[gnychis]

Hi all,

I'm looking for a new pair of headphones that are extremely durable that I don't have to worry about scratching/cracking/breaking in my lab. So, I narrowed it down to a Beyerdynamic set.

My two most listened to genres of music are electronic and rock. I love a huge soundstage for electronic, which I have read the Beyers have.

I was originally attracted to the 990s, but some people have reported that the treble is a bit overpowering.

I'd greatly appreciate any feedback.

Thanks!
George

 

[Yukon Trooper]

I'd say go for the 990 and either get an amp that will roll the treble off, or equalize it somehow.

 

[majkel]

Considering the newest Beyerdynamic's lineup, DT880 > DT990 Pro > DT990 > DT770 IMHO, where the latter two are unlistenable for me, while the first two are very good to great, depending on the music material.

 

[leftnose]

This shows the subjectivity of headphones. I don't think the 990s have overpowering treble once broken in. When I first got my pair, they were the slightest bit sibilant but have since settled down nicely. To me, they have more bass body than my RS-1s (but it's not as good/controlled) which makes them darker than my RS-1s.

 

[greggf]

Yes, headphones are totally subjective. I prefer the DT770 over the DT880. (I've never had the 990.)

 

[rederanged]

I hope I'm not hijacking the thread here, as the OP will probably be interested too ...

Can someone talk specifically about the differences between DT770 and DT990? I had a pair of DT990 that were intolerably bright even after 150-200 hours of break in, so I sold them. (In fact, I didn't notice any difference in the sound from when they were new, but of course it's hard to objectively A/B across a several-month time span.)

So are the 770s bright too, or just bassy?

 

[captainbrendo]

if you don't need a closed can, then go for an open one. If you want a closed can in the beyer lineup, then the dt231 is pretty darn good and alot cheaper than the 770. I was awfully impressed!! The 770 is a really good can though; I do like it.

I like the dt880; while it is a bit bright, it is easily darkened my a slight bit of EQ on the high end. Dt880 has a totally different sound than the 770 or the 231; much more revealing on the high end and deeper, yet less impactful bass. Rest assured, the 880 has a very large soundstage; it slaughters the senn 595 in this respect.

Haven't heard the 990, came real close to getting it though!!

 

[gnychis]

thanks for all of the responses, i don't need a closed can... open is just fine for me and my environment

hmmmm... all of this talk about the headphones being bright... i really wish i could just hear one

 

[Yukon Trooper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gnychis /img/forum/go_quote.gif ... i really wish i could just hear one

Just buy used and you'll basically only lose out on the shipping costs.

 

[Denver Max]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rederanged /img/forum/go_quote.gif I hope I'm not hijacking the thread here, as the OP will probably be interested too ... Can someone talk specifically about the differences between DT770 and DT990? I had a pair of DT990 that were intolerably bright even after 150-200 hours of break in, so I sold them. (In fact, I didn't notice any difference in the sound from when they were new, but of course it's hard to objectively A/B across a several-month time span.) So are the 770s bright too, or just bassy?

I owned the 770s before the 990s, and wow, before I even had the 990s to compare them to, the statement I used to describe them to a friend I have who cares about headphones was "wow, this is the darkest headphone I have ever put on my head."

At the time though, I was using them at home in conjunction with the Er-6i by Etymotic, which are known to not have much bass quantity and have a superb treble. I'm a huge believer that our perception of sound is based on what we can tangibly compare the sound to, so perhaps why I thought the DT770 was so dark is because the Er-6i are so bright. Regardless, to the OP, if you can afford an amp and having an open can, I don't think there's any reason why you should get the DT770, and DT880 or DT990 are better choices, with myself leaning towards the DT990.

 

[ast]

Had 990 and have 880. I'd have to say 990 does have somewhat overpowering treble and make some album very sibiliancy. Also 880 overall sounds more balanced and netural.

 

[Henmyr]

DT880 works remarkebly well with rock, with very nice guitarr sounds, it is not a grado, but quite close still. In my opinion, they have better guitarr sound than DT990. That is what made me buy them. I had had DT990 for 8 months, then I heard DT880 with some guitarr heavy metal, and the guitarr sounded nothing like DT990.

There are some albums which DT990 do perfect, both in metal and other rock, but they are few. In almost every album I prefer DT880 due to it being much easier to listen to. DT880 can be slithtly boring at times, but this is mostly when I have switched from DT990 or MS2i. When my ears have adjusted to the smoother sound, DT880 is as much fun as DT990.

I have tried almost every (cheap) way to reduce the treble for DT990 but without much success. I haven't heard them with an expensive amp or tube amp, so I don't know if that will do it. I am getting tired of them though, and since I don't have the money to buy high-end amps for it, I will probably sell it. DT880 does almost everything that DT990 does but better and more easy on the ears.

I don't find DT990 to have that much more bass than DT880 in my setup. It is very noticible and easy to hear the difference, but the bass on DT880 is good enough for my needs. I very often become impressed with the bass of DT880 due to the depth and texturing, something which the DT990 masks/hides in some way.

EDIT: One genre which I find dt990 to excel with is instrumental Jazz. Even better than dt880 with my setup. What DT990 does better is the timber of brass instruments and saxophones. DT880 also does those instruments well, but DT990 has got some extra "bite" which makes the instruments sound even more real than on dt880.

EDIT2: Just listened to some well recorded instrumental jazz and wow. Will be really hard to sell them as they do it so well. But to keep a headphone for only one genre...

 

[gnychis]

thanks for all the replies

i'm not looking for extreme bass, so maybe the 770 isn't for me. between the 880 and 990, i'm still not sure. everyone definitely seems to have their own opinion.

 

[Denver Max]

Haha. Ultimately, either one will have a great resale value in the For Sale section. If you can afford it, you should purchase both, give each one 50 hours of evaluation (after burn-in of course), and then get rid of the one that you don't like. It might cost you a net difference of $30, but you will certainly be sure about which can is best for your ears.

 

[ph0rk]

i found the 2003 770 pro to be superior to the 990 2005 - it is bassy, but at least it isn't fatiguing.