Back to the 80's: It must have been around 1985 with my system comprising Michell Focus One TT with A&R Cambridge E77 cartridge run through a Nytech CA252 amp (headphone socket on the back!). At the time I was using the ubiquitous Sennheiser HD414 which was THE headphone to have back then.
Earlier models of this classic design had an impedance of 2000 Ohm, staggeringly high by today's standards, this was later lowered to 600 Ohm which still requires a serious amp to drive them. Soundwise, those lightweight cans were smooth and shone mainly in the midrange, kind to all recordings and styles of music. Easy on the ear.
During a perusal through a Hifi store I ran across a bin of sale-priced headphones from MB Quart, never heard of them, apparently a promotional shipment that were being dumped as the brand hadn't caught any attention. Two models; the 75x and more expensive 95x. I was intrigued, my humble wages allowed me to get the cheaper model and I went off home. I nearly, very nearly, got a pair of the 95x as well.
What a difference these were from the HD414. Over-ear, closed-back and a new sonic universe. The MBQ 75x (now the GMP 250 and essentially identical) has an extreme clarity in the upper registers, revealing detail, space and placement that was unknown to me, extraordinary. Drawback is that they are ruthlessly transparent to poor recordings, sounding brash and (almost) unpleasantly edgy. Take-no-prisoners. Also the GMP 250 is rather bass-light. It's there, defined and controlled, but orientation is toward treble / upper-mids. One important factor is that all music sounds fresh and exciting on these headphones. Electric and fun!
Comparing to the similarly-priced Grado SR80 has the Grado's sounding dull, but richer in the lower end. For the first time (ever) I found the SR80 wanting in the detail department. Character-wise, the SR80 is very similar to the GMP 450, but the German Maestro has a more refined, better controlled approach.
The GMP 250 can come across as a touch bright and might benefit from a little EQ to tame that, Its 100 Ohm rating also demands the use of a dedicated amp. But the rewards are awesome definition and surgical-precision detail that reveals everything! They will undoubtedly find a place in the headphone assortment here but, for the time being, they transport me back to when I was still discovering the strange world of audio equipment and these certainly played a major role in that quest.
