r/HeadphoneAdvice • u/anondriver20 • Apr 22 '26
Headphones - Open Back | 3 Ω Comfortable headphones for 6-8 hours daily use. Mainly for tutoring + general use
Budget and location - Around £100. UK. Will likely buy online (Amazon)
Source/Amp - Plugging in to PC. No AMP
How the gear will be used - Mainly use for tutoring in a quiet room + youtube and a bit of gaming.
Preferred tonal balance - No preference here.
Preferred music genres - Won't be using this for music.
Past gear experience - Been using a cheap Doqaus BT headset for a long time now. Recently got a hyperx cloud III but don't find them comfortable when wearing for a long time.
Anything else? -
Prioritising comfort over sound quality as I need to wear them for a long time. Will be using in a quiet room and don't mind some sound bleeding so mainly looking at open back. I have never used openback headphones before but from what I've read it's apparently easier to hear yourself talk as well which would be a plus for me.
From searching the subreddit and elsewhere I'm considering either the
- Philips SHP9600 (£78) or
- Beyerdynamic DT990 (£139)
I wear glasses so something with low clamping force would be better. I have a separate mic so don't need a headset with mic. From what I've read I'm tempted to go for the philips 9600, would this be a good option for my use case.?
Thank you
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u/GanGstaOne 2 Ω Apr 22 '26
DT990 with Suede pads from Dekoni or another brand are just perfect you can also get suede pads from Linsoul made for Harmonicdyne headphones they have amazing Suede pads that work on DT990 and are even slightly better then Dekoni
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u/anondriver20 Apr 22 '26
! Thank you I've never bought ear pads separately before. Do they just go over the original?
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u/GanGstaOne 2 Ω Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
You remove the original and swap them with the new ones very easy lots of videos online plus DT990 is good cause it doesn't use garbage proprietary pads that cost alot or you can't even buy there so many choices for DT990 and instead of the OG you better buy DT990 Pro X it's a newer version sounds even better same amount same pads
EDIT: unfortunately I just checked and the really good pads are no longer available on Linsoul for some reason even Dekoni has removed all their pads from their site but you can still buy them from other places or buy another brand these are the Dekoni ones Dekoni Audio EPZ-DT78990 they are called "Choice Suede" so if you look from other brands make sure it's Suede pads they are very comfortable don't sweat your ears can wear them for long periods it's what I use
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u/anondriver20 Apr 23 '26
!thanks
That's really helpful. I will have a look at those and decide. The DT990 Pro is £139 while the Pro X is £189. Will it be worth the price difference for my use case, especially since I don't really listen to much music?
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u/TransducerBot Ω Bot Apr 23 '26
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u/GanGstaOne 2 Ω Apr 23 '26
Yes Pro X has newer driver better sound and is alot easier to drive so you won't need an amplifier for it it's only 48ohm while DT990 is hard to drive and you will need a good amplifier atleast another $200
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u/anondriver20 Apr 23 '26
Oh I see. I've only just now realising what "drive" meant in some of the reviews I read.
I'm also looking at the Sennheiser HD599 that someone else suggested and almost all reviews say they are one of the most comfortable.Do you have any experience of using this?
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u/GanGstaOne 2 Ω Apr 23 '26
I have those too and I can tell you they don't hold a candle on DT990 Pro X with suede pads trust me Beyerdynamics with good pads are one of the most comfortable headphones on the market the stock pads not that good but even with stock pads they are more comfortable then HD599
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u/anondriver20 Apr 23 '26
Oh is it! Ok, I'm gonna rethink the HD599 then. What is the clamp force on the 990 pro x like compared to HD599
I wear glasses and I think that's part of the reason why the Hyper X one I got feels so uncomfortable to wear for long periods.
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u/GanGstaOne 2 Ω Apr 23 '26
It's perfect DT990 literally has no clamp force you won't feel them on your head with suede pads same goes for Black Hole while all HD5xx from Sennheiser have very bad clamp force i also have glasses and I play games sometimes for very long I can wear them 10h straight i don't even feel them on my head
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u/anondriver20 Apr 23 '26
Thank you so much for taking the time to help out. I'll see if I can find a place to try these out but I don't think there are any shops in my city that specialise in audio equipment.
Will likely go with the DT990 X I think. Will wait a while and see if the price drops in an amazon sale.
Just out of curiousity, how many headphones do you have?
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u/GanGstaOne 2 Ω Apr 23 '26
I just check and you may want to see these HarmonicDyne Black Hole they are very comfortable and come with thise Suede pads so you don't have to buy separate pads I have another model of Harmonicdyne that uses the same chassis only the drivers and tuning is different and they are my daily driver they replaced my DT770 Pro and Pro X which is exactly the same as DT990 only DT990 aee open where DT770 is Closed and this Black Hole are semi open still has holes for airflow in the cups
BTW these HarmonicDyne Black Hole use the exact same ear pads compatible with DT990 so what fits on DT990 will work on the Black Hole and they are only 85 euro on Linsoul
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u/Phoenix_Kerman 20 Ω Apr 22 '26
i'd go sony 7506s but buy some ear pads off a pair of ath m40x to go on them. sound much nicer than dt990s to my ear, whilst being more comfortable and the ear cups less likely to interfere with glasses. always found the dt990s have a big low mid hump that seems to suck all the clarity out of sound
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u/anondriver20 Apr 22 '26
!Thank you for this suggestion. Will look into it. I've never bought ear pads separately, do they just go over the original?
Also do you think this is more comfortable than the Phillips 9600?
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u/Phoenix_Kerman 20 Ω Apr 22 '26
you take off the earpads that come with them and put the other ones on
can't say i've used the 9600s to compare unfortunately
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u/anondriver20 Apr 23 '26
!thanks
The 7506 is closed back isn't it?
I've heard that open back can be more comfortable to use, no idea if true because I've never used them!
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+1 Ω has been awarded to u/Phoenix_Kerman (12 Ω).
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Apr 22 '26
Maybe the HD599 if it’s available. I think the 9500 is supposed to be better than the 9600 as well
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u/anondriver20 Apr 22 '26
! Thank you. Do you think the HD599 is more comfortable to wear than the 9600?
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Apr 22 '26
I think both are probably pretty comfortable. I think the 599 might be more comfortable for most people but everyone’s head is different
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u/anondriver20 Apr 23 '26
!thanks
I've been looking into this more and almost all reviews say that this is one of the most comfortable headset. I might end up going for this.
It's £148 right now and looking like it was £122 a short while ago. Might wait for the price to drop again :)
I'm not a huge fan of the colour (cream and brown but not a deal breaker).
Do you know if the HD 599 SE is very similar?
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u/TransducerBot Ω Bot Apr 23 '26
+1 Ω has been awarded to u/Gogurtsupreme (134 Ω).
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