[Chris J]

How well does the 600 ohm version handle Bach organ music? Would their "slowness" be a negative? Also what amps can be paired with them for under $200 (preferably closer to $100.) Maybe with amping limited to that pricerange I would be better off with the 250ohms? Would the Schiit Magni or O2 be a bad choice? Would I miss anything my old Denon ahd2000's paired with a fiio e 11 offered me? Would mostly be listening to classical with vocal and organ music both being important subgenres to consider.

Beyer claims the 600 Ohm versions are faster, I.e. have a more accurate transient response as the 600 Ohm voice coils are lighter.
Read my post below.......my ears have a hard time hearing the difference between 32 and 600 Ohm DTs.

You could drive 600 Ohm DT880 with a FiiO E09K for about $120.

 

[wahsmoh]

I actually obtained them because a friend of mine was interested, and I had to jump the gun for him. (Sorry!)

But then... I just had to listen.

Man, it truly is the best DT880 I have heard... to date!

It's like the embodiment of all of the cliche'd 880 reviews like...

Strong bass, present mids, smooth highs, expansive soundstage, etc...

When I first heard the HE-560, I liked how balanced the sound was, and that's why I got it over the LCD-XC, which was the other ortho on my radar at the time.

But this one is just as balanced, or even more so than my HE-560.

So I am thinking hard about whether or not I should just keep it.

Testing my amp aside, it is a very enjoyable headphone.

Talking about which, I am thinking about releasing a commercial version of my amp for the mass market. If there is indeed so little difference between different versions of the DT880, then I guess my amp has good synergy with it. Trying to shoot for $200 final price since any higher and I'll bump into the Crack, which is a very fine piece of work, and also happens to be my reference sound when I'm designing my amp.

If you ever decide to go closed again don't rule out the Alpha Dog if you like the ortho sound. I've heard the AD sitting next to the LCD-XC and Fostex TH900 at the LA Head-fi meet. The AD was the winner and in almost every category (being beat by the LCD-XC in overall bass and soundstage). But the AD wiped the floor with them when it  came to comfort, balanced sound, and price to performance.

 

[Chris J]

Well, I wouldn't say I'm an experienced reviewer or anything close to that, but what I'm hearing is simply... impressive.

Okay, so here's the issue...

Out of the Schiit Lyr 2 (stock), the Beyer DT880 Pro 250 Ohm that I heard was brighter than my Hifiman HE-560 with Focus Pads. No question. Many others at that meet also expressed the same opinion, that the DT880 Pro 250 was brighter than the HE-560. Also soundstage was comparably smaller.

Now, I'm in the comfort of my home, with a different source chain, using the DAC of the Fostex HP-P1 with my own DIY solid-state amp, which I know like the back of my hands. The HE-560 has since been outfitted with Focus Pads A instead of the original Focus Pads, and the A pads soften the sound of the HE-560 even more, so it was even darker than how it was. But... this DT880 600 Ohm that I just picked up is even darker than this already darkened HE-560.

Amp synergy? Perhaps. I know my DIY amp has an output impedance that is ridiculously low since the output is directly from the op amp without resistors, etc... in the path. The Schiit Lyr 2 might have a higher output impedance that might have interacted with the impedance curve of the DT880 Pro 250, but... I honestly doubt that given the damping factor is still ridiculously high. And of course the HE-560 is not affected by output impedance at all... being that it's planar magnetic.

So... maybe I'm crazy, but seriously, I'd call this DT880 600 Ohm as being "dark" rather than "bright". And that's why I'm so impressed.

Just my ignorant opinion, but when I compared a pair of 32 Ohm DT880 to a pair of 600 Ohm Beyer DT880 I had a really hard time telling them apart.
The 600 Ohm version seemed to have smoother treble, but that was about it.

Maybe it's just me, but despite what Beyer says, the 32 and 600 Ohm versions sound almost identical.

 

[MrEleventy]

Just my ignorant opinion, but when I compared a pair of 32 Ohm DT880 to a pair of 600 Ohm Beyer DT880 I had a really hard time telling them apart.
The 600 Ohm version seemed to have smoother treble, but that was about it.

Maybe it's just me, but despite what Beyer says, the 32 and 600 Ohm versions sound almost identical.

Benefit of the doubt but... he did say it was the Pros and that one seems to have a confirmed variance (Mainly due to clamp but hey, it's a difference.).

 

[Deltron 3030]

The e09k should be pretty substantial for the 600ohm then? I won't be gimp ingredients myself at the least by buying 600ohm over 250? Also, for anyone who has heard both, should the Beyers have a more forward midrange than the Denon ahd2000's? I loved my Denons, but I did often wish the mids were more forward.

 

[Chris J]

Benefit of the doubt but... he did say it was the Pros and that one seems to have a confirmed variance (Mainly due to clamp but hey, it's a difference.).

It's just my opinion, nothing more!

 

[MrEleventy]

The e09k should be pretty substantial for the 600ohm then? I won't be gimp ingredients myself at the least by buying 600ohm over 250? Also, for anyone who has heard both, should the Beyers have a more forward midrange than the Denon ahd2000's? I loved my Denons, but I did often wish the mids were more forward.

