[deucefive]

@Mad Lust Envy - love your reviews. Recognizing most of these are ranked favorably (by you and others), may I please ask what you have you enjoyed the most from this list for gaming + music:

• LCD GX
  
• LCD 2C
• LCD X
• Audeze Mobius
• AKG K712 Pro
• Hifiman Edition XX
• Hifiman Ananda
• Hifiman Arya
• Sennheiser HD 800S
• Beyer Dynamic DT 1770X Go
• Volkyl Erupt (in case you had a listen from the initial tour)

I own the LCD2C, AKG K712 and Mobius, and I am debating what else would be the best addition to the lot (currently debating LCD X, LCD GX, Ananda, Edition XX and HD800S). I am currently trying LCD GX with mixed results and expect Volkyl Erupt probably in late Q4. I'm pretty treble-sensitive and love a liquid mid-range but surprisingly find AKG K712 pretty tolerable with both JDS EL Stack and Woo Audio WA7D (stock tubes).

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[519514]

@deucefive MLE may have contradictory opinions, but here's how I'd rank those anyway, based on the ones I've owned and/or used for competitive gaming - excluding the ones I haven't:

1. Sennheiser HD 800 S (but I'd almost call them 'boring' for modern music genres)
2. Hifiman Ananda (excellent for music and excellent for experiential and competitive gaming - although the Arya is said to have a better soundstage and imaging, akin to HD 800 S)
3. DT 1770 (great imaging, but not a great stage as you can imagine as a closed back can)
4. LCD-X (I'd only considering using any of the LCD range for experiential gaming, not competitive gaming - LCD-GX is good for experiential gaming too)

 

[Scriba]

@deucefive MLE may have contradictory opinions, but here's how I'd rank those anyway, based on the ones I've owned and/or used for competitive gaming - excluding the ones I haven't:

1. Sennheiser HD 800 S (but I'd almost call them 'boring' for modern music genres)
2. Hifiman Ananda (excellent for music and excellent for experiential and competitive gaming - although the Arya is said to have a better soundstage and imaging, akin to HD 800 S)
3. DT 1770 (great imaging, but not a great stage as you can imagine as a closed back can)
4. LCD-X (I'd only considering using any of the LCD range for experiential gaming, not competitive gaming - LCD-GX is good for experiential gaming too)

As you rate the DT 1770 relative high, how would you rate the DT 1990 with better imaging and sound stage?

 

[519514]

As you rate the DT 1770 relative high, how would you rate the DT 1990 with better imaging and sound stage?

I bought and sold my DT 1990 relatively quickly. I'm not sure I'd say it has better imaging than the 1770. Controversially, I don't actually think the 1770 or 1990 are particularly good headphones. They're 'premium' headphones, sure. They're made of excellent materials, come with a great range of accessories, and looks fancy af. Personally, I'd opt for cheaper Beyers and not miss any of the reasons I think they're more expensive (imo their added expense doesn't translate justifiably to their added degree of audio quality). I still own a pair of DT 770 Pros and they're 90% as fantastic as both of those - great for both experiential and competitive gaming.

 

[SierraMadre]

@deucefive

1. Sennheiser HD 800 S (but I'd almost call them 'boring' for modern music genres)

A half-decent tube amp might sort that out. Did for me.

 

[519514]

A half-decent tube amp might sort that out. Did for me.

I’ve tried them on half a dozen different DAC amp combos - they don’t change the fundamental complaints I have about the headphone. I had more luck applying some EQ than I did with tubes. Don’t get me wrong: they’re important and impressive - I’m glad I own them. Yes, they’re world-beating for a couple genres, but not for most others. They should also be every reviewer’s soundstage reference.

 

[dakanao]

Alright, so I just got on Modern Warfare 2 on the xbox 360, played some Free for All and compared Ninja Pro vs Sitrep Pro (Ninja pro makes your footsteps silent, while Sitrep Pro makes your enemies footsteps louder), and to me it's clear that Ninja Pro is superior on that game, because Sitrep Pro doesn't always work on Ninja Pro users, and because that game has so many lines of sight and you need to rely on your reflexes more than any other cod I've played, all the footsteps you hear at once with Sitrep Pro slow down your reaction time and movement, getting you killed a lot more.

Used the Sennheiser HD 540 Gold btw, EXCELLENT imaging with a natural soundstage. The regular HD 540 goes for ~$100 a lot of the times, and at that price it's gotta be the best for imaging. Plus the sound is way more natural as well than the usually artificial sounding headphones found at that price, being in the league with the HD 650 yet with a lot less bass quantity and more treble, and obviously way better imaging.

 

[deucefive]

@Mad Lust Envy - love your reviews. Recognizing most of these are ranked favorably (by you and others), may I please ask what you have you enjoyed the most from this list for gaming + music:

• LCD GX
  
• LCD 2C
• LCD X
• Audeze Mobius
• AKG K712 Pro
• Hifiman Edition XX
• Hifiman Ananda
• Hifiman Arya
• Sennheiser HD 800S
• Beyer Dynamic DT 1770X Go
• Volkyl Erupt (in case you had a listen from the initial tour)

I own the LCD2C, AKG K712 and Mobius, and I am debating what else would be the best addition to the lot (currently debating LCD X, LCD GX, Ananda, Edition XX and HD800S). I am currently trying LCD GX with mixed results and expect Volkyl Erupt probably in late Q4. I'm pretty treble-sensitive and love a liquid mid-range but surprisingly find AKG K712 pretty tolerable with both JDS EL Stack and Woo Audio WA7D (stock tubes).

