[LB Felipe]

Is HyperX Cloud Orbit 100% compatible with these? https://www.audeze.com/collections/accessories/products/gel-filled-ear-pads-for-mobius

 

[Suckafish]

Hello @Mad Lust Envy, first I just want to give a thanks to this guide. So much valuable info! Quick question, I recently went from Audio Technica AD700x's to Beyerdynamic DT990 250 Edition's for PC gaming and I much prefer the "fun" factor the 990's offer over the AD700x's. In your opinion, is there really anything better than the 990's strictly for non-competitive gaming? I tried the AKG 712 Pro's and even though they sounded great they were a bit too large for my smaller head, and I think the 990's edged them out a bit anyway, again, for gaming. I know Beyer and Sennheiser both offer higher end models, but are any of them actually a legitimate upgrade over the 990's that would provide a better sound stage and such to warrant the cost? And how do you place the Philips Fidelio X2's, for example, with the 990's if I already like the way the 990's sound?

Again, thanks for all the work you've put into this!

 

[PurpleAngel]

Hello @Mad Lust Envy, first I just want to give a thanks to this guide. So much valuable info! Quick question, I recently went from Audio Technica AD700x's to Beyerdynamic DT990 250 Edition's for PC gaming and I much prefer the "fun" factor the 990's offer over the AD700x's. In your opinion, is there really anything better than the 990's strictly for non-competitive gaming? I tried the AKG 712 Pro's and even though they sounded great they were a bit too large for my smaller head, and I think the 990's edged them out a bit anyway, again, for gaming. I know Beyer and Sennheiser both offer higher end models, but are any of them actually a legitimate upgrade over the 990's that would provide a better sound stage and such to warrant the cost? And how do you place the Philips Fidelio X2's, for example, with the 990's if I already like the way the 990's sound?
Again, thanks for all the work you've put into this!

The DT990 have a strong bass/treble, which over shadows the mids, but the mids are clear.
Any particular improvements your looking for?
What is the make and model of the motherboard that your plugging the headphones into?

 

[Inspectre]

Is something wrong with Windows Sonic on the Xbox? In PUBG you can clearly hear the audio jump from left, to middle, and then right. Like, clear steps. Dolby headphones from my mixamp sounds much more natural.

 

[Suckafish]

The DT990 have a strong bass/treble, which over shadows the mids, but the mids are clear.
Any particular improvements your looking for?
What is the make and model of the motherboard that your plugging the headphones into?

I am using a Sound Blaster AE-9 sound card in my setup. Honestly, I think the DT990's sound great when gaming, so no complaints there, but I'm really just curious if there are any better options over them that are similar or would the cost of better headphones really not be worth it from a gaming perspective?

 

[SierraMadre]

Is something wrong with Windows Sonic on the Xbox? In PUBG you can clearly hear the audio jump from left, to middle, and then right. Like, clear steps. Dolby headphones from my mixamp sounds much more natural.

I experienced something similar in the Witcher 3 on a One X outputting via optical/bitstream to a Creative G6 (SBX surround turned off of course).
Dolby Atmos for headphone: proper placement of cues. Windows Sonic: all over the place. Didn’t try it in any other games but for the Witcher 3, it turned out that Windows Sonic required the Xbox audio output setting to be set to uncompressed stereo, not bitstream, in order for Sonic’s cue placement to be correct.

 

[dagerbil]

"SBX surround turned off of course" - why of course?

 

[SierraMadre]

"SBX surround turned off of course" - why of course?

Because that would be stacking two separate VSS solutions on top of each other which usually I prefer not to do.

 

[PurpleAngel]

I am using a Sound Blaster AE-9 sound card in my setup. Honestly, I think the DT990's sound great when gaming, so no complaints there, but I'm really just curious if there are any better options over them that are similar or would the cost of better headphones really not be worth it from a gaming perspective?

For FPS gaming, the AD700X and DT990 seem to be fairly good, so doubt you would find other headphones you would like better, for FPS gaming.
but to me there are better headphones for music and movies.
I like my Massdrop/Sennheiser HD58X headphones, better then my DT990.

 

[Suckafish]

For FPS gaming, the AD700X and DT990 seem to be fairly good, so doubt you would find other headphones you would like better, for FPS gaming.
but to me there are better headphones for music and movies.
I like my Massdrop/Sennheiser HD58X headphones, better then my DT990.

I mostly play more single player RPG/action/adventure focused games like The Witcher/Control/Resident Evil 2. Would there really be anything better than the DT990's for these genres?

 

[Ekoes]

Hello everyone, it's been quite a while that I get information about headphones, mainly for gaming fps (escape from tarkov, siege etc ..). What I am looking for is help in identifying enemy sounds / movements. I read this guide and found it very useful, if I didn't understand it wrong the best choice for me would be

AKG K 702 (https://www.amazon.it/gp/product/B001RCD2DW/)

or
Philips X2HR / 00 https://www.amazon.it/gp/product/B01N5VHLUG/
(there is the possibility of taking it used for 143 euros). Do you have any advice for me? Consider that now I only have the integrated sound card and my mobo is this: Asus TUF Z370-Pro Gaming, I believe ALC887 driver. I could consider buying a sound card in the future

https://www.amazon.it/gp/product/B00OYZP6G0/

PS: I was almost sure of AKG k702 (having taken superlative in the votes for competitiveness) but someone online wrote that imaging is a weak point of this headset. Please help me, I have been evaluating for years which headset to buy !!

