Day 2: These still sound great. The cable is slightly better than yesterday (thanks to a LOT of effort). I have noticed a pressure point on my right ear caused mostly by my glasses sitting behind my ear and the pad pressing my ear into the arm of the glasses. With outvmy glasses on they are fine for several hours. With them on I can only make it an hour befor my right ear hurts. Currently fucking with the headband to try and fix this. Overall Iām glad Iām still getting the Grado experienceā¢ while still enjoying these headphones.
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So its taking everything I have to stop myself from gushing over these right now. Iām still doing the ālisten to only the new headphoneā thing and have yet to directly compare with anything else, but Iām really enjoying pretty much everything Iāve listened to. From classic rock to modern metal, from Japanese drums to synthwave, from the Hollow Knight OST to the Doom Eternal OST, I have yet to be disappointed.
Oh, look at that. I ended up gushing a bit.
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Unexpected review from a Linus (Linus Tech Tips) channel:
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You and Gutenberg both! I like eliraās review too. Iād like to see others comparisons with othe Grados (particularly the HF-3, becaise I have heard itā¦ or even the RS2e ā¦ for price tier comparison)
Pretty similar impressions to mine so far. I kind of wish LTT woukd do more āaudiophileā stuff, especially full reviews, because they are a great way to bring people into this hobby (LTT and Hardware Cunucks got me started with the HD58X) and I like the sort if āoutsiderā perspective they bring. They arenāt audio reviewers but are still familiar with audio (from tech industry stuff) so they are more like a normal personās perspective.
Thereās badseed tech, lol.
This guy is just casually saying Aeons are good for gaming while never even saying the word āaudiophileā. Also did a āHD6XX vs HD58X for gamingā video, etc.
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So I started comparing These with my other headphones now that Iām done my ~week of exclusive listening and I have to say, the Tin T2 performs admirably even when compared to not only the T4 and Shuoer Tape, But even against the P1 and the Hemps. The T2 are a little power house for $50. The Hemps are predictably better, but not by as much as I was expecting (take this as a compliment to the T2 and not a knock against the Hemps).
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OK. So after a week of only listening to the Grado Hemp LTD Edition and two full days of comparisons with the rest of my headphones, itās time for my full review.
Iām going to start with the things I donāt like since the list is short and these may or may not be deal breakers for some people. So first negative is the attached T H I C C B O I cable. It comes really janked up in the box and even after a week is still a bit unwieldy. In itās defense it is a high quality cable that will more than likely last the test of time and has little to no microphonics (scratchy noise from brushing against things) but it is still attached and is still thick so this is up to your personal preference. The second thing is the Grado Buildā¢ which is not terrible but is also lack luster for $420. It does not feel as bad as I was expecting, meaning it does not feel like it will literally fall apart in my hands, but it really should be better for the price. Again, in itās defense, it is light weight and will probably last a long time if all the decade old Grados are any indication, but it is still not the best. Third and last is the comfort. These are on ear so you can expect all the on ear problems like sore spots and itchy pads. I personally got used to them after about 2 or 3 days but They push my ears into the arms of my glasses and that gets pretty sore after about 45 min to an hour, and they also tend to slide off a bit if you look down. But the fact that I happily used these for a week straight should be an indication of just how good they sound.
To start the sound portion off iām going to do my best to sum up the sound signature. Iāll explain my reasoning and do some comparisons after that, followed by my music recommendations.
I would describe the sound signature as a warm and slightly bright neutral/natural signature.
The treble is smooth, forward, and detailed while almost never harsh and never sibilant. This is at my listening volume, which is a little bit loud but nothing extreme, and I am not sensitive to treble. I still would offer a word of caution for those who may be a bit sensitive to treble as these are a bit bright, like I said.
The upper mids are forward, smooth, and detailed with great vocal presentation, especially for female vocals, and I never noticed any shouty-ness. This range also seems to help with pianos and the upper end of string instruments and guitars. .
The lower mids are VERY warm and properly lush. This gives everything a musical and thick quality to it that I just love. Itās also quite surprising to me that this causes very little to no muddy-ness, even in very busy and mid-centric songs.
The bass Is equally warm and lush, with a rather great amount of detail. It is full but not overly bassy. It performs admirably in even the most low end filled songs I can throw at it, making punchy and tight bass without ever breaking a sweat.
