August 16, 200916 yr I've been enjoying mine (SN 141). I like what it does for female voices in particular on the setups I've tried so far. Very present and rich-sounding. Probably my faves now of the phones I own. best, k
August 16, 200916 yr #163 was waiting for me when I got back from vacation the last week of July. I have spent a lot of time with them since then, as I find myself craving listening sessions. postjack's comment ("[p]ure Grado midrange crunchy radness") is spot on. In addition to guitars, a lot of vocal performances (Al Green!) have really shined.
August 19, 200916 yr My HF-2 is due to arrive within the week, so of course I'm in a state of pre-ownership obsessive curiosity. I'm a big believer in audio-chain synergy. But I'm also chronically lazy. So lend me your hard work and tell me what configuration yields the most win! Are they better suited toward the tubey warmth and verve end of the spectrum, or toward solid-state hyper detail and speed?
August 19, 200916 yr But I'm also chronically lazy. So lend me your hard work and tell me what configuration yields the most win! That's a bad Kevin! I found them to be less tolerant of high-output impedance designs compared to their HF-1 brethren and thought they sounded outstanding out of a beta22. I haven't tried them on many tube amps so I can only tell you bad things about that experience. I suspect that something with perhaps a trafo-coupled output would be nice.
August 19, 200916 yr This isn't a great forum on which to be lazy. Lazy people tend to attract this kind of attention: No matter what advice you get in this thread, you'll still have to do the work to decide for yourself what works best. So do the work once you get them. That being said, I agree with Nate that they sound wonderful being driven by a B22. However, for me they also sound good being driven by my SP Platinum Extreme with 6as7g output tubes. So a "high power" OTL tube amp also works.
August 19, 200916 yr Wow, look at all that laziness criticism coming from people who are probably surfing this forum at their day jobs (and yup I'm one of 'em) Nah seriously, thanks for the impressions. Actually, I get obsessive about trying different combinations, which lead me to build ~seven different DIY amps and try ~seven different Grado pad configurations.
August 19, 200916 yr On a budget, the HF-2 sounds damn good out of my Millett Hybrid... Though it also scales up very well, too. It sounded amazing out of Mark's uber-Ear, a Beta, etc.
August 20, 200916 yr My HF-2 is due to arrive within the week, so of course I'm in a state of pre-ownership obsessive curiosity. I'm a big believer in audio-chain synergy. But I'm also chronically lazy. So lend me your hard work and tell me what configuration yields the most win! Are they better suited toward the tubey warmth and verve end of the spectrum, or toward solid-state hyper detail and speed? I like them with Millett SSH or Head-direct EF1 and EF2 tube hybrids with Pico DAC-only, or Apogee Duet, Woo WA6 and EC ZDT.
August 20, 200916 yr It seems then, that the HF-2 is a headphone that is tolerant of different topologies, while simultaneously scaling well. Sweet. Mine is scheduled to arrive today, so I'll repay your impressions with my own soon. Woo!
August 21, 200916 yr Initial impressions. Always using Headroom Overture as source. Clearly shares DNA with the HF-1. I feel the bass in my feet, as if it was traveling floorboards. Observing the aged HF-1 present a more effortless sound even while the newborn HF-2 outclasses it makes it clear that burn-in matters. Millett Hybrid mates well, but is hiding detail. Diamond buffers will likely help this. Pimeta is surprisingly similar. PPAv2 results in same experience as with all Grados. IT BURRRRRNS! The Dynalo, on the other hand, is HF-2's soulmate. Now I need a change of pants. Also a B22
August 21, 200916 yr Dynalos are sweet. I recently squished my bowls down, and they're pretty badass now. Regular bowls still suck.
August 21, 200916 yr Dynalos are sweet. I recently squished my bowls down, and they're pretty badass now. Regular bowls still suck. Everything in this post is true.
August 22, 200916 yr Heard the HF-2 yesterday in the Sydney Meet. Wasn't impressed with the somewhat dodgy craftsmanship/build quality/watchamakallit. Impression? It's still a Grado which IMO sounds good just for rock. Took it off after about a minute. Supra-aural is a b!tch.
August 22, 200916 yr How well did it handle 'zu', 'su' and 'ju'? Didn't try it out with Japanese music. Just Radiohead and some random Jazz stuff.
August 23, 200916 yr Dynalos are sweet. I recently squished my bowls down, and they're pretty badass now. Regular bowls still suck. Can you elaborate on this squishing?
August 23, 200916 yr Can you elaborate on this squishing? Put something rigid and heavy on top. Let time pass. Enjoy.
August 23, 200916 yr Can you elaborate on this squishing? Put something rigid and heavy on top. Let time pass. Enjoy. Given your recent posts, at first glance, I thought you wrote frigid; made more sense when I read it again.
August 23, 200916 yr hf2s, balanced from my duet->rotel rc-1090 xlr jacks listening to paul bley Great resolution, great low bass, perfect tone. I'll let others listen at my mini-meet.
September 1, 200916 yr Late to the party but I really like the sound out from the Compass. It sounds exceptional with acoustic guitars and the stuff.
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