Grado SR60i

[Huntsman]

Hi forum, bought a pair of Grado as my first non-cheapo headphones(real headphones if you would) and here's my thought on them.

 

Packaging:

The packaging is very minimal. Just a hard paper box with foam inside. There are a 3.5mm to 6.3mm adapter as the headphone default is 3.5mm. It also come's with the standard warranty paper.

 

Le headphone:

As other Grados are, the sr60i looks very retro and unsophisticated. The entire headphone is essentially black with white words saying "SR60"(without the "i" for some unknown reason) along with "THE PRESTIGE SERIES" and "GRADO LABS". It comes with a fairly thick cord and there are cords running to each side of the headphone. Non-detachable. 

 

The ear cups are made of a hard foam that conforms to the shape of your ear over time and are quite small. Although keep in mind that this is a on ear headphone instead of over ears. The housing is made of plastic which honestly does make it look cheap. On the sides there's venting holes that makes this an open headphone. Headbands on the SR60i are thin and not very comfortable. It is just a piece of metal wrapped by artificial leather(or it could be real i don't know, don't quota me on that). 

 

Technical data:

I won't go deep into this as I am no professional in this area. The things you need to know is that it is an open-backed headphone which mean sound WILL leak through and you WILL hear the ambient noises. This is a sacrifice you will have to make for a clearer sounding BUT weaker bass headphone. The SR60i are of 32ohms, slightly higher than the average IEMs and cheapo headphones but is still relatively easy to drive. You will not need an amplifier to drive this headphone to higher volume. Seriously, listening at high volumes will damage your hearing.\

 

Sound:

 

Test Equipment:

-ODAC

-O2 Amplifier (Built this myself based on the O2 so it is not really an O2. Might do a review on this soon.)

 

Ah, the most important part. The SR60i just like most of the other Grados, sound clear and bright. Out of the box the highs sounds very harsh but after some burning in, it settles into a less irritating tone. It is still on the harsh side but is less of a problem. 

 

The mids are very clear and flat. Vocals would benefit from this as well as rock music. It does gets abit muddy when alot of instruments are playing. Details are good as you could hear pretty much everything in the music and doesn't get overly exaggerated. It's just nice.

 

Bass on the other hand is alright. I wouldn't say it lacks bass unless you're a total bass head. What I've found is that the bass is slightly improved when amped. Overall the bass is quite solid and punchy enough for most genre. I didn't expect to get very deep rumbling sound but the SR60i delivers that quite well for an open-backed headphone.

 

Comfort:

On the comfort side, the Grado disappoints. The headphone grips on my head like vice grips and clamps on very hard. To make matters worse, I do wear glasses so it hurts me quite a bit after long periods of listening. Also, the metal bands have minimal padding to it so it will kinda dig into the top of my head after a while. The clamping issues could be solved by stretching the headphone as the manufacturer suggests but the metal band is REALLY irritating after some time. Maybe if you have thicker hair growth it wouldn't be such a problem.

 

Also, the cables are non-detachable. Personally I don't mind that but what I do mind is that there are individual cable running off to each side of the headphone. This is very annoying as the piece of plastic at where the cord splits kept brushing against my collarbone. I might mod this into a single cord and detachable in the future. Btw, this is dubbed the most mod-able headphone out there. Google around and you can see plenty of mods for this headphone. 

 

Conclusion:

So in the end, this is a very good and affordable headphone for those who are just starting to venture into the world of audiophile. At 80 bucks this is a very solid headphone that I would recommend to anyone. Although the headband and clamping issue might ward off somebody. Overall, this is a really good headphone.

[Stav Kats]

As far as the headband discomfort goes, there is a solution to this problem. The solution is free if you buy 12.89$.(hehehe)

[Huntsman]

As far as the headband discomfort goes, there is a solution to this problem. The solution is free if you buy 12.89$.(hehehe)

 

hmm thanks! I haven't been looking around for a solution for that but thanks alot!

[Stav Kats]

hmm thanks! I haven't been looking around for a solution for that but thanks alot!

You are welcome mate, it's my pleasure to be able to help!

[vanwazltoff]

another way to make them more comfortable is taking the headband off of these (see below) and putting it over the existing band, increased comfort level substantially, if they are new give them a few good stretch outs and it'll be more comfortable on your ears. I have SR80is

 

http://www.harborfreight.com/ear-muffs-94334.html

[Smoka]

Would recommend to flex the headband a bit till it loosens up, i did that with my Alessandros and its much better

[Gorgatron]

I loved my grado (I had the sr80) and it got quite uncomfortable on my ears. Pretty solid review.