Desktop Headphone Amp Recommendations for DT-990 Pros 250 Ohm?

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ViciousBear

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I am a newbie when it comes to purchasing headphones and audio gear. To be honest, the DT-990s are the first pair of headphones I have owned after testing them out along with the HD 558s. I have them paired with the SoundBlaster Z, however I have read that a dedicated desktop amp is required for the DT-990s to reach their full potential in SQ.

There is quite a bit of sibilance with these headphones and I am looking to reduce it with a quality headphone amplifier. Overall I love the SQ from these headphones, it is what I was looking for in a pair of headphones.

The main use is for gaming but I am looking into orchestrated music as well. I may or may not be purchasing a future pair of headphones for orchestra music; it depends on how well the DT-990s perform with orchestra music. Since headphones vary in ohm impedance, it might be wise to get an amp that is adaptable to headphones with various ohm requirements.

So, do you have any recommendations on which amps would complement the DT-990s? My budget will be around $100-$250.

Thanks.
 
An amp is probably not the right component to look at for reducing sibilance, you're going to want some kind of equalizer for that.

As far as amp recommendations, the Objective2 and Schiit Magni are a couple of solid entry-level desktop amps to check out. You can spend more in your price range but you don't need to, there won't be an appreciable increase in quality until you hit the ~$500 Bottlehead Crack range.
 
SB Z is plenty for 250ohm. If you want louder music then you will need a desktop amp
 
Kueller said:
An amp is probably not the right component to look at for reducing sibilance, you're going to want some kind of equalizer for that.

As far as amp recommendations, the Objective2 and Schiit Magni are a couple of solid entry-level desktop amps to check out. You can spend more in your price range but you don't need to, there won't be an appreciable increase in quality until you hit the ~$500 Bottlehead Crack range.
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I have heard that the DT-990s properly amped would reduce or remove the sibilance. If not, then I would look into an equalizer software. The SBZ has a basic version of it but I am not sure how it compares to other EQ software.

I have heard good reviews of both the O2 and the magni. I have read that the O2 is neutral in SQ and headphones sound more bright with the Magni. In that case, the O2 is one of my candidates. Though, would it make the DT-990s sound more neutral? I do not want that to happen.
GotNoRice said:
You could try something like a Little-Dot I+

http://www.littledot.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=819&sid=076f3c5b4b42b3d475acfa1f3bbbadf4

What is nice is that if you still feel things are too sibilant, you can swap tubes and even the opamp.
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I am looking into the MKII version of this amp. I do not know much about tube amps except they require removal of the tubes after a couple thousand hours. How easy is it to replace the tubes, and how expensive are buying new ones?

Also, since the Little Dots are from China, I am unsure of their quality/and the potential of receiving a counterfeit. I am still very interested in this amp regardless.


Venomous said:
SB Z is plenty for 250ohm. If you want louder music then you will need a desktop amp
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I have read from other owners that the Z is not enough for the DT-990s. Also, I do not think the Z scales well with lower impedance headphones if I decide to buy another pair in the future.
 
ViciousBear said:
I have heard that the DT-990s properly amped would reduce or remove the sibilance. If not, then I would look into an equalizer software. The SBZ has a basic version of it but I am not sure how it compares to other EQ software.

I have heard good reviews of both the O2 and the magni. I have read that the O2 is neutral in SQ and headphones sound more bright with the Magni. In that case, the O2 is one of my candidates. Though, would it make the DT-990s sound more neutral? I do not want that to happen.


I am looking into the MKII version of this amp. I do not know much about tube amps except they require removal of the tubes after a couple thousand hours. How easy is it to replace the tubes, and how expensive are buying new ones?

Also, since the Little Dots are from China, I am unsure of their quality/and the potential of receiving a counterfeit. I am still very interested in this amp regardless.




I have read from other owners that the Z is not enough for the DT-990s. Also, I do not think the Z scales well with lower impedance headphones if I decide to buy another pair in the future.
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I find that odd because I have 880s @600ohm and it's more than enough power for them. I have a ZxR but the card is identical save the digital daughter board and desktop volume control.
 
ViciousBear said:
I am looking into the MKII version of this amp. I do not know much about tube amps except they require removal of the tubes after a couple thousand hours. How easy is it to replace the tubes, and how expensive are buying new ones?
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Wearing out the tubes is not an issue. I have multiple amps from Little-Dot, a Little-Dot I+, as well as a Little-Dot II+ which is a full tube unit similar to the MKII but older. I also had a Little-Dot II++ which was another older unit similar to the MKII but I sold it. I got my II+ in 2006 and I've never worn out a tube.

Tubes are pretty cheap. Here are some EF92 tubes which are compatible with both the I+ and MKII (though not the only type they can use):
http://www.ebay.com/sch/Consumer-Electronics-/293/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=ef92

Cost will come down to brand, how rare they are, etc but they are cheap enough that most end up buying many different types just to experiment with and have fun. Changing tubes is a non-issue, just don't do it while the amp is turned on, and let them cool a bit before you touch the glass :)
 
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I also wouldn't expect an amp to reduce sibilance. I own 880s, which can make cymbals sound really artificial. Different recordings give VERY different results here... EQing down 5ish dB around 8.5-9KHz helps a lot, but that's higher than I normally think of as sibilant.

