A house in Brooklyn – Ars Technica visits Grado labs

[HiWire]

This video gives people a good look at the factory and their manufacturing process:

 

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2014/07/some-of-the-worlds-most-reknowned-headphones-built-in-a-brooklyn-townhouse/

 

SFW: hot glue action

 

It should be interesting to see if their e series headphones are a measurable improvement on their predecessors. It seems like yesterday that they announced the i series.

[blessingx]

"I'm messy at this."

[Sherwood]

I think I've owned 3 or 4 pairs of Grado headphones that interviewer made.

[postjack]

"The only part of the headphones that are built off-site, according to the Grado family, is the driver. These are manufactured by one man on Long Island who doesn't work exclusively for Grado, but he has the space to put drivers together that Grado does not in its packed and rickety townhouse. The driver design was built and refined in-house, John says; it's just the handiwork that happens in Long Island."

 

Interesting, I don't think I've ever heard exactly where the drivers come from. I always assumed China.

 

"Here I try out two prototype models of Grado's professional variety of headphones, the GS1000e and PS1000e, while listening to The Fairfield Four. I can hardly tell the difference between them, but in each pair, I can hear each individual reverberation of the baritone singer's vocal chords."

 

LOL. I guess the interviewer can't hear midrange.

Edited July 26, 2014 by postjack

[HiWire]

Yes, I was surprised to find out that the drivers are made nearby.

The commenters on that article that describe Grados as "tinny-sounding" probably haven't heard Grados before. That's what you get when you rely on internet reviews.

Edited July 26, 2014 by HiWire

[postjack]

Yes, I was surprised to find out that the drivers are made nearby.

The commenters on that article that describe Grados as "tinny-sounding" probably haven't heard Grados before. That's what you get when you rely on internet reviews.

 

Finally watched the video, thank you for sharing it. Really enjoyed it. Made me want to buy Grado stuff, so their zero dollar advertising is working.

[HiWire]

It's a great video. People were accusing Ars of promoting Grado, but I think the Grado house and business model are different enough (from overseas factories and multinational conglomerates) to deserve a feature article.

 

Also, it inspired me to research headphones again, for no good reason. I'm already very happy with my current setup (Sony D-EJ2000 + Alessandro MS-1 at work, Arcam FMJ CD36 + Headsave Classic v2 + Grado HP-2 at home).

 

I started a long time ago with stock Panasonic over-the-ear headphones and a portable cassette player, moved into low-buck Koss headphones when the Panasonic broke, and stayed with Sennheiser HD 320 headphones for ten years with a Panasonic SL-S160 portable CD player (still working).

 

After updating myself for a few days on the interwebs of headphone stuff, I'm still glad that I went with the MS-1 for portable/desk use (and grabbed the HP-2 when the opportunity came up). There are a lot of new products on the market, but the classic stuff stays around too (e.g., Sennheiser HD 600, Koss PortaPro, etc.).

 

I have mixed emotions when I think about people who are new to the headphone game – they have a lot more choices, but too much information (and hearsay) are overwhelming. Higher prices on the new flagship products are also discouraging... fortunately, the market is big enough that you can still find value for your dollar. At one point, I found myself reading reviews of Monoprice headphones. That was ludicrous... after you've heard the good stuff (AKG K1000, Grado PS-1, I'm looking at you), it's very hard to go back.

It always comes back to a long, careful equipment audition, which is hard to do at headphone meets and audio stores. System synergy is also important – testing a piece on other people's gear, music, and listening environment often leads to a misleading impression.

Edited July 27, 2014 by HiWire

[tin ear]

no dust free, climate controlled assembly room. no assembly workers clad in white lab coats and cotton gloves. but they do have killer.