I can only offer this comparison going off of my memory of the dt880s as I don't have the 880s anymore but I remember the 880's mids being a little warmer and slightly more forward.

It's just my opinion, nothing more!

It's all good!

 

[No_One411]

I actually obtained them because a friend of mine was interested, and I had to jump the gun for him. (Sorry!)

But then... I just had to listen.

Man, it truly is the best DT880 I have heard... to date!

It's like the embodiment of all of the cliche'd 880 reviews like...

Strong bass, present mids, smooth highs, expansive soundstage, etc...

When I first heard the HE-560, I liked how balanced the sound was, and that's why I got it over the LCD-XC, which was the other ortho on my radar at the time.

But this one is just as balanced, or even more so than my HE-560.

So I am thinking hard about whether or not I should just keep it.

Testing my amp aside, it is a very enjoyable headphone.

Talking about which, I am thinking about releasing a commercial version of my amp for the mass market. If there is indeed so little difference between different versions of the DT880, then I guess my amp has good synergy with it. Trying to shoot for $200 final price since any higher and I'll bump into the Crack, which is a very fine piece of work, and also happens to be my reference sound when I'm designing my amp.

The DT-880 I had a long time ago was one of my favorite headphones. This was the 2003' edition with the flat grills. The Pro version we heard during our mini meet seemed a bit bright to me. The treble just wasn't as controlled. I will however, agree that the 600 ohm version does control the treble better, and sounds overall more resolving. Have you tried it out of an OTL amplifier? I personally think the DT-880 600 ohm is one of the best headphones that Beyerdynamic ever produced. The newer Tesla models sound terribly harsh imo, and I think the DT-880 is what I'd return to if I ever decide to pick up a pair again.
 

Just my ignorant opinion, but when I compared a pair of 32 Ohm DT880 to a pair of 600 Ohm Beyer DT880 I had a really hard time telling them apart.
The 600 Ohm version seemed to have smoother treble, but that was about it.

Maybe it's just me, but despite what Beyer says, the 32 and 600 Ohm versions sound almost identical.

Which amplifier were you using? The 600 ohms sound best out of an OTL amplifier imo, and don't really start singing until they are properly powered. With that said, I will agree that the differences are quite minimal. In a nutshell, the 600 ohm offers better control over the driver, and sounds smoother, which is a huge plus for people who find the DT-880 on the bright side. 
 

  If you ever decide to go closed again don't rule out the Alpha Dog if you like the ortho sound. I've heard the AD sitting next to the LCD-XC and Fostex TH900 at the LA Head-fi meet. The AD was the winner and in almost every category (being beat by the LCD-XC in overall bass and soundstage). But the AD wiped the floor with them when it  came to comfort, balanced sound, and price to performance.

I'm not a fan of the Alpha Dog. It's not a reflection of Mrspeakers. I think he had created a great product, and deserves recognition for his productization of 3-D cups. It's just that the Alpha Dogs aren't that well suited for me. 
 
I do prefer them to most of the Audeze headphones, especially with regards to fit and form factor. None of the Audeze headphones are extremely comfortable for me, and I definitely prefer the Alpha Dogs on comfort alone. 

 

[Chris J]

Which amplifier were you using? The 600 ohms sound best out of an OTL amplifier imo, and don't really start singing until they are properly powered. With that said, I will agree that the differences are quite minimal. In a nutshell, the 600 ohm offers better control over the driver, and sounds smoother, which is a huge plus for people who find the DT-880 on the bright side. 

I normally used a La Figaro 336C OTL tube amp with various NOS tubes.
I also used a Matrix M Stage headphone amp with an LM4562 Op Amp.
Occasionally I used a FiiO E09K headphone amp.

 

[No_One411]

I normally used a La Figaro 336C OTL tube amp with various NOS tubes.
I also used a Matrix M Stage headphone amp with an LM4562 Op Amp.
Occasionally I used a FiiO E09K headphone amp.

Fair enough. There should be no problems with the amplifiers you used. 
 
I agree that the differences between the versions are minimal. For me at least, I did prefer the 600 ohm version to the 250 and 32 ohm version. With that said, my favorite was the older 2003" 250 ohm version with the flat grills so...

 

[pp312]

And that was because....

 

[Bill-P]

Just my ignorant opinion, but when I compared a pair of 32 Ohm DT880 to a pair of 600 Ohm Beyer DT880 I had a really hard time telling them apart.
The 600 Ohm version seemed to have smoother treble, but that was about it.

Maybe it's just me, but despite what Beyer says, the 32 and 600 Ohm versions sound almost identical.

 
I haven't heard the 32 Ohm DT880, to be honest, so I can't quite comment on that.
 
And I'm not implying that there is necessarily a difference between the 250 Ohm and 600 Ohm DT880... but the DT880 600 that I have right now does sound very smooth and slightly dark compared to the Pro one that I heard earlier.
 
Now if we were talking about the DT770, I would honestly disagree that the 32 and 600 Ohm versions sound "identical", simply because they have different dampening properties. I have not found a real reason to open up the DT880 yet, so I have not investigated that, but if what I found for the DT770 applies here, then Beyer does damp some of their headphones differently. Perhaps it is that difference in damping materials that causes the differences between these headphones.
 
