[swbf2cheater]

 
 

1. Frequency range: 10-22,000 Hz
2. Impedance: 64 Ohms
3. Sound pressure level: 102 dB
4. Driver: 50 mm Mylar
5. Weight: 10 ounces (without cord)
6. Cord: One 39" coiled cord and one 39" straight cord

Gear used:  
-Meier Audio HeadSix amp
-NookColor/Home pc foobar 2000
-Sansa clip
 
I have eyed this set for years, pondering heavily how it might actually sound compared to the Pro 750 model and other similar dj cans. 
 
I'm going to keep this short so lets start off with the big questions.  First:
 
How does it compare to the Shure 750 DJ.  
 
The answer is: it sounds like the more forgiving version of the Shure model with loads more bass.  It does not have the slam or punchy sound the Shure 750 DJ had, ( even though the shure didnt have a lot of punch compared to many other cans, it still had far more than this ultrasone ).  Overall sound quality is good, nothing special.  Slightly above the level of the Shure 750Dj.  Separation is excellent and much nicer than any DJ set I have ever used to date.  Due to the S logic I suppose, its a love / hate thing.  It takes some getting used to, but the stage is size is vast and spacious, however it is not at all immersive.  It is not that forward either, so immersive qualities are thrown out the window.  
 
How does it compare to the Ultrasone Pro 750?
 
It doesnt.  Everything is inferior except the bass which is insanely large, clean and able to reach deeper than any set I have ever used besides the pro 750.  If you are a bass junky, you literally can't do better than this.  
 
Overall, the set is a godsend to me.  I prefer vast spacious stage size over audio quality any day.  I was surprised to find that this set isnt really that forward at all.   Immersion is poor but the stage width height and depth are extremely large, among the largest I've ever used in a full sized set. 
 
For the price, the sound quality and overall value gets a solid 8/10 and falls into the excellent range, what is stopping it from being a truly "insane" value would be the comfort.  It certainly has a bit of clamp but the real problem in this set is the weight in the headband, it suffers from the Shure 840 syndrome as do most of the Ultrasone models.  They use heavy materials and are top heavy, the set is not good for extended listening periods.  Its just too dang heavy.  It makes absolutely no sense to call this a DJ set when it couldnt be further from what it really is.  No real dj would ever wear this, the set is bulky, huge, and one of the heaviest sets ive ever used at close to a whopping 300 grams.  The pictures are deceptive, as you often see them from a side angle or on a doll head where it conforms nicely.  But in reality the set does not conform to any human head and there are HUGE gaps between your head and the headband, enough for me to stick my entire arm right through it! I have no idea how anyone could call this a DJ set, this is the biggest, fattest and most heavy set I've ever used in the past 15 years of my audiophile-hood.  
 
having said that...they sure sound great lol.  I was very unhappy with them only for their lack of comfort, but that sound.  OH that sound was lovely, and was a sound I wanted in 'my portable" set. 
 
Comparison for size between the Dj1 Pro and JVC HARX700...THEY ARE BIG!  

 
The earpads are more than big enough to fully envelope my ears even though they are circular shaped, unlike the original DJ1 ( non pro ) model with had ovals.  They tend to get hot really quick as they are made of pleather. 
 

 
They look damned sexy, one of the best looking sets and believe it or not they are a very streamlined set in terms of thickness.  They are low profile, but large in diameter.  The Shure 840/440/M50 and alike are all a lot thicker and jet out more.  The set came with a beautiful hard case with a fish net area inside, 2 cables, one of which I had no clue was meant for portable use, its very short and I planned on using one of my own cables to replace the stock ones...i was happily surprised to find the straight cable included was short, a manual and a CD 
 

 

[Acix]

Good read, the DJ Pro sounds like a winner.

 

[wind016]

If I remember correctly, they are unbadged Ultrasone Pro 550s right?
 
Your impressions seem very similar to my experience with the Pro 550. The HFI 580 has even more bass though XP

 

[swbf2cheater]

it definitely is a winner, and ive never heard the 580, so i cant say for sure

 

[wind016]

Very good review btw! XD
 
Something's wrong with the edit.
 

