[lecky]

I just bought these old dt990s on ebay to replace my broken dt990 pros and wonder if anyone can tell me a bit about them - they're obviously somewhat different to the dt 990s and pros - duel cable, different headband etc. How old are they and how are they likely to differ from my 990 pros?

The seller described them as having a more neutral frequency response - more akin to an 880, is this right? I liked my 990 pros very much but a bit more mid emphasis wouldn't hurt at all.

 

[Zorander]

Contact member "REB". I remember him being very fond of the vintage DT-990s. I have not heard one but, judging by the sound of the vintage DT-880 I own, I have no doubt it sounds good.

Cheers!

p.s. Is that a tear on one of the pads?

 

[Donald North]

Those were my first high end headphones. They're late 80s - very early 90s vintage. At the time I listened to all that were available and my 2 favorites were the Stax Lambdas and the beyer DT990s. The beyers sounded very open and natural and alive in the mids and highs. Bass was good when you drove it from a higher output impedance. Enjoy!

 

[Headdie]

I have a pair like these from the late 80s I guess, but can't remember precisely. The cushions were flat, so I brought them to the audiophile shop for replacement. It was 55$ plus taxes, so I changed my mind and took the opportunity to compare them with new ones (DT990, DT880, HD600). First, there lighter and smaller than new generation. Second, they sound good, but I found them a little behind the new ones. Then I came back home and decided to fix the cushions by myself. Now, they're ticker, comfy and I don't know why, but the sound is better to my ears. So I've kept them, but I'd be curious to compare them again to the new ones. That's what I can say about this !

 

[lecky]

Thanks for the comments - sounds like I'm probably going to be happy!

Reading some of Remco's comments on these makes me look forward to them even more.

The seller said they're in very good condition, so I hope that isn't a tear in a pad!

The problem with my 990 pros is that the tissue membrane on the front of one of the drivers got damaged and makes a horrid noise at low frequencies, it means I can hear their quality but the added noise is nasty, so I'll be able to compare them directly with the 990 pros - I'll let you know how they compare when they arrive...

 

[Headdie]

When I purchased my old DT990, even new I found they had rather flat ear cushions to my taste. Of course, it didn't improve with age, so be ready to fix it. Many of us has done it different ways. It's quite easy.

 

[lecky]

Thanks Headie. I'll see how the ear cushions are when they arrive... What's your preferred method of improving the cushions?

 

[REB]

Welcome to the club! Congrats on the purchase. Every since I bought them they've been my favourite cans, even if they at times get displaced by new additions. They always come out on top in the end though. I found the mids to be excellent and not muddied by the very good (and quite present bass). They are incredibly detailed, fast, and reasonably neutralish. The cushions are very flat (hard to avoid with cans that old), but that never bothered me.

One thing though. They need good amping. Sometimes the benefits of amping are exaggerated here at Head-Fi, but when I heard the dt990 out of the headphone jack of my vintage Sansui amp I was underwhelmed. Same with the Zero. But when I heard it out of the Graham Slee Solo (which was built to deal with high impedance phones) it completely blew me out of the water. I don't think I have ever heard such a difference between amped and unamped. Must be the 600 Ohms.

@ Zorander: if you're ever going to sell your dt880s, please think of me

.

 

[lecky]

Thank you Remco. Well I hope they'll be adequate at least in my rather inadequately amped house until I can get a decent amp to make them sing. A decent amp was on the shopping list anyway, at some point, money allowing...

 

[ericj]

The current DT990 pads will work just fine but they are silver instead of black.

A pair of pads off an MB Quart QP55x will be almost identical to the original pads, and you can probably buy a used qp55x in the forsale forums here for less than a pair of new pads from beyer.

Anyway, if you want to fix the existing pads, the easy way is to cut some slits in the perforated vinyl on the back of the pad and stuff in some polyfill - then use some string to lace up the areas you cut open.

 

[Tiemen]

I loved these old DT990, and still wonder why I ever sold them.......

 

[lecky]

Thanks eric.

I just found that the speaker outputs of my Charlize t-amp makes my 2000 ohm sennheiser hd424s sound really nice (a nicer, fuller more balanced sound, more sound, still not loud, but loud enough!), so perhaps that might be an option in getting a bit of power into these things if all else fails.

 

[ericj]

Keep in mind that the T-Amp's output is balanced, and you can damage it by trying to force it to run single-ended.

Also that it's designed to drive a 4-ohm load, and the frequency response and distortion curves will get very weird if the load doesn't at least look like something in the neighborhood of 4 ohms. So, put a 5 or 6 ohm 10w resistor in parallel with the headphones.

 

[Headdie]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lecky /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'll see how the ear cushions are when they arrive... What's your preferred method of improving the cushions?

How can I explain...

1. Remove on of them

2. Put it on the table so you see behind it. There's a kind of screen on the back. You can see the filling through it...

3. Cut the screen vertically at 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock.

4. Cut the filling at the same places, pull and remove it.

5. Pick the stuff you want to use as the new filling. I've bought a bag of Poly Sponge for 1.50$ to experiment and I'm still with it.

6. Sculpt the sponge the thickness you want it. It's easy to do with a good knife, and with a bag of sponge you can try different shapes.

7. Here is the hardest part. You have to slip the sponge inside the pad, but the pad doesn't want to help you... The way I did it was to cut two piece of sponge (two half circle sponge if you want), then fill one side of the pad with the first sponge stick, and fill the second side of the pad with the second sponge stick. The way I found to make it slip inside was to roll the sponge in a plastic sheet, insert it and then pull the plastic sheet gently out of it. I know, it's probably unclear, but you'll find your way

8. You're half done ! Do the same with the second pad... Et voilà !

 

[lecky]

double post.