[tedSmith123]

Hi guys,

The brother of a friend of mine is a DJ at a night club and he has a pair of headphone that he would like to sell. According to him, the phone is only been used for about a year and he is willing to sell it at a discount to me.

My questions... what can possible go wrong with a pair of headphone ? Can it be "damaged" by over use or if the volume at use was too high ? ( known that it was used in a night club that I am sure is pushing it to the limit ) What should be the sign that I should look for ?? I never tried this brand of can before so I can't compare or judge how it sounds when compare to its pristine state and on top of that I am a newbie, I wouldn't be able to tell anyway !! However, it does sound like an attractive offer, especially as a budget entry for me to high-end headphones.

Any ideas ? Should I get it ?

Thanks

Eric

 

[milkpowder]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tedSmith123 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi guys, The brother of a friend of mine is a DJ at a night club and he has a pair of headphone that he would like to sell. According to him, the phone is only been used for about a year and he is willing to sell it at a discount to me. My questions... what can possible go wrong with a pair of headphone ? Can it be "damaged" by over use or if the volume at use was too high ? ( known that it was used in a night club that I am sure is pushing it to the limit ) What should be the sign that I should look for ?? I never tried this brand of can before so I can't compare or judge how it sounds when compare to its pristine state and on top of that I am a newbie, I wouldn't be able to tell anyway !! However, it does sound like an attractive offer, especially as a budget entry for me to high-end headphones. Any ideas ? Should I get it ? Thanks Eric

First of all, welcome to Head-Fi and sorry about your wallet!

Now onto the main course:

Yes, headphones can be damaged not necessarily by overuse, but by loud volumes. Things to look out for would be buzzing, distortion, humming, rattling, etc... You may also want to check that the cable is in good condition (eg no sharp kinks, outer sheath intact), the plating on the plug is not overly scratched, etc... If possible, you may also want to check that there are no creases or folds on the actual driver.

What brand of headphone are we talking about here? It must have a model number or brand name. How much is he asking for? How much do they usually sell for?

Without knowing these details, there's no way I can really comment on their quality, let alone tell you whether to get them or not.

However, there is nothing wrong with buying second hand headphones in general. I have purchased a lot of headphones second hand and none of them have ever died on me. Make sure you check them out thoroughly before committing to buying.

 

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tedSmith123 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi guys, The brother of a friend of mine is a DJ at a night club and he has a pair of headphone that he would like to sell. According to him, the phone is only been used for about a year and he is willing to sell it at a discount to me. My questions... what can possible go wrong with a pair of headphone ? Can it be "damaged" by over use or if the volume at use was too high ? ( known that it was used in a night club that I am sure is pushing it to the limit ) What should be the sign that I should look for ?? I never tried this brand of can before so I can't compare or judge how it sounds when compare to its pristine state and on top of that I am a newbie, I wouldn't be able to tell anyway !! However, it does sound like an attractive offer, especially as a budget entry for me to high-end headphones. Any ideas ? Should I get it ? Thanks Eric

I think we would be able to help you out more if you can tell us which model the headphone is (some are more durable than others), and how much is he asking the headphones?

Generally speaking, though, headphones tend to hold up pretty good, the first thing to break is usually the cable and that's replaceable (if you want to). Drivers don't usually break unless you poke at them or plugged it into speaker terminals or something...

 

[Kernmac]

Eric as milkpowder has already stated, you supply no information for anyone to be able to give you an opinion. Even if the DJ headphones are "undmaged", it doesn't necessarily mean that these are the phones for you. Are you a DJ? What do you want to use phones for? (Home, portable) Just because your friends brother is a DJ and he uses them, doesn't necesasarily mean that a) they are brilliant or b) ideal for your needs or c) the right sound for you. Do some research here on headfi and the net in general. Then post some more specific questions regardinmg your needs, and/or the type of phones the DJ is willing to sell.

 

[tedSmith123]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the advice so far. The headphone is a Beyerdynamic DT770Pro, My local price search engine found a site selling at AU$315 new ( I am in Australia, BTW ) and he is willing to sell for AU$175.

I am very new to this and I've notice that this headphone has been quoted to be a very good match with the amp that I am planning to order ( Xeons 1HA-EPC ). I mainly listen to Jazz and would like to pick up more details from the instruments and looking for wider sound stage ( I hope I am describing this right ). Is this phone a good fit or should I try something else ?

