coming out of these. The only things to note are 1. these are wired 2. they may require a clear source to fully appreciate these headphones. 3. the make of the headphones is very traditional, and relies on a lot of plastic, but that is not important considering you would be buying these for the audio quality and not the make. 4. they are very comfortable 5. they require some burn-in time to fully come into their own. 6. I chose the seller headphone zone, and they have done a good job packing them and shipping them.

Das ist der zweitgrößte Kopfhörer aus der Prestige Serie. Wie alle Grados ist auch der 225 e ein Profikopfhörer das heißt er ist spektakulär Unspektakulär und er spielt gnadenlos die Musik so ab wie es der Toningenieur abgemischt hat. Er deckt gnadenlos Fehler bei der Aufnahme oder künstlerische Unzulänglichkeit bei Komposition und Arrangement auf . Das heißt mit dem Kopfhörer hat schlechte Musik keine Chance mehr. Bei Livemusik kann man auch einzelne Stimmen erkennen und auch Verstehen solange die Aufnahme es hergibt, also am besten mit Hires Audio füttern. Der Kopfhörer ist im Grunde eine akustische Lupe die es ermöglicht ganz tief in die Aufnahme hineinzuhören . Ich habe vorher mit einem älteren Stax, Jecklin Float und anderen hochwertigen Kopfhörer gehört aber die beiden Grado die ich jetzt habe stehen dem nicht nach. Selbst der kleine iGrado ist schon eine Ausnahme von Preis Leistungsverhältnis. Der 225 e setzt da noch nicht einmal eingespielt neue Maßstäbe. Aber noch einmal die Grado sind Profigeräte und nicht auf Gefälligkeit ausgelegt das muss man wissen wenn man einen Grado bestellt. Nach jetzt fast drei Monaten hat sich die Performance des Grado fast im Abstand von jedem Monat deutlich verbessert und die 80 Punkte die beide Grado erhalten haben unterscheiden sich deutlich zwischen dem iGrado und dem Grado SR 225 e. Die Bühne beim SR 225 ist deutlich größer obwohl der iGrado genau so viel Richtig macht. Der größere Grado macht eben alles noch besser. Was wahrscheinlich der größeren Treibergehäuse und Treiber geschuldet ist. Beide Kopfhörer sind für den Betrieb an Mobilgeräten geeignet, doch die derart hohe Auflösung sorgt dafür dass beide für den Einsatz auf der Straße nicht geeignet sind, da man sich mit den Kopfhörer nicht der Musik entziehen kann. Nochmals beide Kopfhörer sind absolute Profigeräte und sollten auch so benutzt werden, für was andere wären sie zu Schade. Außerdem erziehen sie ihren Besitzer zum Hören von sehr guter Musik, da schlechte Musik nicht wirklich Spaß macht.