[Mad Lust Envy]

Looking at those Pebble V2 speakers for personal use... I'd ask Creative to send them to me, but I wouldn't know the first thing in reviewing speakers, lol.

Creative is having a 30% off March Madness sale, and it includes the X7, G6 and SXFI products:

https://us.creative.com/sale/
Coupon Code: MARCH30

 

[SierraMadre]

Looking at those Pebble V2 speakers for personal use... I'd ask Creative to send them to me, but I wouldn't know the first thing in reviewing speakers, lol.

After seeing the price and the rave reviews, I bought a pair of Pebbles (2.0 sub-less version) for my elderly dad not too long ago on a whim. He wasn’t at all unhappy with the even cheaper, budget Logitech 2.0’s he was already using but I was curious as to the product and it was a nice opportunity for a surprise gift, particularly one with drivers appropriately angled 45 degrees upwards towards his ailing ears (the Logitechs were more or less angled flat). He is very happy with them but he’s not massively discerning (let alone an audiophile). My own impressions on the otheir hand. . . :

Fidelity, precision in layering and separation etc. are very good for the price and that *does* make them a “bargain” of sorts . . . but at the same time I don’t think you get *that* much more than you pay for, at least not with the 2.0 version. I’ve seen a few claims here and there to the effect that these sound closer to speakers that would normally be approaching the 100 mark but that is definitely not the case with the 2.0 Pebbles I got if we’re talking remotely decent 100 dollar speakers. I just didn’t find the law of diminishing returns to be strong when comparing the Pebbles to a decent set of speakers in the 80-200 range (for context and contrast, if I compare my AKG K7XXs or Fidelio X2s to the Sennheiser HD800S, I find the law of diminishing returns to be very applicable).
I don’t claim any of the following units to be any kind of gold standard benchmark in their price range but versus the Pebbles: -

- The £140 2.0 Edifiers I got for my own desktop during a sale last year are worth every penny of the differential in price for performance IMO and I’d even say the same if I had bought them at full price which was closer to 200.

- Same for a different / cheaper pair of Edifiers that I recently bought for extended travel trips away. These too trounce the Pebbles (e10 BT model, usually around the 80 mark but if you search / wait for deals, they can be had for as low as 50-60).

- Same for the Audio Engines (A2+) in my room back home (family home).

- They were also *handily* outperformed by the built-in speakers on the iMac my dad uses them with. (If you’re wondering why my dad needs / uses the Pebbles if the MAC speakers are better, it‘s because he is a tech-incompetent former Luddite who still types with one finger and needs help with anything but basic browsing or email and needs something with an easily accessible analogue volume knob).

Overall, of all the desktop speaker sound sources I own, I’d say the Pebbles only beat the built-in speakers in my Windows Surface Pro 7 laptop/tablet hybrid and those of my old Asus VG278H monitor.

In any case, if you are going to get them, make sure you get the 2.1 version, perhaps the sub makes all the difference (and I would have thought they can be used independently of the sub too if need be); the bass on the sub-less 2.0s I got for my dad don’t really cut it, especially if you want to be able to pump up the volume and have a satisfying experience.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Ah, my reasons are because my new supervisor started complaining about me wearing Koss clip ons at work, even though I can hear everything outside and I literally work alone 99.9% of the time. So I just want something when I sit at the desk, since the Switch, and my phone's internal speakers don't quite reach good levels in a large skyrise lobby. This way people don't see me wearing anything (outside the closed lobby), and I can hear what I'm listening to in comfort.

I don't need anything particularly remarkable, and I kinda like how they looked, as well as the price with the coupon code.

I was actually looking into neckband speakers too.

