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What the hell should I buy?


Bob_McBob

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My last rig was a CIA VDA-1/VAC-1, SP Extreme, and RS-1s. I sold it all last year, so I've been away from headphones for a little while. I now have a balanced B22 on the way from thrice and a minidac USB from grawk in a week, but I haven't been able to decide on headphones.

All the nice headphones I've owned are Grados. MS-1, HF-1, and RS-1. I am pretty happy with the Grado sound, and really like the RS-1s, but I found they gave me low level tinnitus really easily. I'll probably eventually get a pair, but I'd like to try something different this time.

I've been seriously considering HD650s, but opinions of them vary so much it's hard to tell anything. I don't have the opportunity to try anything locally, so I pretty much have to go on what I read online. I'd really like something that will showcase the B22's qualities and not sound exactly the same as Grados. I won't be ordering for a week, so I've got time to decide.

Any suggestions? :)

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Balanced HD 650/600s from a good amp are really, really nice and you wouldn't be making a big loss if you wanted to resell them should you decide not to keep them. They're more sedated than Grados, but maybe you'll like them anyway. At least give them a try since it'll also be a good reference point for further buying recommendations.

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I heard an RS-1 next to an RS-2 out of the same amp at the Danish head-fi meet in February. I actually preferred the RS-2 because it didn't feel like someone taking a sharpie to my ears but still preserved what I like about the grados. Almost all the other grados I've heard (RS-1, SR325, SR80, SR60, GS1000) have caused pain and triggered low-level tinnitus in my ears after short listening periods, except for the GS1000.

My ears are pretty sensitive to sharp/pronounced treble. Listening to the old 80s track "Ryan Paris - Dolce Vita" with my ESW9 yesterday brought pain to my ears until I switched on the EQ and rolled off the highs to make the track listenable.

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Listen quieter.

I do listen pretty quietly. I was surprised when the RS-1s started giving me tinnitus at even moderate volume levels. I thought it must have been caused by something else, but it happened more than once. Very sad, because I love the way they sound. I'm willing to put up with listening VERY quietly if I do get a pair later.

rs-1 or hf-1 with flats.

:kitty:

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Easily $1800-2000+++ (really depends on the buyer, and there are a lot of foreign buyers that are willing to pay a lot now that the USD is so weak)

IMO they should be selling for more than the PS-1.

Woah, prices went up! Demand certainly is high for these phones. Not but 10 months ago there were 3 pair for sale at one time on HF.

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