Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro Vs HiFiMan Sundara Headphones Review - RTINGS.com
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- Hands-on review comparison of the Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro Vs HifiMan Sundara headphones.
Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro:
www.amazon.com...
HifiMan Sundara:
www.amazon.com...
Full reviews:
Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro:
www.rtings.com...
HifiMan Sundara:
www.rtings.com...
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Careers: www.rtings.com...
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In the box (00:41)
Build Quality (01:07)
Comfort (02:20)
Controls Scheme (03:32)
Sound Quality (04:12)
Frequency Response (05:00)
Isolation (07:30)
Leakage (8:30)
Active Features and connectivity (09:31)
Conclusion (10:15)
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I had both of these Headphones. The DT 1990 has a very nice punch and the stereo separation feels right. The details are incredible and the treble peak did not bother me. The Sundara is for my taste a very boring headphone. No punch at all and the stereo separation is way too much. I would definitely go with the 1990!
Agreed. I did not like the sundaes They are boring and rolled off.
Agreed! DT1990 Pro has clear and crispy sound.I using them for casual listening and gaming.It is amazing experience:)
@@bax81 THANK YOUUU, I’ve been hearing so many people saying the sundara is across the board better but I’m gonna be mainly gaming and I wanna know the dt is better at gaming and listening to music and even watching movies. Mine are coming on Wednesday and I’m so excited. Sundaras just seem boring to me
What amp/DAC for the DT 1990?
Sundaras I feel a very goof headphone for its price. Its very good but I feel the same, a little boring...Sundaras are basically an Hd560s with a little better soundtage and a bit more detail.
Man, i love the job you guys do, the methodology is really great, pitty that i live in Brasil.
I'd just like to say, that I've had two Hifiman Sundaras and three driver failures, the headphones were never dropped or abused in any way, It just seems to be a huge and common problem with these early generation Sundaras, so I recommend avoiding them for now.
Thanks for the warning.
Yeah. My headphone sale man told me that planar headphones are easier to get broke than dynamic. I bought planar Alpha Dog and it broke after 1-2 years. Same for hifiman. Planar drivers are unstable that's why Audezee, hifiman have so many reversions but Audezee headphones are more durable than hifiman headphones. Trust me buy dynamic or electrostax skip planar.
Yup i boughtem and they were defective.
@@midorihibiki No, planar drivers have nothing about them that makes them inherently more prone to die. Take note of the many planar magnetic headphones out there that do not have wide reports of diver failures.
@@killerra Go to head-fi.org look for a Audezee LCD drivers failure return topic. They just want to cover the truth. I do not say that planar driver is easy to be broken but it happens more than high end or mid-fi dynamic drivers. Most of planar headphones are expensive.
Really nice side-by-side review, you managed to cover a lot of areas in the video. I own the Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro for a year now and they're amazing. This year I also obtained the older edition of Sennheiser HD600 known to be neutral-sounding - having neutral grounds to base things on allowed me to appreciate the extra punchiness of the 1990's and how the treble peak can impact the sound.
1990's also have a really nice soundstage.
Hi Just wondering what headphone sounds better for classical music? Thanks
@@ohnonate Planar Magnetic
I have the 1990 and the 990. I can EQ the 8k peak out and the sound is just stunning. For some music, I actually prefer to have the headphones not with the EQ, as it seems to give more clarity to the music. It really depends on what I'm listening to tough. I can not talk about the Sundara, so far I heard great stuff about it. Apart from the treble peak, the response of the 1990 seemed to be flatter to me.
I own the HiFiMan Sundara.....love the sound..the bass is tight bit not too punchy.. Where these truly shine is in the midrange and highs..outstanding for the price.. Excellent review guys! Keep up the great work!..😎
hows the durability and build quality? Thats the only thing thats got me hesitating on pulling the trigger...
Does this channel know about HiFiMan's history of QC issues? I mean, they can produce the best pair of headphones possible and have a reasonable price, however with questionable quality, I wouldn't seriously consider them at all.
owned multiple Hifimans, from He-500, He400i and Sundara. Never had a problem. They can only review the product, not hearsay on internet. Every product has some failure and these are very popular headphones so you will hear more of it. On the other hand, DT1990 is a very expensive headphone that every hates its overly bright hurtful sound so it never got popular. If you think Beyerdynamic has good QC, look up DT770pro mess where you can take 5 units and each one sounds widely different.
