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DT880's and Porta Corda

post #1 of 11
12/30/04 at 9:25am
Thread Starter 
I got a group buy porta corda, and am considering buying a pair of 880s quite soon.
These'll be my first pair of headphones. I intend to use them both at home and out and about.

I won't be able to afford a better amp for a good few years, as I'm just starting university.
For work, I'll need my phones to be very precise, have a good soundscape, as I will be mixing and composing tracks in the studio (whilst the facilities I use will have monitoring quality speakers in the studio, I intend to use headphones at home continuing the work). I'd intend to power them at home from my porta corda. The source will be a computer with digidesign Pro Tools M-box.

Over anything, I want the headphones to have good sound quality. I'd rather get a good pair of headphones than a pair of in-ear phones that would be more practical on the go. I have up to about £200 to spare (about $350?)

Am I doing the right thing, or am I crazy getting the 880s?
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post #2 of 11
12/30/04 at 11:44am
Not at all, they have all the qualities you ask for.

However, what I would question is whether the porta corda has enough oomph to drive them to their full potential - though I've not used a porta corda myself - the DT880s are a very hard drive indeed. Perhaps they are not the most effective solution for you if you are going to use that amp.

If you are strictly doing monitoring, I would suggest the Beyer DT150 - these sound very neutral (perhaps even too much so for just music listening) and detailed; good bass, good separation. For your intended purpose and amp, they might present a better headphone, certainly from the value for money aspect. You can get these from turnkey

Er, neither of these are very portable, though. You may also want to look at the Sennheiser HP25-1 for that, but the downside is these have a sh*tty soundstage.
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post #3 of 11
12/30/04 at 12:15pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks. I would intend to listen to the phones for pleasure a couple of hours a day, plus I would like to use them for my guitar. Maybe the DT150s wouldn't be so good.

I was thinking maybe of getting the etymotic ER-4S's as that would be better for portability, although I have heard they suffer a bit from physical noises when moving around?

Either that or I leave the 880's at home and get a cheapish pair of earphones for the ipod. Would listening to them whilst on the train or walking around be completely uncomfortable? And would sound leaking be a problem even at low levels? I've learnt not to listen to music very loud living in terraced houses
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post #4 of 11
12/30/04 at 12:26pm
I agree with 1up. The DT880 seem to fit your needs, but they are power hogs. The portacorda is an amazing little amp, but it will struggle with that burden at anything beyond low/moderate level listening. otoh it can accept a power adapter, which should help some.

Another alternative headphone is the DT250-250. It is very neutral, compact, durable, and offers some isolation. The DT880 are extremely open. The DT250 do not offer the soundstage of the DT880. Stay away from the DT250-80.

It is worth noting that Jan makes package deals with his amps. Could be worth asking about a combo with a full up Corda.

You mention "out and about". Be aware that the DT880 are quite large and conspicuous, so high dork factor in public. They also leak sound in both directions, so no good in the library.


gerG
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post #5 of 11
12/30/04 at 12:34pm
Oops, misphased post.

If you can tolerate canal-phones, go for the Ety ER4S first. They do everything well, and are extremely neutral. They can be driven straight out of an ipod, and work even better with the Porta.


gerG
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post #6 of 11
12/30/04 at 12:51pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by gerG
I agree with 1up. The DT880 seem to fit your needs, but they are power hogs. The portacorda is an amazing little amp, but it will struggle with that burden at anything beyond low/moderate level listening. otoh it can accept a power adapter, which should help some.

Another alternative headphone is the DT250-250. It is very neutral, compact, durable, and offers some isolation. The DT880 are extremely open. The DT250 do not offer the soundstage of the DT880. Stay away from the DT250-80.

It is worth noting that Jan makes package deals with his amps. Could be worth asking about a combo with a full up Corda.

You mention "out and about". Be aware that the DT880 are quite large and conspicuous, so high dork factor in public. They also leak sound in both directions, so no good in the library.


gerG
Oh, I don't mind looking like a dork
I just don't want them to fall off my head as I'm running for the bus.
I do listen to a lot of classical and jazz, and really feel the soundstage to be a necessity.
I think maybe the best way for me to go is to get the 880's, a cheap pair of earphones maybe for portable use, and wait until I can get the better amp.
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post #7 of 11
12/30/04 at 12:57pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by gerG
Oops, misphased post.

If you can tolerate canal-phones, go for the Ety ER4S first. They do everything well, and are extremely neutral. They can be driven straight out of an ipod, and work even better with the Porta.


gerG
Ah right. I'll hunt around for some reviews. I've never tried canal-phones before.
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post #8 of 11
12/30/04 at 1:40pm
Shure E2 / E3 / E5 are good options. Shure canalphones are warmer and bassier than the Ety canalphones that didnt impress me with their lack of bass. But the Ety's did have better treble extension
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post #9 of 11
12/30/04 at 2:26pm
Thread Starter 
I've seen a few reviews on the ER-4S's, and maybe it would be a good idea to get them. I've seen them for $199, which is dead cheap, especially with the pound being so strong at the moment.

When I'm out of university, I could then start looking at hi-fi speakers instead, seeing as they'll be superior for sound-staging.

I've stumbled across a few reviews of the Stax SR-001 earphones, and they too seem quite interesting. But, am I right in thinking that I can only use them with the supplied amp, and not with my porta corda? I guess I could sell my corda... oh decisions, decisions
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post #10 of 11
12/30/04 at 9:24pm
I'd recommend to go for a Beyerdynamic DT250/250 and maybe an additional Creative HQ-1300 for on the go.

Greetings from Hannover!

Manfred / lini
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post #11 of 11
1/3/05 at 5:48pm
Thread Starter 
Luckily I managed to try a pair of ety's the past few days, and whilst they sounded great, comfort was a big problem and I got very bothered by the microphonics when moving about.

So I've decided to go for the 880s. Though it might be up to a year before I get a decent amp for it (possibly the woo-audio 1 or corda HA1 MKII), up until now, I've been stuck with ipod earbuds and £30 computer speakers, so the sound will be a huge improvement anyway I'm guessing.

I'll test them out with the porta corda for my portable rig, and if it just doesn't sound good enough, I'll sell the porta, buy a cheap pair of headphones and stick to the 880s for home listening.
Thanks for all your help.
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