beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO Studio Headphones – 80 Ohm

 

Amazing sound quality, rich and full with excellent highs
These are bar none the best headphones you can buy for this sort of money and a lot more IMO. I have two pairs of them one with the 250ohm coiled lead and the other with a 80ohms and straight lead for use in different settings – the latter I’ve owned for about 7 years. I have also got a pair of the DT1990 pro models which are significantly more expensive, and I would argue not as good certainly not value for money wise, and I would also say they are not better sound quality either for listening or using as a reference monitor, but it is useful to have more than one sound signature when testing your mixes. I also owned for a short time a pair of Focal Clear headphones which are widely touted to be about as good as it gets from an audiophile perspective without spending an inordinate amount of money, and again I would say that the DT770 are a better unit both in terms of robust design and quality, I also much prefer the sound signature. So I sent back the Clear cans within a week. But I guess as with everything, it is subjective. I would highly recommend these cans though, excellent value for money.

 

Great audio, could be comfier though
Great audio quality but not especially comfy for long periods.

 

Worth i
Unprecedented comfort and a audio treat for the ears you are just missing out on if you get the lower impedance (ohms) models.

May sound like a clich – but having these is a little like replacing your ears.
The low end is rich, rounded but without any extra “flab” usually associated with deep bass on headphone. The upper bass and lower miss arrive nicely, details as crisp as a frost coated winter morning…

The high end is again, very present – some may say a touch too bright. This tapers off somewhat in time (hence me waiting around 6 months prior to writing a review – to ensure any changes through time were noted).

As for build quality….

Again, good, honest and refreshingly uncomplicated engineering.

Nothing clever or fancy (you want foldable look elsewhere).

Every part as far as I know, is replaceable but at this price ranger, throwing them around isn’t an Ideal method of use – so a case is a reasonable after sales option.

Overall – a good, reliable set of headphones that is in a good price range and you feel like you actually get what you pay for.

The box design, softcase and screw on jack adaptor were all nice additions to the buying experience.

Worth it.

 

250 ohm NEED an Amp to drive them
These are wonderful headphones at their price, with excellent sound reproduction for anyone wanting to know exactly what the artist recorded.

I’ve had both the 80ohm and the 250ohm models, the former being a wonderful introduction to HiFi and the latter having a fuller rounder sound if you have a decent amplifier to drive them and deliver that ‘sub-bass’.

One other aspect to these headphones is the Beyerdynamic design which while not particularly pretty, is made so that the average user can repair any small problems quite easily, and the guys with a soldering iron can completely overhaul a set: all the parts being available for individual repairs.

You can also replace the cups quite easily, and if you’re interested in noise isolation, adding a set of leather cups will effectively block all outside sound, no ‘noise cancellation’ necessary — though this will make the soundstage even more closed, and give an even more aggressive bass than you might be prepared for.

 

Best headphones I’ve ever had.
Very lightweight and comfortable even with glasses on. Amazing for long a sesh and sometimes you will even forget they was on and extremely long cable so you will never run out of cable and the overall sound quality is crispy and nice with a really nice low end.

 

Superb quality. Even listening to acoustic. Very Real
So comfortable can wear them all day. The sound is real even when playback singing and acoustic instruments which is a real test. Dynamic range excellent and faithful transmission without distortion. A great all round headphone and surprisingly good and faithful in the studio too.

 

Perfect for laptop music production.
I bought the beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO headphones to use for portable music production on a Macbook pro when I’m not in the studio. A few weeks in I have found them to be extremely comfortable for long hours and they have a very good level of detail in the sound for my needs. The only slight negative for me is that i find them to be a little quieter than I would have liked so have to use gain boost on Logic Pro X.

 

Amazing quality
I have been using it everyday now for the past month or so, I definitely would recommend to anyone thinking of buying – it’ll be able to run on most soundcards but to get the most out of the headphone, you will need to buy a decent amp to enhance the already amazing experience.

 

Excellent sound and build quality
I bought these for the production of home recordings. On first use, I could hear so much more detail than the computer speakers or my Bose QC15. When I tried a professional recording the result was excellent. I didn’t buy these for the gaming but as this review prompted me to give a score I tried them and wow! I heard sounds in the games that I had never heard before. For those with questions about the impedance. I have a Rubix 22 interface and these headphones are the 80 model.

 

Excellent stationary headphones
I’ve now been using this pair of headphones for a year and a half and have never regretted buying them.

They are permanently plugged into my desktop and I have hardly ever taken them outside, so the only comment I can make on portability is that the cable is TOO long, and the noise cancellation is non-existent, so good luck hearing anything on a loud train / plane. If you’re going for a slow walk in a park it might work well.

Sound-wise, I love them. They handle classical, metal, J-rock very well. I don’t think I can remember any downsides at all. Maybe that sometimes you can hear how crappy the source is. Also I have no problem using my motherboard (ASUS B350-i) as the source.

I find them reasonably comfortable and a good fit for working/gaming in a relatively quiet environment longish hours. The fit is tight, but I don’t feel like my head is being squeezed.

Overall, if you need headphones with decent sound and you expect to use them indoors while sitting at your desk, I can recommend these to you.

 

Excellent headphones for home use
Finally settled on these after much trial and error with AudioTechnica ATH50 and Beyerdynamic DT990 (see other reviews). Their main purpose is for use with guitar effects unit for “silent” guitar practice. They work really well, the velour ear pads means they are very comfortable to wear for an hour or so at a time. Ears do get a little hot though, so good to take them off for a few minutes every so often. They clamp around the ears quite tightly, so give a good seal against external noise. They do not block out external noise completely though, which for this application is good. Also, because they’re fairly tight they stay o your head when moving about a bit. If you were intending to use them on a commute or while exercising I don’t think they would be suitable. Don’t block out enough external noise or secure enough on the ears.
Where they excel is in listening to music in a fairly quiet environment. They offer a truly excellent listening experience – detailed, balanced frequency response and great soundstage. If you have high quality lossless music you’ll love these. I’ve used them with PC, iPad and iPhone with flac files and discovered nuances in the music I’d not heard before.
The only suggestion for improvement I would make is for the cable to be detachable and to have a choice of different lengths, like the ATH50x. The cable works great for when I’m playing guitar but is a bit long for plugging into an iPad on your lap on the sofa.
Nonetheless I would highly recommend these.

 

Great but I have bette
Great quality sound, lacks the power handling compared to my Razer Kraken Pro 2 which I feel is really underrated with those massive closed back cans. Both phones need a desktop amp to get the most out of them of course

 

Almost perfect, some improvements required
After my Audio Technica ATH-M40Xs broke (my fault), I was planning on just buying another pair of the same. On browsing, however, I decided to pick these up, and I’m glad I did.

