[Shaffer]

Agreed, I'm listening to it using the Ifi ican, and absolutely love them. However, I do hear bad experiences from guys who drive them using other amps, especially solid state ones. I guess that the Ican has a warmer sound signature which suits the DT990 perfectly.

Heh, I hear plenty of bad experience from folks who tried playing awful sounding recordings, others who used their phones to power the 990s or some other kiddie gadget mimicking an amplifier, and I've heard the most from those who've never even owned the DT990. IME, amp-wise, it's not a question of tonal balance, but one of quality and an ability to drive the 'phones effectively.

 

[brandonlyz]

Heh, I hear plenty of bad experience from folks who tried playing awful sounding recordings, others who used their phones to power the 990s or some other kiddie gadget mimicking an amplifier, and I've heard the most from those who've never even owned the DT990. IME, amp-wise, it's not a question of tonal balance, but one of quality and an ability to drive the 'phones effectively.

Yup, totally agreed as seen in my first post. However, assuming that we're comparing amps that are equally capable of driving the headphones, I do have to say that the tonal balance of the amp will definitely play a role in the musical experience of the DT990s. 

 

[Shaffer]

Yup, totally agreed as seen in my first post. However, assuming that we're comparing amps that are equally capable of driving the headphones, I do have to say that the tonal balance of the amp will definitely play a role in the musical experience of the DT990s. 

Ever play with tone controls, set them per your preference and then put them back to flat a few days/weeks later? At first it sounds like something is missing, but after a short while everything sounds fine again. It takes relatively little time for the brain to adjust to tonal balance. It's the other factors that make a long-term difference.

 

[brandonlyz]

Have not tried that, but after experimenting with a couple of different sound signatures, I've come to realise that my current setup is optimal for me
 
The concept does sound interesting though, may try it when I have the time.

 

[Shaffer]

I have no experience with the iCan, so I took a quick look. The company markets the device as "Class A TubeState," which is a pretty meaningless statement, and then specifies "Bi-Polar devices, J-Fets and Advanced Discrete components" as the highlights of its circuit. Sure sounds like solid state. Have you seen a tube in yours?

 

[brandonlyz]

Nope, there is no tube in the iCan.
 
However, the sound signature, I feel, is warmer as compared to the traditional solid state amps.
 
The rationale behind me recommending tube amps is simply because they tend to be warmer sounding, and that IMO gives the DT990 an awesome sound.

 

[Shaffer]

Nope, there is no tube in the iCan.

However, the sound signature, I feel, is warmer as compared to the traditional solid state amps.

The rationale behind me recommending tube amps is simply because they tend to be warmer sounding, and that IMO gives the DT990 an awesome sound.

My tube amp sounds significantly less warm than my SS V200. Tonally, it's similar to my Corda Concerto. I can post countless other examples that don't include headphones. The point is, can't really gauge a given sonic signature solely by the presence of a part of a circuit. In this case, a tube. I don't mean to pick on your comments and I hope it doesn't come across as such. It's just that similar generalities get repeated over and over, with no real basis in reality, leading many astray. Then, they repeat it and it becomes an endless game of misconception with no benefit to anyone, but a deterrent to a viable understanding. Hope that made sense.

 

[brandonlyz]

My tube amp sounds significantly less warm than my SS V200. Tonally, it's similar to my Corda Concerto. I can post countless other examples that don't include headphones. The point is, can't really gauge a given sonic signature solely by the presence of a part of a circuit. In this case, a tube. I don't mean to pick on your comments and I hope it doesn't come across as such. It's just that similar generalities get repeated over and over, with no real basis in reality, leading many astray. Then, they repeat it and it becomes an endless game of misconception with no benefit to anyone, but a deterrent to a viable understanding. Hope that made sense.

No worries at all haha, glad to always learn something new everyday This is a pretty wide misconception that many, including myself had, and thanks for clearing it up!
 
Haha okay, let me rephrase my conclusion then, DT990s would sound great with an amp with a warmer signature

 

[MorrisL]

It sounds like we're talking about some defective headphone that we have to find workarounds for. DT990 used to be Beyerdynamic's flagship headphone. Why they would produce anything with such an aggressive treble peak is beyond me.
 
I know I haven't been using it with a super expensive amp. What I have is Presonus HP4, which often comes bundled with the DT990 Pro (assuming they're a good match) and the sound is crap most of the time. Even with a generous use of eq to tame the highs, it's still too harsh.

 

[brandonlyz]

It sounds like we're talking about some defective headphone that we have to find workarounds for. DT990 used to be Beyerdynamic's flagship headphone. Why they would produce anything with such an aggressive treble peak is beyond me.

