razor5cl
500+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2013
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Just curious, what amp do you guys pair your DT 990 with?
I use it with the Bravo Audio V2, my Creative XFi USB DAC and amp or sometimes my Fiio E11.
Just curious, what amp do you guys pair your DT 990 with?
To be perfectly honest, I've only had these phones for a month, but I've been experimenting with them a lot, and I've found that they're actually not that hard to drive with an inexpensive headphone amp, or receiver.
However, and this is a big, and very important point, the source is extremely important. These phones are designed to reveal flaws in bad recordings and sound great with great recordings, and so the biggest change I've found is going from a mediocre source to a really good one, and also again, going from either low bit-rate, or just poorly recorded CDs to newer, better recorded ones.
Loudness wars in pop music also create problems for these headphones, and there is very little that the amp can do to help this. On the other hand, many CDs recorded in the 1980s are almost too thin sounding with these phones, and you really notice the recessed mids and sibilant highs in such recordings.
Ideally, of course, an amp will have a very low noise floor, low distortion, and good tone and speed, but I've found that even my Schiit Magni can sound very good with these phones, if you use the right DAC.
I do not think a very good amp will compensate for a bad source--at least not with these phones.
I turned my 990's into a gaming headset by casper. The ONLY issue I had with the 990's and it might have just been mine is the off-cable driver sounded a little faint. After the mogami dual sided mod both sides sound perfectly equal.
After trying out the a different pair of higher-end headphones, I decided to order a pair of these on Amazon (the last ones available for a very low price) along with a video card w/amplifier. I am not an expert but I Love the sound from these headphones (it does have high treble but I will adjust to it). It seems more lively than the other pair I had and the ear pads are VERY soft and comfortable. I wish the cord was not corded as it is just barely long enough to reach my head from the back of the computer. Would a cord extender be useful or would it degrade the sound quality?
I am definitely thinking about buying an dedicated amplifier for these headphones in the future.
If the cable is really bothering you contact cCasper TFG he can make you up a completely new cable. Any length, any AWG, single sided, dual sided, detachable etc. His work is top notch and very fast.
Eh, would that void the warranty on the headphones though? And just how much would I expect to pay for such a modification? Is there any other way to extend the cable without degrading the sound or replacing the cable?
Thanks for your response.