[gdourado]

Hello, how are you?

I am looking for some help to get a good setup for gaming with headphones on my Xbox Series X.
I currently have a pair of Philips Fidelio X1 headphones that I like very much!
They are extremely comfortable for me and I like the sound quality.
But I currently use them connected to the 3.5mm jack on the Xbox controller and I find the sound lacking. I think the Xbox controller isn’t doing a good job at driving the headphones.
I also use them for music on my HDR-R10 and they sound excellent!

So I am looking for a solution.
The problem is that the Xbox does not come with an optical out, so the dac/amp selection is quite limited...

So far the only one I can get that works over usb is the Astro MixAmp Pro TR gen 3 or gen 4.
I know that Mixamps are great for chat mixing and functionality, but I don’t know how good they are as dedicated headphone amps.
Are they good? Would they make a noticeable improvement to the audio compared to the controller jack?

The other option is to get a HDMI audio extractor and use that with something like a Sound Blaster X G6.
I would have to get an extractor that passes 4K HDR with VRR and then probably have to go into the Xbox settings anytime I want to change between the headphones and the tv sound, but still, of it sounds better than a Mixamp...

So, my current choices and the questions to which I could really use some help:
- Go for plug and play and get a Mixamp pro TR? Is it noticeably better than the controller jack?
- Go for a less clean solution with a splitter and a G6? Is it noticeably better than a Mixamp?

what are your thoughts and experiences in this matter?

thank you very much!
Kind regards!

 

[PurpleAngel]

Can't you just a Sound BlasterX G6 and connect it straight to the Xbox's USB port?

 

[gdourado]

Can't you just a Sound BlasterX G6 and connect it straight to the Xbox's USB port?

Can’t be done.
The Series S doesn’t support audio over USB for the Soundblaster and it doesn’t have an optical out.

 

[gleanfont]

The Xbox Series X is Microsoft’s first console to get rid of the Optical Port. Thus, getting HDMI is an alternative.

 

[iApril 14]

on my xbox series X I use: hdmi audio extractor (insignia), jds ell dac2 + jds atom amp - and it works ... But the question is that the chat doesn't want to work, I can't hear people and they can't. I am planning to buy Astro mixamp for this bundle, maybe then the chat sound will work. At the moment I am looking for a solution to this problem.

 

[Nabooh]

I have also been struggling, both on my PS5 and Serie X, to get a proper way to drive Hifi Headphones...

The easiest way would probably be for me to put an headphone amp behind my Home Theater AV Receiver throught RCA cable ( there is an output on it for that ), but I still don't know how the sound will be mixed ( does the AV receiver mix it to Stereo before? I suppose it would... ).

Because otherwise, every headphone jack I tried on AV Receiver sucks...

 

[Nothingpersnal]

I use dusk on my series S and it's decent.

 

[p1zzap1e]

I have an blasterx g6 dac/amp. Using my tv’s optical out for sound, power from the xbox’s usb. The mic does not work with this solution tough

 

[Cybernet1000]

Hi everyone!

I´m looking for a VERY COMFORTABLE (long hours,warm & humid environment) good sounding Headset/Headphone (has NOT to have a Mic) to use with my Xbox Series X.

Reading through this thread i was wondering about something.

I "tested" since my Xbox One several Headsets and i had "identical ones" with and without cable. And ALL the time the wired ones plugged into the Controller sounded far better than their wireless Counterparts or even "Higher End" wireless Headsets.

I like to believe that my hearing is above average because i´ve produced and approved over 100 DVDs and Blu-Rays with Multichannel Surround dubbing ^_°

So what do get? Arctis 9X , Audeze Penrose X ,Bose 35 QC II or ???

Thank you all for your Input!

 

[JdeFalconr]

If any of you have your PC nearby and it has sound gear that has an optical-in you can get an HDMI audio extractor, kick optical out to your PC's optical-in, and then connect your headphones to the PC or to whatever else you want. For chat you can use the Xbox app on your PC or, depending on how your mic is set up, you could also do game chat via a controller if you didn't mind the wire.

I run that setup presently with an Arctis Pro Wireless. The big benefit is that it allows you to be fully wireless, chat included (using the PC Xbox app or Discord for chat). I run the HDMI connection to one of my PC monitors and just switch inputs when I want to play Xbox. The other benefit there is if you have a high-performance PC monitor you can take advantage of that with your Xbox too.