Beyer's original DT100 headphone has, for many years, been a mainstay of recording studio monitoring, mainly because of its robust construction and ease of servicing. The fully enclosed, well-padded phones help minimise spill while the robust magnetic drivers are capable of delivering monitoring levels high enough to satiate the most demanding drummer or rock guitar player. In the rare instance that a fault does occur, most of the parts can be replaced, quickly and simply, in the field. If the DT100 has an Achilles heel, it is its coloured, slightly boxy sound, so while it is a great headphone for general musicians' monitoring, it can't really be depended on for tasks involving accurate, qualitative assessment.

Now Beyer have re-developed the concept of the DT100 to offer the new DT150. A high degree of comfort is ensured by the generously padded earpieces and headband. The stereo cable is attached to the phones by a new, very chunky six-pin plug, which may be locked with a screw or left loose to provide a degree of protection if someone walks out of the room without first removing the phones!

Put them on and they don't feel very different from the original DT100s, but feed in some music and the difference becomes obvious — the sound is far more open and detailed, and because of the fully enclosed design of the DT150, the bass end is fuller and firmer than you'd get from an open-type phone. I feel that the bass end is still slightly coloured, but not excessively or offensively, and some degree of coloration is to be expected from fully enclosed designs. A nice feature is that the ear-pads can be removed for washing, and, like the DT100s, main components are field-replaceable, so it should rarely, if ever, be necessary to send the phones away for servicing.

I never really felt comfortable using the DT100s for anything other than rock monitoring, but the DT150s are accurate enough to use with confidence for monitoring acoustic recordings and even for mix evaluations. Even though I always mix on speakers, I like to run through the mix at least once with phones as any minor clicks or distortions show up so much better on phones. In this respect, the DT150s must be considered a good buy, not just for professional monitoring applications, but also for the home studio user who wants a decent-sounding, robust, multipurpose headphone.

Further Information

DT150 £159 inc VAT.

Beyer Dynamic, (Contact Details).