[Bingturong]

Pads do indeed make a lot of difference. I also have all three types though the foam in the weirdly shaped grey ones have completely disintegrated and those are on a pair I left behind in another country. Using the modern earpads on the 25 ohm DT-48S is the only way I can tolerate them, barely. I still hate that thing with passion.

I haven't really been focusing on the DT-48 in these passing weeks since I got my stax system finally set up.

Bahahahaha. This insane headphone. I bought one after thinking these vintage fans were smoking something funny. Then i got one and put some various on ear pads, and the psychotic nature showed itself. I knew there is some hidden magic in it. I mean they made this for so long.
Or perhaps I am the psychotic (I do have to take some funny pills). And sometimes enjoy a Gentleman's jack with cola and a red beer or two.
I don't know if its my mental health condition or the funny pills, but its midrange is magical. And my quest to make the BASS more phoenix-esque rising from ashes from its rather sterile essence of that BOOM BOOM BOOM when stock.

I do not tell this problem to my shrink about my quest for more bass in dt48/480 and my DI Y wooden dt48 (am I the first in all of history?) If I am. I am proud of the stupidity of ruining 2 headphones to make a SHAMUUU dt48 "1 of 1 prototypes" one (which i am convinced i fattened up the bass and with lambskin pads and wood cups. I can live with it's slightly less than perfect treble extension, which when i need to feel more "air" i just jump onto another open set (dt880) to breathe and also expand the soundstage. But even more soundstage with less precise positioning within that soundstage (cough k701) is also bothersome. Laser precision on dt48 spatial cues.

In conclusion, i agree pad-play and if especially sacrificed lamb, potential for magic. Why the fans have such small army and many enemies? XD But then again I started with cool BASS headphones like Sony XB1000 and end up with weird ones like dt48/480 and Sigma as end game.

The only other headphone i miss is JVC SZ and Biocellulose Fostex and xb1000 which i needed to let go to get the sigma and dt48A masterpieces

I am not a headphone nerd, but have been to a convention to hear "TOTL". Meh. But hell ya I would get them if i could. i meant meh, was like 5% improvement from dt880 which i use 99% of the time. Thank You

Reminds me when I got my first DT-48. After going around the city trying to find a DIN plug to make an adapter I finally got to try the legendary DT-48. What the hell was my first impressions. Something had to be wrong. After days of fiddling and mostly cleaning out the foam in the pads and finally just wore it. And well, except for the Stax SR-5 I was using regularly at the time, they remained my top headphones until I started going crazy on the stax. I do wonder though how they'll sound with proper leather ear-pads. I did shoot Dekoni a question if they have any earpads that will fit the DT-48

 

[SHAMuuu]

Pads do indeed make a lot of difference. I also have all three types though the foam in the weirdly shaped grey ones have completely disintegrated and those are on a pair I left behind in another country. Using the modern earpads on the 25 ohm DT-48S is the only way I can tolerate them, barely. I still hate that thing with passion.

I haven't really been focusing on the DT-48 in these passing weeks since I got my stax system finally set up.



Reminds me when I got my first DT-48. After going around the city trying to find a DIN plug to make an adapter I finally got to try the legendary DT-48. What the hell was my first impressions. Something had to be wrong. After days of fiddling and mostly cleaning out the foam in the pads and finally just wore it. And well, except for the Stax SR-5 I was using regularly at the time, they remained my top headphones until I started going crazy on the stax. I do wonder though how they'll sound with proper leather ear-pads. I did shoot Dekoni a question if they have any earpads that will fit the DT-48

Getting some REAL leather ear pads is as easy as apple pie. I had some brainwaves sheepskin pads ok? THEN I took the new pads, remove donut pad, and then put brainwavs sheepskin, as well as shure 1540 alcantara, and alpha pads even! many pads can fit when mixed with the modern pad plastic layer.

As for sr-5 I have the NB Gold Sr-5 w. 007 pads, and they is dope but i like the dt48A and dt480 more with modded pads combos but a little bit .

