[jessica00]

seriously considering getting some DT-880's
currently have HD-590's on a near-maxed-META42. wanting something better in the $200~ range.

mainly listen to vocal trance/techno, some classical.
also used for gaming.

suggestions?

 

[tom hankins]

You can take your amp and stuff to one of the local Hi-Fi Buys in your area and check out the HD580's and HD600's with your gear. Might want to call first to make sure they have them in stock, but they carry the senn. line. I like the HD600's alot for female vocal trance.(all trance really) I've had the Beyers and the Senns and liked the Senns alot more for the music your using. Also have you thought about a cable upgrade for the HD590 and spending the rest of the money you have on a pr. of used phones? heres the site for the cables. I have not heard them on the HD590 but they are a major league upgrade on both the HD600 and the HD650's. www.stefanaudioart.com

 

[wallijonn]

Jessie,

I wouldn't suggest the DT880 for Techno if it will be your only headphone. I do it, but you may not be pleased. But then I also listen to Disco on it, so...

You just may not be pleased with the bass visceral experience.

But for jazz, classical, folk, country, big band, swing, and a few other gendres it's acceptable.

Is there any way that you can audition a pair?

It all depends are what you are willing to settle for. I do know that you should not be as fatigued after an hour of listening, though.

What really sells the Dt880 is the wide soundstaging and female vocals. As there is not too much soundstaging in Techno recordings (in which case Grados should suffice), it may not be the best match for it.

Best of luck.

 

[jessica00]

what about CD3000's?

 

[wallijonn]

well, you said $200 range (which means $250 for the DT880).

I don't know what a Maxed out Meta42 would sound like with either the DT880 or the CD3000. I would suspect that some M42Mx owners may prefer certain opamps to others when it comes to the CD3000.

The CD3000, like any other headphone, has pluses and minuses. and as such you should try it out for fit and pleasure before buying. it may be too large, the pads too soft, your ears too big, or may feel too heavy, too bright, too muddy, etc.

for Techno the CD3000 is most probably the superior headphone. it may be too sensitive, though, whereas the Dt880 may be too ineffecient.

so -

who owns the Meta42Max with either headphone and what do you think about the combo?

 

[jessica00]

the thing about headphones that are good for techno (dt-770, HD-280, etc.) is that they are too bass heavy.
i like how my 590's handle techno, and these are fairly balanced phones.
just looking for something *better* that still retains quality with anything you throw at it.

 

[wallijonn]

Well, Jessica, you know that I love the DT880s ...

they should complement your HD590s quite well, though you may perceive a lesser treble, or a treble shift... it's all so personal.

But my gut feeling is that you will love the DT880s. For the money, I feel that they cannot be beat. Whether or not they would be great or Techno is another matter. I listen to techno on them and I enjoy them. Are they the best for Techno? Probably not. But other headphones I cannot listen to for other gendres. The DT931 has a better bass slam (which means absolutely nothing since you have a different setup) than the DT880.

I say go for it.

Or sell your HD590, add the difference in money and get the CD3000 or the HD650 or ...

 

[AdamZuf]

for most people the HD600 or HD580 will be better for techno and surely for classical.
vocal trance? well.. the DT880 are definetly superiour, to my ears. every light kind of electronica will be lifted by these headphones.

personaly, because to my ears they deliver easier mood and better resolution, i would choose them also for techno.
but my ears tells me that any of the senns are better with classical, no doubt.

you know me.. i will always recommend the CD3000, as long as good equiptment will feed them, and you can afford the whole pack. but since many people don't have my taste, and these sonys are very sensitive to the feeding signal.. i don't think it's the right way for you.

 

[briana]

I don't listen to a lot of trance but early Porcupine Tree sounds great on my DT-880s. I think they are great phones that maybe get a little bit of disrepect due to their smoothness. But I think they do quite a few things quite well and they sure are a lot more comfortable than Grados. YMMV

 

[Tina]

Quote:

Originally posted by wallijonn who owns the Meta42Max with either headphone and what do you think about the combo?

the dt880 are very soothing phones. just to my ears, the beyers are more towards my liking. i guess that's because i've observed that i'm a big fan of crystal clear mids (hp1 and my two akg phones). the cd3k these days is my master pair for my dvd moments. i just never found them to my liking for music due to the lack of (my standard) mids because of the colored concentration on the lows and the highs. with that, since you mentioned classical, you've enjoy the dt880. however for techno, as wallijonn mentioned, they're not really the ideal pair if you want the oomph of bass like good speakers deliver. however, if this is my only pair and wouldnt want to compare with other pairs, the bass performance of the dt880 paired with the corda prehead is as clean, tight and fast that could be enjoyed with vocal trance/techno and classical as well as other genres at the same time as my only pair without being too huge to be transportable and as expensive as the rest of the phones of its league.

since there are different types of metas, i suggest the best choice you could do is to audition the pair and see if it reaches your expectations. however with my maxd meta42 (five buffers), it's good enough even if it falls slightly behind the prehead.

another pair i could recommend is the akg k271. controlled and detailed, they deliver excellent mids yet at the same time, with the meta, stunning tight bass extension and because of it's huge soundstage delivers a good sense of openess despite the fact that they are closed. and someday when you've got the cash, upgrade the cables to the moon audio silver dragon or the zu mobius and you've got yourself a credible cd3k contender on the closed category (imho).

 

[pbirkett]

Hmm, not sure I agree with the K271 with regards to sounding "open". They were the most claustrophobic phones I've ever used to be honest. I dont think they come close to the CD3000s at all TBH.

 

[AdamZuf]

the K271 are the headphones that people liked so much in the chicago meet?

 

[pbirkett]

Quote:

Originally posted by AdamZuf the K271 are the headphones that people liked so much in the chicago meet?

Indeed they are, and they are not bad for the money, but I'm a little surprised about people raving over them the way they do. Nothing particularly special about them to my ears.

 

[jessica00]

choices down to HD-580 or DT880.

how bout AKG501's?

 

[AdamZuf]

Quote:

Originally posted by pbirkett Indeed they are, and they are not bad for the money, but I'm a little surprised about people raving over them the way they do. Nothing particularly special about them to my ears.

well...good to know. most prefered them on top of the CD3000..
i think i better only trust myself from now on

jessica,
if you are planning to upgrade other stuff in your rig soon, then the HD580 are better for you..they have a used market, and you can get them very cheap. they are a very good buy.

and what are the two zeros after the nickname?