[MaxxSauce]

Positional audio in FPS games is most important to me.
 
Second most important is making sure I get the best bass I can, while still getting the absolute best phones for soundwhoring online.
 
I have narrowed it down to these three for a few reasons, which I won't go into.
 
Just have a few concerns before selecting:
 
 - I hear that the D700/D900s don't really require an external amp in addition to the soundcard (I have a Creative Sound Blaster Titanium Professional Fatal1ty with the Dolby Virtual Surround)
 
 - I also hear that these two phones have some of the best positional audio for games
 
 - I would like to go for the D1000s just because I think the sound quality will be better (bass especially) but ONLY if none of the positional audio is sacrificed. They also look sexier to me.
 
 - If the D1000s need an amp to be driven, No problem! Please recommend me one (as I have no clue) -_____-
 
 - I don't want to go up to the D2000 level, out of my budget. The D1000s for under $300 are very attractive to me though, as price is not too dissimilar from the 900s, even if the performance increase is minimal.
 
THANKS FOR ALL THE HELP!

 

[BotByte]

When a series is numbered like that, the higher the number, the better (hopefully) the headphones are.
 
Go as high as possible

 

[knubbe]

http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/534479/mad-lust-envy-aka-shin-cz-s-guide-to-headphone-gaming-particularly-with-dolby-headphone

 

[MaxxSauce]

Thanks knubbe, I have been using that in my decision, which is what made me want to go for the AD900s in the first place.
 
And thanks botbyte, I think I have decided on the AD1000s then as the 2000s are a little out of my budget.
 
Does anyone know if the AD1000s require an amp to get the full bass, etc? And if so, can one be recommended? 
 
Thank you very much, you guys are really appreciated.

 

[MaxxSauce]

Also they seem like a pretty good deal on accessoryjack, only $290 + shipping. Is there a better place to get em that anyone knows of?

 

[fongle]

MaxxSauce,
 
Please take what I say here with a grain of salt. I'm not speaking from personal experience about the AD1000.
 
IIRC, a lot of people that have liked the AD900 did not like the AD1000. According to a lot of users it is too "analytical". And I'm sure you can tell from the first 4 letters of "analytical" what that really means. FWIR the AD2000 brings back the fun of the sound, but if it's out of your price range like you say, then I say go with AD900.
 
Personally, I find my AD900 amazing for gaming. It really is great- I would go so far as to say it is the best headphone I've yet tried for gaming. I am a pretty hardcore FPS gamer, and it suits my needs really well. I can hear every single solitary footstep that the game wants me to hear. It's also great for music, and it looks a lot sexier in person than in pictures.
 
So my recommendation to you is to do more research on the AD900/1000 before you empty your wallet too much.
 
Hope this helps!
 
Edit: As an added bonus, you don't need an amp with AD900. Seriously. You totally don't.

 

[BournePerfect]

Get the Pro 900s. I've used all the regular culprits (K702, DT 880, AD700) and these were easily the best...even with their crazy bass. These are also more detailed than all of those phones-and probably more detailed than any other dynamic next to the HD 800. Their soundstage and imaging is better than the others I've mentioned as well--and it's not really close. FWIW I only used them straight out of the DSS and it drives them perfectly. Search the thread linked above for Pro 900 posts and you'll see that many others are coming to the same conclusion...
 
-Daniel

 

[Arnotts]

"Second most important is making sure I get the best bass I can"
 
The AD700's, AD900's and Ultrasone Pro 900's are all excellent for FPS gaming. But the biggest difference in sound between the Audio Technicas and the Ultrasones is the bass quantity. AD700's have very little quantity, but good quality bass. AD900's have more quantity than the AD700's, but still not a lot, and it's good quality.The Pro 900's have a LOT of bass quantity and I think it's good quality. The thing is, a lot of people think the Pro 900's have too much bass so that it can overwhelm the other frequencies.
 
My advice: If you listen to a lot of electronica/hip-hop, get the Pro 900's. If you listen to a lot of acoustic/classical get the AD900's. They're all good for gaming.

 

[Dsnuts]

      I have the AD700 I use for gaming but I much prefer semi closed cans.. The OPENess of the AD700s cause some sounds to be a bit farther than they should be.... I much prefer the SAMSON SR850/ superlux 681s...Monitor phones.Way more accurate to my ears and perfect spacial positioning..You get the precision of the Audio Technicas with ample BASS the Ad700s are lacking and tad closer sounding which ends up being more accurate in spacial positioning, helps with them nasty enemies that try n sneek a knife in your back. ...They are comfy and also happen to be cheaper than the AD700s..
 
      Another one that NO ONE Here on head-fi knows anything about is a little phone I bought on a whim. The PANASONIC RP-HT770..This phone is actually better in every way than the AD700s.. Costs $48..ITs better than the AD700s in game as well as music as it has more BASS. .The sound is very similar to the AD700s I would say even more precise with just a wide sound stage as they are open as well but you can throw BASS in there too. This alone makes the panasonics a hidden gem..Oh yea you gotta take the initial review of em here on headfi with a grain of salt as the guy has no idea what he is talking about. He probably didn't even try em.  On hot days I prefer the Panasonics to play games on.. SO I would rank it like so for gaming .. Samson > Panasonics > Ad700s.  For the price of one AD700 you can get both a Superlux 681 and a RP-HT770..Something to consider... IMO you don't need anything higher end than these 2 to get perfect positional sound.. You can save your money for a better GPU.. Lol. 
 
