Headphones and mod mics, amps, and the underestimated upgrade

TheDoc

So was doing some idle reading on reddit and long story short came across so many conversations about PC gamers buying I guess, "proper" headphones, then getting designated mic's, and running them through amps.

I'm been a Siberia V2 user for like, ten years, and might be open to this idea of upgrading to proper stuff, as it seems to have tangible benefits and bang for buck.

Anyone else delved into this headphone, modmic and amp combo?

I've very tentitvely looked into specifics, and I guess the below two come recommended, Amps seem a totally different ballgame

Headphones
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00HVLUR86/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3J6WRVT9110AE&coliid=ISM88B9UTBB5M&psc=1

Mic
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00R98JVVU/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3J6WRVT9110AE&coliid=I3UVLVWZAMEQ9X

dreamers75

Are you recording a song/professional audio on your PC?

If no you are fine with a standard headset.

If yes

go here

http://www.thomann.de/

cadete

Hyper x cloud II are just fantastic for the money, new version cloud revolver on the way aswell could be worth waiting for

TheDoc

cadete wrote: »

Hyper x cloud II are just fantastic for the money, new version cloud revolver on the way aswell could be worth waiting for

Well see this is where I've kinda had my eyes open a little.

Hyper X clouds are a Kingston rebrand of a headset that costs $40 brand new. Yet they slap their branding on it and charge €100+ : /

I had some hands on with the base it's copied from, and it was fine, very much like my Sibera. Then I was handed a set of headphones, retail around €140 and there was a massive difference. I didn't think there would be such a difference.

TheDoc

dreamers75 wrote: »

Are you recording a song/professional audio on your PC?

If no you are fine with a standard headset.

If yes

go here

http://www.thomann.de/

No, but having had some hands on with proper headsets I'm extremely impressed. There appears to be a remarkable difference, that I didn't realise there would be.

I could get by fine with a €10 keyboard, but I have one that cost €150. Because of the benefits.

cadete

TheDoc wrote: »

Well see this is where I've kinda had my eyes open a little.

Hyper X clouds are a Kingston rebrand of a headset that costs $40 brand new. Yet they slap their branding on it and charge €100+ : /

I had some hands on with the base it's copied from, and it was fine, very much like my Sibera. Then I was handed a set of headphones, retail around €140 and there was a massive difference. I didn't think there would be such a difference.

sound engineered at Kingston, they didn't just pop a sticker on there in fairness according to reports they are much better than the original qpad base, I have Astro a 50s Bose qc15 and these easily sound as good as both just offering an opinion, and can easily be got for less than €70

dreamers75

TheDoc wrote: »

No, but having had some hands on with proper headsets I'm extremely impressed. There appears to be a remarkable difference, that I didn't realise there would be.

I could get by fine with a €10 keyboard, but I have one that cost €150. Because of the benefits.

Try Sennheiser headphones far superior to the ones linked above.

No point in using a powered mic on PC unless its for professional audio as any comms software will drop the bitrate down.

We use Beyerdynamic DT headseats(€500 each) for commentating on football matches, they are amazing but for professional use (well we sort of professional)

I have the hyperx2 and it is very good, used to use Sennheiser headphones on PC and hyperx is nearly as good.

nesf

TheDoc wrote: »

No, but having had some hands on with proper headsets I'm extremely impressed. There appears to be a remarkable difference, that I didn't realise there would be.

I could get by fine with a €10 keyboard, but I have one that cost €150. Because of the benefits.

There's a difference in sound quality definitely, I'd agree with dreamers75 that spending much on a mic is pointless though unless you're recording for Youtube/Twitch or similar.

I currently use Sennheiser HD598s (colour scheme not to everyone's taste!) for listening to music and gaming. They're open headphones though which mightn't suit you. Haven't been doing anything that'd need a mic recently but I'd use some cheap clip-on mic or something if I needed it.

Moon54

+1 on going for Sennheiser headphones.
I'd definitely look at the HD598 as a serious option, especially for sound quality, comfort and long term use.

I'd had a few of those closed-back headphones like the Audio Technica ATH-M50X & Sennheiser HD280,
while they have fantastic sound reproduction, they are just not comfortable for extended periods & they're heavy and tight on the ears.
However, they are great for Studio or DJ work though, because of the sound isolation.

