Phil's Superpower of Enthusiasm

Beyerdynamic DT990 Pro (250 Ohm Edition)

March 11, 2023
[$179.99 on Amazon, purchased on sale (which they regularly are on) and renewed for $109. These are the open-backed version of the DT 770 Pro (MSRP $160). Available in 80 and 250 Ohm versions.] [March 2023]

Update September 2025:

I really liked these headphones; they were the second real pair of audiophile-style headphones I’d ever owned, and at that point I hadn’t heard many pairs of well-tuned, non-consumer headphones. In the last two and a half years, I have rectified that problem, and oh boy have these suffered in comparison. I thought these would potentially replace the 6XX as my daily desk driver, and the reality is that I haven’t used the DT 990 for anything other than conference calls in years until I picked them up last week for a re-listen.

A couple of quick updated listening notes:
- The bass is weirdly hollow; this may just be a result of the wonky treble unbalancing everything but what was a strength is not to my ears anymore. This is particularly true of the midbass, which starts to interfere with the low mids (including male vocals).
- The treble … wow, this treble is *SPARKLY* and unpleasant on about half of the things I listened to with them. Cymbals in particular are harsh and a bit clicky in places where they shouldn’t be.
- The microdynamics aren’t great; on “Angel (Blur Remix)” neither the bass bell tones nor the treble chimes have any depth, hit, or bend.
- The soundstage remains pretty good left to right, but is virtually non-existant front to back.
Volume notes (to get to comfortable listening levels for me, between 60-65 dB):
- 85% volume on the North American Apple Dongle
- 9:15 on the Nitsch Piety/Schiit Magni
Updated Scores:

Cost-agnostic: 4 out of 10 Denalis

Cost-sensitive: 5 out of 10 Denalis]
[Tl;dr: I really like these headphones. They’re not headphone I’ll carry around with me, but I’m pretty sure they’ve dethroned the Massdrop x. Sennheiser 6XX as my go-to/daily driver at my desk in my home office. They greatly benefit from external amplification, but they’re even pretty acceptable sounding with a cheap iPhone dongle. Color me impressed, especially at the price.]

Scores:

Cost-agnostic: 8 out of 10 Denalis

Cost-sensitive: 10 out of 10 Denalis

Intro.

I picked up the DT770 Pro (the closed back version of these) when I started a new job that required me to be in the office a lot (mid-pandemic). I particularly wanted them to be able to block out a lot of office noise, and they worked pretty well and I mostly liked the sound. However, unless I’m in a super noisy environment or a completely silent one, I generally prefer the sound and comfort of open-backed over-ear headphones and I’ve been intrigued by these for a couple of years. Back in January they popped up for sale around $100, so I decided to take a flyer on them.

Sound.

Excellent, especially at this price range. Stereo separation is clear without being distracting. Dave Matthews is sitting just left of center on “So Much to Say”, and you can feel the percussion shifting around in the back. Dynamic range is very good, as is general resolution and clarity. The horns on Brasstrack’s “Intro” are bright and sharp without being harsh or painful, and the bass is clean and bouncy. I used these at my office desk for a few weeks, and I was surprised by how frequently I thought I heard a noise behind me, only to discover it was just a part of the mix I’d never heard before.

Be warned, these are headphones that will punish badly mastered tracks or albums. Born Gold’s self-titled album sounds terrible through them as a result, sounding muddy and out-of-sync.

These headphones (especially the 250 Ohm version) will really benefit from an external amp to drive. The sound is noticeably more muted when using a thumb drive DAC/amp like a Dragonfly or an Apple dongle/DAC, though weirdly enough I think they do better paired with a lower-powered Schiit Hel 2E than the Asgard 2.

Treble: Super-clean and precise. Some people complain about sibilance in the treble or a little harshness, but I don’t hear it at the volumes I’m typically listening at.

Midrange: excellent. These are really good headphones for vocals. Little Simz’ voice on “Gorilla” (a track you should listen to!) is clear and forward without dominating the mix. Karen O’s voice cuts through on the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ “Spitting off the Edge of the World” despite the lush and jam-packed mix, which can be challenging for some headphones. You get real bounce and precision in “Why We Speak” by Robert Glasper, featuring Esperanza Spalding. Bassier male voices like Gang of Youths’ David Le’aupepe don’t get quite as much separation and clarity, but are still quite pleasant.

Bass: The 990 Pros are studio-style headphones so bass doesn’t get a particularly noticeable bump, which I really appreciate. Bass is present without being overpowering, and you can hear some nuances that get lost with other headphones. For example, I can hear more movement in bass-heavy tracks like Doja Cat’s “You Right” or H.E.R.’s “Damage” or Ghost’s “Bad Choice.”

Noise canceling.

Non-existent. Open-backed headphones mean you’ll hear an awful lot of your environment (and in a quiet enough one, your neighbors might hear your music too).

Build

Controls. None. (not uncommon for wired headphones)

Connectivity. 1/8” jack only, with an included ¼” adapter. Non-detachable 1M curly cable that extends to 3M.

