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Great measuring headphones...

artismo

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TLDR;
I am looking for a clean, accurate, and well-measured headphone


I know there are measurement buffs around here- plenty of knowledgeable members about DACs and amps. Does your love for measurements bleed over into HPs? If so, I also comb through numerous forums searching out frequency response graphs, CSDs, spectrum plots, THD graphs, etc. maybe I’m overlooking some HPs and measurements, but I’m looking for an HP without excessive frequency spikes, little to no anomalies in resonance, and little to no ringing.

That aside, what is your favorite go-to hp?
 

solderdude

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Why not filter out (or EQ) those peaks and widen your choice futher ?

IEM, over ear, on ear, portable, desktop ?

In no particular order:

he6-fr.png


el-8-closed.png


he1000-fr.png


fr-ether-flow-open.png


fr-hd660s.png


fr-aeon-closed2.png


fr-clear.png


mystery headphone.png


modified + tp FR.png


Modif 1LTP + Wang Yifei FR.png


fr-nc-on.png


fr-modified-ah-d600.png


fr-th-x00.png


My goto headphone is shown below but with EQ.

kameleon-tp-fr1.png


runner up is still being measured.
 
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OP
artismo

artismo

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Why not filter out (or EQ) those peaks and widen your choice futher ?

IEM, over ear, on ear, portable, desktop ?

In no particular order:

he6-fr.png


el-8-closed.png


he1000-fr.png


fr-ether-flow-open.png


fr-hd660s.png


fr-aeon-closed2.png


fr-clear.png


View attachment 31055

View attachment 31057

View attachment 31058

fr-nc-on.png


fr-modified-ah-d600.png


fr-th-x00.png


My goto headphone is shown below but with EQ.

kameleon-tp-fr1.png


runner up is still being measured.
I just realized who I’m talking to.

A desktop headphone, over-ear, open-back is preferred.

1. Thanks for your work and measurements, I reference them often now, but I’ve made a few purchases before I came across your work. Never thought I’d actually talk to the person behind the graphs.
2. I’ve had the LCD2C and kept hearing graininess and unevenness in the treble.
3. HD58X, first run, I also heard some ever so slight grain in the treble. They are a great bang for the buck.
4. Have the Elex and detect no audible anomalies, they’re my go-to HP, though not very relaxing. I do use them for mixing and mastering because of their detail retrieval.
5. Ananda, I relax to these, even though they’re bright. I’m also hearing grain in the treble, more pronounced in treble focused music, but not as bad as the LCD2C.
6. I enjoy the analogue sound and lushness of the Meze 99 Classics and relax to these.
7. I haven’t heard any grain or peaky issues with the Oppo PM-1 (but I fear replacement parts, etc.), and the same goes for the Mr. Speakers Aeon Flow Open.
8. I am considering the DT1990 and may possibly pick up a passive filter from you if I do go the DT1990 route.

I do use Sonarworks when I can to smooth or flatten things out a bit. I prefer to EQ at the hardware level and keep processing power to plugins strictly for projects when necessary. Plus, something sounds odd about the audio driver layer in Sonarworks or phase issues. Haven’t pin-pointed it yet. I’ve heard good things about the RME ADI-2 EQ, so I’m aiming to move toward it. Personally, I prefer not to EQ when I can and would like gear to perform reasonably within my expectations. I like to keep the sound of the headphones as natural as possible.
 

solderdude

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Currently playing around with DT1770 and DT1990
I think, with a treble filter and analytic pads these are the bomb for producing music.

LCD2 great lows and mids, treble is 'meh' but heard one that was great sounding so probably you have to be lucky.
Never heard/measured the Elex but I suspect it is a very good HP.
HD58X excellent for the money.
Ananda and Edition XX not bad but when directly compared they are a bit too forward and not 'smooth' in the treble. The filter helps somewhat.
Meze 99 too warm for me. Funny thing is that when you don't compare them to other headphones directly and the ears get used to the warm sound they are good sounding. Compare them with others and they fall short.

None of the plots above are from any of the mentioned headphones.
One is of the HD660S and think some can spot those.

3 of the plots are from prototypes that (I think alas) never went in production.
 

solderdude

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8. I am considering the DT1990 and may possibly pick up a passive filter from you if I do go the DT1990 route.

My DT1990 review is now up.

Normally I don't recommend aftermarket pads as often they screw up more than they do good, but in this case there is a good one for this headphone.
 

