During a second conversation with Justin at ampsandsound I ended up with a 600 ohm version of the DT990. My Kenzie has a 600 ohm jack and he said there is a “mid-range magic” with that amp and the 990s.
I am really surprised how good a less than $200 headphone sounds out of this amp! What a deal.
The only other comparison I can honestly make is with the VCs, my only other headphones (ever). The 990s are an interesting second set for their weight and impedance matching with the Kenzie. I find them a little easier to wear as an “every day” headphone due to their light weight. There is a heavy clamp right now which I am working out.
I find them brighter than the VCs, but not quite sibilant. Certainly less slam and body than the VCs but a very balanced sound to me, and very clear at low level listening. I may experiment with some inserts in the ear cups after they have a couple hundred hours on them if they still need it.
Vocals in particular are gorgeous. Any one with a 600 ohm jack should consider these as a silly good value IMO.
They sound good also out of solid state, the Ragnarok 2 manhandles them in high gain at around 1-2 o’clock. But they sound even better out of the class A Asgard 2, it is a warmer amp to my ears and it tempers the high treble better. They do not sound so good at all straight out of my DAC, I think class D, flab, flab, flab. Horrendous really out of the DAC.
But the Kenzie is the best pairing IMO. And I actually like that they came with a long cord because I moved my Kenzie far away to get it on its own outlet so the long cord is great. Although it is noisy…
Just some feedback on a great value headphone for the right amp…
Happy listening!
