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Grado SR325e/SR325  Headphones Review

Reviewed Jun 10, 2016 at 12:43pm
Test bench update Nov 21, 2019 at 11:23am
Tested using methodology v1.3.1 
Grado SR325e/SR325
5.1
Mixed Usage 
7.5
Neutral Sound 
4.2
Commute/Travel 
5.2
Sports/Fitness 
4.6
Office 
4.3
Wireless Gaming 
6.1
Wired Gaming 
1.5
Phone Call 
 0
The Grado SR325 have good and open sound reproduction for critical listening. Unfortunately, they are subpar headphones for everyday use. They leak enough to be distracting to the people around you even at lower volumes and also will quickly fall off your head from slight physical activity. They also won't fare well in loud environments because they don't block any ambient noise.

Our Verdict

5.1
Mixed Usage 

The SR325e are designed for critical listening. They're not versatile enough to be useful everyday headphones.

Pros
  • Good and open sound reproduction.
  • Decent build quality.
Cons
  • Easily fall off your head.
  • Poor noise isolation, by design.
7.5
Neutral Sound 

The SR325e are above-average headphones for neutral listening. They have a good reproduction of instrument and vocals and a spacious soundstage thanks to their open back design. They lack a little bass but reproduce the detail in high-res audio with remarkable accuracy.

Pros
None
Cons
None
4.2
Commute/Travel 

Not intended for commuting. They don't block any noise. The SR325 struggle in loud environments.

Pros
None
Cons
None
5.2
Sports/Fitness 

Not designed for sports. They're unstable, and the thick cable is bothersome. They're also a little uncomfortable and heavier than the other models in the Prestige series.

Pros
None
Cons
None
4.6
Office 

Not suitable for office use. They don't block office chatter, and they leak a lot which will be audible even at lower volumes.

Pros
None
Cons
None
6.1
Wired Gaming 

Pros
None
Cons
None
1.5
Phone Call 
  • 5.1
    Mixed Usage
  • 7.5
    Neutral Sound
  • 4.2
    Commute/Travel
  • 5.2
    Sports/Fitness
  • 4.6
    Office
  • 4.3
    Wireless Gaming
  • 6.1
    Wired Gaming
  • 1.5
    Phone Call
  • Changelog

    1.  Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.1.
    2.  Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.
    3.  Updated Feb 16, 2018: Converted to Test Bench 1.2.
    4.  Updated Aug 10, 2017: Converted to Test Bench 1.1.

    Popular Headphones Comparisons

    Grado GW100 Wireless

    The Grado GW100 Wireless are better headphones than the Grado SR325e/SR325. They are wireless and offer more freedom to move, and are slightly more comfortable and more stable. They also have a microphone and pack a bit more bass. On the other hand, the SR325e are a bit more breathable and have a flatter mid-range, which is great for vocal-centric music. They also don’t have any latency, but the GW100 are compatible with aptX-LL for minimal latency issues and can also be used wired to completely get rid of it, even if the battery is dead.

    Grado The Hemp Headphone

    The Grado SR325e/SR325 and the Grado The Hemp Headphone are two similarly designed on-ear headphones. The SR325e/SR325 have a metallic design that are more comfortable, while the Hemp have a maple and hemp build. Both struggle to produce low-bass sound, but the SR325e/SR325 sound much brighter overall.

    Test Results

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    RATINGS
    Category:
    All
    Design
    Style
    TypeOn-ear
    EnclosureOpen-Back
    WirelessNo
    TransducerDynamic

    The Grado SR325e have the same style as the SR225e but with metal ear cups and a more premium appeal. They have a thick, black leather coating on the headband and the silver metal ear cups give these headphones a cool two-tone color scheme. They look better and more high-end than the previous models of the same series. Also, the ear pads like the SR225e are different from the SR80e, and SR125e. This makes these headphones look like an over-ear design although they are still on-ear headphones.

    6.5
    Comfort
    Weight0.52 lbs
    Clamping Force
    0.86 lbs

    The Grado SR325e like the SR225e have a different ear pad design than that of the lower end models of the Prestige series. Unfortunately, this padding design is too small to fully encompass the ear like an over-ear headphone and too large to rest comfortably on the ears like an on-ear headphone. This causes slight discomfort when listening over long sessions, especially, for listeners with larger ears. The SR325 are also a little heavier than the other models in the series because of the metal ear cups. On the upside, they're not too tight on your head.

    0.0
    Controls
    OS Compatibility
    Not OS specific
    Ease Of UseN/A
    FeedbackN/A
    Call/Music ControlNo
    Volume ControlNo
    Microphone ControlN/A
    Channel Mixing
    N/A
    Noise Cancelling ControlN/A
    Talk-Through
    N/A
    Additional ButtonsN/A
    7.8
    Breathability
    Avg.Temp.Difference2.5 °C
    6.1
    Portability
    L7.09"
    W6.69"
    H1.97"
    Volume93.31 in³
    Transmitter RequiredN/A

    These headphones are somewhat portable but do not fold up into a more compact format. They are not too large, the ear cups fold flat, and the headband is thin wich takes up less space. They are bigger than most on-ear models but are still relatively smaller than a lot of over-ears. Unfortunately, they don't come with a case or pouch to carry them in which is a little disappointing.

    0.0
    Case
    TypeNo case
    LN/A
    WN/A
    HN/A
    VolumeN/A
    6.0
    Build Quality

    The SR325e deliver a denser more robust design with metal ear cups. That combined with their lightweight design means they're able to handle a few drops without damage. They also have a thick, durable audio cable. Unfortunately, they have the same issues with the joints as the other models in this series. They're plasticky, feel poorly glued together and have a few flaws in the finish of the plastic that makes the headphones look a little cheap and not durable.

