beyerdynamic DT 1990 PRO Open Studio Reference Headphones

so i saw these on sale on amazon and thought no time like the present to buy a pair being i have had my eyes on them for a good while. Build the build on these is about as premium as it gets even putting my workhorses the HD600s to shame in this department, they have strategically placed metal on the build and very high-quality lightweight plastics. they also have a leather headband and a metal grill with chrome lettering, they look simply amazing and no pictures do them the justice they deserve truly. the single-sided XLR connector isn't great as it adds some weight to one side of the headphone upsetting the balance somewhat but it isnt the end of the world. Comfort these headphones are pretty comfortable, they do start to hurt the top of my head after many hours of listening and the clamping force is a tad lighter than i would like but the cups are both wide and deep allowing me to listen without them touching my ears in any way which is very nice. a very comfortable headphone you will have no issues . Sound easily the most important part of a near £400 headphone the sound. with the 45mm "tesla driver" (its just a fancy dynamic driver) these sound simply staggering. the bass, perhaps the weakest aspect of these headphones as they are studio-grade, is deep and detailed while not being boomy or overstated in any way, it's smooth and balanced and sits nicely behind the rest of the music if non-bass heavy headphones are your thing these are excellent for that. the mids and vocals are excellent, clear detailed and rich, now vocals aren't as good as my HD600s but they come pretty dam close which is very impressive in of itself. perhaps the most impressive part of this headphone is the treble and the highs they are simply staggering, so detailed with so much life and richness to them, some people say this headphone is bright and sibilant, while i agree with the former i disagree with the latter, these sound just right to me and if you are someone who enjoys treble and amazing highs without them feeling shrill or sibilant then this headphone is an excellent pick. they have a fairly neutral sound signature but have a bit more life to them than the HD600 which can sound somewhat boring sometimes especially with heavy metal music which these do a far better job with. Conclusion this is an excellent pair of headphones, very comfortable, extremely well built with fantastic sound, for many music types they have replaced my HD600s (except for more vocally focused music) and are in my opinion a more balanced experience than the HD600, i only gave them 4 stars for value for money as giving a £400 headphone 5/5 for value for money kinda feels wrong, but these are a great buy and that's not even mentioning the two pairs of pads in the box and the two cables, hard carrying case and 2 3.5mm to quarter-inch adaptors. an excellent pair of headphones

These headphones are very hard to evaluate for me since i started my path auditioning headphones that have relatively different properties to these in some ways that end up being somewhat more desirable to me. The headphones terrain is such a weirdly satisfying and also somewhat of a frustrating hobby since you actually never get to find perfection. These are an interesting blend of imperfections because they were not exactly as i expected them to be but are better in some ways and relatively worse in others. I really thought these headphones would hit or punch me very hard with big beefy sound but what they actually did is they slapped me really hard with a satin or velvet (still not sure which and it's kinda part of what they do, maybe the satin is when using the analytical pads and the velvet would be while using the balanced pads) glove. They are refined in some ways i would describe as definition and articulation but it could be due to the treble boost they are forward with, but i feel that helps it with how well defined most instruments sound in the mix and that is a good thing in a way, i probably should still go back and forth my other options to analyze how good they actually are at this. They have dry mids and also dry bass that don't overwhelm you. I probably would say these might be like the HD800s without the soundstage, with more focus on the treble sound, mids are more laidback and the bass is about as laidback as the mids so in some way they sound less analytical and somewhat less 'musical' but around as lively though a bit less beefy as well. I think i would criticize the forwardness of the highs because they for sure could annoy people (and they for sure have as far as i've seen). So the main strengths i would say these have when presenting music are the strong treble sounds (even though piercing to some), the liveliness of the sound (as in it doesnt sound dull, though you might need an amp for that, also the analytical pads would bring this out more than the balanced pads), the articulation, and the definition of the sounds (Specially with analytical pads). I wish they made these with a balanced option of cabling, i think this is somewhat unforgivable for high-end headphones. I am sure most people checking the reviews already know about the convenience of having 2 different set of pads that do different things to the sound, while they don't change how the sound is produced, they do change how it arrives to your ears and you could go as far to say that you have 2 signature sounds for the price of 1 (or you can think that you have paid for 2 pair of headphones which can make you feel you are getting your money's worth) with the small caveat of pad swapping which could feel like a hassle depending on how good you can get at changing the pads (first set of headphones that i have come across that provide an incorporated design to make it as seamlessly as possible, yet i wouldn't say it's a perfect way to do it). It is hard for me to recommend these to people because it is hard to justify what these do in relation to the price, there's headphones that cost around 1/3 of the price that have less of the strenghts of this pair but still provide a very nice experience and will not set you back this much amount of money, considering that for some of those you also don't need an amp to get the most out of while for this one i think you do it gets even harder to justify acquiring these, for example if you ever are thinking if to get these or the hd800s and u can pay for the hd800s i think those could be way more satisfying in their sound signature and arent THAT far appart in price). The construction in these is fairly high, they do feel robust, not sure if i would call it a refined build because the yokes specially are a bit rough in finishing, not a bad finish, just not as refined as the cups for example, and as the headband, both of which are very comfortable as well, with just enough clamp to for them to sit mostly tight and enought to make them feel very light even when they are not that light, also with enough room for your ears specially with the slightly thicker pads that i think are the balanced ones. So all in all the only reason i would recommend these is if you can just spend the money and are not expecting this to be your end game because for all the downsides that i have cited in the review you might just be frustrated with the experience, but if you are open-minded enough i am sure you will find (without much effort) stuff to love about them. If these were somewhere around 250-275 tops i would feel they would be more unmissable. For 350+ i can't justify it, better save the extra you need for end-game headphones.