After seeing the price and the rave reviews, I bought a pair of Pebbles (2.0 sub-less version) for my elderly dad not too long ago on a whim. He wasn’t at all unhappy with the even cheaper, budget Logitech 2.0’s he was already using but I was curious as to the product and it was a nice opportunity for a surprise gift, particularly one with drivers appropriately angled 45 degrees upwards towards his ailing ears (the Logitechs were more or less angled flat). He is very happy with them but he’s not massively discerning (let alone an audiophile). My own impressions on the otheir hand. . . :

Fidelity, precision in layering and separation etc. are very good for the price and that *does* make them a “bargain” of sorts . . . but at the same time I don’t think you get *that* much more than you pay for, at least not with the 2.0 version. I’ve seen a few claims here and there to the effect that these sound closer to speakers that would normally be approaching the 100 mark but that is definitely not the case with the 2.0 Pebbles I got if we’re talking remotely decent 100 dollar speakers. I just didn’t find the law of diminishing returns to be strong when comparing the Pebbles to a decent set of speakers in the 80-200 range (for context and contrast, if I compare my AKG K7XXs or Fidelio X2s to the Sennheiser HD800S, I find the law of diminishing returns to be very applicable).
I don’t claim any of the following units to be any kind of gold standard benchmark in their price range but versus the Pebbles: -

- The £140 2.0 Edifiers I got for my own desktop during a sale last year are worth every penny of the differential in price for performance IMO and I’d even say the same if I had bought them at full price which was closer to 200.

- Same for a different / cheaper pair of Edifiers that I recently bought for extended travel trips away. These too trounce the Pebbles (e10 BT model, usually around the 80 mark but if you search / wait for deals, they can be had for as low as 50-60).

- Same for the Audio Engines (A2+) in my room back home (family home).

- They were also *handily* outperformed by the built-in speakers on the iMac my dad uses them with. (If you’re wondering why my dad needs / uses the Pebbles if the MAC speakers are better, it‘s because he is a tech-incompetent former Luddite who still types with one finger and needs help with anything but basic browsing or email and needs something with an easily accessible analogue volume knob).

Overall, of all the desktop speaker sound sources I own, I’d say the Pebbles only beat the built-in speakers in my Windows Surface Pro 7 laptop/tablet hybrid and those of my old Asus VG278H monitor.

In any case, if you are going to get them, make sure you get the 2.1 version, perhaps the sub makes all the difference (and I would have thought they can be used independently of the sub too if need be); the bass on the sub-less 2.0s I got for my dad don’t really cut it, especially if you want to be able to pump up the volume and have a satisfying experience.

 

[SierraMadre]

Ah, my reasons are because my new supervisor started complaining about me wearing Koss clip ons at work, even though I can hear everything outside and I literally work alone 99.9% of the time. So I just want something when I sit at the desk, since the Switch, and my phone's internal speakers don't quite reach good levels in a large skyrise lobby. This way people don't see me wearing anything (outside the closed lobby), and I can hear what I'm listening to in comfort.

I don't need anything particularly remarkable, and I kinda like how they looked, as well as the price with the coupon code.

I was actually looking into neckband speakers too.

Ah, I see! That does rule out the sub but if AQ is not that much a concern then fair enough. 20 dollars for ok 2.0's sounds just right.

Another cheap option, that was widely covered in the media at the beginning of the year around CES. Can't find much in the way of reviews though.

https://www.newegg.com/black-phanteks-company-ph-spk219-dbk01-pc-mini-speaker/p/N82E16836777001

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Oh wow, they look like the Phanteks Evolv pc cases. I was actually gonna get that case, but then I saw thermals weren't good on it. But they look good. I'll look into it, if I decide on something.

Ah, I see! That does rule out the sub but if AQ is not that much a concern then fair enough. 20 dollars for ok 2.0's sounds just right.

Another cheap option, that was making widely covered in the media at the beginning of the year around CES. Can't find much in the way of reviews though.

https://www.newegg.com/black-phanteks-company-ph-spk219-dbk01-pc-mini-speaker/p/N82E16836777001

 

[TheSpur22]

The G6 is very much on my radar but a few things have been holding me back. Chat mix was introduced in beta but feedback on how well it works is very limited. There are also reports of the mic cutting out while in party chat on PS4. So I've been waiting for these issues to get ironed out before giving it a try. In the meantime I caved in and ordered the Dekoni velour pads for the K702's. Hopefully this will solve my comfort issues, as I really like the sound. Thanks again

So the Dekoni pads did not help, I guess my head, while on the larger side was just not made for the AKG's. I splurged and picked up the DT 1990 Pro's and these are much more to my liking comfort wise, the sound is not as wide as the K702 but I'm able to pinpoint sounds very well. I also jumped on the G6 since it was on sale. I have one question as I'm still very new at this. If it's even possible is there any benefit at all to running both the Creative G6 and JDS Labs Atom? Or am I better off trying to sell the Atom if I like the G6? My use case is 95% gaming and my music listening is done mostly through Spotify on the PS4. Thanks

