[illram]

Good god that is expensive.

 

[Hunrain82]

Is there anyone who replaced the Sound BlasterX G5 to G6? Is it worth it?

 

[headphonesonly]

Just got the gamedac and I’m kind of disappointed with it. The sound and positional audio is great but I can’t get enough volume even with my amp connected to it. Maybe it’s the amp I’m using. Won’t know for sure till I get my JDS atom amp.

 

[Yunho]

Just got the gamedac and I’m kind of disappointed with it. The sound and positional audio is great but I can’t get enough volume even with my amp connected to it. Maybe it’s the amp I’m using. Won’t know for sure till I get my JDS atom amp.

The lineout is pretty bad from my experience. I tried it for a day with my powered monitors and I had to crank the volume on them up to the point where I was hearing hiss on Twitch streams.

The weak lineout and it not being immune to picking up interference from a (launch) PS4's usb ports when charging a controller are my biggest gripes with it. Though it's an upgrade from the 2013 Astro Mixamp which would distort when you'd do something as simple as adjust the master volume wheel I suppose.

 

[WK446]

I have these cans. I play mostly Fortnite and COD Blackout. They are decent, cost effective, and easy to drive without a dedicated ampliflier. If you require closed back headphones, it is a decent option. They have a microphone which means it is compatible with smartphones, at least those with a headphone jack. I've tested them on a Nintendo Switch and it works as well. However, unless you using a sound card or sound processor that can expand the soundstage or add spatial information, there may be other solutions.

The main issue is spatial information and cues. The soundstage on these cans is not terribly expansive. What this means is that cues such as enemy footsteps or gliders flying about, maybe more difficult to localize and pinpoint.

They are decently comfortable and seem durable.

Hello all! Just joined this site. I'm loving this thread! Tons of useful info, good gaming headphone guides are difficult to find.

Has anyone used the Sennheiser HD 598 Cs for gaming? They're the closed back variant of the HD 598 (there are significant sonic differences between the two). I did some research on these and I suspect they're one of the best options for a closed back gaming headphone, but hard to know until someone tests them. I'm seeing a ton of participation on this thread, it's pretty awesome.

 

[MassEffectFan]

Thanks so much for the reply! So the closed HD 598 C has a somewhat narrow soundstage hey? That's good to know, I'll definitely keep that in mind. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, given that it's a closed headphone.

I was mostly considering because I read the scientific tests rtings.com did on it and it looks like it has superbly low distortion and a low-bass response that seems perfect for my tastes (~1.5-2 decibels below neutral). But if it does a mediocre job of reproducing positional cues, I'll look at something else. Thanks again!

What about the Beyerdynamic DT 990? I went on rtings.com to see exactly what their sound signature is like and I think I'll like it quite a bit. I have headphones with a very similar treble response and quite like their treble, so I'm not concerned about their treble overemphasis. But will they do a good job of positional audio? Judging by what rtings.com has to say about them, and what Mad Lust Envy has to say about them, I'm guessing that they will. Judging by the scientific measurements provided by rtings.com, they have very low THD even at 90db, and a sub-bass that's about 1.5 db below neutral (perfect sub-bass for gaming IMO). But I'd be curious to see what others have to say about them, are they a good choice for gaming?

 

[WhiteHartMart]

Been pretty pleased with the GameDac (actually more than just pleased for £65!). I'm playing mainly Battlefield 5 with it so running in stereo mode with the 3D audio option selected in game. It sounds nice and 'clean' and balanced with my Game Ones. Anything less efficient than these would be a problem though - I can get enough volume but there isn't much headroom left to drive more difficult headphones. Creative G6 so much better in that respect. Addition on on-device control for Game/Chat balance means I'll likely keep it over the G6 for PS4 use though.

 

[Fegefeuer]

Creative SUPER X-FI X8 with DUAL HDMI in, 1x HDMI out and 9.1.4 SBX? WHEN?
Sennheiser GSX 2000 and GSX 2200 Pro with USB, optical in/out (GSX over SPDIF basically), AC3/DTS console support. WHEN?

yeah I don't trust Sennheiser to launch anything with HDMI but Creative? Man, they are so long in the business but still hesitate.

 

[MassEffectFan]

That GameDac looks pretty sweet, although tbh unless you need the mic/game volume control or EQ options the Creative X G6 or X G5 probably offers better value. IMO a Creative E1+Topping D30/Schiit Modi 3 combo is probably the best amp/dac combo under $200 for console gamers who are willing to do without surround sound or mic volume control. However, you would have to get cables, and have an optical port at the back of your console or TV (unless you purchased an HDMI audio converter as well, but that could possibly degrade picture quality/introduce lag if you got a bad one). So you would need:

https://www.amazon.com/Creative-Headphone-Amplifier-Integrated-Smartphones/dp/B00J2JATL0/ (Creative E1: $50)

https://www.amazon.com/TOPPING-D30-Decoder-Coaxial-Optical/dp/B06XKS9W8T/ (Topping D30: $120)

http://www.schiit.com/products/modi-1 (Modi 3: $100+shipping, performance on par with D30 but usually available only on Schiit website, import fees make it a poor choice for those outside U.S)

https://www.amazon.com/RiteAV-Feet-3-5mm-Stereo-Cable/dp/B01M15CP04 (RCA male to 3.5mm male cable: $8 for 12ft),

https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-Digital-Optical-Audio-Toslink/dp/B00NH11H38 (Optical cable: $6 for 6ft).

