[Jibbie]

I auditioned the DT990 600ohm recently, in my search for a bassy headphone for electronic music (trance, house, drum & bass, etc).  I decided it did not have enough bass and have since purchased the Ultrasone Pro 900 and am loving it.  I'm sure I am one of the few who would want more bass than the 990s can offer though.  Other than that, I thought they were great, although sibilant at times. 

 

[Satellite_6]

A good read. . . 

 

[hudamanium]

thepimp....
 
Why in the world would you do that to headphones....?
 
Return them... Resell them.... Put that money towards something else?
 
Even giving them out would be better than destroying them.... Unless you somehow broke them by accident and decided to make a show of it, I honestly can't think of a good reason to destroy something thats perfectly working. 
 
EDIT: As for the OP, great review. I do agree that the DT990s overemphasize both the treble end and the bass end. Its true that the DT880s might not be a "fun" sounding headphone to people, but I find that its a great general purpose headphone for pretty much everything.
 
Works well for nearly all genres of music and also great for gaming and movies. 

 

[HappyH2O]

I think the whole thing depends on what you do. When i play FPS games, DT990 is the best head i ever used. The explosions seems like right in front of me and gun shots makes me feel like i am in a real battlefield. However, when it comes to classic music. DT880 is better since i can wear it for longer without getting tired.

 

[carledwards]

No, I don't buy these conclusions at all. I have to wonder about the gear used upstream. Not what I've heard from these cans at all.

 

[Elanzer]

Quote:

The 880 would be the perfect headphone for me, if the mids were moved forward a little and the bass was between the 880 and 990.

 
 
You've just described the Beyer T1, but also add better soundstage than both the 880/990.

 

[Argyris]

Though overall still quite happy with my DT880, I tend to find that a lot of rock/pop music can get really edgy really fast. On the other hand, well-recorded music still sounds awesome on them, particularly large-scale classical. Sometimes I wish they had more bass, and sometimes I think they're perfect. The one quality about them I value above all others is the result of all that lower treble emphasis, and that's the airy, open effect they impart on well-recorded classical. No other headphone I have tried has ever quite created this effect, and I find that EQ'ing this range away, while perhaps making the overall balance less fatiguing on some material and closer to pure neutral, destroys this special quality.
 
Sometimes, on a bad recording and on a bad day, I feel a little buyer's remorse. Then I put on one of my favorite choral recordings and think, "Ahh, that's why I still love these!" As I start adding to the collection, my DT880 will likely get less use on rock/pop/electronic, but for classical and other unamplified music they'll be right there.
 
EDIT: The DT990 scares me a little bit. More treble than the DT880? The latter is already on the bright side of things. I'd still like to hear one in what enthusiastic owners would consider to be "optimum" conditions, though something tells me I had better bring along some aspirin. 

 
Also, though I'm not sure yet, I think the headband on my DT880 is starting to annoy me a little bit. There's a spot on the top of my head where I usually rest the band, and I find that sometimes I get what isn't quite a headache but a dull throbbing pain that can be reliably replicated by pressing my fingers firmly on the spot. No other headband has ever done this to me. Maybe I need extra padding, or else need to try to shift the fit to accommodate. I'm just throwing this out there from the standpoint of somebody who has worn my DT880 almost daily for nearly two months.

 

[hudamanium]

Quote:

Though overall still quite happy with my DT880, I tend to find that a lot of rock/pop music can get really edgy really fast. On the other hand, well-recorded music still sounds awesome on them, particularly large-scale classical. Sometimes I wish they had more bass, and sometimes I think they're perfect. The one quality about them I value above all others is the result of all that lower treble emphasis, and that's the airy, open effect they impart on well-recorded classical. No other headphone I have tried has ever quite created this effect, and I find that EQ'ing this range away, while perhaps making the overall balance less fatiguing on some material and closer to pure neutral, destroys this special quality.
 
Sometimes, on a bad recording and on a bad day, I feel a little buyer's remorse. Then I put on one of my favorite choral recordings and think, "Ahh, that's why I still love these!" As I start adding to the collection, my DT880 will likely get less use on rock/pop/electronic, but for classical and other unamplified music they'll be right there.

Exactly
 
Though the DT880s do not really handle pop, rock, etc badly, there are definitely better headphones for those specific genres. However, I have a lot of ambiance, vocal, classical, and instrumental so I absolutely love the DT880s. For my type of music it really works really well.
 
I'm also hoping to add more to my headphone collection for my rock, indie, and pop music but as of now I'm pretty satisfied. 

 

[t-h-e-p-i-m-p]

i am 100% with the thread maker... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhYwNp_tsEU they dont even deserve to live! (Hate DT990) i really lol at the part when u changed to the 990 from the 880's and mention How bright the 990's was. And u thought dt880 was bright

 

[Slaughter]

Why don't you buy these conclusions? His conclusions are not any different than what has been said by others. Just because you like that sound signature, doesn't mean he is wrong. Just as I find Grados comfortable, with great treble. A lot of people would disagree and that doesn't make either one of us wrong.
 
Quote:

No, I don't buy these conclusions at all. I have to wonder about the gear used upstream. Not what I've heard from these cans at all.

I was afraid of that! 

 
Quote:

Quote:

The 880 would be the perfect headphone for me, if the mids were moved forward a little and the bass was between the 880 and 990.

 
 
You've just described the Beyer T1, but also add better soundstage than both the 880/990.

