So I have placed and order on both the dekoni blue as well as he-35x that @joshua_g recommended for auditoning alongside the pads recommended here. All have proper return policies. I should recieve the dekonis next week while the 35x will be in a couple days. All that leaves is just how much I enjoy the headphones and if they can hold a candle to the results I am waiting on from @DeeDrick as apparently the dt 1990s and 990s can respond well to very specific leather pads and keep their V signature.
This was one of my first thoughts and something I mentioned during the beginning of this post actually as I already know the Helios is said to either be a W or V signature. However, for the life of me I cannot find a good return policy on them. I REALLY want to try this damn headphone but biting the bullet isn’t how I do things. I already expected @Antpage2 to chime in recommending that headphone dead on. I don’t think it’s a bad headphone at all and I do want to try it. I have been keeping an eye on the market but came up short. I really mainly just want to audition one for now if I like it, pick it up later as even the dekoni blues are more of a potential later purchase due to some financial complications on my end. 35x though is cheap enough so I am not worried on that.
everywhere I have read says they aren’t very wide sounding but are decent at it. Going to assume it’s somewhere on the level of the 58x jubilee or HD 598 sound stage… not REAL wide but large enough.
See I am definitely okay with this price too, just I need to find a way to audition them. This is an issue with some companies and return policies… you can’t really audition them and know if youll like them without biting the bullet and shelling out cash. In helios’s case its you have to pay return shipping to china which is insanely high especially right now plus the restock fees they incur.
Can’t see the specific return policy for Linsoul’s storefront, so not sure if the 35% restock fee still applies, but looks like you can currently get them on Amazon, covered by the A to Z guarantee…just won’t get them until August, looks like, even though it shows 18 in stock.
I’d say they’re on par with the 58x soundstage, maybe a touch wider with the thicker angled pads.
Waiting that long just to try a headphone is horrendous lol. I didn’t realize them on amazon. I would order them but I really wouldn’t want to wait that long.
Edit: so there on ebay with a return policy from virginia. Buyer pays return but that’s not too expensive for me just for an audition. I will bite that, it’s like $10. I don’t plan to buy any pads just yet. @Antpage2 hopped on the hype train for now. Choo Choo time for an audition. Arrives in a week
I thought it was interesting considering I was able to pick it up for only $50 and looking at it’s frequency it’s strangely a Dynamic driver from hifiman with a V signature. Going to swap the pads out. Not very demanding either so hoping it turns out pretty good though for $50 it doesn’t have the most competition other than like porta pros and kph30i of course in that market
as for the helios, I would hope that I like them? you hype them up so damn much I have rather high hopes for them. Hearing they have a soundstage close to the 58x jubilee is a tad worrisome but it’s still not too bad so we will see. I can let you know my thoughts on it later but I want to give it a true sit down and test. I have been curious to see how they measure to my other beyers
yeah i just got the dt770 and i really liked it. especially after using APO EQ to control the treble. But after listening to it for a while i plugged in my Helios and yep, sounds better. I dont know what the germans did with those drivers but man, it blows me away. its only weakness i can see is the stainless steel caps on the cups. i think it effects the frequencies. but its not really that noticable to me. but theres people out there that are very picky about frequency response so idk.
I don’t know if the Germans did anything to the drivers in regards to tuning that would be on the Chinese or who ever they hired to tune the headphone.
Theres a lot of things i like about them but mostly its the presentation. they have this open big kind of sound. just sounds move lively. then its a good U shape. most u or v shaped headphones are mildly u or v shaped. Then also its the treble. i never heard treble done as well in a headphone for me its a lot but not too much like the beyer or too sibilant like the t50rp’s and others. its also highly detailed. and i like the separation on it. It’s different from all the headphones i own.
I also kinda like its tone or timber. I think the steal caps give it a unique timber. I really like it.
nah i think theres something going on in the driver. it sounds soo different from my other headphones. have you tried it yet rice? i would like if you could help define its mystery for me
Thought you were gonna try the dt 990? You have to try that man I am telling you it’s fantastic. That or the 1990 or T1(more relaxed). Personally, planning to full on compare that helios to my beyers I will say that one now. I expect good things but due to the price I will expect it to perform better or as good as my DT 990. I didn’t like the DT 770 as I felt it wasn’t as detailed and I can’t really explain it due to my inexperience with the audiophile vocabulary but it just didn’t sound right to me. Honestly the 177x go sounds a hell of a lot better in my opinion. 880s lacked bass and body and had that shiny sparkly brightness completely threw me off and is why I will never use them despite how detailed they sound on my asgard fantastic headphone just definitely not for me.
When I check out a headphone I consider a few things. What signature is it? Is it meant to be analytical or designed to be more fun like the tygrs were. What is its price point and what is it’s competition considering and at that point how does it stand up against them? That sort of stuff then I decide alright does it deserve a place in my collection or is it simply another enjoyable audition.
Depends on if you want Ethereal high treble lol. If not and you want a more balanced tone with more detail towards the mids then 1990. Both are pretty special they sound pretty different too so I think they compliment each other well hence I own both. Probably going to buy a buddy of mine a 1990 later this year at christmas time that or the T1 not sure his preference yet.
In my opinion, most definitely though the more demanding. The treble and overall frequency sounds more smooth and really brings out that wonderfully high treble I found the 250 ohm to be a bit sharper sounding to the point of sibilance until paired with a much warmer amp or modifying it a bit however, I found the 250 ohm to have a bit more bass more so towards the upper frequency. In comparison for comfort though there was more clamp force and stiffer pads on the 600 ohm in comparison to the less clamp and super soft pads of the 250 ohm which was odd to me though after i broke it in after a period of time that changed rather quickly. I personally feel the 600 ohm is a MUCH more refined version to the 250. You can actually fix the treble though with a cable filter, change in pads to certain other velours like dekoni elites, and of course the actual mod which is putting a foam or 1-4 ply toilet paper behind the foam of the driver which will reel back that treble peak however this method lowers your bass
Have you tried the dt1990? Given what you are looking for I can understand that though. Imo the dt1990 is more down to business but I always worry when people consider the dt990. While I love my pair and I would never sell them. I also hated them stock and until doing those little mods I did every listening session ended with a headache.
I havent heard the 1990. they use it for studio monitoring. i suspect its more neutral. they say you can use the pads for a more v shape. but idk if it will be v shaped enough for me.
Id rather EQ it than use mods. that way i can get specific with the frequencies. I will go get the frequency response graph and turn down the ones that are peaking a little. and i can turn it off and on for certain tracks.
yes, actually. Balanced gives you the V shape while Analytical is the more neutral bright pad Dekoni elite Velour gives you more of a subtle V signature still present but more of a neutral presence V. Though I understand what you mean by being able to quick switch the equalizer. Balanced pads on the 1990 sound fairly close to the 990 600 ohm actually just not as peaky or as ethereal it doesn’t maintain that magnificent sparkle so to speak
