[sunfizz98]

@tdockweiler
Sad to hear that you didn't like the clip zip.  I have been using the clip zip with the rockbox firmware ever since I bought the player, so it might sound different or better than what you're hearing with the stock firmware.
 
1. You mentioned that you bought some pearstone pads recently. Mind comparing those to the m50 pads?
 
2. Do you think the clip zip would benefit from a portable amp? If so, which one would you recommend?

 

[Fuzziekiwi]

http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-Portable-Headphone-Amplifier-Black/dp/B003N0XDT4/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1347888577&sr=8-6&keywords=fiio+headphone+amp
 
http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-E10-USB-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B005VO7LG6
 
http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-E11-Portable-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B0053KWDES/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347889168&sr=8-1&keywords=E11+fiio
 
Which amp would be the best out of these 3 for the DJ100? I've decided to just invest in an amp. I'll be using it for many years anyways. 

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-Portable-Headphone-Amplifier-Black/dp/B003N0XDT4/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1347888577&sr=8-6&keywords=fiio+headphone+amp
 
http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-E10-USB-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B005VO7LG6
 
http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-E11-Portable-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B0053KWDES/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347889168&sr=8-1&keywords=E11+fiio
 
Which amp would be the best out of these 3 for the DJ100? I've decided to just invest in an amp. I'll be using it for many years anyways. 

I'd rank them as E11 > E7 > E10
 
I hated the E10 with the DJ100. E11 is OK, but it seems to suck the life out of it's mids a little. Still pretty good.
 
I would actually suggest an E6 (or E6) over those. It's all about synergy I guess.
 
If you have other headphones (or the money to spend) the E9 is great for the DJ100. Just use the large jack only. I imagine you want to stick with portable amps though...
 
I also love the Total Airhead with the DJ100 (and even my HD-600!).
 
BTW strangely any headphones that plays well with the HD-598 is also good for the DJ100.
 
I also forgot that in my experience the E5 needs to be used with the headphone out from a portable source, otherwise it's not that great with just a LOD cable. Not sure why.

 

[Fuzziekiwi]

Quote:

I'd rank them as E11 > E7 > E10
 
I hated the E10 with the DJ100. E11 is OK, but it seems to suck the life out of it's mids a little. Still pretty good.
 
I would actually suggest an E6 (or E6) over those. It's all about synergy I guess.
 
If you have other headphones (or the money to spend) the E9 is great for the DJ100. Just use the large jack only. I imagine you want to stick with portable amps though...
 
I also love the Total Airhead with the DJ100 (and even my HD-600!).
 
BTW strangely any headphones that plays well with the HD-598 is also good for the DJ100.

I'm not going to be bringing it anywhere, I'll be using it with my computer. Whatever works best with the DJ100 (but under $70). 

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

I'm not going to be bringing it anywhere, I'll be using it with my computer. Whatever works best with the DJ100 (but under $70). 

Wow..I just checked the price of the Total Airhead and it's $50 on sale from $100!!
Trust me, just get this ASAP.
 
The thing even drives my HD-600 and Q701! Uses AAA batteries and blows away the E11 IMO.
 
http://www.headphone.com/headphone-amps/amplifiers/headroom-total-airhead.php
 
EDIT: Just posted this in the deals thread after seeing this. Really baffling.
 
So yeah.. the Airhead is the best portable amp for the DJ100 i've heard. There's not a headphone I own it doesn't like. That's rare for some portable amps these days.

 

[Mr B]

If headroom just responds so i know i can afford shipping, they'll be selling a pair of M50 pads, and a Total Airhead to me, but where would one buy the Pearstone Deluxe Velor pads? Needs to be willing to ship to Sweden, without taking my arm of. (You know, costing a arm.. And a leg, so to speak.)
B!

 

[tdockweiler]

I bought some new Pearstone velour pads for these again. I ordered them a week ago but canceled. Should be here tomorrow and i'll report any impressions of changes in sound.
Here's some picture of what they look like on the DJ100. They're oval and not round, but does not seem to degrade the sound due to being oval. Just look a bit goofy.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/522907/my-koss-dj-100s-hurt-my-ears-pressure-on-them#post_7083418
 
I just modded my KRK KNS-8400. It might one day top my DJ100 as a favorite (only with mods!). Probably not, but maybe. They're not too far off now in sound signature. The DJ100 still has better bass and better bass extension. Just a tad more bass on the DJ100 now and is much fuller sounding still. Both are crystal clear with the right music. Both now have fairly smooth and non-fatiguing treble..yeah the 8400 now has non-fatiguing treble!

