[thrillhaus]

Quote:

Wow, I didn't read headfi for a couple of days, and this thread has doubled in length. Hevan, the bump in the back of the 598 earcup is, I believe, their 'sound reflector' thingy that apparently improves the imaging (positioning of sound) of the headphones. I've not seen any headphones from any other company with the same bump there, so you should be safe looking at other brands.

I have to chime in here. I own the HD555 which have the same housing construction as the HD598. The bump he is referring to is just the place where the headband hinge joins the earcup. Look at the outer design and you will see it corresponds to where the bumps are. Since the drivers are angled toward the ear for a forward soundstage, the baffle is much shallower in the front than in the rear. The wires for the right cup also run through this hinge, so the cover is a bit bigger than the hinge itself.

The "sound reflector" you're referring to is actually just a well known piece of foam that gets stuck into the lower models such as my HD555 to differentiate them from the HD595, kind of like factory underclocking. Removing the foam effectively yields a free upgrade.
 
I've never had any issue with comfort, and the HD5x5 and HD5x8 are generally known for their comfort. I guess they weren't the OP's cup of tea for either comfort or sound. Good luck with the Beyers in that case, and let us know what you think about them.
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Thommohawk /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
A tube amp is a much more expensive amplifier than the more typical solid state 'box amps' as these tube amps have tubes on them (hence the name) that literally hot up and glow - this gives headphones a very warm sound to it.

 
That's not the reason why a tube amp might sound warmer than a solid state. Warmth, as a description of the quantitative physical measurement of temperature has nothing to do with warmth as a description of the qualitative interpretation of sound.

 

[Hevan]

It arrived just a minute ago!

It sits VERY comfortable )
 
Build quality looks supurb (solid metal parts, a few plastic parts but the main construction is completely metal -> very sturdy!)
 
The HD 598 felt very plastic & I was afraid to bend it/lift it arround, the DT 990 feels very solid
 
Will update with sound impressions within 1 hour! (gotta try it out still )

 

[Hevan]

LOL
 
The first seconds I put on immediately I was blown away, had chills on my arm of how nice it sounds!!
 
Will update within 50 mins with more info!

 

[Arleus]

Well, serves me right for not looking carefully enough - I always assumed that bump was there for an acoustic reason.
 
And, glad to hear you're enjoying the new headphones Hevan - the 598 must have been a bit too neutral (or flat, I guess you could say) for your tastes!
 
 
Quote:

I have to chime in here. I own the HD555 which have the same housing construction as the HD598. The bump he is referring to is just the place where the headband hinge joins the earcup. Look at the outer design and you will see it corresponds to where the bumps are. Since the drivers are angled toward the ear for a forward soundstage, the baffle is much shallower in the front than in the rear. The wires for the right cup also run through this hinge, so the cover is a bit bigger than the hinge itself.

The "sound reflector" you're referring to is actually just a well known piece of foam that gets stuck into the lower models such as my HD555 to differentiate them from the HD595, kind of like factory underclocking. Removing the foam effectively yields a free upgrade.
 
 

 

 

[Hevan]

It's not where it joins the earcup, it's an un-smooth bump (i'd say 0,5 cm upwards and 2-3 cm in length and 0.5 cm in width), it really hurt my ear after 10+ mins of use, never saw something like that before in headphones.
 
Don't know why I didn't like the 598, the ear bump thingy made me nuts and everything sounded very flat (except bass tightness was nice tho, but sometimes also a bit dull).
 
Used em arround 1 hour now, feels like these also got a burn-in process, things start getting a tad bit tighter

 

[Thommohawk]

Quote:

It's not where it joins the earcup, it's an un-smooth bump (i'd say 0,5 cm upwards and 2-3 cm in length and 0.5 cm in width), it really hurt my ear after 10+ mins of use, never saw something like that before in headphones.
 
Don't know why I didn't like the 598, the ear bump thingy made me nuts and everything sounded very flat (except bass tightness was nice tho, but sometimes also a bit dull).
 
Used em arround 1 hour now, feels like these also got a burn-in process, things start getting a tad bit tighter

Awesome to hear you're enjoying them! You should try a blu ray movie and prepare to poop yourself LOL! 
 
What do you think to the treble ? Some people can't take it....
 
Also what do you think of the bass ? Think it's overly dominant or well controlled but slamming where needed ? 
 
I told you the build quality was epic! hehe  
 

 

[Hevan]

Treble seems totally fine, same with bass, nothing is "to much present" at all ) (can understand what people mean with the "harsh-ness" tho, but u can fix this in an equiliser -> also read that after 100h+ the harshness dissapears (after burn in))
Bass is fine, you can still hear everything and it makes a good impact!

 

[Thommohawk]

Quote:

Treble seems totally fine, same with bass, nothing is "to much present" at all ) (can understand what people mean with the "harsh-ness" tho, but u can fix this in an equiliser -> also read that after 100h+ the harshness dissapears (after burn in))
Bass is fine, you can still hear everything and it makes a good impact!

And after your brain fully adjusts to the new sound(s) too. 2 kinds of burn in going on imo, yours and the headphones. 
 
As a fellow DT 990 Pro user I have to echo what you've just said. But must also suggest being careful with your Dac/Amp upgrade whenever you get them - I had the Asus Xonar Essence at one point and it was far too much (Dac/Amp basically tripling the force of the headphone because it too was slamming and musical)  but now I've got the Fiio double act which are both quite neutral and transparent with a touch of warm just makes the DT 990 Pro's sound lovely - still jumping but very liquid and lush sounding! 
 