I have been positively surprised by these. Long time fan of DT990 and DT880, I thought in the upper tier of Beyerdynamic the T1.2 were for me, with the Amiron as second most likely candidate. In the end, after trying all of those, I found the DT1990 to be the best of the bunch. The bass is really good in these ones, with the balanced pads in particular: it is tight, generous in quantity and not invasive of the mids (even less when you use the other pads, referred as "analytical"). Mids are very good and not too forward, just as I like them to be. The analytical pads brings them more forrward with bass taking a small step back, if that is to your liking instead. Comfort is excellent just as in all Beyerdynamic. The amount of details is insane, making them a true studio type: I thought I would not have enjoyed this approach but I realised to be wrong because these take an intersting approach that does not make them sounding analytical-sterile (such as the AKG K701) but analytical-exciting: say the exciting delivery of the Focal Elear meets the more analytical-composed delivery of the T1.2. I also have to mention the fact that these require an amplifier, but they are very undemanding with those: a simple Little Dot I+ works wonder if you are treble sensitive and want to tame it a bit. Or, if you are not, a Topping L30 drives them beautifully with a lot of headroom. If you do not like the HD800S, give these and the AKG K812 a try. For 1/4 of the price these DT1990 give youu about the same level of detail, much more energetic bass (if not as flat) and a vibrancy that the Sennheiser just do not have: with that said, for Classical music I think the HD800S still rule. I listen all acoustic music with electro-acoustic Jazz as infrequent guests (say Hans Petter Molvaer, Matthew Halsall, Wolfgang Haffner, etc) and in these situations I have appreciated the bass of the DT1990 even more. Although most of my listening happens with an LCD-2 Fazor and an Ananda, these are rapidly climbing up (presently the 3rd pair I listen the most).

