[Airwolf]

I just picked up a pair of Beyerdynamic DT 990 Pro 250 ohm headphones and I am really liking them.  I am generally used to (and prefer) a little more bass, but I knew what I was getting into going in with these.  They are currently hooked up to my Creative Sound Blaster Recon3D Fatal1ty Professional using the dedicated headphone output that is listed as supporting headphones up to 600 Ohms.  I am not having any issues with volume, but I would like a little more bass.  I have played with the EQ settings in the Recon3D audio configuration utility and I have gotten them about as high as they can go without sacrificing sound quality, but I find myself still yearning for more.

My question is whether I would get a noticeable improvement in bass by doing with an external amp such as the O2, Magni, Vali, etc.  It's not a bank buster to pick up one of these amps, but I would prefer to not bother if there will be no difference in my application.
 
My application:
 
Gaming - First person shooters almost exclusively
Movies & TV - Action, Sci Fi, stuff with explosions
Music - Mostly chill trance and chillstep

 

[Airwolf]

bump

 

[manbear]

For music only, you may get better results by using the EQ in your audio player. A parametric EQ plugin such as EasyQ or ElectriQ will give you the most control and the least distortion. 

If you get plenty of volume from a soundcard, I wouldn't expect an amp to make a drastic difference. The only way it would be possible if your soundcard is running out of steam on the jacked up bass frequencies. EQing is making the bass louder than the rest of the music, so it could be that your soundcard's amp is distorting on the bass. 

Basically a better EQ and/or a more powerful amp might allow you to turn up the bass more before sound quality is affected. 
 
The only EQ plugin I know of that will work on games and movies as well is EqualizerAPO, but it's kind of hard to use. There is no GUI and you have to set the EQ in a text file. 

 

[Makiah S]

VALI

 

[Airwolf]

Thanks for the help.  The parametric EQ stuff seems a little over my head.  I went ahead and ordered the Vali.  I figure if worst comes to worst, I can sell it for a small loss here.

 

[Makiah S]

  Thanks for the help.  The parametric EQ stuff seems a little over my head.  I went ahead and ordered the Vali.  I figure if worst comes to worst, I can sell it for a small loss here.

nah I think you will very much enjoy the Vali with the dt 990! I have the dt 880 which pairs nicely with the Vali