Tygr 300 R thoughts and comparison

[Tigerleon]

 

First impressions

I got my Tygr 300 R today and I was very excited to try them out. Packaging is as expected from Beyerdynamic at the price point. No fancy things just straight to the point, they're like, - Here is your headphones. The first thing I realized when picking them up was the weight because they are very light compared to my Hifiman He400se which I daily drive. I haven't really used any lighter headphones since I used my 990 Pros as my dailies. These went bad because I kind of "soldered" or heated up the driver a bit I think causing a quieter sound on the left side and now they're lying somewhere gathering dust. (I changed the cable from coiled to a straight one). I've paired the Tygrs with my Sound Blaster AE-9.

 

One of the reasons I bought these these was because I have had a long lasting problem with my He400se since I got them.

The only problem with them is that they have a channel imbalance. I've got a quieter driver on the right side which makes imaging horrid and I have to compensate with Windows settings to kind of balance it out. The problem with that is that the imbalance doesn't go along the whole frequency graph. I think planar magnetics are prone to this, or so I've read. It is not that bad but pretty noticeable. I should've gone for a replacement but I got these as a replacement from my old He400i 2020 that unfortunately broke loose in the 3.5mm port and had no connection.

 

Comfort

Anyways. In terms of comfort for the Tygrs, they are very light and clamp perfectly compared to my 990 pros I had. My He400se would be perfect if they were lighter. The headband is perfectly padded and conforms to my head, this is personal in terms of comfort I think. Compared to my He400se the headband is much more soft. Don't get me wrong. The He400se's are comfy in another way just too heavy and it has a hard and narrow headband.

 

Talking about the comfort of the He400se, they have better earpads in terms of shape due to the angled pads, it makes the headphones sit more secure that way for me. The earpads on the Tygr's, stock, are mediocre because of the harder padding and narrow space between the ears and driver wall. I think I will eventually switch them out for Dekoni elite velour, please if anyone tried that let me know the differences. 

 

Build quality

These are built well enough to handle most things. These are both plastic and metal. The headband is metal with fake leather around it, metal yokes and the grill is also metal. The rest is plastic. They do feel hefty and durable. The pads are mediocre and I feel like they will flatten like my old 990 pros did.

 

Sound

The frequency response of the Tygr's non-EQ'd is very good and is my preference in sound signature. I like to add around 3dBs to the sub-bass and flatten out the curve/dip in the bass in the 60hz region for some music because I mostly listen to hardstyle, happy hardcore, eurodance, and a whole lot more EDM and some rock. I also EQ'd around 1k and 4k to add more detail in the mids and lower treble which they responded well to.

 

So actually talking about the sound. The Tygrs are a more smoothed-out pair of DT990 pros with a better soundstage with a little bit less detail. The way I could describe them is that they are a bit on the bloaty side in the mid-bass for people who love Sennheisers or very flat headphones. These are smooth and punchy, still maintain detail, and great at imaging with good layering. They don't have as an open/expansive soundstage as the 400se but sadly, the soundstage is more congested in a way on the 400se compared to a more deep/layered one on the Tygrs. The Tygrs have a different and lower tone in their openness compared to the 400se which makes them "immersive" when I play games or listen to euphoric tracks.

 

The actual difference in bass mids and highs is big because of the difference in the nature of dynamic and planar drivers. The 400se are much more clear and transparent and have a better representation of clean and fast bass but the quantity is very low. The Tygrs have more bass that almost drowns out too much mids but still retains a decent amount. One of the biggest differences in bass comparing dynamic and planar is the speed. The bass is definitely more punchy on dynamics so far as I can hear and know. 

The treble on these are good and not at all sibilant anymore as the 990's. Treble is also comparable to the 400se in quantity. These have a small cushion on the driver wall to help drown out the highs that are piercing which is good. My pair of He400se's actually have a grainy treble for me which is kind of expected with the pricetag maybe?

 

The way I look at both of these is that they are good for different things as all headphones are. But the Tygrs for me are better because of a more suitable signature and overall sound for me, and they are more comfortable. I just wish I didn't have that problem with my He400se.

 

Any thoughts or questions?

[rice guru]

This is why it's been the default reccomendation for me since they came out it what most gamers need at a reasonable price and easy enough to run off a dongle or motherboard where it doesn't feel like your missing out. It's honestly just the best low impedance Beyerdynamic out

[Stahlmann]

If you like the DT990 sound profile, most people forget there are other versions as the pro. The "edition" model has the same drivers and same sound profile but comes with a significantly lighter build, much less clamping force and a straight cable instead of the coiled one on the pro. It's also available with a 32 ohm impedance for those who want to plug them directly into their motherboard.

 

I'm not using it anymore, but it's by far the most comfortable headphone i have ever worn.