Koss Pro DJ 100 - The Budget King - Page 3

Quote:

Originally Posted by SLaRe 

I don´t know why you found them muffled and bassheavy.. My pair is very bright side, with very good definition and with very tight bass.. I think I need to try the M50 pads.

I think it's just that some pairs sound great out of the box and some don't. I think there's one or two around here that got a pair that was bad out of the box and had to be exchanged.

I imagine Koss quality control is fine, but who knows. I have my doubts if they do any burn in.

I said it in my review, but the last two pairs I actually thought were defective?! I never had that happen before with any headphone.

I just burn mine in with a lot of bass heavy music or pink noise and they're "fixed" within a week. With this last pair I even boosted the bass with an EQ just to see if stressing out the driver would speed up the burn-in process. No way to know really.

Man, I just wish I had the tools to test the differences between a new in box and well burned in pair. I keep saying it, but I think it could be measured. IMO I think the differences would be way different than two pairs of K702's.

I should do an experiment with the Pro4AAT and see if that sounds better in a week. That thing went back in the box within a day. Now I know better.

Burn in is stupid and a waste of time, but sometimes it seems to be needed.

I'd definitely suggest getting the M50 pads ASAP! Totally worth it. You'll even be surprised at how much better the soundstage is.

Somehow the M50 pads effect sound clarity too.

I still can't figure out why the sound of them seems to vary so much with amps.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SLaRe 

Do you think that the E11 is a good match to these? Is my first candidate for my girlfriend. For me I will buy a Fostex HP-P1 as soon as the iPhone 5 comes out :)

Sadly I hated the E11 with the DJ100. It's a bit weird because on day 1 I had my DAC connected to the E11 and it sounded quite good, but a bit harsh and fatiguing at times. What the heck?!

On day 2 I used a Cowon Iaudio 7 with the E11 and the sound was rather dull and boring with the DJ100. This is NOT how the DJ100 is supposed to sound to me. I don't know if it's just that the E11 is supposed to be neutral or what.

It seemed to be enough power for sure to drive the DJ100 properly.

I switched to the less powerful (as far as I know) Nuforce Icon Mobile and the mids and sound of the DJ100 were back to their old self. Soundstage increased in size, mids came forward and the bass was all there. I really don't understand this. Supposedly the Icon Mobile is neutral too, so it's very strange.

Since it wasn't a good match for the DJ100 I returned it. It did LOVE the d2000 though.

Here's another interesting thing...I ALSO didn't like the E11 with the M50. Nuforce made it sound great. I wonder why? It seems that whatever amp the M50 loves, the DJ100 also likes. Very strange.

DJ100 also likes my Total Airhead. The E5 is OK, but only when you use a huge player like the Ipod Touch or Zune HD.

One strange thing I noticed is that on some amps the DJ100 doesn't like, it will make them sound much more fatiguing and have a very harsh sound to them.

I may try the PA2V2 and see if the DJ100 likes that amp. Maybe the E11 isn't as neutral as we all think? I highly doubt it isn't. Ok, so the E11 isn't a good match, but the E9 is very good with them!

Maybe I'll try an E7 as well. So far I prefer the Airhead, but that thing is so big and bulky. That thing can even drive the HD-600/650 quite well!

Quote:

Originally Posted by earplug 

You know those velour pads that are often recommended for the Sony MDR-V6? Would they fit the DJ100? They're the same size as the stock MDR-V6 pads. I'm about to buy two M50 pads at Sweetwater, but I might get some Beyer velours too if others say they fit.

The Pearstone Velour pads for the V6 also fit the DJ100. They're oval, but do fit. I think they may tame the treble a bit and I think the M50 pads are still the way to go. I had the Pearstone pads but they became very hot and uncomfortable after a few hours of use.

Quote:

Originally Posted by 200poundsofamp 

Though I'd post some impressions, since I've had these for a while now. I really like them, I'm listening to them more and more over the 840s.When I first got them they sounded really weird, with sloppy bass and an oddly sucked out midrange. I don't know if got used to them or they burned in, but instead of having it be a breath of fresh air when I put on the 840s I don't feel like I'm missing anything anymore when I switch between the two. The midrange and vocals on here are just on point, and the treble is right where it should be. It makes the 840s seem slightly bright, which I guess they are.But what I like most about these, and makes them so fun to listen to, is the space these give to recordings, and how they surround you in sound, the 840 seems much more zoomed in and kind of clasutrophobic in comparison. Seems weird, but it really adds to the enjoyment for me, especially when the mids are so good. They're maybe slightly less smooth than the 840, and slightly richer with more upper mids, but still very close. The imaging is surprising as well, they're just as good as I remember the 940s being.These have more bass than the 840, which have about the right balance for me, but it stays out of the way of the mids so fair enough. I've heard the 840s bass described as dry, and you can kind of hear it next to these. The bass here seems very liquid sounding, and carries some weight so it gives a nice thump. Next to the HFT-600s weightier bass that hits like a jackhammer these are oddly soothing.Oh and the m50 pads are seriously required for these, tdock is right on there. I'm really not a fan of the stock sound, they just sound kind of dirty in the midrange, like they're oddly out of focus or something. The m50 pads really seem to wipe the dirt off the lense.  Really tempted to send these to purrin to get measured, I bet they'd do a hell of a lot better. Either that or they'll have a second chance to take the throne back from the HE-300

Another thing I think that helped with the soundstage is the M50 pads. The impression of more treble and a larger soundstage are the biggest differences the M50 pads made. There is a tiny extra bit of bass with the M50 pads also. It's actually due to the foam backing. Don't ask me how! I 100% suggest to not ever remove the foam. Once you do the sound is less balanced and a lot more fatiguing. The foam feels as if it kind of smoothed out the sound a bit.

I still use my DJ100 all the time. It stays on my head just as much as the HD-598 and K501. Those are the only other headphones I really listen to right now. Before I had the DJ100, my favorite was the SRH-840. Sadly the SRH-840 was incompatible with my head and would hurt or just fall off. Luckily the SRH-940 was a little better in that area. SRH-940 is a nice headphone, but didn't feel like a $170 upgrade over the DJ100! Mine was a loaner though. I actually prefer the soundstage of the DJ100 over the SRH-940 too.

It still annoys me how bad some pairs sound out of the box. I'd hate for anyone to get a pair and be too fast to judge them. It seems that with many of the more expensive Koss headphones it takes a lot of use for them to be at their best. I've read up on some of the Amazon reviews of these lately and still can't figure out why so many people think these don't have enough bass. It makes no sense to me. Maybe it's due to the pads, source or not having enough power. I don't think I ever found the bass lacking when driven properly.

Another big difference after lots of use, is the sound clarity shoots way up. Out of the box nearly every pair I had was kind of muffled. I wonder why there is such a huge change? It seems a bit strange to me.

Wonder how the Pro4AAAT compares to the DJ100. It looks like an open headphone, but it's hard to tell. Those weird gel(?) pads are kind of hard to get used to. I bet it also would need a ton of burn in.

BTW I noticed the Tony Bennet Signature Edition headphone (DJ100 clone?) is now $134 and not $150. I haven't bought one, but I may take one for the team just to see if cable swaps might make them even better. A detachable cable would be nice to have. I just hope it doesn't use the 2.55mm plug! I hope they tweaked the headphone for even better sound, but I doubt it. Based on my experience, cable upgrades don't change the sound much unless the replacement cable is directly soldered to the driver. One idea is that maybe they used a better cable on this version. The one it had is already good though.