98 MACWORLD JANUARY 2022
PLAYLIST REVIEW: GRADO GW100 V2 BLUETOOTH HEADPHONEcongested quality on some tracks. The
bass was certainly more pronounced than
on the Flow II and perhaps even a bit
more than on the GW100 v2. Also, I
confirmed that Chick Corea’s piano was
indeed mixed too forward during other
solos on “500 Miles High.”
The GW100 v2 is the most comfortable
of the three, especially for long listening
sessions, thanks to its low clamping
pressure and on-ear foam earpads. The
Flow II has a similarly excellent sound, but
its earpads are too small for my relatively
large ears, making them a bit tricky to seat
properly. Also, the clamping pressure is
too high for long-term comfort. The IO-6
has larger earpads and lower clamping
pressure, so it’s more comfortable to wear
for extended periods.
BOTTOM LINE
For many years, I used the
Sennheiser HD 414 SL on-ear,
open-back headphone in my
home recording studio, and I
liked its sound very much. The
Grado GW100 v2 feels and
sounds much the same as my
beloved Sennheiser, with a
clean and open sound, wide
soundstage, pinpoint imaging,
and excellent tonal balance
from deep bass to clear
midrange to airy treble. Add
mmmmh
Grado GW100 v2
Bluetooth headphone
PROS- Clean, clear, open sound.
- Excellent tonal balance.
- Wide soundstage, great
imaging.
CONS - No mitigation of ambient
noise. - Hard-shell case costs extra.
PRICE
$249
COMPANY
Grado Labs
wireless Bluetooth capability, and you’ve
got a winner.
The main caveat is that it offers
absolutely no mitigation of ambient sound,
either with active noise cancellation or with
passive isolation. Grado made the
conscious decision to omit ANC in order to
preserve sound quality, which is entirely
reasonable. The company also decided to
go with an open-back, on-ear design,
which is a good part of why its sound is so
open. The tradeoff is that your listening
experience will be significantly degraded
in any noisy environment.
At $249, the price is certainly not out of
line for this level of quality. On the other
hand, you must fork over another $40 for a
hard-shell carrying case, which is included
with just about every other headphone I
know of, bringing the price close to $290.
The Cleer Flow II sounds
almost as good for $200
(albeit with a bit less bass
and a narrower soundstage),
and it offers ANC and good
passive isolation, but it’s
way less comfortable than
the GW100 v2.
If you want a great-
sounding, supercomfortable
Bluetooth headphone to use
strictly in quiet environments, I
highly recommend the Grado
GW100 v2. ■