Whilst the ATH-M40Xs are still a great pair of headphones, I just find myself preferring these. I am by no means an audiophile so cannot speak to the technical specifications, but as a heavy consumer: I approve.

Well packaged and professionally presented, the DT770 pros came with a carrying bag which, while it won’t do much to protect the headphones from falls or crushing, does keep the dirt and scratches away in your bag.

The headphones themselves are as pictured, attractive and classic, I like the look- though this is subjective. Materials used are of a good quality, thick metals and nice leather on the headband; even the (minimal) plastic used on the ear cups is sturdy and textured, very good quality. The grey velvet/felt material on the cushions themselves is very comfortable, and stay surprisingly cool in long sessions. Not once did my ears ache with these on, as the cups surround my ear well.

In a nice touch, the padded headband (which is comfortable) can be removed and washed- which is probably advisable after a while.

As I said, I can’t comment on the sound from a technical perspective- but to my ears it is very realistic and enjoyable. From music, to movies, to games, it’s most certainly a step up from whatever the average person is used to.

I do, however, have some minor qualms with the DT770 pros. Firstly: the cable. Unlike my Audio Technicas, it is not removable- so if it breaks, then it’s very tricky to replace. Furthermore, the cable itself is very long, especially as it is uncoiled. As a result, I have run over it a few times with my chair (somewhat my fault), but the headphones seem undamaged despite this. I would have liked a coiled, shorter, or braided cable.

Secondly, it’s important to pay attention to which resistance you buy. I purposely opted for the 80 ohm on purpose. With a phone, the volume and sound seems somewhat underwhelming as it just doesn’t have the power to drive the headphones properly. On a computer, this is improved. Of course, you can buy an amp to power the headphones and the sound will be further improved.

Thirdly, and this is subjective, they do look a little bulky on the head. This is no surprise, of course, but I do prefer to use these when I’m alone for this reason. It looks a little silly, especially if you plan to walk around in public with them on.

All in all though, great headphones; comfortable with good sound- just a few improvements to be made.

 

Soundstage
I’m not a fan of closed back headphones. However, my wife has pushed me towards a purchase because she can’t stand my habit of listening in bed to Late Junction and Geoffrey Smith’s jazz program on Radio 3 (she hates the jazz even more than what she calls the “play-school” music on Late Junction). I’ve been using Grado SR80es for the last few months, but these are too leaky for my wife’s tastes and they do get uncomfortable after a while. I already own Beyer Amirons and DT880s, both of which I love and which have a decidedly different sonic character to each other. The DT770s sound different again, with a less enhanced treble than the DT880s and a more forward bass, but they do sound good on most types of music, and they certainly excel on EDM type music compared to the DT880s. Overall, I’m very pleased with their sonic character, but they really shine in a couple of departments: they are extremely comfortable and they possess the best soundstage I can ever recall having encountered in closed-back headphones. The 80 ohm version is pretty easy to drive so that, unlike my 250 ohm DT880s, they do not need a headphone amplifier to drive them, although they certainly benefit when a headphone amplifier is employed. And, for 99 they really do represent very good value for money. And now I can listen to everything from Gazelle Twin to Oscar Peterson without getting elbowed in the ribs.

 

Industry standard and still one of the best headphones around
I love these classic headphones. So comfortable, can wear all day without getting sore ears as they go over your ears, not on. Great for tracking in the studio as they are a closed design (less audio spill). Being closed does mean these have slightly less openness in top end and less round bass end than the other Beyer studio headphones (DT990 pro), but not having headphone bleed on vocal recordings is a must and the sound only slightly suffers. In fact, for mixing these are pretty accurate, you know when you’re overdoing it on the high and bass end. Also great for checking stereo image on mixes. Highly recommend. I bought the 80 Ohm versions, which is perfect for my professional but small production studio equipment.

 

Great sound and comfortable
Read a lot of reviews before buying and you do need to research what ohms are going to be best for your usage. I have a powered mixing desk so went for the higher ohms version but using with a mobile or tablet would need to lower ohms version to get driven properly – I am no expert so do your own checking.

I have a home studio where I compose music using very high end sample libraries so I wanted some phones that would translate these recordings with good quality. I have the DT100s but whilst these have lasted for years and have good quality they are a bit “industrial” so I wanted some more finesse and these do the job. I think they are a good price for the quality. They are very comfortable too for long nightime sessions. Recommended

 

Jack and Adaptor Snapped
I had an initially good impression of these headphones, however, the jack adaptor snapped at the base, and with it went the tip of the 3.5 jack so these are now useless. The break reveals the jacks are just plastic tubes wrapped in yellow metal. Extremely disappointing.

UPDATE: Whilst it wasn’t easy to find the information I needed, I was able to get in touch with Beyerdynamic and they arranged to repair them without any fuss. All I had to do was pack them up and mail them across. The repair was fast and hassle-free and I had them back within 3 days.

 

Great headphones! Careful about returns, though.
Headphones themselves are of superior quality and produce beautiful crisp sound, with reverberating bass throughout the extremely-comfortable ear-cups. I will however need to return the pair I received on the basis that a few other customers have had (roughly 2-3 from the several hundred reviews, so don’t let that dissuade you from the product) due to some crackling whenever bass is played, even at lower volumes. I’ve tested across several systems with multiple amplifiers/sound cards, and all produce the same end issue, thus the reasoning behind my return. I’ll update the review in due course, here’s hoping the replacement functions better. First the reply from Beyerdynamic’s support, though.

UPDATE! Amazon replacement received. The new headset has far less static/etc, and can play at eighty or higher percent with less-annoying crackling. Seems as though the issue has a lower frequency range than the other. Either way, splendid ^.^

 

Great monitoring headphone. Massive review (vs others)...
Mainly from the point of view of studio work and on-the-road mixing/mastering/performing, though also with a nod to home listening pleasure, this is comparative review of the following closed-back headphones (that can be driven without an additional amp!)

Yamaha HPH-MT5
Yamaha HPH-MT8
Beyerdynamic DT770 80ohm
Audio Technica ATH-A990Z

& two sets that I wont refer to much, due not to any manufacturing fault but to inadequate sonic quality for my purposes

Philips Fidelio X2HR (the only open-back here)
AKG K550 MkIII

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SUMMERY

To quickly list my preferred headphones in terms of purpose :

MONITORING : (here forward treble is useful to check hiss and sibilance, and forward bass for stage thumps, etc)
1. MT8 (extra brilliance reveals hiss, mics rubbing on clothing, high-freq accurate syncing of instruments etc)
2. DT770 (emphasises sibilance – which so can be avoided before recording, recessive mids an issue -vocals sound distant – though when recording asking your vocals to be closer to the mic is not usually a bad thing).