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

So the Dekoni pads did not help, I guess my head, while on the larger side was just not made for the AKG's. I splurged and picked up the DT 1990 Pro's and these are much more to my liking comfort wise, the sound is not as wide as the K702 but I'm able to pinpoint sounds very well. I also jumped on the G6 since it was on sale. I have one question as I'm still very new at this. If it's even possible is there any benefit at all to running both the Creative G6 and JDS Labs Atom? Or am I better off trying to sell the Atom if I like the G6? My use case is 95% gaming and my music listening is done mostly through Spotify on the PS4. Thanks

Not sure what the spec is on the atom, but it may have a higher quality amplifier than the G6. Though as with all solid states, differences are minimal at best, as long as the headphone is driven properly. I don't know the 1990's power requirements or if they even scale.

 

[SierraMadre]

So the Dekoni pads did not help, I guess my head, while on the larger side was just not made for the AKG's. I splurged and picked up the DT 1990 Pro's and these are much more to my liking comfort wise, the sound is not as wide as the K702 but I'm able to pinpoint sounds very well. I also jumped on the G6 since it was on sale. I have one question as I'm still very new at this. If it's even possible is there any benefit at all to running both the Creative G6 and JDS Labs Atom? Or am I better off trying to sell the Atom if I like the G6? My use case is 95% gaming and my music listening is done mostly through Spotify on the PS4. Thanks

Basically what MLE said. You can easily test it out though.

My own experience of using the G6 as dac and pre-amp to a more powerful amplifier via 3.5mm rear lineout (G6 > Loxjie P20 / Massdrop THX 789 AAA):

- Max volume G6, endpoint amp only as loud as necessary: difference was not huge but at least noticeable enough to be worth considering

Max volume endpoint amp, G6 only as loud as necessary:

- Difference more noticable still, enough to be a no brainer as the default setup. *However*, BE CAREFUL trying this. The G6 can prove temperamental when using rest / sleep mode for consoles (leading to random distortion necessitating disconnect /reconnect of G6 and reboot of consoles) and, during some kind of momentary glitch a week or so ago where my Ps Pro freezed momentarily for a few seconds, the sound from my G6 cutout before re-engaging. . . at MAX VOLUME. The G6 hadn’t remembered the relatively low volume level it was previously on, so I got a double dose of max G6 volume plus max amp volume. Cans are ok but NOT a pleasant experience and still have tinnitus from despite it only being a couple of seconds duration.

Doctor says eardrums are fine and my general hearing accuracy appears unimpaired but unclear at this stage whether the tinnitus will improve, let alone go away. Inner ear hair cells probably damaged, hopefully it’s only temporary. . if it lasts more than a month, then I’m gonna book an ENT appointment.

So, for best audio quality but some possible risk to cans / ears:

AMP at max, G6 at minimum

For best safety:

G6 at max, amp at minimum.

Maybe there is some recommended happy medium/balance to be had in between, dunno. Have been trying to avoid headphone use for the moment in the hope I can heal up.

Oh wow, they look like the Phanteks Evolv pc cases. I was actually gonna get that case, but then I saw thermals weren't good on it. But they look good. I'll look into it, if I decide on something.

Yeah, they started off as a joke by Phanteks, April Fool’s or something like that, but they garnered such a positive reaction and genuine demand that Phanteks went ahead and made them into an actual product.

 

[TheSpur22]

Basically what MLE said. You can easily test it out though.

My own experience of using the G6 as dac and pre-amp to a more powerful amplifier via 3.5mm rear lineout (G6 > Loxjie P20 / Massdrop THX 789 AAA):

Max volume G6, endpoint amp only as loud as necessary: difference was not huge but at least noticeable enough to be worth considering

Max volume endpoint amp, G6 only as loud as necessary:
Difference more noticable still, enough to be a no brainier as the default setup. *However*, BE CAREFUL trying this. The G6 can prove temperamental when using rest / sleep mode for consoles (leading to random distortion necessitating disconnect /reconnect of G6 and reboot of consoles) and, during some kind of momentary glitch a week or so ago where my Ps Pro freezed momentarily for a few seconds, the sound from my G6 cutout before re-engaging. . . at MAX VOLUME. The G6 hadn’t remembered the relatively low volume level it was previously on, so I got a double dose of max G6 volume plus max amp volume. Cans are ok but NOT a pleasant experience and still have tinnitus from it Despite it only being a couple of seconds duration.
Doctor says eardrums are fine and my general hearing accuracy appears unimpaired but unclear at this stage whether the tinnitus will improve, let alone go away inner ear hair cells damaged, only temporary. . if it lasts more than a month, then I’m gonna book an ENT appointment.

