DT770 Pro 80 Ohm Should i buy a Amp?

Reksoul

Reksoul

Reksoul

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Hey Guys,

So i recently bought a pair of Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro 80 Ohm headphones and they sound great, the bass
is good and deep but i thought it might be more i guess punchy?, i really like them but im looking to get the best out of them.

Im a total sound noob so maybe i need to train my ears to listen for other sounds, or maybe i should buy a car subwoofer and strap that to my head.

I have these headphones conected to my Soundbalster Z soundcard, would it be better to connect these headphones to an external Amp?, if so what would you recommend?

Or should i just stay with the Soundblaster card?, i like the EQ software it has so i would have to get some other EQ software.

Thanks guys
 
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80 ohm impedance isnt that high but i don’t know what the headphone amp in the SBZ is like.
I have a SB G6 and drive 250 ohm DT 1770s. It drives them with ease.
Suppose you could try an SB G6 with the 770s, if it doesnt make them any better, return the G6
 
I think maybe some Amps are better for lower ohm headphones and some are better from higher ohm headphones i have a Fostex HP-A3( USB connection) and when i use my HD600 300ohm through it although they sound very nice i do hear a loss of volume that i dont get when using my Momentums 32 ohm headphones but if i use my Pro-Ject head box s headphone amp all my headphones are loud and sound good too although the Fostex I thinm is a better amp overall...or maybe i dont know what im talking about.

Also the sound card i have is an Asus Xonar Essence STX that i run only my speakers through.
 
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foster grant said:
I think maybe some Amps are better for lower ohm headphones and some are better from higher ohm headphones i have a Fostex HP-A3( USB connection) and when i use my HD600 300ohm through it although they sound very nice i do hear a loss of volume that i dont get when using my Momentums 32 ohm headphones but if i use my Pro-Ject head box s headphone amp all my headphones are loud and sound good too although the Fostex I thinm is a better amp overall...or maybe i dont know what im talking about.

Also the sound card i have is an Asus Xonar Essence STX that i run only my speakers through.
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Depends what +mV the amps output. What does the Fostex and Pro-Ject output on the headphone amp?
The Xonar Essence STX on highest gain will probably drive them all very well. From memory it can output something like +17mV on extra high gain. Have you tried all heaphones on the Xonar headphone amp and changing gain settings? (then compare to your other headphone amps)
 
Thanks for the info guys, i'll definitely check out the amps that you recommend.

I'm not sure if any of you guys can relate to this my my DT770's seem to sound better each day im using them. I have had them for three days and on the first day i thought they sounded nice but not too different to my old headphones.
The more i use them the nicer they sound, and to top it off i put my old headphones on today and they sounded no where near the same. I guess i just needed to clean my ears out or something.

Cheers all
 
Reksoul said:
Thanks for the info guys, i'll definitely check out the amps that you recommend.

I'm not sure if any of you guys can relate to this my my DT770's seem to sound better each day im using them. I have had them for three days and on the first day i thought they sounded nice but not too different to my old headphones.
The more i use them the nicer they sound, and to top it off i put my old headphones on today and they sounded no where near the same. I guess i just needed to clean my ears out or something.

Cheers all
Click to expand...

All in all you might be better off with something like the STX Sound Card if your ok to splash out for it as Everytime I use headphones ( HD600, DT770 Pro, Momentums with it they always sound perfect
 
Gaming or music? If gaming, you may want to either stick with what you got or some external solution that does good positional audio. E.g. the Soundblaster G6 recommended above.

If music, you probably want to look at an external DAC/AMP as you'll likely get the best sound quality that way. From what I've read, the Ifi Zen would be a widely recommended good choice, but there are lots of similar devices, this one seems to punch above its weight.

What you'll find with this is that it's difficult to discern by spec sheets what will actually sound and work best together. There are some tried and tested combinations that by general consensus are well received, but overall it's quite subjective.

