[tdockweiler]

I think they're great for rock. For me, I think they're a perfect match for my favorite band Pearl Jam. I don't listen to much rock, but I think they'll be very good for that. I won't lie, the DJ100 is only going to be only good or close to very good for metal. For metal, most of the Grado headphones are a better match. I think the DJ100 actually an all around good headphone for most any genre. Very few headphones are great for all of them. DJ100's weakest genres are maybe metal and classical. I actually think classical is just fine on the DJ100, but some may not agree. For classical I'd almost always prefer an open headphone.
 
BTW I can't think of anything the UR-55 does better than the DJ100. I own two pairs of them! I think when modded the UR-55 does have a better soundstage, but when modded it's kind of open. It also may have something to do with the foam that's used.
 
The UR-55 has even more rolled off highs than the DJ100! It's sound signature is more like the Porta Pro.
Quote:

Does anyone know if the dj100's sound any good with rock and heavy metal, or would the ur-55's be better?

 

[1Time]

I've owned the Koss DJ100 and own the DBI Pro700 (for sale). Ran both straight out of a sound card and amped from the sound card's RCA outs. Burned in / used extensively. Amped sounded better for both. 
 
Pro700: brighter, punchier, fun sound, comfy enough for movie use, virtually indestructible. I can hear why these sell new for $100+. I also owned the Pro705 and preferred the Pro700. 
 
DJ100: darker mid-centric, highs and lows severely chopped off, shallow ear pads. Paid $50 on sale, but returned because of the obvious lack of highest highs and lowest lows. With deeper ear pads and modding (if possible) to correct the chopped off highs and lows, these would be very nice. 
 
Quote:

As I heard them I would consider the $30 DBI 700 a superior phone to the DJ100.  That's probably the phone I regret selling most.

 

[tdockweiler]

 
Quote:

I've owned the Koss DJ100 and own the DBI Pro700 (for sale). Ran both straight out of a sound card and amped from the sound card's RCA outs. Burned in / used extensively. Amped sounded better for both. 
 
Pro700: brighter, punchier, fun sound, comfy enough for movie use, virtually indestructible. I can hear why these sell new for $100+. I also owned the Pro705 and preferred the Pro700. 
 
DJ100: darker mid-centric, highs and lows severely chopped off, shallow ear pads. Paid $50 on sale, but returned because of the obvious lack of highest highs and lowest lows. With deeper ear pads and modding (if possible) to correct the chopped off highs and lows, these would be very nice. 
 
Quote:

As I heard them I would consider the $30 DBI 700 a superior phone to the DJ100.  That's probably the phone I regret selling most.

You're replying to an ancient comment. Since then he's gotten a different pair that sounds better. Maybe his opinion is the same still and that's OK. The sound may vary between pairs though. I think saying "severely chopped off" is a bit misleading. To me that sounds like someone just took off the highs and lows completely and they're gone. I mean like totally not there! The highs are a little rolled off, maybe more so than the SRH-840, but I find this isn't an issue since it leads to a less fatiguing sound signature.
 
I also agree with joker's review that the DJ100 CAN be picky with amps. Not always, but it's possible. Maybe the soundcard's amp isn't a good match for the DJ100. It's possible. The bass isn't anywhere "chopped off". They have very good bass, but certainly not as good as headphones costing $200+, but that's to be expected. I think you may be the only one who's said they lack bass, which I don't think they do. Wanting the "highest of highs" and the "lowest of bass" is kind of expecting too much for a cheap headphone. Even some $250 headphones can't meet that description.
 
Lack of bass can be due to a poor seal on the earpads. I do agree that the pads don't have enough depth and the M30 pads corrected this and the better seal helped the bass. If the default pads don't surround the ears or they're just not a good fit that could severely effect the sound, but I honestly can't agree with the "chopped off lows" comment, but not a big deal. My suggestion for people is to just try them out with your own ears. These days I take all reviews with a grain of salt and try them out myself. BTW I just bought a pair of DT-880 250 ohms for gaming to test out. I'm hoping the mids are OK and not that much worse than those on the 600 ohm version. I kind of ignored all the "recessed mids" comments on these and I hope that wasn't a mistake. At least I can return them if I don't like them. Amazon Prime with $3.99 next day shipping sure is nice!
 
I don't know why, but if a Beyer Dynamic headphone had forward mids like on the k601 or DJ100 it'd be perhaps the world's perfect headphone (to me)! I keep going back to Beyer headphones. Something just makes me want to find the perfect one. There's always something about them I dislike. Maybe I'm too picky.

 

[1Time]

Right - 4 months ago. I see now "Anaxilus" has a different Koss DJ100 that he likes. There may be a quality control problem with these headphones, with the sound of one varying greatly from one to another.
 
But my findings with the Koss DJ100 that I bought stand. From my Prodigy HD2 sound card and from it to an x-head amp, I very easily heard the lows and highs severely chopped off - far more so than any other headphones that I've owned. It was very annoying too - as the rest of fequencies produced sounded good. This apparently is not a problem with every Koss KJ100 that is sold. I should probably buy another and check it out again.  
 
Quote:

You're replying to an ancient comment. Since then he's gotten a different pair that sounds better. 

