bradman
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Post by bradman on Nov 27, 2015 17:49:54 GMT -5
I bought a pair today myself, but I'm gonna use them for in-home music through an AVR. I wanted some open backs to go with my closed back Sony MDR-V6s.
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Post by Pegasus Actual on Nov 27, 2015 17:53:42 GMT -5
malgato, well, it's not really a splitter, but I digress. Uhh. The audio quality is ok, but the positional sound isn't good. I mean, if you ever played with headphones in standard stereo you should have an idea of how it works. It's just disorienting to hear a sound in the world completely in one ear and not at all in the other. As for volume, the max isn't super loud but should be good enough. Might be tough to get game volume and chat volume kind of loud. I don't know, haven't been able to test that yet. I have the chat adapter thing, not the built in mic port. I think with the built in it will be annoying to adjust volume (I guess you have to do it through the party app or something? I don't know, sounds bad though). Slick, there are a few different ModMics, but the current 4.0 version is unidirectional, and I haven't had any bleed issues whatsoever. I mounted mine right in front of where the headphone cable plugs in. Works great. Maybe with an older omnidirectional ModMic it might be a problem, I don't know.
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malgato
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Post by malgato on Nov 27, 2015 18:13:05 GMT -5
malgato, well, it's not really a splitter, but I digress. Uhh. The audio quality is ok, but the positional sound isn't good. I mean, if you ever played with headphones in standard stereo you should have an idea of how it works. It's just disorienting to hear a sound in the world completely in one ear and not at all in the other. As for volume, the max isn't super loud but should be good enough. Might be tough to get game volume and chat volume kind of loud. I don't know, haven't been able to test that yet. I have the chat adapter thing, not the built in mic port. I think with the built in it will be annoying to adjust volume (I guess you have to do it through the party app or something? I don't know, sounds bad though). Slick, there are a few different ModMics, but the current 4.0 version is unidirectional, and I haven't had any bleed issues whatsoever. I mounted mine right in front of where the headphone cable plugs in. Works great. Maybe with an older omnidirectional ModMic it might be a problem, I don't know. Sorry, meant to say Sennheiser PCV 05 Combo Audio Adapter. I said splitter because I'm lazy and also don't care if it is technically not a splitter.
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malgato
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Post by malgato on Nov 27, 2015 18:14:58 GMT -5
I have the chat adapter, so that will suffice for volume control for now. I'm sure I'll eventually get a mixamp, so maybe I just need to do that now. I want superior sound whoring.
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Post by Pegasus Actual on Nov 27, 2015 18:37:43 GMT -5
Sorry, meant to say Sennheiser PCV 05 Combo Audio Adapter. I said splitter because I'm lazy and also don't care if it is technically not a splitter. Well, I mean, you don't have to go all specific. It's just combining them to a four contacts. Nothing super exciting. Though I guess Apple wires their contacts backwards or it just never got standardized or something. Mostly bullshit. I think my MixAmp came with the appropriate adapter. Or maybe they nickel-and-dimed me and I ordered it alongside the MixAmp for convenience. I forget, it was the 2010 model I think, point there being that it and my Sennheisers have lasted very nicely.
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Post by GodMars on Nov 27, 2015 20:18:44 GMT -5
Those Sennhys will go well with a MixAmp and a ModMic, though the wire clutter is a bit annoying. Not big on bass though if that's your thing. That's my setup, and I love it.
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Post by illram on Nov 27, 2015 21:15:49 GMT -5
The wire clutter just from my xim already kills me.
How does the normal mixamp set up work with a modmic? TOSlink from XBone to Mixamp, headphones and modmic from mixamp?
I notice there is a mixamp now that just hooks right into the bottom of the Xbone, which might eliminate some clutter. Anyone use that?
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Post by GodMars on Nov 27, 2015 21:37:51 GMT -5
I don't use an Xbox so I can't really speak to that setup. However, the ModMic comes with clips that are used to secure the two cables to one another, eliminating any potential mess.