MASTERING : (here a flat freq response or slightly hi-fi speaker colouration of EQ is useful)
1. MT5 (most monitor-speaker like though a dip in the mid-highs, great for mastering and listening, lacks some microscope clarity, may result in a brighter mix)
2. MT8 (critical and open, lacks some bass though overall v.useful flat freq response, highs a tad too forward for enjoyable listening, may result in a darker mix with over generous bass)
3. DT770 (critical, high freq bump at sibilance freq may result in flatter mastering of voice details)

LISTENING : (depends on the sound signature that gives you pleasure, generally non-fatiguing and full)
1. MT5 (slightly darker than A990Z – yet more powerful and detailed, mids can shout, portable)
2. A990Z (open soundstage perfect for classical music, mids can shout, somewhat confusing, not portable)
3. X2HR (open soundstage, enjoyable, forgiving, not portable)
4. DT770 (may need a headphone amp, sibilance issue will be fatiguing, can bridge the gap between the studio and listening pleasure, not portable)
5. MT8 (detailed and bright, portable)

Depending on which way you look at this :

The MT8’s are a flatter freq response more analytical version of the DT770’s, the DT770’s are a more open soundscape version of the MT8’s but with a loss of mid presence and a sibilance freq bump. MT8 : “I dissect”, DT770 “I reveal”.

The A990Z’a are a more distant, softer, open soundscape version of the MT5’s. The MT5’s are a more powerfully defined, faster, ‘aggressive’ and closer sounding version of the A990Z’s. A990Z : “I sit back”, MT5 : “I’m there”.

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DETAILED REVIEW

In a subjective realm I’ve tried to be objective as possible – which does require lengthy descriptions, this may be more information than you require but in terms of describing these headphones I hope it helps. It does though depend on what you require and if you believe – unrealistically – there is an ideal headphone out there!

Mainly in order of preference

1:
MT5 : good for : Mastering, Monitoring and Listening. Overall frequency signature similar to the A990Z’s. The closest to the overall presentation of my Neumann K120 studio-monitor speakers, though with a couple of minor dips.

HIGHS : detailed, calm, not elevated or gratingly ‘hi-fi’ / ‘club-fi’. Have a slightly woody quality, won’t cause you any pain – so you can turn them up, not fatiguing at all. Actually the closest to my studio-monitor speakers. In terms of final mastering as the highs are a touch dark – almost like you’ve connected them to a tube amp – but not soft in any way, just less clinically up-front (and less clashy) than others here. They may not reach far enough up to analyse recorded hiss, over 10kHz they start to fall away (while the MT8’s are reaching their peak) – but otherwise very even and clear. Mastered result are good though may contain hiss. If you value slightly over-present sizzling highs in a headphone, these may not be the ticket for you. Actually the A990Z highs are best placed of this whole group – though don’t have the detail of the MT8’s.

HIGH-MIDS : as well as not quite reaching far enough up to analyse recorded hiss there is a dip in the ‘low-highs’ or ‘high-mids’ around 4kHz. That said the highs don’t seem odd in any way, they are just slightly dark as a result – but still v.fast and detailed.

MIDS : forward and detailed. There is a downside to forward mids in a closed-back headphone,
they can shout / project resonation at high volumes, if fact I almost enjoy it – it energises the cartilage in my nose – really does! Thus there is a slight W shape to the freq response, raised at the ends and the centre – and with corresponding dips between (but don’t let this worry you, it’s fairly healthy, far better than a V shape).

LOWS : v.powerful, defined and tight, might even say these have the most satisfactory bass of this group. Aggressive thwacks hit v.powerfully and cleanly, impressive.

V.LOW : present though under 50Hz they dip just below the strength of the mids, while the MT8’s keep sub-bass just above.

SOUNDSTAGE : the least open of this group (not by much), though have immense detail and stereo width. NB large soundstage does not help in the studio, it weakens the presence and inspection of instruments (hence the large soundstage A990Z is not useful in the studio but makes enjoyable listening).

They have the most ‘hit’ and power in all freqs of all the ‘phones here, they vibrate your bones more than any of the others – in all frequencies – I’m not a bass head but the ability to affect the vibrational mental space with these ‘phones is notable.

They have a really enjoyable ‘pushy’ personality – which in a headphone is what I want and a real achievement – to be fast and super direct in all frequencies, visceral, nose vibrating. Very well judged Yamaha!

A closer, faster and more mid-centric version of the A990Z’s. A real favourite of mine, and a bargain for an ‘in the bag’ monitor headphone, I can’t see how anyone could be disappointed unless you want a very open, or brash sound.

DESIGN : 3m detachable cable, twist-lock. Neat, relatively compact, solid construction. Portable (the cans are connected to the headband with a free hanging wire – so need some care, like the DT770’s), light weight (MT8’s are on the heavy side).

2:
MT8 : good for : Monitoring, Mastering. Overall frequency signature similar to the DT770’s – but the MT8’s are flatter. The MT8 are close to my Neumann studio-monitor speakers, though with less lows and greater high-mids / highs.

HIGHS : if you need super-clarity in the highs, there’s no sibilance here but they are analytical and gradually elevate towards 10.5kHz. I’m critical of harsh highs – these are not abrasive unless your mix is poor (many commercial recordings are BTW!). They have the fastest highs of this group – revealing, breathy, airy and open, not metallic or grainy. Compared to the MT5 it’s like a sonic door has opened (sometimes too far), highs can be overbearing and swamp a mix for some recordings, certainly more forward than the DT770 though actually rise more smoothly and predictably – no noticeable sudden peaks or troughs (unlike the big problem 8kHz spike of the DT770’s).

HIGH-MIDS : the dip noticed in the MT5’s is reversed here, I’d say there’s even a slight peak here, which provides fantastic detail in this information rich region of the freq range. If the MT5’s are an autumn afternoon, these are a spring morning. They will test the quality of a mix like no other, if a mix is good and tight, these have the best highs of this group – otherwise they can seem high centric – which can be too forward and fatiguing for long periods of listening pleasure.

MIDS : Presence and detail is amazing, superlative, similar to the MT5’s though with a flatter response (the MT5 mid resonance is not often felt here).

LOWS : tight, accurate, has drive but not over-emphasised. On the whole the lows can sound recessive if you expect pounding bass (these ‘phones are not about that). The A990Z have more bass warmth but not more hit (‘thwack’). The MT5’s have more more power and more hit in the 70-200Hz range, possibly the DT770’s have slightly more power through not as much hit. The recessive nature of the bass, is in part relative to the forward highs, the ‘phones can’t be turned up too far to reveal the full bass glory – as the highs then become too loud.

