[MrTechAgent]

Had a very scary moment with the DT48A today, the DT48 being the only headphone I think which maintains a clean Sine wave down to 20hz with no Sub-Harmonic distortion to speak of. Gave me a nice thud of pure undistorted low frequencies at a relatively high SPL, that was pretty scary.

 

[takato14]

What? The max input on these is low but not THAT low... unless you just mean it startled you.

 

[MrTechAgent]

  What? The max input on these is low but not THAT low... unless you just mean it startled you.

Its lower than any dynamic I've heard, I would say it maintains it better than the HE-60.
It was more than a startle, it was like a very strong impact which hit like a jet.
Although it maybe due to the flex of the membrane when I compressed the pads slightly, nonetheless it could have potentially damaged my hearing if I was listening louder.

 

[takato14]

 

  What? The max input on these is low but not THAT low... unless you just mean it startled you.

Its lower than any dynamic I've heard, I would say it maintains it better than the HE-60.
It was more than a startle, it was like a very strong impact which hit like a jet.
Although it maybe due to the flex of the membrane when I compressed the pads slightly, nonetheless it could have potentially damaged my hearing if I was listening louder.

What? You don't "maintain" a max input. The max input is the electrical specification that denotes the maximum amount of input power the transducer can take before failing. I was assuming you meant you were afraid you were going to overvolt the headphones.
 
Sudden loud noises do not damage hearing. Only consistent exposure to high SPLs can permanently damage your hearing. Refer to this chart:
 

 

[MrTechAgent]

  What? You don't "maintain" a max input. The max input is the electrical specification that denotes the maximum amount of input power the transducer can take before failing. I was assuming you meant you were afraid you were going to overvolt the headphones.

I am aware of that.
By "Maintain" I meant that the DT48 can't be overdriven even at 20 cycles and maybe lower, I haven't measured them. 
The overvolt statement is irrelevant since there is no Sub-Harmonic distortion hence no rattling and hence no overdriving here.

 

[MrTechAgent]

Here, another guy having a similar experience

Be very, very careful connecting the DT-48 to a speaker output. The DT-48 can output a pulse at 30 hz or less that will blow out your eardrum. They won't play at 129 db constantly like the DT-1350, but they will generate a wave that will fry your ears.

Secondly, you are likely to get excessive noise from speaker taps, so you may need some kind of transformer. I bought such a transformer from Beyer once, to use with a 5 or 8 ohm DT-48S.

 

A DT48 screwed to exact specified tolerances can't be overdriven across the entire range until it hits Max SPL.
No Dynamic headphones has the ability to do that, E-Stats due to the design..can.

 

[takato14]

 
By "Maintain" I meant that the DT48 can't be overdriven even at 20 cycles and maybe lower, I haven't measured them. 
The overvolt statement is irrelevant since there is no Sub-Harmonic distortion hence no rattling and hence no overdriving here.

That's not how it works.
 
Anything can be overdriven at any frequency. Max input is electrical and has absolutely nothing to do with distortion. My Pioneer SE-700 just kept sounding better and better when I cranked them, but the second I hit 30V p-p of output... bam, fried.
 
And again, sudden loud noises do not damage your hearing. Your eardrum will not "blow out" from a headphone. That's unscientific nonsense. Not to mention the fact that the DT48 will give up the ghost far before you'd get anywhere near ear shattering output SPLs.

 

[MrTechAgent]

  That's not how it works.
 
Anything can be overdriven at any frequency. Max input is electrical and has absolutely nothing to do with distortion. My Pioneer SE-700 just kept sounding better and better when I cranked them, but the second I hit 30V p-p of output... bam, fried.
 
And again, sudden loud noises do not damage your hearing. 

If you can give me a air tight proof that you can overdrive a DT48 (perfect tolerance) in the manufacturers specified range. I'll be contented with your conclusion.

 

[takato14]

 

  That's not how it works.
 
Anything can be overdriven at any frequency. Max input is electrical and has absolutely nothing to do with distortion. My Pioneer SE-700 just kept sounding better and better when I cranked them, but the second I hit 30V p-p of output... bam, fried.
 
And again, sudden loud noises do not damage your hearing. 

If you can give me a air tight proof that you can overdrive a DT48 (perfect tolerance) in the manufacturers specified range. I'll be contented with your conclusion.

I assume by "manufacturers specified range" you mean the spec they provide, which is 100mW. Not 100mW @ any particular frequency, just 100mW, period. This means if the measurable power input exceeds 100mW, one of two things will happen: The voice coil will burn out, or the diaphragm will fracture or otherwise become separated from the voice coil.
 