 

[Bingturong]

Getting some REAL leather ear pads is as easy as apple pie. I had some brainwaves sheepskin pads ok? THEN I took the new pads, remove donut pad, and then put brainwavs sheepskin, as well as shure 1540 alcantara, and alpha pads even! many pads can fit when mixed with the modern pad plastic layer.

As for sr-5 I have the NB Gold Sr-5 w. 007 pads, and they is dope but i like the dt48A and dt480 more with modded pads combos but a little bit .

So that's the secret, the plastic bit on the modern DT-48 pads? I'll give it a try. I was also thinking about something more in the line of the SR-X pads. Though actual leather since for some reason Stax used vinyl instead.

 

[mindblownDt48]

Bahahahaha. This insane headphone. I bought one after thinking these vintage fans were smoking something funny. Then i got one and put some various on ear pads, and the psychotic nature showed itself. I knew there is some hidden magic in it. I mean they made this for so long.
Or perhaps I am the psychotic (I do have to take some funny pills). And sometimes enjoy a Gentleman's jack with cola and a red beer or two.
I don't know if its my mental health condition or the funny pills, but its midrange is magical. And my quest to make the BASS more phoenix-esque rising from ashes from its rather sterile essence of that BOOM BOOM BOOM when stock.

I do not tell this problem to my shrink about my quest for more bass in dt48/480 and my DI Y wooden dt48 (am I the first in all of history?) If I am. I am proud of the stupidity of ruining 2 headphones to make a SHAMUUU dt48 "1 of 1 prototypes" one (which i am convinced i fattened up the bass and with lambskin pads and wood cups. I can live with it's slightly less than perfect treble extension, which when i need to feel more "air" i just jump onto another open set (dt880) to breathe and also expand the soundstage. But even more soundstage with less precise positioning within that soundstage (cough k701) is also bothersome. Laser precision on dt48 spatial cues.

In conclusion, i agree pad-play and if especially sacrificed lamb, potential for magic. Why the fans have such small army and many enemies? XD But then again I started with cool BASS headphones like Sony XB1000 and end up with weird ones like dt48/480 and Sigma as end game.

The only other headphone i miss is JVC SZ and Biocellulose Fostex and xb1000 which i needed to let go to get the sigma and dt48A masterpieces

I am not a headphone nerd, but have been to a convention to hear "TOTL". Meh. But hell ya I would get them if i could. i meant meh, was like 5% improvement from dt880 which i use 99% of the time. Thank You

Your project is peculiar and i bet bass is tick as hell now, as you said (i think) "morbidly obese notes"
People like to be lied to, by the sistem and by their headphones... They even pay for tv monthly lol... So its not strange that all corporations are making colored headphones, made to wow you with their lies... Very few of us know how to listen and hear the magic... Now, i giggle when i hear hps from people around me... M50... hd380, 650 dt770... LOL Its a joke and a bad one, many even claim hd800 are trash and good only for being a part of collection, it wouldnt surprise me. i would love to hear kennerton thror , tho it will never happen
i love sony sa3000, but if i put dt48a after, i get into trance and forget what i even wanted... Sometimes hd580 convince me they are really good... Then i put dt48a and am like "ohh, thats why it sounds good on 580, because bright mix or something"... Dt48 is such a hard benchmark for other headphones, one reviewer for focal utopia (amazon i think) claims mids are almost identical in tonallity... So haters are hating on us, not dt48... Envy and ego driving their fury

 

[kman1211]

Bahahahaha. This insane headphone. I bought one after thinking these vintage fans were smoking something funny. Then i got one and put some various on ear pads, and the psychotic nature showed itself. I knew there is some hidden magic in it. I mean they made this for so long.
Or perhaps I am the psychotic (I do have to take some funny pills). And sometimes enjoy a Gentleman's jack with cola and a red beer or two.
I don't know if its my mental health condition or the funny pills, but its midrange is magical. And my quest to make the BASS more phoenix-esque rising from ashes from its rather sterile essence of that BOOM BOOM BOOM when stock.