V.LOW : sub-bass if present in a recording is surprisingly powerful, more so than the DT770 and even the A990Z – reaching lower and with more detail (and also as previously mentioned, the powerful bass-ready MT5’s are not as present under 50Hz). This is a strong point of these headphones, the natural bass spread, which introduces powerful sub-bass without confusing it with middle bass frequencies – this is actually rare in a headphone, sub-bass seems to come from nowhere as an instrument in itself. If your like all bass to sound like sub-bass these headphones are not for you, sub-bass is powerful only when present in the recording, which including all genres, below 40Hz is actually quite rare.

SOUNDSTAGE : slightly more open than the MT5’s, probably due to the general extra speed and clarity especially in the highs, though not as open as the DT770 and A990Z.

Below 4kHz they are the fastest most flat headphone I’ve used, above 4kHz highs are elevated – revealing – which used as a tool in the studio is valuable, less so for listening. If you’re here just for listening pleasure, these headphones may come across as too harsh and not ideal for old recordings (esp analogue transferred to digital / CD), which generally are mid and high biased and may have issues in those areas.

The MT8 emphasis on clarity in the highs is useful prior to and during recording; due to compensation, mastered results from the MT8’s can lack high/treble presence, whereas from the MT5 possibly mastered highs can be overdone slightly. The ideal headphone would be a mix of the best parts of the MT5 and the MT8. That said, the MT8’s are the best judged and most useful studio headphones I’ve ever used.

DESIGN : v.soft pads, may result in pressure from the driver-grill on your ears – esp if you have satellite-dish ears (the MT5’s have firmer, deeper pads), both the MT8 and MT5 have a neat ear-cup size and shape though some may wish the aperture was slightly larger. 3m detachable cable + detachable coiled cable, twist-lock. Foldable, neat, relatively compact and solid. Portable though on the heavy side.

3:
DT770 80ohm : good for : Monitoring and maybe Mastering. Listening – very good, if your music has no hint of sibilant type sounds. Overall frequency signature most similar to the MT8’s, in many ways I’d place them both joint 2nd place.

The DT770 80ohm version, has deeper bass and less sibilant treble than the 32ohm or 250ohm versions (which personally I’d avoid). The 80ohm has thicker winding wires and a long-throw driver – capable of higher volumes though a tad slower), the 250ohm has a short throw-driver (faster though more bright). BTW there is also the semi-open DT880 (bass light) and the open DT990 (bass ok, sub-bass light, v.sibilant & highs emphasised).

HIGHS : in presence and control between the MT5’s and MT8, so very forward. Well balanced though there’s a big big but – unfortunately there’s an isolated problem spike at the sibilance freq, around 8kHz, it’s harsh, you can accept it and use it when monitoring & recording to avoid it in your tracks – but it probably does rule these ‘phones out for listening – unless you like a lot of sssss and zzzzz in your highs, female vocals sound clashy and fatiguing. As it’s a large spike, the ear and the mind cannot adapt it’s disparity to the surrounding high frequencies, and so it sounds unnatural, sizzling and annoying – it never ‘goes away’. For mastering, this can lead to too dull a result, especially in vocal clarity. Though the MT5’s are ‘darker’ they have more edge and they have no sudden freq peaks.

HIGH-MIDS : similar to the MT8’s, fantastic detail and presence, I say it’s the strongest point of these headphones and of this whole group – the immersive realism in this freq. realm. It’s basically the sweet spot between the elevated peak in the highs and the recessed mids

MIDS : detailed yet noticeably recessed. A positive of this V shape [recessed mids] is that it does prevent mid-freq ‘closed-back resonance’ (the MT5’s have a W shape, more so than the MT8’s). Vocals and acoustic instruments can sound rather thin and distant.

LOWS : wide, powerful and enjoyable, not as detailed as it could be – more fruity and less thwack than the MT5.

V.LOW : sub-bass present but slightly soggy. (Sub-bass frequencies can reveal a rattle, the diaphragms are slightly sticky and hair can get trapped, it’s a common problem, search for ‘DT770 buzz rattle’. Only noticeable with loud very particular frequencies around 148Hz. The cans can be dismantled but it’s a delicate procedure. One of my drivers have this issue now).

SOUNDSTAGE : very open, helped by the small bass-port (which does leak sound).

DESIGN : on the limit of needing an amp to drive them, on a MacBook Pro I’m often at 100% – while on my music interface there is power to spare. There is the DT770 32ohm version, though while more efficient it doesn’t doesn’t mean better (too efficient and the power isn’t delivered to tightly control the speaker coil, also the diaphragm is designed to be more flexible / floppy). Cable hard-wired. The cans are connected to the headband with a free hanging wire – so need some care. If you are generally not using an external amp, I’d probably pass on these, for less than loud mixes they simply may not be loud enough. Construction, very good. Hard-wired 3m cable. Not portable (unless your bag has generous room to spare).

4:
A990Z : good for : 2nd check Mastering and Listening. Overall frequency signature most similar to the MT5’s.

Overall v.similar to the MT5 but with a more open soundscape, a tad more highs, less present mids. Soundscape while on a par with the DT770 in its openness, but can sound distant. You could not rely on this headphone for critical mastering – though I do use them as a ‘speaker check’ when I’m away from my studio.

HIGHS : similar to the MT5 though with a tad more highs and better defined. Forgiving of poor recordings. While good for all genres the A990Z would be my pick for listening to classical music – due to the soundstage and the highs not as emphasised at the DT770 or MT8’s, though with the MT5’s darker highs I can listen to them for longer with more varied material.

HIGH-MIDS : have a slightly aggressive brittle grate, nothing to be too concerned about, it’s not sibilance, more of a metallic electronic squeal, which seems to confuse the highs and slightly divorce them from reality. The large 53mm driver of the A990Z seems at times to struggle to achieve fast definition.

MIDS : mids very slightly recessive which widens the soundscape though you may notice a slight lack of body and presence to the mids – especially compared to the MT5, MT8’s and monitor speakers; that said the DT770’s have the most V shape freq response. There is some shouting resonance to the mids, not dissimilar to the MT5’s.

LOWS : v.large, open, bouncy, fruity, warm. A tad too emphasised, slow & loose – lacking some detail & drive, overall some muddiness, can get a bit heavy going and bloated, I prefer the more defined MT5 and spacious DT770 bass.

V.LOW : present, enjoyable, soft. Sub-bass though is confused with the emphasised general bass, the result is the MT8 has greater sub power, detail and more overall bass separation (though less general bass) whereas the A990Z can sound bloated and lack separation.

