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Ultrasone New performance Series: 840, 860 & 880 (First post last update : 2014/12/07)
Nov 10, 2014 at 10:14 AM Post #166 of 541
beagle said:
  I got the 880 a couple of days ago from Moon Audio. Looks like Ultrasone threw away the old mould and started from the ground up. The 880 is lighter, much more comfortable, and sonically much closer to a neutral response. Gone is the bass boom, replaced with a balanced articulated quality where you can hear bass lines from top to bottom quite clearly. Midrange to treble is also much more aligned and not "choppy" like the PRO series.
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yea but with bigger price.  i remember hfi550 was like under 200 dollars?  and hfi700 was like 250?  pro550 and pro 750 was like 2, 3 hundred?  performance 880 is now 499. 
 
Nov 10, 2014 at 10:30 AM Post #167 of 541
bark snarly said:
  In your opinion would you say the sound quality + build quality and materials is worth the price? I personally found that of the ultrasone cans I've tried, they were a bit overpriced for the amount of plastic and the sound quality you got from them. I did enjoy them but not enough to spend their asking price on them.
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Before I even got to listening, I was very impressed by the "stripped-down" design and construction, compared to the big chunky plasticky older Ultrasone PRO series. The 880 is lighter, better fitting and much better sounding IMO. A bit of the older Ultrasone sound remains, as I detect a bit of coldness, a slight harshness occasionally in the lower treble, affecting sibilants. But this may be source and material-dependant, and/or they need more time to run in. I'm only a few hours of listening into them so far.
 
Something else I noticed.... the 880 still says S-LOGIC but the drivers are now placed closer to a "6 o'clock" position (rather than "5 o'clock"). The "5" position was frustrating (to me) because it made top-end response a crap shoot, depending on how you positioned the earcups on your ears. With the 880's driver position, the sound is consistent and stays put.
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by fhuang /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
yea but with bigger price.  i remember hfi550 was like under 200 dollars?  and hfi700 was like 250?  pro550 and pro 750 was like 2, 3 hundred?  performance 880 is now 499. 
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The 880 walks all over those models so the price is more justified.
 
Nov 10, 2014 at 10:39 AM Post #168 of 541
beagle said:
bark snarly said:
 
In your opinion would you say the sound quality + build quality and materials is worth the price? I personally found that of the ultrasone cans I've tried, they were a bit overpriced for the amount of plastic and the sound quality you got from them. I did enjoy them but not enough to spend their asking price on them.
Click to expand...



Before I even got to listening, I was very impressed by the "stripped-down" design and construction, compared to the big chunky plasticky older Ultrasone PRO series. The 880 is lighter, better fitting and much better sounding IMO. A bit of the older Ultrasone sound remains, as I detect a bit of coldness, a slight harshness occasionally in the lower treble, affecting sibilants. But this may be source and material-dependant, and/or they need more time to run in. I'm only a few hours of listening into them so far.

Something else I noticed.... the 880 still says S-LOGIC but the drivers are now placed closer to a "6 o'clock" position (rather than "5 o'clock"). The "5" position was frustrating (to me) because it made top-end response a crap shoot, depending on how you positioned the earcups on your ears. With the 880's driver position, the sound is consistent and stays put.

Quote:
fhuang said:
yea but with bigger price.  i remember hfi550 was like under 200 dollars?  and hfi700 was like 250?  pro550 and pro 750 was like 2, 3 hundred?  performance 880 is now 499. 
Click to expand...


The 880 walks all over those models so the price is more justified.
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Beagle I just looked at your profile and holy crap you have a lot of hp's.

In the spectrum of headphones you have where would you place the bass quantity:
Focal spirit pro -- pandora hope vi -- he 400 -- denon d2000

Also the mids?
 
Nov 10, 2014 at 4:41 PM Post #169 of 541
Originally Posted by grizzlybeast /img/forum/go_quote.gif
In the spectrum of headphones you have where would you place the bass quantity:
Focal spirit pro -- pandora hope vi -- he 400 -- denon d2000
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Click to expand...

 
I would say between the Spirit Pro and the Hope VI.....so far. It might change with usage.
Also the mids?
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.
Mids similar to the Spirit Pro....more open sounding than the usual closed headphone.
 
