[vforrest]

OK, all you DT 880 experts: how long do I need to break in a new set of these cans?

 

[spinali]

Although I've noticed pronounced break-in with, say, the K701, I'm one of the minority who hasn't detected same with the DT880. To my experiece, it sounds great the way it is, and any break-in is likely to be pretty subtle.

Some other listeners, however, claim to have noticed changes due to break-in. I woulddn't exclude the possibility.

 

[Reputator]

Some will say at least 100 hours, others will say 48 hours. I'm not a DT880 "expert", but I can assure you that there are no two people who agree about how long you should burn in a pair of headphones. Some people say it takes as long as 500 hours for a headphone to reach its potential. If it were me I'd give it a good few days of non-stop playback of bassy material at fairly loud volumes, that should loosen things up a bit.

 

[Asr]

Mine didn't change much until ~300 hours in.

 

[aluren]

when i first got my DT880 and during my first listen, the highs were extremely bright. after about 20 hours, the brightness settled into the signature sound. since then i haven't noticed any significant changes. it has about 80 hours on it now and i'm slowly appreciating how much i love this headphone. so the only burn in so far that i can think of is psychological...

 

[fewtch]

Unlike some headphones, they don't change a lot... the highs mellow some, and the midrange takes on a "creamy" flavor (I guess you could say becomes less dry sounding). That's about all I've noticed myself. Bass has stayed pretty much the same to my ears.

 

[ironbut]

I have to agree, the changes are pretty subtile, but, the changes are where they need it the most. After 350 hrs the treble has become less edgy and while there still is some siblience, it is much less noticeable. The mids have become a little more forward and the overall balance is much better. I think it is still mellowing a tiny bit still and seeing that like ASR I am comparing the 880's to the 701's and hd600's to decide which is best suited for my listening preferences. I just ordered a 120 ohm adapter from Jan Meier and should get it in another week or so and will post the initial impressions on any changes.

 

[Reputator]

I don't even see the 120 ohm adapter on Meier's site, is it just something special you have to ask for?

 

[Gigabomber]

but then I am over-sensitive to brightness so...

I think I burned them in for a week.

 

[Kees]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fewtch Unlike some headphones, they don't change a lot... the highs mellow some, and the midrange takes on a "creamy" flavor (I guess you could say becomes less dry sounding). That's about all I've noticed myself. Bass has stayed pretty much the same to my ears.

Exactly the same as I experienced with my DT880s. And it didn't take very long for them to settle. (< 100 hours I guess).

 

[SprySpectre]

the only "burn-in" I noticed was placebo effect. Have now listened to them about 400-500 hours, the only reason I seemed to think they changed was that I just got used to the sound...which I attribute to placebo effect since it was around that 80-100 hr mark that I noticed it.

 

[Asr]

I must've gotten a different DT880 than the rest of you. I don't believe in placebo at all. And I found my DT880's bass opened up at about 300 hours in. Its bass was leaner than my K701's until then, I ABX'd the two almost every day on the same reference tracks.

 

[Xanatos]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Asr I must've gotten a different DT880 than the rest of you. I don't believe in placebo at all. And I found my DT880's bass opened up at about 300 hours in. Its bass was leaner than my K701's until then, I ABX'd the two almost every day on the same reference tracks.

abx? What do you mean? So you did a double blind test with the k701 and dt880?

Also, just because you don't believe in a placebo effect, doesn't mean it doesn't exist.


well, don't misuse the acronym "abx"...

 

[zombieDave]

I agree with fewtch's comments about the DT880's sound signature after burn-in. However, I experienced it at about 50 hours. No real changes since then (well, I did get them recabled...)

 

[ironbut]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reputator I don't even see the 120 ohm adapter on Meier's site, is it just something special you have to ask for?

Just email Jan, he said he had a few left but they are mini-mini sealed adapters mad by oehlbach.
Since the above posting, my 880's sound has really changed, mostly the bass has become much fuller and prominent. It's changed enough that I think I'll do some tube rolling just to be sure it's not the tubes. Overall, the sound is much more balanced but basically the same signature. Well, back to the adapter,..
I ordered it from Jan and it arrived today in just 5 days! BTW, it was $18 bucks total. My Eddie Current ec01 ( which I like more and more since Feb.) is being used and my main complaints with the combo has been siblience, a lack of midbass punch and slightly recessed bass in general. So far with the adapter the balance has been shifted downward. The treble is less prominent, the mids are warmer, the midbass has punch, and the bass in general is more in balance with the rest of the spectrum. Unfortunately, at this early stage, I think I'm loosing some low level detail in the trade. I think my wish list would be to leave the treble alone, reduce the mid-warming by hmm,.. 36%, and keep the changes in the bass. This is way too early to make a call though, so, I'll post again after 100 hrs or so. Gotta try it on my 701's and hd600's because,.. I can!