Comfort. They’re really comfortable. My current glasses have a habit of digging into my ears and temples without headphones on, which can make tight headphones pretty painful after a short time. The way these are constructed makes them very comfortable and able to maintain a good seal without high-pressure.

Construction. These have a very similar design to the DT990 Pros. Light and made mostly of plastic without feeling cheap, with a very nicely padded top bar and soft cloth ear cups, both of which are pretty easily removed and replaced with a number of after-market options. They do not fold, and with a non-detachable cable, they’re not super easy to transport. Clearly designed for use at a desk or in a fixed location rather than while out and about.

Appearance. A stylish, classic studio headphone look. I like the black slats and the contrast to the white speakers and grey earcups.

Value.

[Update: I’d rather pay a little more for a better pair of headphones. Hell, Hifiman has a number of better pairs cheaper on their site right now, though I would never personally chooes to buy directly from Hifiman at this point.]

These are an older model, so are often available on sale, renewed, or both. At $109, these were an absolute steal.

Comparisons.

[Update September 2025: These aren’t … bad headphones, but the ~$200 open back market is crowded and I would prefer most of the other things out there over this: the Sennheiser x Drop 6XX, the Fiio FT1 Pro, the PC38X/PC37X, Hifiman’s HE-4X/400se, etc. are all better options with a more pleasant tune to my modern ears.

I stand by the comment about the 770, though; I know that people really like that headphone but for me it’s painful and harsh after a few minutes of listening. ]

In my collection, these compare most directly to the Massdrop x Sennheiser 6XX as high-resistance open-backed headphones. It surprises me to say this, but I think purely from a sound standpoint, I prefer the DT990s over the 6XX. At least with the Hel 2E as the amp, the sound is richer and fuller and more precise (though the gap drops substantially when I move to the Bifrost/Asgard 2 stack). The 6XX is a better form factor for me, particularly on the go (and the ability to disconnect and replace cables is huge!), and I think the treble is slightly better balanced on the 6XX, but I’ve been finding myself gravitate towards the DT990s when I’m at my desk.

The other natural comparison is to the Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro, the closed-back version of these headphones. The 990s blow them out of the water, sound-wise. I generally like open-backed headphones a lot more than closed-backed, and these are not an exception. I’m guessing the 770s will end up in my desk in the office where I want a little more isolation from the environment, as I cannot imagine a situation in my home office where I’d go with them over the 990s (or the 6XX for that matter). They were mostly collecting dust even before I got the 770s.

Overall.

These are a great headphone, especially at their price point. They seem to play well with inexpensive DACs/amps, and though I do think they really benefit external amplification, they’re mostly surprisingly good-sounding when plugged into an iPhone using Apple’s (oft-maligned) inexpensive dongle (though treble gets a bit splattery at even moderate volumes). They’ve been plugged into the Hel 2E on my home office desk more or less constantly since mid-January, and I think that won’t change anytime soon.

#reviews #headphones #overear #cans #beyerdynamic #dt990pro
Massdrop x. Meze 99 Noir

January 29, 2023
[MSRP $199, purchased on sale (which they regularly are on) for $179. These are identical to the Meze 99 Classics, which retail for $309.]

[September 2025 update: While the 99 Noir are still a perfectly nice headphone, the shine is coming a little off as some great closed backs have hit the market over the last year or two. In a world where the Fiio FT1 are around $150-60, I’d be hard pressed to recommend the 99 Noir for anything other than aesthetics. Also, be aware that both the head cage and the cable are WILDLY microphonic, making these a poor choice for any application where you’re moving around.

Updated scores:

Cost-agnostic: 6 out of 10 Denalis

Cost-sensitive: 6 out of 10 Denalis]

[Tl;dr: These headphones are really solid for their price range, though they are a little sensitive to DAC/amp fit. I think most audiophiles would rather spend a little more to get headphones that play more nicely with higher-end output devices, but they’re a really good upgrade option for consumer-grade headphones. I’ll definitely keep using them, and I’m curious to explore after-market cable options to see if they address the few shortcomings.]

Scores:

Cost-agnostic: 7 out of 10 Denalis

Cost-sensitive: 8 out of 10 Denalis
Intro.

I bought these initially as a gift, only to find out that they were too large (something that has never been a problem for me!). I decided to hold on to them instead of returning them as I’d been eyeing this particular pair of headphones for a couple of years based off of reviews and how much I liked the way they looked.

Sound.

Generally; really, really good. The soundstage is pleasantly but not distractingly wide, with excellent separation both between right and left but also within each channel in the mix. Sound is clear and sharp, if a little bit punchy: notes with prominent accents can feel borderline harsh at louder listening levels, particularly in the mid-bass. Dynamic range is good, and you get a clean crescendo throughout “So Incredibly Loud” by Glass Animals. The only knock on these is that they start to feel a little hollowed-out at low listening volumes, and over the course of several hours of high-level listening they can get a little fatiguing.

