How bad will DT880's sound out of a 5g iPod without an amp?
Oct 29, 2005 at 2:05 AM Post #2 of 26
The 880's really require a lot of juice to sound decent, you'll still be able to hear them with a portable source, but the dynamics will be constricted quite a bit. All, they'll sound harsher and less detailed without a amp.
 
Oct 29, 2005 at 7:06 PM Post #3 of 26
How bad will they sound? Not bad, but not good either. They won't sound better than much cheaper phones out of that source.

The solution is simple: get yourself a nice pair of low-impedance cans for portable use. Try the Senn HD555/595 or the Beyer DT860, if you want something Hi-Fi for your iPod.
 
Oct 29, 2005 at 9:51 PM Post #6 of 26
Quote:

Originally Posted by DJGeorgeT
the real question is...do you like flat beer?


Haha, amazing.
 
Oct 29, 2005 at 9:57 PM Post #7 of 26
I was using my HD580s for a long time unamped from my Zen and I thought it sounded really quite good.

Then I got my SM3 amp and it all changed. Man, I was missing something. People who think amps make no difference are speaking out of their arse.
 
Oct 29, 2005 at 11:15 PM Post #8 of 26
Quote:

Originally Posted by DJGeorgeT
the real question is...do you like flat beer?


Ok, someone clue me in. A movie quote?
confused.gif
 
Oct 29, 2005 at 11:27 PM Post #9 of 26
Quote:

Originally Posted by will75
Ok, someone clue me in. A movie quote?
confused.gif



I think he means that an unamped DT 880 is like a flat beer. It'll work somewhat, it'll still play music (ie get you drunk), but it's not really that great or enjoyable.
 
Oct 29, 2005 at 11:45 PM Post #10 of 26
Quote:

Originally Posted by Ikon
The solution is simple: get yourself a nice pair of low-impedance cans for portable use. Try the Senn HD555/595 or the Beyer DT860, if you want something Hi-Fi for your iPod.


Yeah, those Senns would certainly be a good alternative for that application. I've got the HD 555 (and the DT880, for that matter), and it's certainly an excellent phone, with nice warm mids.
 
Oct 30, 2005 at 2:29 AM Post #12 of 26
Quote:

Originally Posted by kidkoala
Would love the sound quality of them, but carrying around an amp would be an extra pain.


I thought this was an interesting question so I tried it. The 5g seems to have a stronger output that preceding iPods. The DT880 is harder to drive than Senns, but the volume becomes intolerably loud at about 90 percent on the bar. Even though the volume is sufficient, the 'phone sounds dull and congested--something really weird for the 880 which is among my favs.

Give some thought to a Xin SuperMini 3. They handle the iPod/DT880 really well and add only two ounces, including batteries. Better hurry though, they go from $150 to $200 on 1 November.
 
Oct 30, 2005 at 10:05 AM Post #13 of 26
Quote:

Originally Posted by Chri5peed
I was using my HD580s for a long time unamped from my Zen and I thought it sounded really quite good.

Then I got my SM3 amp and it all changed. Man, I was missing something. People who think amps make no difference are speaking out of their arse.



I agree with Chri5peed.

It's not a matter of if the DT880 will sound bad. It's a matter of will you notice that they don't sound good. If you're point of reference is the stock earbuds, the DT880 may sound good to you unamped from your iPod. But that would leave so much potential from $200+ cans untapped and that's the sad part.

If you want to use full-size headphones unamped with your iPod, consider HD595 or other low impedance cans.
 
Oct 30, 2005 at 12:19 PM Post #14 of 26
Quote:

Originally Posted by Chri5peed
I was using my HD580s for a long time unamped from my Zen and I thought it sounded really quite good.

Then I got my SM3 amp and it all changed. Man, I was missing something. People who think amps make no difference are speaking out of their arse.



Sry, but this generalisation is as inappropriate as the one you're attacking in your post.
With my UE10 the SM3 almost makes no difference (no boost switches on), with my ER-4P/S it's almost night and day. I would say it's much more dependent on which phone you're using - perhaps those who stated an amp wouldn't make any difference used some low imp + high sensitivty phones.

Marcus
 
Oct 30, 2005 at 12:27 PM Post #15 of 26
Go with the DT860's if you want to go unamped. They are low impendance(32ohm).
 

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