 

[rb101c]

I've been looking for a good "first" pair of headphones and these are the latest ones I've found, glad to see a new review of them.  I just had a few questions about them:
 
How portable are these (good for on the go use, good sound quality without an amp, etc.)?
How is the comfort and fit?  And how long would "extended listening periods" be?
 
I've been trying to find a pair with good value, quality, portability, and comfort and were hoping these would work.  They look great too.

 

[RPGWiZaRD]

Very good read but I'd be even more interested in a Shure 750DJ vs Ultrasone HFI-580 review but at least it looks like HFI-580 has more bass if DJ1 Pro already had more, would be nice to hear a comment about the mids and highs and soundstage between those as well though. I wonder if HFI-580 are more forward sounding though, I don't like laid-back sound. I prefer warm/forward sound even if it more often than not results in smaller soundstage/worse separation.
 
wind016> maybe you can fill me out on that as you've tried both Pro 550 and HFI-580.

 

[swbf2cheater]

Quote:

I've been looking for a good "first" pair of headphones and these are the latest ones I've found, glad to see a new review of them.  I just had a few questions about them:
 
How portable are these (good for on the go use, good sound quality without an amp, etc.)?
How is the comfort and fit?  And how long would "extended listening periods" be?
 
I've been trying to find a pair with good value, quality, portability, and comfort and were hoping these would work.  They look great too.

Not so portable, they are large, they are bigger in diameter than the Shure 840, which is very big.  But, its thinner than most, the backside is totally flat.  As for the comfort and fit, its not so good.  Im probably thwarting any future sales but the fit is a problem.  There is no reason for a dj set to be this large in the headband, it makes no sense.  Just like the shure models you can stick your entire hand through the opening and gaps on each side of your head, there is way too much space at least for my head to get a good fit.  Perhaps larger people might like it, but I think they are way too heavy and do not have anywhere near enough padding to justify that weight.   If you are laying down or have your head resting on the back of a chair or something, maybe a few hours of listening.  If not, and are sitting up like I have been the past week with them, you should get soar within a few minutes.  The set is one of the heaviest I've ever used.  
 
Having said that, I am deeply saddened by the comfort and weight issues because this sound IS IT for me.  Meaning it is THAT SOUND that I crave and look for in other sets.  The soundstage is huge in height width and depth is just awesome.  Audio quality is just good, not special.  But that stage and separation is so good, I am definitely an ultrasone man.  That house sound is something all headphones should have.  When I listen to other sets, I feel like I am cheating on the ultrasones because THAT IS HOW HEADPHONES SHOULD SOUND.
Overall value is excellent.  
 
 


Quote:

Very good read but I'd be even more interested in a Shure 750DJ vs Ultrasone HFI-580 review but at least it looks like HFI-580 has more bass if DJ1 Pro already had more, would be nice to hear a comment about the mids and highs and soundstage between those as well.

While that may be true, I am having trouble believing it.  Why?  Because the pro 750 model is known for insane bass quality and quantity and this dj1 set isn't far off from it.  And I've never heard anyone say the HFI 580 had THAT MUCH bass.  This is just stunning the first time you give it a listen, totally unexpected quantity.  The HFI design of the cups are totally different from the DJ1 set.  Even if people said it was a rebranded 580, I wouldn't believe it.  The Dj1 pro is a flatter response type sound vs the DJ1 original model, and also is a 64ohm where as the HFi 580 is a 32 ohm.
 