The sub-bass is a similar story. Nice rumbles and good wub wubs when asked, no problems. It is a bit rolled off but nothing severe. For the way this headphone is tuned this is the perfect amount of sub-bass in my opinion.
Two quick side notes before I get into the comparisons proper.
First, I have the Tin T4 and the Shuoer Tape, and could not be more underwhelmed with them. Even in a vacuum, the Harman target type tuning is just thoroughly not my cup of tee, and just trying to listen to these after a full week of the Hemps made that all the more apparent.
Second, The Porta Pros and the Tin T2 are both little power houses for their price ($30 and $50 respectively) and while they are not really a useful comparison considering the other headphone I have, they deserve a nod for how well they are able to stand their ground even against a headphone around 10x the price.
Lets start with the DT770 250ohm with AHG lambskin Ori copy pads. These are mostly helpful as a reference for the highs. The Hemps have better highs. They are clearer, more detailed, and less sharp with no sibilance and better resolution in the lower treble/upper mids. The DT770 is good but its high suffer from harshness and distortion in the āSā range (sibilance) and simply do not have the same kind of resolution.
Next is the Tin P1. For reference, the P1 are my second favorite headphone. They have such incredible speed and just do something special that I am yet to pin down. The treble on the Hemps is smoother, slower, but more detailed. The mids are warmer but similarly full while more laid back in presentation. Vocals also seem to be better on the Hemps. The Hemps have a bit less sub bass and speed in the bass, but more mid bass and that lesser speed create better punch. Low end detail is about the same depending on the exact song being used for testing. The biggest advantage that the Hemps have over the P1 is the timber. The P1 sound great, but they can sound a bit cold and metallic in comparison to the warm and natural acoustic like timber of the Hemps. The timber of the Hemps is so good that it is one of its defining features for me. To finish up, the Hemps have a wider sound stage but the P1 have some of the best imaging Iāve ever heard. Its just so 3D, so I have to give that to the P1. Overall, I should have said the P1 WHERE my second favorite, because it seems the Hemps have supplanted them.
Next is the HD58X Jubilee. Iād say this is probably the most useful comparison since I can sum it up by saying the Hemps are like a better HD58X. There is more to it but that is the broad takeaway I got. Their frequency responses are rather similar (warm, mid forward, detailed but smooth highs) but in most ways the Hemp take it, even if only by an inch. The Hempās treble is smoother but more present and slightly more detailed. The upper mids are about the same with a slight edge toward the Hemps for having a bit more detail, but male vocals where just a touch more full sounding on the HD58X. The lower mids are more full and lush sounding on the Hemps, and the bass is about the same in amount but a bit better on the Hemps. The Hemps have a slightly deeper sound stage but the general width is about the same and imaging capabilities are about equal as well. The only other difference is the timber. Like I said, the Hemps have a very nice and natural timber in my opinion. The HD58X are similarly nice in their timber, but have a bit more analytical timber in comparison.
Lastly there is the TR-X00 PH with the Lawton driver side tune-up, ZMF Ori lambskin/suede hybrid pads, and custom Ovaltine lid attenuation rings. These are my favorite headphone and will still be by the end of this. They are just exactly what I want in my headphones for the majority of the time. In comparison the Hemps can trade blows, but The Purple Hearts still come out on top for me. Real quick, sound stage is a bit wider and a bit more natural on the Hemps, but imaging is the same on both. The Hemps have a bit less highs and are a bit smoother in the treble, but neither is ever harsh or overly sharp to me unless I am listening too loud and the song itself is harsh or sharp. The upper mids go clearly to the Hemps with better female vocals while the lower mids are a win for the X00s since the lower mids are just so full and warm and male vocals are great on the X00s. Obviously the Bass is a quantity win for the X00s but the Quality is about the same. It depends on the track which one I think is ābetterā in the bass. It pretty much depends on how much bass I want since they both have great bass detail and tone. The biggest difference is again timber. The Hemps are still just so warm and natural in how they recreate sound, It sounds like the track was recorded with a supper high quality mic in the middle of the room and it picks up every instrument perfectly while the vocalist has their own mic. The TR-X00 PH is more āSyntheticā in itās timber. It still sound great (otherwise it would have lost its top spot) but it is more like each instrument got itās own mic right in from of it. It still sounds realistic and correct, but it is more analytical while the Hemps sound more acoustic (best word I can think of to describe what I mean). Like electric guitar VS acoustic guitar.