 

[Fuzziekiwi]

Just tried out the DJ200 at Bestbuy for about 30 minutes. I wonder if the old pair I had needed more burn in or was just defective. It sounded fuller and the bass was much better. Such a fun headphone, now I'm able to tell it does have full mids compared to the V6 but slightly hollow sounding. This was all out of my iPod 2g, it would sound even better out of another source. I tried them along with Sennheiser 380 pro, HD 203, Pioneer HDJ2000, damn does the Koss have good vocals, clarity, and soundstage compared too all of them. I can't imagine how they all sound with a really good amp. Turns out my local Bestbuy has TWO audio sections, which I never noticed until today. 

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

Just tried out the DJ200 at Bestbuy for about 30 minutes. I wonder if the old pair I had needed more burn in or was just defective. It sounded fuller and the bass was much better. Such a fun headphone, now I'm able to tell it does have full mids compared to the V6 but slightly hollow sounding. This was all out of my iPod 2g, it would sound even better out of another source. I tried them along with Sennheiser 380 pro, HD 203, Pioneer HDJ2000, damn does the Koss have good vocals, clarity, and soundstage compared too all of them. I can't imagine how they all sound with a really good amp. Turns out my local Bestbuy has TWO audio sections, which I never noticed until today. 

 
Could be needing more burn in or just a randomly weird pair. Often I notice that when I get a poor seal with stock pads the sound can suffer. Somdays with stock pads it could sound amazing and then the next day not so good. I didn't realize this until I stretched the stock pads out. I never experienced any hollow sound to me at all. I think the only headphone that ever gave me that impression was a DT-770 600 ohm at times.
 
M50 pads really improve the sound and clarity even further. Someone reported it made them slightly less warm and it's possible. I think it's worth it though. When you have more air between the pads and the driver with the DJ100, the sound gets more trebly. I think this is why the SRH-840 pads ruin the sound. M50 pads are just right and M40 pads are much worse. 
 
I've never got my DJ100 when well amped to ever sound thin. I saw the review on CNET claiming it was dry and analytical...huh?! I actually think the DJ100 is quite warm and full sounding even with M50 pads. If you put V6 pads on them they're almost too bassy (for me).
 
It looks like my Best Buy has the same headphones. The worst one on display there was the TMA-1. I was just really baffled with the sound. Probably the darkest headphone i've ever heard. The HDJ-1500 was the 2nd worst due to having very little bass to me. HDJ-2000 sounded crystal clear but seemed to not have much sub-bass. $349 is stupid expensive. HD-380 sounded pretty good. HD-280 impressed me somewhat until I tried it on a 2nd trip.
 
Lately i've been using my DJ100 a lot with just my Clip+ and it seems OK. I do prefer it with my Airhead or Micro Amp though.
 
I just tried it with Pearstone Velour pads and they're too small and uncomfortable. They'd be perfect for the V6, but not he DJ100. I should see if I can mod the M40 pads to work better with the Dj100. They're by far the most comfortable.

 

[Fuzziekiwi]

Quote:

 
Could be needing more burn in or just a randomly weird pair. Often I notice that when I get a poor seal with stock pads the sound can suffer. Somdays with stock pads it could sound amazing and then the next day not so good. I didn't realize this until I stretched the stock pads out. I never experienced any hollow sound to me at all. I think the only headphone that ever gave me that impression was a DT-770 600 ohm at times.
 
M50 pads really improve the sound and clarity even further. Someone reported it made them slightly less warm and it's possible. I think it's worth it though. When you have more air between the pads and the driver with the DJ100, the sound gets more trebly. I think this is why the SRH-840 pads ruin the sound. M50 pads are just right and M40 pads are much worse. 
 
I've never got my DJ100 when well amped to ever sound thin. I saw the review on CNET claiming it was dry and analytical...huh?! I actually think the DJ100 is quite warm and full sounding even with M50 pads. If you put V6 pads on them they're almost too bassy (for me).
 
