Customer Reviews

Grado L-Cush Large Replacement Ear Cushions

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The pads that come on the SR-60s are terrible, just awful. They hurt my ears after not too long. I replaced them with a set of these and, wow, they really helped out in more ways than I had anticipated. They get the driver closer to your ear so it really feels like the headphones are on your ear instead of just near it. They also seem to help the bass response a little bit-- I can't prove this empirically, but I think that they help to focus the sound a little better than the foam covers that the SR-60s come with. Also, there is nothing between your ear and the driver, so no layer of foam to affect sound in any way. If you bought the 60s and are thinking of getting something like the 80s or 125s, try this as a $15 upgrade first. Yeah, I might still get the 125s or 225s later, but swapping the pads is a great help, too!

These are easy to use and fit very well when placed. I do wish it was easier to find a replacement for the pads of my old Grado HP-2's, but these work great for the SR-80. I bought them just to use when the ones that came with them wore out. I put them on to see how easy it was to replace them, and I had no problems.

If you are looking at these replacement ear pads, you might already know that the foam they are made from will over a period of 3-4 years dry out and cause the pads to crumble upon handling. Some users recommend shampooing the pads regularly (too much trouble for an occasional user like myself).

Other users had done various 'mods' (see the site headwize-dot-com), including rolling up the cut-off tube of a sock and shoving it over the pads (done primarily for comfort, though I'm doing this to avoid the foam crumblies going all over my head).

Considering that Grados are mid-priced (low-end audiophile, not mass-market junk), and that the replacements themselves are $16 or more, I'd expect the pads to a little more durable. Plenty of people still use 'phones like AKGs from the 1970s--I'd figured on similar long-life when I bought my Grados.

Perhaps this foam fragility is the trade-off for comfort, or perhaps this is intentionally done to create a revenue stream for Grado. I don't know. Just be aware that lifespan of the pads isn't terribly long.

One of the subtle differences between the SR80 and 60 is this pad. Now, it doesn't make sense to buy this with your SR60, as the total cost would end up the same as the 80. But if you have a 60 lying around that needs new pads, I'd run with these.
They tighten what bass you already have with the 'comfies' that come with the SR60. In fact, if you don't know much about audio you might even say it has a tad less *quantity* of bass with these cups. The fact is that the SR60's "comfies" pads provide less detailed bass, as in it can sound a bit smeared (though still good). These tighten that up immediately, and is among the reasons that everyone says that the SR80 offers better bass performance than the 60, with all else being equal. This, combined with the extra distance provided by the material of the cups, provides a wider stage and an overall more pleasant listening experience, in my opinion. Though all Grados already provide an 'out of head' listening experience, these will provide even more of that effect to the SR60. They also look fantastic when applied.

Tip - try rolling a single layer of black electrical tape around the outer edge of this pad. Just Google it to see what I am talking about. It sounds silly, but it does add a subtle punch to the low end if that's what you're after! If you do it carefully, it looks professional. While you're looking around, take a look at all of other insane ways to modify your Grado cans.

Anyone complaining about paying $20 for a replacement piece of foam is obviously unfamiliar with how the pricing of proprietary products works (I'm talking to you, dude who rated these poorly because he doesn't like the price). Yes, it's a rip-off, but man, these are your Grados we are talking about here. Oh, and though this is subjective, I have no issues with comfort, despite the driver being bare as compared to the stock 60 pad.

I've owned six pairs of Grados, from the budget-priced iGrados to the $1,000 GS-1000. The iGrados and SR-60s use a smaller pad. The GS-1000s use an around-the-ear "salad bowl." The remaining six models use these L-Cush pads. In my opinion, which is based on direct comparison, these L-Cush pads are the best.

Unlike the smaller pads, used on the iGrado and SR-60, the L-Cush pads don't jam the ear up against the driver. And because the cushion leaves a doughnut hole, there's no physical barrier ear and driver. The result is greater clarity. Compared to my iGrados and my SR-60s, my SR-80s, SR-325is and RS-1's sound clearer and fuller, partly because the L-Cush pads provide a better soundstage.