The Sennheiser HD598's with the Antlion ModMic would be a sweet option because the mic is detachable, so just attach when you need it.
Or you could look at the Sennheiser PC360 Game model which has a built in mic (2 x 3.5mm jacks) or the Sennheiser PC363D (2 x 3.5mm + USB).

TheDoc

dreamers75 wrote: »

Try Sennheiser headphones far superior to the ones linked above.

No point in using a powered mic on PC unless its for professional audio as any comms software will drop the bitrate down.

We use Beyerdynamic DT headseats(€500 each) for commentating on football matches, they are amazing but for professional use (well we sort of professional)

I have the hyperx2 and it is very good, used to use Sennheiser headphones on PC and hyperx is nearly as good.

DT990 were an option that arose also.

I was under the impression that the mics are vastly superior in terms of quality over headset ones?

While I don't do production anything, I stream, and considering how much i talk to mates on TS etc, I'd very much like to have the best i can get

Dair76

They were possibly linked to in the Reddit thread(s), but have a read of these threads over on Head-fi.org.

Guide to PC Gaming Audio

Headphone Gaming Guide

I've seen very mixed reviews for the Antlion, by the way. I'd probably go for a Blue Yeti or something like that myself, for streaming.

Do you have a total budget?

dreamers75

TheDoc wrote: »

While I don't do production anything, I stream, and considering how much i talk to mates on TS etc, I'd very much like to have the best i can get

TS and the streaming software will dictate the bitrate of your voice so a pro powered mic will be virtually useless in those scenarios.

Also you are the mercy of the internet with both of those so high bitrate sound on a low bitrate server wouldnt help.

I playing Siege atm with the hyperx2 and you absolutley need a decent headset for footsteps. Tested the sennheisers an they equally good for that game.

challengemaster

Depends how much you actually rely on audio to be good at the game. Sennheiser HD380 Pro's used to be used the whole time back in the day for competitive UT and quake. Sound isolation + good quality headset was essential for hearing movement across the map in terms of game sense.

That same requirement doesn't actually exist for that many games though. Even watching a twitch stream of a pro level CS:GO LAN competition before christmas, the one thing that stood out was they weren't using headsets. It may just have been THAT LAN, but they were using earphones with sound isolation headsets over top of them.

No doubt upgrading to proper stuff will give you tangible benefits - just don't expect them to be tangible benefits in games...

TheDoc

challengemaster wrote: »

Depends how much you actually rely on audio to be good at the game. Sennheiser HD380 Pro's used to be used the whole time back in the day for competitive UT and quake. Sound isolation + good quality headset was essential for hearing movement across the map in terms of game sense.

That same requirement doesn't actually exist for that many games though. Even watching a twitch stream of a pro level CS:GO LAN competition before christmas, the one thing that stood out was they weren't using headsets. It may just have been THAT LAN, but they were using earphones with sound isolation headsets over top of them.

No doubt upgrading to proper stuff will give you tangible benefits - just don't expect them to be tangible benefits in games...

I don't play games where sound makes a diff. Sure in WoW I've the sound nearly turned off. I mostly listen to music while I game.

Although for certain single player games its nice hearing the quality sound work.

But I'm not relying on a headset for competitive gain.

Burgo

I personally found the ant lion mic to be a pita to use, didnt take to long for it to just start to dip under the weight of itself, something like a Blue Ice I found to be a hell of a lot better for a similar price, even prefer my zalman clip on to it.

Slippin Jimmy

I am looking to upgrade my pc desk chair , so I presume here would be a good place to ask. Does anyone have any recommendations? I've looked on Amazon but most of the chairs I was interested in did not allow shipping to Ireland.

TheDoc

Slippin Jimmy wrote: »

I am looking to upgrade my pc desk chair , so I presume here would be a good place to ask. Does anyone have any recommendations? I've looked on Amazon but most of the chairs I was interested in did not allow shipping to Ireland.

IKEA Markus is a well recommended chair, that comes with a ten year warranty. Using one myself for years, and you'll rarely find anyone with a bad thing to say about it. Also comes in loads of options and varients now.