I do not tell this problem to my shrink about my quest for more bass in dt48/480 and my DI Y wooden dt48 (am I the first in all of history?) If I am. I am proud of the stupidity of ruining 2 headphones to make a SHAMUUU dt48 "1 of 1 prototypes" one (which i am convinced i fattened up the bass and with lambskin pads and wood cups. I can live with it's slightly less than perfect treble extension, which when i need to feel more "air" i just jump onto another open set (dt880) to breathe and also expand the soundstage. But even more soundstage with less precise positioning within that soundstage (cough k701) is also bothersome. Laser precision on dt48 spatial cues.

In conclusion, i agree pad-play and if especially sacrificed lamb, potential for magic. Why the fans have such small army and many enemies? XD But then again I started with cool BASS headphones like Sony XB1000 and end up with weird ones like dt48/480 and Sigma as end game.

The only other headphone i miss is JVC SZ and Biocellulose Fostex and xb1000 which i needed to let go to get the sigma and dt48A masterpieces

I am not a headphone nerd, but have been to a convention to hear "TOTL". Meh. But hell ya I would get them if i could. i meant meh, was like 5% improvement from dt880 which i use 99% of the time. Thank You

Honestly still need to get a DT 48, still only have the DT 480's, but it is heavily modified, stock cups, but my modifications to it are unique and basically all the resonance issues with the housing and baffle have been eliminated and it's all to the pads now and some damping squares I use to cover the vents or take of and swap them around to adjust the tuning based on my mood. Something about the DT 48/480 seems to threaten people, I guess it's hard for some people to believe the first dynamic headphone driver is one of the best headphone drivers there is and it shows that headphone driver tech hasn't really advanced as much as people would hope.

 

[Bingturong]

Your project is peculiar and i bet bass is tick as hell now, as you said (i think) "morbidly obese notes"
People like to be lied to, by the sistem and by their headphones... They even pay for tv monthly lol... So its not strange that all corporations are making colored headphones, made to wow you with their lies... Very few of us know how to listen and hear the magic... Now, i giggle when i hear hps from people around me... M50... hd380, 650 dt770... LOL Its a joke and a bad one, many even claim hd800 are trash and good only for being a part of collection, it wouldnt surprise me. i would love to hear kennerton thror , tho it will never happen
i love sony sa3000, but if i put dt48a after, i get into trance and forget what i even wanted... Sometimes hd580 convince me they are really good... Then i put dt48a and am like "ohh, thats why it sounds good on 580, because bright mix or something"... Dt48 is such a hard benchmark for other headphones, one reviewer for focal utopia (amazon i think) claims mids are almost identical in tonallity... So haters are hating on us, not dt48... Envy and ego driving their fury

There are very few headphones that are at the same level or exceed the accuracy of the DT-48. Even fewer are dynamics. I have an MDR-SA3000 as well and at first hearing they're exceptionally detailed but they sound almost muddy in comparison to a DT-48. The DT-48 pretty much ruined dynamic headphones for me that now I only get dynamics as a matter of collecting vintages or interesting designs.

 

[kman1211]

Your project is peculiar and i bet bass is tick as hell now, as you said (i think) "morbidly obese notes"
People like to be lied to, by the sistem and by their headphones... They even pay for tv monthly lol... So its not strange that all corporations are making colored headphones, made to wow you with their lies... Very few of us know how to listen and hear the magic... Now, i giggle when i hear hps from people around me... M50... hd380, 650 dt770... LOL Its a joke and a bad one, many even claim hd800 are trash and good only for being a part of collection, it wouldnt surprise me. i would love to hear kennerton thror , tho it will never happen
i love sony sa3000, but if i put dt48a after, i get into trance and forget what i even wanted... Sometimes hd580 convince me they are really good... Then i put dt48a and am like "ohh, thats why it sounds good on 580, because bright mix or something"... Dt48 is such a hard benchmark for other headphones, one reviewer for focal utopia (amazon i think) claims mids are almost identical in tonallity... So haters are hating on us, not dt48... Envy and ego driving their fury

Honestly listening to my DT 480, it's amazing how incomplete most other headphones sound. While the DT 480 isn't my most used headphone, largely due to weight and also can get a bit sweaty but overall comfort is fine, it is my best headphone. My most used headphone is my T1 gen 2, but that's for it's comfort and it's one of the few headphones that doesn't have major issues with it's sound for me, but it's not in the same league as the DT 480.