So, for best audio quality but some possible risk to cans / ears:

AMP at max, G6 at minimum

For best safety:

G6 at max, amp at minimum.

Maybe there is some recommended balanced happy medium to be had in between, dunno. Have been trying to avoid headphone use in the hope to heal up.




Yeah, they started off as a joke by Phanteks, April Fool’s or something like that, but they garnered such a positive reaction and genuine demand that the Phanteks went ahead and made them into an actual product.

Oh man that sucks, hope the tinnitus goes away. I've had TMJ problems that causes minor but very annoying tinnitus.
So yeah, I believe I will experiment with G6 by itself and the G6 at max, with Atom at minimum to see if I have a preference.
Definitely don't want any surprise max volume bursts. Thanks

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Ok guys, so I have made a substantial update...

Audeze LCD-1 Review (added update in the build quality/cups section. Minor entry talking about Audeze having fixed the cable entries.)

Audeze Mobius Review (added optional Cryo Pads entry in the review's accessories section. Please read, it's quite a bit.) I'll likely take some pics of the pads a little later.

Images (took me MANY HOURS TO DO THIS). Fixed all the broken image links on the first guide post, and added back many missing images, (though could not add all of them). For the more recent reviews, ALL the images are still in their respective reviews when you click on "Review First Posted Here". The extra images have been removed on the first guide post due to image limits. Also, images for old, irrelevant headphone entries that are either discontinued or impossible to get have been removed. Some still remain, and they will stay up unless I need extra image space in the future.

 

[super kermit]

Recommendations for over-ear, closed AND open headphones for gaming PC only

Must be

Closed-back - it is for home so sound leakage is an issue when gf around
Open-back - for when I am home alone
Replaceable cable preferred
Budget - $250 US per headset
Looks mean nothing
Microphone not needed, I can always add wireless mod mics later

So I need TWO pairs - one open one closed

THINKING

Beyerdynamic DT770 PRO 250ohm
AGK K7xx(massdrop) / K702
Sennheiser HD6xx(massdrop) / HD650
Beyerdynamic DT 990 250ohm
Philips Audio Fidelio X2HR Over-Ear Open-Air Headphone 50mm Drivers
Audio-Technica ATH-AD700X
HiFiman HE4XX (massdrop/drop)

Using Soundblaster X7 for amplifier etc. -

SPECIFICATIONS
Audio Technology
SB-Axx1™
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR)
127dB (DAC)
Platform
USB 2.0, Bluetooth, USB 1.1, USB 3.0, Line-In
Connectivity Options (Main)
microUSB
Microphone :
Built-in Stereo Mic
1 x 1/8" (3.5mm) Mic In
Line / Optical :
1 x RCA Aux/Line In
1 x TOSLINK Optical In
1 x TOSLINK Optical Out
Speaker :
2 x Binding Post Passive Speaker Out (L/R)
1 x ⅛″ (3.5mm) Rear Speaker Out
1 x ⅛″ (3.5mm) Center/Sub Speaker Out
1 x RCA Line/Front Speaker Out
Headphone :
1 x ⅛″ (3.5mm)Headphone Out
1 x ¼″ (6.3mm)Headphone Out
1 x Type A USB Host Port - Device Audio Stream & Charging
Max Channel Output
5.1 Channels, Stereo Amplified
Audio Technologies
SBX Pro Studio
Microphone
Microphone Type: Dual-array Noise Canceling Condenser
Supported Operating Systems
Windows® 7, Windows® 8, Windows Vista®, Mac OS X v10.6.8 and above, Windows® 8.1, Windows® 10
Audio Fidelity
Up to 24-bit / 192kHz

 

[SierraMadre]

