the t.bone HD 990D

Looking for affordable monitoring headphones ("cans") for studio tracking, I compared Superlux HD660, Superlux HD665, t.bone HD 990D, Vic Firth SiH2 and Beyerdynamic DT-770M to each other and to my DT-770 pro 80. I know, not a really fair reference, but my idea was to seek for a series of cans that would not cost more, preferably less than my DT-770 and still would have proper, useful sound quality. From the types selected, you can guess that acoustic isolation was also a desirable feature, to prevent the sound from the cans bleeding into e.g. a singer's mic and thus saving me time cleaning up tracks from this bleed. I will review all of the models mentioned, each in their own product page. Here we go for the t.bone HD 990D.

The sound is quite dull over all of the spectrum. Although recommended by Thomann for drummers, because of it's claimed attenuation of 22dB, to me, it's isolation does not really differ from my DT-770pro or my good old Sennheiser HD250 linear II. Finally, it is not the most comfortable to wear of the models compared. But it is not an expensive pair of cans either, explaining the title of this review ;-) Anyway, not my choice in this quest, as you may have guessed.

As the title says, this gave me exactly the amount of noise reduction I was looking for. That was the main factor in purchasing it, and it delivered. Sticks well to my head too!

When it comes to the sound, the elements lack a lot in the upper range. I had to add a custom software EQ with 3 wide bands (q-factor around 0.72) that boosted the 6-12KHz area with around 6dB, give or take. And no, my hearing is not damaged for my age of 43, I can hear treble frequencies around 15KHz fine, actually. This headset is just really, really wooly.

But that was to be expected. The elements go to 20KHz, which means the roll-off starts waaay before that! For mixing purposes I'd recommend something that at least goes to 25KHz, like the t.bone HD1000! But my purpose wasn't mixing, it was hearing protection and peace of mind.

And HD 990 delivers at that! :)

This pair of headphones are great for tracking, but not for mixing as the audio lacks on the bass frequencies, so keep that in mind. Their noise-cancellation capability isn't also that great --not for example at the level of a pair of earmuffs-- but still work to some level to isolate you from the environment. The volume of the headphones is definitely loud, though, which can counteract the lack of noise-cancellation. I haven't tried any other pair of headphones for drummers, but for the price I guess they're ok. A plus is the screw 3.5 mm jack and the included 3.5 to 6.35 mm screw adapter. The cable itself is around 2 m long without stretching the spiral segment. I'd recommend these but with caution, you may want to try out some other headphones for drummers before buying this ones.

I've used these headphones as monitors for myself and the musicians during recording sessions. I am a bedroom producer, but have successfully recorded vocals, guitars and drums with these headphones.

These headphones are usable specifically for recording tracks. The metronome doesn't bleed into microphones, and the noise suppression is so good you can play along backing tracks with a loud amp or drums. Unlike the isolation, the sound quality is rather terrible. It's low-mid heavy, and the higher frequencies are not too clear or present at all; these are not useful for mixing or enjoying music. They are also quite uncomfortable - the headband becomes looser over time, but wearing them becomes challenging within an hour. The curly phone cable is also inconvenient if you have to move between the instrument and your recording device frequently, but it is very useful on field recordings, though. Lastly, they are more resilient than they look, and the price tag is low, they not a huge investment.

The headphones meant for a specific task: recording and practicing. They are good earmuffs, but don't consider these if you want to listen to music for work or pleasure.

I own an electric drumkit and I wanted to practice without hearing the constant rubberpad noise. I figured that one of these noisecancelling headphones would be the solution to that. I knew that the Vic Firth headphones were really popular among drummers so I looked up some reviews. People were saying the soundquality wasn't great, but it wasn't noticeable because it was meant for drumming purposes anyway. Those Vic Firth headphones were a bit pricey for my taste, but found this t.bone version a lot more appealing, especially for the price.

When the headphones arrived I was aware that the soundquality would not be the standard that I was used to, but when I tried them, I constantly was trying to 'fix' the sound by twisting and adjusting the plug thinking it wasn't making contact properly, because it sounded like that. Later I found out that this was just the poor soundquality of the headphones. I knew the quality would be below my standards, but this was quite shocking to me. I don't know wether the actual Vic Firth ones are better, but these ones didn't live up to my expectations. On the contrary, the isolation is not that bad.

I bought these for drummers to use when I'm recording.

Good points: Noise cancellation is fantastic - almost as good as the industrial ear defenders I have lying around. They're really tight fitting too, which means moving about isn't an issue either. Despite that, they're still pretty comfortable too - you can wear them for a full day without any major issues.

Bad points: They don't sound great. They're really lacking in high-end, which does mean they don't get too fatiguing, but it means getting enough cymbals in them for drummers can be difficult. I *hate* curly cables, they're just a pain, and it's annoyingly short. I've had them for about 3 years, and a couple of bits of (unnecessary) plastic have fallen off the headband - they still work perfectly though.

Over all, not too bad. If your priority is cutting out background noise or reducing headphone bleed into close mics, they're great - just don't expect stellar sound quality.

These headphones clamp to your head like there's no tomorrow. No spill whatsoever to the outside environment and vice versa, so they are great for tracking guitars and drums to a metronome with no spill into the mics. However, after some time they get uncomfortable as they are too tight whatever you do.

Heaps of bass and not much treble make them a muddy mess, but they are listenable if you EQ them out. Lots of 100hz to 300hz, and drops out over 8kHz out of the box.

That said, they are very good for voice-over work where no spill is of utmost important, and recording quiet instruments such as acoustic guitar to a click track.

I had a pair of these which I abused for around 3 years until the left earcup broke off the headband. They had been sat on, thrown, dropped, had stuff drop on them... anything you can think of. They only bit the bullet after being carried around on a back pack for 3 years - so pretty good build quality. The sound quality lacks a bit but in comparison to the price and the total lack of spill in or out of them it makes them a handy tool to have around when you need them - not for the sound quality, but for their other talents.

I Like these headsets, if you on a budget these are perfect for the job, I own a set of these and also vic firths SIH 1 and EX29 isolation headsets, sound quality is good (note: they not produced for sound quality ie mixing or general listening to music, they are mainly for the musicians who are being recorded) I don't see much diference in quality between these and the vic firths, though I sense the vic firths maybe a tad tighter on the head giving maybe more isolation. Ill not go into EX29 as they are higher end and another story.
Anyway, when I got the T-bones along with a head amp I took them straight down to rehearsal room and did a session with the band, it was quite comical as all through the session we would be shouting at each other with the words "what?" and "what you say?" so I guess the only downfall of these as with all isolations, is a pain in the butt trying to have a conversation whilst wearing them...err more to the point...impossible...as for comfort, having eight ear rings in one ear, i never do find wearing headsets comfortable to a degree, there is nothing obvious about these and like the other headsets I have, you do tend to get a little sweaty after prolonged use of wearing.
Great headset at a great price, would definatley buy the T-bone HS990D again if more headsets were needed!