But honestly, I would need at least a weeks full time with them to really get a bead on what they do. Very often the immediate difference in sound is apparent but to translate that into words and opinions at too early a stage can lead to erroneous information in the long run.
 
Nov 18, 2014 at 3:26 PM Post #170 of 541
So yeah... these are bright... :wink:
Detect sibilance on both the 840s and 880s. 880s seem to be a bit better... but similar sounding on first impression including sound stage and imaging.
They isolate well, hold sound in well, and they are more comfortable than the Signature Pro's/DJs.
 
Contents are basically the same with the exception that the 880s provide extra pads (velour I believe).
Same box, same baggie and same cables. The hike in price really doesn't even make sense to me at the moment..
 
Still, as of now, enjoying the 880s more...
Will post more stuff later, just got them out of their boxes a few hours ago... I will report after I have "burned them in for 500000000000000 hours...."
(yeah, I'm kidding
very_evil_smiley.gif
)
 
Nov 18, 2014 at 4:29 PM Post #171 of 541
gelocks said:
  So yeah... these are bright... :wink:
Detect sibilance on both the 840s and 880s. 880s seem to be a bit better... but similar sounding on first impression including sound stage and imaging.
They isolate well, hold sound in well, and they are more comfortable than the Signature Pro's/DJs.
 
Contents are basically the same with the exception that the 880s provide extra pads (velour I believe).
Same box, same baggie and same cables. The hike in price really doesn't even make sense to me at the moment..
 
Still, as of now, enjoying the 880s more...
Will post more stuff later, just got them out of their boxes a few hours ago... I will report after I have "burned them in for 500000000000000 hours...."
(yeah, I'm kidding
very_evil_smiley.gif
)
Click to expand...

Presumably you still prefer your DJs, then? At least so far?
 
Nov 19, 2014 at 8:04 AM Post #172 of 541
Hahaha not sure yet!
I value comfort so, these new guys definitely have the Signature DJs beat on that front!
Sound-wise, still need more time with them. I've had the Sig DJs for more than a year or two so, I'm used to them...
Will use the 880s at work this week then the 840s the next, then directly compare against the Sig DJs and DVD Editions I have... One thing to note, I think the S-Logic effects feel more, errrmmm effective?!, on the 880s. Sound-stage is a bit weird so I'm playing with positioning, etc.
 
Nov 19, 2014 at 10:50 AM Post #174 of 541
dobrescu george said:
  How is the confort? Strictly compared to sig dj?
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There's definitely more room for ears. The comfort is better despite a strong clamp.
 
Some pics: (mostly 880)
 
 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 
Nov 19, 2014 at 1:54 PM Post #176 of 541
gelocks said:
  Hahaha not sure yet!
I value comfort so, these new guys definitely have the Signature DJs beat on that front!
Sound-wise, still need more time with them. I've had the Sig DJs for more than a year or two so, I'm used to them...
Will use the 880s at work this week then the 840s the next, then directly compare against the Sig DJs and DVD Editions I have... One thing to note, I think the S-Logic effects feel more, errrmmm effective?!, on the 880s. Sound-stage is a bit weird so I'm playing with positioning, etc.
Click to expand...

The bigger enclosure will definitely expand the S-Logic, plus it looks like they're using a new design for the openings. My old PRO 900s have a wider soundstage than my Sig Pros, I'm sure it's just that they're roomier. That being said, the gap has disappeared with a better amp and DAC...

Man, why couldn't you just tell me they suck!? lol, I don't want to have to get a pair to try them out!
 
Nov 20, 2014 at 1:29 AM Post #179 of 541
Has anyone compared the new Ultrasones to the Sony Z7?
 
Nov 20, 2014 at 2:19 AM Post #180 of 541
@Zoide : We''ll have a meeting here in France the 29th of november. I'll bring all the performance series with me and we have the chance to have a Z7 too. I'll give some impressions.
 
 
Another point to notice : Performance series are too hard to drive for a phone. Tried from an iphone and an Android smartphone . The 94db sensibility is too low. DAP or AMP needed :wink:
 
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