DXRacer is a brand that can get some flak due to their pricing and marketing(at the impressionable teenage gamer) but having now had some experience using one(friend bought one) they are actually really impressive and comfortable. Still think they are widly overpriced, but then they are I believe hand made one by one, hence the high cost price.

IKEA Markus for what is around €120-140 is a pretty nice price point for a comfortable, durable chair

ED E

Definitely spend for good cans, but really once you have a decent mic anything else is wasted due to compression.

I use DT990s powered by an E10 and a ModMic. Works the treat. A desk mic might be cleaner, but depends on how much ambient noise there is.

TheKells

Slippin Jimmy wrote: »

I am looking to upgrade my pc desk chair , so I presume here would be a good place to ask. Does anyone have any recommendations? I've looked on Amazon but most of the chairs I was interested in did not allow shipping to Ireland.

overclockers doing free postage on gaming chairs atm

TheDoc

ED E wrote: »

Definitely spend for good cans, but really once you have a decent mic anything else is wasted due to compression.

I use DT990s powered by an E10 and a ModMic. Works the treat. A desk mic might be cleaner, but depends on how much ambient noise there is.

DT990's seem to keep coming up in the conversations alright.

E10 is an amp is it ?

strelok

TheDoc wrote: »

IKEA Markus is a well recommended chair, that comes with a ten year warranty. Using one myself for years, and you'll rarely find anyone with a bad thing to say about it. Also comes in loads of options and varients now.
IKEA Markus for what is around €120-140 is a pretty nice price point for a comfortable, durable chair

I had the markus recommended to me loads of times but it just looks kinda ****e on video and in pictures so I kept looking elsewhere, until i just went up to ikea one day to get a desk and actually sat it one. Wonderful chairs, nicest I've owned and super comfortable.

if I was ever getting a new chair it'd be a markus, or one of them super fancy aeron ones if I was, for some reason, rich .

fad460

If you're looking to buy one for gaming, look for Razer Kraken 7.1 Chroma!

My experience is beyond amazing!

Read the reviews first though.

Best of luck

TheDoc

fad460 wrote: »

If you're looking to buy one for gaming, look for Razer Kraken 7.1 Chroma!

My experience is beyond amazing!

Read the reviews first though.

Best of luck

Thanks for the suggestion, but I won't be investing in any Razer product

ED E

TheDoc wrote: »

DT990's seem to keep coming up in the conversations alright.

E10 is an amp is it ?

Yep, the Fiio E10. Technically its a portable AMP/DAC but it works just fine on the desktop and is more than plenty to drive the 250 Ohm (x2) drivers.

Mine are the DT990 Pros, open back obviously so only for use at home but really true to source sound. None off the bass on steroid crap you'll get from "gaming" headsets.



Nobody takes Razer seriously it seems as I can't find any response tests for them. Says it all really.

TheDoc

OK that is a combination I've been recommended a lot.

In terms of a modmic, are they all the same? Can't really recycle my steelseries ones since I wouldnt hang them around my neck, and on my desk will probably pick up all my mechanical keyboard strokes.

TheDoc

OK that is a combination I've been recommended a lot.

In terms of a modmic, are they all the same? Can't really recycle my steelseries ones since I wouldnt hang them around my neck, and on my desk will probably pick up all my mechanical keyboard strokes.

Shiminay

Yea, I have a Blue Snowball mic (for podcasting) and it picks up everything from my keyboard (Cherry MX brown switches). I'd say that's always going to be an issue though.

TheDoc

Hey guys. Just back on this topic

If I was to invest in some nice headphones, should I really pair it up with an amp thing, or a soundcard?

Would I notice a massive difference without?

I'm using a MSI B85-G41-PCMate ATX Motherboard, not sure what the onboard sound is like compared to a dedicated soundcard

TheDoc

Hey guys. Just back on this topic

If I was to invest in some nice headphones, should I really pair it up with an amp thing, or a soundcard?

Would I notice a massive difference without?

I'm using a MSI B85-G41-PCMate ATX Motherboard, not sure what the onboard sound is like compared to a dedicated soundcard

gizmo

TheDoc wrote: »

Hey guys. Just back on this topic

If I was to invest in some nice headphones, should I really pair it up with an amp thing, or a soundcard?