There are very few headphones that are at the same level or exceed the accuracy of the DT-48. Even fewer are dynamics. I have an MDR-SA3000 as well and at first hearing they're exceptionally detailed but they sound almost muddy in comparison to a DT-48. The DT-48 pretty much ruined dynamic headphones for me that now I only get dynamics as a matter of collecting vintages or interesting designs.

Agree, the thing ruins most every other headphone. I usually only get other dynamic headphones for comfort reasons and it has to have sound that I find appealing, such as an oddly addictive sound, very low fatigue, and/or something about it's sound puts me in a good mood.

 

[Bingturong]

Honestly listening to my DT 480, it's amazing how incomplete most other headphones sound. While the DT 480 isn't my most used headphone, largely due to weight and also can get a bit sweaty but overall comfort is fine, it is my best headphone. My most used headphone is my T1 gen 2, but that's for it's comfort and it's one of the few headphones that doesn't have major issues with it's sound for me, but it's not in the same league as the DT 480.



Agree, I've only heard one dynamic headphones I truly liked more and that was the insanely expensive R10, that thing is magical, but like the DT 48 it needs to have time spent with it to truly appreciate. I usually only get other dynamic headphones for comfort reasons and it has to have sound that I find appealing, such as an oddly addictive sound, very low fatigue, and/or something about it's sound puts me in a good mood.

I still haven't gotten a DT-480 and it remains my top to get. It's a real shame that Beyerdynamic could no longer produce them and that they couldn't even find something to fill the DT-48's spot. Not even the DT-1350A

 

[kman1211]

I still haven't gotten a DT-480 and it remains my top to get. It's a real shame that Beyerdynamic could no longer produce them and that they couldn't even find something to fill the DT-48's spot. Not even the DT-1350A

The 200 Ohm is the best sounding version imho in terms of fidelity and it has the deepest most present bass, but I mainly use the 25 Ohm due to it's more forward and engaging midrange and I was able to tune it more to my liking more easily. I've also tried the 8 Ohm, very similar to the 25 Ohm. Haven't heard the 5 Ohm yet. Sadly that is true, everything else from Beyer isn't quite the same level. But I do genuinely like the Amiron Home, DT 1990, and T1.2 as well as some other Beyers but there is a big fidelity gap between them and the DT 48/480.

 

[Bingturong]

The 200 Ohm is the best sounding version imho in terms of fidelity and it has the deepest most present bass, but I mainly use the 25 Ohm due to it's more forward and engaging midrange and I was able to tune it more to my liking more easily. I've also tried the 8 Ohm, very similar to the 25 Ohm. Haven't heard the 5 Ohm yet. Sadly that is true, everything else from Beyer isn't quite the same level. But I do genuinely like the Amiron Home, DT 1990, and T1.2 as well as some other Beyers but there is a big fidelity gap between them and the DT 48/480.

Strange you haven't tried the 5 ohm, those are really common. I'm still searching for the 200 ohm which seem to be the rarest impedance for all DT-48 types. Came across a few before and I regret not getting them. I hope one day I can collect enough 48s to maybe even write a compendium on them!

 

[kman1211]

Strange you haven't tried the 5 ohm, those are really common. I'm still searching for the 200 ohm which seem to be the rarest impedance for all DT-48 types. Came across a few before and I regret not getting them. I hope one day I can collect enough 48s to maybe even write a compendium on them!

Odd I found the 200 Ohm and 25 Ohm the most common on the DT 480, I've seen numerous of them for sale, especially the 200 Ohm. And with the DT 48 there were many 200 Ohms as they made them before going out of production in 2012, but it's oddly difficult to find late production DT 48's some reason. Only seen one 5 Ohm DT 480 for sale. And the 8 Ohm DT 480 appears to be the rarest from what I gather.

 

[Bingturong]

I meant for only the DT-48. I really have no idea for the DT-480 as I rarely come across them. Strangely I usually I only find 25 ohm of the last production models. That's the one I have at least. That is not to say the various differences between the impedance themselves. I have three serialised, two non-serialised and one plastic DT-48, all 5 ohm. Granted one of the serialised is in storage and every other apart from the plastic needs a new plug.

