[Youth]

  It's a very interesting topic.
 
Here you have a huge DR database (Over 75.000 albums)
http://dr.loudness-war.info/
 

 
Shame most of the music I listen to is compressed

 

[Me x3]

   
Shame most of the music I listen to is compressed

Been there!
 
I've changed my complete music library since I got my first DT990s some years ago. Very little over compressed albums remain around here.
With some genres, it's almost impossible to avoid strongly compressed / unnatural sounding albums.

 

[Youth]

  Been there!
 
I've changed my complete music library since I got my first DT990s some years ago. Very little over compressed albums remain around here.
With some genres, it's almost impossible to avoid strongly compressed / unnatural sounding albums.

 
I mostly listen to EDM and Mainstream music and most of it is compressed as far as I can tell. Damnit.

 

[Shaffer]

I mostly listen to EDM and Mainstream music and most of it is compressed as far as I can tell. Damnit.

When I download music from Bandcampd and preview a recording, first thing I listen for is how loud it is. One can tell in the first few seconds. If it's very compressed, I don't consider it. At the same time, quite a few EDM recordings, as an example, are not heavily compressed. They're out there. Ektoplazm, OTOH, is really bad. I haven't found a single record that wasn't louder than sin. I don't even bother trying anything from there, anymore.

FWIW, try some of these. They're free:

https://coldtearrecords.bandcamp.com/music

I can make some recommendations for the above, if you'd like.

 

[tomb]

 

Good sound starts with the source material. In essence, the media you choose to play, as in a CD, a LP, a file, etc. To my ears, 320 MP3s sound like stainless steel compared to the real thing, as in the actual physical media (god, I loathe that term). With a headphone like the DT880, this quality is magnified. BTW, I own DT880.

To sum up, you need a decent system - amplifier, DAC - and quality source material for these headphones to shine. Often folks buy higher quality headphones expecting the sound to be better, but the reality points to the opposite. The better the headphone, the more transparent and revealing. If the supporting gear and source material are not up to par, that's what one is going to hear.

So you are saying that FLAC files are the way to go when I move up from the £100 range of headphones, due to transparency being brought out more and more? That seems fair enough.
 
Either way, I will give my DT880's a few more days and return them for the 600's. If they sound inferior, I am getting my 880's back. I am comparing both to a poor amp, so I should be giving both headphones a relatively fair chance.

 
The HD600 is severely crippled without a good amp.  That's what we were trying to tell you about the DT880, too.
 
JMHO, but you'd be better off settling for less expensive headphones.  They'll be much more forgiving.

 

[Youth]

When I download music from Bandcampd and preview a recording, first thing I listen for is how loud it is. One can tell in the first few seconds. If it's very compressed, I don't consider it. At the same time, quite a few EDM recordings, as an example, are not heavily compressed. They're out there. Ektoplazm, OTOH, is really bad. I haven't found a single record that wasn't louder than sin. I don't even bother trying anything from there, anymore.

FWIW, try some of these. They're free:

https://coldtearrecords.bandcamp.com/music

I can make some recommendations for the above, if you'd like.

 
That would be great, thanks!
 
I mostly listen to ASOT (A State Of Trance) by Armin Van Buuren and then some less known artists on youtube atm. I also use Spotify.

 

[visionaryBlend]

Incidentally, what are some good, entry level amps/DACs that will suit both the HD600 and the DT880 well? I don't want to colour the sound too much, really, meaning that I am considering an O2 ODAC. Schiit apparently has some nice solutions too, but they seem quite pricey.

 

[Youth]

  Incidentally, what are some good, entry level amps/DACs that will suit both the HD600 and the DT880 well? I don't want to colour the sound too much, really, meaning that I am considering an O2 ODAC. Schiit apparently has some nice solutions too, but they seem quite pricey.

 
Schiit Magni/Modi or O2 combo. There are cheaper options like FiiO E10K and Schiit Fulla but they can't run them great.

 

[H20Fidelity]

  Hello, this is my first time posting on Head-Fi Forums, so please do bear with me.
 
I recently purchased the DT880 Premium, 250 ohm version. This is my first foray into high end headphones, excluding Grado SR80i's. (which I enjoyed, until I had issues with rattly drivers on bassy freqs.) I also own Shure SE215's as a portable solution, which I find to be generally alright with it's strong mids, and thumping bass. The highs are average for me, failing to bring out detail sometimes, but they serve well as a beater pair with it's fun signature.
 
I find the sound to be hollow/dry in the midrange, and the spike within 9/10khz is also somewhat irritating, however the midrange is the most of my problems. EQ'ing it didn't give me much help, however that may be just because I don't equalise often, and I am not too good with it.
 
Other than that, I love the build quality and detail they bring forward. The lower mids may also be a tad too recessed for my liking, however.
 
I have it plugged it into a dated Panasonic Hifi system purposed for speakers (the "SA-HD52"), so I am uncertain if that is what is causing my issues.
 