Thanks for the review :) Just listened to the Sundaras and was really just "whelmed" by the low-end. Really great detail, but not for bass-heads.
i bought the Sundara, right speaker seems abit off and weaker but im too lazy to RMA it
*8:57** if you are listening to that volume with that sound leakage, boy you will go deaf in no time, i own a Sundara and they dont leak that much even as i push the volume up to i would say uncomfortable level*
Exactly. Most open-backs don't "leak" at all, unless you're ~1 foot away from them. You'd need dangerous volume levels to have real leakage.
Earbuds, however, leak sound like crazy
My XS can be heard through my bedroom door when listening to normal TH-cam review videos. The leakage is crazy on these Planars. I have never heard any headphone (includes open back 560S) leak this much.
@@drewmorg. u are right on planar 'leak' more. My 24/7 headphone is a shp9500 for watching youtube reviews etc etc there is barely any leak only can hear some hissing sound but on Sundara i can hear some audible dialogue when i set them at comfortable volume. These leaks are only audible in very close proximity like holding it in your hands, unless ofcourse if you set it to deafening sound level then its gonna sound like a very bad quality portable speaker lol and brick your sound driver
i tested my shp9500 drivers is dangerously vibrating if i were to intentionally set it to leak sound far away, not gonna do the same to my Sundara lol
The leakier the headphone the more I like it.
It's always a pleasure to watch your reviews Guys. Keep on doing your Great Job. Personally, I think I would choose the Sundara because of their design and sound signature.
Wow, best comparison I've seen of headphones on YT. No extra junk, just the information. I really enjoyed the frequency response relative example. Owning the Sundaras I found it to be a great example of what to expect.
I am going with the DT-1990. They are actually 120$ cheaper being on sale, than the Sundara (which is also on sale.) Great detailed review btw!!!!
Where was the sale?
I own the DT1990 and a sibling of the hidiman the massdrop édition HE-4XX.
The beyerdymanic is definitely more detailed but also more analytical, the hifiman sounds simply more natural and soft.
As mentioned in this video the trebles are quite piercing. For long listening sessions I can only listen to the hifiman. The beyerdynamic is giving me too much discomfort after a while.
Now that I also own a tube amplifier, I only listen to the hifiman. This combo works I don’t know why much better with the hifiman.
From a point of view of the build quality and comfort on the ears, the beyerdynamic is a whole league above the hifiman.
So at the end I kept both ....
The Hifiman 400 which the 4XX is obviously based on is a completely different headphone. Your opinion is irrelevant. Their are literally different tiers. I wasn't convinced by the 400 (nor the Beyerdynamic 880 and probably less the 990!), but am now interested in the Sundara which is its own thing.
Absolutely fantastic review, very clear and pleasant presenters and such a comprehensive look into each headphone, especially making some jargon easy for me to understand! Very good!
Remember people that the Sundara has been updated a lot since this review so make sure to check the 2020 review
I own the DT 1990. It’s amazing. Don’t agree with some of the ratings they give in the individual review.
Love my 1990P, and have a few decent/good headphones to compare it with..:)
How do you deal with the treble peak? EQ? I had a listen before and after a few mins my ears hurt because of the peak.
I use a sennheiser amp. Sounds great to me. I use them mainly for movies.
Yeah I'm really surprised about the DT 990 and DT 1990 sounding similar comment. I have DT 1990 on my head at the moment and DT 990 next to me.
DT 1990 have the beyer sound signature, but that's like saying every planar or Sennheiser 5xx/6xx/7xx series headphone sounds the same.
Especially with the analytical pads they are much more neutral, if that's what you want. There are plenty of reviews that discuss the differences, so I wont go through them here.
tissot233 I found the 990 had a treble spike...those were fatiguing to me. The 1990 pro are more balanced.
I have both and I have the 990 pros also. Can't go wrong with with one of these headphones. Prefer the 1990 slightly though and I don't find them harsh at all.
They say the Sundara had a better sound stage but from my experience that's just not true. The separation and imaging on the 1990 are way better
Wow, a very informative review! Very good job!
I'm glad I watched this video. That peak on the 1990 is a deal breaker. It was painfully audible.