 

[Katun]

Quote:

Giving my headphones another 2 hour listen today I can see where the artificial aspect may be coming from by over-emphasizing the bass and treble. I really want to get my hands on some more headphones so I can further compare and better understand my headphones sonic signature. 

Comparing to headphones is the absolute best way I can tell how good or bad a headphone is. I remember when I first got the DT990. I had it for about 3 weeks, and had listened to it quite a bit. During those 3 weeks, piercing treble didn't even cross my mind. I just listened to the music trying to appreciate the sound signature -- in which I actually liked it. This is why I got the DT880 shortly after, as I wanted something slightly more neutral. As soon as I got the DT880, the comparisons began...
 
Just then, I realized how much treble the DT990 really had. I was astounded I had been listening to such a thing for this long, and I knew I would not be keeping it. But then came the HD650, and now I had another headphone to compare both the Beyers to. Once I started comparing the HD650 to the DT880, I once again realized how bright the treble sounded on the Beyer, but this time it was the DT880. I found it out even it was to bright. And just for fun, I compared the HD650 to the DT990, and that's where I was knocked to the floor with extreme brightness. I wondered, "How on earth have I been listening to this? I didn't seem this bright before..."
 
That's just it though, I compared something I found I like better (HD650) to something I once thought was really quite good (DT880/DT990). But since the HD650 sounds superior to my ears, neither of the Beyers sounded to my liking anymore. That's why my most effective way of telling I like something, or to decipher of what my ears say is better, I compare. In this case, it was a chain. DT990 was #1 at the moment. DT880 > DT990. DT880 is #1 now. HD650 > DT880. HD650 is #1 now, and DT990 is bumped to #3. But, comparing #1 (HD650) to #3 (DT990) reveals how much of an improvement I had made.
 
Without something to compare to, you don't know if there is an improvement. You don't know where to look for flaws. And you are left guessing, if you are "really" satisfied with your purchase.
 
Quote:

 
EDIT: The DT990 scares me a little bit. More treble than the DT880? The latter is already on the bright side of things. I'd still like to hear one in what enthusiastic owners would consider to be "optimum" conditions, though something tells me I had better bring along some aspirin. 

 

 
That is exactly why it scares me. After seeing how bright the DT880 really is (when compared to HD650, so I can get a good benchmark), it's really hard to comprehend how much brighter a headphone can get.
 
And believe me, headphones can get MUCH brighter than the DT880, and it comes in the form of the DT990.

 

[t-h-e-p-i-m-p]

Quote:

Quote:

Giving my headphones another 2 hour listen today I can see where the artificial aspect may be coming from by over-emphasizing the bass and treble. I really want to get my hands on some more headphones so I can further compare and better understand my headphones sonic signature. 

Comparing to headphones is the absolute best way I can tell how good or bad a headphone is. I remember when I first got the DT990. I had it for about 3 weeks, and had listened to it quite a bit. During those 3 weeks, piercing treble didn't even cross my mind. I just listened to the music trying to appreciate the sound signature -- in which I actually liked it. This is why I got the DT880 shortly after, as I wanted something slightly more neutral. As soon as I got the DT880, the comparisons began...
 
Just then, I realized how much treble the DT990 really had. I was astounded I had been listening to such a thing for this long, and I knew I would not be keeping it. But then came the HD650, and now I had another headphone to compare both the Beyers to. Once I started comparing the HD650 to the DT880, I once again realized how bright the treble sounded on the Beyer, but this time it was the DT880. I found it out even it was to bright. And just for fun, I compared the HD650 to the DT990, and that's where I was knocked to the floor with extreme brightness. I wondered, "How on earth have I been listening to this? I didn't seem this bright before..."
 
That's just it though, I compared something I found I like better (HD650) to something I once thought was really quite good (DT880/DT990). But since the HD650 sounds superior to my ears, neither of the Beyers sounded to my liking anymore. That's why my most effective way of telling I like something, or to decipher of what my ears say is better, I compare. In this case, it was a chain. DT990 was #1 at the moment. DT880 > DT990. DT880 is #1 now. HD650 > DT880. HD650 is #1 now, and DT990 is bumped to #3. But, comparing #1 (HD650) to #3 (DT990) reveals how much of an improvement I had made.
 
Without something to compare to, you don't know if there is an improvement. You don't know where to look for flaws. And you are left guessing, if you are "really" satisfied with your purchase.
 
Quote:

 
EDIT: The DT990 scares me a little bit. More treble than the DT880? The latter is already on the bright side of things. I'd still like to hear one in what enthusiastic owners would consider to be "optimum" conditions, though something tells me I had better bring along some aspirin. 

 

 
That is exactly why it scares me. After seeing how bright the DT880 really is (when compared to HD650, so I can get a good benchmark), it's really hard to comprehend how much brighter a headphone can get.
 
And believe me, headphones can get MUCH brighter than the DT880, and it comes in the form of the DT990.

as i said, the dt990 is to bright!!

 

[shane55]

 
Quote:

as i said, the dt990 is to bright!!

Oh, oh... let me finish this !
 
The DT990 is to bright... as the DT880 is to neutral. 

 

 

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Lol, I see what you did there.

 

[melomaniac]

 

Quote:

The 880 would be the perfect headphone for me, if the mids were moved forward a little and the bass was between the 880 and 990.

good amp and source matching will help you there, too