I am seriously considering on switching these for Sennheiser HD600/650's, however other recommendations as to what I can do to help with this problem would be appreciated. I additionally considered in investing in a Maverick TubeMagic A1 coupled with a Matrix Mini-I Pro, but the sooner a solution (Since I still have about 30 days to return them through amazon) the better.
 
Here is my last.fm for additional headphone recommendations on the music that I listen to.
 
Thank you.

When I purchased DT880 - 250ohm, I was a little underwhelmed at their performance. I tried using an O2 amp which helped a little, then Schiit Magni, (which I preferred over the O2 in this case). What I quickly figured out in my opinion was going to be an ongoing affair of upgrading amps bringing them to a level I'd be happy with. I could hear the potential, I'm sure you can too. I mean sure, they sounded good, great to a degree, however, when plugging my SRH940 into the same sources it was apparent how much more detail I could hear. Check the DT880 threads sometime, members on a never-ending voyage upgrading amps, tubes, etc for these Beyers. To cut a long story short, I sold them and got out of that spiral before it really began. (I saw it coming)
 
tldr: they have the potential to sound excellent, are you willing to play the amp game though getting to such a level.

 

[visionaryBlend]

 
snip

 
 

   
Schiit Magni/Modi or O2 combo. There are cheaper options like FiiO E10K and Schiit Fulla but they can't run them great.

I am very much considering on purchasing the Magni 2 Uber/Modi 2 Uber to set me for my audio, although I am a little strapped on cash as of right now.
The final question I want to ask is, will pairing both headphones with a poor amp be a fair comparison (even if it sounds meh), or will one perform worse than the other because of the amplifier?

 

[H20Fidelity]

   
 
I am very much considering on purchasing the Magni 2 Uber/Modi 2 Uber to set me for my audio, although I am a little strapped on cash as of right now.
The final question I want to ask is, will pairing both headphones with a poor amp be a fair comparison (even if it sounds meh), or will one perform worse than the other because of the amplifier?

 
I found HD600 slightly easier to drive than 250ohm DT880 (despite the higher 300ohm HD600 impedance)
 
I had both these headphones at the same time, they're both solid contenders, I think you may achieve better results (meaning less of an amp priority) with the Sennheiser.
 
Just from my experience with the two. If you're not incredibly happy with DT880 sound signature not much is going to change that regardless of the amp used. In the perfect world you would buy the Schiit dac/amp combo, try with DT880 before the 30 days return period is up to make a decision, though we're not in a perfect world.
 
End of the day, its your call.

 

[Youth]

Originally Posted by visionaryBlend /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
I am very much considering on purchasing the Magni 2 Uber/Modi 2 Uber to set me for my audio, although I am a little strapped on cash as of right now.
The final question I want to ask is, will pairing both headphones with a poor amp be a fair comparison (even if it sounds meh), or will one perform worse than the other because of the amplifier?

 
Why the Uber models? Also, if your short on cash you can start out with just the Modi and then add the dac later on.
 
If you hate the DT880 as they are without amp that is not gonna change. I think that those who really dislike the DT880 are using bad source though.

 

[Shaffer]

I find the HD600 fairly easy to drive, but not so easy to gain their performance advantage. The 250 Ohm Beyers are not easy to drive. At all. A good amplifier can change everything; one is using an amplifier no matter what. It becomes a question of quality. This being said, you may be better off with a less demanding headphone whose tonal balance matches your preference, as suggested earlier in the thread.

 

[Tavilyn]

Before you go further, give the Fidelio X2 a look. You like DM and hip-hop? These headphones do that well without being basshead cans. The only recession they have, as far as I can see, is in a part of the treble, but it's not huge and it'll mean that you don't get fatigued. The sound is fairly warm, the headphones drive easily, and if you don't mind looking a bit like a dork it might be a great fit.
Just a thought if you don't like the DT880 and want an alternative to the Sennheiser 600/650. The x22 might be a touch more expensive, but if you wished you could probably pair it with something low-end, or with nothing at all, and it'd still sound pretty nice, especially for your musical preferences. These cans probably aren't the absolute best for stuff where sparkle will be appreciated, but that's about the strongest criticism I can give of them.

 

[visionaryBlend]

  Before you go further, give the Fidelio X2 a look. You like DM and hip-hop? These headphones do that well without being basshead cans. The only recession they have, as far as I can see, is in a part of the treble, but it's not huge and it'll mean that you don't get fatigued. The sound is fairly warm, the headphones drive easily, and if you don't mind looking a bit like a dork it might be a great fit.
Just a thought if you don't like the DT880 and want an alternative to the Sennheiser 600/650. The x22 might be a touch more expensive, but if you wished you could probably pair it with something low-end, or with nothing at all, and it'd still sound pretty nice, especially for your musical preferences. These cans probably aren't the absolute best for stuff where sparkle will be appreciated, but that's about the strongest criticism I can give of them.

I very much considered the X2, but I drifted my interest from them a tad. I want more of an all rounder, and good treble is quite important for me. My SE215 have a similar signature to what you're describing, just deficient in highs. I want an all-rounder pair for home use, appropriate for pretty much any genre, and the 600 seem like a good choice. Besides, the X2 are unavailable in the UK as of right now.