£300 headphone budget

[Werner Berghofer]

Tony,

Is it a giant leap or incremental Improvement.

hm, that’s difficult: I would say it’s an incremental improvement, but a very significant one :-) The DT 990/600 Ω already offers great detail resolution and juicy, sparkling sound with a fat, enjoyable bass (at least when powered by an OTL valve amp). I wear eyeglasses, so please allow me this metaphor: The T1 offers you a bright and clear view on familar landscapes (the Beyer house sound), but it feels as if the glasses have been cleaned, polished, and extra high resolution details and color saturation have been added – without any exaggeration, it just sounds absolutely convincing, effortless and naturally flowing.

And at the latest in this moment you realize: you’re in serious trouble, because there’s simply no way back for you to ever enjoy headphones of lesser quality again :-) I guess every male remembers very well that special, private moment in this life when experiencing for the first time the difference between women and girls. To stay on this topic and use female icons of the 1960s: the DT 990 might be Twiggy with just a little bit too much make-up in the face, while the T1 would be Sophia Loren in full bloom.

Your set up with dac/amp/cans is now top notch

Yes, the headphones cost a little bit more than average, but the headphone amplifier and the DAC (£ 223.– each box, VAT not included) in my opinion are inexpensive, although they don’t sound and of course don’t look and feel cheap – quite the reverse! I’m sure much better headphone amplifiers and DACs are existing, but for the moment I’m perfectly happy with the Schiit boxes. The finish of the T1 appears valuable, high-grade and sturdy, the cable is thick; some persons may feel that the weight of the cable is too heavy. Although both share the same industrial design principles, the T1 certainly looks better and more precious than the DT 990, but it is more expensive.

be great if you could do a mini review...

Gosh, even in my native language this would be very difficult for me, not to mention attempting doing this in English! There are a lot of great Beyerdynamic T1 reviews to be found on the web, written by competent native speakers.

Seems to me sonically, a good cans set up would be very difficult and expensive to equal with a hi fi.....you get far more bang for your buck-so to speak.

That's true, and with headphones one can enjoy music at real high volume late at night without causing troubles for partners, cats or neighbours. But the spatial experience when listening to speakers from the “sweet spot” still isn’t available with headphones. The “in-head location” with the T1 isn’t that strong or even claustrophobic as with other headphones, because unlike most other headphones (well-known exception: Sennheiser HD 800) the drivers are placed a little in front and more sideways of the auditory canals. And another quality still is missing with headphones: the physical sense of perceiving and feeling deep bass notes with the skin and the body.

Werner.

[technobear]

On the subject of the T1, I would add:

If you can't afford it, DO NOT listen to it

It does make lesser cans sound broken.

The sound is so natural , unforced and free-floating and the structure of the phones so solid, silent and still that I often forget I'm wearing them. They are a shear delight and I feel very lucky to own a pair.

[wee tee cee]

werner.
Thanks for taking the time to explain. I have a horrible feeling your English is better than my glaswiegan. If the jump is so great I might wait and get really serious cans....every time I listen will remind me.......cigarettes or audio.....
Tony

[Werner Berghofer]

Tony,

If the jump is so great I might wait and get really serious cans

my suggestion: Don’t wait, get the Beyerdynamic DT 990 (or any other headphone you might like) now, enjoy your music now – everything which lets you forget to think about cigarettes is welcome. Better spend the price difference for CDs or LPs.

After six or twelve months, if you’re still interested in really expensive headphones and still crazy enough to spend that much money, see if you can try out the Beyerdynamic T1, the Sennheiser HD 800 or any other flagship model available and get them. Remember how much money you’ve saved in the meantime by not smoking for six or twelve months, and remember how many hours you will have spent listening to your favourite music instead of waiting and saving money for a more expensive headphone – and longing for cigarettes ;-)

In the £ 300.– price range really excellent, premium quality headphones can be found, and you should be able to sell them easily.

With my purchase of the Beyerdynamic T1 I rewared myself for a lot of stress and ten weeks of hard work (seven days a week, at least twelve hours daily) on three book projects simultaneously. I’m not sure if getting these headphones was reasonable or wise; my DT 990/600 Ω are only seven months old. If I would not have heard and read about the T1 I’m sure I still would be perfectly happy with the DT 990.

Werner.

[wee tee cee]

Werner,
You cant buy a ticket for tomorrow..... enjoy.

[brian2957]

Hi mate , RE: PM. I wouldn't have been able to afford upgrades if I hadn't

stopped smoking a couple of years ago .

Best thing I ever did . Keep it up.

Brian.

[Werner Berghofer]

Tony,

You cant buy a ticket for tomorrow..... enjoy.

I fear my English is not good enough to fully understand this phrase that way it was intended :-(

Werner.

[The Grand Wazoo]

Don't let that worry you Werner - I haven't got a clue what that means either!

[Alex_UK]

I think what Tony is getting at is that there is no guarantee you will be alive tomorrow. Well, after a bit of thinking that's what I decided!!

[Werner Berghofer]

Alex,

I think what Tony is getting at is that there is no guarantee you will be alive tomorrow.

I see, thanks a lot for helping me!

That was also what I assumed when reading Tony’s reply, and this also was exactly what I had in mind when suggesting to Tony to purchase a good, affordable headphone and to begin enjoying it now instead of waiting for a time in the future when the more expensive headphone may become affordable.

Werner.