It looks like my Best Buy has the same headphones. The worst one on display there was the TMA-1. I was just really baffled with the sound. Probably the darkest headphone i've ever heard. The HDJ-1500 was the 2nd worst due to having very little bass to me. HDJ-2000 sounded crystal clear but seemed to not have much sub-bass. $349 is stupid expensive. HD-380 sounded pretty good. HD-280 impressed me somewhat until I tried it on a 2nd trip.
 
Lately i've been using my DJ100 a lot with just my Clip+ and it seems OK. I do prefer it with my Airhead or Micro Amp though.
 
I just tried it with Pearstone Velour pads and they're too small and uncomfortable. They'd be perfect for the V6, but not he DJ100. I should see if I can mod the M40 pads to work better with the Dj100. They're by far the most comfortable.

 
To me, the mids and lows are warm, but the treble is a little bright. Probably because of the source/loud environment. I tried the TMA-1 for 5 seconds and put them down, they were just nasty sounding and dark. I didn't try the HDJ-1500 because I was stuck on the DJ100 but my two other favorite headphones there are the HD202, HDJ-2000. It seemed like the DJ100 had the biggest soundstage out of all the headphones, everything seemed more distant. They also had a Koss Pro4aa Titanium but it wasn't working 

. I was very suprised to see that they were selling an HD558, but it wasn't on demo. I wish they had amps that you could plug the higher end headphones into. 

 

[linuxid10t]

Quote:

 
Could be needing more burn in or just a randomly weird pair. Often I notice that when I get a poor seal with stock pads the sound can suffer. Somdays with stock pads it could sound amazing and then the next day not so good. I didn't realize this until I stretched the stock pads out. I never experienced any hollow sound to me at all. I think the only headphone that ever gave me that impression was a DT-770 600 ohm at times.
 
M50 pads really improve the sound and clarity even further. Someone reported it made them slightly less warm and it's possible. I think it's worth it though. When you have more air between the pads and the driver with the DJ100, the sound gets more trebly. I think this is why the SRH-840 pads ruin the sound. M50 pads are just right and M40 pads are much worse. 
 
I've never got my DJ100 when well amped to ever sound thin. I saw the review on CNET claiming it was dry and analytical...huh?! I actually think the DJ100 is quite warm and full sounding even with M50 pads. If you put V6 pads on them they're almost too bassy (for me).
 
It looks like my Best Buy has the same headphones. The worst one on display there was the TMA-1. I was just really baffled with the sound. Probably the darkest headphone i've ever heard. The HDJ-1500 was the 2nd worst due to having very little bass to me. HDJ-2000 sounded crystal clear but seemed to not have much sub-bass. $349 is stupid expensive. HD-380 sounded pretty good. HD-280 impressed me somewhat until I tried it on a 2nd trip.
 
Lately i've been using my DJ100 a lot with just my Clip+ and it seems OK. I do prefer it with my Airhead or Micro Amp though.
 
I just tried it with Pearstone Velour pads and they're too small and uncomfortable. They'd be perfect for the V6, but not he DJ100. I should see if I can mod the M40 pads to work better with the Dj100. They're by far the most comfortable.

I actually find them kind of dry myself without an amp.  Actually, especially when they are brand new, they sound as Tyll put it, "papery."

 

[Bee inthe Attic]

Quote:

 
Could be needing more burn in or just a randomly weird pair. Often I notice that when I get a poor seal with stock pads the sound can suffer. Somdays with stock pads it could sound amazing and then the next day not so good. I didn't realize this until I stretched the stock pads out. I never experienced any hollow sound to me at all. I think the only headphone that ever gave me that impression was a DT-770 600 ohm at times.
 
... ... ...
 
Lately i've been using my DJ100 a lot with just my Clip+ and it seems OK. I do prefer it with my Airhead or Micro Amp though.
 
I just tried it with Pearstone Velour pads and they're too small and uncomfortable. They'd be perfect for the V6, but not he DJ100. I should see if I can mod the M40 pads to work better with the Dj100. They're by far the most comfortable.

 
 
tdocweiler, could you please expand on this.
 
I find the room inside the M50 earpad quite small, and my ears get sweaty pretty quickly.
Do the Pearstone pads have even less space for your ears? Is this what you mean by smaller?
It would be real helpful if you could describe the Pearstone pads size & comfort, and compare these to the M50's.
Also, how do they sound (ie. do they change the DJ100 sound sig)?
 