SOUNDSTAGE : undeniably good, but wrapped up in other issues. The moment you put them on they sound great, very open, then that impression wears off – they begin to seem too friendly and lack involvement, confused highs and boomy lows. For classical, the fruity openness of the A990Z’s is welcome, though slightly flat in their lack of high separation – similar to the MT5’s in darkness, though the A990Z have a squeal to the highs which can become annoying like a saw – I’m being super critical, the highs are actually well tamed and never painful yet do lack some separation and realism. Soundstage is like large, but like a large ball of wool – you may not notice this – I’m being critical. Stereo width not that impressive.

In all frequencies dynamic hit and power is not great, so less aggressive, less interesting, just a bit too distant and knotted – can get confused with complex layer music – often an issue with large diaphragms. Good for checking what a track will sound like on a ‘normal’ hi-fi system, but they fall short of keeping me engaged.

The A990Z’s have slightly massaged all the frequencies to the extent there’s not enough clarity or speed to be used as a studio headphone (even though they are labeled ‘Art Monitors’). They are forgiving of harsh or poorly mastered recordings, basically they are good at being polite, warm loudspeakers in a room – yet on your head.

DESIGN : comfort – lightweight, no on-ear compression though pressure on upper jaw-bone caused by v.large pads. I’m not an advocate of the overall design. The metal backs of the cans is very thin (and leaks a lot of sound), I dented them the day they arrived by accidentally dropping the heavy metal-body (sharp) headphone-jack on them from maybe 12inch above. Hard-wired 3m cable. Too large and delicate to be portable.

REJECTED HEADPHONES :

5:
X2HR : I respect all of the above headphones for their position in the studio (maybe not the A990Z), the X2HR have zero place in the studio. Having said that I include them here as a listening pleasure headphone – in your comfy chair. The soundstage is wide and open, instrument separation is good. Bass is large and saggy / flabby, loose and lacking detail, highs come and go in an odd way. Wavy frequency EQ – some parts boosted others missing – lots of peaks and troughs throughout. They are not relevant in the studio due to this wavy EQ and sounding like a wet sock – there’s no analysis to be done with these. I didn’t like the ridiculously huge ‘winter earmuff’ pads either. I’d say if you have any inclination to get the Philips X2HR’s and you appreciate a ‘truer’ headphone (yet with generous bass) get the A990Z’s (though personally I’d go another step and get the more immediate MT5’s), on the other hand, if you like a full, open, fruity, forgiving sound, the X2HR’s are a good choice. Their positives are partly due to their open-back design – which is fine but be aware they leak sound like a sieve.

6:
K550 MkIII : I could not like these, I tried, but my hated grew and grew. As many people seem to like these headphones, I’ll detail my observations in full

HIGHS : prominent, harsh, lack detail, sibilant across a wide range – none of this helped by the large [i.e slow] 50mm drivers – which may have been EQ pushed over the whole high pitch area. There is sizzle and a lot of clashy high freq prominence. Mid-highs are dragged into this region sapping music and voices of depth. I prefer the DT770 highs – even with their elevated 8kHz EQ peak.

HIGH-MIDS : lack detail and separation, they scream and seem to resonant in the small enclosure of the closed-back cans, instruments in this mid to high range grate together and can sound a bit of a mess. Like the highs, crashing and confused.

MIDS : all of the mid range is strangely pushed into upper mids such that overall pitch is raised and generally thin, voices become drained of full-bodied depth and leave only a high-pitch veneer.

LOWS : on the weak side, recessed and very slow – least definition and depth of this group, surprisingly one-dimensional for a 50mm driver – distance between instruments lost. The weak headband clamping force doesn’t help, but the problem is deeper than that.

SOUNDSTAGE : lack of instrument separation, confused, muddles musicality; possibly the small driver chamber doesn’t help. So much of recordings is lost, including much enjoyment. If your musical taste is for simple short-lived tiss-bang-tiss-bang bold instruments these headphones can sound ok, but if your music has complexity and layered instruments it’s like listening to your recordings at 1/2 quality.

Overall Sound : clashy, confused, compressed ‘grey’ sounding, bass weak, vocal mids thin, raised the pitch of all tracks. I wish I didn’t have to mention these here, the most ill thought-out and ill-sounding headphone I’ve tried in a long time, the billing that they offer a flat frequency response is mostly a lie and covers a multitude of sins in these cans, flat with clarity ok, but flat and clashy and terribly confused no that’s not fine. Some may hear clashy and think that’s the sound of detail, it isn’t. If they work for you fine, but to me they were a travesty, dressed up to look nice.

If you do think these sound good – and so therefore like a ‘lighter-weight’ sound, you should try the fast, clear, detailed, MT8’s – they are leagues better in every respect (they have more bass as well) yet share some analytical flat sonic signatures of the K550’s.

DESIGN : not only no sonic substance but the very flimsy headband is a joke – a weak thin piece of metal with no spring and little padding (the crown of your head will hurt even with a good head of hair). The clamping force is near zero. The adjusting swivels of the ‘cans’ are very stiff, so the cans need to be manually pressed into your head every-time you wear them to achieve a decent seal and correct angle of the ear-cups; this is kind of ok, but clamping force also maintains the ‘cans’ in a solid stationary position while the drive unit oscillates back and forth. The clamping force is so weak that a noticeable amount of bass is lost due to the cans not being held absolutely stationary – in fact vibrating inversely to the driver movements (applying light pressure to fix the cans in place helps enormously); the designer of the headband should be sacked – and this is after many years of complaints and now a MkIII version with no headband upgrade! Without doubt the weakest and most uncomfortable headband in the history of headphones, if AKG can do this – design it, test it, put it into production, MkI, MkII, MkIII, just wonder how bad the rest of the design is – it really is – and I’m including the sound, the tiny enclosures, arh I could go on for eternity, these headphones make me furious, never AKG for me again, never. The ear-cups are very large – totally over-ear though a downside is sound-focus is variable as they don’t centre in the same place on the ear every time. The pleather coating is very thin and delicate and I doubt would last long in a studio. The cans can swivel 90 degrees on their normal axis so they lay flat – which reduces some bulk when inserting in a bag, but the headband doesn’t fold inwards at an elbow like the Yamaha’s.

/

SCORING

I’ve spent a lot of time & thought weighing-up these scores days of back and forth fast A/B comparisons, etc, so compare the values carefully – they are not just plucked from the air (though are subjective – to my peculiar critical nature).

1- 10, higher the number the better; though NB I’ve gone higher, 11 indicates where there’s too much, an overdose, so 11 is actually a negative!