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Post by illram on Nov 28, 2015 2:24:16 GMT -5
Got these same day delivery via Amazon. USA#1
These Sennheisers sound pretty dope. What audio presets are you guys using? I'm trying them all and reddit forums said "supercrunch" was best for headphones, but that sort of sounds crappy to me. "Headphones" just seems to make everything louder, "Treyarch Mix" seems a little muffled, and high boost I cannot really tell what the difference is. I should probably try them on the same map, I only switch once per game and each map sort of has a different sound to it, maybe that's why I can't really figure out which one I like...
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Post by GodMars on Nov 28, 2015 6:07:43 GMT -5
Supercrunch for soundwhoring. I tested the settings out with Jonesy.
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tooros
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Post by tooros on Nov 28, 2015 6:50:31 GMT -5
'Super crunch' instead of 'headphones?' Interesting. In my first evening's play last night I was on 'headphones' - seemed OK. I'll swap over tonight.
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Post by onemoremile on Nov 28, 2015 12:15:31 GMT -5
Have you guys found better results keeping in game volume maxed or having in game volume slider halfway down (or any variation of lower) and keeping the mixamp volume higher?
My setup is the mixamp 5.8 and ad700x headphones.
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Gamma
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Post by Gamma on Nov 28, 2015 13:03:23 GMT -5
Do not ever get tritton/turtlebeach/astro (the mixamp is good though!). If you have some time to read, you should really read this: www.head-fi.org/t/534479/mad-lust-envys-headphone-gaming-guide-5-31-2015-beyer-cop-and-shure-1540-addedTldr; audiophile headphones are always better for sound-whoring than gaming headphones. The drawback is that you have to work with a seperate mic allot of the time (although there are some sennheisers for example including a mic). You always want an open back headphone, unless you are in the same room as somebody else who is trying to sleep. I appreciate the response, about to read the guide now! Is Astro's mixamp the best to buy along with audiophile headphones? Or is there a better, more cost-effective suggestion?
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Post by xFEARtheSHIELDx on Nov 28, 2015 14:12:09 GMT -5
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Post by GodMars on Nov 28, 2015 15:09:25 GMT -5
So I did a little bit of reading before buying those sennheisers and people were saying that unlike some other higher end headphones, it's not a huge loss if you don't run a headphone amp with these. And yeah don't expect big artificial bass. People were saying they had good sound even just from an mp3 player using the included headphone jack adapter. And for a $100, it's worth a try to see if I can even really tell the difference. From what I can tell they have never been this cheap. I have no idea how they would do coming out of the xbox controller, my guess is no worse than just sticking it in your phone. My Mixamp has an easier time powering the Senns than the Astros that came with it. True story.
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qupie
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Post by qupie on Jan 12, 2018 8:39:08 GMT -5
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markopolo
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Post by markopolo on Jan 12, 2018 12:57:06 GMT -5
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Post by illram on Jan 13, 2018 4:04:27 GMT -5
Wow I have heavily sunk into the headphone rabbit hole since posting in this thread 3 years ago. 'Twas a simpler time...
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qupie
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Post by qupie on Jan 15, 2018 5:51:48 GMT -5
Oops, it is sent from UK though, so you should be able to find the same link in EN illram , please share your knowledge I have used my receiver in the past, but since my home cinema got an extensive upgrade, all my speakers now have their own amps. Therefore I bought the mixamp, to go with my AKG. Still figuring out the mic part though. I hope I can just use the one that came with my ps4.
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Post by illram on Jan 15, 2018 23:48:42 GMT -5
Happy to discuss anything. (Are you also at head-fi? Me too.) My current setup is a SoundBlaster X7 with a variety of headphones in one room (currently trying out the Audeze LCD2 Classic; I have a ton of headphones, sort of am on an obsessive quest to try everything), and a Soundblaster E5 connected to a Koss ESP950 electrostat in another. The E5 works only for PC surround sound, it cannot decode Dolby 5.1 unlike the X7, but I have found that Windows Sonic on Xbox has been improving in the number of games that support it, for instance Infinite Warfare recently became compatible so it is serviceable. The ESP 950 is an amazing headphone (that hardly anyone has heard of) once you EQ it slightly. Near the same level of high end Stax at 1/5th the price (if you wait for the Massdrop drop).