Either way, the DT770s are a very well respected choice, so depending on what your needs are, go with a generally well-respected DAC/AMP in your budget, either gaming or music focussed, and you'll likely be getting the best from them within reason. With audio stuff, the sky is the limit to be honest, but for a new external solution you'll be looking at at least £60, maybe £150 and then it just skyrockets upwards and you may also be looking at better headphones as well etc.
 
Reksoul said:
I'm not sure if any of you guys can relate to this my my DT770's seem to sound better each day im using them. I have had them for three days and on the first day i thought they sounded nice but not too different to my old headphones.
The more i use them the nicer they sound, and to top it off i put my old headphones on today and they sounded no where near the same. I guess i just needed to clean my ears out or something.

Cheers all
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I can, it’s called something but i’ve forget. It’s your brain getting used to the new sound. I’ve recently found this going from AKG K702 to DT1770s
 
Reksoul said:
I'm not sure if any of you guys can relate to this my my DT770's seem to sound better each day im using them. I have had them for three days and on the first day i thought they sounded nice but not too different to my old headphones.
The more i use them the nicer they sound, and to top it off i put my old headphones on today and they sounded no where near the same. I guess i just needed to clean my ears out or something.
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That's "burn in" of listener.
Your brain basically gets used to frequency response/sound profile of what headphones you're using and that affects what sound of other headphones feels like.
After some time brain again gets used to new headphones.

And if you're used to some "boom boom goes the bass" fashion garbage headphones with reproduction of other frequencies being accidental of course DT770's still controlled bass boost feels light initially.


While standard average sound card level, SB Z's headphone output is decent for DT770.
They aren't current hungry and 80 ohms doesn't either need that high voltage.
You just couldn't make yourself deaf easily.

If you play games/watch movies Sound BlasterX G6, which can be found for £75 B-stock price would be good also for more demanding headphones.
 
Brain burn in is strange, I remember listening to my totally fresh HD650's coming off K702's and to begin with they sounded as though they were playing through a pillow but as the hours passed they became clearer and clearer. Weird thing is once I've adjusted to a new headphone I can pretty much instantly adjust to any subsequent swapping - so maybe it's not all in the mind as I doubt I have a frequency response curve filed in my memory for every headphone I own (about 15 including IEM's)
 
rids57 said:
Brain burn in is strange, I remember listening to my totally fresh HD650's coming off K702's and to begin with they sounded as though they were playing through a pillow but as the hours passed they became clearer and clearer. Weird thing is once I've adjusted to a new headphone I can pretty much instantly adjust to any subsequent swapping - so maybe it's not all in the mind as I doubt I have a frequency response curve filed in my memory for every headphone I own (about 15 including IEM's)
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More a general query, but why do you (anyone) need multiple sets of headphones? I get maybe a couple for open / closed / in ear but 15?
I wouldnt have the space for that many and like selling on items that go un-used

Strangely my DT1770s sounded muffled / like they were playing through a pillow too after coming from K702s.
 
Laziness for the most part, the K702, DT990, Sony something or other, Sony MDR-1A and most of the IEMs are boxed up in a cupboard. I have my main 4 (Denon AH-D7200, Beyer DT1990, Senn HD650 and HiFiMan HE400i) all hanging on mug trees as they are in constant rotation. Reason I have a few in rotation is they all sound different, the Denons are bass kings, the Beyers are very detailed, the HD650's are perfect for vocals. The HE400is are likely to be replaced either with Anandas or Audeze LCD2C's in the next few months. I guess what it boils down to is I am an audio squirrel :D
 
Using the 770 80 Ohm, tried the SBZ, which was louder than the G6, but only because with the G6 I'm using low amp, the SBZ you simply can't select low or high amp.
The G6 I found more practical, as the input and volume control stays closer to me than the constant reaching the back of the case or manually select the source.
I much more prefer the option to plug the headphone and automatically switch from the speakers than go around.
 
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