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For many years I have used three sets of headphones, all from Grado Laboratories: the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/headphones/796grado">Reference RS-1</A> ($695), the SR-125 ($125), and the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/headphones/532">SR-60</A&gt; ($60). I've always favored Grado headphones because the minimal-resonance design philosophy that I feel is responsible for the uncolored midrange of their moving-iron cartridges extends throughout their headphone range as well. Recently, however, I've achieved a new perspective regarding the SR-125 'phones that I felt would be of interest to <I>Stereophile</I> readers.

It's hard to know what to call the SHA-Gold. It <I>is</I> a superb headphone amplifier&mdash;maybe even the target all future headphone amps need to shoot at&mdash;but it's also a full-function preamplifier. At two grand, it's not exactly a unit you'd add to your current system just to get a headphone connection...<I>Wait a minute!</I> What am I saying? I'm sure that there are folks out there who would add this to their existing reference systems as casually as I'd buy the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/headphones/796alchemy">Audio Alchemy headphone amplifier</A>&mdash;but they'd be missing out on a great line stage.

For headphone listeners, this is truly a golden age&mdash;we have multiple choices at many different price levels. During the course of this review, I had as many as five headphone amplifiers (and, in several cases, multiple power supplies) set up for comparison. Yet many people don't understand why we might want a headphone amp in the first place.

I was cruising at 36,000 feet, totally relaxed, listening to Richard Thompson. Looking down at my lap, I caught sight of a little box with a glowing green light. Switching off this light was like turning on the noise&mdash;the 767 was roaring like a locomotive and the ambient sound hit me like a fist. Thompson's crisp Celtic chordings turned mushy, undetailed, and dull. I felt weary. <I>Whoa, I wouldn't do that again if I were you, laddie!</I> I fumbled for the switch and reactivated the NoiseGuard circuitry on my Sennheiser HDC 451 noise-canceling headsets. Thompson's guitar rang out clearly, the airplane quieted to sound like an S-class Benz, and I relaxed into a calm reverie with only one worry clouding my contentment. But I patted my pocket: yup, still two cognacs left. Everything would be all right.

Barque & Consonance's Opera Consonance M15 mates a 15" woofer with a unique multicell horn tweeter. Sensitivity is 98dB (!) and frequency range is rate at 30Hz&ndash;20kHz. The tweeter handles everything above 500Hz. Price would be around $10,000/pair USD, not including distribution costs.

I bought the Classic Radio R601P on the spot. Beautiful walnut cabinet, warm tube sound, and that lovely magic tuning tube below the dial&mdash;all for under $500.

The Classic Radio JR-455 from the other side. Kids, this is how they used to make 'em back when radios were built like cathedrals.