Also, these headphones seem to be a little sensitive to the amp you’re using to drive them and the system that’s converting digital music to analog signals (aka the DAC). Interestingly, these may be headphones that benefit from cheaper/less transparent amp/DAC combinations.

[Audio nerd interlude: the 99 Noirs are a little sharp running through a Schiit Bifrost/Asgard 2 stack, and much less punchy running from either a Fulla or a Hel 2. I think the best sound came from a Dragonfly Red USB DAC running off an iPhone 12 or 13 Pro, or maybe even running straight from the audio jack on my MacBook Pro. No, I don’t get it either.]

Treble: clear and precise, if very occasionally a little harsh on particularly accented notes. The clapping on Massive Attack’s “Paradise Circus” sound like you’re standing in the middle of the group. The opening synths on “Coffee” by Sylvan Esso jump out at you and give a real sense of motion but let Amelia Meath’s voice cut through. It’s also the first time I’ve really gotten how Peter Gabriel arranged all of the percussion on “Games without Frontiers”.

Midrange: excellent. These are really good headphones for vocals. It feels like Tracey Thorn is sitting right next to you in her collaboration with Massive Attack, “The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game.”

Bass: excellent, especially at this price range. Pretty low frequencies come through cleanly and pleasantly, even on some EDM tracks like Bondax’s “You’re So” and Flume’s “Go.” I haven’t listened to very many headphones that can really reproduce Q-Tip’s bass melody from Janet Jackson’s “Got ‘Til it’s Gone”, but these keep up nicely and cleanly. Overall, they move cleanly through mid-bass to full bass without any problems or particularly noticeable drop-offs. Every once in a while at high volumes, a note or two would get splattered, but that’s true of most headphones I’ve used and it doesn’t detract from the overall experience.

Noise canceling.

Non-existent. That said, they’re closed back and have surprisingly good isolation for a lightweight, comfortable headphone. I wore them at work a few weeks ago and didn’t realize there was a staff party thirty feet down the hall until a coworker came over to talk to me about how loud they were being.

Controls. None. (not uncommon for wired headphones)

Connectivity. 1/8” jack only, with an included ¼” adapter. The cable detaches from each ear cup, which would make it easy to upgrade the cables.

Comfort.

They’re surprisingly comfortable, even after a couple of hours. They’re reasonably light, have minimal clamping force, and fit well around my ears. They don’t’ seem to be prone to getting too warm the way a lot of over-the-ears do.

Construction.

They’re an interesting design, eschewing the standard extensible arm construction of most headphones in favor of an auto-adjusting strap suspended from a rigid metal frame a la some of the Sony headphones from the mid- to late-90s. They generally feel nice and solid, though anything hard that bumps the metal frame can cause a slightly annoying ring.

Appearance.

I think they’re very appealing. They’re a slight departure from their more expensive fraternal twin the 99 Classic in that everything on them is muted in color. A combination of black metal and dark-stained walnut ear cups make them nicely understated, and appeal to my particular aesthetic.

Value. These are a pretty good value buy at $200, and even better at $180. Generally reviewers thing the 99 Classics are a reasonably good value buy at $310, and unless you’re really married to gold fittings and lighter-stained walnut ear cups, these are a much better option.

Comparisons.

These compare favorably to headphones in this general class that I’ve listened to. They’re warmer in tone and less harsh than the Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro, my previous closed-back headphone pick (though they are substantially more expensive, with the DT 770 Pro dropping to around $130 recently).

The 99 Noir also come with a well-constructed and attractive molded carrying case that provides reasonable protection for carrying in a backpack or suitcase.

Overall.

These are really good headphones in their class and at their price point. They seem to play well with inexpensive DACs/amps, including the outputs of laptops and the dongles produced by Apple and their licensees, which has real value.

Unfortunately, Massdrop may ultimately be a victim of their own success when it comes to value. For only about $80 more ($40 right now on sale), you can get the Massdrop x Sennheiser 6XX, my favorite overall headphone. The 99 Noir are closed-back instead of the 6XX’s open-back design, so they have a niche and I’d imagine they’ll live in my desk drawer at my office for use when the cube farm gets noisy, but I can’t think of very many scenarios where *I* will reach for these when the 6XX are available.

For most people who want some sonic isolation and quality audio playback, I’d recommend these without hesitation. I am curious to get some after-market cables for it to see if that balances out some of the punchiness.