I've also never heard of anyone saying the HFi 580 had a more flat response than the other HFi models.  So...I have trouble believing the Dj1 pro is a re-brand of the 580 heh
 
and you asked for a more detailed comparison with the shure 750 dj, I'll try to sum things up but feel free to ask questions if you have them
 
the Shure is not only lighter, but more comfy to wear, has a more impacting response across the board, meaning from lows to highs the SNAP and KICK is much higher.  It is heavily colored in its presentation and has a boxed stage, good height and width, okay depth.  The bass is clean as a whistle but it is not airy, its solid hitting.  Thats hard to explain verbally, one needs to experience that to understand it.  Some sets have airy powerful bass like beyer and ultrasone, others like audio technica models have solid impacting bass.  
the Shure have a bass closer to the audio technica sound
 
The Dj1 pro bass is much larger and spacious feeling, it doesnt HIT like the shure does, it lands on you and settles down heh.  Thats the best way I can describe that type of bass.  Its very airy in presentation and very large sounding.  The Shure is known to reach deep bass levels but the dj1 pro reaches much deeper and the bass is always present.  It has a low end that is always there, where as the Shure 750dj bass only appears when there is some good bass going on.   The Dj1 stage is much larger in every way.  The set sounds especially grand with classical even though its a DJ set lol, but it plays everything very well, even acoustic jazz where the Shure falls short.
 
hope that helps

 

[RPGWiZaRD]

There's DJ1 Pro and DJ1, the DJ1 Pro is according to wind016 identical to the discontinued Pro 550 while DJ1 is identical to HFI-580. Both have same specs. The DJ1 (non-pro) has got 32 ohm impedance too. By going that DJ1 Pro and Pro 550 would be the same here's a comparision in frequency response curve between Pro 550 and HFI-580 from headphone.com.
 

 

[swbf2cheater]

Ah, I see. Thats good to know but you mentioned it with the 580 so i assumed it was, in the few other mentions of the set people said it was a possible rebrand.   Well, it really doesnt matter, it still sounds great.  For $120-$160, its an excellent value.

 

[RPGWiZaRD]

Frequency response graphs doesn't always tell what you expect though, just compare them to the Shure 750 DJs:
 

 
You'd easily think the Shures would be bassier and definitely not lack in deep bass department from that graph, ofc it could be a source/amping issue but in your case I doubt that. At least I've removed Shure 750DJ from the list to try headphones.

 

[GeorgeGoodman]

Nice review! I have always wanted these cans, but there are other things I am involved in right now, so sadly they are going to have to wait. I hear with real amping (not just a portable amp) the bass really becomes something special. Check this out:
 
http://www.touchmyapps.com/2010/03/15/einar-sound-vc-01i-balanced-headphone-amplifier-in-review/
 
Shigzeo (I think it is him) mentions multiple times that when he hooks up his DJ1 Pro, the bass really comes alive and hits low, hard, and deep. 

 

[swbf2cheater]

If you check my review on the Shure 750, you'll see I praise it just as heavily.  Both are excellent and well rounded sets, both of them have good audio quality and great bass. 

 

[miceblue]

Hey, thanks for the review! I was planning to purchase either the DJ1's or the DJ1 Pros...I still haven't quite decided yet though. It sounds like the Pros have a flatter sound and larger sound space while the non-pros have more bass. Am I correct?
 
Also, I listen to a lot of pop music and I like a slight emphasis in bass levels (I currently listen to my music through Sennheiser CX-300 buds), which of the two headphones would you recommend?
 
Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[swbf2cheater]

Quote:

Hey, thanks for the review! I was planning to purchase either the DJ1's or the DJ1 Pros...I still haven't quite decided yet though. It sounds like the Pros have a flatter sound and larger sound space while the non-pros have more bass. Am I correct?
 
Also, I listen to a lot of pop music and I like a slight emphasis in bass levels (I currently listen to my music through Sennheiser CX-300 buds), which of the two headphones would you recommend?
 
Thanks for any suggestions.

 
The pro does have a different flatter flavor, yes.  Both sound great so dont let that stop you from buying if that is something you want, its still very enjoyable for rock or pop.  As for the bass lol, well both have very impacting and large bass.  I wouldnt recommend either to you lol, they are both so large and heavy, why on earth would you want that
I would recommend the Denon D1100 if you want some crazy bass.  In fact, I would definitely recommend that or the D1001 over the Ultrasones any day.  Great sound quality but at the price of looking like a radar dish and having a lead weight on your head isnt worth it.