I have a Smyth Realiser A16 on the way which should be a game changer. Virtual surround in games has become a personal obsession of mine, when it works well it is really spectacular.
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qupie
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Post by qupie on Jan 16, 2018 4:56:16 GMT -5
Whoah you certainly took a plunge in the rabbit hole. I am glad I stopped browsing Head-fi after I bought my latest pair lol.
X7 seems super interesting to me, but simply too expensive. I just bought some new stereo speakers which were a pretty big ding in my budget.
Smyth A16, never heard of it but sounds really interesting. Can you change the head tracking to in game tracking or something? Or is this just a nice little side project for movies and the like?
What do you prefer for the setting of dolby headphones? Are there also 3 stages on the X7? My old receiver had, and mixamp has too I guess?
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Post by illram on Jan 16, 2018 13:02:38 GMT -5
The A16 headtracker is for following your head around the virtual surround room that it creates. So if I am staring at my TV and a sound is coming from my right, and I look to my right, the sound will then be coming in the front in my headphones. It maintains the illusion of the surround room. So, it will work in games that support surround sound since it is just about the audio.
On the X7 I use its SBX software which is different from Dolby Headphones. Dolby headphones is just a software algorithm for virtual surround; Dolby Digital is for bitstreaming (compressing) a 5.1 speaker surround signal, which some virtual surround devices, such as the X7, can decode. I set it to "100% surround" for maximum soundwhoring. I don't know what you mean by stages?
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Will
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Post by Will on Jan 16, 2018 17:55:25 GMT -5
I currently use 2nd gen Astro a50s. I have the optical cable coming in from my Xbox One for game audio, and the USB plugged into my laptop to use Discord for chat. It works for what I do, and allows me to be truly wireless (not the fake wireless that Astro falsely advertised - requiring your headset to be tethered to your controller). I would definitely not recommend Astros to anyone - they simply are not anywhere near good enough quality to justify the price, and their customer service is doggy doo-doo
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Post by illram on Jan 17, 2018 0:11:05 GMT -5
There are not many options for true wireless gaming audio + chat on the Xbox other than the "gamer" brands.
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qupie
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Post by qupie on Jan 17, 2018 5:39:30 GMT -5
The A16 headtracker is for following your head around the virtual surround room that it creates. So if I am staring at my TV and a sound is coming from my right, and I look to my right, the sound will then be coming in the front in my headphones. It maintains the illusion of the surround room. So, it will work in games that support surround sound since it is just about the audio. On the X7 I use its SBX software which is different from Dolby Headphones. Dolby headphones is just a software algorithm for virtual surround; Dolby Digital is for bitstreaming (compressing) a 5.1 speaker surround signal, which some virtual surround devices, such as the X7, can decode. I set it to "100% surround" for maximum soundwhoring. I don't know what you mean by stages? There are 3 DH stages/settings on most devices. But since you say the X7 uses different software, it is probably not on there. The stages stand for the room size you want to mimic with the algorithm. DH1 is a small room, DH2 is a medium room and DH3 is a large room. DH2 gives more soundwhoring benefits over DH1. DH3 is often seen as too artificial to be benificial, but for some people/headphones it works better than DH2. That is where I was comming from I don't think I mind the wires, and I wouldn't mind wiring between headphones and controller at all tbh. Astro is a super shitty brand for headphones, but the mixamp I have only heard good stuff about (only low power will be a problem, but I will daisy chain my Fiio with it for some extra power (My AKG has a pretty high resistance)). Is the X7 capable of decoding DTS too? Sad it doesn't have a HDMI input tbh, would be nice if you could sent true multi channel audio instead of bitstream to it.
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Post by illram on Jan 17, 2018 17:43:45 GMT -5
No DTS on the X7. A16 will be able to do it and has HDMI inputs, and they actually measured the input lag at 3ms which is great.
Is there any headphone software for virtualizing DTS? (Turtle Beach?)
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qupie
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Post by qupie on Jan 18, 2018 8:15:18 GMT -5
Yeah there are some algoritms for DTS too, but they are very very rare. Doesn't even bother me honestly, I mean, I go for DTS when I want sound quality. I am not going to use such an algoritm anyway if sound quality is priority nr 1.