#reviews #headphones #overear #cans #meze
Phil's Top Ten Albums of 2016

December 31, 2022
1. The Range–“Potential” (electronica)
2. Brass Tracks–“Good Love” (electronica/jazz/hip-hop)
3. The 1975–“I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware” (electro-pop)
4. Dawn Golden–“Still Life” (electronica/ambient)
5. Blood Orange–“Freetown Sound” (rock?)
6. James Blake–“The Colour in Anything” (electronica/ambient)
7. Phantogram–“Three” (electro-rock)
8. Massive Attack–“Ritual Spirit EP” (trip-hop)
9. Jack Garratt–“Phase” (electronica/rock/???)
10. Various Artists–“Hamilton Mixtape” (broadway/hip-hop)
Honorable mentions:
- School of Seven Bells–“SVIIB” (rock)
- Various Artists–“Day of the Dead” (Grateful Dead covers organized by The National)
It was also a good year for EPs. A few of my favorites:
1. Petit Biscuit–“Petit Biscuit EP”
2. Verite–“Living EP”
3. The Range–“Superimpose EP”
[Editor’s note: I spend a surprising amount of time looking for these through my FB archive over the years, so I’m dropping these here mostly for my own ease of use.
Phil's Top Ten Albums of 2017

December 31, 2022
2017 was a year of change–much of it bad (pretty much everything political, other than the reawakening of liberal activism), and some of it good (new job, etc.). It was also a pretty good year for music. So here’s my top 10 (with four bonus albums) for 2017:
1. Sylvan Esso “What Now” (alt rock/electro-pop–I’ve been wanting this album for like two years now and it’s finally out and so so good)
2. The xx “I See You” (alt rock–a lot of people knock this album, but I think it shows an interesting evolution for their sound, post Jamie xx’s solo works)
3. SZA “Ctrl” (R&B–been a fan of her projects for some time, but only heard this album in its entirety like a week ago)
4. Jidenna “The Chief” (hip hop)
5. The War on Drugs “A Deeper Understanding” (alt rock–think 1980s Grateful Dead)
6. Jaymes Young “Feel Something” (best surprising live opener of 2017)
7. Gorillaz “Humanz” (alt rock/electro-pop/????)
8. The National “Sleep Well Beast” (alt rock–not their best album, but that’s a damned high bar)
9. Kendrick Lamar “Damn” (hip-hop/rap–not up to Butterfly standards, but still good)
10. The Chainsmokers “Memories . . . Do Not Open” (mostly mindless EDM/pop)
Honorable mention:
- Kaskade “Kaskade Christmas” (Christmas music. Which normally I intensely dislike. The fact that I like this really weirds me out)
- This is the Kit “Moonshine Freeze” (Alt rock–second best surprise live opener of 2017)
- Vallis Alps “Fable – EP” (???)
- ODESZA “A Moment Apart” (EDM–good, but unrealistic expectations based on his last album)
So, music loving friends and family: what did I miss this year?

[Editor’s note: I spend a surprising amount of time looking for these through my FB archive over the years, so I’m dropping these here mostly for my own ease of use.
Phil's Top Ten Albums of 2018

December 31, 2022
1. Janelle Monae–“Dirty Computer” (nothing else was even close)
2. Brasstracks–“For Those Who Know, Pt. II EP”
3. Kurt Vile–“Bottle It In”
4. The National–“Boxer(Live in Brussels)”
5. Marian Hill–“Unusual”
6. Various Artists–“Black Panther The Album”
7. Chvrches–“Love is Dead”
8. Let’s Eat Grandma–“I’m All Ears”
9. Lo Moon–“Lo Moon”
10. twenty one pilots–“Trench”
11. Little Dragon–“Lover Chanting EP” (couldn’t leave this off)
Honorable mentions (things I discovered too late in the year to really listen much, but that I’m liking a lot so far):
- Christine and the Queens–“Chris”
- The 1975–“A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships”
- Young Fathers–“Cocoa Sugar”
- Blood Orange–“Negro Swan”
It was also a great year for soundtracks–in addition to Black Panther, I particularly loved “Annihilation” (very Alt-J-esque at times), Ali Shaheed Muhammed & Adrian Younge’s “Luke Cage: Season 2”, and Thom Yorke’s fascinating “Suspiria” score.
[Editor’s note: I spend a surprising amount of time looking for these through my FB archive over the years, so I’m dropping these here mostly for my own ease of use.]
Phil's Top 10 Albums of 2020

December 31, 2022

Waiting to join an online birthday party for a dear friend, looking at a plate with five high-end ryes for my tasting pleasure (spoiler: Templeton’s 2018 barrel strength rye is better than it should be), seemed like it was finally time to pull the trigger on my 2020 top ten albums.

What did I miss? (I enjoy the new Thundercat but haven’t listened to it that much yet.)

