[Notes] Auditioning the Cute HD Set at Firestone's Head Office
This isn’t an ad—just a piece written by someone who loves Firestone, so it may be a little biased.
Feel free to skip if it’s not your thing, and of course you’re all welcome to join the discussion… @@
The older Supplier USB had a problem where it couldn’t support the Raspberry Pi,
because the Raspberry Pi draws more current at boot, and the older version limited the current,
so the Raspberry Pi couldn’t boot properly. The new version fixed this,
so on the afternoon of 5/27 I went in person to Firestone’s head office to get the upgrade done.
And because I’d earlier seen their social media manager share some usage impressions of their own products on their FB page,
I messaged them to ask if they could prep things so I could audition on the spot.
Turns out I’d have been better off not listening—one listen and it was truly astonishing…
It turned out my own Cute series still had this much room to upgrade…
This system doesn’t just drive the DT990 (600 OHM) to a decent degree;
it can even open up the HD650’s Sennheiser “veil” (it felt like it opened it up at least 70%)…
If the Cute system with the plain black cables is only a 60, then with the upgrade cables I’d say it’s at least a 90…
================================================================
T h e A c t u a l S y s t e m P a i r i n g
================================================================
The system went like this:
PC —Firestone USB cable—> Supplier USB (with a super-thick ~2000-NT power cable) —Firestone USB cable—>
BlueKey —~1000-something-NT coaxial cable—> Spitfire HD —Firestone RCA cable—>
Fubar HD (LINE IN, used as a pure headphone amp, since there was no Beyond HD to test with at the time @@)
(Both the Fubar HD and Spitfire HD were connected to a Supplier HD, and the Supplier HD also used
the super-thick 2000-NT power cable. All the above gear sat on the rack made specifically for the Cute series.)
For the whole system… I did a rough tally:
Supplier USB 2000 NT
BlueKey 3600 NT
Supplier HD 3200 NT
Spitfire HD 6000 NT
Fubar HD (Beyond HD) 6000 NT
Rack 1500 NT
Firestone USB cable *2 1200*2 = 2400 NT
Firestone RCA cable 1200 NT
Coaxial cable, call it 1500 NT
Super-thick power cable 2000*2 = 4000 NT
2000+3600+3200+6000+6000+1500+2400+1200+1500+4000 = 31,400
So expensive @@
But then I thought again… okay, take away the cables and the rack, and just use the plain black cables (call it 1000 NT total). Then?
2000+3600+3200+6000+6000+1000 = 21,800
Oh! Much cheaper!!
So, what does the above story tell us?
Three things:
- Playability. People short on budget like me don’t have to buy the whole set at once; you can pick it up one piece at a time.
Plus swapping cables, swapping OPs, reordering the chain, and so on lets you understand different gear more clearly,
and dial in exactly what you want. - The value of Firestone’s Cute HD series is actually underestimated by many people,
just because it isn’t in its best state during in-store auditions…
And the price sold domestically by the company itself is very reasonable (at least Taiwan’s price is nearly double overseas;
as for the tariffs or dealer margins in there, I won’t get into detail),
which ironically makes others think it’s “just” a cheap entry-level product… - …I’ve fallen into a huge money pit, =_=
And GG really was a prophet, @@
To drive a DT990 well, the front end really does cost a fair bit…
As they say, “A DSLR ruins three generations; hi-fi ruins a lifetime~~”
Let me talk about the overall sound signature first.
DT990 (600 OHM):
Basically this whole set has a very neutral direction, with only a bit of reinforcement in the vocal midrange.
Overall, the highs and lows on the DT990 are well controlled—not too harsh, not too much heavy bass—
and unlike some very warm pairings that make the DT990 feel like it changed its nature, losing the stimulation it should have.
Listening to vocals has a nice cohesion, and rock can get you plenty HIGH~
The area that could still be improved is the midrange, which could perhaps be pushed a bit more forward;
to my ears it’s still set a touch back, but overall it’s already very smooth~
HD650:
I’ve heard this headphone many times too, though always under audition conditions,
and I’ve also heard the Supplier HD + Fubar HD pairing multiple times…
Basically, aside from the HD650’s very mellow sound feeling a bit stuffy, that was it.
It wasn’t until that day that I understood what the Sennheiser “veil” is, and got a glimpse of the true face of the Sennheiser “ladies”~~
Vocals go without saying—superb. The overall feel isn’t stuffy anymore either; still very mellow, of course,
but it felt like a lot of previously hard-to-hear detail came out~~
Good thing I HELD firm!! Otherwise the pit would just keep getting bigger~~ Q^Q
DR150:
This one I brought along just for fun. Why?
Because on the FB fan page, that manager felt that when listening to the DR150 the highs and lows seemed pinched too tight,
unable to extend, though the midrange was very OK; so he brought out the DT990 to try…
Better not to have tried—one try and… oh! oh!!
And then it dragged me into the pit, ==
I only used this one to test what that pinched-highs-and-lows feeling is like…
After a listen, it really is suffocating, ==
And I came to understand… someone just made a headphone for under 5K, and compared to these—which, though not too pricey (?),
run about 10K for the DT990, or a few grand more to get the HD650…
it still! just! can’t! compare!!
Maybe it could punch up to something within 7K, but in potential/“hunger” (how hard it is to drive) it’s clearly not in the DT990/HD650 league.
Conclusion:
If you’re just starting out and only want to enjoy music properly…
I’d recommend the DT990, then let them fall into the pit (oops), XDD
I’d look at their budget and recommend an easier-to-drive headphone.
If they’re a bit more particular, then just grab an all-in-one like a Fubar HD or Aune T1 and listen happily…
Then I’d warn them…
- PTT has a headphone board, and AndAudio is terrifying—don’t go browsing around…
- Poking other gear with your headphones, or listening to systems others have set up, will… sigh, better left unsaid.
If you accidentally break either of the two points above…
and feel like trying more different combos, then besides the pricier all-in-ones,
I’d also suggest playing with separates like Firestone’s Cute series.
Of course you can also look around and listen more—but as with the two points above…
have you noticed the pit behind you… keeps getting bigger? (terrifying face)