Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsFantastic Sound, Amazing Build Quality and Boy Are The Comfortable
Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2024
I use these for orchestration and film scoring in my home studio with n RME Babyface Pro FS interface. These are open back, they are designed to leak audio, so you can't use these to track vocals or any recording situation where the mic will pick up the sound from the headphones. For that you'll want the DT 1770 closed-back cans.
Let's get right to it:
What's Great
- The more "exciting" sound on the Beyerdynamics after decently taming them (info coming on that)
- The Bass Response... I'm already addicted. It is TIGHT and punchy and has great clarity. I'll put the bass response up against any cans under $1K, but we're not talking hyped Beats junk. First time I listened to the 1990s after 10 straight hours of running an album on repeat to do some burn-in, the piece I listened to a film score cue which has this huge cinematic deep timpani/sound design hit ijn the beginning, and I honestly thought I had left my KH750 Sub on in my room. It was late at night and I leaped up from the chair to turn it off. It was off.
- The Soundstage... wow. As impressive as the bass response. First time listening my mouth dropped! I also own DT 990 Pro 80 Ohm for my laptop which sound great and have really nice soundstage reproduction, but the different Tesla design on the 1990s is really something.
- Clarity & Detail: wow, I am hearing things in recorded pieces I never noticed, I am just bonkers over that, especially coming from the Sennheiser HD650 veil which I now know exists. The 650s sound wonderfully glued together, but now the detail I'm hearing in the 1990s is so nice, I'm hooked and never going back.
- Volume: My Babyface Pro supposedly runs best at 100-150 Ohm headphones for volume output. The 300 ohm (320 actually) HD 650s never seemed to get the volume and punch I wanted, but these 250 Ohm 1990s can get loud enough to blow my neighbor's toupee off, even louder than the 80 ohm 990s I have. So it's not just ohmage... whatever that Tesla technology in the DT1990's drivers does, it works amazingly in both timbre and amplitude. No, BD's Tesla technology has nothing to do with Elon.
- Second set of earpads are included. They are named Analytical pads for a flatter response. If you really want 1990s for mixing, use these pads instead. I'm fairly sure that correction software with the more precise Analytical pads would work well for mixing, but I prefer the gray velour Balanced pads for that addicting bass response, which are the pads the 1990s ship with that we see in the photos. The pads are changeable without tools but it's not easy, so you can't switch back-n-forth in any quick manner. Better to make the commitment to the soundscape you want to hear.
- Comfort: Any BD owner will tell you that when it comes to comfort, BD sets the bar. Most comfortable I've ever worn, and I have a big noggin.
- Made in Germany. I'm a snob I guess. Build quality is so nice on the 1990s.
- Cable Connector: A Mini XLR jack is used for the removable cable. Hold that thought, because the BD-supplied cables almost get stuck in the jack, very hard to remove. More on that in a sec.
- Case: Comes with a nice semi-rigid zippered case, which has a pouch for cables and a well to hold a second set of pads (the Analytical pads are in there for shipping).
What's Important to Know
It is quite easy to tame the odd 8.5KHz spike, plus two other spots that need a tweak (I'll list below). Sonarworks will fix approximately 9 spots but I'd rather Tame & Learn, NOT sterilize. Some 1990 owners use Sonarworks and then dial it back, FYI. For mixing and mastering, again go with the Analytical pads and correction software, you'll get there much easier as opposed to correction with the Balanced pads. Otherwise, Balanced with some EQ smoothing is my absolute fave (settings are coming!).
What I Can't Stand
The supplied cables. UGH. What was Beyerdynamic thinking?? I like a straight cable and they do supply a long 9' cable, but the rubber is so stiff, the "memory" is horrible. I can hold up one end and the remaining cable hangs like a spring coil, and I can even shake the cable and it acts like a Slinky (there's a toy to look up, lol). Completely useless. They supply a coiled cable as well but I can't use it (nor would I want to), I need the long straight cable to route around my desk. BUT, here's the worst part: the cheesy Mini XLR plug on the cable doesn't fit right in the headphones, it's almost like you have to jam it in, and then to remove it I have to grab the left can like gripping a baseball, and with the other hand, wiggle and rock the mini XLR jack to finally get it to pop out. REALLY? I found a perfect replacement solution from an online place called Fog City Audio.
How to Tame These Cans
The 1990s have the notorious 8.5KHz spike but three easy setting on your main output tame them very well and now they sound amazing. The settings:
Main Listening (playing, composing, tracking, listening to recorded music)
225Hz Peak (not shelf): -2db, Q at 1.0
8.5KHz Peak: -10db, Q at 4.0
14KHz Peak: -4db, Q at 4.4
Mixing (my EQ profile based on several frequency response graphs online, including Oratory1990 w/Balanced Pads)
100Hz Shelf: +2db, Q at 0.7
210Hz Peak: -4db, Q at 0.6
1.4KHz Peak: +0.5db, Q at 1.0
3.8KHz Peak: -1.5db Q at 3.0
5.8KHz, Peak: +2db, Q at 3.0
8.5KHz Peak: -12db, Q at 4.0
14KHz Peak: -6db, Q at 4.4
Thes are definitely my desert-island headphones
