BACKGROUND:Ever since Dankpods posted a video extolling the virtues of his Grado SR60e headphones, I've been eyeing Grado headphones for the past 5 months now. Then, suddenly, their headphones just disappeared off Amazon for nearly a month. After weeks of radio silence, I saw an article pop up about their new and improved prestige x series. I read up the sparse information available and impulse-bought a pair of SR80x cans with zero reviews.To give some context, my current daily driver cans are Beyer DT990 Pro 250ohm. I have also listened to and loved the following headphones: Samson SR850, Sennheiser: HD650, HD280, HD555, Momentum 2.0 Audio Technica: M50, AD700, ES7 and Beyer DT 1990 Pros. My taste in sound is clearly biased. I tend to prefer a V-shaped frequency response curve. So naturally, I was worried the purportedly weaker bass in the Grados would turn me off them. Thankfully, this concern was unfounded, as I'll explain later.FIRST IMPRESSIONS:I love the packaging. In a world of cost-cutting the actual products and wrapping them in wasteful packaging, Grado does it right. They came in a simple white box with Grado branding and the only thing differentiating them from other models is a sticker slapped on the side. They came in a mickey-mouse shaped foam cutout with a cute thank you letter inside. They also come with a 1/8" to 1/4" headphone adapter. Picking them up for the first time I was shocked at how lightweight they were. The plastic construction and spartan adjustment mechanisms make these feel virtually weightless compared to all other headphones I've worn.CONSTRUCTION: (6/10)While I adore the retro look, there's no question that most of the money went into the headphone drivers and sound design. The now-padded headband is a huge step up as the prestige e series had virtually no padding at all. The driver housings however are still a questionable looking gloss black plastic. It's safe to say I'm going to be gentle with these, especially all the plastic parts. The earcups can swivel 360 degrees horizontally, making it convenient to fold them flat. They also have a little bit of vertical tilt adjustment. Compared to my much-loved Beyers, these don't feel nearly as sturdy as the DT990s, which is a worthy compromise for the sound.The cable however is BEEFY. It's thick with a nice Y-split plastic housing to protect the area where the channel wires separate. The woven outer sheathing, new to the prestige x series, really adds to the cable's heft and structural integrity. It's all terminated in a lovely male 1/8" jack with integrated strain relief. The earpads are a decently thick foam that harkens back to the days of more retro on ear headphones like the Koss PortaPros. It's much better quality foam than on the Koss headphones, but I suspect they won't last more than a few years of very heavy use before deteriorating. Time will tell.SOUND: (9/10)Other than Dankpod's glowing endorsement, I really didn't know what to expect. I fired up Paranoid Android and was immediately hooked by the IMMACULATE detail of these cans. Instrument separation and soundstage is INCREDIBLE. I never thought I'd say this, but I was hearing new details on the Grados that I didn't notice with my DT990s, which are already very bright and detailed to begin with. The bass response was a pleasant surprise. The DT990s have much more thump and impact, but the Grados are tuned so well that you spend most of your time enjoying all the detail in the mids and highs. They certainly have much better bass than Audio Technica AD700s, which is quite the feat considering there is virtually no seal present around the ear.I spent hours blitzing through my Spotify library, everything from Massive Attack to 2Pac. There's no question these are best-suited to songs with lots of detailed mid and high notes. 80s tracks and synthwave music really sings on these beauties. That said, if big, stinky bass is your thing, you probably won't like these too much in bass heavy songs. So far, I've binge listened to these for 2 days now and I can safely say that everything I put through them sounds amazing. What's more, no amp is required to enjoy these puppies. They're 38 ohms and can be driven really loud from any phone, laptop or tablet. I'm running them through a tiny FiiO E10K USB amplifier, and on low gain these can easily damage your hearing at full volume.The soundstage really caught me off guard. I was always under the impression that spacious, deep earcups contribute to soundstage and instrument separation. These proved me wrong. With the foam earpads, they sit directly on my ears and provide absolutely no seal or noise isolation whatsoever. And yet, I'll hear sounds in TV shows and Movies that make me pause and take them off, thinking it was coming from inside my room. Every little crunch of a footstep to a squeak in a