I’m super close to pulling the trigger on a pair of sundara’s I’ve also thought about 177x to I’m kinda on the fence but we’ll see I suppose I got 5 closed back dynamic headphone’s and really want a open back and a planar I got a Ifi xCan that will fix any bass problems with relative ease I just wish in Missouri I could test them first I know buying my meze99 blind I wasn’t disappointed
Having heard both, sundara would be my pick. 1990 with the analytical pads sound great and intimate while still keeping a little airiness but those highs have to be eq'd without a doubt. Sundara stock have that beautiful neutral hifiman sound. Good amount of openness. If anything, a little bump in bass helps them out. Very comfortable
you should update your review with batch 2 (2nd stealth revision) of sundara.
the changed the pads glue...
very nice review. fyi sundara 350 bey 579. build quality, extra cables and pads definitely not worth the extra 229 bucks.
Maybe 100 but 220 NO.
Great video thank you.
After getting the 1990 can confirm its sharp, but not really sibilant. Like it hits but it doesn't hurt and passes in that in the same instant it hits ya know, very high fidelity which leads to a nice snappy sharpness in my opinion and ya you can totally just eq it out but i feel like that would be a disservice to it (not being elitist, really do eq them if they bother you I just like it even as someone who found my old headphones to be truly sibilant (Turtle Beach Aero if your wondering))
Dt 1990 sound very good just leck a bit of bass or Maybe it is the way its picking the Sound
Wow - I am a seasoned audiophile - this is one of the best reviews on youtube on audiophile gear- the methodology is awesome! thanks
Fantastic review👍👍
What's the purpose of saying that the headphones leak sound? That's the principle of open back design. You do not have to repeat that. I'm tempted by the hifiman. Concerned over the build quality but will have to use the warranty.
You can get away with some open cans for tracking, most you can't.
In UK the Sandara comes with a 1.5 meter cable....SHORT!
There’s a guy on TH-cam called Z reviews and his recording rig is made out of a foam block and it sounds better than yours.
What is the song in the leaking test? it sounds great.
Its called Happy but it is a cover with only instruments
Wow your review are so good, thanks
Great review. But why are you doing leakage test on open backed headphones?it's a bit pointless. Most open back headphones will leak.
It's definitely strange, but we test all headphones with the same methodology.
@@RTINGSdotcom Ok. I agree if that's the methodology. Otherwise the review was informative. Thanks
Thanks for the video...... (why did the hifiman sundara sound is making my head really hurt?...)
Edit: im serious..... i never hear a sound from planar headset
Sound comparo profile test is a really nice touch giving a fairly good representation of each headphone's signature.
I've heard them both and sat with them at CanJam NYC '18 & '19 for a moment each. Neither one had me reaching. However, the DT-1990 is a far better build hands down, and more engaging than a Sundra. Personally, I haven't heard any planar Can I needed to own? They're just too polite and boring to listen to over any extended listening period. Now the Stax L-700 electrostatic is quite another experience of musical engagement! It's on my must own list. I add the new and beautiful Focal Stellia made listening to everything else a chore by comparison. As I digress.
Good video. Well done.👍
How can you compare the DT1990 to the DT990 when it has a completely different driver?
Isn't that itself a comparison?
The Sundara is the best but it needs a lot of power to shine
Why even bother and do those leakage tests? Nobody will ever wear them outside...
Same point here. These are open acoustics headphones so they will leak sound. That's by design. It's pointless having a leak test on these.
Sendy Aiva, Brainwavz Alara, Monolith M1060..
and why not Meze Classic, Meze Empyrean..
I wouldn’t recommend either headphone. Hifiman has serious build quality concerns and Beyer treble peaks ruin the headphones. Planar headphones sound tremendous if designed well, it’s too bad the company isn’t run a bit better.
Also, nobody is purchasing higher end open back headphones expecting to use them around other people. I appreciate the focus on objective analysis over subjectivity, though.
The DT-1990 are superb and have no spike. They have a naturally lively treble that isn't harsh. I hear this erroneous and biased statement from those that like the rolled off and innacurate/boring cans.
@Loppysaurus rex I have them also, they have become unlistenable to me because of the sibilance and brightness
DT 1990 Pro with Dekoni Choice Suede pads, great combo to level off the treble peak and add a slightly wider sound stage, comfort over the stock pads is also increased.
