[SickBoy]

Hi, I was looking to buy the Beyerdynamic DT 990 250 OHM but I'm not completely sure if I'll need an amp for them. My motherboard is a Gigabyte Z270X-UD5 and has a Realtek ALC1220 that says that includes a headphone AMP.

In it's specs it says:

• ALC1220 120dB SNR HD Audio with Smart Headphone Amp

It even says something like AMP-UP AUDIO physically in it with some RGB and there are 3 AMP levels in the Realtek software.

Here is my motherboard's specs: https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GA-Z270X-UD5-rev-10#kf

The main usage will be gaming and some music. I don't need them to be really loud but I don't want them to sound like complete crap either.

Anybody tried the DT 990 250 OHM with this ALC1220? You think they'll sound acceptable with it or I should definitely get an AMP for them?

I also looked at the AKGs 701 and 702 which are 62-Ohmm, do you think these'll be easier to drive with the ALC1220 amp?

Thanks!

 

[cossix]

Hi, I was looking to buy the Beyerdynamic DT 990 250 OHM but I'm not completely sure if I'll need an amp for them. My motherboard is a Gigabyte Z270X-UD5 and has a Realtek ALC1220 that says that includes a headphone AMP.

In it's specs it says:

• ALC1220 120dB SNR HD Audio with Smart Headphone Amp

It even says something like AMP-UP AUDIO physically in it with some RGB and there are 3 AMP levels in the Realtek software.

Here is my motherboard's specs: https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GA-Z270X-UD5-rev-10#kf

The main usage will be gaming and some music. I don't need them to be really loud but I don't want them to sound like complete **** either.

Anybody tried the DT 990 250 OHM with this ALC1220? You think they'll sound acceptable with it or I should definitely get an AMP for them?

Thanks!

For the most part, getting a good quality amp will be better than the motherboard's audio hardware. Magni 3 is 100 dollars and you won't find a better amp for that price. For gaming, I wouldn't worry too much unless the headphone isn't loud enough, but for music an external amp will make more of a difference. You could also get a lower impedance headphone. I know Beyer likes to offer a bunch of different impedance model types for each headphone

 

[PurpleAngel]

Hi, I was looking to buy the Beyerdynamic DT 990 250 OHM but I'm not completely sure if I'll need an amp for them. My motherboard is a Gigabyte Z270X-UD5 and has a Realtek ALC1220 that says that includes a headphone AMP.
In it's specs it says: ALC1220 120dB SNR HD Audio with Smart Headphone Amp
It even says something like AMP-UP AUDIO physically in it with some RGB and there are 3 AMP levels in the Realtek software.
Here is my motherboard's specs: https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GA-Z270X-UD5-rev-10#kf
The main usage will be gaming and some music. I don't need them to be really loud but I don't want them to sound like complete **** either.
Anybody tried the DT 990 250 OHM with this ALC1220? You think they'll sound acceptable with it or I should definitely get an AMP for them?
Thanks!

The on-board audio should at least decently drive the 250-Ohm DT990 headphones.

I own the DT990, I find my Soundmagic HP200 headphones to be sound quality wise an "improved" version of the DT990.

 

[SickBoy]

For the most part, getting a good quality amp will be better than the motherboard's audio hardware. Magni 3 is 100 dollars and you won't find a better amp for that price. For gaming, I wouldn't worry too much unless the headphone isn't loud enough, but for music an external amp will make more of a difference. You could also get a lower impedance headphone. I know Beyer likes to offer a bunch of different impedance model types for each headphone

The on-board audio should at least decently drive the 250-Ohm DT990 headphones.

I own the DT990, I find my Soundmagic HP200 headphones to be sound quality wise an "improved" version of the DT990.

Thanks for the insight, I don't discard getting an external AMP like the e10k in the future but for now I'll just buy the headphones.
I was also considering the AKGs 701/702 which are 62-Ohm, do you think these'll be easier to drive with the onboard amp of the ALC1220?

 

[cossix]

Thanks for the insight, I don't discard getting an external AMP like the e10k in the future but for now I'll just buy the headphones.
I was also considering the AKGs 701/702 which are 62-Ohm, do you think these'll be easier to drive with the onboard amp of the ALC1220?

It depends on the sensitivity but 62 ohm headphones are usually easy to drive so I say go for it. If you find the sensitivity measurement in the specs sheet definitely post it so we can see if they're easy or hard to drive

 

[PurpleAngel]

Thanks for the insight, I don't discard getting an external AMP like the e10k in the future but for now I'll just buy the headphones.
I was also considering the AKGs 701/702 which are 62-Ohm, do you think these'll be easier to drive with the onboard amp of the ALC1220?

The 62-Ohm AKG 700 series are more power hungry then 250-Ohm Beyerdynamic headphones.

 

[SickBoy]

It depends on the sensitivity but 62 ohm headphones are usually easy to drive so I say go for it. If you find the sensitivity measurement in the specs sheet definitely post it so we can see if they're easy or hard to drive

The 62-Ohm AKG 700 series are more power hungry then 250-Ohm Beyerdynamic headphones.

Finally bought the DT 990 250-Ohm, they'll arrive this Sunday and I'll give them a try with the ALC 1220. If that doesn't work then I'll start searching for an amp without spending too much, I heard the Fiio E10k works fine with these.

 

[cossix]

Finally bought the DT 990 250-Ohm, they'll arrive this Sunday and I'll give them a try with the ALC 1220. If that doesn't work then I'll start searching for an amp without spending too much, I heard the Fiio E10k works fine with these.

If you need just an amp, the Magni 3 is a much better pick for about 20 dollars more. If you need an amp dac combo, the Fulla 2 is also a better pick for the same increase in price

 

[SickBoy]

Hey, quick update from me in case anyone was interested. Had the DT990's for 1 week now. When plugging them to the back panel of the ALC 1220 onboard and setting the AMP to level to 3 they get really loud, like a lot so I use them to 70% for music/games. They really improved onboard audio on recent motherboards.
But when pluggin them to the front panel audio they don't get loud enough, I could use them there but I don't like it. There is no AMP option when using the front panel audio.
On my Nexus 6P they suck, I don't like it at all, but I didn't buy them for that anyway.

I still don't know if I'm gonna buy an external AMP, but for now they get really loud and sound great connected to the back of the onboard with the AMP on level 3.

 

[FunkeXMix]

I tried the Shiit Fulla 2. The sound quality was way worse then my Realtek ALC889 mothercard chipset. Both on headphones and my speaker setup. It's an old myth from the old days that any external DAC will be better then onboard chipsets. That was true before 2008.

 

[aliquis]

Old thread and I found it for other reasons but I've used DT 990 250 ohm on ALC 1220 with whatever op-amps ASUS use on B450-F and just as you say it get plenty loud so no problem.

Personally I wouldn't buy anything more for such a system.
The CoolerMaster MH751 / Takstar Pro 82 and some Sony IEM 16 ohm headphones however to made a lot of hiss in the background when the computer wasn't plugged into a grounded outlet but it seem to be gone when it is.

 

[FunkeXMix]

Since I made my first statement I have upgraded my motherboard, and it had sound as part of it's marketing points so expected good sound. turns out the lesson is that it didn't, it also has ALC1220 but the sound quality is crap (msi sli plus z370), so it seems it's about implementation, not the latest specifications. listening before you buy is not an option with motherboards. so in the end, investing in a external DAC is the better choice.