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DT 880/990 32 ohm w/ Cowon S9?

post #1 of 12
10/10/10 at 2:29pm
Thread Starter 

Hey I'm thinking about getting one of the above headphones, probably the 990, to use with my S9. I know that the consensus around these headphones is that despite the 32-ohm rating, they still don't sound good from portable sources, but most people have ipods. As the S9's amplifier is more powerful, I was wondering if anyone with either of these headphones could chime in about whether either of them could be at least pretty well-powered by an S9.

 

Thanks

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Gear mentioned in this thread:

Beyer Dynamic DT 880 Premium 32 OHM Headphones
Beyer Dynamic DT 990 Premium 32 OHM Headphones
Cowon S9 8 GB Video MP3 Player with Touchscreen (Titanium Black)
post #2 of 12
10/17/10 at 9:58am

No worries budgetboy!  I'm using my Ultrasone HFI-780 S-Logic with my Cowon S9 and they sound amazing!!!  Loud and clear. Without any headphone amp or anything. So go for it. You'll love your new sound.

Cheers,

Raphael

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post #3 of 12
10/30/10 at 4:44pm
Thread Starter 

Ok, so all portable sources are NOT created equal! I'm really glad that setup is working for you raphael.

 

On another note, how are those 780s? I saw they were highly recommended for my favorite genre, electronic music. Are they comfortable? Do they get your ears hot after a while?

 

 

 

 

n

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post #4 of 12
10/30/10 at 5:56pm

Does anyone know if the S9 is better at powering headphones then the Ipod touch? I figure it'd be the same.

 

I've mentioned it before, but I would never, ever suggest buying a DT-880, 770 or 990 32 ohm without an amp. You will need to completely MAX out the volume and it will even still be fairly low. It's this way with my Ipod Touch.

 

With my Total Airhead and Ipod touch I can MAX out BOTH volume settings on a 32 ohm DT-770 and it's not even that unbearably loud. It's really quite amazing how this is. I don't know if this means anything. My Total Airhead can even power the HD-600 "OK".

 

Maybe just buy an E5 with it for $20 and see if that helps.

 

I can almost bet money that any of the 250 ohm versions will be no harder to drive then the 32 ohm versions..

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post #5 of 12
10/30/10 at 6:01pm

Cowons are more powerful than most DAPs from what I've read. I would imagine the OP's situation would be fine, but I'm not sure b/c I don't have any experience with Beyers. 

 

My Cowon can power the HD 650s "OK" btw (but not great, wouldn't really recommend).

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post #6 of 12
10/30/10 at 6:24pm
Thread Starter 

tdockweiler - I guess beyers are just hard to drive, regardless of impedance. Maybe they have low sensitivity?

I just looked up a couple specs and the DT 880s have a sensitivity of 96 db. People have said that beyer uses the same or similar drivers for the entire 770-990 lineup, so it might be the sensitivity that makes them hard to drive.

On the other hand, the HD 600 has sensitivity 97 db, so if you can drive them easier, with their 300 ohm impedance, there has to be some other factor at work here.

 

Satellite_6 - I was thinking I might get the HD650s instead. How do they sound right out of the S9, and can you make it sound better with the EQ?

 

 

 

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post #7 of 12
10/30/10 at 6:55pm


I have owned a DT880/32 and a DT990/600 (currently). People here state that the 250 and 60ohm are almost identical in drivability. The 32ohm is DEFINITELY quite a bit easier to drive than my 600ohm, even though they still need an amp.

Quote:
Originally Posted by tdockweiler View Post

Does anyone know if the S9 is better at powering headphones then the Ipod touch? I figure it'd be the same.

 

I've mentioned it before, but I would never, ever suggest buying a DT-880, 770 or 990 32 ohm without an amp. You will need to completely MAX out the volume and it will even still be fairly low. It's this way with my Ipod Touch.

 

With my Total Airhead and Ipod touch I can MAX out BOTH volume settings on a 32 ohm DT-770 and it's not even that unbearably loud. It's really quite amazing how this is. I don't know if this means anything. My Total Airhead can even power the HD-600 "OK".