But yeah try a blu ray if you can. 5.1 DTS HD-MA mode super high quality, it's like a private cinema system  

 

[Hevan]

Gonna try it for movie now!

The only thing I don't like about the DT 990 is the cable, I'd rather have a flat cable, cus now it's pulling my ear kinda, might try to sleeve it to try to stretch it out completely.

 

[Thommohawk]

Quote:

Gonna try it for movie now!

The only thing I don't like about the DT 990 is the cable, I'd rather have a flat cable, cus now it's pulling my ear kinda, might try to sleeve it to try to stretch it out completely.

Yeah they can get annoying coiled cables, I tend to prefer them though - for me they give headphones an extra sense of sturdy and quality.
 
Bloody annoying sometimes though when they snag or more to the point wrap around. Sometimes you're like that's impossible!! 

 

[Hevan]

So far the headphones have been awesome!
 
Sound is really nice, awesome for music, gaming, movies, everything!
 
Also it's very comfortable, much more comfortable then the HD 598, better sound, much better build quality also (very sturdy this one is, with the metal construction!)
 
Having no problems at all driving it with my Theatron Agrippa/X-Plosion, got it at arround 20% volume in windows.

 

[Thommohawk]

Quote:

So far the headphones have been awesome!
 
Sound is really nice, awesome for music, gaming, movies, everything!
 
Also it's very comfortable, much more comfortable then the HD 598, better sound, much better build quality also (very sturdy this one is, with the metal construction!)
 
Having no problems at all driving it with my Theatron Agrippa/X-Plosion, got it at arround 20% volume in windows.

Awesome! The best news is they improve further still when you eventually decide to upgrade to a better amplifier or a better dac. It took me a while to get the itch to upgrade those but rest assured your Beyer's will only benefit. Which in turn means you can't lose!
 
Having said that, I think it's only a matter of time before I upgrade from my DT 990 Pro, I've had them nearly a year and they rock me every single time - as if for the first time! But personally I'm going to probably try out a more expensive alternative from Amazon and if I don't like it I'll return it and fall back on the DT 990 Premium edition which has better comfort, sound and build quality.
 
It'll be a shame to relegate these Pro's to pure laptop use/backup headphones (I never sell my stuff lol) but for now they're my main headphones and they're truly brilliant especially for the money. Funnily enough I was considering trying out the HD598 as it seems to be the total opposite of the Pro's in that it has stronger mids. But I outright refuse to pay over £60 for any headphone that's an all plastic design - even though money saved on construction probably goes into audio quality - but somehow I don't think so with Sennheiser as you pay for the name with their products in my opinion. 
 

 

[Hevan]

The HD598 and DT 990 pro are same price here (both 150 euro) but I saw in USA that the DT 990 pro is cheaper.
 
The HD 598 felt EXTREMELY cheap, very unreliable, I would never dare to drop it, and I read tons of posts about people having plastic cracks and stuff like that.
 
Also the mids didn't feel strong/vivid at all on the HD 598, they felt really flat.
 
The only thing I liked about the HD 598 was the tight/punchy bass.

 

[Hevan]

Which amp/dac do u got for your DT 990 pro btw?

 

[Thommohawk]

Quote:

The HD598 and DT 990 pro are same price here (both 150 euro) but I saw in USA that the DT 990 pro is cheaper.
 
The HD 598 felt EXTREMELY cheap, very unreliable, I would never dare to drop it, and I read tons of posts about people having plastic cracks and stuff like that.
 
Also the mids didn't feel strong/vivid at all on the HD 598, they felt really flat.
 
The only thing I liked about the HD 598 was the tight/punchy bass.

 
Yeah that's what worried me about them, I had a pair of significantly cheaper Sennheiser HD headphones before the Beyer DT 990 Pro I had them for about a year and they were all plastic design - in fact same core build actually - and they never cracked. But in my view any headphone that is anywhere near the £100 range should not be all plastic. Plastic outer cups fine, but not the whole thing!
 
As for the difference in price between the HD598 and the DT990 Pro - here it's just over a £30 difference on Amazon. With the HD598 being dearer.
 
The Dac/Amp unit I bought for my DT 990 Pro is the Fiio E7(portable dac/amp in itself) and the Fiio E9 desktop headphone amplifier. Just because I'd heard good things and they were both well within my budget and more than fair pricing for the build quality/functionality. Then I got to dock the E7 in to the E9 and play some lossless music with my DT 990 Pro and I was blown away!! Just takes out all the harshness of the extremes and brings the mids forward because of it.   
 
I don't know how the Fiio E7/E9 combination will work with other headphones but they're awesome for the DT 990 Pro that I have - but the reason you need to be careful with DACs and Amps is for synergy. You could get a DAC and Amp that's much better technically but synergy-wise is totally wrong for your particular headphones.
 
But because the DT 990 Pro is quite an engaging, musical and up front sounding headphone to begin with, and because both the Fiio E7 and the Fiio E9 were both made for each other literally and are both transparent units imparting a little warmth - they just make the DT 990 Pro sound amazing. As I say tames the bass and the highs by taking all the harshness out of them - especially the highs. They have a nice warm shimmer to them now. Instead of the shrill extremity scraping at your eardrum that it previously was.