Beyerdynamic DT990 / 600 Ohm Amp Recommendation and misc.
Feb 13, 2013 at 1:30 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 26

mediumraresteak

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Hello All,
 
I just received my Beyerdynamic DT990/600 Ohm headphones and have it paired with the Fiio E17.  It sounds really good but I was wondering if it was worth the upgrade to a tube amp <$200.  My budget is really tight at the moment.  I would like a WA3 or MKIV but not happening at the moment.  Also, I noticed some people are posting pictures of their DT990/600 boxes and it's black while mine is white.  Any way to verify I have the correct/latest version of the DT990/600s?
 
Thanks in advance.
 
Feb 13, 2013 at 1:42 AM Post #2 of 26
Quote:
Hello All,
 
I just received my Beyerdynamic DT990/600 Ohm headphones and have it paired with the Fiio E17.  It sounds really good but I was wondering if it was worth the upgrade to a tube amp <$200.  My budget is really tight at the moment.  I would like a WA3 or MKIV but not happening at the moment.  Also, I noticed some people are posting pictures of their DT990/600 boxes and it's black while mine is white.  Any way to verify I have the correct/latest version of the DT990/600s?
 
Thanks in advance.

The Ohm rating might be printed on the headphone jack.
 
Feb 13, 2013 at 2:09 AM Post #3 of 26
Quote:
Hello All,
 
I just received my Beyerdynamic DT990/600 Ohm headphones and have it paired with the Fiio E17.  It sounds really good but I was wondering if it was worth the upgrade to a tube amp <$200.  My budget is really tight at the moment.  I would like a WA3 or MKIV but not happening at the moment.  Also, I noticed some people are posting pictures of their DT990/600 boxes and it's black while mine is white.  Any way to verify I have the correct/latest version of the DT990/600s?
 
Thanks in advance.

 
 
Buy e09k fiio amp, pair it with your E17, you will have power to spare.
$100.
 
this is my current setup love it!!
 
Feb 13, 2013 at 9:51 AM Post #4 of 26
Quote:
 
 
Buy e09k fiio amp, pair it with your E17, you will have power to spare.
$100.
 
this is my current setup love it!!

Nice!  I was thinking of that instead of investing in a tube amp given my budget.  But have you ever compared the sound to a tube amp?  Wondering if I should save up instead of splashing for the E09K + E17 combo.
 
Thanks.
 
Feb 13, 2013 at 10:26 AM Post #5 of 26
Quote:
Hello All,
 
I just received my Beyerdynamic DT990/600 Ohm headphones and have it paired with the Fiio E17.  It sounds really good but I was wondering if it was worth the upgrade to a tube amp <$200.  My budget is really tight at the moment.  I would like a WA3 or MKIV but not happening at the moment.  Also, I noticed some people are posting pictures of their DT990/600 boxes and it's black while mine is white.  Any way to verify I have the correct/latest version of the DT990/600s?
 
Thanks in advance.

 
Heya,

At $200, tube amps are not going to happen cheaply that are worth spending on. I would suggest you hold onto your money and wait until you can get a significant amplifier. Otherwise, you're just going to lose money on something that is basically only a little more powerful than your current E17.
 
However, if you're not interested in waiting and investing, then consider a few of these potential dac/amp's:
 
Audio GD NFB12 (used/new; including latest 12.1 and 15.1)
Schiit Magni
Schiit Asgard 2
JDS Labs Objective 2
Matrix M-Stage (used)
Little Dot MK II+ (OTL tube)
 
The best use of your budget is the used market. I would look at the classifieds.
 
Very best,
 
Feb 13, 2013 at 10:41 AM Post #6 of 26
Quote:
 
Heya,

At $200, tube amps are not going to happen cheaply that are worth spending on. I would suggest you hold onto your money and wait until you can get a significant amplifier. Otherwise, you're just going to lose money on something that is basically only a little more powerful than your current E17.
 
However, if you're not interested in waiting and investing, then consider a few of these potential dac/amp's:
 
Audio GD NFB12 (used/new; including latest 12.1 and 15.1)
Schiit Magni
Schiit Asgard 2
JDS Labs Objective 2
Matrix M-Stage (used)
Little Dot MK II+ (OTL tube)
 
The best use of your budget is the used market. I would look at the classifieds.
 
Very best,

Thanks for the suggestion!  I think I'll just wait a month and hopefully I'll have saved enough for a WA3 or MK III / IV.  Can those be used as dacs as well?  I'll probably use my PC more than anything for sourcing.
 