To wrap things up, I want to highlight my favorite aspects of the Grado Hemp LTD Edition. First is the timber. The timber is so warm, natural, and acoustic feeling that it genuinely amazes me. Second is the presentation of sound. While the sound stage and imaging are nothing particularly special, the way sounds are presented is very natural feeling. It feels like there is no hard limit on the outer edge of the sound stage and the difference between the closest a sound can appear and the farthest is rather great. Iām guessing this is due to just how open these are. They basically donāt isolate at all.
And Iāll leave you with my current rankings.
- Fostex TR-X00 Purple Heart (with mods)
- Grado Hemp LTD Edition
- Tin HiFi P1
- Sennheiser HD58X Jubilee
- Tin HiFi T2
- DT770 250ohm (with pad swap)
- Koss Porta Pros
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not getting a number because fuck the Harman curve: T4 and Tape, but Tape over T4 because of detail retrieval.
Thank you for reading this overly long rambling review.
Edit: I forgot to put my music recs.
These are the Kings of classic rock. Metal also sounds great, especially the older stuff. I loved the KODO heart beat album on these. Itās japanese drums and it sounds fantastic. Stuff like jazz, blues, funk all sound great thanks to that lush mid range. Stringed instruments are a strong point as well, so acoustic guitar and orchestral stuff are quite nice.
As for specific artists, Black Sabbath, CCR, and Queen where amongst my personal favorites. The Hollow Knight ost is also a great choice. Amber Rubarth: sessions from the 17th ward is a great album for acoustic and vocals.
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If you want a real treat, check out the 2007 remasters of Genesis. Particularly, the āAbacabā album. That is a good remaster and I loved the way it sounded on the Grado RS2e that my buddy let me borrow a while back.
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Just finished that album and it was indeed very nice, especially on the Hemps.
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Queen really does sound great on these. In particular, the invisible man. The opening sounds magical. Like someone speaking right into your ears from behind.
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Iām not too familiar with reggae and its optimal sound signature, but these sound very good with all the Bob Marley Iāve listened to with them.
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I mean, that would be a major design flaw if it didnāt right? 
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So Iām either still thoroughly in the honey moon period or these are just too good. I had to force myself to not use the Hemp today as they are the only thing Iāve been listening to for the past 2 weeks. While I stand by my rankings, these are becoming more of a rival for 1st as opposed to my 2nd favorite. If my X00s were not such a different headphone these might have replaced them.
How things seem to stand right now are as follows:
X00s are 1st for heavier music like the modern Doom soudtracks, anything that is electronically produced, and anything where bass is important.
The Hemps are 1st for classic rock and classic metal, acoustic/orchestral, anything live, and anything where natural timber is important.
Itās a proper yin yang dynamic at this point.
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You should buy them so i can get a second opinion. You know you want to.
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I think Iām getting theseā¦ still too soon for my wallet.
I like that you said good for metal and acoustic/orchestralā¦ I remember hearing g Grados were good ārock cansā all the time back when I was likeā¦ string quartets. These are made for string quartetsā¦ oh and saxophonesā¦ lol.
Iām Jist saw one comparison with the HF-3; donāt know the reviewer from Adam but ā¦ that is a comparison I wanted to see, given that I am familiar with the HF3. Seems like the Hemps are ābetterā pretty much across the board
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When ever they come back in stock (possibly soon according to @Hazi59) Iāll be getting at least the gimbal/rod block set from this guy, if not a full headband assembly. The Hemps sound great, so Iām going to make them FEEL just as great.
https://www.shipibo.audio/product-page/aluminum-gimbals-and-rodblocks-set-for-grado-slim-black-ceramic
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Update on comfort. I did some bending of the head band (mostly bending the cups more inward) and I think the pads and/or my ears have broken in because I can make it about 3 hours without any discomfort now.
I think the new gimbals Iām getting from shipibo will improve the comfort even more since they build the inward angle into the gimbal so I can reduce the clamp a bit.