[CenturionDk]

Hello,
 
I'm looking for a set of gaming headphones and currently leaning towards the Ad 700s with a Asus Xonar Essence STX sound card. I've read a lot about the AD's "leaking sound" compared to the ATH's due to their open configuration.
 
My question is how much sound gets out?  I'd like the better sound stage with the AD's but if it's going to result in my Fiance constantly asking me to turn down my gaming volume because she can hear the gunshots it's definately not worth it. (My computer and our couch are ~ 5 feet from eachother).
 
If anyone who has AD's could pass on some information about just how far their sound spreads when it's at a reasonable volume I'd appreciate it. Looking at the photos of them they look like they still enclose your ears so it seems like it wouldn't be that much...?

 

[BotByte]

A lot. They are open headphones, so they will leak sound like a boat with scatter shot.
 
ATH-AT700 are pretty popular for gaming.
 
I like to use my MDR-V6's for gaming myself. 
 
Both don't leak sound.

 

[Brooko]

Quote:

A lot. They are open headphones, so they will leak sound like a boat with scatter shot.
 
ATH-AT700 are pretty popular for gaming.
 
I like to use my MDR-V6's for gaming myself. 
 
Both don't leak sound.

Not exactly sure where BotByte was going with this post, so I'll try and clarify as an actual owner of the AD700's.
 
ATH-AD700 are open.  ATH-A700 are closed.  It's the AD700 which is more popular for gaming - mainly due to the large soundstage + they work really well for positional gaming.  I own the AD700's.  I use them primarily for gaming.
 
We usually have a relatively quiet house anyway (once the kids go to bed in the evening).  The PC is about 10-12 feet from where my wife sits watching TV.  We have an open plan living/family room.  The AD700's do leak sound, but so far it has not bothered my wife while she's watching TV.  Both of us are listening at moderate volumes.  While she can sometimes hear the odd sound from where she's sitting, it's usually not noticeable unless she's reading etc and the house is completely silent.
 
While they do leak sound out, you also get some ambient noise coming in.  Again - at the levels I listen (moderate/medium) it has never been an issue unless there was a lot of noise within a 10-12 foot radius (eg only if the kids still up and going nuts).
 
If sound leakage an issue, you could go closed (A700), but you will sacrifice some positional accuracy in FPS games.
 
You could ask in MLE's 'Gaming Headphone' thread and see if anyone had done a direct comparison between the AD700 and A700 for gaming.
EDIT - here's the link http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/534479/mad-lust-envy-aka-shin-cz-s-guide-to-headphone-gaming-particularly-with-dolby-headphone

 

[CenturionDk]

Thank you for the fast responses ----- fastest forum I've ever seen...  Any thoughts on about how far away you have to be to hear the AD700's?  You mentioned your wife can't hear it at 10 feet away... mine is closer to 5 feet away and has the hearing of a bat.

 

[Dsnuts]

Well I have tried Closed cans which retain the most sounds but the sounds are overdone sometimes echoy even.. The Semi closed cans are the way to go imo as they give the best postional sounds.

 

[Katun]

Even with many closed headphones I've tried, anyone in the same room can hear the music.
 
But open headphones are another story, especially the AD700. It probably leaks noise more than any other headphone I've owned.

 

[Brooko]

Quote:

Thank you for the fast responses ----- fastest forum I've ever seen...  Any thoughts on about how far away you have to be to hear the AD700's?  You mentioned your wife can't hear it at 10 feet away... mine is closer to 5 feet away and has the hearing of a bat.

LOL - know what you mean - my wife can hear a cat walking on carpet.  It's going to be totally dependent on your listening level.  I don't have them turned up high.  5 feet away is going to be tough though - pretty sure she's going to quite a bit of it if her hearing is that acute.  Other option (besides going semi-open) would be to get a pair of listening cans for her (wireless for TV etc).  Makes for a really silent household  We do have a pair of Sennheiser RS140's for Tania that she sometimes uses.  Must look strange at times - both of us with our cans on - lost in our own worlds.
 