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

@deucefive MLE may have contradictory opinions, but here's how I'd rank those anyway, based on the ones I've owned and/or used for competitive gaming - excluding the ones I haven't:

1. Sennheiser HD 800 S (but I'd almost call them 'boring' for modern music genres)
2. Hifiman Ananda (excellent for music and excellent for experiential and competitive gaming - although the Arya is said to have a better soundstage and imaging, akin to HD 800 S)
3. DT 1770 (great imaging, but not a great stage as you can imagine as a closed back can)
4. LCD-X (I'd only considering using any of the LCD range for experiential gaming, not competitive gaming - LCD-GX is good for experiential gaming too)

I’ve tried them on half a dozen different DAC amp combos - they don’t change the fundamental complaints I have about the headphone. I had more luck applying some EQ than I did with tubes. Don’t get me wrong: they’re important and impressive - I’m glad I own them. Yes, they’re world-beating for a couple genres, but not for most others. They should also be every reviewer’s soundstage reference.

@jamieskella

Thanks so much! Your feedback is definitely appreciated and welcome as I'm debating between Ananda and HD800S. I had planned to use my JDS El Stack for the Ananda (but my EL Amp is giving me issues for my LCD2C, and I probably wouldn't use my Woo Audio WA7D with planars).

With regard to the Ananda, what do you suggest as far as DAC/amps?

• Jotunheim with Multibit Module
• THX 789 with Airist R2R DAC
• Burson Conductor V3 (ESS Sabre DAC) - has a mic input for gaming!
• IFI Micro iDSD Black Label (Burr Brown DAC)

Thanks again!

 

[519514]

@jamieskella

Thanks so much! Your feedback is definitely appreciated and welcome as I'm debating between Ananda and HD800S. I had planned to use my JDS El Stack for the Ananda (but my EL Amp is giving me issues for my LCD2C, and I probably wouldn't use my Woo Audio WA7D with planars).

With regard to the Ananda, what do you suggest as far as DAC/amps?

• Jotunheim with Multibit Module
• THX 789 with Airist R2R DAC
• Burson Conductor V3 (ESS Sabre DAC) - has a mic input for gaming!
• IFI Micro iDSD Black Label (Burr Brown DAC)

Thanks again!

Modern planars aren’t too power hungry, and the Ananda is designed to be incredibly efficient - it works quite nicely even on smartphones.

I’m using a JDS Labs Element right now and it’s a perfectly fine match, I think. You can’t go wrong with the THX 789, but I doubt you’ll discern any real difference between that and the EL stack with the Ananda.

The Conductor V3 is very impressive, but also very expensive compared to options which should fare no worse for the Ananda. To what degree it would improve or change what you’re hearing, I can’t confirm (I have only used the V2 with different cans).

 

[Fegefeuer]

We know this already from all the interviews about the PS5 but it's good to have an official word:

-Custom SSD for ultra-high speed access
-AMD custom chip -CPU: x86-64-AMD Ryzen ™ “Zen2”, 8 cores / 16 threads
• GPU: AMD Radeon ™ RDNA (Radeon DNA) -based graphics engine

・ 3D audio processing unit
　・ Up to 8K resolution output for games
　・ Designed for compatibility with PlayStation®4 titles
　・ PlayStation®VR compatible
● Controller
-Equipped with haptic technology - Adopting an adaptive trigger that makes L2 and R2 buttons feel resistance
● Physical media
・ Ultra HD Blu-ray
・ Capacity as a game disc is 100GB

SIE will create new experiences through PS5 and take entertainment to a higher level.

 

[Yethal]

We know this already from all the interviews about the PS5 but it's good to have an official word:

-Custom SSD for ultra-high speed access
-AMD custom chip -CPU: x86-64-AMD Ryzen ™ “Zen2”, 8 cores / 16 threads
• GPU: AMD Radeon ™ RDNA (Radeon DNA) -based graphics engine

・ 3D audio processing unit
　・ Up to 8K resolution output for games
　・ Designed for compatibility with PlayStation®4 titles
　・ PlayStation®VR compatible
● Controller
-Equipped with haptic technology - Adopting an adaptive trigger that makes L2 and R2 buttons feel resistance
● Physical media
・ Ultra HD Blu-ray
・ Capacity as a game disc is 100GB

SIE will create new experiences through PS5 and take entertainment to a higher level.

Hopefully this means we can use regular stereo audio equipment and still have the virtual surround. However PS4 also has such unit integrated with the GPU and afaik the only game that used it was Thi4F.

 

[illram]

I think this is really going to depend on whether or not Sony or MS begin pushing more industry-wide 3D audio standards on their platforms, and whether or not they and Dolby and DTS make it easy for devs to incorporate these solutions. In other words this seems like a software problem rather than a hardware problem.

 

[Fegefeuer]

Cerny himself said that 3D Audio is a strong focus.

When speaking to Wired, Cerny conceded that there was a "frustration that audio did not change too much between PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4".

"With the next console the dream is to show how dramatically different the audio experience can be when we apply significant amounts of hardware horsepower to it.”

As Yisl said, let's see how we can transport that 3D Audio to our stuff.

 

[jbjs5820]

Good morning,
First post after reading so many pages of this forum.
I´ve recived my Creative SB X3.
I have to test it.
I have Ps4 / PC / MAC.

If you want to know anything specific, dont hesitate to ask.

Although i haven´t open the box... ehehe

 

[Fegefeuer]

Please check if you can output the SXFI processed signal over optical out, similar to the G6.