[knorris908]

   
May not be a direct comparison but I tried M500 on DX90. I prefer the Porta pro. The KEF doesn't sound natural. very thin and unrealistic sounding bass.

+1 for the Porta Pros with the DX90

 

[jamato8]

PortaPros are an exceptional buy. Too inexpensive for some to believe they are any good. 

 

[HiFlight]

PortaPros are an exceptional buy. Too inexpensive for some to believe they are any good. 

As are also the KSC-35's. They have earclips, but I always replace the clips with a narrow headband.

 

[kneel]

i use cx985. sounds nice with the dx90.

 

[knorris908]

If you are interested in "IN-EAR" solutions, then my old VMODA Bass Freqs are awesome when I drop in some club or POP or JPOP songs.  Good thump on the low end without crowding-out the mids too much and the highs are nicely-controlled without ever getting "shrill" or too bright/harsh.
 
They are discontinued, but you can still find them for less that $50 USD.
http://www.amazon.com/V-MODA-Headphone-Platinum-Discontinued-Manufacturer/dp/B000G00UOU/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1419743120&sr=1-1&keywords=bass+freq

 

[MasterChef]

I've been using a DX90 for a few days now and the sound is a little boring imo. It's just lacking excitement and emotion for me, seems so focused on detail. For earphones I've used HF5, Beyer DTX 102, and IE80.... none of which I have really enjoyed. 
 
I'm looking to get an IEM that would make the DX90 more enjoyable for me. I want something that will sound at least decent across most genres (Hard Rock/Metal, Classical, Dance, Electronic), but an IEM that will especially make female vocals sound more beautiful. Would prefer at least neutral bass, as long as it's not recessed and can be EQ's up a little bit and still sound good. 
 
Any advice for IEM's that would add some excitement and emotion to this DAP? I was considering Westone W40 / W30, Shure SE535, and Nuforce Primo 8 (disregarding price among these). $500 is the limit. I have not heard any of these earphones before, only the ones I mentioned in the first line. For over-ear headphones, I own and enjoy some HD700 and AKG K7XX (massdrop edition) for comparision. I appreciate any thoughts or help on this thanks! 

 

[okan]

Anyone using sennheiser amperior with DX90? I am looking for a dap nowadays but I am not sure amperior and dx90 would be fine match or not.

 

[vrapan]

  I've been using a DX90 for a few days now and the sound is a little boring imo. It's just lacking excitement and emotion for me, seems so focused on detail. For earphones I've used HF5, Beyer DTX 102, and IE80.... none of which I have really enjoyed. 
 
I'm looking to get an IEM that would make the DX90 more enjoyable for me. I want something that will sound at least decent across most genres (Hard Rock/Metal, Classical, Dance, Electronic), but an IEM that will especially make female vocals sound more beautiful. Would prefer at least neutral bass, as long as it's not recessed and can be EQ's up a little bit and still sound good. 
 
Any advice for IEM's that would add some excitement and emotion to this DAP? I was considering Westone W40 / W30, Shure SE535, and Nuforce Primo 8 (disregarding price among these). $500 is the limit. I have not heard any of these earphones before, only the ones I mentioned in the first line. For over-ear headphones, I own and enjoy some HD700 and AKG K7XX (massdrop edition) for comparision. I appreciate any thoughts or help on this thanks! 

I have a pair of HF5s and they lack emotion and excitement out of anything I think! I loved the vocals of the 535s but I did not like anything else about them to be honest (though I do not have them anymore so never tried them with my DX90).
 
Have not heard anything else you mention, but I did not like my SD2 out of the DX90 very much either. However the DX90+the rather clear and transparent CE6P is soo much fun to listen to. So I think the player itself is enjoyable but it needs a clear transparent but warmish earphone.

 

[MasterChef]

Hey, thanks for the input. I wrote that message shortly after receiving my DX90, which was a mistake. I was always skeptical of burn-in, but not for this device. After using the burn-in cable and listening for a few days, the DX90 sounds amazing. Whether that's because of physical burn-in, or my brain adjusting to the sound (probably both), the sound quality has improved a lot. I'm quite pleased with it.
 
