[Liu Junyuan]

Nope if you re cable the Beyed DTs to balanced you can connect your cans to a SE amps using an adapter cable jack 6.3 -> XLR.
You have to connect the L- and R- to common ground on the final jack plug (this is the original configuration).

I see. Thanks.

 

[macm75]

I have been using, solely using, 600ohm DT880's for 3 or 4 years now - after years of searching and swapping before, the 600ohm 880's were the first headphone that satisfied my ears and were in my budget.  Knowing that I would never splurge on Audeze, I investigated a potential spare pair of 600/880's and noticed this version is not as prevalent in the marketplace as it once was.  I still see the 32ohm and 250ohm versions sold most of the normal places but not the 600ohm.  B&H, for instance, only carries the 250 and HeadRoom only carries the 32 and 250. Although I still see the 600 on the Beyerdynamic site, the signs out there indicate little interest for the 600.  
These headphones have been around for a long time, at one time had "flagship" status.  Are their days numbered?

 

[onebigunion]

Possibly.  With the emphasis on "portable" sound and sources (not that the 880 is suitable for that anyway, being big and open), 600 ohms is just too hard for a portable to drive to a sufficient volume. 32 ohms is much more suited to non-amped applications and even the 250 ohm version could possibly be driven my many portable sources.  Beyer, being an audiophile company, would likely not completely discontinue the 600 ohm, although if sales are very very low, you never know.
 
600 ohms is a BIG load.  If I were interested in these I'd probably look at the 250 ohm with my JDS O2.  The Bryston pre-amp would LOVE the 600 though.  High impedance cans with the BP-25 seem to work magic (120 ohms output impedance).

 

[Chris J]

Possibly.  With the emphasis on "portable" sound and sources (not that the 880 is suitable for that anyway, being big and open), 600 ohms is just too hard for a portable to drive to a sufficient volume. 32 ohms is much more suited to non-amped applications and even the 250 ohm version could possibly be driven my many portable sources.  Beyer, being an audiophile company, would likely not completely discontinue the 600 ohm, although if sales are very very low, you never know.

600 ohms is a BIG load.  If I were interested in these I'd probably look at the 250 ohm with my JDS O2.  The Bryston pre-amp would LOVE the 600 though.  High impedance cans with the BP-25 seem to work magic (120 ohms output impedance).

600 Ohm DT880s draw just as much power as 32 Ohm DT880s.
The difference is:
600 Ohms requires a bit more voltage, and draws a little less current,
32 Ohms requires a little less voltage, and draws a little more current.
Most portable amps don't swing enough voltage for 600 Ohm cans.

 

[Allucid]

Possibly.  With the emphasis on "portable" sound and sources (not that the 880 is suitable for that anyway, being big and open), 600 ohms is just too hard for a portable to drive to a sufficient volume. 32 ohms is much more suited to non-amped applications and even the 250 ohm version could possibly be driven my many portable sources.  Beyer, being an audiophile company, would likely not completely discontinue the 600 ohm, although if sales are very very low, you never know.

600 ohms is a BIG load.  If I were interested in these I'd probably look at the 250 ohm with my JDS O2.  The Bryston pre-amp would LOVE the 600 though.  High impedance cans with the BP-25 seem to work magic (120 ohms output impedance).

600 Ohm DT880s draw just as much power as 32 Ohm DT880s.
The difference is:
600 Ohms requires a bit more voltage, and draws a little less current,
32 Ohms requires a little less voltage, and draws a little more current.
Most portable amps don't swing enough voltage for 600 Ohm cans.

My iPhone 5 can drive the 600ohm Beyers. Not as it would with an amp, but it makes speech and audio sound like you're in the same room.

 

[Chris J]

My iPhone 5 can drive the 600ohm Beyers. Not as it would with an amp, but it makes speech and audio sound like you're in the same room.

Thanks for pointing that out.
I had forgotten that I used to own a FiiO E17 DAC/Amp.
It's a wee little portable thing.
It didn't do a bad job of driving my 600 Ohm Beyer DT880s!

 

[Bill-P]

Technically, I think what's missing there is "gain" rather than just high voltage. Most modern music likely won't require an insanely high voltage to get the DT880 600 to play loud, but the built-in amp of mobile devices typically have very low gain, so they won't be able to get the voltage at output to play loud enough.
 
For instance, let's say... phone has a built-in gain of 2x. One song plays at 1Vrms, so the DT880 will receive 2Vrms at output. Technically should be enough for about 70-80dB listen, I think (just rough estimations here, no actual calculation was done). Another song plays at 0.5Vrms, so the DT880 will receive only 1Vrms here. Think those Youtube videos with the audio attenuated to hell. 

 
Those are the times that an amplifier will be necessary IMO. Otherwise, the DT880 600 should technically be less susceptible to noise and other stuffs that the 32 Ohm version would otherwise be sensitive to.

 

[Me x3]

  Technically, I think what's missing there is "gain" rather than just high voltage. Most modern music likely won't require an insanely high voltage to get the DT880 600 to play loud, but the built-in amp of mobile devices typically have very low gain, so they won't be able to get the voltage at output to play loud enough.
 