Again - would encourage you to post in MLE's thread I mentioned above.  It is a great gaming thread with a lot of experience - and you should get quick answers and maybe some other options.

 

[Brooko]

Quote:

Even with many closed headphones I've tried, anyone in the same room can hear the music.
 
But open headphones are another story, especially the AD700. It probably leaks noise more than any other headphone I've owned.

Katun - how's the DT880 for leakage?  MLE rates the Beyers really highly for gaming - could be another option .....

 

[Katun]

Also another point I wanted to bring up. The absolute best of the best isolating closed headphone still will leak "just enough" sound, that someone sitting close to you could hear; but that is if there is little ambient noise. My SRH940's leak very little noise, and I've conducted tests on how well I can hear them, and it turns out I am still able to hear sound through my door when I'm on the outside. So even closed headphones will leak enough sound that near by people can hear. But it is still significantly less than open headphones. Many of the open headphones I've tried leak so much sound, it can be heard from room down, and sounds extremely loud when you are close. Whenever I let someone try on my AD700 and play something like the Virtual Barbershop, someone asks me, "Isn't that a little loud?" when really it isn't. Unfortunately, complete absence of noise leakage is unavoidable, but lucky for us, it's still a heck of a lot less that any speakers.
 
DT880 leaks quite a bit less than the AD700, but still cannot touch the majority of closed headphones. You may know that it is technically a "Semi-Open" headphone, and indeed the leakage reflects that; as it doesn't quite leak as much as normal open headphones, but will still leak more than closed headphones. But as mentioned, the AD700 will still leak more, er, the AD700's still broadcasts more sound than the DT880

 

[CenturionDk]

Hi everyone,
 
I appreciate all the feed back - as well as the sympathy for a significant other with cat like hearing.....  I've been slogging through MLE's thread (111+ Pages!)  and it's slow going.  I've seen a bunch of recommendations for the Beyers, but they should be better since they are twice the price of the Audio Technica's....  (You can get them new on Ebay for a similar price but I'm not sure I trust that, whether I'd have warranty support, ect..)  I'm thinking my best bet might be to get the A700 (closed) version.   I've currently got a $50 set of Creative Fatality headphones that really need to go...
 
As a side note, I assume that even for gaming on headphones a dedicated sound card, (I was looking at Asus Xonor Essence STX is a huge step up over onboard sound?  It seems like a waste to have spent all this time agonizing over the best headset if I'm only going to get 60% of the quality out of it with onboard sound.
 
Sorry for all the questions... I've traditionally been more focused on graphics/processing power for my PC but now that technology is stagnating a bit I'm looking for a birthday present for myself and the audio situation is the one that really needs upgrading on my computer.
 
 

 

[deadlylover]

Quote:

As a side note, I assume that even for gaming on headphones a dedicated sound card, (I was looking at Asus Xonor Essence STX is a huge step up over onboard sound?  It seems like a waste to have spent all this time agonizing over the best headset if I'm only going to get 60% of the quality out of it with onboard sound.
 

It really just depends who you ask, and how picky you are. Most people will say it's a huge step up, but I personally would only quantify it as something like a 5% increase (I had the AD700 and the STX at one point in time).
 
But for gaming, I think it would be worth it for the fancy processing effects and what not.
 

 

[wdahm519]

I've compared the DT990's to the AD700's for gaming and the AD700's are better because the DT990's are too musical.  The AD700 does lack the bass for those explosions though.  Has anyone tried the AKG 701 for gaming?  They have a large soundstage and maybe a bit more bass than the AD700 although also bass-light (warning: I haven't heard the 701 so take that with a big grain of salt!).  
 
I would avoid Beyers for gaming.  They don't really sound natural, more musical.  Compared to the AD700's, there aren't very many headphones with that much leak.  The AD700's are like an open water main for sound leakage.

