The Beyerdynamic DT880 Discussion thread
Feb 5, 2012 at 1:25 PM Post #1,666 of 12,546
Hey everyone,

I also made a single thread for this a couple days ago but I thought I'd ask here as well since there would be no better place for it.

I'm looking to get 600Ω 880s and I was wondering what could cheaply but still reasonably power them since the headphones are expensive for me as they are. I currently only have an onboard soundcard which is supposedly pretty good for an onboard soundcard but in the end it's still only that.

(here is the onboard soundcard by the way http://aphnetworks.com/reviews/asus_p8p67_pro/11)
 
Feb 5, 2012 at 1:26 PM Post #1,667 of 12,546
Wow this a big thread, iv'e read thought parts of it and have convinced me to get me these as my first set of audiophile HP's.
beyersmile.png

 
Feb 6, 2012 at 12:38 PM Post #1,668 of 12,546


Quote:
Hey everyone,
I also made a single thread for this a couple days ago but I thought I'd ask here as well since there would be no better place for it.
I'm looking to get 600Ω 880s and I was wondering what could cheaply but still reasonably power them since the headphones are expensive for me as they are. I currently only have an onboard soundcard which is supposedly pretty good for an onboard soundcard but in the end it's still only that.
(here is the onboard soundcard by the way http://aphnetworks.com/reviews/asus_p8p67_pro/11)


Wow, they are nice 'phones.
Good choice.
Nice and neutral!  
Generally speaking, 600 ohm phones require more VOLTAGE than 250 or 80 or 32 ohm phones.
That normally means a desktop amp.
I use a Matrix M Stage but if you read this thread from the beginnning you should get some other (cheaper!) ideas.
In theory, the Objective 2 Amp should do a good job with 600 ohm DT880s, but I have never heard the Objective 2 (I am planning on buying one in a few days). You can get them new for approx. $170
Usually I use tubes with my DT880s, but my tube amp isn't cheap.
 
I'll post my Objective 2 review in a few days.
 

 
 
 
Feb 6, 2012 at 3:07 PM Post #1,669 of 12,546
I thought I would post some initial impressions of the DT880 Pro (250ohm) for others to compare/contrast with the 600ohm. I've most recently been using Grado SR80i's so technically the Beyers are the highest end headphones I've heard so far.
 
These are supposedly tighter clamping than the non pro versions but I find them just about perfect in this regard. Any looser and they wouldn't feel secure (I have a small head), I could probably do some mild head banging without worry. Earpads are very comfortable, even a little big for my ears, plenty of room. Easy to use while wearing glasses. I like the coiled cord.
 
Worst case scenario for sound, directly out of my Samsung Epic 4G (rooted, custom ROM with voodoo sound mod, Wolfson DAC) They are overall cleaner and smoother sounding than my Grado as well as more balanced. I think I hear a slight emphasis or tonal balance leaning to somewhere in the upper mids with a slightly bleached maybe or chalky or almost grainy haze over the sound like a shhhhh type of sound, hard to explain. Very mild, just enough for my brain to say it is not that black velvety or liquid type of background you would expect from perfect reference. Might be more obvious if I ABed next to a high end reference system. Not really noticeable if I power them from the headphone outs on the cheap computer speakers so I assume it's mostly an amplification issue. Generally I feel a desire for just a little more emphasis in the very low bass, though midbass sounds fine. Overall is very good though I feel they should be capable of a bit more definition of notes, more so on the low end and slightly better dynamics but hard to tell as I don't have the best reference recordings to test them. I expect things to improve slightly with better amplification but overall really have nothing to complain about as far as the general sound goes. They sound fantastic. Probably pick up an Objective2 in a few weeks.
 
Joshua
 

 
Feb 6, 2012 at 4:59 PM Post #1,671 of 12,546


Quote:
Glad you like the phones! 
 
been thinking of picking up some fun bass heavy phones for edm music as well, but my DT880 are my go to phones for everything at the moment 


You can experiment with the damping. From my understanding the DT880s are the same as DT990s but have more damping for a more neutral sound. If you remove some damping you should get a more open sound and a bump in the bass. There is a thread somewhere about it. I'll certainly experiment with it sometime as well as adding mass damping to the rear of the driver and housing.
 
 
Feb 7, 2012 at 1:28 PM Post #1,673 of 12,546
I agree, if you want an open headphone, buy a DT990.
Personally, I'm not big on second guessing Beyer's designs.
 
Except their headphone amps.  100 ohm output impedance, they must be joking!
 
Feb 11, 2012 at 4:19 PM Post #1,674 of 12,546
I'm on the lookout for a amp for the DT 880's in the budget end and look forward to your review.
 
Quote:
Wow, they are nice 'phones.
Good choice.
Nice and neutral!  
Generally speaking, 600 ohm phones require more VOLTAGE than 250 or 80 or 32 ohm phones.
That normally means a desktop amp.
I use a Matrix M Stage but if you read this thread from the beginnning you should get some other (cheaper!) ideas.
In theory, the Objective 2 Amp should do a good job with 600 ohm DT880s, but I have never heard the Objective 2 (I am planning on buying one in a few days). You can get them new for approx. $170
Usually I use tubes with my DT880s, but my tube amp isn't cheap.
 
I'll post my Objective 2 review in a few days.
 

 
 



 
 
Feb 12, 2012 at 8:54 AM Post #1,675 of 12,546


Quote:
I'm on the lookout for a amp for the DT 880's in the budget end and look forward to your review.
 


 



It's going to be a few more days.
I tried to buy a used one and lost the sale, I was too slow!
I think I'll just buy a new one.
 
 
Feb 19, 2012 at 11:42 PM Post #1,676 of 12,546
So I posted a while back on this thread about my DT880's not having alot of bass compared to the T70's. Well I've been wondering if there was something out of spec on my 880's ever since I got some HD650's (which I know have more bass than the 880's) However, compared to the 650's the 880's have literally no bass or sub-bass. So I took em to a friends last night and compared the 600ohm 880's with the 32 ohm 880's and it was the same thing again. 32's had plenty of bass, while my 600's had none, as well as the fact that they were wayyyyyy brighter. 
 
Is this normal? Just wondering if I need to send them back to Beyer to have them checked out. I can't see how it would be an issue with them being poorly amped as I'm using them with a Bottlehead Crack.
 
Any thoughts?
 
Feb 20, 2012 at 6:12 AM Post #1,678 of 12,546
Quote:
Does anyone know where i can buy DT880 600ohm drivers?


Here. If shipping to your location is a problem (apparently, it is 40 Euros to Australia (region 3), but there may be additional costs due to customs and taxes, and it will take 8 to 30 days to arrive), search for the part number (e.g. dt880 980252). It may also be available elsewhere.
 
 

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