[gooeyrich]

Silly question, but is there a reason Beyer made a 1990 and not an 1880 too?

Or are the Amiron or T1 supposed to be the upgrade from the 880?

 

[Opalius]

Silly question, but is there a reason Beyer made a 1990 and not an 1880 too?

Or are the Amiron or T1 supposed to be the upgrade from the 880?

There are no silly questions – just stupid answers!

If you disregard the model numbers – because they kinda don’t make sense, then there is no need for two versions of a DT1990. ( one with a flat bass, and one with a slight V shape)

The reason for this is, that DT1990 come with two different pads, one that are analytical and one that are “balanced” ( bassy )
Also, the DT880 is by Beye not regarded as a “audiophile” headphone, even if it sure can be it is a “studio mixing headphone”

So the DT1990 is the upgrade to DT880
Their DT990 was originally regarded as a audiophile headphone with a Bassboost and spice treble ( V shaped )

The Amrion is a higher end audiophile headphone, - and the T1 gen 2 was upgrade to the Amiron, with angled drivers and all…. Don’t get me started on the T1 gen 3…. Please.
Hope that makes sense….

 

[kman1211]

There are no silly questions – just stupid answers!

If you disregard the model numbers – because they kinda don’t make sense, then there is no need for two versions of a DT1990. ( one with a flat bass, and one with a slight V shape)

The reason for this is, that DT1990 come with two different pads, one that are analytical and one that are “balanced” ( bassy )
Also, the DT880 is by Beye not regarded as a “audiophile” headphone, even if it sure can be it is a “studio mixing headphone”

So the DT1990 is the upgrade to DT880
Their DT990 was originally regarded as a audiophile headphone with a Bassboost and spice treble ( V shaped )

The Amrion is a higher end audiophile headphone, - and the T1 gen 2 was upgrade to the Amiron, with angled drivers and all…. Don’t get me started on the T1 gen 3…. Please.
Hope that makes sense….

Agree that the DT 1990 with analytical pads is an upgraded DT 880.

The DT 1770 Pro, DT 1990 Pro, and the Amiron Home came out after the T1.2, it's kinda hard to say the T1.2 is an upgraded Amiron due to this, it's more accurate to say the Amiron is a slightly scaled down and tweaked T1.2. While the T1.2 is better overall than the Amiron Home, I did find the Amiron Home does do a couple thing better, one is sub-bass extension/presence and another imho is perceived clarity; but the main thing is the Amiron Home fixed a slight transparency/resonance issue in the mids on the T1.2 (this is why I let go of my T1.2), the T1.3 also fixes this but it's tuned very different. The T1.3 has some similarities to the Amiron Home and T1.2 but it tilts noticeably towards the bass, more relaxed upper mids, and more relaxed treble. Love/hate headphone in terms of tuning but technically no slouch.

 

[Pan Varox]

Just out of curiosity I've ordered both Balanced and Analytical Pads from Amazon. Interestingly enough Balanced pads were send with additional mounting rings and A pads weren't. I can confirm that new Balanced Pads differ from Analytical only in number of holes. Foam is exactly the same soft foam as were from the beggining in A pads.

Overal B pads now sound only slightly fuller than A pads, but still with great, clear midrange. Previous B pads were too muddy with kind of hollow midranger. I love this change

 

[Benmor]

I was about to buy the DT 1770 Pro s when I read this review of the Meze 99 Classic (https://headphone.guru/meze-99-classic-headphones/) . He claims the soundstage on the DT 1770 Pro is "significantly narrower" and with "less depth" than on the Meze 99 Classic. He also described the DT 1770 s as a "bit staid and reserved" compared to the "fun presentation" on the Meze 99s. I don't remember a direct comparison with the Meze 99 Classics but it seems a bit at odds with the impression I've formed from reading this thread.

Now I'm a bit torn. I would be using them with the Ifi Audio xCan or the Clarus usb dac/amp. The Meze 99 Classics are much cheaper than the Beyerdynamics here in Europe and it seems surprising that they could have such a better soundstage and presentation. Does anyone have any experience with the Meze 99 Classics and could offer some comments/advice?

 

[Opalius]

I was about to buy the DT 1770 Pro s when I read this review of the Meze 99 Classic (https://headphone.guru/meze-99-classic-headphones/) . He claims the soundstage on the DT 1770 Pro is "significantly narrower" and with "less depth" than on the Meze 99 Classic. He also described the DT 1770 s as a "bit staid and reserved" compared to the "fun presentation" on the Meze 99s. I don't remember a direct comparison with the Meze 99 Classics but it seems a bit at odds with the impression I've formed from reading this thread.

Now I'm a bit torn. I would be using them with the Ifi Audio xCan or the Clarus usb dac/amp. The Meze 99 Classics are much cheaper than the Beyerdynamics here in Europe and it seems surprising that they could have such a better soundstage and presentation. Does anyone have any experience with the Meze 99 Classics and could offer some comments/advice?

Oh boy... A firend of mine has the Meze 99.

It's like comparing apples and oranges.

Think of the meze 99 like a Grado. It's a love / hate thing and the sound is very colored.

The DT1770 still has natural mids, with a boosted bass and Beye highs.
The Meze has alot of "mud" in the low mids, and is a very warm headphone soundwise.

Good for long listening sessions, but you have to like the sound signiture.