door is all present. You won't miss a single bit of detail in any content. Any content with excellent sound design will really shine with these.Just don't expect to ever use these in a confined public place. There's no seal at all. These let in all the surrounding noise and all of your music out. You'll probably get punched if you use these on an airplane. Further, the exceptionally detailed highs can definitely be fatiguing after long listening sessions with certain genres. If you're very sensitive to bright headphones, these might not be the best fit for you. For what it's worth, my ears are pretty sensitive and I can still have a wonderful time listening to bright music. I recommend trying them out and seeing if they'll work for you.COMFORT: (6/10)Their light weight and padded headband makes these very comfortable for the top of your head. However, the on ear foam pads are definitely a compromise in comfort. While they don't get sweaty at all, I do start to feel discomfort and pressure points on my ears after the 2-hour mark. These probably aren't headphones you could wear all day like my DT990s or AD700s. I think these are an excellent compliment to more relaxed sounding cans like Sennheiser HD600s. If you already have headphones you're comfortable wearing for an entire day, a set of Grados would be a great addition.SUMMARY:Despite their compromises in construction and comfort, I have never been more blown away by a pair of sub $300 headphones. And, as the cherry on top, these are made by lovely folks in Brooklyn, NY. These are strange times and it feels good to support American businesses that don't outsource their products to sketchy countries with virtually no workers' rights. Ultimately, this was a terrible financial decision because now I'm really wondering what the 325x cans sound like. It was such a joy to go through my library and rediscover music I haven't listened to in years.Trust me, unless you're 5 figures deep into audiophile gear, you will hear new sounds in music you've listened to for years with a set of SR80x's. If you're brand new to enthusiast listening and you want to know a great place to start without spending boat loads of money, these are an excellent option. No amp or electrical engineering knowledge is required. All you need is a headphone jack and a fat library of cool tunes.Lastly, because durability is definitely a concern with these, I will update my review should anything go wrong with them. If there are no updates, then everything is good. I hope you give them a try.UPDATE 9/4/21: Well, the impossible happened. After 7+ years of use, my DT990s ultimately became my secondary headphones. And that's the highest praise I can give for these Grados, because the DT990s are exceptionally good. These days, I don't spend nearly as much time gaming for hours on end, so the long-term comfort is less of an issue for me. The lighter clamping force and foam pads on the Grados mean my ears never get sweaty, so these are now officially my daily drivers.However, I have had one issue with them, which has also plagued my DT990s. I have long hair and a beard, and the earpads are an absolute hair magnet. After the two-month mark, I started hearing a nasty rattle in the right earcup during low notes. Upon further inspection, some of my beard hairs found their way behind the earpads and would rattle against the driving casing. Thankfully, it was an easy fix as the earpads are easy to take off and re-install, unlike my Beyers. If you have this issue, it's likely due to hairs stuck behind the earpads.After further research, I found out this is a common issue. Some call it "Grattle." I figured this would be worth mentioning, because it sounds just like a blown headphone driver. That being said, these are still wonderful and I highly recommend them.UPDATE 8/28/22:So, I've finally had my first real issue with them. The head band padding has started to separate near the left earcup. Granted, it is a small problem and has had no effect on comfort or overall listening experience. I've posted additional pictures showing the issue. I am concerned it will gradually travel further up the headband. I still adore and recommend these headphones, but considering their sound and price, I knew their durability would be a concern.These definitely aren't headphones you can carelessly kick around or stuff in a book bag. If it does get worse, I suspect a sewing needle and some black thread could be used to easily stitch the headband back together. I think Grado may want to consider a more durable solution of binding the two halves of the headband together, but it's likely a necessary cost-cutting measure, seeing as they're made in the USA. As I am a tinkerer and love fixing my own stuff, it certainly won't deter me from buying other Grados in the future. It's worth it for their sound.