[D126]

The K712 has a pretty good size cup, I can measure it for you later today if you'd like.

I don't have the magni but others that do have said it is adequate for the k712's.

Unamped the k712 doesn't sound very impressive. It's not horrible but it benefits greatly from an amp.

Yeah - that'd be great. I found some screenshots of the PC360 Ear Pads (70mmx43mm) : http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/rG4AAOxy9eVRMGiM/$(KGrHqNHJE!FElO+iUdKBRMGiLjLE!~~60_57.JPG
 
The DT-990 is 53mmx53mm.
 
Have you tried the HE-400? I would be interested in seeing if there is more ear pad room in the HE-400 or the K712s.

 

[kman1211]

  Hi Mad Lust,
 
Thank you for putting together this guide!
 
A few questions for you or anyone who can answer:
 
1. As someone with large ears, I am concerned about going from a PC360 to another option. How would you rank the size of the earcups for the DT-990, HE-400, Sennheiser 650, AKG K712 Pro? I'm guessing that the Sennheiser 650 (same as the PC360) has the largest earcup? 
 
2. Would a Magni properly drive the AKG K712?
 
3. Unamped, would the DT-990 or the AKG K712 perform better (on a phone let's say)?

The K712 has the largest and deepest earcups of the headphones you listed. The HD 650 has the smallest.
 
It will drive the K712 fine, not sure about synergy though.
 
I would say the DT 990 is a bit easier to drive than the K712.

 

[D126]

99% settled on the K712.
 
I am currently using the Xonar DX and I am planning on buying the Magni as an amp. 
 
Do you guys think a Xonar DX + Magni combo would work with the K712? Would you guys upgrade the soundcard/amp a bit more? Like a ZxR or STX? I don't really know any amps besides the Magni, so I'm open to suggestions for those as well.

 

[IBIubbleTea]

  99% settled on the K712.
 
I am currently using the Xonar DX and I am planning on buying the Magni as an amp. 
 
Do you guys think a Xonar DX + Magni combo would work with the K712? Would you guys upgrade the soundcard/amp a bit more? Like a ZxR or STX? I don't really know any amps besides the Magni, so I'm open to suggestions for those as well.

Just wondering but why do you even have a soundcard? is it just for the surround? 

 

[Yethal]

Looks loke the Asus DX has an S/PDIF out port. Adding an optical DAC to the chain should improve the sound quality

 

[D126]

  Just wondering but why do you even have a soundcard? is it just for the surround? 

Yup.

 

[D126]

-Gonna copy one of my posts from a thread I made over (since it is probably buried - lol).
 
I'm looking at getting a Soundcard + Amp for an AKG K712 Pro. The reason I'm thinking I'd like a soundcard is so that I am able to play with Surround Sound (for future games).
 
I'd like to keep the amps below 200...
 
I currently see the following amps:
Schiit Magni
Schiit Vali
O2 
 
Which of these 3 are the best, and am I missing any good headphone amps in the sub 200 dollar range?
 
In terms of soundcards I see:
Creative ZxR
Xonar STX
Xonar DX (Currently Own - Should I consider just keeping this and pairing it with one of the above amps?)
 
Which of these 2 are the best, and am I missing any other soundcard options?
 
Thanks for your help all!

 

[Change is Good]

-Gonna copy one of my posts from a thread I made over (since it is probably buried - lol).

I'm looking at getting a Soundcard + Amp for an AKG K712 Pro. The reason I'm thinking I'd like a soundcard is so that I am able to play with Surround Sound (for future games).

I'd like to keep the amps below 200...

I currently see the following amps:
Schiit Magni
Schiit Vali
O2 

Which of these 3 are the best, and am I missing any good headphone amps in the sub 200 dollar range?

In terms of soundcards I see:
Creative ZxR
Xonar STX
Xonar DX (Currently Own - Should I consider just keeping this and pairing it with one of the above amps?)

Which of these 2 are the best, and am I missing any other soundcard options?

Thanks for your help all!

As far as standalone amps are concerned, you can find a used Asgard 2 for under $200 in the classifieds, here. I would say that will be the best bang for buck, while providing ample synergy, when pairing with your K712.

 

[nito]

Hi Yethal,
 
I was thinking about the V-Moda but it does not fit most of the high ranked Headphones listed or my Koss KSC75 (thinking about upgrading to the HD 598 in the future).

Based on Stillhart's recommendation, I'll try out a clip on Microphone.
 
Thanks for your advice - Nito

 

[PurpleAngel]

  99% settled on the K712.
I am currently using the Xonar DX and I am planning on buying the Magni as an amp. 
Do you guys think a Xonar DX + Magni combo would work with the K712? Would you guys upgrade the soundcard/amp a bit more? Like a ZxR or STX? I don't really know any amps besides the Magni, so I'm open to suggestions for those as well.

 
I would consider the Magni headphone amplifier a little better then the amp built into the ZxR or STX.
The Xonar DX and Essence STX use the same C-Media CMI8788 audio processor.
So buying the Magni (or Vali? or other amp) and plugging it into the Xonar DX should work well for you.

 

[jaysins]

If it's going to be mostly for games and positional cues and being able to place where other players are I would recommend getting a Creative Z instead of the Xonar Zxr. The only reason I ended up with the Zx is that Newegg had an awesome sale on it and it was only $10 more than the Z. I actually still have both the Xonar ST and the Zx in my possession until I mail back the Xonar and from a lot of experimentation that I've done with it over the last couple days I've been happier with Creative's surround sound. I haven't heard your particular sound card but I'm sure if you google it you can find a comparison or two. The amps in the sound cards while pretty decent for what they are, will not give you as good of sound as a dedicated amp. If you want a great music experience I'd say a good DAC/AMP combo is in order. 

 

[chicolom]

  Holy...! PT in DH is... the best game I've heard all year. Yeah, even better than TLoU Remastered. 

 
FWIR "PT" is a "playable teaser" for a new Silent Hill reboot game.
 
Wonder if it's using AMD TrueAudio...

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

STOP SPOILING YOU MAD FOOLS.

Jk, I'm not a horror fan anyways.

So Xillia 2 is out next week, so don't expect much of any gameplay from me for any other game for a good while. Lots of rpgs coming out.

 

[Change is Good]

I absolutely love horror games. I grew up on the first Resident Evil and Silent Hill. The first Dead Space was nice when the PS3 came around, and I heard much about the first BioShock. I'm actually hyped at what next gen has in store for us horror fans. Bloodborne looks hype, and it being an RPG makes it even more intriguing.

 

[benbenkr]

   
FWIR "PT" is a "playable teaser" for a new Silent Hill reboot game.
 
Wonder if it's using AMD TrueAudio...

 
Yes, I was troll'd hard at the end. But damn it, to get to the end was quite some heart-wrenching experience. The positional cues is just sublime. I mean that... baby. That... BABY man! Oh God. 

 
 
Don't think TrueAudio is at work, did play it in stereo and clearly the rear cues weren't quite there. DH fixed that though. Not that the teaser is in anyways less scarier in stereo of course.