 

[Anaxilus]

To update, I do now own a DJ100 I like.  Even added it to my siggy.  What's weird is they needed no burn-in, amping wasn't a big deal either for this set.  I'm honestly quite lost as to what to make of this model lineup in general other than to say the one I have now is a solid 8.5-8.7/10.  Got some pads coming to try on them as well.  Its still not as smooth and refined sounding as the DBI700 as I remember it though.  Thats what's holding my set back atm.  I was actually planning to hear them the same as my last set so I could rip out the drivers and use the carcass for a project.  Damn it.   

 

[sigmatron]

Hi, does anyone know the size of the cups in cm?  Are the cups the same size as the dt700?
 
Thx

 

[Anaxilus]

So I happened to be walking through Fry's Electronics today and happened upon an interesting item.  JVC HA-RX300s on clearance for $9.99.  Upon further inspection the pads seemed to be the same size and material as the original Koss pads on the DJ100.  Granted this isn't interesting in itself but this is what is.  They are ANGLED!  So I figured, $10 for replacement angled pads and another headphone to cannibalize.  Not too shabby.  So to answer your next question, yes they fit perfectly.  Think D7000 pad design w/ Koss DJ100 material and size.  Could be placebo but SS projection does seem a bit improved.  more frontal arching rather than hard L/R.  
 
Check 'em out and let us know. 
 
Btw, the JVC HA-RX300 sounds like crap but maybe they set the standard for $10 headphones, no idea.

 

[tdockweiler]

Thanks for the heads up on the pads. I've always been looking for new pads that were totally round. I like the V6 pads on them, but they're not round, but still work. I actually ordered a pair of these JVC headphones. I even got free 2nd day delivery! Cheapest I could find them for online was $13.52 with free shipping from Amazon.
 
Only problem is that I swiped my Mogami cable from my DJ100 and it now has no cable until I buy new supplies. No big deal I guess.
 
A few months ago I was walking around a local store and thought the Sony XD100 pads would fit. I bought a pair for $9.99 and they don't. I also found out they're about 10x cheaper than they look like without opening the box. I think the XD100 was one of the worst sounding headphones I ever heard.
 
It's funny I bought a $4.99 pair of Koss headphones the other day for a small project and it's not too horrible. A bit tinny sounding though. Compared to those cheap $5 Maxells it's a lot better.

 

[ebjred]

How does Koss Pro DJ 100 compare to Denon D2000? Also, does the Koss have as much bass as ESW9?

 

[tdockweiler]

The DJ100 doesn't have as much bass as the ESW9 at all I think. I think from what I remember of the ESW9 it had much more mid-bass and kind of would bleed into the mids. It's sound felt a bit congested somehow.
The ESW9 is probably as different as the DJ100 as you can get I think. I remember buying a pair maybe a year back and was disappointed with the mids. Everyone seemed to say it was so good for female vocals, but I didn't hear them that way.
 
The D2000's mids are not as forward for sure and has much more bass. The bass on the DJ100 felt a little more controlled and the D2000's bass at times IMO felt a bit bloated with specific songs.
I really liked the D2000 when I had it, but only when amped well with a desktop amp. It seemed to have good synergy with my old Asgard. If they drop to $200 again I may buy another pair.
 
The DJ100 also has much more forward mids than the D2000. I found the DJ100 better for female vocals. Based on memory, the D2000's mids carry a bit more weight and they may be slightly thinner on the DJ100. Basically it's like comparing the mids of an HD-600 to a SR-80.

The closest match to how the mids sound of the DJ100 is the SR-80, but with a much clearer sound and less treble. FYI the DJ100 does have much more bass than the Grado SR-80 for sure.
 
That's another thing..the D2000 has a bit more treble than the DJ100 I believe. I think the lower treble of the DJ100 may be a tad more forward though.
 
Also worth pointing out is that the bass of the DJ100 suffers when not amped well. This is maybe why many reviews of the DJ100 says it doesn't have enough bass, which is crazy talk.
 
Quote:

How does Koss Pro DJ 100 compare to Denon D2000? Also, does the Koss have as much bass as ESW9?

 

 

[ebjred]

How about compare to Beyerdynamic DT880? I have this headphone, and I like it but not enough bass?. Does DJ100 sound similar with more bass?

 

[tdockweiler]

That's a hard one...it's closer in sound to the DT-880 than the D2000 I think.
The DT-880 is perhaps more detailed and has much better treble extension. The soundstage is also a lot better. Imaging I think is probably better on the DJ100.
My 32 ohm DT-880 had much less forward mids than the DJ100. This is especially noticeable during games.
 
People always say the DT-880 has a "V" shaped signature, but I never really thought this. To me, the DJ100 does feel more balanced though (than the 32 ohm version).
 
I don't remember my DT-880 well, but I've had all versions of them. The last one I had was the 32 ohm version. It's mids were kind a bit thin sounding. Maybe even more so than the DJ100? Hard to say.
The DT-880 also has the DJ100 beat in sound clarity.
 
To me, the DJ100 is just a fun headphone and I love it's forward mids. Perfect for those that listen to a lot of female vocals, like in J-pop etc.
 
It's signature is close to the HD-598 more than any other headphone. The mids sound similar in tone to the SR-80 though. Maybe less grainy.
I always felt that the DJ100 driver might come from the same manufacturer as the Grado drivers. Some say they were from Taiwan? Who knows...They so extremely similar.