Dt1990

So, I am looking into ventureing into much more expensive headphones, I listen to so much music, games, media on my computer I feel it’s time to upgrade. Specifically to somthing open back.

I have basically set my sights on the DT1990pro’s for reference the most expensive headphones I have owed (still do) are my Sony MDR1000 mk3 Which are more my walking headphones for the closed back and great noise cancelling properties.

I think the main concern for me like many others starting this journey is "how much difference " is there bertween a £300 pair of headphones and a £500 pair of headphones. To this end I want to get my AMP DAC set up right.

I am looking at the TOPPING A50S which leaves the ability to stack in the future the D50s DAC, although unsure how much difference a dedicated DAC would make?

Open to peoples thoughts and opinions on this :slight_smile:

From what I understand the DT 1990 Pros (and the lower end DT 990 Pro) are balanced all the way up to the highs where they have a noticeable increase in treble. I’ve seen the terms “sharp” and “harsh” in a few reviews. Aside from that, great headphones.

For amps and DACs my personal opinion is that an amp will get you most of the way there, and the DAC will get you the last stretch. I noticed far less of a difference adding a DAC to my setup than I did an amp.

That being said, as far as I know, the Topping options you listed are plenty fine. Other options, if they are available in your area, may be a Schiit stack, Schiit Jotunheim, JDS Labs Element, or even an O2+ODAC for something simple. Or if you want to DIY a Bottlehead Crack.

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Thanks very much for getting back to me.
Yes I also heard about this “peaking” but had mixed views from all kinds of people. Apparently they are much more refiened in that sense than the 990’s. So I think I am happy with that.

Thanks also for your AMP/DAC points too. I mean, I mainly lisen to youtube music streaming service and a fair bit of live recordings for my Rock/Metal side of things. Is lisening to streaming music oding this a complete disjustice and I should be dowloading high quality Flacs?

One of the nice things about audio is that “good” is almost entirely subjective, so if it sounds good to the listener than it is good.

If the streaming source is of decent quality then I don’t see why it would be an injustice, IIRC Youtube Music Premium you can set to stream 256 kbps AAC, which is fine. Tidal I believe has great quality options.

I personally primarily have mostly FLAC files for two reasons; 1. storage is cheap enough, and 2. it allows me to transcode to smaller filesizes if desired (e.g. for phone). Can I hear a difference between FLAC and 320 kbps MP3? Not really. But there is also no negative for me to have it all in FLAC.

Pardon if some of this is vague, it’s hard to give concrete answers to a subjective topic like audio. Like I personally have AKG K712 Pro and Sennheiser HD6XX headphones I use with a modified O2+ODAC. I’ve used other combinations, but my current setup I think is near perfect for me. I could easily replace all of those pieces with something “better”, but I don’t see the need right now. But to others anything less than something like a Stax setup is not enough. All boils down to what the listener likes (and is willing to pay for).

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Thank you very much I really appreciate it. That wasnt vaugue at all, just very honest, which I appreciate :slight_smile:
I am going to go ahead with the topping A50s for now while I wait for the DT1990 to get back in stock and maybe get the D50s in the future.
If nothing else it helps future proof for potentially better speakers/headphones in the future too :slight_smile:

I personally am not a fan of the Beyerdynamic sound signature. The pronounced treble gives a perceived boost in clarity, is not for everyone though.

The elevated treble of Beyerdynamics combined with the overly sterile nature of the measurement focused DACs/Amps (like that Topping one you mentioned) may make the treble piercing.

I would suggest something like the LakePeople G103-S with Beyerdynamic DT-series headphones.
DAC wise, look at the Allo Revolution DAC.