[HiCZoK]

I've been using e10k and Koss Porta Pro for a few years now and while I do love the sound, I am curious to try other stuff, maybe wireless considering I also play on ps4.
I only play single player games - that is all exclusives on ps4 and everything else 4k on pc. Short - I like to immerse myself but not get hot sweaty ears - so porta pro. I also listen to a lot of game soundtracks and generally music without vocal. I like fun, bassy sound. Porta pro does not shake but is ok with bass boost on with e10k.
Now - I've been also baffled about 3d audio/7.1 vss and atmos stuff. Some headsets market ps4 3d audio, other 7.1. On pc some games have "dolby atmos" option like Shadow of the Tomb raider but it don't say what does it do and if I need to enable it in windows or what. It's quite confusing.
I used dolby headphone years ago with xonar card and it ruined the quality of the sound.

Now - my understanding is that only Sony official gold and platinum headsets support ps4 3d audio. But do these do 7.1 vss on pc? I think there is a single usb dongle and it works on both pc and ps4. There are also hyperx and corsair headsets. I dont need a mic btw

 

[Deders]

On pc some games have "dolby atmos" option like Shadow of the Tomb raider but it don't say what does it do and if I need to enable it in windows or what. It's quite confusing.

You need to enable it in the properties of the audio device you are using for the game within windows

 

[illram]

I've been using e10k and Koss Porta Pro for a few years now and while I do love the sound, I am curious to try other stuff, maybe wireless considering I also play on ps4.
I only play single player games - that is all exclusives on ps4 and everything else 4k on pc. Short - I like to immerse myself but not get hot sweaty ears - so porta pro. I also listen to a lot of game soundtracks and generally music without vocal. I like fun, bassy sound. Porta pro does not shake but is ok with bass boost on with e10k.
Now - I've been also baffled about 3d audio/7.1 vss and atmos stuff. Some headsets market ps4 3d audio, other 7.1. On pc some games have "dolby atmos" option like Shadow of the Tomb raider but it don't say what does it do and if I need to enable it in windows or what. It's quite confusing.
I used dolby headphone years ago with xonar card and it ruined the quality of the sound.

Now - my understanding is that only Sony official gold and platinum headsets support ps4 3d audio. But do these do 7.1 vss on pc? I think there is a single usb dongle and it works on both pc and ps4. There are also hyperx and corsair headsets. I dont need a mic btw

Bassier headphone upgrades <$200 that I have personally tried: HD598, Fidelio X2/X2HR, VModa M100. The VModa's are very bassy but are closed. The Fidelio's are bassy but open. The HD598 are dark, not necessarily bass cannons and not as bassy as either of those, but you will get a warmer signature. These are all well regarded headphones with good qualities for gaming, and easily driven by your E10k.

If you want to break the bank and want some deep bass in an amazing headphone try the LCD2C or the Fostex TR-X00.

Your 3d audio questions are answered on the first page of this thread.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I wouldn't get the HD598 if you want a bassy sound. They're warm but I wouldn't say bass is a main distinction for them.

The 598 is a headphone I wish I could revisit because I honestly didn't have a lot of time to form a truly accurate impression. Almost to the point that I wanna delete the listing of it on my guide.

Tbh, there's so many I would delete, mainly because I had done those 'reviews' back when the guide was meant to be a sort of checklist and simple guideline on what is good and what isn't with a few notes on why. I really don't know how it turned into doing full reviews, but it makes the guide itself incredibly inconsistent.

 

[headphonesonly]

The Monoprice Retros are the best bass cans for under $100. Dekoni Blues are another that have crazy powerful bass. I’ve ordered the Modhouse argons a week ago so I can’t wait to try those out.

 

[illram]

I wouldn't get the HD598 if you want a bassy sound. They're warm but I wouldn't say bass is a main distinction for them.

The 598 is a headphone I wish I could revisit because I honestly didn't have a lot of time to form a truly accurate impression. Almost to the point that I wanna delete the listing of it on my guide.

Tbh, there's so many I would delete, mainly because I had done those 'reviews' back when the guide was meant to be a sort of checklist and simple guideline on what is good and what isn't with a few notes on why. I really don't know how it turned into doing full reviews, but it makes the guide itself incredibly inconsistent.

Your take on the 598 remains accurate, don't delete it. (Don't delete any of your reviews! They're all good.) They are warm, but not bass heavy. I just feel remiss not recommending them in any "affordable" list if I can get away with it, since they are so good. (IMHO.) I feel like coming from a porta pro you'd get the improved staging and imaging, and you wouldn't be losing any bass, I don't think. And I am a huge porta pro's fan...

I am curious to try the Massdrop 58X as lots of people have chimed in that they are better than the 598 for affordable gaming cans, which I find hard to believe, but I'm always open to being wrong.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Oh for sure, the 598 is a definite step up from the PortaPro, for the things you've stated.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

The Ananda arrived today. (Through the loaner tour currently happening)

I'm definitely gonna need some time to hear the differences here...

