Shipibo Audio Pads for Grados

Discussion in 'Modifications and Tweaks' started by purr1n, Jan 17, 2022.

  1. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Thanks to @Philimon for setting these up with Shipibo. For those who are not aware, Shipibo offers a variety of Grado related stuff: headbands, cups, aluminum gimbals and rods, etc. Check them out here: https://www.shipibo.audio/

    PXL_20220118_032617732.jpg

    Shipibo Audio Pads on RS2e
    upload_2022-1-17_21-47-39.png

    Shipibo Audio Pads on RS2X
    upload_2022-1-17_23-19-8.png

    Shipibo Audio Pads on RS1e
    upload_2022-1-17_23-24-22.png

    Shipibo Audio Pads on SR225X
    upload_2022-1-17_23-32-40.png

    Shipibo Audio Pads on HF3
    upload_2022-1-17_23-39-15.png
     
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    Last edited: Jan 17, 2022
  2. Vtory

    Vtory Audiophile™

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    Wow looks more comfortable than grado f-cush or ttvj. Seems they turn grados into over-ear (by looks and fr not having on-ear hp peaks) with ears lightly touching inner surfaces. Responses also look promising for both rs2s. Also interesting to see rs2e looks a little better than x with these pads.
     
  3. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    They are super comfy. They are sort of like the big bowls found on the GS1000/PS1000, except with a cloth like covering over the foam. The foam seems squishier than on the Grado big bowls. The pads do make the Grados a little less Grado because of the depression from 2.5kHz to 5kHz. However, the depression around 7kHz gets filled in.

    It's kind of weird because the Shipibo pads give the Grados a more refined more elegant sound which is something we don't expect from them. I figured I should say this so people are warned and know what to expect.

    Finally, I feel the pads work a bit better with the older gen Grados, the HF3, SR225e, SR325e, RS2e. The pads suck out the upper mids too much from 4-5kHz with the SR225X, SR325X, and RS2X. We can see this from the frequency response measurements above, but will pull up CSDs to see what's up. The effect sounds greater than what the FR graphs say, so could be curious to look at past the first few timesliceson the CSD between say the RS2e and RS2X.

    Here is the FR difference between RS2e and RS2X.

    Shipibo pads
    Frequency Response
    GRN = RS2e
    YEL = RS2X
    upload_2022-1-18_0-48-6.png
     
    Last edited: Jan 17, 2022
  4. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    Asking for no particular reason but how notable is that 3kHz divot? Is it more similar to the same-ish effect HP-3 or instead like how HiFiMan accounts for headstage? I'm chuckling a bit at how damned good the RS2e and SR225x graphs are looking-- do the pads compress a lot, and does it seem like they might pull a disappearing foam trick a la the Sennheiser HD6__ series?

    Also curious how the change in material would affect perceived trailing decays and definitely want to see what that might look like in CSD. Are these the compensated flat plate measurements or uncomped?

    sorry for the barrage of questions, was kinda excited looking at these :p
     
  5. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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    That is awesome. With Shipibo pads, I think the RS2x > RS2e in terms of frequency response. RS2x most bass, and smoother from 6-10kHz. Dips around 3kHz are usually pretty inconsequential overall in comparison to peaky highs. RS2x has more bass and better distortion than RS2e. A smidge of Loki+ tone control to reduce highs would be juuust right. Want.

    So the benefits of Grado’s bigger pads (moreso g-pads) is the largish and deep and sorta diffuse soundstage. Do these Shipibos have this same character?

    Grados always sound quick and snappy. Part of that sound Im guessing is from the porous foam pads allowing bass to decay quickly. Are the shipibos pretty porous / open? Subjectively bass? Overlay f-pad vs shipibo?

    edit: to polish
     
    Last edited: Jan 18, 2022
  6. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    That dip is audible for sure. Maybe similar to the HD8XX, but not anywhere as extreme. However, I must point out again the un-Grado-ness of these pads which inverts the Grado voicing from 2kHz to 7kHz! With the RS2e, I don't think the dip is much noticeable. It's definitely noticeable on the RS2X. Will pull up CSDs tonight. Thinking CSDs may explain a bit more about the extent of the dip.

    The pads do compress a bit. They still aren't large enough to pull of a Sennheiser HD6xx series disappearing act (assuming the clamp has loosened and the pads are well-worn).

    These are flat plate measurements compensated. I'm pretty much going to use this going forward because I think it does the best job for most headphones.

    I think it's a toss up with respect to RS2x vs. RS2e with the Shipibo pads. Personally, I tend toward the RS2e a bit more on the account of less of that upper-mid dip. The other aspects such as bass or smoothness is highs is too close to call from a graph.

    The Shipibos do not have the expansive soundstage of the large Grado bowls such as the PS1000/GS1000. However, such bowls are horrible for the SR and RS series of Grados. I also think the Grado regular bowls (stock with RS2x) are a bit more open sounding on the account that the open foam breathes better. The Shipibos have a cloth covering over the foam, so they are less porous. Subjectively bass is better, more extended with the Shipibos compared to stock bowls. The Shipibos of course have more expanded headstage than F-pads, bass extension is about the same, but F-pads have an edge on the crisp articulation thing.
     
  7. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    RS2X vs RS2e CSD
    ezgif-6-ad672a2224.gif
     
  8. Philimon

    Philimon Friend

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    [​IMG]

    That’s wild how the 2kHz resonance disappears compared to RS2x with f-pads. How? A room node / null from earpad boundaries? I remember @Tyll Hertsens hypothesized such with l-pad tape mod. (Cant find link easily probably because Innerfidelity site is gone.)

    Doesnt mean f-pad suffers from bad sound. Theory of supraaural pinna bypass mitigating 2kHz described in this thread by @purr1n . ETA @E_Schaaf chose for their new “Mini” model to go full supraural. Im guessing their “graphene” driver had possible inherent 2kHz resonance issues and so went supraaural to reduce audibility.
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2022
  9. HeadFoneDude64

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    Nice, keen on the headband and the G-Cush earpads for my GS1000i, was looking at the beautiful audio replacements, but damn, they're pretty pricey! Gonna be looking at these as well, but even if I wanna get 'em now, I can't as I'll be going over to Canada when travel there is less restrictive. My brother will be handling the flights so I don't know exactly when I'd be leaving. I can only only get it AFTER I get back some 3-4 months later.
     

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