[folie]

Hello , some year or two ago I had bought myself a pair of dt770 pro's ( initially wanted some open backs but decided to go with closed backs because of roommate issues) . Good cans , they lack any kind of bass ( don't need too much for what I'm listening to anyway ) and as a huge pro , they are very confortable.

Now I'm thinking it would be the time to upgrade to something better . I mainly listen to rock and metal in all shapes and forms , from chris rea and dire straits to alice in chains , tool and amon amarth .

Right now , my dt770's are driven through whatever sound card my taiwanese laptop ( clevo ) has in it , probably nothing too good , most of the 2000 pounds of it being thrown at the hardware performance. So , I might need a dac/amp as well.

I haven't owned much over the years , some cheap sennheiser hd206 , koss pro dj 100 ( not very impressed with those at all ) , and now the dt770's .

I can spare a decent amount of cash on the cans right now , ~300 +- depending on the options , and can spend a little for the amp/dac as well.

What am I looking for .. I don't really know , a good pair of cans that sound better than my current ones .. ? I don't know if there is a place in London I could go and check some out to see if I prefer some over the others .

 

[Monsterzero]

I had bought myself a pair of dt770 pro'sGood cans , they lack any kind of bass ( don't need too much for what I'm listening to anyway ) and as a huge pro , they are very confortable.

Huh?!?

You might just be a basshead and not know it.....DT770 is many things,bass-light def aint one of those things.
im afraid that if you think they lack bass anything else will sound downright anemic to you.

 

[PurpleAngel]

The Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 80-Ohm headphones are bassy, maybe the laptop's on-board audio is not driving them well enough.
Do you have access to something like a stereo (or modern A/V) receiver, that you could plug the DT770s into?

But the DT770 issue is not a big deal, as for with a $300 budget, you can buy better headphones (better clarity?).

 

[folie]

It could be the laptop's soundcard , indeed . Nothing sounds that good on it and no , I do not own any such thing . I have 2 smartphones and the laptop , I don't think either would make a difference for the better.

Is clarity the only thing that can improve with a 300 £ budget? The bass is fine for all I care , I don't listen to anything that bass heavy anyway , they just seemed that way to me . Hell , I owned a pair of hd206's before and I liked them , before the flimsy cable broke.

 

[Monsterzero]

For 300.00 and for primarily rock and metal here is what I suggest...

Schiit Magni 3
Schiit Modi multibit
Grado 80e

click on my Youtube channel and watch my Grado review.

FWIW i listen to metal and rock almost 100% of the time.

 

[folie]

Would you consider the 80e's an upgrade to the dt770 pro's? Or you consider them an upgrade for what I listen to.

The issue with schiit gear is that it's not very accessible in the UK . I for one can't , for the life of me find it at any reputable ( from my very limited knowledge ) seller.

Also , for the dac/amp I could buy them separately , I just don't want to spend too much over a 400 smth total.

 

[Monsterzero]

Would you consider the 80e's an upgrade to the dt770 pro's? Or you consider them an upgrade for what I listen to.

The Grados and DT770 are nearly polar opposites in sound signature.DT770s are quite V-shaped,with gobs of bass and treble and not much in the mids.Grados have nearly no bass extension,but can have some thump on mid bass when called for.They also have forward mids and lower highs,which if you watched my review is perfect for bringing the guitars in rock & metal to the forefront,whereas the DT770 shoves the guitars towards the back for the sake of bass and treble.For neu-metal(Disturbed,FFDP,Slipknot,etc...)that works out okay,for other forms of rock and metal not so much.

TL;DR

DT770 for rap,hip-hop,pop,trance
Grados for rock/metal

The only caveat with Grados vs DT770 are comfort...Beyers are very comfortable headphones generally speaking.Grados arent.

The issue with schiit gear is that it's not very accessible in the UK . I for one can't , for the life of me find it at any reputable ( from my very limited knowledge ) seller.

I do not know whats readily available and what isnt in Europe,sorry. Im not much of a Schiit fanboy like others here,but for entry level stuff theyre hard to beat at the price point,and will be a major improvement over the HP jack of your laptop.

You can try looking here and emailing them for further info

https://schiit.eu.com/

Also , for the dac/amp I could buy them separately , I just don't want to spend too much over a 400 smth total.

there are certainly other options out there other than Schiit...I own an Audio GD amp/DAC that was much more of a PITA to get over Schiit gear.However again im not up to speed as to whats readily available and affordable in the UK.

You can prolly find yourself a used Chord Mojo for about 300.00usd,or less in the UK.

 

[folie]

Hmm, I might buy a pair of grados , see how they fare, I am worried however about the comfort they offer , I have worn overear cans before and they made my ears hurt pretty bad.
Are the 80e's the best choice i've got? Go for the 85quid pair?
I'll also look around and see if there are any places that sell schiit amps at a decent price.

 

[GearMe]

As far as Grado's go, I actually like the 60's better than the 80's. I found they still had the Grado mids and a little more bass than the 80's. I still pull them out to listen to...amazing cans for $79

Are you still needing closed headphones or are open now ok? Also, if you're used to running out of a cheap PC sound card, a Fiio (or other $100) Dac/Amp will be a solid improvement for starters...allowing you to put more money into your headphones. I started with an E10 and was surprised at the improvement in sound over my laptop. Schiit makes the Fulla 2 for $99 (in the US) which people say is a bargain. Not sure what it would cost over there.

 

[folie]

I kind of still do , but I will keep the dt770's for when that is needed . I am looking for something that sounds good. I won't be sharing a room for much longer anyway.

I will look around for the fulla 2 , I don't know how expensive it is. I've heard some good things about audioquest smth smth as well.

 

[Monsterzero]

Are the 80e's the best choice i've got? Go for the 85quid pair?

If I were you I'd invest in a solid amp/DAC,see how you like the DT770 with it,and go from there.Grados are a love em or hate em type HP(so are the 770s)so they might not be what it is that you'll enjoy,but the amp/DAC will make a pretty huge improvement,regardless of which headphone you get(within reason)

 

[GearMe]

+1 ^