[The Legend]

I've recently been looking to upgrade my headphones at some point down the road. The HD555s were my first enthusiast pair of cans, but I don't think they suit me best of the music I listen to.

Mainly my tastes are more rock/alternative with bands such as Eve 6, Foo Fighters, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Better Than Ezra, Pearl Jam etc.

I've read quite a few reviews and have finally narrowed it down to two sets of cans. Should I look at getting the DT770/80s or the SR 225s? I have an E-MU 0404 USB DAC on the way with a Mini^3 at some point. Suggestions?

 

[Joshatdot]

I would think SR225 for your type of music, and maybe with Flats if you want more bass with them.

 

[The Legend]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joshatdot /img/forum/go_quote.gif I would think SR225 for your type of music, and maybe with Flats if you want more bass with them.

In your opinion, is this my best option without spending $250+ on a set of cans?

 

[cheemo]

x2 on Grado's and even better if you can score a used one. I listened to the dt770's at guitar center and it has alot more bass which sounded boomy as compared to the Grado's 225's punchy bass. Good luck.

 

[The Legend]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cheemo /img/forum/go_quote.gif x2 on Grado's and even better if you can score a used one. I listened to the dt770's at guitar center and it has alot more bass which sounded boomy as compared to the Grado's 225's punchy bass. Good luck.

Thanks for the insight. I'd much rather have punchy bass as opposed to more of a 'boomy' bass as I don't listen to rap at all. I would imagine these cans would be decent for house or trance music as well?

 

[alphaproject]

What about the Ultrasone HFI 780's?

I can't opinion on grado's as I 've heard mixed things about them, but I love the DT 770'/80 cans. Love em!

Rock or not, they are amazing for the price.

 

[The Legend]

Quote:

Originally Posted by alphaproject /img/forum/go_quote.gif What about the Ultrasone HFI 780's? I can't opinion on grado's as I 've heard mixed things about them, but I love the DT 770'/80 cans. Love em! Rock or not, they are amazing for the price.

I've heard that the DT770s bass is a bit more 'boomy' whereas the Grado's bass is a bit more punchy. Sound about right?

 

[thedauntlessone]

The DT770 Pro is good with most of metal music I listen to. All it needs is an amp to tighten up the bass to enjoy them. The Beyers really gives a "live" music feel to it but there are certain types of songs that it won't work good with but mostly it does though. The bass on the SR225 is punchy but there's not a lot of impact which the DT770 Pro have. I enjoy both cans with the same music. I get very different elements from both cans.

 

[The Legend]

Quote:

Originally Posted by thedauntlessone /img/forum/go_quote.gif The DT770 Pro is good with most of metal music I listen to. All it needs is an amp to tighten up the bass to enjoy them. The Beyers really gives a "live" music feel to it but there are certain types of songs that it won't work good with but mostly it does though. The bass on the SR225 is punchy but there's not a lot of impact which the DT770 Pro have. I enjoy both cans with the same music. I get very different elements from both cans.

Good information! Based upon some of the music mentioned before which pair of cans would you recommend? I'm not quite sure how I feel about a 'Live' music feel, but it may just take some getting used to.

Considering both pairs of cans amped, do you prefer the DT770 better?

 

[thedauntlessone]

The strength about the low-mid end Grado is that they don't need to be amped while the DT770 Pro pretty much requires an amp to sound decent.

It's really hard to directly compare the two cans because they excel at different things. For me, the Grado is a bit forward and fatiguing for me to listen to them for a long time. The Beyers are definitely much more comfortable. I'm not sure about other people but I have a WIDE head but it's still very comfortable for me to wear for long period of time. I should also say the upper bass hump can sometimes be too overpowering. For most of the bands I listen to (Dream Theater/Liquid Tension Experiment, Tool, Iron Maiden, etc.) they sound good. The Beyers also sound really good with early Our Lady Peace (Naveed's awesome) but I found that the Beyer ruining some of the songs. I can't remember the name right now but one OLP song, it was just the bass drum and some light guitar and the bass drum ruined that part of the song.

I'd say you should try the Grado first and see if you like their sound signature since they don't require an amp. If you don't, try and score a cheap pair of DT770 Pro/80ohm and a cheap amp like Cmoy. If you like the Beyer sound signature I highly recommend the Darths.

 

[alphaproject]

Well, the DT 770's are nice, but are the HFI 780's $100 better??? I doubt it.

 

[fatman711]

Grados have nice accurate bass. In my experiences, adding flats to Grados kills the sound and muffles everything. I don't recommend them.

 

[Jaska]

I've owned two pairs of the beyers, and ended up preferring my Grado SR225 in general. While there are many benefits of using closed headphones (not bothering others, etc.), the DT770, in my estimation, just doesn't match the versatility with music that the Grados have.

The DT770 is a welcome addition to, for example, older recordings without overblown bass, but on bass-heavy tracks, it just becomes too much for me. If I were to keep a DT770, I think I would actually have to sift through my hundreds of albums and create a playlist of music suited to them, and forget about playing the rest of my music through them.

I have no comments on the HFI780, as I haven't heard them, but I still get a creepy feeling that they're a flavor of the month headphone. Maybe that's not fair for me to say, but I'm just being honest that I personally wouldn't buy them without auditioning them first to see what all the recent hype is about.

 

[The Legend]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fatman711 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Grados have nice accurate bass. In my experiences, adding flats to Grados kills the sound and muffles everything. I don't recommend them.

Have you ever had the chance to test them side by side with the DT770/80s?

I've been hearing more and more than Grados are more 'in your face' while the DT770s are a bit more laid back.

 

[carlineng]

I own the Alessandro MS-1 and the beyerdynamic DT770 Pro. When listening to music, I almost always prefer the MS-1. The DT770s mids are too recessed, and the bass tends to drown out other parts of the music. This would be especially noticeable with your listed musical preferences.