1st score : BODY (Power & Presence) / 2nd score : DETAIL (Speed & Accuracy)

Efficiency is how easy they are to drive. ‘5’ is on the limit of laptops and may require an extra headphone amp. Higher efficiency isn’t always a good thing, ‘lower’ efficiency or/and higher ohm resistance will result in a tighter faster response – but require more output sound-card/amp power.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MT5. . . . . . MT8 . . . . . . DT770 . . . . A990Z

High. . . . . . . . . . . . 7 / 9. . . . . .11 / 10 . . . .11 / 8 . . . . . 8 / 7 . . . . . (11 = can be too strong & fatiguing)

High-Mid. . . . . . . . 7 / 8. . . . . . 9 / 9. . . . . . 9 / 10. . . . . 8 / 6

Mid. . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 / 8 . . . . . 11 / 9. . . . . 6 / 7 . . . . . . 5 / 7

Low . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 / 8 . . . . 7 / 9. . . . . . 9 / 7. . . . . . 11 / 5 . . . . . (indicative of the bass you will hear)

V.Low. . . . . . . . . . . 8 / 7 . . . . . 9 / 7 . . . . . . 9 / 6. . . . . . 9 / 5 . . . . . . (you wont often hear this frequency <45Hz)

Soundscape . . . . . 6 . . . . . . . . . 6. . . . . . . . . 9 . . . . . . . . . 8

Stereo width. . . . . 9 . . . . . . . . . 8. . . . . . . . . 9 . . . . . . . . . 5

Efficiency. . . . . . . . 8 . . . . . . . . . 9. . . . . . . . . 5 . . . . . . . . . 8

Isolation. . . . . . . . . 9 . . . . . . . . . 9. . . . . . . . . 7 . . . . . . . . . 5

Portability. . . . . . . .8 . . . . . . . . . 7. . . . . . . . . 4 . . . . . . . . . 3

Comfort. . . . . . . . . .8 . . . . . . . . . 7 . . . . . . . . .9 . . . . . . . . . 7

/

CONCLUSION

I'm torn between the Yamaha MT5 and the MT8, they have similarities though are significantly different. For no fatigue 'listening-mastering' the MT5 (and being lighter are more portable ideal if you need to mix/master on the road), for 'critical inspectional mastering' the MT8. I can work with either, but if you are studio pro I suggest you get the MT8's for their greater clarity (studio pro's need, accept and adapt to emphasised clarity, whereas 'semi-pro-enthusiasts' might not - in which case MT5). The MT5 could be the same price as the MT8's, there's nothing cheap about them - including the detail, power and speed of the sound, they just offer a different (and less fatiguing) view.

If you are searching for the best overall headphones, ...they don't exist. There are excellent 'phones that vary in their sound and are optimised / useful for different purposes. You can pay around /$1000 for a set of headphones, but they will still have a slant to their sound, and you might even find they don't do the job you hoped. In the end, for professional studio use, you'll need two or three difference headphones to balance your sound between, though if you use monitor speakers you will appreciate the Yamaha HPH-MT5 and the brighter MT8 - they are from my experience as close as I can reasonably get to a full and exact rendition in a simple, no frills, portable and strong headphone.

EXTRA NUGGETS

Never choose headphones based on manufacturers' quoted frequency ranges, as this doesn't tell you the amplitude at those frequency extremes (i.e. they may reproduce 20Hz - but at a low volume and bass dependant on how close to your ear the driver is). There's much more to rating headphones than frequency graphs - which do show amplitude at various frequencies but don't reveal response speed, detail, timbre, depth, soundstage, instrument separation, etc. Most good headphones can reproduce a wide range of frequencies, sometimes those frequencies will be +6db above the 0db centre-line or even +10db, sometimes -6db below but even then you will still hear them and if presented with clarity may sound more present than 0db in another headphone. Just be careful of stated responses. If I say 'over 10kHz starts to fall away', don't be too alarmed, 15-20kHz will still be present and maybe super detailed; the spectrum doesn't just end. I know you'll still read manufacturer frequency response ranges, they may give a rough indication or they may be measurement manipulation for tactical sales.

For when your new headphones arrive

Audio processor sampling frequency : v.important - set to the Hz of your computer's output to the same as the source (or double for less high-freq filtration - more treble), so if the source is CD/YouTube use 44.1kHz (or 88.2kHZ for greater clarity), if film use 48kHz (or 96kHz for greater clarity). Bit depth, I recommend 24bit or if you have it, 32 bit float.

RUNNING-IN : I just purchased a second set of MT5's, so I had the luxury to directly compare brand-new for 'burnt-in'. The burnt-in MT5's are noticeably more open, fast and reveal more high freq detail, brand new MT5's may sound recessive in the highs, when burnt in for sure the highs while still slightly dark, brighten up and are near perfect.

I know this is debatable but these physically moving components need to work in, and I know this is even more debatable but even electrons need to temper the copper cables (even if it's oxygen-free and directional). Sound is physical even at the microscopic level. Yep I listen at 32bit 96+kHz - that's music I generate at those rates not just elevated DAC rates of inferior source rates.

AudioQuest recommends 150 hours burn-in for their headphones (they probably know what they are talking about!), in any case for most headphones I'd give them around 50hrs (yes that really is 12hrs per day for 4 days - or 6hrs per day for a week, at highish volume).

Place the cans either side of a pillow or turn outward so pressure waves are not fighting against each other, play at high-ish volume, long YouTube 'psybient mixes' will do the trick!

I would not critically evaluate any headphone until 50hrs of burn in, changes are not dramatic, but are noticeable and in the direction of improvement. If you hate a brand-new headphone - perhaps you will still hate it after burn in, though detail, space and freq response will improve, anyone who says this is untrue I personally would not trust their evaluations. Sonically they will change even though you might not want to believe it - actually even after 20hrs.

(NB this isn't a 'verified purchase' review as I ordered the black ear-cup limited edition of the DT770 80ohm; they are otherwise identical to the classic grey velour DT770's. Thought I'd post this review here also, cheers!)

 

Clearly the best headphones I've ever used.
Clearly the best headphones I’ve ever used. Good punch, and I’d recommend the 80ohm ones over the lower impedance even if you’re using a smart phone – these are much punchier. Clearly the 250’s are better if you’ve got an amp capable of driving them, but I personally use these more on my phone or laptop as opposed to my hifi amp so these were better. Very comfortable and I’ve got big ears, so that’s pretty important to me.

As usual Amazon, quick delivery, well packaged, delivered via DPD. Crap photos on the box, mind, but it’s a great size for posting things you’ve sold on, er, other websites.