    5.0
    Stability

    The Grado SR325e are not stable headphones. Like the other models in this series, these headphones do not have enough tension in the headband to deliver a good stable fit. They also have the thick non-detachable audio cable that will yank the headphones of your head if it gets hooked on something. Unfortunately, the additional weight of the metal ear cups of the SR325 model makes them sway even more during physical activity. On the upside, they're able to stay in place during casual listening sessions as long as you don't tilt your head too far or too fast.

    Headshots 1
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    In The Box

    • Grado SR325e Headphones
    • 1/8" to 1/4" Adapter

    Sound
    Sound Profile
    See details on graph tool
    Bass Amount
    -5.73 dB
    Treble Amount
    1.43 dB
    7.8
    Frequency Response Consistency
    See details on graph tool
    See details on graph tool
    Avg. Std. Deviation
    0.44 dB
    Raw Frequency Response
    See details on graph tool
    See details on graph tool
    7.7
    Bass Accuracy
    See details on graph tool
    Std. Err.
    3.05 dB
    Low-Frequency Extension
    52.63 Hz
    Low-Bass
    -6.26 dB
    Mid-Bass
    -1.43 dB
    High-Bass
    -0.12 dB
    8.7
    Mid Accuracy
    See details on graph tool
    Std. Err.
    1.71 dB
    Low-Mid
    0.26 dB
    Mid-Mid
    -0.13 dB
    High-Mid
    1.63 dB
    5.8
    Treble Accuracy
    See details on graph tool
    Std. Err.
    5.22 dB
    Low-Treble
    4.25 dB
    Mid-Treble
    3.25 dB
    High-Treble
    0.93 dB
    6.7
    Peaks/Dips
    See details on graph tool
    Peaks
    2.41 dB
    Dips
    1.05 dB
    8.5
    Imaging
    See details on graph tool
    See details on graph tool
    Weighted Group Delay
    0.23
    Weighted Amplitude Mismatch
    0.96
    Weighted Frequency Mismatch
    1.46
    Weighted Phase Mismatch
    5.33
    6.8
    Soundstage
    See details on graph tool
    PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.)
    3.49 dB
    PRTF Size (Avg.)
    0.86 dB
    PRTF Distance
    10.77 dB
    Openness
    9.8
    Acoustic Space Excitation
    8.4
    8.0
    Weighted Harmonic Distortion
    See details on graph tool
    WHD @ 90
    0.106
    WHD @ 100
    0.206
    Isolation
    1.0
    Noise Isolation
    See details on graph tool
    Isolation Audio
    Overall Attenuation
    -1.72 dB
    Noise CancellingNo
    Bass
    -0.08 dB
    Mid
    1.46 dB
    Treble
    -6.24 dB

    Poor isolation. Due to the open-back of these headphones, the isolation is poor by design. They barely isolate any external sound in Bass and Mid Ranges, and only 8dB in the Treble Range.

    2.0
    Leakage
    See details on graph tool
    Leakage Audio
    Overall Leakage @ 1ft
    62.09 dB

    Poor leakage. Being open headphones, it is natural for them to be loud and leak a lot of sound. The majority of the leakage happens between 200Hz and 20KHz which is quite a broad range. The leakage on these headphones sounds loud and present, and could bother the people around you, even at low listening levels.

    Microphone
    Microphone Style
    Integrated
    N/A
    In-line
    N/A
    Boom
    N/A
    Detachable Boom
    N/A
    MicNo
    0.0
    Recording Quality
    Recorded Speech
    N/A
    LFE
    N/A
    FR Std. Dev.
    N/A
    HFE
    N/A
    Weighted THD
    N/A
    Gain
    N/A
    0.0
    Noise Handling
    Speech + Pink NoiseN/A
    Speech + Subway NoiseN/A
    SpNR
    N/A
    Active Features
    0.0
    Battery
    Battery Type
    N/A
    Continuous Battery Life
    N/A
    Additional Charges
    N/A
    Total Battery Life
    N/A
    Charge Time
    N/A
    Power Saving Feature
    N/A
    Audio While Charging
    N/A
    Passive Playback
    N/A
    Charging PortN/A
    0.0
    App Support
    App NameN/A
    iOSN/A
    AndroidN/A
    macOSN/A
    WindowsN/A
    Equalizer
    N/A
    ANC Control
    N/A
    Mic ControlN/A
    Room effects
    N/A
    Playback Control
    N/A
    Button MappingN/A
    Surround SoundN/A

    No compatible app.

    Connectivity
    0.0
    Bluetooth
    Bluetooth Version
    N/A
    Multi-Device Pairing
    N/A
    NFC Pairing
    N/A
    Line of Sight Range
    N/A
    Default Latency
    N/A
    aptX Latency
    N/A
    aptX(LL) Latency
    N/A
    0.0
    Non-Bluetooth Wireless
    Non-BT Line of Sight Range
    N/A
    Non-BT Latency
    N/A
    9.0
    Wired
    Analog Audio
    Yes
    USB Audio
    No
    DetachableNo
    Length5.64 ft
    Connection1/8" TRS
    Wired Latency
    0 ms
    PC / PS4 Compatibility
    PC / PS4 Analog
    Audio Only
    PC / PS4 Wired USB
    No
    PC / PS4 Non-BT Wireless
    No
    Xbox One Compatibility
    Xbox One Analog
    Audio Only
    Xbox One Wired USB
    No
    Xbox One Wireless
    No
    0.0
    Base/Dock
    Type
    N/A
    USB Input
    N/A
    Line In
    N/A
    Line Out
    N/A
    Optical Input
    N/A
    RCA Input
    N/A
    Dock Charging
    N/A
    Power Supply
    N/A

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