Grado SR125 Headphone Review

(2008 Note: This is an old article but it's still relevant!)

Why spend $55 more: OK, OK, I've been bragging on the Grado SR80 Headphones for a couple of years now. When compared directly with a $40 pair of department store headphones, the improvement in sound quality is huge. At $95 I have consistently said they are the best headphones for price and performance money can buy. So why would some of you want to spend $55 dollars more for a pair of Grado SR125's??? I'll tell you why!!!

I am going to make the assumption that my audience is not familiar with the audiophile industry. I'm not going to go into specifics, (that could take all day), but generally an audiophile spends big bucks to improve the quality of their sound system. Take speakers for example. If you do the research, a good pair of small speakers can be had for around $200, a better pair can be had for $400, an even better pair for $800, and so on and so forth. Once you hit the $2000 level, improvements in sound quality begin to get minimal, but they are there for those with well trained ears, and there are people who are willing to spend the money for the improvements. In fact, a serious audiophile has umpteen choices of speakers which can cost even as much as $100,000. Unfortunately, most of us have a limit as to how much money we will spend on anything, even if a more expensive product is better.

Notice that with speakers we are talking big bucks! High quality Grado headphones on the other hand can match or surpass the sound quality of many of these more expensive speakers at less than the cost of the basic good speakers I mentioned above. Jumping up $55 from a SR80 to an SR125 may not be a huge improvement in sound, but when listening to a well recorded CD, there is an audible improvement. Compared to the cost of those expensive speakers, the $55 doesn't seem like that much for an actual improvement in sound quality. In fact, that's less than cost of four CD's. You make the call yourself. If you are like me, I am always wondering if there is something out there I could have spent a little more money on for higher quality?

Grado vs. Other brands: I have to admit, the only other pairs of good headphones I have personally listened to recently has been the $300 Sennheiser HD 580's and the $200 HD 545's. But in my defense, most audiophile magazines have used the HD 580's as their reference headphones for the last couple of years, and you don't often find reviews about any other brands. I own a pair of 580's along with a high quality headphone amp so I did some extensive comparisons between the HD 580's, the HD 545's, the Grado SR 80's and SR 125's. I don't know if you have ever compared speakers side by side, but sometimes it can be difficult to judge. A difference can often be easy to hear, but which sound is better often depends on the individual's tastes. Frankly, I would have a hard time saying I liked the SR 80's better the the Sennheiser HD 580's, but I probably would say I like their sound better than the HD 545's. However, when it comes to detail, the Grado SR 125's beat both of the Sennheiser's hands down!

Now comes the nit picking: The Sennheiser's are more comfortable and have a different sound than the Grados'. With the Senn's, you get the feeling you are sitting in a larger room with the audience, (as is how most of us hear live music). With the Grado's, it sounds as if you are sitting on the stage with the instruments. In fact, on older analog recordings with tape hiss or CD's recorded with too much treble, the detail of the SR 125's can almost be irritating. The Senn's mask some of the harshness associated with such recordings. Back on the SR 125's behalf: Once my Grado's were broken in, the comfort level improved dramatically. And as far at the tape hiss or too much treble, we are talking about a problem with some recordings, not the headphones. We are beginning to get into audiophile territory where better equipment can sometimes be too revealing for bad recordings. If you are connected to an amplifier with a treble control, you can adjust accordingly. Another plus for the Grado's: The cord is of higher quality and doesn't short out like the HD 580s' sometime does. Bottom Line: As a headphone for home use, the Grado SR 125's offer more detail in sound quality than the reference level Senn HD 580's for half the price! Plus, improved sound quality can be had from most any sound source. The HD 580's really do require a higher quality amp to get the full satisfaction out of them.

SR 125's connected to a discman: You may ask, why would anyone hook up a $150 pair of Grado's which are not small sized portable headphones to a portable CD player which most likely cost under a $100??? Because the sound quality is there in your discman just waiting for you to let it out! The reason your discman cost so little is due to huge demand, mass production, and cost cutting. Headphones are one of those cost cutting decisions. The average person doesn't realize how cheap the headphones are that came with their CD portable. If you plug a $69 pair of Grado SR 60's to your portable, you'll discover what I am talking about. There is no comparison, the Grado's higher quality sound runs circles around the cheapies. If you step up to the Grado SR 80's, you'll notice an improvement in bass over the SR 60's. And yes, if you step up to the Grado SR 125's, you will get amazing detail from your little portable CD player (you'll need an adaptor to go from the 1/4 inch plug to the discman standard 1/8 inch output). Whether you have $69, $95, or $150 to spend on headphones, you decide what your budget is. But please, unleash that sound that is waiting in your portable by plugging in an audiophile quality pair of Grado headphones.