[Mad Lust Envy]

If you're going for a 990, don't buy one based on where it's premium or pro. They're the same headphone barring miniscule changes from the clamp.

Get the ohm model based on what you own. You have a beefy desktop amp, get a 600ohm, for a portable amp, get the 32ohm. Got something in between, get the 250ohm or the Pro 250ohm.

 

[Evshrug]

By the way, my fellow Pittsburgh buddy Craig (I think you met him!) got a Glenn last year, it definitely is a fiiiiiiiine amp! I miss CanJams! How have you been?

 

[Zachik]

By the way, my buddy Craig (I think you met him!) got a Glenn last year, it definitely is a fiiiiiiiine amp! I miss CanJams! How have you been?

Craig is hard to miss... especially if you look up
I got 2 Glenn amps (the very popular OTL and the much less popular EL3N with a lot of customization in mine)
Both amps are most excellent!

I miss CanJams, too. I doubt SoCal will happen in Dec. (but still hoping...)

 

[Chastity]

FYI, the 1990 is a 990 with less distressed treble and more refinements all around, a small but very significant change.

This is just plain inaccurate. They do NOT have similar sound signatures. The DT-1990 make the DT-990 sound like a toy. Please don't comment on gear you never have heard recently or owned. I've owned both. Especially since the DT-1990 has 2 sets of pads with totally different tunings. The B pads are V-shaped, the A pads are left-to right sloped.

 

[Evshrug]

This is just plain inaccurate. They do NOT have similar sound signatures. The DT-1990 make the DT-990 sound like a toy. Please don't comment on gear you never have heard recently or owned. I've owned both. Especially since the DT-1990 has 2 sets of pads with totally different tunings. The B pads are V-shaped, the A pads are left-to right sloped.

Both headphones are quite V-shaped, and more similar to eachother than a headphone from another line or brand. V-shaped isn't necessarily bad... many people find it "lively" and "exciting." "Flat" is an elusive target anyway. I would agree that the DT1990 change is a marked performance improvement over the DT 990. I admit I only tried the DT1990 with one pair of its velour stock pads (perhaps it was the pair Beyer calls “deliberately analytical,” it was the only one in the case Dekoni shipped me), and Dekoni’s pads, but they let me borrow it in 2019 and I had it in my house until a month ago. I would still count that as recent enough to feel confident in my findings. It was also consistent with what I heard at a few CanJams and my local HiFi store (which is usually empty or nearly so). I’m also quite confident in my ability to compare and analyze headphones, with 12 years of experience and even if I only have 15 different headphones and IEMs within arms reach at this very second.

Keep in mind, this is a "Raw Data" graph, uncompensated... most people would have a sensitivity to mids that would make it sound less v-shaped than it would appear in this graph. Furthermore, the measurement head used on this rig has an "averaged" population ear canal size and kind of a simplified shape (read Jude's excellent post highlighted on Head-Fi's front page for some excellent info on how measurements science is evolving), and a larger ear canal on a person would shift the resonance frequency lower, meaning that some frequency on the upper mids might seem even more emphasized and some of the lower treble seem less emphasized. But, even with that said, the treble and bass is still going to have more SPL quantity over the midrange for the average person.

Whether you like or prefer a headphone, that’s totally your perspective and I’ll leave that to you. It may even sound balanced to your ear physiology, that’s totally possible. Because of that, I try to leave what I like out of it, but when one headphone is more comfortable to listen to for an extended period of time... it probably wouldn’t surprise you if I did outright say what I preferred. I certainly don’t mean to make you feel like I’m attacking the headphones you have in your avatar.

