[dakanao]

   
I have both of those items, so I could give it a test drive for you this weekend, if nobody else has tried it.

Yeah, that would be really appreciated!
 
Also, how do you think the NAD Viso HP50 compares to the Philips X1?

 

[Hansotek]

 

   
I have both of those items, so I could give it a test drive for you this weekend, if nobody else has tried it.

Yeah, that would be really appreciated!
 
Also, how do you think the NAD Viso HP50 compares to the Philips X1?

 
Personally, I like the X1 much more. I find them both to be fairly "thick" sounding headphones... the HP50 even moreso than the X1. X1 has more impact, which makes it more fun to listen to. The HP50 has better bass extension, but I wouldn't call it a basshead headphone. It's quite full sounding and fairly neutral, but again, a bit thick in the midbass and lower mids.
 
The HP50 can be a touch shouty toward the center of the midrange, a trait it shares with the HD650 and the stock HE500. I find that I am generally more sensitive to this than others, so it may not be a concern for you. The upper mids are well balanced, bordering on relaxed. I find the X1 to be a touch more elevated and pleasant in this region. The highs are bit relaxed on both, and sibilance is very rare. Overall, I'd say the HP50 sounds a bit dulled out on the top end (but not veiled), whereas the X1 is a little more crisp and lively. 
 
Soundstage and imaging are very good on both. You get a couple of 'outside the headphone moments' with the HP50, which are quite impressive for a closed back. It really seems to defy the closed back design sometimes, especially with movie scores. There is a nicely defined bubble for the sound image. I feel like the X1 is more organic in its soundstage presentation overall, being an open back, but the gap with the HP50 isn't as big as it is with some other closed backs.
 
The X1 is better in terms of comfort. The HP50 is hit or miss. Sometimes it's very comfortable, sometimes it's not. I think it really depends on how you situate the pads on your ears. The X1 is certainly the prettier of the two. The HP50 has this weird square Frankenstein head top, which I find a little odd. I recommend a cable replacement for both... the HP50 cable is too short to be practical for anything other than mobile use.
 
Overall, I find the HP50's sound to be very even and well rounded, but a bit boring. It does a lot of things right, but it doesn't do any one thing so well that it inspires any passion about the headphone (for me). The X1 wows you with its combination of punch, impact and soundstage, and then seals the deal with its ability to be both smooth and detailed on the top end. The HP50 doesn't really wow me in any one area, it just does everything well.
 
TLDR version: If you are looking for a warm, balanced headphone with solid delivery on all the fundamentals, the HP50 fills the bill. If you want a headphone that will excite you and or add some sort of definitive aspect to your listening experience, you'll probably be disappointed. As always, YMMV.

 

[Yethal]

There is a Control Panel Update available to download from Creative page

 

[Napalmhardcore]

Well, E3 has come and gone and the Turtle Beach TAC didn't make an appearance. I'm beginning to think they've scrapped it, probably so they can implement features into their inline amps/processors to sell more headsets. Disappointing as it sounded interesting (though not necessarily right for what I want)
 
I've been giving some thought to possible future upgrades but there are always hurdles. For example, I know at some point I want to get HD600s (have wanted to try Sennheisers for some time, gaming aside). I don't really want to put a Modmic on them as I have one on my K240 Mk2s and quite frankly, I think it looks a bit ugly. I'd also love to use something like a Yeti Pro (as I'm a musician too, so I'd kill two birds with one stone). The third thing I would like to do is get something like a Little Dot tube amp as I'm curious to try a tube amp in general and it should drive the HD600s nicely.
 
I currently play my PS4 more than I play my PC. The problem with the theoretical setup of Mixamp, Yeti and tube amp (from the info I've been able to find, correct me if I'm wrong)
 
a) The Yeti cannot be used in conjunction with the Mixamp
b) The mixamp has no line out and although it can be double amped I'd rather not
 
This would mean I'd only get the best out of this setup on my PC which would be disappointing. I think the limitations of the PS4 in regards to input and output routing are software based (again, correct me if I'm wrong). The second problem is that none of the people that produce dedicated virtual surround devices ever consider that someone might wish to use an external amp. So in summary, two issues which should not be too difficult to remedy (in theory) prevent what I'd consider to be a pretty nice setup from being possible. Yeah I know, first world problems, but it is frustrating.

 

[Evshrug]

1. TAC was at E3, my source says it should arrive within a range of late this year to early next. Should be priced just a bit higher than the Mixamp, no processed digital output, and for a DAC it will use a single AKM4396. My source was only able to use it with TB headsets and was unimpressed, but he has some really nice high end headphones of his own so the demo TB headphones by comparison would be very "average" or worse.

2. Just use the Yeti plugged into the PS4, and PS4 party chat system to balance game/chat relative volumes.

3. The makers of headphone gaming surround processors expect you to stay within their product ecosystem. On one hand, customers usually do just that by buying the processor bundled with a headset or part of a "wireless" setup, but on the other hand, they shoot themselves in the foot because most of them don't "wow" gamers and the processor doesn't become an essential piece of gear.