 

[Dsnuts]

    I have been doing my own research on the open AD700s I have used them extensively however out of the many musical CANs I have tried, I actually prefer semi closed cans more precisely the SAMSON SR850.  I know on these forums suggesting  budget cans and saying they sound better in game might be counter intuitive but seriously. I know what I am talking about.. I am the president of =SOC=.. Online I am known as =SOC=Cr3m.. We are one of the premiere online clans for Battlefield for BC2. I have been an avid PC gamer since the early 90s.. I think the majority of you guys can tell me what is up with headphones and how they sound with music but I am telling you guys. NOTHING  beats the SAMSON SR850 for shooters online..
 
     It has the perfect balance of precision and WIDE sound stage as well as ample BASS the AD700s are lacking. With the semi closed design. ( lets you hear footsteps WAY better than the AD700)  It beats the hell out of anything I have ever used for gaming. I even had the Tritton ATXpros with true 5.1 positional sound and I actually prefer the pin point sounds I get from my Samson and my Xf-i card.  Sound leakage is not bad at all with these, I would say approx,a tad less than 1/2 the sound leakage of the AD700s..Because you can hear sounds better in the game you wont have to turn up the volume as much..To get the same in game sounds on the AD700s you have to turn up the overall volume about 10% to 15% more which adds more to the sound leakage.
  
    What surprised me with the Samson was.. I can hear every single detail of the game sounds such as the AD700s but the positioning was way more accurate I would even say pin point. You can make out exactly what part of the map has the most killing going on as well as sounds that help you survive. .The AD700s  some sounds seem more distant than they actually are.. The JVC HARX700s does even a better job at blocking out sounds but I prefer the wider sound stage of the SAMSONS.. Ya they aren't as wide as the AD700 but I think the AD700 actually might be a bit too wide for the games. 

 

[Dsnuts]

See below

 

[MalVeauX]

Quote:

Hello,
 
I'm looking for a set of gaming headphones and currently leaning towards the Ad 700s with a Asus Xonar Essence STX sound card. I've read a lot about the AD's "leaking sound" compared to the ATH's due to their open configuration.
 
My question is how much sound gets out?  I'd like the better sound stage with the AD's but if it's going to result in my Fiance constantly asking me to turn down my gaming volume because she can hear the gunshots it's definately not worth it. (My computer and our couch are ~ 5 feet from eachother).
 
If anyone who has AD's could pass on some information about just how far their sound spreads when it's at a reasonable volume I'd appreciate it. Looking at the photos of them they look like they still enclose your ears so it seems like it wouldn't be that much...?

Heya,
 
I don't know about you, but when I have headphones on and am playing games, I have the volume up to high levels. I don't listen to games with minimal or moderate volume--ie, just enough to hear it. I listen to it pretty loud, it's more immersive, better at picking out position, sounds are less subtle that way when gaming. That said, the AD700's will leak to the point where anyone in the same room is going to hear you. And it's not like a soft piano sound they're hearing. It's going to be game sounds, lots of boom boom boom boom, sharp sounds, repeating sounds. They will hear it. And it will likely drive them mad. Last thing you want to hear while playing a game on headphones is "Can you turn that down?"
 
No closed-can is going to have the sound stage of an equivalent quality open-air can. This makes positioning less accurate for gaming. But this is the sacrifice you're going to have to make if someone else is in the room, like a wife or girlfriend for example, who will not tolerate hearing it. Even a closed headset is going to leak to a point. Someone within 5 feet of you will hear even closed headsets. Keep that in mind. It will be much more subtle, but they will hear it unless you have some really high end isolation headphones, which tend to be absurdly priced and not necessarily good for gaming at all (in which case, seriously, just get IEM's for that).
 
Personally I cannot, and will not, be told to "turn it down" when wearing headphones.
 
Another option is to get whatever headphone you want, and move your gaming machine/music listening spot to another room.
 
On the topic of the STX, I will say that the HD-Titanium is better for game positioning. Neither are all that great for actual amplification for high end headphones. I've tried them and the Forte and frankly they're not much different, if at all perceivable, from the Xonar DG. And none of them come close to an amplifier (example, Little Dot MKIII). And that's comparing a $200 soundcard to a $200 amplifier. World of difference to me. Soundcards just seem inferior to me, but that's my ears and on my equipment. So take that as merely an opinion.
 
Very best,