I bought these at £379 and think they are a bargain. Given good amplification and decent source they are amazing, particularly with the analytical pads. Hooked up direct to my Roksan amp with FLAC files and Hires from my PC via my DAC they sound sublime. Bright but not too bright, full of detail, very wide soundstage with some musical cues coming from outside the headphones sometimes some distance away. Vocals lock in your head and not in front like my old Audio Technicas but I think now I prefer that. The midrange is slightly recessed in a good way, bass is extended and textured, some tracks I hear through my speakers only have sub bass on one channel with an echo of it in the other channel through these and sounds clear and defined. Hearing new things in tracks I've owned over 30 years, quite a shock. Also sound great ran by my Marantz CD6007 CD players headphone amp on high gain. They will run off my phone and Ipod but meh, get a separate amp if you dont have one. They sound bright and lack bass without some oomph. Build quality is astounding and comfort is top notch. My Dad bought a pair of Beyers back in 1980 and they only gave up in 1998, and that was only because you couldn't source the foam pads used back then, they still worked fine, these appear the same and now you can replace the cable, the sound signature reminds me of them still. I've read the reviews of too bright or bad tonal balance and wonder what people are doing to achieve this. They are quite bright but in a detailed way not a sibilant way. Also I would advise at least a few weeks for them to settle into a sound signature, they change over a few weeks and calm down a touch and bass comes forward more. If you can get them at a similar price I paid and have the right gear to run them I wouldnt hesitate.

I decided to make the jump and buy these headphones to replace my DT990 Pros. Sound quality (always subjective ofc): In comparison to my DT990 Pros (£105), there is a clear difference between the two...A £365 worth of difference? not really. My old DT990 pros are fantastic, everything I wanted...A very clear deep/medium bass, warm mids, and a wide soundstage. Without any EQ setting, the DT1990 do everything the 990s do but better, the big difference was how sharp the quality is and I can only echo what other reviews have said about the amazing soundstage these things have. I do use a custom EQ setting and for me it brings them to a new level. As I mentioned the price between the 990 and 1990 is high, if you own the 990 and are willing to spend the extra money then definitely go for 1990, they are an overall improvement. If you are stuck trying to decide between the 990 and 1990 pros then I would advise you try the DT990 pros first (you wont be disappointed) and then decide on upgrading later (when the 1990 are cheaper). The DT1990 pros come with two pairs of velour ear pads ("EDT 1990 A" analytical and "EDT 1990 B" balanced), I use the default "B" balanced ones that are already installed which have a slight bass boost which I prefer over the "A" pads which slightly increases the mids. 250 ohms:- As everyone else mentioned, make sure you have an AMP/DAC to power these headphone. I use these with my gaming rig which has a Soundblaster Z installed (£75, has a build in headphone amp) and it works wonders. Games, movies and music sound absolutely fantastic...I can't put the volume higher than 20% as it become uncomfortably loud. It's prob worth noting that a mate of mine owns a Chord Mojo (£389, which I was gonna purchase) that they let my try with these headphone on my system and for me there wasn't a great deal of difference to the quality of sound/volume to warrant the £314 price difference for what I already have. About that EQ I use with my Soundblaster, for those that are interested here are the settings: 31 = 3dB 62 = 6dB 125 = 9dB 250 = 8dB 500 = 6dB 1k = 5dB 2k = 7dB 4k = 4dB 8k = 11dB 16k = 8dB LEVEL = 0dB Build Quality: Not much to say other then these feel and look £470, very sturdy build and the memory foam cushioning give these and nice genital but firm fitting around the ears. They can feel a little tight at first but I got use to that and can happily wear them for hours on end without any discomfort. Overall I'm extremely happy with these headphone and I can't see myself replacing these anytime soon. Edit: I recently replaced my Soundblaster Z (I now have that in my older rig) with the SoundBlaster X AE-5 which has a built in DAC + discrete headphone duel-amp (32bit/384kHz) and wow, just wow...Using Direct HP with these headphones sounds wonderful, no EQ needed, fantastic.