 

iPhone + Amp + PC. Happy customer.
Just purchased these as needed a pair of headphones for PC (via Asus Xonar STX sound card), a Denon AVR 2300 Amp and other uses. After much reading on the Ohm differences and some Amazon help I decided to go for the 80 Ohm set, even though the higher 250 Ohm would have worked fine. I wanted the option of playing them via weaker output devices like an iPhone, with the understanding that I would be taking a hit on loudness due to higher ohm.

So, first off connected them to the PC and was a bit disappointed with some FLAC sources I had. Then realised that the Xonar had Flexibase enabled for small room. This crushes 80% of the bass. Disabling this, setting it to Hi-Fi and wow, like a different pair of headphones. I set the Xonar software to use >60 Ohm which makes these go very loud. too loud for me. Listening at 50% volume and it is about my limit. Take the headphones off and the sound is quiet, put them on and its back to being in the club. So that’s my late night movie watching solved.

Just testing them on Amazon Music (Prime) and it’s actually nicely detailed audio.

So, next test. My iPhone 5. Unscrew the large 1/4 inch jack to reveal the smaller 3.5mm jack and plugged them in, hmmm a bit on the quiet side. Checked in settings->music and “volume limit” was on. Turned that off and was able to up the volume to full which gave perfectly acceptable volume for me.

Next, the amp. I use my Amp for mostly streaming video, freeview and other video content. Set the Amp to Direct. All OK. Internet radio very clear. Obviously I prefer 5.1 but this fills a gap at night.

Overall very happy these work well for crappier source material and work great with hi quality. Had them on for two hours now and they are tight but comfy too. They feel very sealed when on, my PC which is a loud machine with SLI and 6 fans softens to slight hum with the headphones on.

Really happy.
I am not an audiophile so take my review as is.

 

Replaced my gaming headsets for good!
I upgraded to these from a variety of gaming headsets, and my word can I tell the difference. I’m hearing sounds that just weren’t there before because I’m not sacrificing anything. Paired with the excellent Antlion Modmic 4.0, these just blow all gaming headsets out of the water in my opinion.
I’m driving the DT770 Pro 80 Ohm version with onboard sound from my Asus Z170-A (Realtek 892 chipset I think?) with absolutely no issues whatsoever. My Soundblaster Z died on me but I imagine they would sound even better. I intend to invest in an external DAC and amp to really push these cans and get even more bang for buck.
The “velvour” ear pads are comfortable and they fit around my ears no problem. You have the option of swapping these with different types if you really hate them as they can get slightly warm over prolonged use but I’m happy.
Build quality is excellent, these things are built to last but there are a multitude of replacement parts available should you ever need them.
I honestly can’t recommend this headset enough if you have only ever used gaming headsets in the past or lower tier headphones.

 

Great quality, natural sounding headphones
I’m listening to these as I write this review. I researched for ages as I’m super fussy about my audio gear, especially when the price gets higher.

The reviews for these are consistently great and I agree with them. What I like about these headphones is that they do pretty much everything really well at this price point. The sound is very well balanced with high, medium and low blending together to produce a very clear and natural sound. They reproduce all music well and are great to watch film and tv.

The headphones are very comfortable. If often wear them for several hours; the pressure of the ear cups is just right, the head strap adjust well and the ear pads are extremely comfortable. Because these are a closed back design they also keep out external noise and keep the sounds you are listening to inside your headphones.

The headphones are also very well made’ robust materials and even with me using them for 2 – 3 hours most days there is no song of any wear or tear after several months. I expect these will last me several years.

Highly recommended.

 

Great pair of headphones
Amazing pair of headphones. Bought after HyperX Cloud 2 headset broke and deciding I was tired of all these faulty ‘gaming’ headsets, so invested a fair chunk into these badboys (I plan to stick a ModMic onto them). They sound amazing. I’m not an expert on audio, but from what I can tell the bass really has a good oomph and everything is clear as crystal. You hear things in some songs that you wouldn’t even have heard beforehand. The ear pads are quite comfortable, though out of the box they are quite hard, and take a couple of hours to break in, after which they feel amazing. Only complaint is that the it’s a little too hard on the head. Cable is 1.6m, which isn’t actually that much. It only just reaches my PC for me, with about 20cm of slack. Comes with a 1/4″ adapter, and I must say they sound amazing on HiFi.

I chose to buy these instead of the ATH-M50x because imo these sound better. I spent a couple weeks using my brother’s M50x’s and in my opinion the bass on these is a lot stronger and the sound is overall more crisp.

 

Great match for Hidizs AP 100
I’ve found these to be perfect pair with Hidizs AP 100 High End Hi RES professional Audio Music Player (Silver) . Having had a chance to listen to this setup in local store, I recognised DT770 Pro 80 Ohm to be the best full-size headphones for Hidizs among same price category models from Audio Technica, Yamaha, Sennheiser and others. Beyers sound for me most natural, expressive, detailed, vivid, and have wide and clear scene with great instruments separation. One could only face, however, a lack of power, since sound pressure level of 96 dB is not very high, but it only comes in play on a very low-level records. For me, this is a fair price for the overall sound quality, but if you are loudness-fan, you could consider buying portable HP amplifier, in case you’re going to use DT770 Pro 80 Ohm with portable source. I’ve found DT770 Pro 32 Ohms too harsh on mid-highs with nearly the same output power, but my other option Beyerdynamic DT990 PRO Headphones – 250 OHM , which I ordinary use with Yamaha A-S500, play with Hidizs very poorly. So I could state combination of DT770 Pro 80 Ohm and AP100 to have the same greatness for me as one of DT990 PRO 250 Ohm and A-S500.

 

Lovely solid headphones
Solid bulit headphones, that give a great sound in all ranges.
Comfortable to wear for a length of time.
I’ve had loads of headphones over the years, in ear, headband etc even the over price Dr Dre Beats, these are far better.
Great that the parts can easily be replaced if they ever failed or broke, so far so good on that though.

The headphones do have sound leakage, no problem to the user but might get on other peoples nerves if set to loud.

The headphone cable is very long so no issues with reaching equipment the only downside of that is if you were using on your phone. ipod whilst out you would have to wrap the extra cable up somewhere.

 

Get these. Better than any £200 headphones.
Fantastic pair of headphones for the price. Much better than anything I have previously owned, even more expensive headphones. When I purchased these I had no amp or dac so I went with the 80 ohms which is absolutely fine. But in hindsight I would now have chosen the 250 version. Whichever you get will be great though. Aesthetic shouldn’t be a big point when it comes to buying headphones, but these look so good. They have a really retro kind of look and the black with grey pads looks really nice. Construction is great, materials are fine. I’ve had these headphones for over a year now and still like out of the box. Would recommend.