 

[SHAMuuu]

So that's the secret, the plastic bit on the modern DT-48 pads? I'll give it a try. I was also thinking about something more in the line of the SR-X pads. Though actual leather since for some reason Stax used vinyl instead.

Yes the outer pad comes right off, and should you wish different material easy to experiment. Some on ear pads will need you to make an inner ring (e.g I had some akg 171 velour i had once, with the screw off the backplate, and thats when i realized the sound can change so much. I believe Audio Technica had made some sheepskin on ear pads for one of their wooden on ear models. ath-esw10 iirc

Your project is peculiar and i bet bass is tick as hell now, as you said (i think) "morbidly obese notes"
People like to be lied to, by the sistem and by their headphones... They even pay for tv monthly lol... So its not strange that all corporations are making colored headphones, made to wow you with their lies... Very few of us know how to listen and hear the magic... Now, i giggle when i hear hps from people around me... M50... hd380, 650 dt770... LOL Its a joke and a bad one, many even claim hd800 are trash and good only for being a part of collection, it wouldnt surprise me. i would love to hear kennerton thror , tho it will never happen
i love sony sa3000, but if i put dt48a after, i get into trance and forget what i even wanted... Sometimes hd580 convince me they are really good... Then i put dt48a and am like "ohh, thats why it sounds good on 580, because bright mix or something"... Dt48 is such a hard benchmark for other headphones, one reviewer for focal utopia (amazon i think) claims mids are almost identical in tonallity... So haters are hating on us, not dt48... Envy and ego driving their fury

That is funny to hear. I did get a chance to demo Elex as well as it's beryllium brother, and there are some similarities since the drivers i think are aluminum/magnesium I thought the 580 was real nice, miss them, along with hearing some of their 540/560. But which surprised me most was hd250 MKI. I have no idea why they sound so good. Don't get me wrong i have been very impressed with some demos with Hifimans and others at the top of food chain. But certain vintages like sextetts impressed me more at times than their newer k7xx brothers.

Honestly still need to get a DT 48, still only have the DT 480's, but it is heavily modified, stock cups, but my modifications to it are unique and basically all the resonance issues with the housing and baffle have been eliminated and it's all to the pads now and some damping squares I use to cover the vents or take of and swap them around to adjust the tuning based on my mood. Something about the DT 48/480 seems to threaten people, I guess it's hard for some people to believe the first dynamic headphone driver is one of the best headphone drivers there is and it shows that headphone driver tech hasn't really advanced as much as people would hope.

Yea true. I never was looking to get vintage, I had the same mindset. Newer must always be better. I thought my xb1000 was the best thing in the world at one point. XD

I still haven't gotten a DT-480 and it remains my top to get. It's a real shame that Beyerdynamic could no longer produce them and that they couldn't even find something to fill the DT-48's spot. Not even the DT-1350A

They come by on ebay germany time to time, and sometimes for quite the bargain.

 

[SHAMuuu]

I meant for only the DT-48. I really have no idea for the DT-480 as I rarely come across them. Strangely I usually I only find 25 ohm of the last production models. That's the one I have at least. That is not to say the various differences between the impedance themselves. I have three serialised, two non-serialised and one plastic DT-48, all 5 ohm. Granted one of the serialised is in storage and every other apart from the plastic needs a new plug.

IMO i've put the dt48A with modern pads and the 200ohm 480 as the ones my ears have liked the most for what its worth. DIY woodies have 25ohm drivers in them.

 

[FreiZeitGeipel]

This is my first post in this forum, so I´ll start by saying hello to the Head-Fi community!

I´ve followed this particular thread for a while now and I have a specific question about the DT48.

Does anyone here have an idea how to roughly assume the age of certain DT48 models? Excuse me if this has been asked a hundred times before but I couldn´t find much useful information so far. So, for example, what does the company logo (BEYER / BEYERDYNAMIC / beyerdynamic))))) tell us about the age of the headphone? When did they start using the glued-on earpads (vs. the rotating oval ones)? Can we make assumptions concerning manufacturing year (or at least decade) based on the serial number written on (or carved into) the drivers?