It goes along with what the two guys that wanted to connect their headsets "straight" into their consoles... The "growth" market who isn't, you know, us already in this thread, they want a simple setup without extra boxes in between the headphone and console/PC. Mainstream isn't convinced that extra boxes are worthwhile; they get a Turtle Beach X11 + DSS bundle or an Astro A30 + Mixamp bundle and the setup sounds pretty bad compared to listening to music, so they don't get excited (usually) or think to try the processor with different headphones. When I started getting into headphone gaming, I couldn't care less about surround processing because the demo I heard sounded fake and didn't work, so I just cared about comfort and headphones that sounded like speakers. Now, I really like surround, but there was definitely a hurdle to overcome to discover gear that made the surround effect "work" and be worth the effort.

 

[Yethal]

1. TAC was at E3, my source says it should arrive within a range of late this year to early next. Should be priced just a bit higher than the Mixamp, no processed digital output, and for a DAC it will use a single AKM4396. My source was only able to use it with TB headsets and was unimpressed, but he has some really nice high end headphones of his own so the demo TB headphones by comparison would be very "average" or worse.

It's the same DAC chip as the one in Audioengine D1 and Schiit Fulla. Interesting. You have any more info about this?

 

[Napalmhardcore]

Hmm, seems Google was not my friend on this occasion.
 
I am aware of the problems that come with being picky, it's just frustrating. Kind of a "so near yet so far" scenario. Two small obstacles which unfortunately the majority of people don't care about stand in the way, so it is likely to never see a solution (considering some of the problems the majority do care about don't get addressed, SONY!).

 

[Sam21]

I just found out that the MA900 has a muffled and distorted low end with some tracks. I think MLE should lower the score for it.

 

[Hansotek]

 

I have both of those items, so I could give it a test drive for you this weekend, if nobody else has tried it.

Yeah, that would be really appreciated!

Also, how do you think the NAD Viso HP50 compares to the Philips X1?

Got a chance to use the NAD Viso HP50 for gaming a bit tonight, I'm going to go off of MLE's review of the Fidelio X1 for comparison, because I think his write up was pretty spot-on.

FUN
Fidelio X1 - 8.5
NAD HP50 - 8.0
The NAD performed much better than I anticipated. The nice sub bass presence and extension played a factor here. Guns sound freakin' awesome! Very punchy and you can feel every shot. Explosions sound huge! I docked it half a point relative to the X1 because it's really missing the high frequency air that you get with the X1. Almost any closed back is going to be at a disadvantage here, but the very highes highs are a little extra choked off here. Not a huge deal, because it does everything else really well.

COMPETITIVE
Fidelio X1 - 8.0
NAD HP50 - 7.0
Overall, very good for a closed back, but average performance overall. I'd catch things coming from the side or behind me, and the would always be right where I thought, but the whole process seemed faster and more fluid with the X1. I felt like my reaction time was noticeably quicker. I don't know if I'd be rushing to use the HP50 in PVP., though it's quite serviceable in casual PVE.

COMFORT
Fidelio X1 - 8.0
HP50 - 5.0
This is where the HP50 takes a major hit. IMO, it clamps a little too hard and there's not quite enough padding. YMMV. However, there's a much bigger issue and that is heat buildup. The HP50 gets HOT sitting on your head extremely quickly while gaming. Unless you're playing in a refrigerator, it makes the whole experience downright uncomfortable. YMMV, of course.

Overall, I still like the X1 better, but the HP50 fared better than I thought it would. It's very, very close in the sound categories, but I'd definitely recommend trying it out and seeing how you like the comfort before you consider buying. I just found the heat to be too much.

Hope that helps!

 

[Yethal]

  I just found out that the MA900 has a muffled and distorted low end with some tracks. I think MLE should lower the score for it.

You sure it's not Your gear/eq settings/track ?

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I just found out that the MA900 has a muffled and distorted low end with some tracks. I think MLE should lower the score for it.

I'm not lowering a subjective score. It's MY score, not yours.

Muffled and distorted lower end depends on YOUR components as well. Also, no two headphones are identical, and perhaps the quality of yours was worse than the one I owned.

I'm considering making scores even more vague by going to a 5 star system. That way:

1 out of 5 is hot garbage
2 out of 5 is bad
3 out of 5 is good
4 out of 5 is great
5 out of 5 is amazing

That will keep people from nitpicking minute scoring differences, and can actually read the reviews.

 

[Yethal]

I'm not lowering a subjective score. It's MY score, not yours.

Muffled and distorted lower end depends on YOUR components as well. Also, no two headphones are identical, and perhaps the quality of yours was worse than the one I owned.

I'm considering making scores even more vague by going to a 5 star system. That way:

1 out of 5 is hot garbage
2 out of 5 is bad
3 out of 5 is good
4 out of 5 is great
5 out of 5 is amazing

That will keep people from nitpicking minute scoring differences, and can actually read the reviews.

Just adopt the Kotaku scoring system. 
 
"Should You own these headphones?"
 
Yes, No, Maybe,
 
That'd solve it.

 

[Sam21]

Oh, Sorry guys, I had EQ enabled in foobar.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I'm not surprised.

 

[Xylust]

Just bought the AKG K612 Pro, hopefully It's good, most I ever spent on headphones!