Headspace

Yeah, baby! Bask in the glory of my newly aquired Beyerdynamic DT-880 headphones, for it is much glory to be found in headphones that...uhm... bask. No, wait, that's not right. Oh, never mind. Anyhow, seeing as my birthday is coming up in the near future, I've treated myself to some new "cans" - the only piece of hardware I've bought for my home studio in ages. I've been an avid fan of Beyerdynamic headphones for many years now, having used my (t)rusty old DT-250s for about 10 years, and when my contact at the Norwegian Beyerdynamic distributor suggested I try out the 880s way back in last October, I had to say yes. Unfortunately, I was a bit busy the weekend I had them and didn't get to give them a proper listen. Still, what little I heard left me very impressed, so when I had the funds to justify buying them the other day, I did.


Oh joy. Oh, glorious, supreme, audiophile joy. These things are absolutely lovely. I've always liked the neutral, if somewhat bass-lacking sound of my 250s, but the 880s just wipe the floor with them. It was literally like pulling a blanket off your head and experiencing all those tiny, little details that inhibit the sonic space in which we all reside (unless you're in outer space, that is). No doubt the semi-open design of the the 880s help reconstruct the experience of listening to actual loudspeakers in a room as opposed to loudspeakers connected to your ears - the sound-field is wide and extremely detailed, the frequency response linear with a crisp high-end while still maintaining a very natural and neutral sound. I love them. Granted, they do not offer the same level of sound isolation (both ways) of my 250s, but compared to the 880s, the 250s sound a little narrow, midrange-oriented and "dry". Nothing wrong with that, of course: for vocal recording and critical editing, they're the bee's knees. For listening to music, they're ok but perhaps a little too clinical-sounding. The 880s are slightly heavier than the 250s, though - I can feel the headband pressing against my head when wearing them over a longer period of time. I suspect the leather and padding of the 880s are thinner than the velour padding of the 250 headband. Not really uncomfortable, just slightly less comfortable than the extremely comfy 250s.

In short, the 880s come highly recommended. At a price that equals what most people spend on a pair of Hi-Fi speakers, they're not cheap but worth every penny.