[quicksound]

I use a DT880 600 ohm's paired with an Audio-gd DAC19 DF and DNA Sonett and the setup is a slice of heaven. I can definitely agree that tubes pair incredibly well with DT880 600 ohm's. Be sure to buy an amp that has enough power to drive them! I wouldn't want to use an amp that was less poweful than my Sonett. There are times (when listening to low volume recordings) when I can turn it up to full volume and wished I could possibly turn it up a little more. And the Sonett is considered one of the best in the business! 

 

[Dillweed]

Does anybody know where the best place to buy the DT 880s is if ordering from Canada? The only places I've found recently are B&H, Amazon.com and HeadRoom (about $60 more than the other two).
 
Also, I'm still making my way through the thread (around 25 pages to go) , but I'm seeing most amp recommendations are for tube amps. Does anyone know of a good one that would fit a budget of under $400? If not and I'd have to go over, what would be the closest to that budget?
 
edit: Okay, I've seen the Little Dot MK III mentioned a few times and it's only around half of my budget. Would that be a good match for the 880s?

 

[captouch]

Quote:

Does anybody know where the best place to buy the DT 880s is if ordering from Canada? The only places I've found recently are B&H, Amazon.com and HeadRoom (about $60 more than the other two).
 
Also, I'm still making my way through the thread (around 25 pages to go) , but I'm seeing most amp recommendations are for tube amps. Does anyone know of a good one that would fit a budget of under $400? If not and I'd have to go over, what would be the closest to that budget?
 
edit: Okay, I've seen the Little Dot MK III mentioned a few times and it's only around half of my budget. Would that be a good match for the 880s?

 
Bottlehead Crack if you're OK with DIY. You can do it w/Speedball upgrade for under $400. 
 
ZombieX recommended Phenix/Sense G3 OTL amp - there's one in the FS section for $105 - that may be a low cost way to see how you like tubes.  It may not be as detailed/precise an amp as more expensive ones, but with DT880 already being a very detailed can, it may be a good fit.  
 
 

 

[MilesDavis2]

Quote:

Does anybody know where the best place to buy the DT 880s is if ordering from Canada? The only places I've found recently are B&H, Amazon.com and HeadRoom (about $60 more than the other two).
 
Also, I'm still making my way through the thread (around 25 pages to go) , but I'm seeing most amp recommendations are for tube amps. Does anyone know of a good one that would fit a budget of under $400? If not and I'd have to go over, what would be the closest to that budget?
 
edit: Okay, I've seen the Little Dot MK III mentioned a few times and it's only around half of my budget. Would that be a good match for the 880s?

Some may disagree but on my own experience, the LD Mk3 MAY power up the DT880 600 but it will not push it to audio goodness. The BH crack made it reach that level with more to give.  Hope this helps.
 

 

[Dillweed]

The only problem I have with the Bottlehead Crack idea is that I'm inexperienced with electronics assembly, wiring and all of that. The most technical thing I do on a regular basis is setup/disassemble/troubleshoot computer systems. I saw on their website that you can pay ($150) to have them assemble it, but I don't know if there's a better option around that price with the build cost factored in.

 

[Dillweed]

Okay, finally got through. Yeah, so it seems like any time the LD MKIII was brought up more recently, people suggested others like the Darkvoice 336i or the Bottlehead Crack instead. I also saw the Hifiman EF5 brought up a couple of times. Are any of these "better" than the others, or will there only be slight coloration differences or something to that effect? Also, is there a noticeable difference between the 336i and 336SE? Because I can't seem to find the 336i anywhere now, except old postings in the "For Sale" forum and old online classifieds.
 
The Schiit Lyr and Valhalla got mentioned, too. Yeah, I have no idea about any of this stuff. I could just pick one of the previously suggested ones and buy it, but I'd appreciate any more information and advice here.

 

[MilesDavis2]

Quote:

Okay, finally got through. Yeah, so it seems like any time the LD MKIII was brought up more recently, people suggested others like the Darkvoice 336i or the Bottlehead Crack instead. I also saw the Hifiman EF5 brought up a couple of times. Are any of these "better" than the others, or will there only be slight coloration differences or something to that effect? Also, is there a noticeable difference between the 336i and 336SE? Because I can't seem to find the 336i anywhere now, except old postings in the "For Sale" forum and old online classifieds.
 