 

Great sound, comfortable, and built well
Had these for over a year now, and Absolutely love them. Started out looking for a decent headset for PC Gaming use but at the time the Beyer MMX300’s were far too expensive. All the talk at the time that i found said the MMX300’s were DT 770 Pro’s with the extra mic, so I bought a Antlion Modmic4 to attach to the side to get the job done.

I’m using them with a Fiio E10 DAC day to day, but have had no issue using these 80ohm versions to listen to music from my phone when on long journeys. Sound is great for music or games, and as they are closed back they help keep out noise from people around you at LAN party’s

 

Disappointing.
These were my first ever purchase of really good headphones and honestly I’m kinda disappointed. Coming from headphones which were 60 (SteelSeries Siberia V2 ) I can barely hear any difference which is very disappointing. The headband is not padded very well so after a long period of time it can get uncomfortable on the top of your head. The ear padding is so nice though. As someone who needs to wear glasses all day these are a treat to wear with my glasses.

For 105 I honestly was expecting more and certainly not them to sound almost close to 60 headphones.

 

A must buy.
These are great, great headphones. I came from AKG K550’s, I fancied a different sound and looked around at Sennheiser HD650’s, AKG 702’s, Bayer 770’s, 880’s and 990’s. The 770’s seem to be the most loved headphones going so I thought I’d give them ago, for the price I paid; a shade under 112 I thought they were too good to pass up.

When I first got them I thought the bass was insane, coming from AKG, which seems to me to have a very high level of attack, much like the Naim Hi-FI I used to own (a sound I adore), I thought I’d made a mistake buying the 770’s. However after burning them in for about 100+ hours, they seemed to have calmed down a LOT. Maybe I’m just accustomed to them, but I am fairly sure the sound has matured and as a result sound fantastic.

I still think the mids are a tad recessed compared to AKG, but it’s all a matter of taste. I listen to a lot of rock, metal, jazz, soul & blues, quite a broad spectrum and they are well suited to all genres. I can tire of my AKG K550’s, as they really have a forward sound to them, the Bayers I can literally listen to all day and not tire of the sound.

I’ve currently got them paired with a Schiit Lyr 2 amp, Schiit Wyrd and I am using an iFi Nano iDSD for a DAC. I play only FLAC files 16/44 and higher. The 250 will play on a mobile phone or tablet, but not at a high level. I like my music loud and my little iFi Nano only has an output of 130mW which isn’t enough to really push the 770’s and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s got another 30-50mW or so more on a mobile phones power output.

I think my next pair of headphones will be the AKG 702’s, but I will definitely trial the Bayer T90’s if I ever decide to step it up a notch and get serious about a pair of ‘phones; if I don’t look into the 880’s or 990’s before then!

 

Wow !
Well nothing quite prepared me for how these would sound !

It’s like standing at the front of a concert and been blasted !!! The sound is big and every instrument/Vocal can be picked out and nothing is hidden from you !! – You can hear the different resonances of the drums and the bass sounds like when you hear a bass at a concert. Vocals cut through naturally and guitars sound fantastic..

I have used these with an unamped Sony MP3 Walkman and listened to (MP3 320) Led Zeppelin II, Mazzy Star (so tonight), Nirvana (Nevermind, In utero), Queen (II,Night at the opera), Hendrix (Elec Ladyland), Air, Mercury Rev (Desrter’s songs) Kate Bush (kick inside) – All this type of music sounded stunning on these !!

Stunning !

I cannot recommend these enough !!! –

 

Hands down the best headphones I've ever heard
Background:

Most expensive headphones I’ve ever bought at 130 but after 3 months of listening to them at work I’ve decided they are well worth it!
I’ve had several pairs of decent 60-ish Sennheisers – the best of which was the EH-350 and then most recently had a pair of RHA CA-200’s which were very good for the price at only 30. Although these sounded great the build quality is flimsy and they are a bit uncomfortable for long-time wearing sessions.

Build & comfort:

These headphones are incredibly comfortable and very solidly built. They don’t feel cheap or plasticy but solid and classy. They aren’t particularly trendy or fashionable, more just functional and built for purpose in that solid german sort of way which I quite like. I have been able to listen to them for 2-3 hours with no wear discomfort at all, mainly because they don’t rest on your ears but instead entirely enclose them. They clamp your head fairly firmly (good for all you drummers out there) but its comfortable because the clamping force is on your head not your ears and the pads are large and very soft.

Packaging:

These headphones are pretty huge and fairly heavy. They feel reassuring and well build but wouldn’t recommend them for walking about or using public transport unless you have a big bag and don’t mind looking like a bit a of a prat. There is nothing about the design that has given any thought to making them portable. The cable on these headphones is thick, strong, heavy and quite long – unnecessarily long (and probably annoying) if you’re planning on using them on the move with your iPod. On the other hand the type of cable that it is is excellent for use in the office or at home in a recording studio where the extra length is really useful and there is little fear of it breaking as its pretty solid.

Sound:

I’m not an audiophile as such but I do know what sort of sound I like and I have an audiophile work colleague who often talks to me about sound quality and different headphones which can help put things into context. Compared to the other headphones I’ve had these win on sound quality in every way, hands down. I absolutely love them. They are closed back (and block out quite a lot of sound) which is great for private listening but they sound really open and natural and have a wide spacious sound stage. The main improvement over previous headphones is the clarity and upper end sparkle as well as a generally more natural, even sound across all the frequencies. I find I can listen to music for longer with these and they don’t sound fatiguing. I know it’s a clich but I also feel like I can hear a lot more of whats going on in a song. My audiophile friend has a pair of Shure SRH-940’s which are incredibly detailed and clear sounding but for me they sound almost too clinical and stark. Also there feels like there isn’t enough bass. It’s there but its very measured. I was worried that as you go up the scale of headphones and start to get to audiophile level ‘phones, this is the sort of sound you get. It’s unexciting to my ears even if it is more true and accurate. These DT 770’s though don’t have that problem, they aren’t as accurate and super-revealing as the Shure’s but they are still clearer and more detailed then any other headphones I’ve heard whilst still sounding warm and powerful in the way that I prefer. The bass doesn’t sound overdone or artificial like you get on Dr Dre Beats but its authoritative, deep and warm – for me its just the right amount! I’m running these 80 OHM versions through a nuforce dac and the volume is about perfect on half for me. They are sensitive enough to be powered by my iPhone but you need to have the phone on almost full volume for a good listening level but as I’ve said I wouldn’t bother using them in that way anyway.

Summary:

I’m totally thrilled with these headphones and don’t regret the 130 I payed for them one bit. Being classically German they are not flashy, but functional. Well built, solid and extremely comfortable with sound that, in my opinion is open, detailed, natural, powerful and extremely enjoyable to listen to. Buy them!!!