 

[Chastity]

@Evshrug Just to point out, the "stock" pads in that graph is the B pads. The mids are not recessed as with the B pads, and the treble is tuned a bit better, less sibilant. Using that chart, it would suggest I get a +8dB boost in subbass, and +5 dB bass boost using the Hybrids. I think the actual boost isn't as big as that. It is, however noticable, and can even be too much with a really warm tube, like the Voshkod 61JP-EV. (This tube works better with the Elite Velour pads. The GE JAN 5654W pair better with the Elite Hybrids)

 

[Evshrug]

@Evshrug Just to point out, the "stock" pads in that graph is the B pads. The mids are not recessed as with the B pads, and the treble is tuned a bit better, less sibilant. Using that chart, it would suggest I get a +8dB boost in subbass, and +5 dB bass boost using the Hybrids. I think the actual boost isn't as big as that. It is, however noticable, and can even be too much with a really warm tube, like the Voshkod 61JP-EV. (This tube works better with the Elite Velour pads. The GE JAN 5654W pair better with the Elite Hybrids)

Good to know! So, for my own reference, are the "B Pads" the ones that Beyer's website refers to as their "well balanced sound" or "deliberately analytical sound?"
Nice tubes by the way! I have a GE JAN 6DJ8, and a Voshkod 6N23P (you know, the Cyrillic character that looks like an "N"). They're not the same models, but I know they make/made good stuff.

 

[jonathan c]

By the way, my fellow Pittsburgh buddy Craig (I think you met him!) got a Glenn last year, it definitely is a fiiiiiiiine amp! I miss CanJams! How have you been?

What a comprehensive review! Well done! The 6XX is, to me, a headphone that “punches above its weight (class)”. I have been rotating it for listening among Audeze LCD-X, Rosson Audio RAD-0 and Meze Empyrean. The 6XX carries itself really well in the rotation. As you alluded to, the 6XX balance, tone, and detail allows for immense musical enjoyment. The 6XX also benefits from and is revealing enough for gear such as the LehmannAudio SE Linear and the Linear Tube Audio MZ3 headphone amplifiers. An unusual pairing, one might think, but it is a testament to the 6XX’s capabilities.

6XX continued: I have been using the Arctic Cables Ion Series with the 6XX. This cable really suits the 6XX - bass retrieval is deeper and without bloat, the soundstage is wider without blurring specificity, and the overall presentation is airier.

 

[Chastity]

Good to know! So, for my own reference, are the "B Pads" the ones that Beyer's website refers to as their "well balanced sound" or "deliberately analytical sound?"
Nice tubes by the way! I have a GE JAN 6DJ8, and a Voshkod 6N23P (you know, the Cyrillic character that looks like an "N"). They're not the same models, but I know they make/made good stuff.

A pads are Analytical, B pads are Balanced (these are installed by default when new)

 

[danterikxx]

is K702 + HD 599 + SMSL M3 good enough for gaming, or can i get something significantly better for around 300 bucks?

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I dunno why'd you get both a 599 and K702...

For $300, there's something upcoming I can't talk about yet that is going to cost less than that and would probably be my new recommendation. You'll have to wait around a month or so though for more info.

For right now, my personal choice if I had absolutely nothing on hand would be a Fidelio X2 + a Vmoda Boompro mic for all my needs.

 

[danterikxx]

I dunno why'd you get both a 599 and K702...

For $300, there's something upcoming I can't talk about yet that is going to cost less than that and would probably be my new recommendation. You'll have to wait around a month or so though for more info.

For right now, my personal choice if I had absolutely nothing on hand would be a Fidelio X2 + a Vmoda Boompro mic for all my needs.

oh, what i posted above is what i have currently

Bought the 599s first, then K702 for better soundstage. Gave a look at 600s, 650s, but dunno if it's worth it for 90% gaming and 10% music. (i'm in Europe, so importing from Massdrop is pointless due to VAT and other fees)

can you give a hint of what it is? at least the brand? i bet it's the X3 or SHP 9600

 

[tglodjo]

For $300, there's something upcoming I can't talk about yet that is going to cost less than that and would probably be my new recommendation. You'll have to wait around a month or so though for more info.

 

[Radio81]

I'm going to guess the Audeze Penrose

 

[danterikxx]

I'm going to guess the Audeze Penrose

It's wireless, so i kinda doubt that