[chews89]

Hey guys,

So ever since I've been on head-fi, I've always had the desire to own a "top-end" headphone, probably to finally make me feel that I've got one of the best so that upgraditis will no longer bother me.

By "top-end", I don't mean the really top-class headphones such has the PS-1000 or HD800, but rather in my books, top end are the HD600,K701,HD650,K601 and K501 because I am indeed a poor uni student.

My main phone now is the DT770 2005' edition and as much as I love it, it's brightness often causes fatigue. So I'm looking for a phone that will kindly compliment the DT770. The two main phones that I'm looking at are the HD600 and K701. So I've read a lot of impressions of these phones and the general opinion is(correct me if I'm wrong):

HD600: Warm, laid-back sounding, quite neutral, somewhat veiled, very comfortable, wide soundstage

K701: Extremely detailed and analytical, Soundstage is wider than HD600, relatively bright, headband can cause discomfort

IMO, I associate "better" headphones with wider soundstage, more detail, tighter and more accurate bass, crisp and clarity

My setup for now at home is my Yamaha CD player and LDI+. I know that my LD isn't suitable for driving high impedance headphones but I will probably not be upgrading if for a while if I get a pair of headphones.

I listen to primarily jazz, indie rock and classical but also go through a wide range of other genres as well.

I do realize that there are countless threads comparing these cans, and they have discussed to death, but in my particular circumstance, which phone do you think is more suitable to compliment my DT770 05'?

Also, with an amp like the LDI+, will I hear an improvement with a K701 or HD600 over my DT770 05's ?


Ohyeah, I'm thinking of the HD600s, any comments?

EDIT: Are the K701s or HD600s a big improvement over my DT770s? Or am I already in possession of a decent, detailed mid-fi can? SO in other words, if I do get the K701 or HD600, should I be expecting a large improvement?

Cheers

 

[oqvist]

K701s but don´t know how well they sounds unamped or with that one... But it does match your description quite well otherwise though don´t get them if you want warm sound. Won´t get you much bass and sound quite thin but you do get the sound at least. Not the clearest sounding treble either and can be quite bright though. Easy on my ears anyway.

 

[Rarach]

K701 is also more on the bright side than neutral (but still less bright and less fatiguing than DT880 and probably most neutral headphones I ever heard) so I don't think that they will compliment DT770 well... But someone else can have different opinion...

 

[Acix]

Hehehe... K702 very dark, almost black. http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f4/k702-studio-393139/

 

[mbd2884]

I'd go with the HD650 or AD2000, there are plenty of Open Air that have a bright forward sound, but not many with the darker, laid back sound.

 

[lucky]

Perhaps it's because I owned the AD700 first, but I've never found the K701 to be analytical; just bright. I'd say go with whichever phones you think will make you happy. I bought the K701 instead of, say, the HD600, because I was curious to see if it was an upgrade to my AD700. To my ears, it isn't really, but it does offer a nice contrast.

 

[chews89]

Thanks guys for the replies.

Yeah I was thinking that the K701s brightness would just mirror the brightness of my DT770s - not really what I'm looking for.

@mbd2884 - Thanks for the suggestion, but I feel that both of those cans are out of my budget. I'm trying to keep it as low as possible so I'm planning to buy used.

@lucky - What would make make me happy? I think either headphone would probably make me happy if they turn out to be an improvement over my 770s. I'm thinking of the HD600s because they are said to be quite warm.

However, the DT770 05's are meant to have quite accurate tight bass according to tiemen(as opposed to DT770 Pros boomy bass), which I do agree on. But how does the bass on the DT770 05's compare to the "warm" sounding HD600s?

Does anyone else have any more opinions? In particular people who have experienced the DT770 05'.

 

[Jaska]

This is a tough call, really. The DT770 Edition 2005 shares a lot in common with some of the other contenders on your list. I would definitely stay clear of the K701 if the highs bother you at all with the DT770 Edition 2005. I switch pretty regularly between/among my DT770 Edition 2005, K601 and SR-225. If I had to pick one of the two latter headphones to complement the beyers, I would probably go with the K601. The highs are a bit more rolled off, but I don't notice anything lacking there either. It's just in comparative listening that I can hear the difference.

I owned the HD580 for quite a while with the same basic setup, and I liked them a lot too. Some say these sound exactly the same as the HD600, but I'd rather not comment on that... I think these would be a good complementary headphone in some respects too, but at the same time I would rather have the K601. The AKGs seem to have a bit groovier bass response and smoother mids, whereas I thought the HD580's bass was a bit "dry," if this translates properly into Head-Fi language in any way. My experience with the K601 is that I can really track a bass line with it, and no part of the bass or lower mids seems to suffer the results of any humps or dips.

 

[chews89]

Thanks for the insight Jaska.

