Have your say & ask the experts

PJPro:

I wore my graduation suite.

Was it from DFS?

PJPro:

She even asked me how much were the speakers I've been looking at (AVI Neutron 5)

Oooo

PJPro:

They've arrived and I'm listening to them now.

Oooo

JohnDuncan:

PJPro:

They've arrived and I'm listening to them now.

Oooo

Indeed!

Great stuff, PJPro, I'm sure they sound amazing.

I wonder whether it's time to get a Headphones sub-forum on WHF, rather than stuff on headphones being all over the place in HiFi, Accessories and who knows where else. What do you think, JD?

Hedgehog 

x2 for the headphone sub forum. And it should be next to turntables in the hifi section, not tucked away as 'accessories'. I hate, as a headfier, being seen as an accessory. It makes headfi seem like an add on that is an after thought. But headfi can get you closer to super quality music for less money than an speakers.

Hopefully, PJ will now report back and say his RS1s are the best sound ever, from anything ever heard.

He must be too busy listening to post......... come on PJPro don't keep us in suspense, how do they sound ?

He can't hear you – he's got his headphones on...

And what on earth is a 'headfier'?

OK. Here's the comparison

Construction

First impressions in the hand are good. The RS1s must weigh twice that of the SR80s.

The headband on the RS1s is lightly padded, made of stitched leather and is wider than the SR80s, which lacks padding and is made of platic. The plastic junctions between the headband and the phones themselves is the same on both models. However, the metal bar used to attach the phones to these junctions is more substantial on the RS1s and square in section The SR80s are round and tend to swivel around more.


SR80 on left.

The metal "spring" in the headband is different too; on the RS1s it is stronger but doesn't exert as much pressure on the ears as the SR80s making the RS1s more comfortable to wear. Note: the earpads are further apart on the RS1s when in the relaxed position (see below).


SR80s on left

The remainder of the SR80s are constructed from plastic. The RS1 use metal and wood. The ear chamber of the RS1s is bigger (at least twice the size) although both models use the same foam ear pads.


SR80s on left

The cable on the RS1s is slightly thinner than on the SR80s. Both are flexible and feel "nice". The SR80s are terminated with a mini jack and come with 1/4 inch convertor while the RS1s are terminated with a 1/4 phone plug and comes with a substantial mini jack adapter.


SR80s top

The RS1s are a more refined product with all aspects of the construction superior to the SR80s.

And the sound?

Updated post above with pictures and added a few comments too.

I'm working on the sound.

JohnDuncan:

PJPro:

I wore my graduation suite.

Was it from DFS?

LOL. Only just got this.

Rig

EAC->Flac->Foobar2000->WASAPI (Vista SP2)->SB Xtreme Gamer->True Colours Industries Coral->Beresford TC-7510 (Mods 21 & 21 pt2)->Lindy Audio Premium Gold->DIY GS Novo.

Review

Listening to Money, by Pink Floyd, the RS1s provide an increased separation of the instruments over the SR80s. The highs are much clearer without being harsh....Gilmour's guitar work being particularly improved. The soundstage is wider than the SR80s.

Listening to Angel, by Massive Attack, the RS1s handle the driving bass in the opening section with more poise and control than the SR80s and there's more of it. The repeated click (drumstick against rim?) is crisp and clear.

I was going to continue in this vein for a few more tracks, to illustrate my points, but decided to cut it short. Why? Well, I've done a fair bit of "critical" listening with these phones now and felt they were a significant improvement over the SR80s. However, doing direct comparisons on short sections of a track proved that the differences are not as great as I thought.

It's true to say that the RS1s may not be fully run in yet. The seller reckons he had about 30 hours on them. My SR80s took much more than that to fully settle down (200hrs?).

So, what's the bottom line (to date)? The RS1s are about £650 new (Audio Affair), with the RS80s coming in at around £100. That's 6.5 times more than for the RS1s....and they aren't 6.5 times better sounding so, personally, I wouldn't buy them new.

So what do you do if you want new (rather than secondhand). The RS1s are supposedly built using the same design as the SR325s but using different materials. So, if new were the only option, I'd try out a pair of these.

I think this experience has underlined for me the fantasic value of the SR80s. Yes, the RS1s are an improvement but its not the night and day difference I was expecting.

Audio Merchants in Glasgow were adament that to get an improvement over my SR80s the minimum was the SR325s, and even then..... You have backed up that advice. As well as running in, could it be, since all Grados have the same sort of build, ohm rating, sound signature, that they just do not sound as different as you would expect?

Of course, I am not, or ever claimed to be, a golden ears. What I would say, though, is that the RS1s do sound better in a way that I have difficulty in explaining. But still not 6.5 times better. Not even twice as good.

Unless you're flushed or have critical listening tendencies, stick with the SR80s (which I think are very good value now that I've heard the RS1s). If you see a pair of RS1s going cheap (<£350), as I did, then they are worth the money.