The Schiit Lyr and Valhalla got mentioned, too. Yeah, I have no idea about any of this stuff. I could just pick one of the previously suggested ones and buy it, but I'd appreciate any more information and advice here.

From what I have been told, the Schiit line is terrific with the DT880. I would love to try them as well.  I can only speak for the crack and the LD3 as those are the only amps I've tried with the DT880. I am also using a DIY CK2III which provides alot of power for the DT880.
 
 
 

 

[Dillweed]

Okay, I've done a little more searching and reading through various parts of the forums. I've also come to the conclusion that I'm definitely overthinking things, like I'm in the mindset that "If I don't like the amp, I'm stuck with it." Except I can always sell it if that happens. Now, there doesn't seem to be a universal consensus on anything for (relatively) inexpensive tube amps. From the way people describe them, these are my impressions:
 

1. I could like either the Valhalla or the Lyr for their sounds by their general descriptions (Valhalla's supposedly warmer, Lyr's got less warmth but also some liveliness and detail?), and Schiit's 5-year warranty is pretty awesome (but I'll have to find out if it applies to Canadian/non-US customers). The Lyr also gives you some flexibility.
2. The Bottlehead Crack tends to be described in vague terms but is supposed to be "great" with the 880s, but usually suggested because it's cheaper thanks to being a DIY solution, and I don't have any equipment to deal with that.
3. The Hifiman is supposed to be pretty good for high impedance headphones, and is supposedly more flexible and can be used with lower impedance ones, too, if you decide to replace your 880s with something else.
4. The Little Dot MK III and Darkvoice 336 are kind of lackluster unless you spend more time and money to find great tubes for them.

 
The problem is that most of it probably comes down to matters of personal taste and what everybody likes in their own sound. Maybe I should just pick something and hope for the best. It's not like it can't be replaced, right? I might just go with a Schiit.
 
Has anybody used both the Valhalla and Lyr with these headphones and could compare them?

 

[captouch]

I have the Crack (not sure if you're still considering it due to it being DIY) and Hifiman EF5 - if you say what kind of music you like, I can give you some head to head impressions.  Been spending more time with my HD650's, but this gives me a good excuse for going back t the DT880's.  

 
Quote:

Okay, I've done a little more searching and reading through various parts of the forums. I've also come to the conclusion that I'm definitely overthinking things, like I'm in the mindset that "If I don't like the amp, I'm stuck with it." Except I can always sell it if that happens. Now, there doesn't seem to be a universal consensus on anything for (relatively) inexpensive tube amps. From the way people describe them, these are my impressions:
 

1. I could like either the Valhalla or the Lyr for their sounds by their general descriptions (Valhalla's supposedly warmer, Lyr's got less warmth but also some liveliness and detail?), and Schiit's 5-year warranty is pretty awesome (but I'll have to find out if it applies to Canadian/non-US customers). The Lyr also gives you some flexibility.
2. The Bottlehead Crack tends to be described in vague terms but is supposed to be "great" with the 880s, but usually suggested because it's cheaper thanks to being a DIY solution, and I don't have any equipment to deal with that.
3. The Hifiman is supposed to be pretty good for high impedance headphones, and is supposedly more flexible and can be used with lower impedance ones, too, if you decide to replace your 880s with something else.
4. The Little Dot MK III and Darkvoice 336 are kind of lackluster unless you spend more time and money to find great tubes for them.

 
The problem is that most of it probably comes down to matters of personal taste and what everybody likes in their own sound. Maybe I should just pick something and hope for the best. It's not like it can't be replaced, right? I might just go with a Schiit.
 
Has anybody used both the Valhalla and Lyr with these headphones and could compare them?

 

 

[Dillweed]

Yeah, if I went for the Crack, it would probably be with the pre-assembled option, which would put it at $369 for the base cost, and landing between the Valhalla and the EF5 price-wise. But hey, if you feel like comparing them, don't let me stop you. Even if I don't go for one of them, others might appreciate the info.
 
