[photorph]

Hello all, i've been reading around the forums a lot.  I'm a newbie to the audio world.  I own bose qc 15s and Philips SHE3590.  
 
After reading around this forum I learned bose are actually supposed to be bad sound quality wise.  After doing a lot of research, I settled on buying the beyerdynamic dt 990 pro 250 ohm.  
 
I wanted these headphones for listening at home to music and watching movies.  I listen to music from all genres, bust mostly hip hop and rock.  I also wanted to use the headphones for watching movies.  I like headphones that have a lot of oomph bass wise, that's what really makes you feel like you are in the movie.  

I am using these headphones out of either iMac or macbook pro (latest models), or iPad/iphone.  I have a Fiio E11 amp on the way, although my computer and iPhone was able to power these to an acceptable volume level.
 
 
Here is my question...These headphones don't sound as good to me as the $8 in ear philips she3590 or even bose qc 15 sound better.  The beyerdynamic dt990 pro is having trouble handling bass and it cracks and distorts even when it isn't turned up too loud.  This is what I used as a bass test
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tkzCImjl58
 
My bose qc 15 and she3590 can handle it fine, but the dt990 pros crack and distort.  
 
This is what I used as just a normal test to compare the 3 headphones I have
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-h6MoF7HLA
 
Honestly, the $8 philips sounded the best.  Couldn't tell much of a difference between bose and dt990 pro.  Am I missing something?  The volume isn't an issue so I don't think an amp will solve the problem.  
 
​Thanks for any help and excuse my ignorance for being a newbie.  
 

 

[Me x3]

Hi,
 
Youtube is definitely not a good place to find recordings to test your gear. Everything in youtube is really compressed and most of the times are also bad transcodes.
 
You may find this information pretty useful:
http://www.whatinterviewprep.com/prepare-for-the-interview/transcodes/
 
Beyerdynamic DT990s are not forgiving headphones, then they tend to show most flaws of the recordings. In my experience with this headphones I find that most modern pop/over bright/ultra compressed recordings don't sound good through my DT990s. On the other hand, with good quality recordings they sound really good and that's why they are considered one of the best sounding headphones at its price point (if not the best).
 
Try different sources, amps and files and if the problem persists maybe you have picked a defective pair.
 
Best Luck!

 

[manbear]

Distortion could be due to the headphone jack, or it could be in the youtube video itself. Once you get the E11, try listening to a decent quality MP3. If you still have distortion even then, something might be wrong with the headphones. 

 

[rubinstein]

Test with Flac or audio cd track.

 

[photorph]

Thanks a lot for the responses so far.
 
Well the recording or headphone jack issue I sort of ruled out because my bose qc15 sounds perfectly good coming from the same sources.  I posted the links to the youtube files I was using.  Of course I know they are compressed.
 
The results are the same when listening to songs on spottily or songs purchased from iTunes, the dt990s seem to have trouble with very deep hip hop bass while the bose qc15 don't.  My main purpose for getting the dt990 pros was to get an upgrade in sound quality from my bose qc 15s in terms of watching movies, and listening to music (hip hop, rock, pop).  

 

[rubinstein]

  Thanks a lot for the responses so far.
 
Well the recording or headphone jack issue I sort of ruled out because my bose qc15 sounds perfectly good coming from the same sources.  I posted the links to the youtube files I was using.  Of course I know they are compressed.
 
The results are the same when listening to songs on spottily or songs purchased from iTunes, the dt990s seem to have trouble with very deep hip hop bass while the bose qc15 don't.  My main purpose for getting the dt990 pros was to get an upgrade in sound quality from my bose qc 15s in terms of watching movies, and listening to music (hip hop, rock, pop).  

IMO, DT 990 would sound a lot better than qc 15, if the source file is of uncompressed or audio cd track. Try to watch a movie on a dvd, you will know the difference! In brief, if the music files are not of good quality, there is no used in upgrading headphone or dac/amp etc.

 

[manbear]

  Thanks a lot for the responses so far.
 
Well the recording or headphone jack issue I sort of ruled out because my bose qc15 sounds perfectly good coming from the same sources.  I posted the links to the youtube files I was using.  Of course I know they are compressed.

No, you have not ruled out the headphone jack. This has nothing to do with the headphone jack being "broken." It has to do with how much power the headphone jack can deliver. The DT-990 requires much more juice than the Bose. If your headphone jack doesn't have enough power, it's going to sound distorted on the DT-990, even if it sounds fine on the Bose. 

This is like saying "I can't tow a boat with my Honda, but I know it's not the engine's fault because I put a bunch of stuff in the trunk and the car still had enough power." The engine is your headphone jack. The boat is the DT-990. The junk in the trunk is the Bose. 

Your Fiio should fix this problem. The DT-990 isn't horribly hard to drive, but it requires a lot more power than Bose, which is designed to be plugged into regular headphone jacks. The DT-990 really isn't. 

As for the recording, you have to realize that the DT-990 is more accurate than the Bose. As headphones become more accurate, they tend to make compressed music sound worse. There really aren't any useful comparisons you can make with the Bose; it's just a completely different headphone that's not as picky about source quality or amplification quality. 

 

[photorph]

Thanks for the info!  I realize the dt990 requires more juice, but I was thinking this has to do with volume?  I'm getting enough volume from my computer out of it.  The distortion i speak of is more like cracking speakers when the bass is too high.  Not sure if "distortion" is the technically correct word for this.  

 

[manbear]

  Thanks for the info!  I realize the dt990 requires more juice, but I was thinking this has to do with volume?  I'm getting enough volume from my computer out of it.  The distortion i speak of is more like cracking speakers when the bass is too high.  Not sure if "distortion" is the technically correct word for this.  

I've observed a similar sound when driving headphones from amps that are too weak for them. It's called clipping. However, I never heard it from my DT-990 Pro and laptop. In any case, reserve judgment on the headphones until you try them with the Fiio. 

 

[photorph]

Okay will take your advice and wait for an amp.  
 
If you have any recommendations let me know.  Not sure if the Fiio E11 was the best choice.  After listening to these the treble seems to be high, so I was thinking maybe the Fiio E07k so I can turn the treble down.  I won't be using the DAC feature, just need an amp where I can adjust the treble and bass levels.   

 

[manbear]

EQ is your friend. Most software music players have an EQ. You can get great EQ plugins for Foobar or any player that takes VST plugins.