[Mortalcoil]

  Back off topic... as many of the above posts highlight including Twerk's, this thing is a journey. I think jumping straight from something like Pro-900 to TH-900 may be too fast to appreciate the differences, but each to their own. It took me quite a few purchases and headphones to work out what signature I was after.
I went (approximately) over the last 5 or so years: Shure srh840 -> Beyer T70 -> Pro-900 -> HE-400 -> TH-600. Each and every one seemed like a fairly significant upgrade to me and I was hearing and appreciating new things in my music collection. If you go straight to the 'summit' you're going to miss some of that journey and also you'll still feel the need to 'upgrade' one day - to what, $5k 'phones? There's nothing wrong with lusting after an 'upgrade' but being a realist and putting a hold on it until you can afford it. Its good sometimes to appreciate what you have until you're ready.
 
To me the TH600 was a  massive step up from the HE-400 in so many ways, and easily worth over 2x the cost. But at the same time I remember being blown away when I first heard the he400s and that planar sound. As I also was when I got my first good pair of studio monitor speakers, until I eventually realised they were far from flat and were being heavily coloured by the acoustics of my room (reflections) - which is why I love headphones so much, the only 'extra' colouration may come from the source.
 
Anyway, personally knowing that the TH900 are only 5-10% better (or different) than the TH600, they're not different enough for me to upgrade from 600 to 900 (ever). Not interested, period. If I were to go a different route one day it would be to wait for Fostex to bring out something new and even better, or jump to something like LCD-X or Stax SR009. But to me those are not headphones for listening while looking at a computer screen and doing other stuff. They are for closing your eyes and sitting there and doing nothing but listen. Something I don't do very often, and I doubt many of us here do much. So its a bit of a waste IMO.
 
Anyways, a great home set of 'phones and an enjoyable office set will do me fine.

It is in this hobby that 5% - 10% increase in quality that costs the extra $. It may be worth it to some to others not.  If I could do it all over again I would try and shoot for a top tier headphone right off the bat,  and in turn save some money.  I was also a believer that the differences were so minute between a flagship and its siblings that the cost associated with such upgrades were not worth it.
 
I have learnt otherwise over the years.  And although I agree the journey can be enjoyable,  the idea of owning a top tier headphone really rocks also.  Given a few more years here or in the hobby in general even your opinions may change  

 
Besides,  judging by what headphones TWerk has owned (owns) I'm sure he feels he's "journeyed" enough. 
 
Once you begin living with the "higher end" your point of reference changes considerably and so does your ear.

 

[sloomingbla]

And i decided to go straight from an hfi 580 to a signature dj. Lol.

But... I think (hopefully) i have reached a point in quality where i feel another upgrade in quality may not upgrade the music, if that makes sense. Everything sounds perfect to me, i still get the wow factor every time i listen to my music.

Also, i wouldnt factor in the price of an amp as that is a purchase you can get down the line

 

[pietcux]

Today I had a very impressive listening with the Signature DJ. I am deeply into Pink Floyd as a group and into Roger Waters as a composer. Today I had a listen to the latest Waters album in my inventory, which is the first solo album he did. It is named The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking from 1984.
 
ALAC IPOD Classic > LOD > FIIO E12 low gain / bass boost active > Ultrasone Signature DJ = 950 € (I got the DJ for 550€ mint on Ebay more than a year ago)
 
I was simply blown away from the sound I was confronted with.
 

1. perfect bass for Rock music no distortion, only impact, dry, controlled and mind-blowing
2. perfect mids with all the different voices that are presented by the different artists, all are cleanly separated and placed on a big stage
3. perfect treble presentation, nothing gets lost, no peak at the wrong (7k) frequency

 
Anybody that takes his time to evaluate such a setup for a longer period before upgrading will get all his spent money return as pure musical bliss, and will still be in a reasonable price bracket that wont kill his wallet. This high level of fascination will keep me from upgraditis for some time I think.
 
 
Can the Ultrasone Signature DJ be used for all kinds of music?
Yes it can, I have yet to find a genre that it cannot do best for me.

 

[Mortalcoil]

Agreed....the Sig series is very versatile and without a doubt top performers.

 

[erod]

I posted in here a while ago about how it's worth it to go for the top if you can afford it right away. A lot of people came out saying that they preferred the journey of going from one HP to the other. If you're going to end uo there anyway and you can fly directly, why not just do it?
 
I jumped from Denon D-1100 straight to Sig DJ. No regrets here.
 
I use Sig DJ at home, but I love the fact that I can take it out if I wanted to. I did take them on the plane once, but even their great isolation couldn't drown out that engine noise.
 
I don't even have upgraditis anymore. The TH-900 would be my next purchase if I ever got it, though. I would need a loan from the bank to get them and a proper amp.

 

[AnakChan]

I think the audio journey isn't solely on learning and searching what is best to one's ears but also for changes in ones preferences. The SigDJ is very good. It does most things well, not all, but most.
 
The TH-900, like the SigDJ, isn't very demanding at all. Of course various amps will tweak it in different ways but it's not like T50RP-based or Audeze headphones where it "needs" a certain kind of amp to drive it well. As for cost, well that's a different matter (having said that, Sonic Sense had the TH-900 for $1100 which was $200 more than the SigDJ. They have since moved the price back up).

 

[Trance_Gott]

Hello,
 
I'm searching a Ultrasone Signature DJ. Preferred location EU. When someone want to sell please send me an PM.
 
Regards
Thomas

 

[sofastreamer]

 just sell me your 3000 anv and you could get a new one

 

[Trance_Gott]

 

 just sell me your 3000 anv and you could get a new one

My great and amazing W3000ANV is not for sale at the moment. 

 

[Trance_Gott]

Has someone compared these to Shure SRH-1540?

 

[sofastreamer]

 

[gelocks]

  Has someone compared these to Shure SRH-1540?

 
Yeah, it's all about preference but based on sound only I would keep the DJs (and I did )
Really the only things that Shure has over the Sig DJs are: lower price and comfort.
Ultrasone has better clarity throughout, wider soundstage, more powerful bass response, non subdued highs. They also isolate and have better leakage control.
The Shure has a fun v-shape (almost) sound signature with big mid-bass, excellent even mids with "safe" highs. They excel the DJs in imaging I felt at the time. But these leak a whole lot (at least at the volume I usually listen to in the office...)
 
For the price though, the 1540s would be keepers if you only need 1 headphone. But like most of us, we have different headphones for different moods/situations/etc. I didn't feel that the 1540s were going to replace my bassy headphones, nor my more "balanced" headphones.
 
There's nothing better than your owns ears though!
Hope you can try them both and share your views.
 
 
Thanks.

 

[sofastreamer]

+1 and the bass of the shures is not as well controlled as it is on the djs.

 

[Trance_Gott]

Thanks all!
I think I will wait for someone selling his DJ to me 

 

[TWerk]

Update!!!
 
In a week or so, I will be a proud owner of the SIG DJ's! 
 
I decided to go for these instead of Fostex 600/900. I'm sure down the line I will try a Fostex, but for now, I couldn't be more excited and happy about buying this HP. It just feels right to start my summit fi with an Ultrasone, since my PRO 900 was my first good quality HP...
 
Will let you guys know my impressions next week!