[nate911]

Those look nice, of course. But way out of my price range :/

 

[nate911]

Any more suggestions or comments?

 

[Uncle Erik]

I would not agree that Sennheisers are veiled. They are sensitive to amplification. If you use an amp with poor bass control like a lot of the cheap OTLs, the bass will come across as fuzzy and veil the mids and highs. A powerful, crisp amp will tighten up the low end and let the rest of the music come through. If you're looking to build an amp, there are several projects in the $200-$300 range that will give you great control over the HD-650.

 

[PointyFox]

All 3 of those headphones will have a LOT more bass.  The closest match tone-wise to your AD700 is the DT880.  Of the three you mentioned, the DT880 would be my favorite except for its spike around 8kHz.  However, the AD700 has a similar one, so that shouldn't be a problem for you. 
Here are my impressions on the headphones:
 
DT880: very detailed and clear sounding with accentuated treble and great bass extension
D2000: best bass impact, and good build quality
HD600: good at everything, speaker-like sound, very neutral sounding
HD650: more bass and slightly "darker" sounding than the HD600, treble is a bit lacking
 
All 4 of these headphones are great, but this is my preference, starting with my favorite:  HD600, DT880, HD650, D2000
 
I suggest you go with the DT880.  They have very good bass extension and impact, also they're more clear/fast sounding, which should go better with techno.  Make sure to get the 600 ohm version, everyone says it sounds the best.

 

[nate911]

Quote:

I would not agree that Sennheisers are veiled. They are sensitive to amplification. If you use an amp with poor bass control like a lot of the cheap OTLs, the bass will come across as fuzzy and veil the mids and highs. A powerful, crisp amp will tighten up the low end and let the rest of the music come through. If you're looking to build an amp, there are several projects in the $200-$300 range that will give you great control over the HD-650.

 
That's good to hear. So far I've seen the Minimax as well as the Bottlehead Crack OTL (+speedball) for amps around that range for higher impedance. Haven't really looked into more yet. (I'll create a thread in the DIY forum to ask once I decide on the headphones.)
 
Quote:

All 3 of those headphones will have a LOT more bass.  The closest match tone-wise to your AD700 is the DT880.  Of the three you mentioned, the DT880 would be my favorite except for its spike around 8kHz.  However, the AD700 has a similar one, so that shouldn't be a problem for you. 
Here are my impressions on the headphones:
 
DT880: very detailed and clear sounding with accentuated treble and great bass extension
D2000: best bass impact, and good build quality
HD600: good at everything, speaker-like sound, very neutral sounding
HD650: more bass and slightly "darker" sounding than the HD600, treble is a bit lacking
 
All 4 of these headphones are great, but this is my preference, starting with my favorite:  HD600, DT880, HD650, D2000
 
I suggest you go with the DT880.  They have very good bass extension and impact, also they're more clear/fast sounding, which should go better with techno.  Make sure to get the 600 ohm version, everyone says it sounds the best.

Thanks for the comparison. Coming from the AD700, I shouldn't be disappointed with the bass on any of these I think hah. I think I've ruled out the D2000...don't feel like modding that much to get the sound I want. The DT880 and the HD600/650 are at the top of my list right now. Would the DT990 be a good choice also? (because it has more bass than the DT880--just like the HD650 has more bass over the HD600, right?)

 

[PointyFox]

The DT990 has stronger and more boomy bass than the DT880.  It also has a slight bit more of a peak around 8kHz. It's also less neutral than the DT880.  It comes down to personal preference.

 

[deci]

I just upgraded from my AD700s. I got the Ultrasone HFI 780s and have about 15-20 hours of burn in and listening. I still have a good amount of burn in to go and I'm no expert, but my initial impression is:
 
There's certainly a lot more bass. I haven't noticed the harshness others have complained about. I've found they're more fun to listen to. They aren't as open as the AD700s, that's for sure, but I haven't really found myself missing it and the bass more than makes up for it. I'm happy with my upgrade so far, and I'm sure I'll be even more pleased when I have more burn in.