A few things to note:

1. The Ananda needs a smidge less on the volume pot compared to the Edition XX. A smidge.

2. The Ananda weighs 21g less (399g) but I honestly can't tell the difference in weight. Both are acceptable due to even weight distribution.

3. I don't know if it's because of the many more hours on the Edition XX, but the Ananda clamps slightly little more on my head, and the suspension headband has a little bit more presence on my head. Both are quite comfortable, regardless. The size adjustment on the Ananda's headband is a lot like Beyerdynamic DT770/880/990. They grip HARD, and leave marks between each dot.

4. The cups and pads are nigh identical. The only differences for me would be that the 'glue' used on the Ananda is darker than the XX. The headband is obviously different and higher quality on the Ananda.

5. The Ananda comes with two cables. One shorter one that is similar to the one used on the XX, which terminates into a right angled 3.5mm plug with a 1/4" snap on adapter. The other is quite a bit longer and terminates into a beefy straight 1/4" plug (the XX does not come with this cable). The cables are similar to the XX cable, but they are see through (you can see the inner wires), whereas the XX cable is see through but covered with an inner sleeve of some kind. Also the dual 3.5mm mono plugs that connect on the headphone side are silver on the Ananda, and black on the XX.

I'm on a Modi 3/Magni 3 combo. As far as sound goes... that's gonna take some time. They definitely share similar sound, though there are differences. Whether that's due to difference in clamp, hours used, impedance/sensitivity/volume, drivers, I certainly can't say. That's gonna take time. It definitely sounds great though.

I don't like doing straight comparisons because it's simply hard to A/B due to length of time changing between them, and not being able to match the volume precisely. I will certainly be able to hear differences in frequency tests through sinegen however, which should make it a little easier to know what's different at least there.

 

[thewind32]

I know headphones with narrow soundstage aren't recommended for gaming, but is that still the case when using virtual surround, such as GSX 1000/X7/etc?

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Virtual surround will always benefit headphones when gaming. They just tend to work even better when a headphone already has good soundstage characteristics.

 

[SierraMadre]

I think HeSuVi or the Equalizer APO or the V-cable programs/drivers even after having deleted them have affected Windows and its ability to get Sonic and Atmos to work.

Let's say Atmos was Creative SBX. Enabling Atmos on, is like turning SBX to the surround setting of like....5 out of a 100. The change is so subtle, it just doesn't feel like it's actually doing what it's supposed to. Same with Sonic.

While I tested HeSuVi back in the day, its Atmos actually felt like a real surround dsp, so I have to believe the real experience is supposed to be closer to that.

I just REALLY don't want to go through the hassle of a complete reformat to wipe the system of any deeply seeded driver problems.

Are you enabling Atmos / Windows Sonic and then leaving the main windows sound settings as-is? Because that's pretty much what needs to be done otherwise they turn themselves off.
Enabling Atmos and Sonic defaults the speaker/channel configuration to stereo and the sample rate and bit depth to 16 bit and 48khz (DVD quality). If you subsequently change the channel configuration in the Windows sound manager to anything beyond stereo (e.g. 5.1 or 7.1) and/or if you change the sample rate / bit depth whether upwards or downwards, then Atmos/Sonic will turn themselves off.

Thanks for your work on the guide btw. Has been most helpful.

You might also like to check out 3D Boom. It's a software surround solution for PC and has a free demo. For "out of your head" factor it has been one of the most impressive software-only solutions I have come across. If you do give it a go, just be mindful of the other enhacement features offered, when I gave it a whirl there seemed to be some kind of bug whereby messing with any of those would turn the 3D sound dial off. Best just to set the 3D dial to 100 and leave everything else as is, although they may have since fixed that.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Nah, I already knew that changing the settings would turn Atmos/Sonic back off. That's definitely not the issue.

More like the effect is barely engaged, like if it was Dolby Headphone, it'd be Dolby Headphone room 0.25 or something.

 

[Deders]

Nah, I already knew that changing the settings would turn Atmos/Sonic back off. That's definitely not the issue.

More like the effect is barely engaged, like if it was Dolby Headphone, it'd be Dolby Headphone room 0.25 or something.

Did you try my suggestion a few posts back?

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Did you try my suggestion a few posts back?

Installing Equalizer APO, disabling it, and then uninstalling? No, I didn't try that. Gotta remember to try that when I get home.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Guys, so something has to be said. I recently got the Ananda on loaner, and while it's not exactly like the XX, it's close enough that I honestly don't feel the need to do a full review of it. So I'm considering repurposing MOST of the XX review with copypasta and rewording some things here or there to account for some differences. Is that ok, or will it upset you guys that a lot of the XX review was pasted for the Ananda? I almost feel like not doing it, but perhaps having it on the guide will help those who wanna know about it specifically.

I'm currently very busy with about 3 other products in the near future, and taking so much time just to microanalyze the Ananda despite my feeling that it's slightly better than the XX but more similar than not, is just not a good use of my time.

Please let me know what you think.