Plus... tonally, some headphones can sound almost identical (like the DT880 does sound very much like the HE-560), but when the right source material plays back... the difference would still become apparent.

On the other hand, though, the number of tracks in my music collection that can reliably show that the HE-560 is above the DT880 is about 30%... so that says something.
 

Benefit of the doubt but... he did say it was the Pros and that one seems to have a confirmed variance (Mainly due to clamp but hey, it's a difference.).

 
Tightening the clamp on these DT880 600 doesn't make them brighter. In fact, it makes them even smoother, and sibilance is even less pronounced, though not at the relaxing level of my ES10 or HE-560... It's still very bearable compared to the last time I owned a DT880 600 + O2 combo.
 

  The DT-880 I had a long time ago was one of my favorite headphones. This was the 2003' edition with the flat grills. The Pro version we heard during our mini meet seemed a bit bright to me. The treble just wasn't as controlled. I will however, agree that the 600 ohm version does control the treble better, and sounds overall more resolving. Have you tried it out of an OTL amplifier? I personally think the DT-880 600 ohm is one of the best headphones that Beyerdynamic ever produced. The newer Tesla models sound terribly harsh imo, and I think the DT-880 is what I'd return to if I ever decide to pick up a pair again.

 
To be perfectly fair, I have heard good pairs of the new Tesla models, and when they are good, they are... quite good. This DT880 600 that I have here still surprises me because it's not just smooth and resolving, but that it has a certain lushness to the sound as well. I don't think anyone can call this headphone "harsh" by any standard. Even the very rare sibilance it produces is a soft sound rather than a sharp piercing sound.
 
The whole presentation is softer and more polite than the usual Beyer sound... and it just makes me wonder how I have missed this... since I have owned and auditioned the DT880 600 quite a few times already, and it has never quite sounded like this. Even out of a good OTL amp, the DT880 didn't quite sound this lush. This is out of a solid-state amp, no less.
 
And since you know me, I think you'd see that when I say a headphone is "dark", it really is quite dark. My standard of neutrality is typically darker than most folks.

 

[Strangelove424]

How well does the 600 ohm version handle Bach organ music? Would their "slowness" be a negative? Also what amps can be paired with them for under $200 (preferably closer to $100.) Maybe with amping limited to that pricerange I would be better off with the 250ohms? Would the Schiit Magni or O2 be a bad choice? Would I miss anything my old Denon ahd2000's paired with a fiio e 11 offered me? Would mostly be listening to classical with vocal and organ music both being important subgenres to consider.

The DT880 600ohm manages to capture Bach's complex fugues like no other headphone I tried. They separate instruments into 3d space, capture alot of low bass texture with suppleness and taut cleanliness, and they render the chorus beautifully. Sometime words fail music, and when I speak about the DT880s and Bach, words fail me... it's just incredibly good. It manages to capture every minuscule precise detail, yet still captures the overall grandness of his pieces. Even in a roaring crescendo, your ears filled with competing frequencies, in a wall of organs, strings, and chorus weaving in and out of one another, you can still hear the gritty detail of an orchestra member turning a page. Sometimes I just take the headphones off, and go "wow".  

 

[Deltron 3030]

The DT880 600ohm manages to capture Bach's complex fugues like no other headphone I tried. They separate instruments into 3d space, capture alot of low bass texture with suppleness and taut cleanliness, and they render the chorus beautifully. Sometime words fail music, and when I speak about the DT880s and Bach, words fail me... it's just incredibly good. It manages to capture every minuscule precise detail, yet still captures the overall grandness of his pieces. Even in a roaring crescendo, your ears filled with competing frequencies, in a wall of organs, strings, and chorus weaving in and out of one another, you can still hear the gritty detail of an orchestra member turning a page. Sometimes I just take the headphones off, and go "wow".  

That sounds wonderful.... What other headphones have you heard..?

If they are that good at Bach fugues and such I'm pretty sold...

 

[Strangelove424]

That sounds wonderful.... What other headphones have you heard..?

If they are that good at Bach fugues and such I'm pretty sold...

Of those in the same league as the DT880, I've heard the Sennheiser HD600 compared here at home and that sounded great tone-wise but fell apart separating instruments in the complex Bach pieces and a K701 at a friend's house that was very nice with chamber and strings but sounded artificial and too spacey for my liking. Plus they were missing the bass that the Beyers have. It's really hard to describe just how much presence the Beyer bass can have. I was just listening to the Prelude and Fugue in G Major as I wrote that above post and at one point there was so much sub bass it felt like my headband was vibrating. Yet it never beats you over the head with a bass hump like the HD600s, or loses texture of detail. It's a sumptuous, finely textured bass and compliments organs very well.
 
Also, speaking of speed in classical... he's not quite Bach, but a composer I recently have been getting alot into is Vivaldi and his Mandolin Concertos are some of the fastest classical music I've heard, though probably closer to chamber music. Not complex, but really fast. The Beyers also handle those extremely well. and have made those mandolin concertos a favorite of mine.