Would I notice a massive difference without?

I'm using a MSI B85-G41-PCMate ATX Motherboard, not sure what the onboard sound is like compared to a dedicated soundcard

It really does depend on whether your headphone of choice need an amp to be driven effectively. For instance, one of the reasons I went for my Audio Technica ATH-A900s was because they did not require an amp to shine. When I did my last upgrade I picked up an Creative Labs ZXR since it came with a reasonable headphone amp built in which was then enough to power my new pair of Mad Dog headphones while still leaving me some room to upgrade down the line to get a bit extra out of them.

In your case, if you're going for the DT990s, there are three versions to choose from; the 32Ohm, 250Ohm and the 600Ohm models. Which one you go for will dictate your amp requirements. From what I've read, the former can do without an amp, the 250Ohm model can be powered by something like an Asus Xonar DG/X at high volumes or alternatively one of the Fiio series as ED E said above, whereas the last one can be a bit picky with what amp it requires.

nesf

As gizmo said it comes down to the impedence. Plug 250 Ohm headphones into onboard sound and they will be *very* quiet. Plugging 32 Ohm headphones into an 200 Euro external Amp/DAC is unlikely to make them sound much better unless there's something wrong with your onboard (happens but rare).

TheDoc

So maybe pairing a pair of DT990's with a Asus Xonar DSX 7.1 PCI Express 1.0 Sound Card would be a good shout?

Skerries

lads save yourself a fortune

TheDoc

Still undecided on this one.

Sennheisers new GAME ON headset has got some FIERCE good reviews, with many saying it debunks the myth that the best setup is a headset and modmic. Price wise its looking very attractive also, but again I'm stuck and suffering trying to understand if I need to look into DAC/Amps or soundcards etc.

I've narrowed down my headset choice to between:

Sennheiser GAME ONE
Audio-Technica ATH-M50X
Beyerdynamic DT990 PRO Headset

The two latest seem to be coming down in price, to the point where the Beyer are now only €120. The Sennheiser looks like it might set me back around close to €200.

Budget isn't the definitive in this, I just want to make sure I'm getting a genuine upgrade and noticable improvement over my Steelseries Siberias, and would be gutted to drop €200-300 and not really get any gains or notice anything different.

gizmo

TheDoc wrote: »

Still undecided on this one.

Sennheisers new GAME ON headset has got some FIERCE good reviews, with many saying it debunks the myth that the best setup is a headset and modmic. Price wise its looking very attractive also, but again I'm stuck and suffering trying to understand if I need to look into DAC/Amps or soundcards etc.

That's not really surprising since a decent set like that from Sennheiser essentially is just a good set of headphones and a good mic. The only downside is that you'll be paying a bit extra for the privilege but I would't discount the GAME ONE because of that rule or anything.

As for the DAC/Amp issue, it doesn't look like the set would require an amp but if you're spending that much on headphones it'd be a shame to just use it with on-board audio imo.

TheDoc wrote: »

I've narrowed down my headset choice to between:

Sennheiser GAME ONE
Audio-Technica ATH-M50X
Beyerdynamic DT990 PRO Headset

The two latest seem to be coming down in price, to the point where the Beyer are now only €120. The Sennheiser looks like it might set me back around close to €200.

Budget isn't the definitive in this, I just want to make sure I'm getting a genuine upgrade and noticable improvement over my Steelseries Siberias, and would be gutted to drop €200-300 and not really get any gains or notice anything different.

For what it's worth, when I was looking into a new set of closed back headphones that were good for gaming and in that price range, the AKG K550 came out on top when compared to the ATH-M50X. Also, why the mix between open and closed back? It may help your decision making process if you narrowed that part down at least

TheDoc

gizmo wrote: »

That's not really surprising since a decent set like that from Sennheiser essentially is just a good set of headphones and a good mic. The only downside is that you'll be paying a bit extra for the privilege but I would't discount the GAME ONE because of that rule or anything.

As for the DAC/Amp issue, it doesn't look like the set would require an amp but if you're spending that much on headphones it'd be a shame to just use it with on-board audio imo.


