[porch]

I want to get either but don't know which to go with.
 
i really love the black design of the 250 ohm version...but there is a 600 and 32 ohm version.
 
now if i do have a powerful source to power the 600 ohm, will i experience better sound quality? please don't tell me that with the 250 ohm and 32 ohm that I'll have an easier time driving them than the 600 ohm...i want to know in terms of overall sound quality.
 
as many of you already know, they're different in price. why is that? which has the advantage over the other and why? 
 
just sum it up for me and tell me which ohm version to go with. i don't even know why the 32 ohm seems to be more experience than the 250 ohm...but anyhow, please explain to me if there will be a good difference in sound quality with either.
 
thanks

 

[bluntman]

Good question. I'd also love to hear an analysis of this.
 
I just purchase the 600 ohm version about a week ago and awfully love them. You can totally hear some sort of the energy in every song with these babies. It's like the play energy into your head lol!

 

[Trysaeder]

More ohms: lighter drivers and more voltage required.

 

[Ypoknons]

Usually people say 600ohm is the best if you've got the amp for them. But it's not like 32ohm will magically sound amazing out of a portable either. 

 

[yklee118]

I have auditioned the 32, 250. and 600-ohm version and went for the 600-ohm.  Funny since the labels in Germany for each version is 32-ohm "Consumer Edition", 250-ohm "Professional Edition", and 600-ohm "Reference Audiophile Edition".
 
DT990 Consumer Edition: emphasized treble with smooth transitions in the mid-range while the bass is somewhat bloated, but maintains a tightness that isn't found in many other headphones in its class including my former Sennheiser HD650.  Not easily driven with an iPod, Touch or Cowon S9 so an amp is pretty much required which I used the Little Dot MKI with the LT1364 op-amp upgrade.
 
DT990 Professional Edition: many transient and treble details are more defined while the transitions into the mid-range are even smoother.  The bass details are tighter, deeper, but still somewhat heavy.  Not bloated like the Consumer Edition (this is how it was labeled in Germany where my DT990 came from) but still somewhat heavy.  Many cello and string instruments are represented with a great deal of timbre with excellent sound stage representation.  The 32-ohm Consumer Edition has a rather open feel while the Professional Edition 250-ohm variant was more spacious.  Depth and width are overly present.  Clarity is actually impressive.  The Little Dot MKI was used with this headphone also since driving it directly from my ipod touch and from my Shan Ling CD-player/transport didn't have enough current drive to properly power these headphones. 
 
The one I own is the DT990 Reference Audiophile Edition: Neutral, clear, with a fairly flat frequency response is how I would characterize the 600-ohm edition of the DT990.  Treble details are clear with an even smoother (silky) transition to mid-range is felt throughout especially when listening to Jennifer Warnes "Famous Blue Raincoat".  Bass is well defined with no peaks or heavy feeling.  Nicely weighted is better term I would use with defining the bass output of this edition of the DT990.  An is a requirement with version due to the rather high impedance rating.  The sound-stage is very spacious, the sonic qualities are very well defined, and warm sounding feeling further defines this as an audiophile class headphone.
 
Hope this helps
 
Everybody have a great week.
 
Source through Macbook Pro Unibody 17-inch with 24-bit/96-KHz AIFF.
   M-Audio Audiophile USB set at 24-bits and 96-KHz of resolution.
   Moon Audio Blue Dragon Version-1 silver conductor interconnect.
   Beyerdynamic DT990 600-ohm "Reference Audiophile Edition"
   Album: Jennifer Warnes "Famous Blue Raincoat", Secret Island by Stanley Thomas Keiser.

 

[MacedonianHero]

Somebody should really make this a "sticky":
 
When buying beyerdynamic headphones, ONLY look into the 600 ohm versions. They are the best (by a good margin)...beyer thinks so, and those of us who have heard (and owned) the lesser versions, along with the 600 ohm versions also can testify to this.
 
Why did beyer go with 600 ohm drivers for the T1? Because they were the best ones they have.
 
The 600 ohm beyer drivers are extremely light and are only very slightly more difficult to power to their potential over the 250 ohm versions.

 

[moodyrn]

I agree with others. Go for the 600ohm version and you'll be happy. To me they are the only version that's not overly hot in the treble, they also have the tightest bass. The treble might seem a little hot at first, but will smooth out after burn-in.

 

[PointyFox]

Quote:

Good question. I'd also love to hear an analysis of this.
 
I just purchase the 600 ohm version about a week ago and awfully love them. You can totally hear some sort of the energy in every song with these babies. It's like the play energy into your head lol!

That would be the spike at 8-10kHz. 

  Don't buy these if you're sensitive to sound in that range.  Also, the higher the resistance, the more the sound coloration of the amp comes into play, such as tube clipping, which a lot of people like since it smooths out the sound.
 

 

[maruzen]

this is a very informative thread! 

 
i never got to hear the 32 and 250 ohm versions of the dt990, so this really helps me!

 

[Zombie_X]

I used to have the 250Ohm version and it was brighter than the 600Ohm version with slightly bloated bass.

 

[carledwards]

The 990/600 is groovy. I use them a lot. Woo 3 really loves 'em, too.

 

[zaphod-159]

what portable amp do u guys recommend for the dt990 250 ohm?

 

[Zombie_X]

Get a cmoy amp for those my friend. Try to find one that takes two or more 9v batteries though. The more 9v batteries means the higher the amount of voltage, or I might be wrong? The Mini RA1 ran off two 9v's and it sounded very good.

 

[zaphod-159]

i do have a cmoy 2.02 bb from jdslabs. im lookin for an upgrade though

 

[Coupe]

As far as I understand, more voltage is better for higher resistances.  That would be a good route!  I don't remember how the T3D powered the 250 ohm.