[trent_bob]

Thanks for the comparison. That's how I felt with the 595's too but I thought they weren't very immersive so the ad700's must not be at all.

Anyone respond to the rest please?

 

[trent_bob]

Ok. We aren't getting many more responses and I've read tons of information about this on these forums.

I think I'm going to go ahead and go with the DT880's.

It looks like the DT880 (2005 ed.) @ 250 ohm. is recommended the most.

Now I'm noticing there are different 250 ohm. versions.

Questions:

1) Do I want the DT880 250 ohm or the DT880 Pro 250 ohm?

2) Any advantage for me to get the 600 ohm? Are they the same as far as gaming is concerned?

3) What type of Amp do I need to power these properly?

I will connect an amp in between my Astro mixamp and the phones.

Thanks you so much for your advice.

(Oh and I don't want to add any audio latency so I don't know if that changes amp recommendations or not... I know very very little about all this, thanks again.)

 

[chinesekiwi]

the DT880 32ohm should be a safer bet than the 250ohm and won't need good amping as much.

 

[wmf]

theres actually a 3rd.. a DT880 premium edition, which would be the one i would get.

 

[Sunshinewelly]

Quote:

Originally Posted by trent_bob /img/forum/go_quote.gif Ok. We aren't getting many more responses and I've read tons of information about this on these forums. I think I'm going to go ahead and go with the DT880's. It looks like the DT880 (2005 ed.) @ 250 ohm. is recommended the most. Now I'm noticing there are different 250 ohm. versions. Questions: 1) Do I want the DT880 250 ohm or the DT880 Pro 250 ohm? 2) Any advantage for me to get the 600 ohm? Are they the same as far as gaming is concerned? 3) What type of Amp do I need to power these properly? I will connect an amp in between my Astro mixamp and the phones. Thanks you so much for your advice. (Oh and I don't want to add any audio latency so I don't know if that changes amp recommendations or not... I know very very little about all this, thanks again.)

In my humble opinion the 250ohm DT880 does not work very well with the astro mixamp. It is underpowered for that headphone.

Now i know that some report having success with this set up but to me the sound was quite lifeless through it when paired with the asto mixamp. I had to turn the volume on the mixamp to full and turn the voice coms all the way to get an adequate volume when i used the DT880. However there was no scope for any further increase in the volume. If you also want to listen to movies then the astro / Dt880 set up is a complete no no as there is not enough volume at all for movies even when set to maximum.

I dont know about the 32ohm version of the Dt880 though as i used the 250ohm version. I also contacted astro customer services about this and they stated that whilst the DT880 would work with the astro they would not recommend such a headphone due to its high independence.

i originally bought a set of goldring NS1000 which worked well with the astro but then read about the Ad700 which is then purchased. these were better than the Ns1000 and the sound stage was fantastic. They were somewhat bass light though but perfect for first person shooters ie positioning etc.

I was able to send them back for a refund and then after seeking some reassurance here on these forums bought a set of DT880. what a disappointment they were. In my opinion they did not sound as good as the Ns1000 yet alone the Ad700. they certainly had more bass impact but i found them quite muddy sounding. I could have put up with them for gaming but as i also listen to movies they were useless for that. far too quiet and lifeless through the mixamp.

I sent those back and picked up a set of AD900. these are gaming/movie nirvana.

they have the sound signature of the AD700 which i loved plus more than enough bass slam for movies.

I used to smile when using the Ad700 and would happily just stand still in a game and listen to the game world move around you. the Dt880 did not make me smile. the AD900 have made me grin again.

to recap then for gaming use only the DT880 may be suitable but they do not sound as good as the AD700 or AD900

for gaming and some movie use the DT880 are out of the equation as they simply do not go loud enough for movies.

 

[Geek]

Save buying higher end DT8xx / AKG K6/7xx series headphones for when you have several grand in associated equipment... don't waste your money without the necessary associated equipment.

Don't buy in little steps... save your money for the big time.

 

[trent_bob]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wmf /img/forum/go_quote.gif theres actually a 3rd.. a DT880 premium edition, which would be the one i would get.

Why?

Thanks for the input Sunshine and others.

