N2ONE
March 5, 2021, 10:07am
22
Hi There, this is my second try to write this down (had a browser crash :-/)
Comfort could be a real problem for you regarding the 990s:
The Philips Fidelio X2HR are slightly better open-back headphones for neutral sound listening than the Beyerdynamic DT 990 PRO. The Philips are more comfortable, have a less over-emphasized bass range, and a much wider and more open soundstage....
I created a table descending by comfort for the tested open and semi open backs for reference:
To keep it short and simple, 990s are very bright and may need EQ for longer sessions. TYGRs are the plug and play version, no harsh treble but with slight lost in brightness. You won’t be dissapointed by soundstage and bass. They also use less clamp. Maybe the 880s (which I dont own and never used) could be a better option? I also withdraw my statement, the 990s and the TYGRs drive very similar even though they have different impendance. Now for the 599, after a longer comparision between those 3, I don’t like the sound signature, the soundstage is smaller and the details feel more harsh than smooth, could be a better choice for analytical listening maybe? I wouldnt call them terrible (see comments below) but they are not for me.
Falenkors review should be more insightful and way better articulated than I am able to (he compares them also to a lot of hp incl. X2): 🔶 Beyerdynamic TYGR 300 R - #303 by Falenkor
Some maybe helpful comments:
So, the Tygr 300R is just the DT 990 at 32 ohms with it’s respective black pads named “EDT 990 VB”, some foam you find on the amiron home placed over the driver, a different housing, and some very minor other changes inside of the driver. It’s definitely not just the pads causing the difference… the pads aren’t the ones taming those highs to a large degree it’s that foam insert as we see this exact same thing with the new T1 third generation as when you remove that dampener it’s brightness goes …
@beyerdynheiser The TYGR, X2 and 560s are all different sounding headphones.
Avoid the 599. These are outright terrible headphones. Their warmth is so overexaggerated in the headphones it drowns out all the detail. I never understood why people recommend them. I have been acquainted with a group of people who know more about audio than me (one if them is a sound engineer who knows a ton about headphones) and they all agree the 599 are bad.
I have tried the TYGR and X2 and I would preferably stick with the TYGR. For some reason the X2 is praised for it’s soundstage and imaging by others but I find it lackluster. The soundstage sometimes feels artificial wide and sometimes it doesn’t. Imaging is decent but the TYGRs are much better. By quite a big margin.
In terms of music: i find the bass being very bloated and the treble being sometimes peaky/grainy, however you want to call it. It tries to be great in nearly all frequencies but fails to do so. Tygrs are very passable for music but the vocals might fall a bit behind due the recessed mids.
The TYGRs imaging is laser accurate and the soundstage is pretty wide. For their price they are amazing.
The 560s is one I havent tried yet, but in terms of sound it will be different than the previously 2 mentioned. More brighter and analytical and less bass. Not sure about their imaging and soundstage.
Welcome to Hifiguides @Kayge hopefully some of these recommendations are helpful
Tygr 300R: newer headphone from beyerdynamic. Warm, smooth, Relaxed, wide and speaker like. Think the dt 990 but instead of all that brightness it is now almost completely balanced on the treble but keeping all that detail and smooth sound with a comfort to the point it disappears off your head. You can find my review on this one over in it’s particular thread
Nighthawk/Nightowl Carbons: Dark / warm bassy detailed veyr unique. Discontinued but can be found time and again… difference is open back and closed back I own the nighthawks and they are really incredibly nice and definitely good for someone who is treble sensitive
Fidelio X2 HR: philips made a pretty nice bassy headphone here again very warm very smooth bass may be seen as “muddy” they are currently making the X3 so this headphone could drop in price even more
Dan Clark Aeons: These are pretty unique as while they are a V signature they are by no means very bright. The treble is actually rolled off with mids not being very recessed. Very good tune to this headphone. Responds well to higher end amps and dacs as well as being balanced through a seperate cable purchase. Tuning pads allow you to adjust bass, treble, mids, and sound stage. Retuned and Massdrop open x are in your price range
Step ups from 58x are the 6xx, hd 600, hd 660 S and further up though each has a seperate sound I believe iirc 660 S was the brighter headphone though so may not be up your alley on that one.
Step up for the HE4xx would probably be the Massdrop Edition XX which is the ananda but not as bright and more warm
Audeze El-8 has multiple copies but they have a rolled off treble and are more towards a dark kind of sound. Still really nice sound.