1) “Free Love”, Sylvan Esso

2) “Folklore”, Taylor Swift

3) “Fall to Pieces”, Tricky

4) “Circles”, Mac Miller

5) “some kind of peace”, Olafur Arnalds

6) “Good Souls Better Angels”, Lucinda Williams

7) “The Slow Rush”, Tame Impala

8)- “Serpentine Prison”, Matt Berninger

9) “Womb”, Purity Ring

10) “Punisher”, Phoebe Bridgers

Honorable mentions:

1) “Have We Met”, Destroyer

2) “Golden Ticket”, Brasstracks

3) “Warnings”, I Break Horses

4) “New Me, Same Us”, Little Dragon

5) “Your Hero is Not Dead”, Westerman

Best Eps:

1) “Dear Illusion”, Adaline

2) “Flight Tower”, Dirty Projectors

3) “I Shine, U Shine”, Rimon

[Editor’s note: I spend a surprising amount of time looking for these through my FB archive over the years, so I’m dropping these here mostly for my own ease of use.]
Phil's Top 10 Albums of 2021

December 31, 2022
It was a pretty weird year in music for me, as I spent a lot of time trying to listen my way through my dad’s vinyl collection but still managed to hit more than 1,200 hours of music streaming along the way. That journey sent me down the rabbit hole pretty frequently on older artists like the Grateful Dead, the Rolling Stones, and even some bands that don’t start with “the.” Nevertheless, I found some time for new music, and here are the ten albums from 2021 that I think you should listen to if you haven’t already:
1. “Screen Violence” – Chvrches (electro-pop): I’m probably always going to put a new Chvrches album on my list anytime they release one, but this is genuinely a great album and shows growth for the band. “Good Girls” is a brutal call to arms, “How not to Drown” a really interesting collaboration with Robert Smith, and Lullabies a nice throwback to their first couple of albums.
2. “Hotel Surrender” – Chet Faker (electro-pop): always been a fan of Nick Murphy, and this was a nice brightening of his sound. I was delighted by the “Get High” EP he dropped early last year, and he did not disappoint with the full LP release in July. “Whatever Tomorrow” and “In Too Far” are highlights.
3. “How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last” – Big Red Machine (alternative rock): if 2020 was the year of Aaron Dessner’s dominance of my playlists, 2021 was not a step back. A great collaboration between Dessner and Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, with a star-studded case of features including Sharon Van Etten, Anaïs Mitchell, This is the Kit, and T-Swizzle. I particularly commend to your attention “June’s a River” and “Phoenix”.
4. “Pray for Haiti” – Mach-Hommy (hip-hop): a really interesting album from a Haitian-American taking a serious look at important social issues while also bringing amazing beats and a very distinct flow. Think less-polished, chiller Wyclef, maybe?
5. “In Praise of Shadows” – Puma Blue (ambient/electronica)”: super atmospheric and chill, particularly check out “Opiate” and “Snowflower.”
6. “Mother” – Cleo Sol (R&B, soul): “Promises” popped up on Roon and I fell immediately in love with the soulful groove of Cleo Sol. The whole album is beautiful and a meditation on life, and it’s one of the things I’ve been throwing on to unwind at the end of a long day.
7. “Local Valley” – José González (indie singer/songwriter): I’ve long been a fan of González and his projects (especially Junip), but this is all around a lovely and relaxing album (and an aspirational figure for my guitar playing efforts).
8. “El Alimento” – Cimafunk (Cuban funk/jazz/???): a brilliantly weird album with features from people ranging from George Clinton to Lupe Fiasco. It’s genuinely unique, and something I’ve been throwing on when I need a pick me up.
9. “HEY WHAT” – Low (electronic): this album will not be for everyone; some of the tracks are reminiscent of Portishead’s “Machine Gun” which seems almost designed to sonically assault the listener, but the payoff for making it to the latter half of the album is worth it to me. Picked up based on a recommendation from Sylvan Esso’s Nick Sanborn. Particularly fond of “More.”
10. “Colourgrade” – Tirzah (electronic): “Tectonic” came up on Roon radio and I immediately stopped what I was doing, sat down, and listened to the entire album. It’s definitely a little inconsistent, but it reminds me favorably of some of Tricky’s early albums with Martina Topley-Bird. “Hive Mind”, “Send Me”, and “Tectonic” are my favorite tracks.
EPS:
1. “Builder’s Brew” – All Day Breakfast Club (R&B/Funk/Jazz?): a play on the title of a Miles Davis album, this is an all-women group playing energetic, fun, power jazz/funk. Listen to “Old School Struggling” and tell me that you didn’t feel the urge to dance a little.
2. “the ‘dropped your hand while dancing’ chapter” – Taylor Swift: “coney island” will never not hit me in the feels.
3. “The Other Lover” – Little Dragon & Moses Sumney (R&B): Moses Sumney is one of the most interesting new artists for me in 2020, and he’s only getting better. If you didn’t listen to “Græ” last year, do it now.
4. “Is It Light Where You Are” – Art School Girlfriend (pop? Rock?): this three-track EP is enough to justify keeping Roon just for more recommendations like this.
5. “Forever Presence” – Jelly Cleaver (jazz): I heard Jelly Cleaver on NPR talking about “Builder’s Brew” and fell in love with her voice and sensibility.
Honorable Mentions:
- “Big Sleepover” – Big Boi/Sleepy Brown (hip-hop): so far loving this album, but really only had a couple of days with it. Not long enough to have much perspective.
- “I Don’t Live Here Anymore” – The War on Drugs (alt-rock): same.
- “Blackest Blue” – Morcheeba (trip-hop/electronica): a lovely return to form from a band I feel like I haven’t heard anything from in a long time, but haven’t listened as much as I want to.
- “Seventeen Going Under” – Sam Fender (rock): the title track (with its meditations on anger and youth) is almost good enough to make the list regardless of the album, but the rest of the album doesn’t feel nearly as strong. Going to give it some more listens though.
[Editor’s note: I spend a surprising amount of time looking for these through my FB archive over the years, so I’m dropping these here mostly for my own ease of use.]
Top Ten Albums of 2022

December 25, 2022

It’s that time of year again, so here’s my top ten albums of
2022. As always, curious to hear where you agree or disagree, or what I’ve
missed this year. Rating everything on a scale of 10 possible Denalis this
time.

