Grado - SR225x

My Grado SR225's left ear stopped working but gonna try fixing by replacing the jack end of the cable. Thankfully I got some Sennheiser HD25's to keep me going

New? Ft1 pro, the regular Ft1 is good but not "big ass easy to drive planar magnetic that come with both 3.5 and 4.4 cables. For about 200 But year on year, used grado sr60, 80, 125, and 225's. Used pristine 125e's are like 50 bucks everywhere and they're just a fabulous set of cans, and durable as hell.. But new, its the Ft1 pro, no contest. Or iems. Moondrop kadenz are just astonishing for 200 bucks. But the simgot em6l are also amazing for 100.

My Grado SR225X’s are my absolute favourite. They could be more comfortable though

Almost all of mine are used headphone and usually I buy blind, except those I picked up when I was in e earphone in Tokyo. The choices were usually influenced by reviews, experience shared by redditors, or I just like the look and the price was good. Buying blind like this mean I end up with pairs like the Grado 225 which I do like the sounds but can never wear for more than 30 minutes with my glasses.

Grado SR-225 about 23 years ago were the first *headphones* that made me care about *headphone* sound. I already cared about speaker sound long before that (although couldn't afford really good gear until more recently). Mids were great, highs were ok, but I quickly came to realize that they had basically zero bass, and were exceedingly uncomfortable in so many ways (bad headband, bad pads (open-cell foam coated with some heavy-duty rubberized shit like plasti-dip? wtf?) and REALLY bad cable...) 3 years later I snagged a Sennheiser HD600 for $50 and my eyes were REALLY opened to just how good headphones could sound. Stuck with those for 13 years, then hopped to the LCD-2 for 6 years (which have oodles of bass, probably too much, but their treble response sucks donkey nuts), and just recently sold them and yoinked an HD820 for less than half price. Edit: yikes, major typo! hope nobody noticed... 😬

I have the FT1 and they are pretty good value (got it from aliexpress official Fiio store under $200 AUD with discounts) paired with a K13 r2r DAC/amp for music and soundblaster G6 for gaming (mainly for the mic input and fps) It's slightly more V shaped with great subass. I have a bigish head/ears and I find the comfort decent and dont have any issues with listening long durations. The pads could be softer. If you are open to open backs (better sound stage and for music listening in my opinion) Hifiman xs edition is around the price range when on discount with larger cup size that might be better for bigger ears. It sits loose and you'll need a Cabra comfort strap or similar. I haven't tried them myself but I hear great things about the audio quality. If you arenear a addicted to audio store it would be best to try them on for fit. For reference I had the old ATH m50 that lasted many years, neutral studio monitors as my first headphones that led me down the rabbit hole. Got the Grado 225e (open back on ear) as I was into rock music that I dont use much due to comfort. Sony XM3 for travel. Vocal clear OG (open back) when I can sit down and really enjoy music, bit fatiguing though. Got a bunch of IEMs as well. My next headphone will probably be a Hifiman or Dan Clark audio. I'm not an audiophile, I just have a problem.

That’s why you need AT LEAST 10 sets of headphones! The only over/on eras I can wear individually are my 25 year old Grados. The only thing that prevents me from gluing AirPods Pro permanently to my head is battery life.

The nyczaj pads on those grado x drivers make them so good

Grado SR series. They're open-back. You can hear everything.

Im an audio guy and after many years of optimizing playback solutions imo there are two very clear answers: Sennheiser 6XX for full size, and Etymotic ER2XR for IEMs.  The sennies can be found new for around 200 and the Etymotics are around 130 new. I found them uncomfortable and the cables are definitely microphonic but you can get aftermarket tips. For pure $/sound i think they are the strongest I've ever personally heard.  Another outside option is Grado SRs, for under 100 I love the sound. Build quality and comfort is meh but they look cool and sound excellent. They aren't a great match for every genre though, read up if interested.