I agree with you about the HF5's - they lack excitement, although they have accuracy. Funny thing is, they sound great out of my DX90 now. Haven't ever heard of the CE6P, I'll defintely have to look into that one - thanks for the suggestion.

 

[kneel]

  Hey, thanks for the input. I wrote that message shortly after receiving my DX90, which was a mistake. I was always skeptical of burn-in, but not for this device. After using the burn-in cable and listening for a few days, the DX90 sounds amazing. Whether that's because of physical burn-in, or my brain adjusting to the sound (probably both), the sound quality has improved a lot. I'm quite pleased with it.
 
I agree with you about the HF5's - they lack excitement, although they have accuracy. Funny thing is, they sound great out of my DX90 now. Haven't ever heard of the CE6P, I'll defintely have to look into that one - thanks for the suggestion.

You might also want to switch to Lurker's firmware.  

 

[T.R.A.N.C.E.]

As are also the KSC-35's. They have earclips, but I always replace the clips with a narrow headband.

Do the 35's sound more neutral vs portapro? Im partial to the energy Portapros bring.

 

[wolfen68]

I think the DX90 sounds great with everything..but it really shines with JH13's.
 
It's great that the Portapros are getting a little love on this thread.  They used to be the "go to" entry drug recommendation but in recent years I think they've been swamped by all of the available options.  While the Portapros are great, I sold them long ago when I discovered the KSC-35, same great sound with a tighter bass, a touch more clarity and airiness.  You can often find them cheaper than a Portapro so that's a bonus.
 
HiFlight...would you have a source for the (standard) replacement headband you use?  I've been meaning to do that Mod for years on my set.

 

[jamato8]

The 35's are the same driver so I think it is the way the ear clips hold the transducer to the ear that you bet more transparency and a different tighter bass. the same thing can be achieved with the older PP's by bending the headband out a little right about the ears, which takes some of the pressure off the ear, opens the sound up and cleans up the bass. 

 

[T.R.A.N.C.E.]

^ That's what I thought Jamato. Alternatively, using the PP from a source with very tight sound works also. The PP sounds phenomenal from DX90, very musical and euphonic. But when PP is paired with my ZX1, you lose the aforementioned qualities, But in exchange you get extremely tight, quick, hard hitting [size=12.7272720336914px]bass coupled with mids that have a holographic quality and feel like they are projected from in front of you, the mids are a bit cold/sterile though, as is the treble, but separation and imaging are phenomenal. Two great sources for the DX90. [/size]
 
[size=12.7272720336914px]FYI friends, I'm getting a Pono next as I'm quite interested to see how it sounds due to its circuitry, which is mostly created from discrete circuitry rather than opamps! From teardowns of Pono, it shows[/size][size=12.7272720336914px] that many stages are discrete instead of opamp based, like the IV conversion, LPF, and Output Buffer seem to all be discrete. It gives me the impression of a well engineered bit of kit. Like it has a 3000mAH cylindrical Lith battery (better efficiency, longer life, lower impedance, than a flat battery). It has a dedicated power management chip (usually only seen in some pricier daps, means better SQ, better efficiency) it has two Crystal Oscillators (44.1, 48, only important if into Hi Res recordings), it has balanced output (uses two separate symmetrical circuits after LPF for balanced, single ended is ~1v output, balanced is ~2v output), it has 2000uF of capacitance on the output (1000uF per channel). The only bad part is that it uses OPA4376 for voltage amp, not the best for audio, but they needed a 4 channel opamp so choices were limited, its a bit of a shame really. FYI Pono uses a single ESS9018K2M Dac chip, like Calyx M, or DX90 which uses two.[/size]
 
[size=12.7272720336914px]It just overall strikes me that an experienced engineer designed the Pono, but what do I know [/size]

 

 

[Paul - iBasso]

Hopefully Neil Young will bring more mainstream people to the realization that high definition music is a good thing. Enjoyment of the music is what it is all about.