Grado GR10’s appearance, in fact, is not
really prominent, but it is the sound that create the headphone’s caste. The
product shows a neat pass sound, high dynamics, wide and accurate soundstage.
Grado is famous for their full-size or
big-size supra-autral headphones, however, to respond to a big section of users
who love convenience or need to move allot, this American audio manufacturer
added to their product list compact in-ear headphones.
Grado
GR10 in-ear headphone
Although until now, Grado only own a
“collection” of 3 in-ear headphones: iGi, GR8 and GR10, but they are all
remarkable products in specific segment. The Grado GR10, whereby, is the most
high-end, most expensive and also possesses the best ability to perform sound.
The headphone is now distributed in Vietnam
with the official price of $417.6.
Design
Anyone who once owns GR8, the first in-ear
heaphone of Grado, is no stranger to the appearance of GR10, only change in
color. Retaining compact, gentle and solid, GR10 focuses on the simplicity and
applicability in practice, rather than colorful decoration.
Grado
GR10 with compact earbud design
This is reflected from the small, compact,
dark box and coming with not too many accessories except for 2 pairs of foam
tips and a few alternative ear wax-proof clothes without carrying case, no
aeroplane adaptor and no 3.5mm to 6.5mm adaptor. This can cause a bit of
“inadequacy” for those spent more than $400 to buy a high-end headphone like
GR10
However, in return, users will soon
recognize the manufacturer’s intention to emphasize sophistication, simplicity
and to focus in sound – the most important factor, to create the value of a
headphone.
Compared to its predecessor, GR10 is
equipped with better materials and components, whereby, expands the frequency
range from 20HZ to 20 kHz. Besides, according to the manufacturer, sound
details are also shown clearly, especially in super high and super bass.
Inside,
GR10 uses a driver dynamic only with a wide frequency range
About the internal structure, compared to
the same headset segment of Shure or Westone, GR10 uses a driver dynamic only
with a wide frequency range instead of combining various drivers for each
different frequency bands. The advantage of this technology is there is no
latency between drivers, the negative factors significantly affect to the
quality of output sound.
The GR10 is quite good at noise immunity
thanks to the compact earbud fitted in the helix. In addition, the foam tips
also help listening to music in a long period of time using GR10 cause no
discomfort or significant pressure.
Performance
GR10
inherits characteristics of sound from Grado
GR10 comes from a famous manufacturer with
“kool” full-size headphones that possess consolidated bass sound; the dynamics
range is also an emphasis with the ability to “suffer” tracks with frantic
sound beats that still shows accurate and full details. Therefore, it is not
strange if GR10 still inherits these characteristics of sound of Grado.
As predicted, after a long enough burn-in
time, the headset is immediately incorporated into the bass test with the
famous record of Pink - Just Give Me A Reason. From the outset, the vibrant
chorus, the bass sound has been shown powerfully, neat and full of detail, a
surprising thing to an in-ear headphone like GR10. Continue listening, beside
the bass sound, the climax orchestral violin is also performed well. The piano
sound is not overwhelmed to disappear but still exists in parallel, clearly
throughout the song.
The next test is with Red Hot in album The
Violin Player of Vanessa Mae. This is a vibrant record with frantic rhythms,
and is also a test with a fairly fit dynamics range. The GR10 began with no
difficulty, accuracy and the level of detail of the beats from fast to super-fast
still kept integrity. However, when it came to the climax, the handset showed a
little “faltered” to a few syllables in comparison with other “kool” headphones
of Grado. This is quite understandable as GR10 is still an in-ear headphone
that focuses mainly on moving objects.
Grado
GR10 in-ear headphones and accessories
When giving the GR10 an opportunity to
present with classical music, the headset also showed a wide soundstage that
could hardly see in an in-ear headphone. With La Primavera – Allegro, in
Antonio Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, which was performed by Londoner symphony
orchestra, GR10 make you feel like you were listening to a supra-aural
headphone, or even a full-size headphone in an open space. The listeners are
not difficult to imagine a real orchestra performing in front of them with a
clear depth and laterally. With airy soundstage, GR10 is one of the most
remarkable headphones for devotees of classical music who move allot but still
want to enjoy quality music.
Technical specs
General
·
Type: In-ear headphone
·
Connector type: Standard mini 1/8’’ plug (gold
over brass)
·
Frequency Range: 20 Hz to 20 kHz
·
Sensitivity: 116 dB/1mw
·
Impedance: 32 Ohms
·
Maximum Input Power: 20 mW
·
Cable Length: 51’’ (oxygen-free copper wire)
Accessories
·
3 pair ear tips (small, medium, large)
·
4 Ear wax proff cloths
·
2 Ear wax proff cloth rings
Price and weight
·
Price: $399
·
Weight: 9 grams
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