[Makiah S]

So at the end of the day I got the ATH a900x for $93! Used on eBay WITH a return. Golden ears reviews have the ATH a900x with more transparency better dynamics an more natrual sound than the w1000x [which is a good thing seeing as I modded me w1000x to have more of what it lacked]
 
In addition, Goldean ears has the Bass NOT nearly as Solid as the w1000x [wait what] or the Dt 990, and to be honest for a $90 portable Full Size, I'm happy with what the data shows. the ONLY thing the K550 [based on Golden Ears Review] does better is in treble texture, the ATH a900x being a little rough and the K550 being a little softer but the price differance of well $100 [btw my ath a900x is used from eBay with box <3] 
 
So that being said I ERANESTLY look forward to it's arrival! As it should sound pretty wonderul! 

 

[Bill-P]

I heard the A900X.
 
It's nice. But the sound is far more closed in than I thought.
 
And I don't think the bass measures up to the level of W1000X.
 
But at that price, it's a good value. 

 

[Makiah S]

I heard the A900X.

It's nice. But the sound is far more closed in than I thought.

And I don't think the bass measures up to the level of W1000X.

But at that price, it's a good value. 

Bass as in quanity or quality. The w1000x is almost to much... n that is with mods. N I will see how closed it sounds. Height i can live without a touch. but width n quick decay r a must. ofc i can always mod it simmilarly to my w1000x. although i do plan on getting A1000 pads. which tighten the sound stage up from what i have heard ( n alot of ppl confirm this) really need my wii to sell to pay for pads! hoping at least 135 for it n some extras.

still. with a c5 it should pair nicely... n when i want mo bass the c5 boosts it

but i will see soon

 

[cdbob]

I just picked up a pair of 600 OHM DT880s on sale for $250 Now all I need to get is a decent DAC/Headphone amp combo and I'm set.
 
I'm just wondering, has anyone used these things with mixing boards or stage pianos and if so did those items have enough juice to power these things sufficiently?

 

[Argyris]

Quote:

I just picked up a pair of 600 OHM DT880s on sale for $250 Now all I need to get is a decent DAC/Headphone amp combo and I'm set.
 
I'm just wondering, has anyone used these things with mixing boards or stage pianos and if so did those items have enough juice to power these things sufficiently?

 
I have the 250 ohm version, so mine is somewhat more efficient than yours, but my small tabletop mixer powers my pair with plenty of headroom to spare. Same with my digital piano on the rare occasion these days I use its built-in sounds.
 
As you can probably imagine, though, it's going to come down to the specific hardware in question. But I know it can be done, and my equipment isn't very exotic.
 
Of course if you want a dedicated amp, there's nothing stopping you exploring that option. But I'd say if you find your existing equipment gives you enough volume, that should give you a fundamental idea what the DT880 sounds like, and a headphone amp is just going to let you squeeze out that last bit of potential.

 

[Makiah S]

Quote:

 
I have the 250 ohm version, so mine is somewhat more efficient than yours, but my small tabletop mixer powers my pair with plenty of headroom to spare. Same with my digital piano on the rare occasion these days I use its built-in sounds.
 
As you can probably imagine, though, it's going to come down to the specific hardware in question. But I know it can be done, and my equipment isn't very exotic.
 
Of course if you want a dedicated amp, there's nothing stopping you exploring that option. But I'd say if you find your existing equipment gives you enough volume, that should give you a fundamental idea what the DT880 sounds like, and a headphone amp is just going to let you squeeze out that last bit of potential.

Honestly a GOOD headphone amp will really make those cans sound wonderful! I used a little Hybrid Tube for the longest time and I LOVED it, where as my Solid State offered a slighty different but equally awesome song! So The Dt 880s like amps, different ones change them just enough to keep their flavor and Byer House Sound, but a good amp will make them even more wonderful! 

 

[Jacques]

I bought a Meridian Explorer yesterday from my local audio dealer in Calgary. At 325.00 $CAN, it is reasonably priced. The packaging is nice without been outrageous and the device feels well made.
 
Mine was factory sealed and had an older firmware. It might explain the “ordinary sound”, right off the box. The upgrade to v.1349, made a significant difference. It drives my Beyerdynamic DT880 600 ohms very well. So well that I haven’t tried my other cans (AKG K501, Beyer DT48e, Sony MDR-7506) yet.
 
I will try to write a review in few days but so far it works well with the DT880.

 

[Chris J]

 
I have the 250 ohm version, so mine is somewhat more efficient than yours, but my small tabletop mixer powers my pair with plenty of headroom to spare.

 
I'm getting pedantic here, but the 250 and the 600 Ohm are approx. the same efficiency: i.e. they take the same amount of power to drive. But 250 is more sensitive: they take less Voltage to drive than the 600 Ohm version.

 

[Makiah S]

The K550 is here, super faster inital thoughts, Upper mids as just as nice as the w1000x, I mean those upper mids and treble are beautiful. Bass is good actually! Double Bass in Jazz tune sounds great, but the LOWER MIDS. The lower mids are DEAD and DRUMS are also DEAD. A headphone that does Double Bass well but fails with drums... >.> a closed DT 880 this is not...
 