Feb 13, 2013 at 11:10 AM Post #7 of 26
Quote:
Thanks for the suggestion!  I think I'll just wait a month and hopefully I'll have saved enough for a WA3 or MK III / IV.  Can those be used as dacs as well?  I'll probably use my PC more than anything for sourcing.

 
DACs and amplifiers are two separate devices that do different tasks. They can be combined into one unit, but it's not something that you can just make happen. It either comes that way or not. Unless you build the entire thing from scratch (but I doubt that's an option here).
 
The Little Dot MK III & IV are excellent OTL tubes. So is the Schiit Valhalla. There's also the Dark Voice SE336. And the Musical Paradise MP-301 MK3.
 
You can use your PC as a source, a sound card for example has a DAC onboard which you can use to output to an amplifier. DACs can be good and inexpensive. You can get them anywhere from $30 to $150 pretty easily and they're more than adequate without breaking the bank. I would put more emphasis on having good high quality media over an exceptional DAC though in terms of priority of spending.
 
Inexpensive good DACs that are external from the PC include: Schiit Modi, JDS Labs ODAC, Fiio E10, Music Streamer II, Fiio E07k, etc.
 
Very best,
 
Feb 13, 2013 at 11:25 AM Post #8 of 26
Quote:
 
DACs and amplifiers are two separate devices that do different tasks. They can be combined into one unit, but it's not something that you can just make happen. It either comes that way or not. Unless you build the entire thing from scratch (but I doubt that's an option here).
 
The Little Dot MK III & IV are excellent OTL tubes. So is the Schiit Valhalla. There's also the Dark Voice SE336. And the Musical Paradise MP-301 MK3.
 
You can use your PC as a source, a sound card for example has a DAC onboard which you can use to output to an amplifier. DACs can be good and inexpensive. You can get them anywhere from $30 to $150 pretty easily and they're more than adequate without breaking the bank. I would put more emphasis on having good high quality media over an exceptional DAC though in terms of priority of spending.
 
Inexpensive good DACs that are external from the PC include: Schiit Modi, JDS Labs ODAC, Fiio E10, Music Streamer II, Fiio E07k, etc.
 
Very best,

 
I see.  I guess I'll just stick with the E17 as the DAC and hopefully pick up a tube amp in the near future to pair it with.  Unfortunately, no used or cheap MK III / IVs on ebay which I hear pairs really well with the DT990/600.
 
Thanks again!
 
Feb 13, 2013 at 12:00 PM Post #9 of 26
Quote:
 
I see.  I guess I'll just stick with the E17 as the DAC and hopefully pick up a tube amp in the near future to pair it with.  Unfortunately, no used or cheap MK III / IVs on ebay which I hear pairs really well with the DT990/600.
 
Thanks again!

 
LDMKIII for $210
 
Very best,
 
Feb 15, 2013 at 7:34 PM Post #14 of 26
So what's the diff in sound signature between 250 and 600 on these? I know on the 880's the 600's had more bass.
 
I just got my 990 Pro's yesterday and I'm loving them. I've listened to 880 250ohm premiums for several years and these are like somebody took the 880 and played with the curve to make it more fun and musical but less accurate. Over all I love the sound, it's very pleasing with 0 EQ.
 
 
Feb 16, 2013 at 6:23 PM Post #15 of 26
Quote:
Hey MalveauX,
 
Are you familiar with the LME49990 opamp upgrade w/ the m-stage?  Wondering if it's worth the upgrade over stock.

 
Heya,
 
Not familiar enough with that opamp on the M-stage to be able to have comments on it from extensive experience. Maybe someone else who uses the m-stage exclusively can comment. Sorry.
 
Quote:
So what's the diff in sound signature between 250 and 600 on these? I know on the 880's the 600's had more bass.
 
I just got my 990 Pro's yesterday and I'm loving them. I've listened to 880 250ohm premiums for several years and these are like somebody took the 880 and played with the curve to make it more fun and musical but less accurate. Over all I love the sound, it's very pleasing with 0 EQ.
 

 
Heya,
 
The sound signature is the same.
 
The sonic difference is from the way an amplifier behaves with a load of 250ohms and 600ohms, so one getting less voltage and more current, and one getting more voltage and less current. Unfortunately it's over-stated the differences of the DT lines of the Beyers and it seems to get completely blown over the fact that the amplifiers even if the same one is used, behaves differently based on work load presented. The impedance is at the voice coil, the drivers are the same. Literally the only real difference is the work load and how the amplifier behaves with it. And because of that, the difference will be different from amp to amp.
 
Very best,
 

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