Plug a 5 ohm DT48 into a FiiO E9 and take it to about 12 o'clock... I guarantee they'll be dead.

 

[MrTechAgent]

  I assume by "manufacturers specified range" you mean the spec they provide, which is 100mW. Not 100mW @ any particulat frequency, just 100mW, period. This means if the measurable power input exceeds 100mW, one of two things will happen: The voice coil will burn out, or the diaphragm will fracture or otherwise become separated from the voice coil.
 
Plug a 5 ohm DT48 into a FiiO E9 and take it to about 12 o'clock... I guarantee they'll be dead.

Done that with my DT48E at 20 cycles, plugged into my Valhalla 2.
Went to I'm gonna say, 93-5db and NO overdriving to pick-up. I would have crossed Max SPL which I think is 105db but I'm not stupid enough to go over it.
Burning the VC is a possibility but I bet you'll never fracture the Aluminium. I was expecting an air tight answer but instead I got reiteration of the same thing you went over earlier which we all know.

I think you should be first to the test by sacrificing your DT48, burning the VC and presenting pictures here, in front of us, for science. 

 

[takato14]

  Done that with my DT48E at 20 cycles, plugged into my Valhalla 2.

I was not aware that the FiiO E9 was renamed to "Valhalla 2". Perhaps you should inform Schiit of this copyright infringement.
 

 
Went to I'm gonna say, 93-5db and NO overdriving to pick-up.

... if there was any "hint of overdriving" the headphones would be dead. Pushing something to high SPLs is not overdriving it. Pushing something to the point that it distorts is not overdriving it either. Burning it out is overdriving it.
 

 
I would have crossed Max SPL which I think is 105db but I'm not stupid enough to go over it.

*facepalm*
 
Beyer does not provide the maximum output SPL in the specifications. I don't know of anyone that does anymore. The 105dB rating they provide is the sensitivity per mW of power, not the maximum amount of gain the headphones can push.

 

[MrTechAgent]

  I was not aware that the FiiO E9 was renamed to "Valhalla 2". Perhaps you should inform Schiit of this copyright infringement.
 
... if there was any "hint of overdriving" the headphones would be dead. Pushing something to high SPLs is not overdriving it. Pushing something to the point that it distorts is not overdriving it either. Burning it out is overdriving it.
 
*facepalm*
 
Beyer does not provide the maximum output SPL in the specifications. I don't know of anyone that does anymore. The 105dB rating they provide is the sensitivity per mW of power, not the maximum amount of gain the headphones can push.

Still waiting for the pictures of the DT48 which you should kill, burnt voice coil or your "fractured" membrane would work too.
That'll make up for the lack of significant comments you made in this entire conversation.

If you were smart, you would have presented an entire proof, since you are correcting me. I'm sure you know the "Specifications". Go ahead, use them as a guide, kill your DT48. Show proof and make me stop replying.
Currently you're just talking at me rather than talking to me. Which is a waste of time.

 

[Claritas]

Still waiting for the pictures of the DT48 which you should kill, burnt voice coil or your "fractured" membrane would work too.

That'll make up for the lack of significant comments you made in this entire conversation.

If you were smart, you would have presented an entire proof, since you are correcting me. I'm sure you know the "Specifications". Go ahead, use them as a guide, kill your DT48. Show proof and make me stop replying.
Currently you're just talking at me rather than talking to me. Which is a waste of time.

Surely, there are ways of answering this question other than the Solomonic one that you're advocating. I would suggest taking it down a notch and sticking to the topic: What's the claim? What would constitute proof? Keep cool-headed and put your egos aside and you might get somewhere working together. You might not find out the answer in the end, but at least you'll respect each other. As I respect you both, that's what I'd like to see.

 

[Aizura]

What's the point of this whole discussion? ANY headphone can be destroyed if you feed it enough energy, that's just simple physics. Doesn't matter if it's a DT48, Porta Pro or Orpheus. Why would you even try to find the limit if you risk damaging your hearing and your DT48 in the process? There's nothing to gain and everything to lose. Might as well give it to someone that's going to appreciate them with music listening rather then doing stupid high SPL tests and potentially ruining the headphones (rare and discontinued headphones, that is).
 
This talk about dropping water into the transducers and blasting high SPL bass waves though them sure makes me glad I bought my DT48 brand new.

 

[Aizura]

Oh and about the channel imbalance, just replace the cable. The cable is almost always the culprit in these kinds of things. If it was not the cable, but for instance a misaligned voice coil, it would be very unlikely that 1 side would only sound more quiet, without distortion or alterations in frequency range. Recabling is very easy with the DT48, so long as you're not unscrewing the caps on which the cable ends are soldered on, because that would destroy the headphones, like so many things can.