[Chastity]

Do open backs create the best sound for gaming?

Do closed backs sound/feel claustrophobic?

To have a broad soundstage, do headphones need to be neutral? Is a broad soundstage ideal as a pair of all around( fun/competitive) headphones for gaming?

Is the bass in all planar headphones linear? What about mid bass?

Are there fun planers?

List five headphones under $500 that sound fun.

List five headphones under $500 that excel in the fun department when used in a amp/dac/eq setup

I haven't added a mini loki to my setup yet, because they are on backorder. I'm still using my X2HR's. I am happy with them, I imagine I will be even happier once I get to eq them. I wonder if I would be happier with a pair of planars though.

1) In general, open are preferred, however some prefer the isolation from surroundings/kids/wife/husband.

2) There are some very good closed backs that don't sound narrow. Tho I prefer open to allow for breathing/comfort, plus I can make out when a call comes in.

4) The bass response on planars is different based on tunings. The M1070 I am using has a solid bass foundation and leans on the warm side. The Sundara, in contrast does not, but takes EQ in the range well. The M1070 has some resonance issues with th elambskins, and I recommend using Oratory1990's EQ to fix. (use the M1570 EQ, adjust to taste)

5) I find my M1070 to be more dynamic and impactful (fun) than my DT-1990.

6) DT-1990, M1070, M1570 off the top of my head. Maybe add the Tygr 300 R, but no direct experience. I'm also looking at a set of ATH-R70X.

7) See above. I use a SMSL M300 MKII DAC, FX Audio Tube-01 preamp w/ Sylvania JAN CHS 6AK5 tubes, and an Asgard 3.

 

[Playstation]

1) In general, open are preferred, however some prefer the isolation from surroundings/kids/wife/husband.

2) There are some very good closed backs that don't sound narrow. Tho I prefer open to allow for breathing/comfort, plus I can make out when a call comes in.

4) The bass response on planars is different based on tunings. The M1070 I am using has a solid bass foundation and leans on the warm side. The Sundara, in contrast does not, but takes EQ in the range well. The M1070 has some resonance issues with th elambskins, and I recommend using Oratory1990's EQ to fix. (use the M1570 EQ, adjust to taste)

5) I find my M1070 to be more dynamic and impactful (fun) than my DT-1990.

6) DT-1990, M1070, M1570 off the top of my head. Maybe add the Tygr 300 R, but no direct experience. I'm also looking at a set of ATH-R70X.

7) See above. I use a SMSL M300 MKII DAC, FX Audio Tube-01 preamp w/ Sylvania JAN CHS 6AK5 tubes, and an Asgard 3.

i hope the schiit mini loki will suffice, because it will complete my stack. odd that premium lambskin pads cause a problem. i just researched the fuzzor mod

 

[Qupie]

Sadly, I have run into problems with my schiit hel 2 as well. And while schiit couldn't return me a working unit, they fully refunded my order. Great service.

I decided to just go with an audiophile dac and amp, without worrying about the PS5 (honestly, the dual sense output is just fine for PC38x).

But now I was browsing aliexpress, and saw this. Has anyone tried using an cheap USB to optical converter for audio on PS5? It says it should work on PS4, so I imagine it would work on PS5 as well? Might have the volume bug but I imagine that wont be a problem with a Singxer SA1

https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/1005002644086088.html

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I'm gonna have to add this to the first post as well, but...

About my employment at Audeze

I know you guys will have questions, and want to know how it will affect the guide, and my reviews. I'll try and answer some of the easy things I feel are bound to get asked.


When were you hired by Audeze?

I started as of Wednesday, July 7th, 2021


What will you be doing for Audeze?

Starting with customer service, social media/forum help (You'll see me as @Audeze on here from time to time, though it's a shared account and not necessarily me). I'll also be helping Audeze on things outside of this, like attempting to improve the brand's gaming aspects. Just nebulous things where I'm not firmly rooted in one position.


What will happen to your old Audeze reviews?

Seeing as they were made years, to nearly even a decade ago, no one can complain about bias, when I had no idea I'd ever work for Audeze in the future. As such, those reviews will remain as they are. I will only add a disclaimer in that they were written prior to my employment.


Will you be reviewing Audeze products in the future?

I will NOT be reviewing Audeze products. Instead, I will write more of a 'first look' type of impression for anything Audeze feels would be of interest for me, the guide, or gamers in general. What this means, is that I'll be writing similar to my reviews, but without obvious personal opinions that may come off as bias for or against Audeze. More of a cut to the chase as to how I feel about sounds like... "Headphone X seems to have a dip at 7khz" things that are subjectively my own opinion, without the obvious things like "This is the best gaming headphone I've ever heard. Better than headphone X from X company!"