When you say the DT770 shares a lot in common, do you mean the headphones share similar sound characteristics? How does soundstage and detail compare between the two? What would you say is the biggest difference between the two headphones? Do you mind providing a little more information? If you do think that the K601 is a good complimentary can to my 770s, I'm seriously considering it.

I hope I'm not asking for too much, I would appreciate it if you could provide further insight.

Cheers

 

[Jaska]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chews89 /img/forum/go_quote.gif When you say the DT770 shares a lot in common, do you mean the headphones share similar sound characteristics? How does soundstage and detail compare between the two? What would you say is the biggest difference between the two headphones?

Similarities: Comparing the DT770 Edition 2005 to the HD580 and K601, I think they all offer very solid mids and similar bass quantity. I also find them all extremely comfortable and well made.

Soundstage: I must admit that soundstage is not a top concern for me, and I personally wouldn't buy a headphone because of how deep/wide I perceive this to be. Honestly, on recordings meant to give various kinds of spatial perceptions, just about all of the headphones I've owned seem to get the intended message across. For many years, I owned the K301, and I'd say those are the only headphones I've ever had that really gave me a "big" sense of soundstage. Perhaps the stiffness of the pleather pads and the drivers' distance from my ears were the contributing factor.

Detail: Of the headphones I've mentioned, I would rank them (strongest to weakest) as:

1. K601--these would probably make for a very, very reliable headphone for studio use. They tend to like a bit more volume than the other headphones to bring out the detail, but they really succeed in delivering it. These are my favorite headphones for listening to some of the better mastered (generally older) CDs in my collection with lots of headroom. They blow the contenders out of the water in this aspect, which happens to be extremely important to me.

2. HD580--these really feel open, and the pads are nice and stiff with the headband holding the drivers in perfect position in relation to the ears. Besides the lower mids and upper bass, the level of detail with a good source is astonishing.

3. DT770 Edition 2005--these have tighter and cleaner bass than the HD580, but also some additional sparkle in the upper mids and highs. They are slightly bright, but non-offensive. As such, some amount of detail gets lost in these regions.

Differences: As I've mentioned the solid mids of all these headphones, the bass quality is one particular area where I feel there are some important differences. My opinion is that the HD580 would not give you any improvement over the DT770 Edition 2005 in this area, whereas the K601 would. However, taking the upper mids and highs together, both the HD580 and the K601 would give you a noticeable improvement, especially with a relatively high end (or better) source.

I hope this little breakdown doesn't make matters more confusing for you, and that it actually might help in some way.

 

[Happy Camper]

I'm listening to a mod to the 701s that does dampen a bit of the high end glare that they exhibit with bright material and gets a bit more mid bass weight. Still forming an opinion.

The 600s with a cardas cable is a very nice sounding can. You keep the impact bass but will deal with recessed mids if your amp isn't up to the task.

I like tubes with either because you can tweak your tubes to level your sound character to each hp.

Have you given a listen to a nice mid to hi end amp with your DTs? A mellow sounding gain tube could cut down the high end glare a bit but you loose some of that sharp attack edge.

If I were to take one of your choices, I think I'd do the HD 600s.

 

[wang0215]

K701 is not good enough for ROCK.. either the HD 600..

 

[Jaska]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wang0215 /img/forum/go_quote.gif K701 is not good enough for ROCK.. either the HD 600..

Those are pretty strong, unsubstantiated statements. I think it's daft to completely dismiss high-quality headphones as "not good enough" for any particular genre of music, especially one as massively varied as rock 'n roll.

I'm sitting here scratching my chin in deep contemplation, but just can't recall a time when I've witnessed anyone hauling away and replacing floorstanding speakers when changing from a classical record to a rock 'n roll record.

 

[MONVMENTVM]

What about the K240 Sextetts? They can be found very cheap (less than $100). They have slightly less details than the newer cans but provide a very warm, very smooth sound and are really enjoyable. They are great for Rock and Jazz (never tried them with classical though as I automatically grab my GS-1000 for this). They are less airy than the Grado's which maybe just leads me to believe that they are less detailed. They have a very full sound... that's it.

K340 would be another idea maybe... after tweaking them you could get much better cans than the ones you suggested.

 

[leeperry]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chews89 /img/forum/go_quote.gif DT770 2005' edition and as much as I love it, it's brightness often causes fatigue.

brightness

I've got the Pro/250 which has the same drivers as the 770 consumer 2005.....I would definitely not call it bright..

my former cd1k(same drivers as cd3k), this one was bright to hell.....the trebles were of very high definition but also very piercing

try to recable it w/ some top notch OFC and add damping in the cups...it'll sound darker

I would personnaly love a 770 w/ more transparent trebles, as this one is pretty darn dark....I got some 600 Ohms drivers on their way to my doorstep, they might be my golden ticket

apparently getting all the advantages of the 770Pro(fat bass/high isolation/comfort) + cd3k(crazy soundstage/highly refined trebles) would take a JVC DX1k, which costs around $700 if you're lucky enough to find one