A girl I know said Amiron wireless pads are good too. She has dekoni elite hybrids too
Excellent
Sundaras are nice if they work :)
Build quality, no need to talk about Sundara
Beyerdynamic
I prefer the jump in sound quality over more cables ANY day. Harder to fix sound quality than to buy aftermarket cables... Sundara also has much better build quality as previous HiFiMan.
Driver failures has been a problem with the Sundaras when they launched.
Dt1990 pro is more superior in every way. Sound, isolation is spot on. For gaming the dt is also a monster! Best imaging, you can hear every footsteps.This review is very misleading and amateur.
MrSnow1961 I checked. Nothing wrong with it. Maybe you are just triggered bro. Calm down. :)
Just put Dekoni elite velour pads on the DT1990, problem solved
don't they lose a little bit of bass? or just the peak of trebble?
@@arantxalopez316 less stabbing peaks
Too bad Hifiman is prone to issues that causes returns.
Worst comparisson ever!
I would go for the Beyerdynamic.
I don’t like Chinese brands.
racist.
Leon K it’s not racist it’s known that Germany’s industry destroys Chinese industries, so it’s obvious that it will be better
And Beyer is probably madein china lol
ikutake get ur shit right dude it’s a fkn German company and he literally says in the vid they are made in Germany
@@nasserakasheh Yeah german is the brand, BUT ALMOST EVRYTHING is made in china
WHYYYYYYYYYYY Beyerdynamic? All you had to do was tame the treble and it would have a fantastic response. The graph looks great before that fucking huge spike. Huge lost opportunity.
Have you tried them
DT1990 sounds like garbage , must be their sound rig.
Their rig sucks arse.
Summary: look at the ratings in Amazon (95% Beyer vs 56% HifiMan). HifiMan are well known for having shitty quality. This comparison feels a bit random though, as the Beyers are known for being bright headphones. There are plenty of options in that price range, both planar and dynamic drivers. Buy a pair of Sennheiser HD600/650 or go for the Monoprice M1060 if u want planar.
Imagine actually using ratings on Amazon as benchmark 😂
Just buy HD660s end of story.
New to the channel. Love your style man; no twenty minute monologue on texture. Just good quality information delivered with personality instead of fluffy, drawn out nonsense.
I own a DT 990 PRO and I love it, you can hear very critical with it and I do agree that the DT 1990 lacks the the nice headband padding of the DT 990.
Good and quite neutral review, I'd recomment the DT990 over all of them being a bit more comfortable. With the removeable headband you can easily change wires and the drivers. It's possible to get different drivers into it aswell. Oh and I disagree with the bass, even though you don't clearly hear it, it makes the overall listening still very comfortable and therefore is noticeable atleast for me.
yep, that dt1990 sounded about right, brutal treble, especially with the A pads
Input from a 1990 owner: zero sibilance on my pair. I've owned sibilant headphones and IEM's - so I know the difference. No experience with the Sundara but there is no way I'd recommend anything other than the DT 1990. They are just flawless to my ears.
PS: The reviews you do are still extremely high quality and detailed - keep it up!
Its been obvious to me that people complaining of sibilance from the DT-1990 are getting it from crap electronics, not the cans. The DT-1990 scale well, and if crap electronics are sibilant, the 1990 will report that. I have no sibilence from mine. I have over 400mw driving them.
@@scottlowell493 Sorry but every one who measures them records that same huge treble spike, regardless of method. Your ears may be more tolerant of it (I prefer brighter cans myself), but it's absolutely there on every pair.
So basically we should trust a stranger ears, and not science ?
I have DT 1990 Pro and Schiit stack (Magni 3 & Modi 2 Uber) and I can't listen to them anymore, they sound so bright and sibilant that it is painful. I had to equalize them heavily, bringing lows and mids up and lowering high so I can listen to them and I simply can't make them sound good to most genres. I had before them Audio Technica M50x and Grado SR80e and honestly they sounded better to me overall. Imaging is awesome on DT 1990 Pro and that's about it. M50x had great impact in bass compared to them and SR80e had better tonality in midrange to me and better bass also. People say Grados are bright and maybe they are but they were great to me, never sibilant like Beyers. I could go on and on but DT 1990 Pro is waste of my money. They do look awesome and build quality is great but sound is simply painful and overly bright and sibilant. I'm going to sell them and buy Hifiman Sundara instead.
