[EIOIO]

Is Schiit heretic /modi+ a good stack for dt 1990 Pro?

 

[cirodts]

I have an asgard 3 with multibit dac and I am very happy with the dt 1990 but..... if I buy an OTL what sonic differences would I have with the dt 1990 compared to the solid state asgard 3?

 

[Exekuhtor]

OTL's on high impedance dynamics generally do the following:
Wider soundstage
Slightly less peaky treble
Increased bass quantity
A bit more decay of notes

So, they normally soften up the sound and make the headphone more relaxed, which is a very good thing for the DT1990 and DT1770, both are very aggressive sounding and feeding you unescapable detail to you brain with a small soundstage. The bass gets looser and the experience is more enjoyable. The difference is very big with the DT1990 since it is so aggressive sounding and doesn't have a big soundstage to begin with. A ZMF Verite Open also benefits from it, but i would say that the difference is slightly less drastic (still very obvious and nicer).
You also can experiment a bit with tube rolling (doesn't have to be expensive) to further improve the sound to your liking. I would say that it's shifting the DT1990 from a monitoring tool to a fantastic listening enjoyment.

 

[cirodts]

what otl amp are you using?

 

[Thomasr]

Can anyone comment on the DT-880/600 vs the DT-1990? What are the similarities and differences? Reason I ask is that I'm very fond of the 880/600 and I'm wondering whether the 1990 or the T1.3 is the more "logical" upgrade.

In terms of amplification, I currently have the SMSL HO200 and find it drives the 880/600 quite well, so I assume the 1990 at 250ohms should be no problem at all. Down the road I'm planning to buy/build a bottlehead crack OTL.

 

[Exekuhtor]

I'm using a Feliks Echo MKII with upgraded tubes (6N6P OTK Nevz gold grid true NOS, milspec red tip and E88CC (aka 6922) BEL gold contact NOS, identical to Philips E88CC SQ). That's on the middle to higher end of the OTL price point, entry OTL's are ~250€ (xDuoo TA-26S) and the top dog is probably the Feliks Audio Euforia Evo for ~2700€.
It's also often very worth to upgrade the basic tubes.

@Thomasr The DT1990 is often considered as "the best" Beyer, also: THIS looks absolutely disgusting... I listened to the first (or 2nd gen, dunno anymore) and was not impressed.
When you want to spend more money, get away from Beyer, for example, i found the Denon AH-D9200 was a pure upgrade from the DT1990 (i posted a comparison between them).

 

[DancingShaman]

Purchased this pair as a companion for listening to music as well for making music on Ableton. It’s coupled with RME Adi 2 fs. With the power mode set to high, I need to crank it up to -25 to get meaningful sound. Below that, it’s kind of too low to listen to. Is this expected considering it’s a relatively high (300ohm) impedance headphone. For those who are using these with an RME dac, may I learn your listening volumes please? Many thanks!!

 

[cirodts]

I'm using a Feliks Echo MKII with upgraded tubes (6N6P OTK Nevz gold grid true NOS, milspec red tip and E88CC (aka 6922) BEL gold contact NOS, identical to Philips E88CC SQ). That's on the middle to higher end of the OTL price point, entry OTL's are ~250€ (xDuoo TA-26S) and the top dog is probably the Feliks Audio Euforia Evo for ~2700€.
It's also often very worth to upgrade the basic tubes.

@Thomasr The DT1990 is often considered as "the best" Beyer, also: THIS looks absolutely disgusting... I listened to the first (or 2nd gen, dunno anymore) and was not impressed.
When you want to spend more money, get away from Beyer, for example, i found the Denon AH-D9200 was a pure upgrade from the DT1990 (i posted a comparison between them).

of course the denon is an update to the 1990 dt, it costs 1650 euros!!

 

[Exekuhtor]

Used for 900-1k€, but yeah, it's in a different price region.
Always try to buy used (in the classified), so if you don't like it you can sell it with minimal loss.

 

[Thomasr]

Used for 900-1k€, but yeah, it's in a different price region.
Always try to buy used (in the classified), so if you don't like it you can sell it with minimal loss.

I've always found the "buy used" suggestion to be well-meaning on a philosophical level, but not so practical in the real world.

One of my other (lapsed at this point, but I was more active several years ago) hobbies is astronomy (another excellent money pit by the way for anyone who's grown bored sinking money into hifi gear). In the forums, people would routinely give the advice to buy used eyepieces, tubes, and other gear.

Great, but I'd see an example of item X cross the classifieds maybe once a year, if at all. So then you end up buying something else that's kinda close to what you were looking for, and unsurprisingly you don't really like it that much and you ultimately get rid of it to try something else. Rinse and repeat several times until you just go ahead and buy item X new.

Granted, headphone hifi is a much more subjective hobby so the chances (when making random purchases because something "interesting" popped up) of a surprise hit are greater, but for specific items? I just checked CanuckAudioMart and there are zero results for the D9200. Nobody has ever listed one on the platform. Ever.

 

[Exekuhtor]

There is on average at least once a month a D9200 here in the classified for 1k or less... I bought (and sold) a lot of items here, and only a single time did i have a bad experience...

 

[Thomasr]

There is on average at least once a month a D9200 here in the classified for 1k or less... I bought (and sold) a lot of items here, and only a single time did i have a bad experience...

Fair enough. My opinion is probably at least partly shaped by the fact I am in Canada. Most of the time when buying things internationally - whether new or used - they just arrive without drama. Most of the time. But every now and then, an item will be held at customs and assessed for taxes/duties, and then depending on the shipping carrier (UPS is by far the worst for this) brokerage fees are also applied. I've had small items double in price this way. So if I'm buying used, my first instinct is always the domestic market, and that market is 1/10th the size of the US or EU.

 

[cirodts]

Do you recommend a non-parametric graphic equalization for the dt 1990, not for the peak on the treble, but to make it sound great.

 

[JackarlTwo]

Purchased this pair as a companion for listening to music as well for making music on Ableton. It’s coupled with RME Adi 2 fs. With the power mode set to high, I need to crank it up to -25 to get meaningful sound. Below that, it’s kind of too low to listen to. Is this expected considering it’s a relatively high (300ohm) impedance headphone. For those who are using these with an RME dac, may I learn your listening volumes please? Many thanks!!

I only use Auto Ref Level on my RME. With the RME + DT1990 I get good volume at around -30 dBr to -36 dBr, depending on the song. -25 dBr or (-25 dB Hi-power) is very loud to my ears

 

[FritzS]

Now I get DT1990 Pro and want to test & compare them with my current headphones (and coming new in Autumn too).
First short test.
Contact pressure is not too severe (I was afraid).
Short sound check, pleasant and silky appearing heights.
This impression is by no means mature, the audio samples was only very short.
I like the case very much.
Pad diameter is slightly smaller than K712, K812
I wait what coming in Autumn new from Vienna - please read @Nomax