UK prices and Grado don't mix very well. There's a cheaper yet better option for you.

Before you buy the Grado SR60 headphones stop and ask yourself this question. If you could buy a pair of Grado headphones, better than the SR60's (or SR60i's) for nearly £30 less, would you do it? Of course you would, you'd be a fool not to. Well I'd like to welcome you to the world of Alessandro.

The Grado SR60 and the new Grado SR60i headphones are a relative bargain, even in the UK, even though we in the UK pay nearly twice as much as Grado enthusiasts in the U.S. A little unfiar? Sure, but we in the UK are used to paying over the top, but in terms of the Grado SR60 headphones, there is a company outperforming Grado, and fortunately for us in the UK, and for the headphones they produce, it actually makes more financial sense to steer clear of Grado headphones and buy Alessandro headphones instead. Quite literally, this is the headphone bargain of the century.

Grado SR80/SR125 performance for less than half the price.

A quick call to Alessandro, and the kind assistant tells me that the Alessandro MS-1 headphones (they get a large slice of the press) comes somewhere between the Grado SR80 and SR125. Now, due the lack of comfort of the SR125's, I ended up giving them to a friend - yes I gave them to him. The Alessandro MS-1 headphones have no such comfort problems using the same pads that come with the SR60. I can tell you that the SR125 DNA is obvious.

The sound.

Alessandro do their own modifications with the headphones, in order to smooth out some of the Grado's forward and slightly bright presentation, although to be honest, I never had a problem with the Grado sound signature. The Alessandro MS-1's sound staging hasn't changed from the standard Grado range, and whilst some find the Grado Sound staging slightly closed, it is highly detailed and separation is very good.

The Problem with Grado SR60.

I've always felt that Grado shot themselves in the foot with the SR60. Although I choose the SR125 out of sheer pride in wanting to get the 'BEST' for my money, nevertheless I always felt that the SR60 was such an impressive piece of audio kit that it was hard to justify the extra money for the SR80's or SR125's. In reality though, of course there are improvements, but I still feel that the 'bargain' SR60's have a good 80-90% of the SR125's performance. Even in the UK, and even at £90 the SR60's (SR60i headphones) are still amazing value, and regardless of those who have their favourites, in terms of clarity and detail, the Grado SR60 are nigh on unbeatable at that price range.

Price U.S. and UK

Basically you can have a pair of Grado SR80/125 rivaling headphones for half the price!

So with that said, we're down to the price. The fact is that in everyway, the Alessandro MS-1's are better than the Grado SR60's. Sure it's not a night a day difference, but you can hear the improvements. The Alessandro's are a little tighter, slightly better controlled and offer a touch more clarity. In the U.S. I would say that the investment in a pair of Alessandro MS-1's would be worth the money. For those of us in the UK the lesser Grado SR60i's retail at around £89. Hunt around for a bargain and you might save £10 if you're lucky. Go on ebay and you might get a used pair for around £60. I bought my Grado SR60's from ebay for £63.

The Alessandro MS-1's retail at $99.99, and $109.99 for the MS-1i's (improved), and that includes worldwide shipping. Current exchange rate for the UK, the MS-1i headphones will set you back a few pounds shy of £70 (£68 at todays exchange rate). But when the exchange rate blows in our favour, that price will go down. That's £65-68 for a pair of headphones that fall between the £119 (retail price for the SR80i headphones) and £174.95 (retail price for the SR125i headphones, I paid £165 from Sevenoaks sound and vision in Crawley). Worth it? Oh I think so!

Can you now see why I’m trying to get my entire fellow UK Grado SR people to buy a pair of Alessandro instead? For a sub £70 price, there's nothing that can compare.

http://www.alessandro-products.com/headphones.html

More to come ... soon.

IPod docks popping up everywhere.

Pioneer have just released their IPod dock, the NW-NAS5, in the UK. Yet another IPod dock entering the market trying to take on the established docks from the likes of Bose and JBL. Everyone wants a bit of the IPod action.

A few months agao I tripped on Yamaha's IPod dock, and I just sat there with my head in my hands. Like breakfast cereals, there's now far too much choice. Everyone is trying to cash in on the IPod success, and the IPod is a success! One could argue that "it's a matter of convenience" but still with so much choice it's no doubt that people are falling back on default IPod docks like the Bose Sounddock.