Thanks

Ted

 

[milkpowder]

Those are terrific headphones. I absolutely love them to bits even though there are better headphones out there (for more $$$). Solid construction, good cable, good bass, etc... I'm not too sure about the soundstage bit, but it is pretty good detail-wise. For a closed pair of headphones, it is pretty much as good as it gets for this sort of price range. Another headphone you might want to look into is the Audio-technica A900.

 

[Inkmo]

yeah man, if he's offering them that cheap and they are undamaged/work correctly, snatch those suckas up!

 

[TheMarchingMule]

Wow, lucky you.

Go for it!

 

[ghoti]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tedSmith123 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I mainly listen to Jazz and would like to pick up more details from the instruments and looking for wider sound stage ( I hope I am describing this right ). Is this phone a good fit or should I try something else ?

I own and love both 770 Pros and AKG K501, and I can tell you that for what you describe, I would choose the AKG 100 out of 100 times.

 

[brn80]

That's about the average price for a used DT770/80 on the boards here, so that's a pretty good deal. They are great headphones, really fun to listen to, gobs of bass. I wouldn't classify them as having a distinctly wide soundstage compared to some other cans I've listened to but they're alright.

Edit: As the above poster mentioned, an AKG might be more suited for what you need. I've owned the K701, and they were just brilliant for classical pieces, vocal easy listening, jazz as well. You may be able to find a used AKG K501 in that price range from the FS boards.

 

[milkpowder]

And I just have one more thing to add: the K501 are open whereas the DT770/80 Pro are closed.

 

[tedSmith123]

Thanks guys,

So I guess the consensus is that I should go for it !! Yeah, I've been looking at the for sale forum but most will only ship to continental US, so that is out for me.

I am still worry about the quality of the headphone, he does look like he would have taken good care of them. Let's assume that I buy it and it works for a year or so, is there such a thing as "headphone repair" or I would be looking for a total lost already ?? I know you can gt the cable replaced but what else can you repair in a can ? What is a typical life span of a can like these if used sensiblely ?

Thanks

Ted

 

[JXBJXB]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tedSmith123 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I am still worry about the quality of the headphone, he does look like he would have taken good care of them. Let's assume that I buy it and it works for a year or so, is there such a thing as "headphone repair" or I would be looking for a total lost already ?? I know you can gt the cable replaced but what else can you repair in a can ? What is a typical life span of a can like these if used sensiblely ?

The life span of a dynamic headphone like the DT770? If taken care of, they should outlast you. Especially since the some of the various parts on most of the cans people hold in high esteem around here (Beyer, Sennheiser, AKG, Grado at least) are user-replaceable. You can easily replace the earpads and headband pad on a DT770 - drivers and cable aren't generally user-replaceable on Beyers unless you're into DIY. On a Sennheiser, for example, you can replace almost every part yourself.

I think DT770 have a two-year warranty - I don't remember from the rest of your post but if they are within that timeframe and have any problems you should be able to get them repaired - that is, assuming, there are any problems.

Past the obvious, buzzing in either channel, any sort of distortion, signs of abuse etc the only other thing to look for is channel imbalance. When you play a mono source through them, is the sound localized directly in the middle of your head? If so, good. You can get more scientific and test them out with a sound pressure level meter, but generally, if a mono source played through them sounds like it is coming from the dead center, you don't have anything to worry about.

 

[lmilhan]

Also something else to keep in mind:

Since they were used as DJ cans in a nightclub, they are probably going to reek of cigarette smoke. This is a putrid smell that is very difficult to get rid of, and hangs on for a very long time. Maybe if you are a smoker this will not bother you, but if you are a non-smoker, the smell of these phones is probably going to seem vile to you.

 

[kool bubba ice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tedSmith123 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi guys, The brother of a friend of mine is a DJ at a night club and he has a pair of headphone that he would like to sell. According to him, the phone is only been used for about a year and he is willing to sell it at a discount to me. My questions... what can possible go wrong with a pair of headphone ? Can it be "damaged" by over use or if the volume at use was too high ? ( known that it was used in a night club that I am sure is pushing it to the limit ) What should be the sign that I should look for ?? I never tried this brand of can before so I can't compare or judge how it sounds when compare to its pristine state and on top of that I am a newbie, I wouldn't be able to tell anyway !! However, it does sound like an attractive offer, especially as a budget entry for me to high-end headphones. Any ideas ? Should I get it ? Thanks Eric

I'm the 3rd owner of my Sony SA5000.. Only thing wrong was Sonys crappy wiring, but Alex fixed that for me..