For what it's worth, when I was looking into a new set of closed back headphones that were good for gaming and in that price range, the AKG K550 came out on top when compared to the ATH-M50X. Also, why the mix between open and closed back? It may help your decision making process if you narrowed that part down at least

Yeah, in the last few hours I decided to give open back a whirl, which immediatelly narrowed me down

So my focus is now either

Sennheiser HD598's + modmic
Sennheiser GAMING ONE

I'll look at an AMP down the line as a future upgrade, but appears I'll be onto a winner with one or the other.

nesf

I used the Sennheiser PC360 headphones before. I really liked them, the mic was excellent. Far better than any other headset I tried. I think the ones you're looking at are really similar. If I was looking to go back to using a headset a lot Sennheiser would be my first brand to check.

TheDoc

Well this is just typical.

I've settled on the Sennheiser HD598's. And today, they are down nearly €100 on Amazon....

Hate when this happens. This upgrade is planned around a bonus payment coming early April. Maybe with the emergence of Sennheisers new range and stuff, these might drop permanently.

nesf

TheDoc wrote: »

Well this is just typical.

I've settled on the Sennheiser HD598's. And today, they are down nearly €100 on Amazon....

Hate when this happens. This upgrade is planned around a bonus payment coming early April. Maybe with the emergence of Sennheisers new range and stuff, these might drop permanently.

I've seen their price down that low a few times before so I'd expect something similar again over the next few months. If you're patient you can normally pick up a good discount on Sennheiser stuff I've found.

gizmo

Yup, I wouldn't worry too much TheDoc, check out the pricing fluctuations here.

As long as you're flexible by a couple of weeks you should be able to pick them up for a good price.

TheDoc

Really should add them to my camelcamel watchlist.

TheDoc

Never actually endedup buying. I hadnt the money to go on the HD598's at that low price, and then they went up to €200+ and havnt come down since.

With the few bob gathered this christmas, I'm toying with the idea of giving it another whirl. But looking around, not seeing much value in terms of sales or anything.

I'm a bit back at the drawing board though. Concerned about my original open back plan. New baby has arrived now on the scene, and I'm getting some moaning about my keyboard, so can only imagine an open back set of headphones would be even louder again, nevermind films or games with explosions or gunfire and the likes. Although I'm somewhat wondering if they are as loud as I maybe think they are?

neGev

I wouldn't worry a massive amount about the fact that they're open backed. Some sound will leak, sure, but I don't think it would be more disruptive than a mechanical keyboard. If you're concerned though, there are HD598 Cs that seems to be pretty much the same as the HD598s, just closed back. They were on offer at £89 a while before Christmas, so you may be able to nab them for that price sometime soon.

Congrats on the baby!

ED E

Skerries wrote: »

lads save yourself a fortune
http://i.imgur.com/iZZQdUE.jpg?1

You're posting here long enough to know to change http://i.imgur.com/iZZQdUE.jpg?1 to http://i.imgur.com/iZZQdUEl.jpg Skerries!

TheDoc

Absolute revival, but figure might be better shout keeping up this thread as opposed to starting all over again!

So would you believe, I never got around to doing this. I kinda caved and bought a Kingston Hyper X Cloud as I wanted my money to go elsewhere in my PC and after a year of use, just want rid. Not comfortable for long periods, the mic was utterly atrocious and I was waiting for two firmware updates to update and just want rid. I'm planning a new desk refresh and as part of it want to tackle my audio setup.

So I've pretty much nailed down my mic being a Blue Snowball iCE Microphone. Will put it onto a desk arm.

Prices for headphones seems to still be a bit all over the place. And Don't think I ever fully understood if I need an amp or not, but I guess general consense is get one.

Microphone
DT 990 Pro
DAC/AMP

Coming in around €220 which to be fair is probably more than I'd like. I love listening to music, I obviously like or need good sound quality in my games, bu tI don't know from sampling stuff from a bother in law who's career is music, if I can really appreciate or even notice all the "audiophile" stuff.

I probably would be a bit annoyed if I dropped €200 on this setup to just be like " meh". But considering since I binned my Siberia V2's I've gone through 4 different headsets or inears, maybe do want to nail it down to just buy right once and not come back on it until years later.

madcabbage

Would you not consider a Neewer Nw-700 mic? £20 for the mic with arm kit. Now saying that, I'm running it XLR on a Scarlett 2i2 and am constantly being complimented on mic quality when gaming. Not too sure how it would sound via USB though.

