[Maker]

Hello, so i´m going to buy dt 990 pro but currently i only own Steelseries USB Soundcard. So my question is how will they sound without amp ? I´m going to buy amp/new soundcard at my birthday 3.3. Will the sound be alot better with amp? Thank you

 

[ayaflo]

it is very very necessary that you buy an amp, otherwise the headphones will not sound any good .. and you might pass judgment a little too early.. 
 
effects of not amping 
 
loose & disgusting bass
highs not clear
mids recessed
soundstage is nothing good
sound is not detailed
excessive warmth eating up all sound
 
 
amped
mid-bass slams super hard
mids are clear and show excellent body 
the treble comes out much fuller, now the sound is more bright 
mammoth like soundstage
bass becomes tighter
excellent presentation - a very musical sound and presentation ...

 

[ayaflo]

you can get a fiio e11/ e10 or a cmoy bb, all under $65, that should n't be a problem ..although the cmoy with a op-amp 2227 is supposed to do the sound a 'favour' .. 
 
the dt-990 pros however prefer tube-amps..
 
all the best,
regards

 

[Maker]

So do you think e11 would be good enough ? it cost 78$ in my country

 

[NinjaVampire]

I have DT 880 Pros without an amp and I love the sound from them, powered straight out of my laptop. I do feel a large upgrade from my old Sennheiser HD 415s, but I do think an amp will only make these sound even better.

 

[Maker]

thanks for reply, do you think e11 is good enough?

 

[NinjaVampire]

I can't really say on the subject as I have never tried an E11 out myself, but from what I have read, the E11 may not have enough power to fully drive high impedance headphones such as the 990's. Perhaps something like a E09k would be better? It can be upgraded itself down the road with a dock for an E17 as well!

 

[Monir]

I thought the Fiios could drive phones to 300ohm, it just wouldnt handle 600ohms well. So for 250ohm DT990 it would do fine on ex Fiio E17, but personally I would advise to move gears into something like O2 or M-Stage which are both very good and cheap alternatives.
 
And also, I can attest that a tube amp does wonders with the high impedance models of the Beyers, especially the DT990 which are generally brighter. But a warm sounding ss amp works just as well.

 

[davidsh]

How much improvement an amp will be, depend a lot on how good/trained your ears are and even what kind of person you are. I am a perfectionist, and therefore the small 'upgrades' in sound quality means a lot to me. Some people barely care.
I tend to agree with facilitator, but it will most likely not be like night and day for you in the first place, maybe in the long run you will see an amp as a great improvement. If you don't need portability (you most likely don't with an open 'phone) go for a desktop amp, that is a bit better than the e11 or the like. Maybe you could get a schiit magni or an O2

 

[Dubstep Girl]

ive found out that for the higher impedance headphones, theres a pretty noticeable jump in sound quality when you use a headphone amp. even if a soundcard can provide enough power, its still far from adaquate and the headphones will sound like they're really holding back, 

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

thanks for reply, do you think e11 is good enough?

The Fiio E11 will drive 250-Ohm headphones to a decent volume with the E11 volume knob at around 45%-50%
 
You could save a few dollars.
Get the Takstar Hi2050 (Technical Pro HPT-990) semi-open headphones and an Asus Xonar DG or DGX sound card.

 

[ayaflo]

Quote:

How much improvement an amp will be, depend a lot on how good/trained your ears are and even what kind of person you are. I am a perfectionist, and therefore the small 'upgrades' in sound quality means a lot to me. Some people barely care.
I tend to agree with facilitator, but it will most likely not be like night and day for you in the first place, maybe in the long run you will see an amp as a great improvement. If you don't need portability (you most likely don't with an open 'phone) go for a desktop amp, that is a bit better than the e11 or the like. Maybe you could get a schiit magni or an O2

 
I wouldn't go for the magni personally, reading the few reviews that have come up in H-fi regarding the magni signature, I wouldn't really call it a good pairing with the 990 pros. anyone is welcome to prove me wrong with first hand experience but the general consensus that have tried the Magni agree to the slightly elevated treble, the 990 pros with its already elevated treble can be bad synergy with that amp. I think tube amps still have the best synergy with the 990 pros... I tried a cheap Bravo Audio v2 a few months back & i found the sound certainly more clear and the overall sound 'sweet' than with my a/v receiver/fiio e11. 
 
Will try a tube magic A1 soon and keep you updated if you want it. you can also ask purple angel here, he has immense knowledge about the beyers.
 
Quote:

The Fiio E11 will drive 250-Ohm headphones to a decent volume with the E11 volume knob at around 45%-50%
 
You could save a few dollars.
Get the Takstar Hi2050 (Technical Pro HPT-990) semi-open headphones and an Asus Xonar DG or DGX sound card.

 
 
Hi Purpleangel...but the hpt 990 are as good as the DT990 pro or you are saying that from an easy to drive perspective.. 

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

I wouldn't go for the magni personally, reading the few reviews that have come up in H-fi regarding the magni signature, I wouldn't really call it a good pairing with the 990 pros. anyone is welcome to prove me wrong with first hand experience but the general consensus that have tried the Magni agree to the slightly elevated treble, the 990 pros with its already elevated treble can be bad synergy with that amp. I think tube amps still have the best synergy with the 990 pros... I tried a cheap Bravo Audio v2 a few months back & i found the sound certainly more clear and the overall sound 'sweet' than with my a/v receiver/fiio e11. 
Will try a tube magic A1 soon and keep you updated if you want it. you can also ask purple angel here, he has immense knowledge about the beyers.
Hi Purpleangel...but the hpt 990 are as good as the DT990 pro or you are saying that from an easy to drive perspective.. 

I like to think of it as a good value option, for the price.
I'm guessing Xonar DG(X) is going to be a better sound card then the Steel Series USB sound card.
But the DG(X) headphone amplifier needs to be close to maxed out driving the 250-Ohm DT990 headphones.
Where as the Hi2050 is only 60-Ohms, half the price of the DT990 and the Hi2050 way easier for the DG(X) to drive.
There are several internet retailer in Asia that ship the Hi2050 world wide.

 

[Maker]

Quote:

I like to think of it as a good value option, for the price.
I'm guessing Xonar DG(X) is going to be a better sound card then the Steel Series USB sound card.
But the DG(X) headphone amplifier needs to be close to maxed out driving the 250-Ohm DT990 headphones.
Where as the Hi2050 is only 60-Ohms, half the price of the DT990 and the Hi2050 way easier for the DG(X) to drive.
There are several internet retailer in Asia that ship the Hi2050 world wide.

unfortunately O2, M-Stage or Schiit aren´t available in my country(czech republic)
 
Quote:

I like to think of it as a good value option, for the price.
I'm guessing Xonar DG(X) is going to be a better sound card then the Steel Series USB sound card.
But the DG(X) headphone amplifier needs to be close to maxed out driving the 250-Ohm DT990 headphones.
Where as the Hi2050 is only 60-Ohms, half the price of the DT990 and the Hi2050 way easier for the DG(X) to drive.
There are several internet retailer in Asia that ship the Hi2050 world wide.

Hi2050 also is not available in my country and i don´t want to buy it from different country(warranty,technical problems,returning,waiting time etc.)
 
 
And what do you guys think about DT 440 ?

 

[Monir]

I know return can be a hussle, but Schiit, Matrix and O2 are brilliant products. It's a shame you see it as a restriction. I myself never had to return anything, though.
 
If you want something closer, then I know for a fact that there are multiple Schiit and Matrix resellers in for example the UK, Germany, Poland. Maybe even get something second-hand locally - but is possibly a great improbability, unfortunately.