That's just the level of the sibilance. 1990 is sibilant from time to time, not disastrous. More sibilant iems are seriously drilling holes in the eardrum. It's just that 1990 is more acceptable not that it's free of sibilance.
Like others have said, I have a DT 1990 and mine don't sound anywhere near as sibilant as the recording in this video. Something is off - either with your DT 1990 or with what you were plugging it into.
It's a very bright headphone, by every measurement of the highs. You either prefer that sound signature or just aren't sensitive to it when it reaches sibilance.
@@killerra It is bright, but it's nowhere near as bright on my source as this recording makes it sound. If I just wasn't hearing it, then I wouldn't be able to hear it in this recording now would I?
@@Aforgamon It depends of the pads that they used
I've often been accused of preferring brighter loudspeakers. But the DT-1990 take it to another level.
I wanted to love them because they sound great in quick A/B comparisons, but they do hurt my ears after 20 mins of acoustic recordings which is what I listen to most.
Eq them
Marc, what amp/dac would you use for DT 1990 pro, if you only use it for listening to music, movies and gaming?
Hello Deniz,
If you don‘t mind, I‘d like to answer that question for you.
I‘ve been running my 1990 Pros with 3 different amps (one of them a „premium gaming amp“ by creative (I think it‘s called X5) and believe me, it‘s horrible.
So I did quite some research and found the (for me) best solution that is incredible bang for the buck, but still not cheap.
Just to mention, my use case is exactly the same as yours. Competitive gaming in high ranked leagues (CounterStrike), audiophile music listening and sometimes watching a movie.
But which DAC/AMP combo am I running?
I got myself the Schiit Magni 3 & Modi 3 combo and it‘s insane.
Due to the hardware they are using, they actually prevent any kind of treble overpeaks (there‘s not issue at all with s and t sounds). On the other hand, they still haven‘t lost their clearness.
Everything I play is incredibly detailed, the stage is enormous and the sound is pure pleasure to me.
After I started running this combo, I realized how much of a difference the same headphones make when being run by a high quality AMP & DAC. It was a day and night difference.
Also for your gaming usecase, the sound is incredible. I‘ve been running Roccat Kave XTD 5.1 Digitals for quite some time (about 3 years) and they are great for gaming, but suck at playing music. But their real 5.1 Surround sound made it possible to hear the location of enemys (quite) precisely. Earlier I would have used the term incredibly precisly, meanwhile I have to say: they are out of concurrence for my DT 1990 Pros. Their incredible sound stage lets you hear everything.
And when you‘re playing games with lovely soundtracks, the experience is immersive!
Conclusion:
The DT1990 Pros are an incredible pair of headphones, definitely one of the best out there in general and in my opinion the best up to 500€. At least I haven‘t heared any better ones so far.
Their sound is pure pleasure to listen to, build quality is top notch and I haven‘t had any issues.
BUT be sure to run them with an AMP that can deliver true power. They sound „good“ with cheap amps, they also sound good when being run by my iPad Pro (the built in AMP actually is quite decent for a built in one).
But your experience will be on a whole new level with a powerful, high quality AMP/DAC combo with really low distortion etc.
To talk facts: the Tesla-Neodym-drivers built into the 1990 Pros do have an impedance of 250 Ohms, whilst still being quite easy to run. You will even be able to run them from your smartphone at acceptable volume and with decent sound.
But you won‘t realize how much potential you loose.
Cheaper AMPs normally can deliver up to 200mW at 250 Ohms. This is already quite decent and takes the headphones to the next level, but definitely not enough for every usecase. I‘ll get more specific on that soon.
The Magni 3 is putting out up to 1.2 watts at 250 Ohms. And believe me, this is the power those headphones want. You will NEVER have to pass 50% volume (which is great, 0 distortion at this low level of load) and at 50% you can even listen loudly to very silent high fidelity recordings of classical masterpieces.
My last recommendation: definitely take Tidal HiFi into consideration.
You can stream literally anything in at least 16bit 44.1khz @1400kbits, whereas master quality gives the uploading party the opportunity of providing unlimited soundquality. Unlimited FLACs at an acceptable price point.
Hope I could help you out, sorry for making you read so much!