Ultimately, you would be paying anywhere from $164-$184 depending on the DAC you purchased, and you would get phenomenal audio quality. For $100 you could get a JDS atom instead of the E1, but the small (quite possibly imperceptible) improvement in audio quality over the E1 would not be enough to justify the higher price tag and inconvenience of using a plugin amp. I don't remember how to use an amp/dac with a headphone+mic and still get chat capability (could somebody please explain how?) but I assume it's possible because I see people recommending the Fiio E10k all the time.

What do you all think of this idea? Is anyone interested in trying this out? I'm currently using a Topping D30 with my portable amp and a Philips SHP 9500. Games/CDs sound clear and detailed, and the D30 has made it significantly easier to pick up on positional cues.

Sorry long post, there was a lot to explain.

 

[Fegefeuer]

No VST no party. I don't think anyone that frequents this thread often would bother without VST but I like the effort of your post.

Spoiler: :G

UNLESS THE DAY COMES WHERE MLE ANNOUNCES HAVING BECOME A DEDICATED HARDPANNING STEREO GAMER. THAT WILL BE THE DAY WHERE I SIGN OFF THIS THREAD FOR GOOD.

 

[MassEffectFan]

You're probably right Fegefeuer. I appreciate the like! But while I don't have any experience with VSS, I tend to doubt that it would improve the positional accuracy of a great gaming headphone (probably an open headphone with good imaging, forward mids and/or treble, rolled-off sub-bass, and a speaker-like soundstage) more than a similar-priced stereo dac/amp setup. However, I'm not convinced the setup I suggested would be a lot better than the G6 in stereo, and of course I'm not absolutely certain that stereo is best. I'm just hoping that posts like mine will encourage people to try their headphones with both a high-quality VSS setup and a high-quality stereo setup to determine what is best for them, rather than blindly assuming VSS is necessary. At the very least, I think VSS has the ability to improve the soundstage of a mediocre or bad gaming headphone, to an extent that stereo cannot.

 

[Lay.]

I think most of the guys who participate in this thread don't have bad/mediocre gaming headphones or at least they are seeking for better alternatives. For example in my case, the Soundblaster G6 is the cheapest part of the system and I don't even use the amp of it.

 

[Yunho]

I get where you're coming from MassEffectFan.

For me though, I'm okay with taking a potential hit to overall sound quality using devices such as the Astro Mixamp or Gamedac (or even gaming headsets) due to the convenience of having a simple setup. That and features such as game audio and chat balancing on console.

If I didn't do much online gaming on consoles though I'd probably be rocking a setup similar to what you posted. When I'm not playing with friends however, I just have the optical audio from my TV being sent to my speakers.

 

[WhiteHartMart]

For me - chat balance on the fly would make the G6 my perfect device. Without it it just frustrates me and many times in online sessions I've had to go back to just plugging the headset into the PS4 pad **shudder**.

I'm in the same boat as @Yunho above - I'll take a hit on audio quality to get the convenience I need for console use. Think Creative missed a trick when they promote (heavily) PS4 compatibility but then don't include a pretty vital feature (for online gamers at least). Besides, if I was just looking for a single player device, I'd probably stick with a good optical DAC and give up VSS altogether.

 

[MassEffectFan]

I think most of the guys who participate in this thread don't have bad/mediocre gaming headphones or at least they are seeking for better alternatives. For example in my case, the Soundblaster G6 is the cheapest part of the system and I don't even use the amp of it.

For sure. It seems that gamers are becoming increasingly aware that audio can substantially improve their performance, while also making their experiences more immersive. As I say, I hope that they won't decide on surround without trying stereo first. But I'm impressed with how far VSS has come, and how good gaming-oriented audio products have become. I probably will end up trying VSS at some point to see if it would help, although for me I'm basically in the opposite position of being unwilling to sacrifice some measure of audio quality for something that might improve positional accuracy (not absolutely sure it would), partly due to not playing competitively atm. If upon trying VSS I found it made a pretty dramatic difference, I might stick with it. Although I don't currently play online, I do find the positional accuracy that headphones provide to be a huge, even indispensable advantage in many of the games I play. It's also just satisfying to know that I can pinpoint the location of enemies with sound alone, makes me feel like I have superpowers.