In need of headphones + amp for under 175$ - Page 3

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eric_C 

Is it? His original post said, "I will also use these for gaming (at a competitive level)"

And aside from the Senn 5xx series, I don't see the other headphones recommended for gaming. As long as OP knows the potential trade-off he's making... 

Yeah I guess, he must've looked at the headphone. If he's looking for gaming headsets then there are other options, but for music+gaming, I think the 5xx should suffice.

558 is good for gaming. I connect mine to my home theater when I play Battlefield 3 with "war tapes" audio. The detail is incredible, footsteps can be heard and located with ease. Added bonus is when something explodes nearby and the headphones literally rumble.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mods12 

where did u find 598s for 170 i am looking to buy a pair

Here.

Here.

Very best,

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mods12 

where did u find 598s for 170 i am looking to buy a pair

If you are interested, 558 can be found on Amazon.com for $106 used. That's how I got mine, they are from a Licensed dealer and come with full Sennheiser warranty. Also, they are like new, nothing wrong just missing the box.

Quote:

Originally Posted by morijinal 

If you are interested, 558 can be found on Amazon.com for $106 used. That's how I got mine, they are from a Licensed dealer and come with full Sennheiser warranty. Also, they are like new, nothing wrong just missing the box.

Used HD558 (like new) that does not come in original box but comes with full Sennheiser warranty, I find that very hard to believe.

Quote:

Originally Posted by morijinal 

558 is good for gaming. I connect mine to my home theater when I play Battlefield 3 with "war tapes" audio. The detail is incredible, footsteps can be heard and located with ease. Added bonus is when something explodes nearby and the headphones literally rumble.

War Tapes mode is frickin ridiculous. They should do it for more games. Battlefield - where the sound of the game is practically better than playing it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by proton007 

With the output impedance of the Xonar (10 Ohms) and 598's impedance (50 Ohms, close to 300 @ 100 Hz.), chances are you'll find the power a bit lacking.

Still, its worth a try. You can always get an amp later on.

 

You can also consider the HD-25-1 ii, it should work well with you sound card and any amp.

Hey proton007, may I ask how you got 10 ohms? On asus's site it says that the xonar DG can drive headphones up to 150 ohm. Or am I missing something? 

Quote:

Originally Posted by PurpleAngel 

Used HD558 (like new) that does not come in original box but comes with full Sennheiser warranty, I find that very hard to believe.

Hard to believe, right? I am in the same boat, so I contacted Sennheiser via telephone and confirmed it with them. Here is the down side: if you don't like the headphones, and want to return them for a refund you are hit with a 20% "restocking" fee. The company I got mine from is Dahmart (suspicious name too!). If you look them up you will see lots of positive reviews with a few horror stories. But, after I confirmed it with Sennheiser I took the leap, and I am glad I did because personally, I don't know if I would like the 558 as much as I do if they cost me $179.

I got mine mint condition, not a blemish or lint fuzz on the velour pads. No box, but came with the cord and adapter.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lisjak 

Hey proton007, may I ask how you got 10 ohms? On asus's site it says that the xonar DG can drive headphones up to 150 ohm. Or am I missing something? 

Its not the impedance the Xonar can drive, its the "output impedace" of the Xonar.

Oh ok, I get it now. I looked it up. I didn't read your first post thoroughly enough. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by proton007 

 

Its not the impedance the Xonar can drive, its the "output impedace" of the Xonar.

This is intensely interesting to me, as I have the Xonar. Is this to say that the Xonar is "cheating" when it comes to impedance? Are the numbers there to confuse the consumer into thinking the product is of much higher quality than it actually is? I'm trying to think of a parallel I can draw to make an example...

I know a little bit more about astronomy then headphones, so bear with me...

Maybe like when a cheap, junk telescope manufacturer (read $50 toys'R'US brand) advertises "600X MAGNIFICATION!!!", which is crap because 1. Atmospheric distortion allows only 300x mag. on the clearest of nights, and 2. The amount of light needed to magnify to that level is well beyond what a junk scope can collect.

Quote:

Originally Posted by morijinal 

This is intensely interesting to me, as I have the Xonar. Is this to say that the Xonar is "cheating" when it comes to impedance? Are the numbers there to confuse the consumer into thinking the product is of much higher quality than it actually is? I'm trying to think of a parallel I can draw to make an example...

 

I know a little bit more about astronomy then headphones, so bear with me...

 

Maybe like when a cheap, junk telescope manufacturer (read $50 toys'R'US brand) advertises "600X MAGNIFICATION!!!", which is crap because 1. Atmospheric distortion allows only 300x mag. on the clearest of nights, and 2. The amount of light needed to magnify to that level is well beyond what a junk scope can collect.

I like to think the Xonars do as best as they can for the price they sell for.

As I think that $50 telescope is doing the best job it can for the $50 price.

Sound cards usually come with a higher impedance (10-Ohm to 100-Ohm) then what is desired.

I believe the high impedance has something to do with the sound card being inside a computer case, I think it's a cheap way to solves other possible "problems".

People are more likely to buy something for a lower price, then over all quality.

Quote:

Originally Posted by morijinal 

This is intensely interesting to me, as I have the Xonar. Is this to say that the Xonar is "cheating" when it comes to impedance? Are the numbers there to confuse the consumer into thinking the product is of much higher quality than it actually is? I'm trying to think of a parallel I can draw to make an example...

 

I know a little bit more about astronomy then headphones, so bear with me...

 

Maybe like when a cheap, junk telescope manufacturer (read $50 toys'R'US brand) advertises "600X MAGNIFICATION!!!", which is crap because 1. Atmospheric distortion allows only 300x mag. on the clearest of nights, and 2. The amount of light needed to magnify to that level is well beyond what a junk scope can collect.

Its not really Asus trying to confuse customers or anything. Its just that the chip they use for amplification has this spec. Why didn't they choose something with lower impedance? Design limitations, cost limitations, I'm not sure.