   As far as gaming sounds go you can trust me on this topic. I am the head dude for =SOC= for BC2 online..Look up our =SOC= conquest servers online. I am known as =SOC= Cr3m online. My set up is a SAMSON SR850/zalman clip on mic using a TITANIUM HD card. Perfect combo IMO.
 
    If you want sound precision.. Go for the Samson/ Superlux..  If comfy playing all nighters are your goal go for the panasonics....Oh by the way both these phones sound better for music than the AD700s as well.

 

[zoqi]

Friend of mine has the AD700 with Dolby headphone and they are fantastic for gaming. Might not be the most bass heavy cans you can get but they are great.
I personally use the Ultrasone Pro 900 as I'm a bass junkie. But in all honestly, if it came to pure competitive gameplay I might have gone with the AD700 or maybe AD900. 
 
The Ultrasone transforms the already great sound in bfbc2 into insane mode, explosions has never sounded the same after that

 

[Dsnuts]

Ya I have a new HFI 780 coming to me next week.. Cant wait to try it out on BC2. With ultrasones S Logic tech on their headsets it just makes sense..
 
With that being said having too much BASS in game can actually deter your sense of hearing others in game. I find the BASS in the Samsons perfect for this..I have tried just about every can in my collection.. The HD595s.. HD203. HARX700. HP541. to name a few .For me the SAMSONs was the clear winner.. Again it has the precise sound you want while adding a that cinematic movie like BOOM you want in game. Once you try a SAMSON in game and then the AD700 I am willing to bet you will want to go back to the SAMSONs. I also found the HARX700 JVCs to perform very well in this regard... Using a higher end CAN doesn't necessarily mean you will get better positional 3D sounds...SO it just comes down to your budget really.....A superlux will cost you $40 bux.. You can try it out with a good sound card and see how you like it.
 
Coming from a guy that owns and uses the AD700 and the sets I use now.. I would try out the superlux.. Oh just to clear it up.. Superlux makes the SAMSON SR850..  I actually own the SAMSON model but I am willing to bet the SUPERLUX 681 will sound and perform exactly the same as my Samsons in game.. ..

 

[spacemanspliff]

Directional sound under $200? 
 
sony pfr-v1
 
Anyone else try and dispute that without having heard them needs to refrain from commenting. They can't be disputed for the directional sound crown. I can play (and have) BFBC2 with my eyes closed. Not well. lol However, with a CG standing on a roof, I could actually nail people with my eyes closed.  That accurate of a sound stage deserves mentioning.

 

[BournePerfect]

Zoqi:
 
     Try the Pro 900s with the silver pads if you can. The bass is tamed down noticeably, and the details and mids are brought out quite a bit as well. For me that made all the difference in the world for competetive gaming-putting them above even the K702s and well above the AD700s imo. Another thing I think needs mentioning is that gamers give WAY to much credit to soundstage size...and not enough credit to a COHESIVE/3D imaging soundstage which is where I feel the Pro 900s beat the pants off of both the ATs and the AKGs. Also these are some of the most detailed headphones ever made, which obviously is a huge help as well. The biggest problem with the AD700 for me was that their soundstage seemed to heavily lack any depth, which made it harder to tell how far or close something might be, and even the lack of bass even hurts sometimes because some times you might walk right into a freaking TANK you didn't know was occupied because there is no engine rumble-or a frag around the corner wasn't readily heard because of almost no subbass...and on and on...
 
-Daniel

 

[zoqi]

BournePerfect, 
 
Where did you get hold of the silverpads? The extra spare pads I received with the cans were the black ones. 
Been thinking about getting the J$ pads instead though. 

If the main game you play is bfbc2 then the pro 900s is definitely worth the extra cost. It's just magical.

 

[BournePerfect]

I got lucky and traded with another headfi-er here who wanted some extra black pads! I just wanted them for the looks and variety, but was pleasently surprised at how much they helped balance the overall frequency response of the Pros. The main game I play is BFBC2 (360)- and the sound design particularly with DH is one of the main reasons I play it!  My brother and I always play squad deathmatch together and he always can tell if I'm using my headphones or not because I probably average 12 kills with my tv speakers and honestly probably 22-25 when I put my Pros on-it's a night and day advantage for me. It's like I can go from not 'finding' anybody on the huge maps to even shoot at---to literally calling out enemies for my teammates based on sound alone-it's crazy! If only Halo Reach didn't have such crap sound design (in multi anyway) I'd probably be playing that just as much. CoD isn't bad with the sound...but it's not close to the playing field soundwise or gameplay-wise as BFBC2.    I love how all the gamers are talking about CoD all the time with regards to Dolby Headphone....man they have NO clue what they're missing.
 
500 posts. Sweet.
 
-Daniel