DT1770 is very clinical in comparison. Good for critical listening if you need a closed back headphone.

Soundstage wise I they are equal. The Meze gives a feeling of vocals being abit distant because of the strong v-shape.

If you like vocals, and detail in vocals, or listen to classical music then I would go with the DT1770.

For EDM I would buy the Meze...

That's my 2 cent

 

[Benmor]

Oh boy... A firend of mine has the Meze 99.

It's like comparing apples and oranges.

Think of the meze 99 like a Grado. It's a love / hate thing and the sound is very colored.

The DT1770 still has natural mids, with a boosted bass and Beye highs.
The Meze has alot of "mud" in the low mids, and is a very warm headphone soundwise.

Good for long listening sessions, but you have to like the sound signiture.

DT1770 is very clinical in comparison. Good for critical listening if you need a closed back headphone.

Soundstage wise I they are equal. The Meze gives a feeling of vocals being abit distant because of the strong v-shape.

If you like vocals, and detail in vocals, or listen to classical music the I would go with the DT1770.

For EDM I would buy the Meze...

That's my 2 cent

Thank you Opalius , for a very detailed response. He doesn't put it in your terms in the review, but I think he'd agree the Meze are coloured. He says there's an emphasis in the low mids, which he acknowledges is not accurate but he feels it complements the vocals on certain tracks. You call it "a lot of mud " in the low mids. So you both seem to agree that there's something going on there. Yes, vocals are important to me. I don't listen to much EDM. I don't mind a warm sound, but "very" warm might be a problem. He loves the DT 1770 but he considers the soundstage significantly bigger on the Meze so I guess that's why, all other things being equal, he prefers the Meze. But if there's no difference in the soundstage then I guess it comes down to that love/hate thing with the signature.

 

[Chodi]

I contacted them as I have DT1990 and T1V2 but the shipping charge to Thailand was carzy high. So I order a bunch of similar looking pads on Ali Express to try. They arrived. Funny they look like the same pads Deneki is offering at a fraction of the cost. I will get around to seeing how they sound. They all appear to be very well made. We shall see. Would be funny if that was where Deneki had their pads made in the same China factory.

 

[Liberte]

I know there's debate over burn in, but has anyone found that they get used to the sound of the DT1990 and it becomes less fatiguing with time?

I used DT770 for years with no issues, could listen for 12 hours straight and only feel like my ears needed some air, but with the 1990 I can only go a couple hours and with some DACs and certain music the treble is a lot straight away.

I also have the Dekoni suede pads to try as they seem to reduce the treble in their graphs but haven't tried them yet.

 

[Terriero]

I know there's debate over burn in, but has anyone found that they get used to the sound of the DT1990 and it becomes less fatiguing with time?

I used DT770 for years with no issues, could listen for 12 hours straight and only feel like my ears needed some air, but with the 1990 I can only go a couple hours and with some DACs and certain music the treble is a lot straight away.

I also have the Dekoni suede pads to try as they seem to reduce the treble in their graphs but haven't tried them yet.

The "acclimatation period" happens with a lot of things, even with wives (or not)

I tried the Amiron Wireless foam pads, which reduced the treble peak (very noticiable with cymbals presence).

 

[Liberte]

Haha thanks, they are a very loveable headphone despite being a touch painful on occasion. It seems the Dekoni velour may also be a good choice, as the Suede pads a few people report as muddying with bass too much but I will have to experiment... I will persevere with the stock balanced pad for now though.

 

[Opalius]

Download Poweramp equalizer for Android or Equalizer APO for windows.

With Poweramp, turn on parametric EQ in settings and add the following:

4000hz +2.0db Q2
7500hz -2.5db Q5
8300hz -4.4db Q5

This will add some clarity to vocals, and remove that harsh peak. It will still sound like a Beye, but it will just be that 10 procent better and really make it shine.

If you want abit more bass, wider soundstage, add some Deconi pads (velur elite), and you have a "end game sound".

I tried to be a "purist", and not cheat by not EQ'ing... but it's kinda hard when you first hear how nice it becomes when that Sssszzzzzzz is gone and the 2db boost at 4k make vocals pop like a HD650

 

[Liberte]

Thanks for the advice, I use UAPP on my phone which has a parametric EQ but then you lose bit perfect output to the external DAC. I also use JRiver on my computer which also has EQ but I think you also lose some quality. Whether I could tell a difference I don't know... I may try the Dekoni velour pads after the suede, I don't mind having a few pads as I can try them with the DT770 aswell

 

[marekm]

My DT1990 Pro (analytical pads) are connected SE to iFi ZEN Stack (DAC & CAN) fed by USB from MacBook Air M1 (Tidal HiFi) and I see no need for any EQ.

There simply is no peak (to my ears). Just pleasant sound across all frequencies

 

[Opalius]

My DT1990 Pro (analytical pads) are connected SE to iFi ZEN Stack (DAC & CAN) fed by USB from MacBook Air M1 (Tidal HiFi) and I see no need for any EQ.

There simply is no peak (to my ears). Just pleasant sound across all frequencies

Katie Melua - crawling up a hill....​

Lyrics:
Every morning about half past eight
My mama wakes me saysszz
Don't be late
Get to the officszzze, trying to concszzzentrate
My life isssszzzz jussszzt a slow train crawling up a hill....

... I know a couple more songs and lyrics that have trouble with the DT1990...