Regards
Fabian
Anything outward should come last, certainly at the pricepoint and after making the bare basics (open) clear. Headphones are headphones (for sound re-production), and not casings, paint number, smell, cable-swing-factor, reflection of the morning sun with and without hood etc. etc. all that weird shit.
It's just wrong prioritries.
I think the difference in build quality was extremely underestimated. Having had both, the Beyer's are tanks while the Hifiman's adjustment literally scratches itself. Beyer's have real leather compared to faux leather on the Sundara. Also the band is replaceable.
As for sound quality...I mean it's designed to overcompensate for sibilance since they are for professional mixing. Fostex, Aths, they all do this. It makes for less offensive tracks!! You need to mention their purpose when comparing consumer and professional headphones. These shouldn't be recommended for consumers to begin with. Sundara's don't hold up for mixing, and they are definitely not going to last as long in a studio environment.
This would be a great comparison if the premise wasn't flawed.
Can you guys test Amiron home?
thats why i just add 5dB to my Sundara bass and now it sound perfect lol
bigger soundstage, less treble and less bass on the sundara= HI FI use; more forgiving with poor recordings.
better bass response, more sibilant treble and tighter soundstage on the Beyer= Studio mixing and mastering use. Own both and that is really the bottom line. both cans are excellent. since I use the cans mostly for Work(mixing and mastering), the Beyers were the way to go.
Do you recon the 660s is better than the sundara?
I'm sorry, but this is not true at all. Studio use is for headphones that try to stick to a reference curve, aka "flat" to a curve. Planar magnetics can be easily eq'd to take away their flaws, the only one being too much roll off on the sundara. Its literally a free fix. Otherwise, the sundara will be better for mixing. You will be able to hear the flaws easier with the sundara.
lol the sound sample on my AirPods gen 3 felt so much better on 1990. I could hear new instruments 🤣
I own both the 1990 are incredible, the sundaras are a bit less enjoyable but more comfortable.
You have sundara 2020? if yes, could you compare between dt1990 pro in soundtage and imaging?
THANKS
No issues with my Sundaras so far, almost half the price you can easily get a warranty and still save big
Yea I was thinking about the 1990s but for $150 less went with Sundaras.
dear Rtings, what's the recommendation for Sundara amplifier? I got a ananda..
Really helpful Thanks for all efforts
Thé DT1990 is way better sounding than the sundara. Just listening on my phone, listening the original song, the sound from the 1990 is closer than the sundara. Sundara just sounds boxy
I know this is an old review, but seeing your measurements really makes a strong point about how measurements can mislead.
first listening to the music reference is excellent, you can tell how the headphones change the sound af a track and you can get a better feeling how it sounds. Nice Job!
Honestly I normally love Rtings reviews. That was until I started looking at their headphone reviews and it is clear they don't seem have a grasp on how to compare headphones. They are giving bad marks for headphones that don't have microphones, and such. Or even comparing isolation and leakage in these headphones in this video at all. Neither of these sets of headphones are designed to have a microphone and are not meant for people looking for an isolating headset. They shouldn't be graded on things they were not meant to do. And above that I don't think the Sundara are any where as good as the DT 1990.
@Tom Parker Literally has nothing to do with my comment. Maybe you need to re-read what I was arguing.
There not XLR connections, they are stereo cables that connect to an XLR connection at the headphone. XLR in headphones normally suggest balanced which these are not, and both cables are single ended.
beyerdynamic headband is metal and you're supposed to bend them so they fit perfectly ......
Great video, I appreciate you your throughness
*thoroughness
Nice job guys. Concise and well rounded. Thanks
Exactly what i needed, choosing between these two
QUESTION:
I have the DT990 Pro 250 Ohm version and the 600 Ohm versions. At some point they both started to crackle on high bass.
Would
that likely still be the case if I upgrade to a DT 1990? I also have
the Sennheiser 660s and the T1 2nd Gen in mind. Or should I be looking
at something else altogether?
My budget is $1000.
Oh…and I’m buying this primarily for action and sci-fi movies.
Thanks!!
What did you end up getting?
@@jaredferguson2999 I bought the Sennheiser 660s. And I love it! Qualitywise I think it's similar to the 600 Ohm D990. But the soundstage is bigger and those headphone can handle just about anything you throw at, at any volume, with no crackles.
Keep it up!
