Pro-ject Head Box 11 vs Graham Slee Solo for my Grado RS1i's.

gooner26 · 05-08-2009, 11:46 AM

hi, i am using a pro-ject headbox 11 with my Grado RS1i's and i am slightly underwhelmed so far with sound quality, my source is the Sneaky DS, i also have the Grado SR60 which to my ears gel better with the pro-ject headbox. I am currently burning in my RS1i's (69 hours so far) will they improve over time? or is the weak link the project? would the Graham Slee improve things?

Regards Danny.

**Steven** · 05-08-2009, 3:12 PM

I'm a great believer in synergy and component matching. I had the baby brother on loan the Novo, if you want to search for my thoughts on that. For sure after trying those I know my level is set above them

The RS1's are not priced so as to be an impulse purchase. You say its been burning in for 69 hours, but is that listening time or a file left on repeat overnight? If its the latter I would say you have not tuned in to the sound signature

A good determination would be to choose a handful of tracks you know well. Then try listening direct from source, and then with the amp to spot the difference. Or keep the source and amp and compare headphones

Sometimes people who buy new headphones appreciate the difference more only by going back to a lesser headphone

gooner26 · 05-08-2009, 3:53 PM

hi, i have been burning them in overnight and just leaving my sneaky on repeat.

Drubbing · 06-08-2009, 1:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gooner26

hi, i have been burning them in overnight and just leaving my sneaky on repeat.

Even the high end Grado's don't really need amping, but it's silly not to considering the investment.

Given they are a bright and punchy sound, then opinions vary on which sort of amp is best; some like one that matches that sound, other like one that adds some extra warmth.

Don't believe what you read about burn in; phones don't sound massively different after a period of use, they won't turn into something that they aren't now.

Also, some say Grado's are shades of the same flavour; that there's not a massive difference in the sigs of each phone, and the higher end and just smoother, more detailed versions of the cheaper ones.

LFC makes a good point too - listen to music you know well. I recently got a nice source and it took me a few hours for my ears to adjust to how it presents, and it liked well recorded music best. After a few weeks, my ears became pampered and complacent, and though maybe it wasn't as nice as I thought. So I tried my old source again, and got a reality check.