Recommendations for over-ear, closed AND open headphones for gaming PC only

Must be

Closed-back - it is for home so sound leakage is an issue when gf around
Open-back - for when I am home alone
Replaceable cable preferred
Budget - $250 US per headset
Looks mean nothing
Microphone not needed, I can always add wireless mod mics later

So I need TWO pairs - one open one closed

THINKING

Beyerdynamic DT770 PRO 250ohm
AGK K7xx(massdrop) / K702
Sennheiser HD6xx(massdrop) / HD650
Beyerdynamic DT 990 250ohm
Philips Audio Fidelio X2HR Over-Ear Open-Air Headphone 50mm Drivers
Audio-Technica ATH-AD700X
HiFiman HE4XX (massdrop/drop)

Using Soundblaster X7 for amplifier etc. -

SPECIFICATIONS
Audio Technology
SB-Axx1™
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR)
127dB (DAC)
Platform
USB 2.0, Bluetooth, USB 1.1, USB 3.0, Line-In
Connectivity Options (Main)
microUSB
Microphone :
Built-in Stereo Mic
1 x 1/8" (3.5mm) Mic In
Line / Optical :
1 x RCA Aux/Line In
1 x TOSLINK Optical In
1 x TOSLINK Optical Out
Speaker :
2 x Binding Post Passive Speaker Out (L/R)
1 x ⅛″ (3.5mm) Rear Speaker Out
1 x ⅛″ (3.5mm) Center/Sub Speaker Out
1 x RCA Line/Front Speaker Out
Headphone :
1 x ⅛″ (3.5mm)Headphone Out
1 x ¼″ (6.3mm)Headphone Out
1 x Type A USB Host Port - Device Audio Stream & Charging
Max Channel Output
5.1 Channels, Stereo Amplified
Audio Technologies
SBX Pro Studio
Microphone
Microphone Type: Dual-array Noise Canceling Condenser
Supported Operating Systems
Windows® 7, Windows® 8, Windows Vista®, Mac OS X v10.6.8 and above, Windows® 8.1, Windows® 10
Audio Fidelity
Up to 24-bit / 192kHz

Check out the review page of the thread as MLE has reviewed most of those.

For other users’ impressions, take the headphone model number and paste it into the search function. You can filter the search to this MLE gaming thread only.
You should find that there has been extensive comment on most, if not all of those cans you listed including plenty of comparisons amongst them which should help you trim your shortlist to two or three final candidates based on the kind of sound signature / characteristics you want.

 

[deadchip12]

I bought the g6 in January this year but only since a few days back I’ve started noticing this issue during games/movies: There is randomly a small but audible pop sound every 10-20 minutes or so. G6 and Windows 10 are both at the latest firmware. Any idea?

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I bought the g6 in January this year but only since a few days back I’ve started noticing this issue during games/movies: There is randomly a small but audible pop sound every 10-20 minutes or so. G6 and Windows 10 are both at the latest firmware. Any idea?

Lower to around 24bit/96khz in the sound control panel. And manually set the device to 2 channels when not playing video games. If you try listening to music and other 2 channel content while 5.1 or 7.1 speakers is selected, you get that sort of thing happening. Only turn on 5.1/7.1 when playing games and enabling SBX (if you do). This can be done in the software, and is the main culprit, so it's not too cumbersome to switch.

It's annoying to constantly change from 7.1 to 2 channel, but trust me, it stops the popping and stuff.

I do wish the software had a bitrate selector instead of having to go to the sound control panel all the time.

 

[deadchip12]

Lower to around 24bit/96khz in the sound control panel. And manually set the device to 2 channels when not playing video games. If you try listening to music and other 2 channel content while 5.1 or 7.1 speakers is selected, you get that sort of thing happening. Only turn on 5.1/7.1 when playing games and enabling SBX (if you do). This can be done in the software, and is the main culprit, so it's not too cumbersome to switch.

It's annoying to constantly change from 7.1 to 2 channel, but trust me, it stops the popping and stuff.

I do wish the software had a bitrate selector instead of having to go to the sound control panel all the time.

Sorry but this happens when I use dolby atmos for headphone (16bit 48hz) with the g6 set to direct more. I think it happens to all other modes as well and regardless of the source (video games, movies, etc.)