Hugo9000

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My DT1990 review is now up.

Normally I don't recommend aftermarket pads as often they screw up more than they do good, but in this case there is a good one for this headphone.
So using the Dekoni Elite Velour pads takes away the 4.5kHz dip? That frequency response looks very nice!

Thank you so much for all of your detailed reviews and comparisons, by the way! I think your information on headphones is far and away the most useful that I've seen anywhere, with a great balance of data and enough comparisons and subjective analysis to give readers meaningful value.
 

solderdude

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The dip shows up in not smoothed plots using HATS and flatbed (oratory also) so I reckon the dip is real and pad related, so is the treble peak it seems.
 

solderdude

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What's even weirder is that the DT1770 I also got, and has the same plug, has (fortunately both) drivers in counter phase to the unwritten convention.
So far this is the only Beyer I have seen this with. No idea if all of the DT1770's are like this. It is only obvious with needle pulses and square-waves when comparing to the original signal. I don't think this is audible though.

440Hz DT1770 vel filt.png
 

Noob

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@solderdude Your measurements with the Dekoni elite velour pads are what convinced me to make the dt1990 my next headphone purchase. Thanks for the years of work you put into this. It is very much appreciated.
 

solderdude

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What's the runner up?

I think it must have been the DT1990 at that point in time. The DT1990 A is pretty neutral (aside from the nasty treble peak which can be fixed)

dt1990-a-filtered-vs-stock.png



K812 also isn't bad and can be 'fixed' in the treble.

fr-k812-comparison.gif
 
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Martin

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@solderdude Your measurements with the Dekoni elite velour pads are what convinced me to make the dt1990 my next headphone purchase. Thanks for the years of work you put into this. It is very much appreciated.

Ditto. I bought a refurbished DT 1990 Pro from Beyerdynamic USA on eBay, a set of Dekoni elite velour pads and one of Frans’ passive filters. I love them. Just what I was looking for.

Martin
 

martinweiss

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Question regarding the Dekoni elite velour pads: Dekoni's measurement plot shows an attenuation of ~1-2 dB for the high-frequency peak around 8-9 kHz. However, the plot shown on DIY-Audio-Heaven shows a much greater attenuation (~7-8 dB). What is the reason for this? Measurement setup, plot settings, or possibly variation between DT-1990 units?

I'm not trying to be critical of the work, I'm just curious as to what causes the discrepancy.
 

solderdude

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Measurement 'error' (artefact) I reckon.
I use the filter with the Dekoni's and think it is needed but it is 'acceptable' without a filter (IMO).
I did measure it a few times and the peak comes out lowered and the dip is removed.

have experimented with Beyer pads on other headphones as well and the peak appears whenever I use these pads.

Some pad experiments with the DT1770: The Dekoni Velour here too lowers the peak it seems.

dt1770-vs-dt1990-a-vs-dt1990b-vs-dekoni-pads.png


Below the Dekoni sheepskin also seems to lower a part of the treble range compared to the other pads.

usable-pads-bupl-gnvel-rd770-pudek.png


Source: https://diyaudioheaven.wordpress.com/headphones/measurements/brands-a-i/dt-1770-pro/

With some small reversible modifications currently my favorite closed headphone.
 
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martinweiss

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Thanks a lot for the fast reply :)

When you say "filter", you mean the passive filter you describe on your website?

So just to be sure I understand; the plot on you page includes the effect of the filter (that's not mentioned in connection with the figure I think)? That would describe the big difference.

Also, is it correctly understood that you seem to imply that the high-frequency peak seems to be due to the Beyerdynamic earpads? If that's the case, I would love to see some plots. That's very interesting I think.

I just received a pair of DT-1990s today, and am trying to figure out what I think, and what possible adjustment options are (and how useful they would be).
 

solderdude

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When you say "filter", you mean the passive filter you describe on your website?

Yes.
green = with filter, red = stock

dt1990-a-filtered-vs-stock.png


For the DIY'er:

dt1990-filter-schematic-b.png


The filter also works for Amiron home, DT1770, DT770, DT880, DT990 (250 Ohm versions ONLY).
Also have filters for 32, 80 and 600 Ohm DT**0 headphones but the filters differ in values.
 

martinweiss

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Thanks for that clarification. Do you also have measurements with the Dekoni elite velour pads but without the filter?
 
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