For instance, let's say... phone has a built-in gain of 2x. One song plays at 1Vrms, so the DT880 will receive 2Vrms at output. Technically should be enough for about 70-80dB listen, I think (just rough estimations here, no actual calculation was done). Another song plays at 0.5Vrms, so the DT880 will receive only 1Vrms here. Think those Youtube videos with the audio attenuated to hell. 

 
Those are the times that an amplifier will be necessary IMO. Otherwise, the DT880 600 should technically be less susceptible to noise and other stuffs that the 32 Ohm version would otherwise be sensitive to.

 
I share some of your views, with shy recordings you only need more gain, otherwise, there's extra power in the amp that you can't use.
 
The main problem I see is that increasing the gain, what you get is a clipping machine, that will work best with shy recordings and just as good with loud recordings, but folks with no audio knowledge (the vast majority) would just crank up the volume and hear distortion at unhealthy levels.
 
That's indeed the case with Fiio E10, in 'High Gain' it starts clipping quite soon with most recordings (potentiometer at 70%).
And despite the E10 being much more powerful than a smartphone or ipod, and despite being a product for a much smaller and knowledgeable market, I've seen people with 250 Ohm Beyers complaining about clipping at those high levels.

 

[Chris J]

I share some of your views, with shy recordings you only need more gain, otherwise, there's extra power in the amp that you can't use.

The main problem I see is that increasing the gain, what you get is a clipping machine, that will work best with shy recordings and just as good with loud recordings, but folks with no audio knowledge (the vast majority) would just crank up the volume and hear distortion at unhealthy levels.

That's indeed the case with Fiio E10, in 'High Gain' it starts clipping quite soon with most recordings (potentiometer at 70%).
And despite the E10 being much more powerful than a smartphone or ipod, and despite being a product for a much smaller and knowledgeable market, I've seen people with 250 Ohm Beyers complaining about clipping at those high levels.

People often view the Gain control as some kind of audio tweak you can adjust for more sound, etc.
It's really just to optimize the operating parameters of your amp to your headphones, match the sensitivity of your headphones to your amp.

 

[onebigunion]

600 Ohm DT880s draw just as much power as 32 Ohm DT880s.
The difference is:
600 Ohms requires a bit more voltage, and draws a little less current,
32 Ohms requires a little less voltage, and draws a little more current.
Most portable amps don't swing enough voltage for 600 Ohm cans.

That's what I was trying to say.  You said it better though.

   My Sansa clip with 0.5 volts output can drive the Senn 600, just not very well.  Volume is marginal, dynamics are lost, and sound is muddied.    I think my 02 which can put out a bit over 3 volts paired with the clip could probably drive the 600 ohms, but it might be tough.  It has plenty of voltage swing for the Senn 600.

 

[CADCAM]

People often view the Gain control as some kind of audio tweak you can adjust for more sound, etc.
It's really just to optimize the operating parameters of your amp to your headphones, match the sensitivity of your headphones to your amp.

 
Quick question, I listen trough 3 different drives one Onkyo cd the other 2 are DVD drives and the O2 works great on all of them... seems to have plenty of power. What is the typical output of a stand alone cd player? I want to say it's 2V but am not sure. How does this affect the output while listening to a headphone like the DT880 600ohm? 
You can give me the 4th grade version so I can understand it

 
thanks

 

[onebigunion]

   
Quick question, I listen trough 3 different drives one Onkyo cd the other 2 are DVD drives and the O2 works great on all of them... seems to have plenty of power. What is the typical output of a stand alone cd player? I want to say it's 2V but am not sure. How does this affect the output while listening to a headphone like the DT880 600ohm? 
You can give me the 4th grade version so I can understand it

 
thanks

Most, but not all, home stereo and theater components put out a 2 volt signal.  If you have your 02 set to 25x gain, you will have 5 volts max, at 6.5x gain, you will have 13 volts max.  That should be enough to properly drive nearly all dynamic headphones with plenty of headroom for peaks.

 

[StiltsNZ]

Forgive my ignorance, but I run my 600 ohm 880s through the O2 and find it handles anything comfortably. I barely have to push the volume past 1-2 o'clock. I am unaware of how you would adjust the gain on it - can you explain both how you would do that and more importantly, why, when it handles pushing the 600 ohm 880s fine with no adjustment?
 
In saying that, I tried the T1s through my O2 at a meet and just wept, They sound ridiculously better than my 880s.

 

 

[CADCAM]

  Forgive my ignorance, but I run my 600 ohm 880s through the O2 and find it handles anything comfortably. I barely have to push the volume past 1-2 o'clock. I am unaware of how you would adjust the gain on it - can you explain both how you would do that and more importantly, why, when it handles pushing the 600 ohm 880s fine with no adjustment?
 
In saying that, I tried the T1s through my O2 at a meet and just wept, They sound ridiculously better than my 880s.

 

1-2 o'clock! Yikes I never get past maybe noon. Mine is stock gain with 2.5 & 6 I believe. O2 amps have a gain switch, front panel looks like an arrow pointing right. Be careful hitting it.
I am coming out of a cd player and an external DAC, usually I'm listening around 10:30-11:00 (2.5X) on the Beyers.
BTW grew up listening to Dream Theater.

 

[Shaffer]

I don't know how you guys can stand listening to the DT880 with an O2. It sounds like sand.