DT-990 Pro : Okay for the price

I bought these for a friend and had the chance to use them for a few hours. I can only compare them to the Sony MDR-7509HD which I have for more than a decade and am very fond of (granted, they're of another price range but they're closed-back and of almost 2 decades old technology).

Good things first -- build quality is quite good, accessories are nice and the fact ear pads are replaceable is very useful in the long run. Too bad the cable isn't removable but given their price I think it's reasonable. Comfort-wise they felt okay, maybe a bit stiff on the ears but they were steady and you always felt like you could move around. Lastly, as an open-back design, it felt like they still provided some isolation from the environment and didn't spill too much as well.

Next, the not-so-good things -- well, I just can't relate at all with the remarks by others here about the clarity or balance of these headphones. They sound okay for the price, I guess, but in absolute terms the sound is at best muffled -- thin, lacking in clarity, transient response and bass. I didn't crank them up, so I don't know if they distort at high levels. I also felt they weren't revealing enough -- a couple of tracks I know exhibit subtle mid-range distortion in a couple of places just didn't come through. The amp I used was a Drawmer MC2.1 monitor controller, but like I said, sound-wise I'm comparing to the excellent Sonys which sound great on that amp (actually, anywhere I've used them all these years), so YMMV.

Ultimately, their biggest advantage is their price and potential longevity due to replaceable ear pads, but they just don't have a sound I'd call usable in any serious context.