This is the first in a series of headphone reviews, starting the the bad boys that started the fire.
This wouldn’t be a proper blog post without an immediate tangent about life before these, so feel free to skip to the next heading. I have what most doctors would describe as “a big ol’ noggin” and most headphones hang onto my head like a small child on a mechanical bull. 10+ years ago, I relied mostly on whatever our local Staples had in stock or whatever came bundled with a game’s special edition (thanks for the pain, Guild Wars Collector’s Edition over-the-ear’s). However, as the need to shout at random people over the internet rose, so did my need for a better headset.
My first “big beef” headphones were the Logitech G35’s and after the small plastic spindle holding the right earmuff on cracked, I had to get them replaced. They sounded pretty good as far as I can remember and of course virtual 7.1 was the cat’s pajamas at the time. The post-replacement pair was just as good and actually didn’t show signs of breaking. Their demise came the morning my mom snuck in to get a rogue bottle off my desk and bulldozed my headphones into pieces via their cable. She offered to replace them under one stipulation- they had to be wireless. Luckily, the G930’s were exactly that- a wireless G35. Unluckily, the G930’s were exactly that- a wireless G35- since they promptly broke after as many uses as my first G35’s.
After that, I made my foray into Steelseries. I started off with their Siberia Elite Prism. They were white like my computer case and about as enormous as the earmuffs you would need to survive the real Siberia. They were the best sounding headset I’d had up to that point, especially coming from wireless back into the wired realm- which is what eventually leads me to my 770’s. After years of service, they started losing sound in the left earcup and I moved on to their newest wireless ear-ticklers, the Arctis 7. Naturally they were white and I got the rad pink ski mask band. After about a year of “huh, what did you say” removings of the right earcup when someone came to talk to me, the actual shell of the headphone cracked around the arm holding it on the headband.
So naturally I bought another set of Arctis 7’s. They were the latest edition, boasting “better sound” and some other stuff. They did sound better than the first set, but seemed to have more technical issues. The biggest gripe that I had with them was a sizzle whenever I was in video game water. Specifically Sea of Thieves water- and I love that water. When my wireless transmitter pooped out, I had to use them wired. Boy was that a treat! They sounded amazing, except the wire was just a bit too short. Around the same time, a close friend upgraded from his almost-just-as-new Arctis 7’s to the Phillips Fidelio 2XHR’s (with a baby plug in mic that he later upgraded).
Not to be outdone…
I got the similar bug and asked for the DT 770’s for Christmas. They were unlike anything I had ever head before. Were they comfy? Yes. Did they feel nice? Totes! These have semi-soft velour ear pads and a funky 80’s texture on the outside of the cup. The padding on the top band is wrapped in what feels like the the thinnest pleather material, but it has yet to show even a scratch or bit of wear. They have a long cable. I’m not one for numbers but this bad boy is like 10 feet long (enough for them to be plugged into my desktop amp and reach comfortably to my pillows for bed-based listening).
I own the 80 ohm version. I read from sources that these had the best soundstage for gaming and while I haven’t tried the 32 or 250 ohm versions, I assume middle number means middle performance.
For Gaming and Movies-
Imaging is accurate and crisp, but relegated to a sphere around your head so distance is hard to read. When I later tried the Fidelio’s, they seemed to have the same sphere of sound, which for open backs usually isn’t the case, since some sounds on my 990’s feature snare hits like someone is breaking in one room over. Footsteps are clear, but distance is slightly lost. Things get a little muddy if you layer on music and game chat, but with some volume balancing, you won’t lose too much in the mix.
Action movies are an absolute blast with these guys on. Explosions are huge, guns are loud, and their accompanying 80’s soundtracks will slap your little earholes. I can’t really speak to more solemn movies, but I never really had an issue with dialogue anywhere so that could come down to preference.
For Music-
The bass is punchy and full but it doesn’t bleed up into the mids. The highs soar above everything, but not so much that everything feels unbalanced. I don’t know if its technically a lack of mids causing this, but the intensity of the highs and lows take the focus away from voices. That’s not to say the voice definition is lacking though, just not in the forefront like the drums or other instruments. These are definitely suited for someone who likes to analyze jazz or other instrument forward genres. If you like music with punchy basslines and synth a la Talking Heads, then I can’t suggest these more.
For Tyler-
What I previously described is what people usually refer to as “V-shaped” and is usually the sign of a “fun” headphone. These aren’t terribly fun after listening to more complex headphones. They sound like what a “non-audiophile” would classify as a nice headphone (that’s certainly what I called them when I got them). I was against getting an open back in fear that I would lose out of that ear nectar you would call bass. Unlike many other closed backs though, the bass isn’t huge and it doesn’t overlap where it shouldn’t. They are perfectly suited in my lineup for my turntable, since the clarity and sound signature really aligns well with what my table outputs. For other areas like gaming or critical listening, I have headphones that I prefer more, but these headphones have led me to decide what direction I wanted to steer my musical journey.
The Final Verdict
The Beyerdynamic DT770’s are some of the best, if not the best, first audiophile headphones you can buy. Unlike the Fidelio 2XHR’s that are more warm and boomy, these are clear and very analytical. They are great if you want one headphone for movies, music, and gaming. I like to describe my 990’s like one of those auditoriums where medical students watch a doctor do surgery- very sterile but huge and full of clarity. Compared to that, the 770’s are like the same doctor and medical students crammed into a small operating room. Stuff is a little tighter, but a little smaller all around. In the mid $100 range, if you ask me for an amazing set of headphones that are easy to run, I cannot suggest these more. If you need closed backs because you are someone blessed by a loud family or have respect for other students in your school’s library, these are some of the best closed backs that you can get sub-$500.
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