TheDoc

TheDoc wrote: »

Absolute revival, but figure might be better shout keeping up this thread as opposed to starting all over again!

So would you believe, I never got around to doing this. I kinda caved and bought a Kingston Hyper X Cloud as I wanted my money to go elsewhere in my PC and after a year of use, just want rid. Not comfortable for long periods, the mic was utterly atrocious and I was waiting for two firmware updates to update and just want rid. I'm planning a new desk refresh and as part of it want to tackle my audio setup.

So I've pretty much nailed down my mic being a Blue Snowball iCE Microphone. Will put it onto a desk arm.

Prices for headphones seems to still be a bit all over the place. And Don't think I ever fully understood if I need an amp or not, but I guess general consense is get one.

Microphone
DT 990 Pro
DAC/AMP

Coming in around €220 which to be fair is probably more than I'd like. I love listening to music, I obviously like or need good sound quality in my games, bu tI don't know from sampling stuff from a bother in law who's career is music, if I can really appreciate or even notice all the "audiophile" stuff.

I probably would be a bit annoyed if I dropped €200 on this setup to just be like " meh". But considering since I binned my Siberia V2's I've gone through 4 different headsets or inears, maybe do want to nail it down to just buy right once and not come back on it until years later.

Is it ok for me to lead you to the Selling PC gear thread? I have one for sale.

Mr Crispy

TheDoc wrote: »

Absolute revival, but figure might be better shout keeping up this thread as opposed to starting all over again!

So would you believe, I never got around to doing this. I kinda caved and bought a Kingston Hyper X Cloud as I wanted my money to go elsewhere in my PC and after a year of use, just want rid. Not comfortable for long periods, the mic was utterly atrocious and I was waiting for two firmware updates to update and just want rid. I'm planning a new desk refresh and as part of it want to tackle my audio setup.

So I've pretty much nailed down my mic being a Blue Snowball iCE Microphone. Will put it onto a desk arm.

Prices for headphones seems to still be a bit all over the place. And Don't think I ever fully understood if I need an amp or not, but I guess general consense is get one.

Microphone
DT 990 Pro
DAC/AMP

Coming in around €220 which to be fair is probably more than I'd like. I love listening to music, I obviously like or need good sound quality in my games, bu tI don't know from sampling stuff from a bother in law who's career is music, if I can really appreciate or even notice all the "audiophile" stuff.

I probably would be a bit annoyed if I dropped €200 on this setup to just be like " meh". But considering since I binned my Siberia V2's I've gone through 4 different headsets or inears, maybe do want to nail it down to just buy right once and not come back on it until years later.

I would try the headphones without the amp first - if you're just using the cans for music while you game (or "general" gaming), they might be good enough alone. This of course is largely dependent on your motherboard - some of the more recent ones have half-way decent audio circuitry/components, although some of the lower end mobos have pretty naff codecs and amps.

Anyway, if you then find your audio a bit lacking still, it's no hassle to get an amp after the fact - not like you'll have to open up the PC for installation or anything, like ya would with a soundcard for example. So nothing to lose by waiting when it comes to an amp.

In addition to all of this, nobody can tell you what you think will sound good anyway. HRTF plays a huge role from what I can see, or rather hear, and everyone will have their own take on things.

TheDoc

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Is it ok for me to lead you to the Selling PC gear thread? I have one for sale.

If your selling the mic, I’m watching your ad

dreamers75

TheDoc wrote: »

Absolute revival, but figure might be better shout keeping up this thread as opposed to starting all over again!

So would you believe, I never got around to doing this. I kinda caved and bought a Kingston Hyper X Cloud as I wanted my money to go elsewhere in my PC and after a year of use, just want rid. Not comfortable for long periods, the mic was utterly atrocious and I was waiting for two firmware updates to update and just want rid. I

Hyper X or Hyper X2 ? Pretty sure mine and everyone else posts on this were for the x2?

Mine is still going grand 3 years later.

Skerries

I have 2 pairs but the first is doing that thing where they only work properly if the audio jack is pulled halfway out of the connection