Need some advice for headphones and DAC/amp - $1000 budget

Hello, first time to post here.

I need help with choosing headphones and DAC/amp buying this summer. My budget is under $1000.

My current setup is Spotify / MusicBee (FLAC & WAV) > Motu M2 > KSC75 + Yaxi Pads / DT 990 Pro 250 Ohm and I use KSC75 for listening to music and DT 990 for everything else like gaming.
I listen to hiphop, electro, j-pop, anime OST and sometimes jazz. Here’s a playlist of some of my favorite songs if it helps: Spotify

DT990 was good but treble spike hurts my ears so I don’t usually use it for music now. I also own KPH30i with Grado pads which sounds warm and I didn’t like it for some songs especially treble. I like KSC75 the best out of them but I want a little more bass and sub-bass and it doesn’t fit my ears well.
So as for sound signature I probably prefer neutral or v-shaped.

I’m now thinking of getting Sundara, HD600 or DT880. Which one do you think it fits my music preference? And please let me know if you know anything else better within my budget. I wear headphones for like 6 hours a day and 12-20 hours a day in weekends so comfort is important. I’m not going to use them for gaming since DT990 works fine for it.
And one more question, I feel like I want more bass while listening to hiphop or electro with DT990, is it because Motu M2 doesn’t have enough power to drive them or should I get V-shaped closed-back ones later?

For DAC/amp I’m thinking of getting Schiit Modius and Asgard 3 but there’s some things I’m worried.
I live in Japan so the shipping costs $50, and Japan uses 100V so I might need a 100V => 115V converter which at least costs $60 to power A3 properly. Are they still worth even with the extra $100?

Thanks in advance for your help.

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The sundara is a good option but not the most comfortable, since you’re looking for an all rounder headphone instead of the 600 I will consider the 650. About the bass the 880, sundara, 600 and 650 are not bass cannons and since you found the 990 not bass heavy enough probably you’re right about move to a closed back or a warm planar if that is the priority.

Why not go for the headphones first?

I see. I’d rather cop the 6XX which is about $100 cheaper including the shipping fee though, I’ve heard they sound almost the same.

And yes I want heavy bass for some songs but I want an all rounder headphone first, so I’m thinking of getting both, it seems the only way to satisfy myself tbh.
Do you have any recommendations for a closed back or a warm planer?

Fair enough. Any recommendations that my Motu M2 can drive enough?

Yes the 650 and 6xx are identical in sound, just the build is sligtly different. I don’t like bass cannon headphones and really warm sound signature so i cannot really help here, but if you like the kick and don’t care a lot about confort the hd25 are great for impact and punch after depends by how you want to manage the budget. The M2 will be just enoght for the 6xx and probably also for the sundara but of course a better amp will help, probably someting you can consider is avoid a dac and focus on headphones and an amp

Never heard of HD25. Just saw the picture but I don’t like this type of headphones, never felt comfortable with them.

probably someting you can consider is avoid a dac and focus on headphones and an amp

Makes sense. Then I might probably get a dac later, just not for now.

So I had the dt990 600ohm before and sold it because of the same issue, the spike is just too harsh for me, and since I only use it for certain music type, to me it was not something that I want to keep around, now I use the 6xx with the ld2 and swapped the tubes, its warm mid forward and just easy to listen for a long time, I use this for music and gaming, although the bass is not as good as that on the 990 its still impactful to me, so if you want a good and comfortable headphone to listen to for a long time, this would be nice to began with, and you can get it first and see what you want to add to it in the future.

Is 6xx better paired with a tubed amp?

Yes, if you consider to get the 6xx a tube amp will be a wise choice, but consider that tube rolling with a tube amp is a must so add it to the cost. like a 6xx or 600 a meze99 a tube amp and a dac are in the budget. Also the massdrop elex, and aeon are worth the look

I have the ld2 and spark, the ld2 is softer and warmer while the spark is harsh, but not like dt990 harsh, it makes the treble and bass more powerful in my opinion, its sounds more exciting in comparison

Forgot to say that the mids sounds more forward when using a tube

I will probably get a 6xx and a tube amp like darkvoice or something and then meze 99 if I can afford it I think?
Lurking the forum darkvoice seems to be a solid choice and it even ships to Japan for free. Any other recommendetions?

I’ve heard that the bottlehead crack is a good choice too

I will consider it too, thanks!

Without mentioning the DAC you’d be using, the 6XX + DarkVoice is a very nice, warm option that I still elect to use some nights even over much more expensive gear. The Meze 99s are also a very warm/dark headphone - I’m not sure about the Classics but the 99 Noirs from Drop came with an additional set of smaller pads which had very nice impact / bass response, although they weren’t as comfortable (for me) for long listening sessions. The larger pads are very good for long listening sessions though; it’s a comfortable headphone.

Ordinarily I might suggest not to go that route since it’s 2 warm-sounding headphones on a tube amp, but since you already have a DT 990 and KSC75 that might offer a good counter to what you currently own.

Thanks for the input. I will get the 99 Noirs instead of Classics since the shipping fee is only $7.

Do you have any recommendations for the DAC? I don’t think Motu M2 beats a separated DAC, I will probably sell it to my friend and get a DAC and a cheap I/F like UM2 for my XLR microphone.

For $1000: R70x and RNHP. Do some research and you’ll see the R70x checks all your boxes.

Forget about the DAC for now. Just from a practical point of view, why go from 1 box to 3 boxes and their associated cabling? Not worth it imo.

As a bonus, the RNHP will likely make your 990s way more enjoyable.

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Interesting. I will take a look at them!