What speakers could be compared to Grado headphones? (1 Viewer)

[Sheldon C]

Is it even possible to compare the sound of a speaker with headphones?

I love my grado sr80's and would love to replace my old mains with a similar sound. I love how detailed and crisp they sound, I can hear the seperation between instruments so much better than I can on my system. By the way, I would buy mains first only, and then eventually replace all of my other speakers. I use my system for both movies and music, and my music tastes are mostly metal (Metallica, Dream Theater, Maiden, Tool, Iced Earth, and a lot of underground stuff).

My setup includes a svs 20-39pci and a Yamaha rxv3000 receiver. I do have some speakers in mind, but I want to see if anyone else mentions them which would reinforce my decision.

Thanks

 

[Sheldon C]

Oh yeah, my budget for the mains is anywhere from 600 to 1000.

 

[Paul.Little]

What speakers could be compared to Grado headphones?

Really, really little ones?

 

[Sheldon C]

yup, you got me... I was thinking about getting 600 dollars worth of those little bose cubes!

 

[Chris Quinn]

Axioms seems to be a favorite among those who have detail as their first consideration.

 

[Sheldon C]

Chris,

axiom are the speakers that I am considering, specifically the m60's. I am hoping that what others consider to be "too bright" is what I think of as detailed. My only worry is the fact that I use a Yamaha receiver which is also considered to be bright, although I have heard that the higher end models like mine do not have this problem. It's tough to tell since I am currently using Cerwin Vegas as my mains... my Grado headphones have sure spoiled the cerwins sound.

 

[MikeLi]

Thats a toughy.. Dont know that I have seen it discussed at all lately. You might try avsforum.com and see what the guys say over there as well.. I have never been able to match but I don't use headphones as much if at all like I used to. Noise cancelling on the airplane is now more important than the best sound. IE: Bose noise cancelling phones. Maybe you'll have to bring home a few brands and try them at home in an a/b test. Seems that it might be easier than a/b'ing two sets of speakers though... Headphone on, headphone off... Try some of the internet brands if your really serious.... whats alittle in shipping costs if you find what you want. Axiom, Ascend, Rocket.... Those Rocket Refs might be the ones now that I think about it... they have been getting great reviews as being detailed. Good Luck.

 

[keir]

chris is right about axiom. i have axiom m2i paired with a subwoofer and also have grado sr-60s. they sound very similar except the grado are probably more colored. i think the grado are a little too pronounced in the upper midrange. both sound extremely good to me though, and the differences are not very big.

seeing your post about the m60, i think thats a great choice. the m60ti, m22ti, and m2i are much the same throughout the midrange and treble, and the m60 has the advantage of bass extension and higher sensitivity.

i wouldnt worry about a yamaha receiver. i too have heard it said they're too bright, but my friend has m22tis and they sounded great with his low end yamaha receiver. when it broke down he replaced it with a denon and couldnt hear a difference.

 

[Chris Quinn]

I wouldn't worry about the Yammy receiver. I've read people's opinion that it is bright and others' opinion that it is warm. I think it comes down to personal preference.

I did see on the AVS thread "best non-bright detailed speaker" that someone in the audio industry answered "a really good pair of headphones."

 

[MarkAT]

Sheldon,

I will admit up front that I really enjoy a detailed sounding speaker but wince if it is on the bright side. I just upgraded from the Axiom M22 to the M60 because I truly loved the 22's detail but wanted a bit fuller sound. With the M60 I got it in spades - plenty of detail but a more dynamic and lush sounding speaker. Definitely a keeper for many years to come.

Mark