Based on specs, an O2 or similar should give 115dBA peaks or so. Plenty.
 
Well supposedly Tube amps distort the SQ with "warmth", so that could possibly reduce the sibilance of my headphones. If not then I will have to play around with the EQ is sibilance is still an issue.

Now the question is whether I would benefit more from a tube amp or an ss amp. The downside from tube amps is I cannot find any recommended tube amps made in America, which should mean lower shipping charges and easier CS in case of a problem in the future.
 
HammerSandwich said:
Schiit & Woo leap to mind.
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I checked the Woo website and all their amps are out of my price range.

So far, the Little Dot MkII, the O2, and the Fiio E09k look to be solid contenders. I can buy the E09k on Amazon for $110 + free 2 day shipping with Amazon Prime. That might be the "best bang for my buck" so far.

Is there a quality gap between the E09K and the others listed so far?
 
H-Money said:
Definitely check out Schiit.

If you can swing it, a Schiit Valhalla are great with Beyerdynamic headphones.
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That amplifier is intended for use of high ohm impedance headphones according the FAQs on the Schiit website. It recommends with use of the Beyer 600 ohm models; I think I would be an overkill for my headphones with little benefits for the extra cost. According to users of the Schiit Magni, it brightens the sound of headphones so it would not be a good match with my already bright headphones. Especially since that may increase the sibilance. The Asgard 2 might be the best choice out of the Schiit amps but I will have to do more research on them.
 
Venomous said:
I find that odd because I have 880s @600ohm and it's more than enough power for them. I have a ZxR but the card is identical save the digital daughter board and desktop volume control.
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Volume does not mean its driving the headphones optimally. You may notice an increase in punch with a good headphone amp.

That said, OP DT990 are sibilant headphones by nature, thats a fact. A good headphone amp (or very warm colored one) may improve things but it wont change the basic sound, which in case of DT990 means a hump in midbass and a massive treble spike around 7-10khz region, which is the source of the sibilance. DT880 also has it but DT990 is worse offender.

If you have EQ in your music player try taking couple db/notches down in the 7-10khz region. Not too much, just a little touch so you wont ruin the general sound.
 
MaZa said:
Volume does not mean its driving the headphones optimally. You may notice an increase in punch with a good headphone amp.

That said, OP DT990 are sibilant headphones by nature, thats a fact. A good headphone amp (or very warm colored one) may improve things but it wont change the basic sound, which in case of DT990 means a hump in midbass and a massive treble spike around 7-10khz region, which is the source of the sibilance. DT880 also has it but DT990 is worse offender.

If you have EQ in your music player try taking couple db/notches down in the 7-10khz region. Not too much, just a little touch so you wont ruin the general sound.
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You need voltage to drive high ohm, period. SB internal amp is on par with 85% of the amps people generally buy here within these threads.

Every damn headphone has treble spike from 8-10khz including HD650, HD800, so stop with the bullshit.
 
It can be measured: see Tyll's archive. Unfortunately, he hasn't measured the 990, but you can see a large difference between the 880s & 650s here. Compare the 8-10KHz region to the 100-1000Hz decade.
 
Venomous said:
Every damn headphone has treble spike from 8-10khz including HD650, HD800, so stop with the bullshit.
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Yeah, usually every headphone has a spike around that region (and spikes, humps and valleys in general) because completely flat frequency response does not translate to neutral sound when it comes to headphones but DT990 spike is bigger than most and that makes it sibilant. Its bigger than some Grados and those headphones are known to be bright and spiky. And as HammerSandwich pointed out its even measurable and measured by a lot of people.

http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCo...[]=853&graphID[]=2141&graphID[]=3241&scale=30

A comparison, DT990, a HD650 which is know to be quite gentle and warm headphone and a HE500 which I own and consider to be once the most balanced sounding headphone ever made. And I've heard and owned a lot of them. Notice which one stands above the rest in that region, with the treble spike and the midbass hump I mentioned?
 
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Well, after looking through the Schitt website, the Vali looks to be another very interesting tube amp. I only wish I could get a black version like the Valhalla. Maybe I should ask them if they would customize a Vali for me?
 
I eventually decided to buy the JDS O2 amp just moments ago. I think it is best for me to start off with a neutral amp without any distortion to the sound. Plus, I will not have to worry about ohm output impedance if I decide to buy another pair of headphones. That pair I am interested in is the AK-k712 for acoustic/classical music.

Thank you all for the suggestions.
 
Update: I have the O2 amp running right now, and playing one of the Star Wars soundtracks. The Sibilance/piercing highs are definitely have been reduced. They are mild compared to before with the SB Z alone. I am not sure yet if I will go ahead and purchase a pair of Akg k712s in the future, but I am glad my amp is working very well.

Thanks for your advice. :)
 
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