Phil’s 2022 Top 10 albums

1)
“angel in realtime.” – Gang of Youths. This
album broke my heart and rebuilt it over and over. It’s a beautiful mediation
on loss, grief, parents, and purpose, and the opening track (“You in Everything”)
is on my no-random-shuffle list lest it come on when I’m working or driving or
can’t stop to listen and tear up. I’m sure y’all are tired of hearing me rave
about this album, but it’s truly an exceptional piece of art, and my life is
better for knowing it. 27.5 out of a possible 10 Denalis.

2)
“Midnights” – Taylor Swift. It’s super weird to
me that Taylor Swift makes my list again, but this is a great album. “Anti-hero”
is the track everyone raves about, but honestly I think “Maroon” is the
strongest song on the album. Not nearly as good as “Folklore,” but then very
few albums are (the first album above notwithstanding). 10/10 Denalis.

3)
“Black Radio III” – Robert Glasper. Continued
beauty and funk from the jazz pianist-cum-hip hop producer. “Shine” is a
standout track; it’s on my chill, wind-down playlist. [also, if you have a chance
to see Glasper live, take it.] 10/10 Denalis.

4)
“Palaces” – Flume. I really liked Flume’s 2014 “Skin”,
and I’ve enjoyed a number of random tracks he’s produced since then (particularly
when working with Vera Blue”), but this is simultaneously bizarre and incredibly
well planned. “Go” is the standout for me, particularly if you have speakers or
headphones with good mid-bass (and the music video is … so weird. But also
charming). “Sirens” is also great; Flume is really good at mixing ethereal voices
with technology and synths and producing mesmerizing results. Also his live
performances with Toro Y Moi are hilarious. 10/10 Denalis.

5)
“Dance Fever” – Florence + the Machine. Classic Florence.
“Choreomania” is the single, and doesn’t disappoint. Weirdly, I really fell in
love with “The Bomb” which doesn’t feel nearly as Florence-y as the rest of the
album. 9/10 Denalis.

6)
“Caprisongs” – FKA Twigs. A thoroughly interesting
mix of bubblegum pop and thoughtful lyrics. “tears in the club” is the standout
(and The Weeknd’s best work of 2022, IMO), but “ride the dragon” and “honda”
are great opening tracks and the album feels really cohesive. 9/10 Denalis.

7)
“SOS” – Sza. This dropped two weeks ago and I
haven’t had a chance to listen to it as much as I want to, but it pretty
quickly landed on my frequently-played list. “I Hate U” was a great single
before the album dropped, and it’s interesting to me where it ended up on the album
(pretty late). “Control” was one of my favorite albums of 2017 and this holds
up. 9/10 Denalis.

8)
“World Wide Pop” – Superorganism. This is my
favorite pure pop album of the year. It’s so damned weird but I really dig it.
I mean, who else samples NPR’s Bob Boilen into a pop song? The whole album is great, but “It’s Raining”
has brain-wormed me for almost six months now (and the video is a lesson in
modern music video design). 9/10 Denalis.

9)
“No Rules Sandy” – Sylvan Esso. I’m a huge
Sylvan Esso fan and their self-titled album is on my top-ten all-time list.
This is an interesting and enjoyable departure, but not quite up to “Free Love”
or “Sylvan Esso.” My standout track is “Echo Party.’ 8/10 Denalis.

10 “All for Nothing” – Lauv. Bubble gum pop at its
best. Lauv always makes enjoyable music that is perfect for uplifting
background music. The title track is good, but for my money “Summer Nights” is
the standout. 8/10 Denalis.

Honorable mentions.

These are all albums that suffered due
to getting added into my Apple Music library rather than Tidal/Roon, so they
didn’t get as much play as they probably should have. I’ve rectified that and I
look forward to hearing them more in 2023.

1)
“Motomami” – Rosalia

2)
“Surrender” – Maggie Rogers

3)
“Hideous Bastard” – Oliver Sim

Best EPs of 2022:

1)
“immolation tape” – Gang of Youths. Three live
versions of great tracks from “angel in realtime.”, plus a new (and weirdly
uplifting track) that I commend to you attention: “a shot in the arm” is lovely
and worth a listen. 10/10 Denalis, would really love a full-length live album
(and to see them live).

