[Tiltman]

Fellow Hi-fiers, I just received my Beyer 990DT 240 ohms in the mail today. i was excited until i hooked it up to my SR-71 and listened to my tunes. I felt that the volume was not loud compared to my edition 8s. I have my gain set to high and the pot volume is set to 3 o clock position. I don't want to be disappointed with my purchase. Please help!!

 

[mangamonster]

I think the DT990's are a bit too thirsty for portable amps. A desktop amp would better accommodate them.

I know mine do

 

[stang]

Why are you using ED8 and DT880 with a portable amp? I REALLY hope that isn't your best amp. Your equipment should always (IMO, don't flam me) cost more than the headphones you are using with them. Anyway, you definitely need a good source and amplifier for those two cans...

 

[Tiltman]

Do you recommend a good desk amp i can use with my macbook pro or ipod classic. Those are my two audio sources.

 

[stang]

You are going to need a good DAC first. What is your budget?

 

[Tiltman]

no budget.

 

[stang]

Wow that was unexpected. Well you may want to look around for a good DAC and AMP as I do know a bit when it comes to them, but researching yourself will yield much better results. Benchmark DAC1 and DACMagic are good for the price, the DAC1 being very popular and a stea for around $700usd used. The Grace is also a great DAC with a headphone amplifier too. Do you want a tube amp or solid state? Solid state provides a more detailed, brighter sound, tubes provide more power to power hungry cans (DT990) and give them a nice warm, smooth, coloured sound. I am guessing a tube amp for DT990 and SS for ED8, but buying two amps isn't always practical.

 

[Tiltman]

Hmmmm, i don't need two amps. My edition 8s are for portable use so i am not as concerned about powering it as i am about my 990 DTs. I was looking into some Woo amps but don't know much about them. If i could find a nice Dac for both, that would be awesome.

 

[stang]

A good tube amp will go wonderful then. Need a good DAC now. Look at all the different reviews of them. Benchmark, Audio-GD, Red Wine Audio and Lavry are all good. Some are a lot more expensive than the other, but considering you say you have no budget, why not get the best for your DT990?

 

[David.M]

I got my DT990/600 ohm at an unbelievable staggering price!! I also purchased the Little Dot Dac-1 since i needed to upgrade my source badly.

both of these items should be arriving in a day or 2. I'll let you know how it goes. I have heard the little dot dac-1 to be a very wonderful warmth sounding dac for its price, so you might consider that.

As far as amps go, depending on your budget, you could spring for something like the Woo Audio 3+ or the Audiotailor Jade. Darkvoice 337 is also an option !

 

[Tiltman]

Are the headroom amps and Dacs worth purchasing?