[jodgey4]

Howdy y'all.
 
A little background: I'm helping out my brother in replacing his recently broken 7 year-old or so Turtle Beach 5.1 headset. He's been borrowing my Sennhesier PC163D's, and really likes the detail level but wants more bass extension.
 
For gaming, I see that open-back designs do really well. Isolation is of no importance. I recommended Sennhesier 558's with the possible foam mod, 598's, and Q701's with the possible bass mod. That's kind of the price bracket we've been talking about. We both agree that detail and imaging need to be good enough for serious competitive FPS games like CS:GO. We also appreciate well extended bass to match music preferences, the quantity thereof is not so terribly important. A part of the dilemma is that it seems hard to get well extended bass in open designs in this price bracket.
 
He had chosen Sennheiser 598's (and a short ~$20 replacement cable with a 3.5mm tip)... After he decided on this, he started talking about wanting a DAC/amp to go with it (Fiio e17). I will coax a hard budget out of him tomorrow). Our worry regards reviews of the 598's we've both read mention that sub-bass is potentially quite lacking in these cans, and that overall bass could be described as lean, similar to the PC163D's he's borrowing now.
 
TL;DR::
What would you recommend for this situation? Are there any headphones that can match the 598 + better frequency extension that would certainly be better (presumably un-amped for $$ sake) than the 598 + a possible dac/amp down the line? Phillips X1? DT990's? . The lower the price long term, the better. It's a big purchase, so my goal is to get this all right the first time, so we can set and forget.
 
Bonus: I get recommended a hard case to match

.
 
And as a side note, I love the look of Q701's and will probably snag a pair at some point with some Audio-GD or Bottlehead gear... I need to save more money though

.
 
Thanks.
 
EDIT:: Review on post #40.

 

[GREQ]

With something like a Beyer DT990, you get the sub-bass, you get the comfort, but most importantly you get the industrial durability you don't get in almost any other headphone. 
It's also a great choice for gaming. I recommend it quite a lot to gamers. It's what I mostly use for gaming.

 

[Claritas]

+1 and the check if the Slappa case is the right size (http://www.amazon.com/Slappa-Sized-HardBody-Headphone-SL-HP-07/dp/B009NE7B06/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1393871179&sr=8-1&keywords=slappa+headphone+case) 

 

[jodgey4]

I just re-read my post and realized more than half of it was totally irrelevant... lol. 4 AM posts FTW. I shortened it to keep it pithy and to not scare off people who could help. I know long posts scare me off.
 
I'm skeptical the 990's lack of a detachable cable (always what breaks), sizzling highs, and unforgiving character. Anything but an open box 250 Ohm Pro is too expensive, and would probably need an amp?
It sounds to me like the X1 is more neutral, with the bass extension needed, and is easier to drive. I think I'm back to thinking the 598 and X1 are the best choices.

 

[GREQ]

I run my VINTAGE 600 Ohm Beyerdynamic DT990  through an on-board motherboard audio at my work computer, which runs just fine at about 60% volume (and sounds absolutely fine) - mind you, it's a pretty decent mobo. 
I'm sure a modern 250 ohm DT990 will be adequately powered without an amp.

 

[Claritas]

  I'm skeptical the 990's lack of a detachable cable (always what breaks), sizzling highs, and unforgiving character.

 
You can get it recabled so it has a removable cable by BTG audio. (I suppose your experience is different, but I've been using headphones for 15 years and--praise the Lord--have never had a cable problem so unless a person wants to cable swap or is rough with his possessions, I don't see the point.)

 

[jodgey4]

   
You can get it recabled so it has a removable cable by BTG audio. (I suppose your experience is different, but I've been using headphones for 15 years and--praise the Lord--have never had a cable problem so unless a person wants to cable swap or is rough with his possessions, I don't see the point.)

 
We treat our headphones very gingerly, but I've seen enough cables go out to be skeptical. I would tend to trust Beyer's build quality though.
 
Still, why no love for the X1?

 

[Claritas]

 
Still, why no love for the X1?

 
It's been a few months since I heard it and I don't trust my auditory memory this time.
 
I started thinking you might like DT990 whilst I was reading through your post before I got to the tl;dr, where you mention it.

 

[jodgey4]

   
I started thinking you might like DT990 whilst I was reading through your post before I got to the tl;dr, where you mention it.

They are oft cited for their immersing sound which is certainly a plus. I'll run the option by him and see what he thinks. If anybody else has ideas or suggestions, keep 'em coming.

 

[GREQ]

I can't recommend the X1 since I've read a couple of horror stories of poor customer support and absolutely zero chance of repairs out of warranty due to lack of parts and support.
My ears liked what they heard, but what my eyes read doesn't justify the purchase.
 
Beyer still sell replacement parts compatible with the vintage DT990, so I can only imagine they will continue to support their current models for another 20 years.

 

[jodgey4]

  I can't recommend the X1 since I've read a couple of horror stories of poor customer support and absolutely zero chance of repairs out of warranty due to lack of parts and support.
My ears liked what they heard, but what my eyes read doesn't justify the purchase.
 
Beyer still sell replacement parts compatible with the vintage DT990, so I can only imagine they will continue to support their current models for another 20 years.

I'll cross the X1 off the list. Thanks so much for the help you two! I'll see what he says between the two and report back soon.

 

[b0000]

i still vote for the x1. The dt990's treble is sharp. 
 
As for those horror stories, just about every manufacturer has had issues and bad cases of costumer support. It's a very small minority, you shouldn't let it scare you off a good headphone unless you abuse your phones.

 

[jodgey4]

Hrrrrnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnggg. I'll just link him this thread and let him choose. I think I've narrowed it down enough for him.

 

[gr34td3str0y3r]

I'll cross the X1 off the list. Thanks so much for the help you two! I'll see what he says between the two and report back soon.

Not so fast!!! I just posted a similar query here on head-fi today.
I had the dt-990s in my basket ready to buy at a great price.
So far head fi has just convinced me to cross to the 990s off my list and the x1 is now in the front running spot.

 

[Darkseth]

The X1 is a great one, if you like much bass.
Should even play better than a dt 990.
 
BUT: Absolute zero chance of getting any spare parts. "used" Earpads? buy the whole headphone new. Thats a big problem in my opinion, if you plan in keeping the thing for long. Always keep that in mind.
While on Beyerdynamics, even in 20 years you will be able to buy new pads for the future.
In my Opinion... Phillips Failed this Headphone absolutely horrible. Even more, BECAUSE it sounds very nice for the price, and the build quality + material quality is awesome.
Would they have made at least the earpads replaceable, and sell some in their spare parts shop, alot more people would get one. Maybe me too
 
If possible: Try both.