Still these upper mids are heavenly! [and yes the fit is epic] 

 

[Argyris]

Quote:

 
I'm getting pedantic here, but the 250 and the 600 Ohm are approx. the same efficiency: i.e. they take the same amount of power to drive.But 250 is more sensitive: they take less Voltage to drive than the 600 Ohm version.

 
Naw, don't worry about it. I'm glad somebody's here to sort this stuff out. It's better that the right information is given, even if it's just setting the terminology straight. I'll make sure I remember this distinction for the future.

 

[shane55]

Quote:

I just picked up a pair of 600 OHM DT880s on sale for $250 Now all I need to get is a decent DAC/Headphone amp combo and I'm set.
 
I'm just wondering, has anyone used these things with mixing boards or stage pianos and if so did those items have enough juice to power these things sufficiently?

 
One of the things that came out of last weekends headphone meet out here in CA is how great the DT880-600 sound being powered by the Audio-gd NFB-11 I had set up.
I've got both the NFB 11 and 12 and the 880 really sound great with these. They are slightly warm and have tons of headroom.
They are discontinued, but I'm sure other Audio-gd products sound equally as rich. And you can sometimes find them used...
 
I realize this has nothing to do with mixing boards.

 

[Makiah S]

In case you guys missed it, the K550 had worse lower mids than the DT 880. Which on my matrix the Dt 880 had some down right sexy low mids, the upper mids where always middle of the road but I'm shocked something had less mids than a Dt 880 q.q [btw I stop bass at about 200hrz,] Also Low mids [or upper bass if you'd like to call it that] terribad on AKG K550, glad I'm onyl demo'n these >.> still cost me $20 to hear em though xD 

 

[devhen]

Quote:

In case you guys missed it, the K550 had worse lower mids than the DT 880. Which on my matrix the Dt 880 had some down right sexy low mids, the upper mids where always middle of the road but I'm shocked something had less mids than a Dt 880 q.q [btw I stop bass at about 200hrz,] Also Low mids [or upper bass if you'd like to call it that] terribad on AKG K550, glad I'm onyl demo'n these >.> still cost me $20 to hear em though xD 

 
Really? I would think there are tons of headphones out there with less mids than the DT880, particularly closed cans. The DT770 for example. Other than the more recessed mids the DT770 are definitely a "closed DT880". They use the same drivers and have an amazingly wide and open soundstage for closed cans that is quite close to that of the DT880. The overall presentation and treble detail is also very similar to the DT880. Unless you are speaking solely on terms of sound signature, I would say the DT770 is more of a "closed DT880" than any other headphone out there considering the fact that they are essentially identical aside from one being closed and the other being semi-open.
 
EDIT: I should mention, in terms of sound signature, the DT770 also has more bass than the DT880. This is probably part of the reason for the more recessed midrange. However, there have been many reports of wildly varying DT770s. I had one in the past that didn't really have any more bass than the DT880 and was brighter than it. My current DT770 Premium 600 ohm is quite bassy and no brighter than my DT880. The mids are recessed because of the ample bass which gets on my nerves from time to time but other than that I absolutely love everything else about my DT770 and I do reach for them when I want an experience similar to my DT880 Pro but with more isolation.

 

[Bill-P]

Quote:

Bass as in quanity or quality. The w1000x is almost to much... n that is with mods. N I will see how closed it sounds. Height i can live without a touch. but width n quick decay r a must. ofc i can always mod it simmilarly to my w1000x. although i do plan on getting A1000 pads. which tighten the sound stage up from what i have heard ( n alot of ppl confirm this) really need my wii to sell to pay for pads! hoping at least 135 for it n some extras.

still. with a c5 it should pair nicely... n when i want mo bass the c5 boosts it

but i will see soon

 
Both quantity and quality. W1000X is indeed too much if your frame of reference is something like DT880... DT990... but it's not really that much more than D7000 or TH900. And I have heard something with far more (read: significantly more pronounced) bass than W1000X. Imagine that.

 
Also got to hear wolfetan's cocobolo DT880. It was... interesting to look at. Though I could only detect a slight hint of warmth. It seems like the semi-open design of the DT880 negates much of the benefits of the wood. I'm kinda wondering how it would sound fully closed... (with small openings along the edges as bass ports, not unlike the W1000X)
 
I heard the ATH-AD2000X recently. I think... that one would fit you to a tee.

More treble, more open, bigger soundstage than W1000X. Clearer midrange as well. With bass that's just there and not too intrusive at all. It was like Audio Technica took a HD800 and made the midrange more prominent.

 

[MinedSafe]

I got my 880 250 last week. I must say I wasn't impressed the first time I listened to them. I have a pair of HD 595 as weel. But since they are new I decided to give them a chance. Surely comparing to 595 the mids are recesed but eveything else is just way much better.They started to open up after a week. Soundstage got bigger and overall balance got improved. Good separation on instruments. I like them better than HD 595 witch I put on sale recently. I had Beyers connected to Xperia Z and my Vintage Grundig V1700 ( after few modifications) The sound is rich, full and has a smooth treble not loosing clarity the same time. I will get miself iPod 5th gen as with its bright sound signature might be good companion for my amp and headphones.

I was also thinking about recabling them but im not sure is that a good idea since they will be very hard to sell at some stage ( if I decide to upgrade in few months)

Pretty much I like them while the first impression wasn't good.