The final two...DT-990 Vs K701 - Page 2

For all types of music?

I would go for something more balanced with fairer representations in the highs, lows, and mids. The DT990 is love/hate. It's great when it can shine, but when it can't it just falls over. Don't get me wrong. I love the DT990, but it favors my preferences and type of music...aggressive rock. It's not perfect, but it does very well. It would do well for things like techno, etc. as well. It would fall over on vocals. If you like listening to arias, it might be a problem.

Don't get me wrong though. I can listen to all *good* headphones and have a good time. Rocking out, to me, is a state of mind. I have a good set of headphones for various representations. Which I choose to listen to depends on the mood I'm in and what point of view I want to listen to the music from.

My personal belief is that the K701 will do well generically. I intend to buy one to test that theory, in time. Keep in mind though, I'm not one to put on a set of headphones and barf and gag (some people do have extreme reactions). I put them on and say, interesting, I've not thought of it that way before...

One other thing. The Grados are "hot" in the lower treble (~2-4KHz). If that's what you are used to and are one that has difficulty adjusting, then look for something with a similar signature.

So you know where I'm coming from, here are my headphones:
Beyer DT990, Philips SBC HP1000, Beyer DT660, AKG K81DJ, Audio Technica ATH-ANC7, MB Quart QP45X, MB Quart QP55X, Altec Lansing IM716, Crossroads MylarOne X3.

If you are a "rock" fan then you have to go with the dt990's. They are the only headphone that rocks as hard, or harder than the Grados (in my mind harder). The mid's are not really a problem on the pair that I have. The entire audio presentation is one of fun and excitment, just as rock was meant to be heard. Listening to the 990's is just like being on stage with a "Marshall Stack".

- augustwest

I have them both and do love them both. For your music taste, I would recommend DT990s. Though I feel with a good amp, fully burn-in K701s have very decent bass.

How significant is the bass difference between these two headphones? I love my Q701s but am looking for something to compliment/contrast them for EDM and other more bass heavy genres. I'm looking at either the DT990 600ohm or Ultrasone Pro 900. Thanks for the help.