Beyerdynamic 990 Pro or Sony MDR 7506

[le_knigh]

Ok so after doing some intense bible studies about which budget headphone to buy ive narrowed it down to the Beyerdynamic 990 pro and Sony mdr 7506..

There's lots of arguements to what Beyerdynamic headphone is the best , everybody has different models some say the DT 770 has best bass response bla bla but coloured in the highs , others are saying the 990's are the best but again some are saying the 880's are the best between the 3 ??

I would be using them for production purposes and should it be a open can , semi can or closed can and why ?!


Also ive done a lot of research on the Sony MDR 7506 nobody seems to have a bad word to say about them on this forum and others in general i dont know if anybody has them and can imbark on that in comparrions to the beyerdynamic models ..

Any help be great as lookin to pick up a pair in the next week or so i suppose u just want to know your gettin best for £

[Electric_Head]

DT770 if you want closed back phones because of a louder production environment.
DT880 are apparently more suited to track of vocals and are more semi-open.
DT990 are my preferred choice because of the open back, super comfy and amazing frequency response.
Bass on the 990 is more of a real life representation imo.
It also has the largest sound stage of the 3 because of the open backed design.
Folks say the highs can be a bit overbearing but I have not noticed this at all.

Imo it's an amazing set of headphones.
I'll be honest though and say I am not objective anymore.
DT 990 all the way for me.

[le_knigh]

awesome , yea literally for home use , the read ups ive read about open cans just made me think im going to be sitting there and will hear the birds humming in the background or something ..

[Electric_Head]

They're not like that.
I can produce at home while my wife watches tv in the next room.
She will really have to turn it up for me to hear the tv.
In fact she can stand next to me talking and I won't hear her if I'm producing.
You'll appreciate the larger sound stage though.
More of a feeling of actual listening over headphone sound.
Really gives your sounds the space to move around.

[dougriley]

another vote for dt990's. i just picked these headphones up over the holidays and am very pleased with the unbiased frequency response. they're a great alternative to monitors when you don't have the luxury of playing out.

[Ongelegen]

I own both. However I use the 990's for producing/mixdown and general listening to music and the 7506's for monitoring while recording SFX/foley (occasionally I do also listen music on them). With that in mind:

The 990's have a nice wide sound stage and come closer to the sound of monitors than the 7506. The 7506's sound stage is considerably more narrow as a result of the closed design as there is complete separation between both channels. This isn't necessarily a bad thing as the individual elements of a track don't feel cramped together. You can still easily distinguish indiviadual sounds and elements. The 990 have a more pronounced high end and the 7506 have more pronounced low end, but still nice and tight.

I prefer the 990's over the 7506's, due to their sound stage, but I have had the 990's for years now and know them well. Both are great headphones though. If your looking for headphones for just producing/mixdown then I'd get the 990's. Be sure your interface headphone amp can power them properly or get a dedicated amp. If you're also going to be tracking vocals/monitoring recordings then get the 7506's, the 990's will bleed through into your recordings. If you're not going to be recording with them and you don't have the gear to power the 990's properly or don't have the budget to do so then go for the 7506 too. Your mixes will most likely come out a bit too bassy with the 990's before you learn how they sound. Once you get to know them you're good though.

Another important reason I prefer the 990's is their comfort. The velour pads are very soft and the phones don't clamp too much (I don't have a huge head though ). The 7506's don't clamp either, still pretty comfortable but not as much as the 990's. The leather-like plastic (not sure on the exact material) pad cover is ok, but I've heard that after using them long enough it starts to flake and your ears and head will be covered with this shit. The pads of the 990 seem more durable to me. They can easily be replaced for both cans though. The leather headband on the 990's can be taken off and replaced too.

And the end of the day it's not going to matter much which pair you choose. Get to know them well and you'll be set.

[le_knigh]

Thanx guys some great choice of words for me to go and indulge in ,

In respect to the Sonys 7506's is handy knowing about the vocal tracking element i was thinking later on maybe would this become a problem with the 990's but that pretty much somes it up , like i said in the beginning alot of research ive done and nothing bad about them anywhere i think couple people said the highs was abit dominent imo ud need a good set of high , gota beat to much lows, i duno ..

Never the less i feel 100% certain that the Beyerdynamics 990's are the way forward , defo am going to invest in a headphone amp i was prepared to when i set about my search and thankfully somebody sent me a great link where they build one to the specs of the phones , and suppose take it from there !

Hope this helps some other soul out because its a pain steaking decision in a budget margin so many headphones out their with alot of hype and its paid off with alitle bit of time to look and ask about..

Thanx again guys ..

[Sharmaji]

7506's sound great and are fun to work on, but they're really hyped in the lows and highs. not necesarrily a bad thing. they can get kinda exhausting after a while though.

the beyers are way less hyped and way easier to use for long periods.

[neonmansion]

i myself am partial to the ipod headphones. they have a very nice response curve.

[Electric_Head]

Neonmansion - why do you continue to troll this place?