2)
“graves” – Purity Ring. Purity Ring is one of my
favorite bands, and they’ll always make my lists. 7/10 Denalis, would really
like another full album.
Finally, Network-Attached Storage

November 14, 2022
After more than a decade of losing a couple of days a year to fighting with and backing up crappy (but cheap) external hard drives, I have caved and purchased a good, redundant network-attached storage device. This is a Synology DS920+ (Amazon) with four hard drive bays that accept both 2.5″ and 3.5″ drives, as well as two slots for M.2 formfactor SSD Caches.
I’m currently running:
2 x 4 TB Seagate Ironwolf hard drives in a RAID configuration to automatically back up all of my computers (three macs, two PCs, and the Linux-based Roon ROCK that drives all of the streaming media players around my house).

2 x 16 TB Seagate Exos Enterprise-grade hard drives in a RAID configuration set up as a network share drive so that I can stop e-mailing documents back and forth between machines.

Is this overkill? Probably. But as the keeper of all of my dad’s photos and documents for my family, I feel much better knowing that three different hard drives would have to fail in order to lose anything (the main computer drive, the 4 TB main backup, and the 4 TB RAID mirror). Same for the FLAC files I’ve spent a couple of years ripping from my CD collection (which now includes my dad’s CDs).
I’ll do a full review at some point, but a couple of initial thoughts:

It’s really a relief, after a near miss a few months back when I thought my iMac had died at the same time as my main backup drive, thinking I lost all of Dad’s photos.

This device supports hot-swapping drives, so I may snag another of each of the hard drive types that I have and keep one cold either in my fire safe or at a different location in the event that my century old home (with some original wiring) burns itself down.

The setup is not super intuitive, but both Synology and the larger web have a lot of really helpful tutorials on setup. I think that I’m going to do a deeper dive on the security settings, particularly re: backing up computers that have a greater threat exposure.

I asked my dear friend (and network guru) Robin a few weeks ago what the difference between enterprise-grade (read: commerical) hard drives and consumer-grade hard drives was, and as far as I can tell the biggest noticeable difference is how loud the enterprise grade drives are. I think I’m going to have to build out my AV closet sooner rather than later so I don’t have to listen to the hard drives constantly thunking while backing up.

A giant middle finger to the 10+ Seagate external drives that I’ve had go belly-up over the last decade.
Beats Studio3 Wireless in Midnight Black

November 13, 2022

[MSRP $350, $150 on Amazon as of 11/13/22, paid $180 in August 2022]

[Tl;dr: These headphones are weak in their MSRP range, but if you get them on a substantial sale, they’re great for use cases where you want some noise cancelation and a more durable headset that won’t break your heart if you lose or break them.]

Scores:

Cost-agnostic: 5 out of 10 Denalis

Cost-sensitive: 6 out of 10 Denalis

Beats Studio3 Wireless

Beats Studio3 Wireless on a new ME-themed puck

Intro. I bought my first pair of Beats headphones
back in … 2014? I think? I was going on a train trip to Montana, and it was
supposed to take something like eleven hours. I had a pair of Bose QC25s with
really good active noise cancelation (ANC), but I didn’t want to deal with a
cord while I was trying to sleep on a moving train. I’d been coveting the Beats
Studio Wireless for a while (my car at the time had a 10-speaker Beats by Dre sound
system that I’d absolutely fallen in love with), so the train trek was all the
justification I needed. I then used them pretty consistently for the gym and
then dog-walking until March of 2022, when they stopped taking or holding a
charge. The Beats Studio³ Wireless (BSW) came up on sale in August,
and I decided to take another shot. Beats is now an Apple-owned brand, so I particularly
wanted to see how well they played with iPhones, Watches, AppleTVs, etc. given
the struggles the original had with connecting to several of my iPhones over the
years.

Sound. These are a mixed bag, sound-wise. The
soundstage is remarkably wide and distinct, almost to the point of detriment.
The Edge’s guitar riff at the beginning of “Pride (In the Name of Love)” by U2 is
almost distractingly far to the left in the mix, and a few other tracks sounded
… odd during testing because I was used to a less separated mix. Overall, it’s
good sound, and my impression has suffered due to the amount of time I’ve spent
listening to the (truly excellent) AirPods Max and Pro2 lately.

The bass on these is solid, though it starts to feel hollow
the farther down sound goes. By the time you hit things that would normally be
covered by a subwoofer (like the repeated five note bass sequence in Massive Attack’s
“Paradise Circus”), the sound is there but quiet and distant and doesn’t have
any weight behind it. The BSW also struggle a little bit with rapidly changing
or complex bass riffs like Janet Jackson’s “Got ‘Til it’s Gone”; the woofer is
not nearly as nimble as some other headphones in this category like the Bose
700s or the B&O Beoplay H4s. Conversely, the kind of bass you get in mid-90’s
hip hop is almost too forward: the bass in Jay-Z’s “Big Pimpin’” is harsh and a
little splattery at moderate volume listening.

