šŸ”¶ Beyerdynamic DT1990

Iā€™m currently working on a closed-back headphone modification with midrange tuned around the Sennheiser 6 series, and reaaaally deep but not elevated bass. Iā€™m also looking to put in on sale this Summer, but need to figure out boring business stuff. :slightly_frowning_face:

Link me when itā€™s ready :wink:

Not gonna lie, initially they sounded kinda meh with my aune x1s, but then i added in the topping d50 and the analytical presentation of the topping seemed to fix the muddiness and harshness of the headphone.
So happy I got these now.

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Hey Coran,

try the Focal Elegia - very balanced sound. Nice Soundstageā€¦

or try the Cascadesā€¦ https://everydaylistening.net/2018/04/28/campfire-audio-cascade-review-nostalgia-awe/

The 1990 is my (current) preferred set. At one point I had around 18 different sets of cans, None over the $1000 mark, but most near the $500 mark. Also most bought either on sale or used. Iā€™ve gotten down to just a handful now, keeping these, the LCD2, T60RP, Fidelio X2, & DT770 80 ohm. A couple of those are sentimental, but also because I still enjoy them. Over all though, the 1990 is the pair Iā€™d keep.

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Closed backs will never be as detailed and natural as open back but if you want to try
The Beyerdynamic T5Ps and HD820s kinda sound like closed 1990s but worse


And the closest closed back in terms of smoothness and detail to the 1990s that I can think of are the Stax 4070s but I Doubt you can get your hands on those

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What type of sound signature do you like?

doesnt matter im getting the NDH 20 tomorrow :slight_smile:

Late reply, but itā€™s hard to pin down honestly, thereā€™s just something about the sound signature I prefer on the 990. It could be that they have more of a V shape with regard to frequency response. They also handle more power despite both being 250 Ohm. The 1990 are just very aggressive sounding.

Seriously though, Topping d50 and DSD tracks make this thing shine.

dt1990s are definitely a beast and a t an amazing price for what they do. those sharp highs though needed eq for me. Sā€™s and Tā€™s pierced my eardrum

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I donā€™t know, maybe itā€™s my old man ears, but I donā€™t find the highs bad on either the 1990 or the 770. The T90 on the other hand, that was brutal. The only other unit I have that the highs bother me are the Fiio F9 Pro. And itā€™s a shame because I can tell they have a lot to offer otherwise. My only complaint about the 1990 is theyā€™re a little tight clamp wise. Wish the comfort was more like the 770. But itā€™s a quibble really.

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The DT 1990 Pro with Dekoni Elite Hybrid pads have become my daily drivers. The pads do soften the highs a little bit give the sound a mid-base gain to my ears.

I only find myself going back to my IEMs when entering try-hard mode in competitive FPS, but I really do like the 1990ā€™s for casual gaming while listening to music and streaming.

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Same, for me I own lcd2c, 58x, 6xx, TRX-00 Purplehearts and many cans prev. But the 1990 is just too damn good. Depending on pad selection it can be 3 headphones in one for me as well as do V better than PH, do analytical better than my modded 58x, do dark fun better than my 2c etc. Iā€™ve contemplated just keeping the 1990 and doing more IEM stuff going forward, but I need to keep some for sentimental reasons as well as benchmark equipment for amp testing etc.

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The DT1990 Pro are one of my favourites but itā€™s difficult to keep them as the only headphone in my collection. The speed of the driver is top notch so whenever you listen to a more demanding song such as some congested metal tracks they will keep up with the instruments giving more separation and detail. On the other hand, they can be too much on some days even though their treble spike is not in the annoying sibilance range.

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the 880 over the 1990? mmh, interesting.

i love my dt880ā€™s and saving up for the 1990ā€™s since i thought they were basically and upgrade based on the same sound signature. what did you like better on the 880 over the 1990?

Personally I would still think that the 1990s are an upgrade in technicalities, but I think some people prefer the sound signature of the 880

Here are the frequency responses of the two compared:


This is the DT 1990 with analytical pads. With balanced pads the 1990 rises significantly higher in the bass. There would be very little difference in the upper mids and treble.

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I have the dt880 600ohm. I really like them. So i decide to buy and upgrade. Either the dt1990, T1.2nd and amiron home. i went with the t1.2nd. As @M0N says. They are a technical upgrade but i still like my dt880. Some difference are the bass on the t1.2nd is to boosted and the mids are forward, making the sounstage feel smaller. They highs arent as airy as the dt880. Sound presentation is a little different.The t1.2nd have this precise imagine wiht 3d sounstage representation, with more natural voice ( Sometimes i feel i can touch the singer :slight_smile: ) and rich sounding strings. I may buy the dt1990 on the road.

I tried both the 990s and 1990s with balanced pads. I just felt like the 1990s arenā€™t really my taste, they sound pretty similar to a 990 and I doubt I found it worth to pay 5 times the cost of one.