But I also use these pads on my GS-1000s, despite the obvious advantages of the GS-1000's larger "salad bowls." That's because these doughnuts position the ear CLOSER to the driver than the salad bowls. This avoids issues of sibilance, which can come up when there's too much high frequency. I also like the bass better. That's because direct contact between the ear and the cushions produces better bass extension. To be sure, there are trade-offs between soundstage and presence, just as there are tradeoffs between bass extension and high-frequency extension. But for my money (These cost a third of what the salad bowls cost), the L-Cush pads provide a better balance.

Grado has a world wide reputation for the best sound reproduction in their cans (audiophile speak for headphones) and they have the awards to back them up! Too often though, I've read reviews where comfort is criticized and that these ear cushions are allegedly to blame. Nonsense!

It is true that Grado cans are supraural (on the ear) as opposed to circumaural (around the ear) so you will feel the unit against your ears. These cushions were redesigned back in 1998, offering greater thickness and distance from the transducer so that you feel more comfortable while listening through your cans AND the design allows for a greater soundstage for the magnificent Grado cans to impress you with. These cushions, called "L-Cush" here, can be used on every single pair of current Grado cans except perhaps the $1000 set. I use them on my SR60's, which come with a standard foam cushion that covers the whole transducer and it made them sound quite nearly as good as the SR80's! I recommend them to you wholeheartedly! If you google "The Listening Station," that is the place to purchase any Grado product from!

The old SR80 headphones used to come with the L-Cush pads. When I recently got my SR80i headphones, I initially thought the S-Cush pads on them might be better. Not! They press too hard on my external ear, specifically on the "tragus," the bit of cartilage that sticks out in front of the ear canal. For some reason, I find that to be simply unbearable. The L-Cush pads solve that problem: they distribute pressure to the outside of the ear (the helix and lobule). I think the sound is improved also, since the drivers are a bit farther away. I did a variation of the "Shack Mod" [...]. I didn't bother to punch holes in the added foam. Result: drastically increased comfort. Now they just get a bit itchy on the top of my ear (the helix), but that's vastly preferable to the burning sensation/pain I used to get from them pushing on the tragus. YMMV, but so far so good for me.

Got these after ordering the sr60 because of the reveiws saying they lack comfort. Well the sr60 are comfortable enough without the L-Cush. The L-Cush do make them a lot more comfortable. Plus the standard on the sr60 there are no holes cut out and on these there are. Buy these you will be happy.

I bought these for my SR80i's, and it was probably the best $20 I've ever spent. These are much more comfortable than the stock "comfies," which always hurt my ears and got too warm after 20 or 30 minutes. These L-cush pads (known by Grado lovers as "bowls") help move the driver farther away from the ear, which I found more comfortable, but by doing so they also improve the soundstage significantly. I never thought I'd use the words "Grado" and "Soundstage" in the same sentence.

Hi all, Zombie_X here again!

First of all these are replacement pads for the SR-125i and upward models of the Grado headphones. The SR-60i and SR80i use the comfy pads which are like most stock ear pads out there. These "L-Cush" pads are refereed to many in the Head-Fi community as Bowls. What do the "bowls" do? They increase the distance between the headphone and the ear, remove the slight veil or muffled sound signature, increase the clarity and bass.

I find that they make the Grado's sound much brighter than the stock comfy pads. This can be good or pad for many. Some people on Head-Fi have complained that it makes the sound too bright and induces more sibilance the already treble heavy sound. Others will say it drastically increases the detail and extends the treble. I find while it does increase the detail a lot, the sound can become sibilant or "brittle" sounding. However though the quality of the recording has to be kept in mind. a recording with heavily emphasized treble will sound very bright or shrill on these. On a recording with muted treble these really help flesh the treble out.

I noticed that the bass losses the muddy tone that the comfy pads gave off. The bass becomes tighter and more defined when before with the comfies it was a sloppy mess. The extension improves a bit too, but not a whole lot. The bass itself is tight and controlled with decent thump to it (varies on the model of headphone used).

The midrange also gains more clarity and resolution. The comfy pads made the mids sound very congested before hand. The mids also sound more resolving, but this is due to the extra clarity.

As far as comfort goes these are less comfortable than the stock comfy pads. Because these are open in the center of the pad your ears will tough the grill on the headphones. This can irritate peoples ears and can old cause slight pain. I found that is what happens with the SR-325is model. The increased weight of the SR-325is makes the headphones hang on your ears and press on them. Overtime your ears will become tender and sore from the headphone being in contact with out ears.

In the end I believe the increase in sound quality outweighs the negatives of these pads.