Personally, I'm planning to use the DT 880s for games, movies/TV, and some classical, jazz, funk, a little hip hop, some rock, and probably not much else. I'll occasionally listen to some "dumb fun" music like pop, but not regularly enough to matter. Not a metal fan, and I haven't listened to actual "rap" in a while.
 
e: Crap, now I'm thinking all of this isn't going to make a difference because I was thinking of just hooking it up to the RCA Line Out on my computer's X-Fi Titanium HD. Everybody's using dedicated DACs and whatnot, but how much of a difference would it make if I just hook the phones like (Titanium HD->amp->DT 880)? Ugh...

 

[Dillweed]

Okay, I'm just going to stop here. I think I'm trying to jump up in equipment levels and cost a little too quickly. I'm coming from onboard audio and Sennheiser HD 555s and wanted something different and noticeably better, but was trying to go too far. For now, I think I'm just going to pick up a pair of the 250-ohm DT 880 Premiums and hook them up to my Titanium HD. If I don't like the sound signature, that means I have more money to try something else like the DT 990s, or a different model from another company. Sorry to have wasted your time, guys. Thanks for the help, in any case.

 

[captouch]

 
Quote:

Okay, I'm just going to stop here. I think I'm trying to jump up in equipment levels and cost a little too quickly. I'm coming from onboard audio and Sennheiser HD 555s and wanted something different and noticeably better, but was trying to go too far. For now, I think I'm just going to pick up a pair of the 250-ohm DT 880 Premiums and hook them up to my Titanium HD. If I don't like the sound signature, that means I have more money to try something else like the DT 990s, or a different model from another company. Sorry to have wasted your time, guys. Thanks for the help, in any case.

Seems like you do plenty of research.  I take it you do want detailed, analytical cans which is why you're moving from Senns to DT880 versus higher in the Sennheiser line like HD600 or HD650?
 
I don't know the HD555 sound signature, but if you want something more on the  laid back side, DT880's are not that.  I have both DT880 and HD650, and they're both very good, but different enough that I can justify keeping them both.  Just checking you know what you're getting if you drop the $200-300 on new cans.
 
 

 

[Dillweed]

Yeah, the bass and midrange on the HD 555 is too muddy sounding (I guess laid back) for my tastes. I've had the things for almost five years now, and I've gotten a bit sick of that sound.

 

[ac500]

So I'll probably be selling my SRH940s and getting a DT880
 
I FINALLY got a chance to listen to a ton of good headphones in a store, and I heard the DT990 600 and DT880 32. I must say the DT990 impressed me a lot, and I really enjoyed it. Very fun, smooth, detailed sound. Then I tried the DT880, but they just had the 32 ohm version plugged straight into an ipod. It sounded rather sibilant to me, which I guess is expected of the 32 ohm version but I forgot about that until trying them. The sound definitely was more flat, but the DT990 had better sound quality probably due to it being connected to the Beyer amp and being the 600 ohm version.
 
I know I'll get biased answers here but, I suppose there's no way in which the DT990 is superior to the DT880? Also, are the DT880s any more sibilant than DT990s, considering both 600 ohm versions?
 
If I want extra bass, I can just EQ it in anyway like I sometimes do with treble on my HD650.
 
Incidentally, I did not really find the DT990 having too piercing highs. I really liked the detail. It sounds actually exactly what I'd been looking for: A open-backed more comfortable (i.e. actually fits my head without breaking) and sounds detailed and crisp like my SRH940. If the SRH940 has more detail than the DT990 I listened to, it's not a whole lot, not enough to worry about.
 
Then... I tried HD800s they had on display. That's one good way to ruin your perspective and make every other headphone feel lackluster

 

[stv014]

The DT880 should have less treble and less bass compared to the DT990, everything else (impedance, source, etc.) being equal. These are said to have the same drivers, but the DT880 is semi-open, and has some damping at the back of the driver to reduce bass, and an additional foam disk in front to filter the treble. Pictures of these differences can be seen here.