Mid-range is pretty good, reproducing vocals reasonably well
though I think the resonance on male vocals is a little clearer.

Treble is generally crisp without being harsh or sibilant,
and generally well balanced with the mid-range/vocals at normal listening
levels. The BSW handles the gamut of sounds on Yo-Yo Ma’s “1B”, from the upper
range all the way down to the lowest notes, and captures the sense of urgency and
acceleration through the last half of that track. It does a good job of
reproducing the slightly-jangly guitar on Vampire Weekend’s “2021”, and even
gets the intentional splatter in the mix right.

These are definitely headphones best used at moderate to
high volumes, and for music like hip hop, EDM, and rock rather than classical,
jazz, or sparser R&B. You’ll lose a little on the very bottom-end, but the
rest will be presented pleasantly.

Standard disclaimer from other Bluetooth reviews: It’s
still Bluetooth so you’re always getting a lossy signal and it gets more complicated
when you start using the on-board mic for phone calls.

Noise canceling. This is why I bought the original Beats
Studio Wireless, and these live up to that legacy. It’s not the best ANC out
there, but it’s also not the worst. I think both pairs of AirPods do better, as
does the Bose 700s, but the BSW don’t generate any overpressure and are much
more comfortable for me to wear for long periods as a result.

The biggest knock on the noise cancellation is that there’s no
way to turn the ANC off or down; if these headphones are turned on, the ANC is
running full-power. This seems like an oversight on a pair of headphones that
retails for $350, especially because most competitors have this capability,
whether hardware (a button on the Bose 700, for example) or software or both
(AirPods let you change this either in your phone settings or by customizing an
external button).

Spatial audio. I don’t really notice any difference
between playing ATMOS tracks and non-ATMOS tracks. The BSW use a W1 chip
instead of the H1 or H2 chips you get in the AirPods Max and Pro2 respectively.
The sound stage is already almost distractingly wide, so I wouldn’t buy these
thinking you’ll get a lot of use out of spatial audio through them.

Controls. They’re really good and can be access
wearing gloves, even thick ones. The left earcup has a large button (labeled
with a “b”) that functions as a play/pause button, can be multi-tapped to skip
forward and back, and a faux rocker switch around it that controls volume. The power
button is on the bottom of the right earcup, and once you know where it is it’s
easily and intuitively accessed.

Connectivity. If you’re in the Apple ecosystem, it is
pretty straightforward. If you turn them on near an Apple device, they’re automatically
recognized and asked to pair. And once they’re paired with something associated
with your iCloud account, they’ll easily connect to everything else that is
(for example, I’ve never used these with my MacBook but they show up in its
Bluetooth list with a charge measurement). If I walk into my kitchen and want
to pull audio to them from my AppleTV, it’s really easy to do so.

They connect to non-Apple Bluetooth devices as easily as any
other Bluetooth headphone.

Comfort. They’re pretty comfortable, even after a
couple of hours. They’re reasonably light, have decent clamping force, and fit well
around my ears. The ear cups definitely get warm after a while, but that’s true
of most headphones.

Construction. They’re light and plastic, with vinyl
ear covers. The band feels more sturdy than things like the Bose 700s, but they
definitely feel like they’d break if you step on them or drop them too far.
Unlike the Bose 700s or the AirPods Max, these do fold for easy transportation
in the provided carrying case.

Beats Studio3 Wireless in Carrying Case

Charging is standard micro-USB, unfortunately. Here’s hoping
that future generations go with the USB-C standard that Apple is going to have
to implement among their branded products. They’re also relatively low-profile
(physically, not style-wise), so they fit easily under a hood for those of us
who live in a rainforest and have a dog that requires many, many walks (though
they do not carry an IPX rating for water or dust).

Appearance. They’re stylish. That’s always been a part
of the Beats aesthetic, and Apple hasn’t changed that. They come in four or
five colors, thought I don’t see their trademark red color which is a little
surprising.

Value. These are a terrible value at their MSRP of $350.
For that price, I want substantially better sound quality and much better passive
and active noise cancelation, particularly with such strong other offerings in this
market. It’s a broad category that includes the Bose 700 ($379), Bose QC35
($360), B&O Beoplay H4s ($300), Sony WH-1000XM4 ($250), and the AirPodsPro2
($240), all of which I think crush the BSW on sound quality and noise cancelation.

That said, at the $150 price range they’re at now, these are
really competitive. They’re easy to use and durable, and if I lose or break
them they’re pretty easy to replace. They’re my go-to gym and dog walking
headphones for a reason.

Overall. These are fine headphones, and I use them
daily for very specific things. I wear them for three of Denali’s four daily
walks, and they’re perfect for going to the gym because they attenuate external
noise without totally blocking it out. I will probably never grab them outside
those specific use cases because I’ve got better pairs for almost everything, but
they’re perfect for those kinds of applications and they will continue to hang
by my back door for ease and convenience.

Carrying case

#reviews #headphones #apple #anc #bluetooth #spatialaudio
#overear #cans #beats #meh