Review: Grado Signature S650 Audiophile Headphones

As far as marketing goes, being able to announce (as Grado can) that your headphones are “hand-assembled in Brooklyn, USA” is not to be sniffed at.

In terms of the user’s experience of a pair of the new Grado Signature S750 hard-wired open-backed over-ear headphones, though, being hand assembled turns out to be something of a double-edged sword. Like the little girl in the Longfellow poem, when the Signature S750 are good they are very good indeed, but when they are bad they are horrid.

They sound amazing, but a few small issues with fit leave a bit to be desired, which isn't something you'd expect from $1,650 audiophile headphones. Still, if you're the right type of listener, these high-end headphones present music in as pristine a manner as a nice pair of stereo speakers in a good room.