 

[SierraMadre]

Hello everyone, it's been quite a while that I get information about headphones, mainly for gaming fps (escape from tarkov, siege etc ..). What I am looking for is help in identifying enemy sounds / movements. I read this guide and found it very useful, if I didn't understand it wrong the best choice for me would be

AKG K 702 (https://www.amazon.it/gp/product/B001RCD2DW/)

or
Philips X2HR / 00 https://www.amazon.it/gp/product/B01N5VHLUG/
(there is the possibility of taking it used for 143 euros). Do you have any advice for me? Consider that now I only have the integrated sound card and my mobo is this: Asus TUF Z370-Pro Gaming, I believe ALC887 driver. I could consider buying a sound card in the future

https://www.amazon.it/gp/product/B00OYZP6G0/

PS: I was almost sure of AKG k702 (having taken superlative in the votes for competitiveness) but someone online wrote that imaging is a weak point of this headset. Please help me, I have been evaluating for years which headset to buy !!

The 702 is known for superb imaging. Also bear in mind there are 3 versions, the original, the 65th anniversary with small pads and the 65th anniversary revision with larger pads. The latter two are rarer and more expensive in addition to sounding different.

The Fidelity X2s have very good imaging but not as good as the 702. The X2s are better for immersion / ‘fun’ and a more ‘cinematic’ experience. They have a warmer, more lush sound signature (albeit some graininess at the top end) and have much more bass than the 702. If you want the X2s you should be able to get them at the 143 Euro price you quoted or possibly even cheaper for *new*, not used, if you wait till Black Friday, especially seeing as retailers will be keen to shift inventory as the launch of the X3 approaches.

If you want a good compromise between the 702 and the X2 then you should consider the K712 and the K7XX. In this middle ground, the K712 leans more toward the K702 and the K7XX leans more toward the X2.

Here is a decent comparison between the K712 and the K7XX

https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/ajcvkk/comment/eewa5bi

And a very good comparison between all the K7~ series models from headfier Ryan1987

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/my-...s-and-the-rest-to-stop-this-confusion.752994/

One definite advantage of the X2s over the AKGs is they are better built and more sturdy (albeit heavier) and are more versatile in that they are very easy to drive. They sound good with pretty much anything. The AKGs have around twice the impedance and while they are generally OK, sometimes even decent for mobile devices, you definitely won’t be getting the best out of them with low power sources.

 

[Art Garfunkel]

You can see a potential for mid forward bias with the smaller hole on the rear. Tuned to rock and roll perhaps?

 

[519514]

Long time reader, first time poster.

Wanted to chime in on the intermittent mentions of the Fostex TH900 for gaming, which as of last week, I now own.

My objective has been to find a single pair of headphones which ticked all of these boxes: jazz, alt rock, electronica, portability (could I drive them via smartphone and/or Dragonfly and travel with them if I really wanted to), competitive gaming (being a former Counter-Strike semi-pro), and experiential gaming (bring on Cyberpunk 2077).

My journey has been short but winding, owning all of these headphones since the start of year:

• Beyerdynamic MMX 300
• Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro
• Acoustic Research AR-H1
• Audio Technica ATH-AD700X
• Sennheiser HD 800 S
• Fostex TH-X00 Ebony

I wasn't happy with any of them, ultimately. The AR-H1, HD800S and AD700X all lacked low end meatiness; even after EQing (which I would rather avoid entirely), I yearned for a thicker sound. The AR-H1, TH-X00 Ebony and both sets of Beyers lacked the degree of soundstage I was after. Lastly, fully closed cans such as the MMX 300 have always felt a bit claustrophic for me, which is in part due to not being able to hear myself talk clearly over voice comms. After a few hours I just need to get them off my head to clear my head, whereas open and semi-open alleviate that sensation.

Enter the TH-900. Having read MLE's thoughts on the TH-900 for gaming in his TH-600 review, I bit the bullet. Soundstage, imaging, detail retrieval, low end, and high end, are all fantastic. The mids are indeed somewhat recessed, but experimenting with a reduction of bass and treble reveals that these drivers do mids fantastically as well, if that's a priority for you and are willing to EQ. Personally, I won't be applying any EQ beyond experimentation - the out-of-box mids aren't something I have any grievance with. If you really want a neutral headphone, these shouldn't be on your radar to begin with.

I have only two notes to make for others eyeing off these cans:

1. Vertical imaging of the TH-900 doesn't quite match that of the HD 800 S, which makes it a touch harder to pinpoint enemy locations in tall environments such as multi-level complexes in a game like Apex Legends. It's a minor step back, and a minor con, when considering the many pros stacked up beside it.
2. In some titles, such as Overwatch, the bass may be perceived by some people as too great in quantity. While I've got no issues with bass quantity across titles, if this happens to be you, you can always fire up PC Equalizer for Equalizer APO and have it automatically reduce your low end when that game executable is running (and automatically revert when it is closed).

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

• Fostex TH-X00 Ebony

How similar is the TH-X00 to the TH900? I miss having a big Fostex dynamic in the vein of the old Denons. Now with Dekoni selling hybrid pads for these, I would be interested in owning something like that again.