I ask that you put your trust in me when I say that I will not be compromised in terms of my reviews, or my statements towards Audeze's products. It will be written very much with the same structure as my reviews, but with some areas needed obvious change as to omit personal opinions that lean to far towards or against Audeze.

Audeze has allowed me to maintain my freedom as a reviewer, even those not made by Audeze. It MAY limit the scope of products I review if it directly clashes with a product Audeze may want to push out in a particular segment, but I will not be influenced to say anything good or bad by Audeze themselves.

Will you be reviewing other company products in the future?

Yes. I am still a reviewer on my own time, which has nothing to do with my employment. Audeze has ensured me that they do not intend to censor me or my opinions on other products. I may have to be more selective on certain competitor products (you wouldn't want a Coke employee reviewing Pepsi), but in terms of most products that fall outside what Audeze tends to do, they'll more than likely be fair game.

I don't write many reviews to begin with, so I don't expect you guys to see much of a difference compared to my typical review flow.

 

[Chastity]

1st off, congrats on landing a job with Audeze! Working for a company doing something you love and/or have a passion for is nothing short of a life achievement! I had that kind of experience working for Asus. May you find it satisfying.

On another note, you got me re-evaluating Redscape vs Waves NX, and calibrating Redscape for my head. Grrrr.

 

[Veliladon]

Can you tell Audeze to give us a wireless Mobius already? Put the WNX7000 in the USB dongle and then send the binaural audio over the RF link.

I really love my Mobius and I'm used to Waves NX so I don't want to get a Penrose and start from scratch with Redscape.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Hmm, I'll pass that along. I do like Waves myself, and feel Waves program it'll hit full potential if in the future it includes room size and ambience sliders the way the Mobius does. Waves to me is at its best with the Mobius because of it.

 

[Fegefeuer]

Oh nice,

had to read it twice as I haven't been following this thread for a good while. I'm happy for you to be at Audeze! Long overdue for you to be part of a headphone company.

 

[Huntersknoll]

Congrats! Help them make the greatest gaming headphone possible! I'm a huge fan of the penrose and am looking forward to the next evolution

 

[NiGHTS4EVA]

It's been a long time coming! Go get em Tiger! Might have to get a pair of Audezes in the near future ^^

 

[WhiteHartMart]

Congrats @Mad Lust Envy - now if you could magic the technology to help Audeze make an open backed wireless gaming headset I'd be eternally grateful

 

[kadinh]

Congrats MLE! That is some awesome news to hear.

Sadly, I have run into problems with my schiit hel 2 as well. And while schiit couldn't return me a working unit, they fully refunded my order. Great service.

I decided to just go with an audiophile dac and amp, without worrying about the PS5 (honestly, the dual sense output is just fine for PC38x).

But now I was browsing aliexpress, and saw this. Has anyone tried using an cheap USB to optical converter for audio on PS5? It says it should work on PS4, so I imagine it would work on PS5 as well? Might have the volume bug but I imagine that wont be a problem with a Singxer SA1

https://nl.aliexpress.com/item/1005002644086088.html

This is exactly how I have my DAC/Amp hooked up to my PS5.

PS5 ---> USB --> UAC 1 DAC (the one you linked) ---> Toslink/optical cable ---> Topping E30 optical port

IIRC, this will maintain the 3D Tempest audio from the PS5. I think I remember testing it and it working so that is why I kept it.

I did not test if the first DAC degrades the quality of the signal going to the 2nd DAC, but it sounds MUCH better than plugging into the controller. I have the P38X as well and I thought plugging into the controller was good enough, but after playing with them for a few months and getting accustomed to their sound then switching back to my IEMs (Dunu SA8) through the DAC, it was an eye opener on how much worse the controller audio is; in Apex Legends, I could immediately tell what direction the footsteps were coming from, instead of a general right/left direction. It might not be a fair comparison, but now I mainly use the HD800S when I play and can't believe what I was missing out on.

As for microphone, I have a wireless ModMic and a USB ModMic (backup) that I use for voice chat.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

It's been a long time coming! Go get em Tiger! Might have to get a pair of Audezes in the near future ^^

Thanks, brother from another mother!

 

[RedHarlow]

So are there any dacs where you can adjust the ps5 volume? My Sharkoon Gaming dac pro s does not let me adjust the volume.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

You mean internal PS5 volume? From all the ones I've used, the answer is no. The PS5 volume setting is independent of DAC volume. Personally, I'd just leave the PS5 volume at 9/10, one or two ticks down from max. I say this because I think the PS5 volume may be prone to clipping at max volume.