Mad Lust Envy's Headphone Gaming Guide: (Updated: 5/17/13. Skullcandy PLYR 1 added) - Page 757

For my two cents... It took a while but with the help of this post I ended up with and bought in this order.

Mixamp Pro (2010)

Q701

Objective2 amp.

 

I absolutely love all three. The Mixamp is a great solution for console with good features. The Q701 is usable with the Mixamp though mixing in the Mic will seriously impact the Mixamps ability to drive the Q701. Without Mic it is adequate. That being said the addition of the Objective 2 was a very noticeable improvement. IMO one should not consider the Q701 unless you are prepared to shell out for an amp at least after a while as I did. I was happy with the Q701 without one but can honestly say that I was missing out before. 

 

I built my O2 for about $80 for all parts and shipping, including some upgrades. However, do not build your own unless you already have some experience, tools, static protection and such or it will end up costing more than a finished unit. Also, even if you have all of the above it's a pain. I only built my own because I knew I could build it properly and I wanted that peace of mind. 

Edited by Heretic817 - 1/28/13 at 3:38pm

 

Yes

 

It added a duplicate avatar to one I already had though.  Pretty annoying.

 

I'm betting 50% of Head-fi's servers go towards handling your avatars!

Ah Snap!

 

EVshrug was right.  His instructions just weren't very good

 

If you click your current avatar to go into the avatar gallery, you then need to click "edit photos" button on the top right.  That then takes you to a page that lets you reuse previous avatars by selecting them with a radio button.  You can also delete old avatars. 

 

So the "Replace my avatar" button is only for adding new ones.  Everything else can be done by managing the previous ones in the "edit photos" menu of the avatar gallery.

 

A big thank you to all who have responded to my post. I'm taking my time with this setup as I don't want to have commit on something and then get hit by upgraditis. In response to Evshrug; yes all healthy and fit Singaporean males are conscripted into national service for a period of 2 years. That period of discipline definitely does wonders for academic performance in your university years afterwards. I'm happy to hear that a fellow countrymen was there to help you out. I'm definitely the oldest and neatest on my dorm floor, haha.

 

I feel like I might go for the Soundblaster Zx + Beyer DT880 route as Creative's CMSS3D tech seems to have one up on the aging Dolby Headphone. Also, going for a dedicated DAC will cause me to lose out on the virtual surround software.

 

As for PC speakers, of course I expect to get exactly what I pay for; it's just which pair gives me that bang for buck?

I think going for passive separates with an active T-amp is the best option, unfortunately that would require another few days of research and deal hunting which I could otherwise spend catching up on my readings lol.

 

Decisions, decisions.

Once again, thanks guys!

 

End key - Page Up - Page Up... Head-Fi's profile/account page is rather confusing indeed tho.

Edited by Impulse - 1/28/13 at 11:30am

Unfortunately, at the interview they served me coffee (who'd a thunk it?). The caffeine plus some nervousness made me speak rather long-winded as I tried to remember my best moments to answer the manager's questions. I might still get the job, but the second half of the interview wasn't IMO very attractive.

I just tried the avatar thing. Click your avatar (to get to your profile), click your avatar (naavi?) again, click "edit photos," and you'll see a column of your avatars and the option to "use this as my avatar" under the photo description text box.
Edit: Ah. AH. I see you figured it out. I wrote this post without seeing the others made since Chewynuts' last post. Good for you for figuring it out, please forgive my poor earlier instructions as I was in a rush & slightly preoccupied.

Chewynuts,
Shi-tren was indeed a good friend, self-assured and a great reflection on your country. I also picked up the habit of keeping a window open for fresh air whenever possible from him, and a love for StarCraft/DotA.

The U3 I mentioned simulates surround using Dolby, but the X-Fi Go! uses CMSS-3D, so I was making virtual surround suggestions. Creative's solutions do indeed have the advantage of height surround in addition to front/back/sides, but just so you know the new Z-series cards have moved from CMSS-3D to SBX Pro Studio Surround. SBX still has full 3D surround (while Dolby is 2D), but I don't yet know anyone who's given a full review on it. SBX may just be a rename of THX TruStudio Pro that creative used in their last generation cards (notice how similar the names are), dropping the THX brand name to save a few $$. So far I enjoy THX the best of all the headphone simulations I've heard. I'd love to hear what you think of the new cards

I was interested in the DT880 myself, they're reviewed as very transparent and balanced. My taste! I thought you wanted more bass & treble, a "smiley face" frequency response. Regardless, the DT880 is a very well-reviewed headphone

My final suggestion was based on the cheapest, bang-for-buck fully system setup I could think of. The T-amp and integrated amp serve the same function, amp for headphones and passive speakers. The Audioengine N22 may not be the best bang for the buck, but it'll be better than the Topping T-amp and quite good overall. If you research and find something better for speakers AND headphones, I'd be interested to hear it.

Edited by Evshrug - 1/28/13 at 11:41am

I couldn't find any info on the output Impedance on your receiver. The manual for mine, a Yamaha V-667, states:

 

Output/Impedance- 1mV/560ohm

 

Using it to drive the HE-400s I had to crank the volume about 6-8dbs above my loudest listening level (with speakers and with the DT990 Pros). The thing shutdown at one point, which has never happened. I picked up an E17 to try and with it plugged into the headphone out (double amped) I can turn the Yamaha down by about 15-20dbs with the E17 at around 56-60, 0 gain. It seems to work fine for movies. I hear some hiss but I honestly think it's just ambient noise in the movie- it generally goes away or changes when the scenes do.

 

That said, I thought I had settled on the HE-400s for movie watching but now you have me curious about the Annies. Do you have to turn your receiver up much more than you do when using speakers? Like I said, the DT990s were OK at the same level I run my speakers at. The HE-400s were not. I would be curious about the Compass2 double amp'd with your receiver and the Annies also. I plan to give the Asgard a shot, double amp'd, soon.

 

It's crazy they won't let you do an analog out from a digital input - except for the headphone jack. Piracy issue? Sure it doesn't do video... but it would be nice to be able to hook an amp up and use the receiver as a DAC since it down mixes DD/DTS and all that jazz. Essentially, treat headphones the same way you treat speakers (allowing pre outs for a separate amp).

Edited by whiskaz - 1/28/13 at 12:46pm

Well, maybe I read it wrong too. Here it is, straight from the V-667 manual:

 

^Possible topic for my thread?
I didn't see the headphone output impedance for your receiver either, though the video out jacks (and RCA audio I assume) are 75 ohms, and the Input impedance is 47 kOhms O_O
Edited by Evshrug - 1/28/13 at 1:21pm

Why don't I get the dd light to turn on on my dss and Xbox playing halo
Edited by Johnsonr520 - 1/28/13 at 2:18pm