 

Maybe just buy an E5 with it for $20 and see if that helps.

 

I can almost bet money that any of the 250 ohm versions will be no harder to drive then the 32 ohm versions..

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post #8 of 12
10/30/10 at 7:44pm

I was using the DT880 32ohm with my Cowon iAudio 7 & 9. Sounds pretty good if you ask me, but not as good as you might expect...

 

I actually prefer the D2000's sound on my iAudio 7 over the DT880. Actually, I preferred the sound, comfort, physical feel, and price as well!

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post #9 of 12
10/31/10 at 8:12am
Quote:
Originally Posted by budgetboy View Post

tdockweiler - I guess beyers are just hard to drive, regardless of impedance. Maybe they have low sensitivity?

I just looked up a couple specs and the DT 880s have a sensitivity of 96 db. People have said that beyer uses the same or similar drivers for the entire 770-990 lineup, so it might be the sensitivity that makes them hard to drive.

On the other hand, the HD 600 has sensitivity 97 db, so if you can drive them easier, with their 300 ohm impedance, there has to be some other factor at work here.

 

Satellite_6 - I was thinking I might get the HD650s instead. How do they sound right out of the S9, and can you make it sound better with the EQ?

 

 

 

I would NOT recommend this. I can't find the power output of the S9, but unless it's more powerful than the i7 it will not be good enough to make the HD 650s worth the money, trust me.
 

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post #10 of 12
10/31/10 at 10:30am
Thread Starter 

Mad Lust Envy - That's really good to hear. And by "need an amp" you mean won't perform at full potential, right, not that they don't sound good without one?

 

Katun - I was looking at the D2000s, but after my experience with the closed, pleather, ATH-M50, which gives me hot ears, I decided on velour and open for my next headphones. I want to be able to listen for more than an hour without hot ears, and I'm not taking a chance on the D2000 unless I hear that the cups are liquid cooled.

 

Satellite_6 - Thanks for the heads up. I think I already decided this was a stupid idea last night before I went to bed. Now its between the DT990/32ohm and the Ultrasone HFI 2400.

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post #11 of 12
10/31/10 at 6:27pm


The 32ohm Beyers don't need an amp but even something portable like the Fiio E7 will help them significantly, IMHO. The 32ohm Beyers sound slightly anemic without a least a little amping.

 

As for closed, I agree. My girl hates closed because of pleather. If you need closed, the DT770 and K271 MKII would work as they use velour. I think the K271 needs amping though.

Quote:
Originally Posted by budgetboy View Post

Mad Lust Envy - That's really good to hear. And by "need an amp" you mean won't perform at full potential, right, not that they don't sound good without one?

 

Katun - I was looking at the D2000s, but after my experience with the closed, pleather, ATH-M50, which gives me hot ears, I decided on velour and open for my next headphones. I want to be able to listen for more than an hour without hot ears, and I'm not taking a chance on the D2000 unless I hear that the cups are liquid cooled.

 

Satellite_6 - Thanks for the heads up. I think I already decided this was a stupid idea last night before I went to bed. Now its between the DT990/32ohm and the Ultrasone HFI 2400.


 

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post #12 of 12
10/31/10 at 7:46pm
Thread Starter 

Mad Lust Envy, are you saying that my hot ears problem isn't with closed cans, just with pleather pads? Even if it might just be the pads, I wouldn't want to risk it.

What do you think about Beyer DT 990/32 vs HFI 2400? and maybe, just maybe, DT770 pro 80. But I really really don't want another set of cans that give me hot ears.

 

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Gear mentioned in this thread:

Beyer Dynamic DT 880 Premium 32 OHM Headphones
Beyer Dynamic DT 990 Premium 32 OHM Headphones
Cowon S9 8 GB Video MP3 Player with Touchscreen (Titanium Black)
Head-Fi.org › Forums › Equipment Forums › Headphones (full-size) › DT 880/990 32 ohm w/ Cowon S9?