Tried the astro mixamp yesterday, don't really understand why people call it underpowered for things like my AKG K612. It does make some stuff sound weird (like voice chat) so it probably needs some getting used too (including constantly thinking there is somebody around, bc I hear my own footsteps). Overall, it does add some value for sure.
Not tried the A30 yet, not even sure if I am going to lol.
Are there solutions for mics? At the moment I just plug in the original mic in my controler, and set input to "mic connected to controller" and voice output to "AV or TV". But that probably means voice is effected by the DH algoritm, which is probably not optimal. There is only 1 input/output for headset+mic, so maybe some sort of Y connector? Would that work? (3 rings to 2 for headset and 1 for mic or something?). I have absolutely 0 experience with mics, but my current solution is at least usable.
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Post by Pegasus Actual on Jan 20, 2018 19:37:15 GMT -5
illram How much does the A16 cost? I couldn't find it... though based on the price of the uhh A8... rabbit hole indeed! It does sound like pretty cool tech. I've been on my Mixamp 5.8 (though the wirless doesn't really do anything for me at this point as I've abandoned the couch life for gaming). I've considered getting the X7. But for that price I kind of want it to easily handle at least Xbox and PC at the same time. And I'm not sure it's really good for mixing chat audio in. It seems like it has enough inputs that with a few wires I could maybe make it work. But that's the thing, even though the Astro Mixamp isn't amazing quality, it does what it needs to do, and it has a dial for chat audio vs game audio. I'd love to upgrade my overall audio quality but not at the expense of that utility. Maybe there are more options these days. I too am a believer in virtualized surround sound. The Mixamp does a solid job there. I've been using Dolby Atmos on the PC side and it's worked well there, and could potentially work well on Xbox for me as well so I could consider going for a headphone amp that doesn't do the surround sound. Ideally I'd have something where I could hook up a desktop mic, have it switch between PC and Xbox at the touch of a button, and maybe also be able to mix and match other audio streams. Say an Amazon Echo. With buttons. On the front. Not a fucking Android App. Speaking of high end audio stuff. So Dolby Atmos and various competitors added ceiling speakers... which is great. What about sound from below? Maybe that's something that isn't useful for movies but it seems like it would be nice for games. Seems like surround sound is in an OK place on consoles right now but the PC side is still a bit wack. The obvious example I can think of is PUBG, behind you sounds like in front of you (though it sounds good on the Xbox version). I've noticed it with other games at times as well. I don't think it's the Atmos for Headphones thing letting me down, I think it's the game not providing a 5.1 or 7.1 or whatever to begin with. Yeah, sound is definitely a frustrating topic. I'm willing to throw money at the problem if only I could figure where!
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Post by illram on Jan 21, 2018 20:31:39 GMT -5
illram How much does the A16 cost? I couldn't find it... though based on the price of the uhh A8... rabbit hole indeed! It does sound like pretty cool tech. I've been on my Mixamp 5.8 (though the wirless doesn't really do anything for me at this point as I've abandoned the couch life for gaming). I've considered getting the X7. But for that price I kind of want it to easily handle at least Xbox and PC at the same time. And I'm not sure it's really good for mixing chat audio in. It seems like it has enough inputs that with a few wires I could maybe make it work. But that's the thing, even though the Astro Mixamp isn't amazing quality, it does what it needs to do, and it has a dial for chat audio vs game audio. I'd love to upgrade my overall audio quality but not at the expense of that utility. Maybe there are more options these days. I too am a believer in virtualized surround sound. The Mixamp does a solid job there. I've been using Dolby Atmos on the PC side and it's worked well there, and could potentially work well on Xbox for me as well so I could consider going for a headphone amp that doesn't do the surround sound. Ideally I'd have something where I could hook up a desktop mic, have it switch between PC and Xbox at the touch of a button, and maybe also be able to mix and match other audio streams. Say an Amazon Echo. With buttons. On the front. Not a Foxtroting Android App. Speaking of high end audio stuff. So Dolby Atmos and various competitors added ceiling speakers... which is great. What about sound from below? Maybe that's something that isn't useful for movies but it seems like it would be nice for