I compared the DTX-300p mainly to the Sennheiser PX-200-II, which is a similar design ("closed back"), albeit the DTX-300p is about 2/3 the price of the PX-200-II on average. The DTX-300p is constructed in a very lightweight manner, and didn't look nearly as well made or durable as the PX-200-II at first glance, but that's just an initial impression and since these are both lightweight portable headphones with thin cords, the DTX-300p may hold its own in that area.
The DTX-300p has a 90-degree angled stereo miniplug whereas the PX-200-II has a straight plug. In spite of the angled plug on the DTX-300p, there is a 5 mm plastic extension ahead of the metal/electronic end so that it will fit into recessed minijacks on music players, etc. At first I couldn't get the cushions to fit properly on my ears like the PX-200-II's cushions do, but after a bit of bending and wearing the headband forward on my head to angle the earcups forward, I did manage to get a good fit. Getting a secure fit is essential to providing proper bass response.
Bass with the DTX-300p is similar to the PX-200-II, which is lighter than average for headphones priced between the DTX-300p and PX-200-II. People who like "full strength" bass might prefer something like the Sennheiser PX-100-II, which has a strong bass that's not excessive or boomy. Still, the DTX-300p's bass has a fair degree of impact in most cases, and the detail is very good.
The midrange of the DTX-300p differs from the PX-200-II in where the emphasis lies. The PX-200-II has a "EHHHHHH" to "EEEEEEE" (in English) coloration sound whereas the DTX-300p has a "AWWWWWW" emphasis/coloration, about an octave or two lower. I haven't found either one to be a problem in listening to most music, but your experience could vary depending on what you're most sensitive to. I did compare the midrange of the DTX-300p to Beyer's old studio headphone, the DT-48E (2011 version), and given that the DTX-300p is much less expensive and sounds good on its own, I'll just skip the rest of that comparison and move on to the next test.
The DTX-300p's highs are smooth, but rolled off about the same as the PX-200-II, which is down about 6 db or so at 12 khz (compared to most higher-priced headphones) when running from an iPod music player. I didn't sense a deficiency in the highs, which balance well with the rest of the frequency range in my listening tests.
My overall conclusion is that the DTX-300p's sound compares favorably to headphones costing nearly twice as much, and whereas some low-to-mid-priced headphones are picky about what type of music sounds best on them, the DTX-300p sounded good with everything I played.
In addition to the pop music tracks listed below, which I used mainly for detecting weaknesses or other problems with the sound, I played a wide variety of genres (Jazz, Diana Krall, Bill Evans Trio; Bach organ, Biggs; Beethoven 9th, Solti CSO; Chopin, Moravec; Reggae, Marley, Tosh; Country, Haggard, Yoakam; Verdi, Domingo; Sinatra and Bennett; Punk, Germs, Fear, Sid Vicious, Playpen; Medieval, Madrigali, Medieval Babes; Trance, Mylene Farmer, etc.)
The following are some of the music tracks I tested with, and the main features I listened for with those tracks:
Blues Project - Caress Me Baby (piercing guitar sound, handled well).
Cocteau Twins - Carolyn's Fingers (guitar string detail and quality, excellent).
Commodores - Night Shift (bass detail, excellent).
Germs - Forming (raw garage sound, good).
Lick The Tins - Can't Help Falling In Love (tin whistle, very clear and clean).
Lou Reed - Walk On The Wild Side (bass impact fair; detail good).
REM - Radio Free Europe (drum impact, good).
Rolling Stones - She's So Cold (bass impact and guitar sound, fair).
U2 - With Or Without You (bass fair to weak; high-pitched instruments/sibilants handled well).
Van Morrison - Into The Mystic (bass, weak).
Who - Bargain (voice trailing off: "best I ever had", good vocal harmonics).