Your impressions might save me an unnecessary purchase. Thanks.

 

[jv92red]

Been lurking this thread thought I would post.  I'm thinking about picking up the Koss Tony Bennett Signature edition headphones which are apparently re-badged Pro DJ100 headphones with a detachable coiled cord and case.  They are on sale at the store Tuesday Morning for $49.99 starting on October 2nd.  Seems like a good deal but want to make sure these really are the same but with the extra goodies.  I also posted over on the Tony Bennett thread but thought with this tread having more activity I could get more opinions on this.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/569773/tony-bennett-signature-edition-headphones/60
 
I am looking to get some closed headphones to compliment my other cans which are both open (Q701's and Grado SR125's) and I was looking to stay cheap at around $20 and buy the Monoprice 8323 but will spend the extra $30 if these are worth the extra cash.  Any advise or suggestions welcomed. Thanks!
 

 

[Bee inthe Attic]

Quote:

Been lurking this thread thought I would post.  I'm thinking about picking up the Koss Tony Bennett Signature edition headphones which are apparently re-badged Pro DJ100 headphones with a detachable coiled cord and case.  They are on sale at the store Tuesday Morning for $49.99 starting on October 2nd.  Seems like a good deal but want to make sure these really are the same but with the extra goodies.  I also posted over on the Tony Bennett thread but thought with this tread having more activity I could get more opinions on this.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/569773/tony-bennett-signature-edition-headphones/60
 
I am looking to get some closed headphones to compliment my other cans which are both open (Q701's and Grado SR125's) and I was looking to stay cheap at around $20 and buy the Monoprice 8323 but will spend the extra $30 if these are worth the extra cash.  Any advise or suggestions welcomed. Thanks!
 

 
Yup, the Tony Bennett's and the DJ100's are essentially the same headphone (TB's with added goodies). I paid $81 for my TB's, which is a great deal... but $50 is a steal.

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

 
 
tdocweiler, could you please expand on this.
 
I find the room inside the M50 earpad quite small, and my ears get sweaty pretty quickly.
Do the Pearstone pads have even less space for your ears? Is this what you mean by smaller?
It would be real helpful if you could describe the Pearstone pads size & comfort, and compare these to the M50's.
Also, how do they sound (ie. do they change the DJ100 sound sig)?
 
Your impressions might save me an unnecessary purchase. Thanks.

Yes, unfortunately there is much less room for your ears than the M50 pads when using the Pearstone pads. The Pearstone pads are also a bit scratchy and not as comfortable as they look.
My first impression is that the sound with the pads is a bit bassier than stock. Not a huge difference. Early impression is that they don't offer the sound clarity and treble of the M50 pads. Pretty close to stock though.
I imagine anyone with really small ears might find them OK. I don't think I have gigantic ears or anything and the M50 pads are perfect for me.
 
It does seem like the soundstage is much better with the M50 pads too.
 
BTW I also just tried the M40 pads again. These pads don't have any foam backing on them and hurt the sound somewhat. I've found that the trick is to take a circle of foam and place it inside the pads.
This seems to bring back the bass and make them sound pretty close to the M50 pads. Best of all, they're even more comfortable!
 
The hard part is finding foam circles to use! Now I don't suggest these pads yet, but I'm currently giving them a one week trial. I like the feel of these pads though. My M50 pads have gone hard and it's annoying!
 
I listened to the DJ100 with M40 pads + foam with my Micro Amp from a full sized cd player and was quite impressed.
 
What's interesting is that I bought a Denon CD player yesterday and it actually makes my KRK KNS-8400 and DJ100 too bloated in the bass!! What the heck..that must be one colored CD player. I ended up returning it to Goodwill(!), which is a thrift store.
Got it for only $15 and now i'm using a JVC cd player from 93 instead. Sounds amazing and has neutral bass.
 
I've always felt the Tony Bennett version sounded a bit clearer than the old DJ100, but I'm about 99% sure it's just my imagination. There is only one tiny difference and I don't know if it'd improve/change anything.
 
It looks like the Tony Bennett version might be discontinued. It's not on the Koss website now. I hope they drop the price of the DJ200 down to $100 or so. Basically you're paying for the extras I guess.
 
Also.. IMO the Beyer Dynamic DT-250 pads are AWFUL on the DJ100. I wish I knew why.