 

[nate911]

Quote:

The DT990 has stronger and more boomy bass than the DT880.  It also has a slight bit more of a peak around 8kHz. It's also less neutral than the DT880.  It comes down to personal preference.

I see...and since I haven't tried any other full sized 'phones than the AD700 I'm not sure exactly what I want.

 
Quote:

I just upgraded from my AD700s. I got the Ultrasone HFI 780s and have about 15-20 hours of burn in and listening. I still have a good amount of burn in to go and I'm no expert, but my initial impression is:
 
There's certainly a lot more bass. I haven't noticed the harshness others have complained about. I've found they're more fun to listen to. They aren't as open as the AD700s, that's for sure, but I haven't really found myself missing it and the bass more than makes up for it. I'm happy with my upgrade so far, and I'm sure I'll be even more pleased when I have more burn in.

Sounds great!
 
---
 
Looks like there's an HD650 as well as a DT880/600 in the marketplace...idk which to go for I'm worried the HD650 will be too laid back for my tastes...

 

[classakg]

Quote:

 
Looks like there's an HD650 as well as a DT880/600 in the marketplace...idk which to go for I'm worried the HD650 will be too laid back for my tastes...

I've heard the 650's have a good amount of bass, for genres like techno...a good amplification is a must with them. 

 

[nate911]

Quote:

I've heard the 650's have a good amount of bass, for genres like techno...a good amplification is a must with them. 

Since I'm gonna build an amp, amplification shouldn't be a problem. I was thinking about ordering both the DT880 and the HD650 from Headroom and decide which one I like better--but I wouldn't be trying them with a good amp (all I have is a Mini^3 atm) to suit them. So I'm not sure.
 

 

[nate911]

Any more opinions on the DT880 and HD650 (and possibly HD600)? I see a lot of praise for both 'phones...I may end up getting the HD650, and if it's too laid-back for me, I can always sell. It's a little out of my price range...but it still may work. Although the DT880 looks tempting as well...

 

[PointyFox]

Get the DT880 600 ohm and the HD650. If you like the DT880, keep it and return the HD650.  If you like the HD650, you can return the DT800 and try the HD600, then return your least favorite.   My personal experience was that I bought used black silk HD600s and new metal mesh HD650s.  The HD650s were a lot harder to adjust and sounded slightly artificial due to lack of treble.  They sounded very close though.
What people mean by "laid-back" is that they have less crispy-ness than headphones like Beyerdynamic and Grado and sound smoother, as they don't emphasize treble as much.  They're more relaxing to listen to, but not quite as exciting.
 
Amazon is also good with their return policy.  Just make sure you're buying from Amazon, or Amazon fulfillment.  For the HD650s, Headroom has the best price right now I think.  Use the coupon code "HD650" when you order though to save $150.

 

[nate911]

That seems like a good idea; I may just do that. Only problem is since the HD650 and the DT880/600 (though not as much I believe) are sensitive to amplification/harder to drive, I'm not sure if trying them now (with a mini^3) will give me an accurate comparison of their true sound signatures. I could build an amplifier before I try them, but I'd like it to be ideal for whatever headphone I decide on keeping. Hmm...

 

[Maxvla]

In my experience HD600/650 aren't picky at all with amping, they just ask for the most power you can possibly muster. I'm on a 2W RMS (300ohms) amp with my HD600 and the difference between this and a lower end 350mW amp is night and day. I've tried these on a B22 to similar effect.

 

[Maxvla]

Quote:

That seems like a good idea; I may just do that. Only problem is since the HD650 and the DT880/600 (though not as much I believe) are sensitive to amplification/harder to drive, I'm not sure if trying them now (with a mini^3) will give me an accurate comparison of their true sound signatures. I could build an amplifier before I try them, but I'd like it to be ideal for whatever headphone I decide on keeping. Hmm...

Both the HD650 and DT880/600 will use the same amp setup.