I know I haven't been using it with a super expensive amp. What I have is Presonus HP4, which often comes bundled with the DT990 Pro (assuming they're a good match) and the sound is crap most of the time. Even with a generous use of eq to tame the highs, it's still too harsh.

As mentioned by some of the members here, you have to understand that different headphones for different types of people. For example, you cannot expect to buy a HD800, leave it unamped, use poor quality sound files, and expect it to sound awesome. Even though the headphone is fantastic, the rest of the chain has got to scale up appropriately to deliver the correct audio experience.

 

[MorrisL]

As mentioned by some of the members here, you have to understand that different headphones for different types of people. For example, you cannot expect to buy a HD800, leave it unamped, use poor quality sound files, and expect it to sound awesome. Even though the headphone is fantastic, the rest of the chain has got to scale up appropriately to deliver the correct audio experience.

What's wrong with the amp I'm using?
 
I find it hard to believe that buying a more expensive amp will bring down the highs on the 990. Other than tube amps, in which I'm not interested (they distort the music) nothing will make a significant enough difference, I hear.
 
The DT990 was $150 and I paid just as much for the HP4 amp. It's ridiculous that I have to spend more on the amp than the headphone itself. If DT990 can't perform well with an amp worth its price, it's a failed product in a way.

 

[brandonlyz]

What's wrong with the amp I'm using?

I find it hard to believe that buying a more expensive amp will bring down the highs on the 990. Other than tube amps, in which I'm not interested (they distort the music) nothing will make a significant enough difference, I hear.

The DT990 was $150 and I paid just as much for the HP4 amp. It's ridiculous that I have to spend more on the amp than the headphone itself. If DT990 can't perform well with an amp worth its price, it's a failed product in a way.

Hmmm Okay, you can choose to believe that, and I respect your opinion that a better amp will not make any difference. However, there are many reports that said otherwise, and it is up to you to believe in them.

Furthermore, nobody is denying that the DT990 do accentuate the highs and the lows, but the main difference is that the amp and source files will determine the amount of sibilance that you experience. Perhaps if you do not fancy the clear highs that the 990 provides, you could look to other more neutral headphones such as the HD600, but that'll be a whole different price range altogether.

 

[MorrisL]

 Perhaps if you do not fancy the clear highs that the 990 provides, you could look to other more neutral headphones such as the HD600, but that'll be a whole different price range altogether.

That's exactly my plan. I'll get HD600 soon.
 
I actually plan on hanging on to my 990. It's good to have headphones with various sound signatures. With some dark recordings, I might enjoy the 990s. I seem to have a strange love/hate relationship with it. I usually listen to classical music, but this morning I played a flac file of Hotel California on them, and it was out-of-this world beautiful. I'm just not sure you can enjoy it for extended periods of time, with the fatigue they're bound to give you.

 

[brandonlyz]

That's exactly my plan. I'll get HD600 soon.

I actually plan on hanging on to my 990. It's good to have headphones with various sound signatures. With some dark recordings, I might enjoy the 990s. I seem to have a strange love/hate relationship with it. I usually listen to classical music, but this morning I played a flac file of Hotel California on them, and it was out-of-this world beautiful. I'm just not sure you can enjoy it for extended periods of time, with the fatigue they're bound to give you.

I'm glad you've decided to move up to the HD600! I'm also planning to upgrade to the HD650 after a few years after saving and scaling up my setup and my files , but now am extremely contented with my DT990 along with the 320 kbps songs. Hope you enjoy the HD600!

 

[Shaffer]

Hmmm Okay, you can choose to believe that, and I respect your opinion that a better amp will not make any difference. However, there are many reports that said otherwise, and it is up to you to believe in them.

I used to believe that the amplifier contributed relatively little to the sound. Of course, at that point I'd never heard anything better than entry-level mass-market gear. Then, one day, after having a similar conversation with someone I'd recently met, he brought over an affordable high-quality amp and preamp to replace my Denon integrated for the day. The difference in sound - lack of sibilants, bass extension and delineation, the details on very familiar recordings that I never heard before, actual soundstaging - was startling. Yes, startling. It was that big. At that point I stopped believing what someone told me, and started trusting what I heard with my own ears. This took place in 1986.

Furthermore, nobody is denying that the DT990 do accentuate the highs and the lows, but the main difference is that the amp and source files will determine the amount of sibilance that you experience. Perhaps if you do not fancy the clear highs that the 990 provides, you could look to other more neutral headphones such as the HD600, but that'll be a whole different price range altogether.

To add, the HD600 is capable of stunning performance, provided its front end is up to par. GIGO.