games. Seems like surround sound is in an OK place on consoles right now but the PC side is still a bit wack. The obvious example I can think of is PUBG, behind you sounds like in front of you (though it sounds good on the Xbox version). I've noticed it with other games at times as well. I don't think it's the Atmos for Headphones thing letting me down, I think it's the game not providing a 5.1 or 7.1 or whatever to begin with. Yeah, sound is definitely a frustrating topic. I'm willing to throw money at the problem if only I could figure where! When it was available for pre-order it was around $1700. I think it was like $900 on Kickstarter. I expect it to be aroud $2k when available retail. Yeah it's quite expensive but there is the "audiophile" tax on all these audio toys. I justify it by saying it's basically what you would spend on a top of the line AV receiver and it does all of that plus some, just for headphones. Re: the X7 vs. the Mixamp. Yes, the main limitation is chat on the Xbox. I basically never use chat so it is easier for me. Mixamp makes it a lot easier if you do want chat. Microsoft makes it hard by stupidly limiting their USB audio functionality ($25 license fee per unit to anyone who wants USB audio on the Xbox...) and not having bluetooth so getting chat out of the X7 involves major wire mess and basically double amping out of your controller. Which is suboptimal. With the Atmos and Sonic for headphones tech now on Xbox though, hopefully they make it more available on more games as that could moot a lot of these gadgets for folks willing to get 80% of the way there with just a headset out of their controller. Something like a PC37X or something out of the controller with a working Atmos for headphones would probably be "good enough" for almost anyone. (I.e., quite good, only slight room for improvement for irrational people like me.)
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qupie
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Post by qupie on Jan 25, 2018 5:14:45 GMT -5
illram How much does the A16 cost? I couldn't find it... though based on the price of the uhh A8... rabbit hole indeed! It does sound like pretty cool tech. I've been on my Mixamp 5.8 (though the wirless doesn't really do anything for me at this point as I've abandoned the couch life for gaming). I've considered getting the X7. But for that price I kind of want it to easily handle at least Xbox and PC at the same time. And I'm not sure it's really good for mixing chat audio in. It seems like it has enough inputs that with a few wires I could maybe make it work. But that's the thing, even though the Astro Mixamp isn't amazing quality, it does what it needs to do, and it has a dial for chat audio vs game audio. I'd love to upgrade my overall audio quality but not at the expense of that utility. Maybe there are more options these days. I too am a believer in virtualized surround sound. The Mixamp does a solid job there. I've been using Dolby Atmos on the PC side and it's worked well there, and could potentially work well on Xbox for me as well so I could consider going for a headphone amp that doesn't do the surround sound. Ideally I'd have something where I could hook up a desktop mic, have it switch between PC and Xbox at the touch of a button, and maybe also be able to mix and match other audio streams. Say an Amazon Echo. With buttons. On the front. Not a Foxtroting Android App. Speaking of high end audio stuff. So Dolby Atmos and various competitors added ceiling speakers... which is great. What about sound from below? Maybe that's something that isn't useful for movies but it seems like it would be nice for games. Seems like surround sound is in an OK place on consoles right now but the PC side is still a bit wack. The obvious example I can think of is PUBG, behind you sounds like in front of you (though it sounds good on the Xbox version). I've noticed it with other games at times as well. I don't think it's the Atmos for Headphones thing letting me down, I think it's the game not providing a 5.1 or 7.1 or whatever to begin with. Yeah, sound is definitely a frustrating topic. I'm willing to throw money at the problem if only I could figure where! What is your exact gripe with the mixamp sound quality? The amplification or the Dolby algorithm? I mean, dolby headphones will never "sound good" afaik. I use it to get an advantage, I will never use it for music/movies personally. That said, if you are looking for an amp ugrade, daisy chaining a Fiio could resolve your problems. Another great option is actually buying an AV receiver.... I had one and it worked better than the mixamp. They can be found quite cheap if you don't mind 2nd hand. All you need is 2 inputs and dolby headphones. For me the problem is space (living room), but maybe you are not limited in space if you sit behind a desk.
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