Compared with many other headphones out there these will seem too bright considering they are studio quality. Probably the reason why, as I write there are several pairs available from Amazon Warehouse. However, although the treble might seem a little challenging to the ear, certainly where sub-standard sibilant vocals are concerned, it is perfect where well recorded and balanced material is reproduced. Ride, hi-hat and the tap of a drumstick on a cymbal benefit immeasurably and are pulled into fine focus where other cans would allow them to languish somewhere in the middle distance. It makes you realise what a cymbal should truly sound like. The pros overwhelmingly outweigh the cons and a wide gamut of musical genres shine without harshness and with a lucidity that is a real pleasure to experience. So don’t be put off after an initial audition as they will soon have you smiling like a Cheshire Cat. At 250 ohm impedance they need to be driven otherwise you’ll soon run out of sufficient volume control. For mastering, or in my case ripping from vinyl, you’ll hear every detail and nuance on a well structured and open sound stage. Don’t expect overwhelming or exaggerated bass but rather a balanced and neutral performance with a clean and open nature. I almost made the mistake on first audition of a very sibilant track, of thinking they will probably be returned - I’m really glad I didn’t. A beautiful product made to perform at the highest level and fabricated to last a lifetime. Highly recommended. UPDATE - Had these almost 1 month and I noticed by accident that when I picked them up I could hear a small rattle from the right hand cup mainly (no music playing through them). After googling it would seem that I am not alone. Beyerdynamic apologised for the fault but didn't directly address my question as to whether this was by design... after all the driver could well be designed to move dynamically (like a lens element has to in an anti-shake mechanism on a camera). I get the distinct feeling that a replacement will not cure this artefact. I am not going to the trouble of finding out so will be returning them for a refund. My review still stands that they are a great sounding pair of cans but now that I know a rattle exists it will probably drive me mad. FURTHER UPDATE - Beyerdynamic confirm that the rattling is a fault and not part of the design. At this price point there should be no excuses and no failures. This small rattle has been observed by other people so I am not prepared to give Beyerdynamic a second chance.

I am a fan of relatively neutral sounding headphones - occasionally partial to having a bit of a low end spike for certain types of music, and definitely not a fan of treble heavy headphones. These headphones tick almost every box for me, both in physical build and in sound. Beyerdynamic build quality is absolutely phenomenal, however, if you are a fan of lighter weight headphones, then you might want to look for a different set, as these are fairly heavy. The headband and ear pads are soft and comfortable for the 12hr sessions that I can sometimes find myself wearing them, and after 18months of extremely heavy use am not finding myself near to wanting to replace them. Sound wise they are extremely balanced. I am using the 'neutral' pads that the headphones come with, whilst the other pads sounded a little obscuring to my ears. For almost everything that I am listening to (more or less every genre except for dubstep / glitch pop) they sound natural and about as neutral as I would want. Everything is clear and balanced against all the other sounds and instruments going on around it. It is a comfortable soundstage, without being incredibly wide or near, and although not marketed as 'gaming' headphones, the level of positional accuracy that these headphones can produce is almost eerie. Overall couldn't really be happier. I have used many headphones of this price tier, and although they are not necessarily better or worse than any of the others by any means, they are the most fitting for my preference of balanced-neutral sounding headphones. As a huge fan of the IE 800 earphones, these are in my view the perfect accompaniment to them. Well done Beyerdynamic!

The pros - Build review is high quality and as expected for this price Sound quality is very good - way above what you'd find in cheaper headphones Very comfortable to wear The cons - Treble seems to quite bright and can be piercing on some songs Summary - These are studio headphones but are perfectly acceptable to use for entertainment e.g music, film, gaming. If you are going to use them for music listening, they are so detailed that they will expose the flaws in some songs. If the master job is good, it will sound amazing accordingly. If there is distortion or poor levels in the master, these headphones will expose that more than your average pair would. Due to the brightness of the upper frequencies, you may need to adjust EQ on your device accordingly to suit your preference. If you're new to this audiophile thing and purchasing these, be aware that you will need a headphone amp, or powered device such as an audio interface, or mixing desk, to be able to drive these. They are 250 ohm, so simply plugging them straight into your phone, or laptop, may not give the required volume or power to function effectively. I can confirm these work very well with a standard DAC/Headphone amp combo such as the Topping DX3 Pro+. To suit my personal tastes, I am using the latter in 'pre-amp' mode with an additional tube amp and find the results to be excellent. I'm very pleased with these, as the build and comfort is just as important as the sound to me - some headphones at a higher cost are made of flimsy plastic, which is quite frankly unacceptable for a premium price. These headphones look and feel like a £400 pair of headphones and the sound quality is great. If you can afford to take the punt, I'd recommend. If you're only semi-serious about sound and just want something that sounds decent, then other headphones at half the price will meet your needs