You guys should stop reviewing headphones. It's misleading. RGB gaming headphones with bluetooth best according to you.
Great review. Looking forward to more.
I would get the DT1990 no doubt, the only downside I see with the Beyer is that they cannot be wired balanced without modding.
5:05 Reference
5:12 Beyer
5:23 Hifiman
Beyer ... ! That's a rather impressive sudden 15 db spike at 8,7 khz you got goin there! ^^ How could that not be an instant dealbreaker? To no ones surprise it's easily heard, even as we're listening to this recording of the actual headphone .. laughable!
A headphone like the Sennheiser HD600 stays within + - 3 dB of it's target from 100 hz till 10khz.. There is a reason people say "Oh they are good at Vocals!" no-no-no they are good at reproducing a recording somewhat faithfully, regardless of what's being recorded!
www.rtings.com/headphones/1-4/graph#628/3992 *Beyer SPL vs Freq graph*
www.rtings.com/headphones/1-4/graph#325/3992 *HD600 SPL vs freq graph*
The reason the HD600 have attained GOAT status for such a long time, is simply due to the fact that they are one of the most well-behaved linear headphones ever produced.. Even extremely expensive headphones like the HD800S or some of Focals flagship headphones have issues of higher degrees than the HD600...
The so-called Sennheiser 'veil' is simply a myth spawned from the fact that the sennheisers are producing the treble in a much more linear fashion. People have grown accustomed to giant bright spikes in the 7-10khz region towering above the rest of the response, and when confronted with a headphone like the HD600 lacking the ugly spike, they in their stupidity realize that 'something is missing' ...
But yeah the HD600 lacks the bottom octave, that's also why they are so well-tempered in the mids and the highs (as seen on measurements) (and also easily heard) You can't have the cake, and also eat it, if you produce a headphone driver capable of slamming the bass down at 20hz (which sounds so good!) you at the same time unfortunately also produce a driver that will go bezerk above 5 khz, and will start going completely out of control with huge dips and peaks!
Great review. This now my favorite headphone review channel on TH-cam. The relative sound demo comparison was exactly what I needed to make my confident decision. Beyer treble sounds very artificial and emphasized. Maybe fixed with EQ, but I'm going with hifiman on this one.
You should not rely on this channel as a headphone review channel lmfao. They used frequency response as the measurement of how good the headphones are. If you listened to Z Reviews, Joshua Valour, DMS, or frankly any audiophile headphone reviewer they would tell you that is absolutely dumb. There is a lot more that goes into headphones than just a line graph. Lmfao The DT1990 are in a different league of quality versus the Sundara's. Educate yourself.
@@blessedred If I may ask, in what way do you think the 1990 is superior to the Sundara? I'm trying to upgrade/side-grade from my HD 6XX's and am stuck between the 1990 and the Sundara. I'm looking for better bass (tighter response, more "slam"), better soundstage, better detail retrieval and better instrument separation. The mids on the 6xx are incredible but some tracks like "Instant Crush" sound a bit muffled on the 6xx which could benefit from the aforementioned characteristics. Also, how "piercing" is the treble on the 1990 and can it be EQ'd?
@@mikeshinwa3398 They are about the same, neither is noticeably better than the other. Sundara's are great if you eq the bass a little, and DT 1990's are great if you eq down the treble a little. Soundstage and imaging is almost the same i'd say. (i own both)
@@BobMarley-zu5sc Which do you find more comfortable?
@@dunkelwelpling I like the earpads of the dt1990 better, but i like the headstrap of the sundara too. I cant use either one for too long but if i had to choose the 1990 wins.
absolutely go for the DT 1990 pro....superb build with lots of metal, just awesome design quality
Hifiman on the other hand has absolute garbage build quality throughout their whole line and they often break, which is just not acceptable in that price category.....when you spend 500 dollars for headphones, of course you will EQ them anywway (although the treble is absolutely fine on the DT 1990, some people are just more sensitive to treble) so the treble shouldnt be an issue, the imaging and detail also is so much better on the dt 1990 in my opinion
DT1990 sounds hollow. The upper mid drop is really awful.
Wait a second, the older versions are pretty much the same, but just...old???
Make DT 1990 vs Koss Esp95x
You are awesome guys! Thanks for all your work!
For me both of these sounded like garbage. :(
Holy shit this is an excellent comparison, well done guys!