The feeling I'm getting here is that they need to be amped. As I've stated I'm willing to put another amplifier in the line to drive them properly.

If this was the case I wonder if they would sound better than the ad700's.

I'm still hoping for someone to recommend be an amp to drive the 250ohm headphones.

Thanks everyone - your knowledge is beyond me and I appreciate all your help.

 

[Sunshinewelly]

Quote:

Originally Posted by trent_bob /img/forum/go_quote.gif Why? Thanks for the input Sunshine and others. The feeling I'm getting here is that they need to be amped. As I've stated I'm willing to put another amplifier in the line to drive them properly. If this was the case I wonder if they would sound better than the ad700's. I'm still hoping for someone to recommend be an amp to drive the 250ohm headphones. Thanks everyone - your knowledge is beyond me and I appreciate all your help.

from what i have read if these are properly amped then they should sound fantastic - unfortuantely the mixamp in my opinion is not powerful enough

 

[wmf]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sunshinewelly /img/forum/go_quote.gif In my humble opinion the 250ohm DT880 does not work very well with the astro mixamp. It is underpowered for that headphone. to recap then for gaming use only the DT880 may be suitable but they do not sound as good as the AD700 or AD900 for gaming and some movie use the DT880 are out of the equation as they simply do not go loud enough for movies.

The DT880s would sound a LOT better, with the right amp. you paired it with an astro? no wonder.

the DT880s will be one of my choices for gaming.

 

[RicHSAD]

I personally find that the headphones you use don't have all that much effect on sound positioning. Some games seems to just have better sound positioning than others (possibly due to just louder footsteps in general) and I find that just knowing the map well goes a long way to being able to pin-point people's location by sound. Stuff like CMSS-3D and Dolby Headphones can help a lot in certain games as well.

I'll sometimes alternate between my AD900 and Q40 and I really don't feel like one is giving me an advantage over the other. All I need is the general direction of the sound and from there I can pretty accurately "guess" where it came from based on its volume and whatever happens to be in that area. I don't need "special" headphones to do that.

Just my opinion anyway.

 

[coyote_5]

It's been asked several times in this thread with no answer...

what would a good amp be to place between the mixamp and the 880-250s?

How about a Headstage Arrow 12HE? Would that have enough juice? The price is pretty attractive...

I'm considering buying 880-32s and 880-250s and an amp so I can do some comparisions. (I already have AD700s to include in the comparison) The arrow is on my list but not sure about the return policy and cost to ship back to Germany! Something shipping from the US might be better for me!

Any suggestions?

 

[trent_bob]

Quote:

Originally Posted by coyote_5 /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's been asked several times in this thread with no answer... what would a good amp be to place between the mixamp and the 880-250s? How about a Headstage Arrow 12HE? Would that have enough juice? The price is pretty attractive... I'm considering buying 880-32s and 880-250s and an amp so I can do some comparisions. (I already have AD700s to include in the comparison) The arrow is on my list but not sure about the return policy and cost to ship back to Germany! Something shipping from the US might be better for me! Any suggestions?

I'm wondering why everyone will respond about the headphones but not the amp? Oh well, I actually changed my mind and ordered the AD700s yesterday... But I'd still like to get the DT880's so I wish you would do this or someone would give us a good recommendation.

 

[wmf]

well the headstage i dont think would be a good choice for any ohm 880 beyer. i would think they would be better suited strapped to ipods or similar. skylab has mentioned the 3move as a very nice amp that would run the 880/250ohm. i was also looking at the maverick, matrix m-stage and shanling ph100 amps. they would also be sufficient.

 

[coredump]

Quote:

Originally Posted by trent_bob /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm wondering why everyone will respond about the headphones but not the amp? Oh well, I actually changed my mind and ordered the AD700s yesterday... But I'd still like to get the DT880's so I wish you would do this or someone would give us a good recommendation.

I'm guessing most people that own a DT880 are not reading this thread because of the "gaming" title. To get a better answer you should search the forum or start a new thread in the amp section.

 

[trent_bob]

Quote:

Originally Posted by coredump /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm guessing most people that own a DT880 are not reading this thread because of the "gaming" title. To get a better answer you should search the forum or start a new thread in the amp section.

True.

Thanks Everyone.