[Simcon]

As someone who compulsively saves all retail boxes for large purchases, I say "ooooOOOOOOOOOH!"

Saving a nice box is part of the experience, always love when the company have spent some time making me a good looking box . I however fear that in the future I might have to get a larger storage area or be a bit more picky when it comes to which boxes to save .

 

[aBc.CaN]

Hey Pheendom,
 
I suspect you have the enabled "Listen to device" in the microphone settings if you can hear your mic through speakers.
 
Quote:

Thanks so much for such an informative thread (Mad Lust Envy) and community. Decided to join to get involved with some of the stuff on here!
 
Just a quick question, I hoped you could help with. Based on your review of the Skullcandy SLYR's, and the fair price I got them for, I decided to plump with them. Sound wise I was very impressed, I've played around with them, and everything strength and weakness you identified I agree with. However, my question relates to the microphone and the general set up for the PC. As you may remember, they come with the standard 3.5mm jack, but also with the USB mixer that they travel through to the PC, which allows the preset EQ's to be chosen and the Mic to be used.
 
For some reason, regardless of whether I mute the microphone or not (which is very odd), I can hear my own voice and whatever the mic picks up, fed directly back into the phones in my ears. This is really distracting and obviously affects the quality of the sound, because if my phone rings or whatever, I suddenly have that blasted into my ears! I called the Skullcandy customer support and they said they had never heard of this happening and so I should get a refund; however I have noticed a few things about it online. I wondered whether you, or anyone may have had a similar experience? Or maybe someone has them on hand to test this for me? Regardless of what I do, the microphone wont stop feeding themselves back, even with them being muted!! I also made sure the windows settings were not set to have my speakers picking up the mic.
 
Anyway, thanks for any advice you may give. Here's to my first post!

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

I never planned on selling the Compass 2. O_O

I sold the SA-31 to fund for the Compass 2. That's maybe where you got confused.

The Compass 2 has much pretty much set on the amp/dac front. It has all I want. The only thing that irks me about it (though it's probably my computer's fault), is that if I'm listening to the line in, it get hum if I have something connected to the USB port. I'm gonna try and move the USB from the back of my desktop to the USB hub and see if it goes away. It's a minor gripe though, as it's silent when I listen to anything else, including the USB itself.

I'm done with amp/dacs now, though I might want whatever Fiio has that will be a portable amp/dac with the E12's power, which I'm sure will be something they make in the near future. Could use something like this when I get a laptop.

 

[Evshrug]

Mad,
I think FiiO is going to call it the E19 Everest.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Sweet, thanks.

Okay, so I went ahead and bought a Like New HD650 for $355 with full warranty. Can't say that's a bad deal. This will be my relaxing headphone. I really liked the HD650 for laying down purposes and anime watching. I actually think once I get them, I'm more likely to sell my LCD2 for ANY reason, and stick to the HD650. It's not perfect, but the things it does well are exactly what I look for. Thick warmth, rich mids, lay down comfort, light. Got them with my Amazon store card, so I still have extra physical cash from selling the Annies for whatever reason.

Oh in case anyone is wondering on my PERSONAL tier list.... not just for gaming, but music and general use.

1. D7000
2. LCD2 vegan (more on the neutral side but still warm, airy, and clearer, but not as warm as the leather, but similar bass)
3. LCD2 leather (warmer, meatier, but more congested and closed sounding than the vegan)
4. K702 65th Anniversary (honestly, the best all rounder I've ever heard, even more so than the higher tier ones)
5. HE400
6. HD650
7. DT990
8. HE-4

 

[Fegefeuer]

yeah, still unresolved anger at those hard to get D7000s 

 
I need a "mobile" (aka not moving my HD 800 and it's amp issues around) headphone for Mixamp that feeds off well enough from "just" an E12. The best possible, not in TH-900 price regions though. Total waste. 
 
The sell the D7000 for around 1200 Dollars used right now if they pop up. I thought those Annies but too pricey imo for "just" being a K701-derivate. 
 
Any other input? TH-600?

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Maaan, the Annies are worth it.

 

[Pheendom]

Quote:

Hey Pheendom,
 
I suspect you have the enabled "Listen to device" in the microphone settings if you can hear your mic through speakers.
 

Hi there! Cheers for the message.
Actually, I've tried tweaking around with all the possible settings, including that one, and the audio is still being directed into the speakers, on both headsets AND on multiple computers I've tried plugging them into. I'm going to give Skullcandy a chance to respond to my Customer services request and then I'll write a review on the site. Also like I said, even with the microphone mute ON, the sound, although not read by the computer and broadcast or recorded; is actually still routed through the cans. Its like the in-line mixer is designed to shoot the audio from the mic, straight back up the line to the speakers. Very strange. 

 
Edit: When I say both headsets, I mean the SLYR both times. (I just managed to get hold of two to test this out)

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Also just placed an order for the Sportapro...



That housing is identical to the KSC35...



(on the left)


so I'm almost 100% sure it's the same driver and can be unclipped from the SportaPro headband. $20 for the SportaPro on Amazon, or $45 for the KSC35 on Koss.com. Of course, I'll take a risk and get the SportaPro. It was gonna cost me $12-13 to ship/repair my KSC35 anyways.

I'll keep you guys updated on whether it's the same drivers.

The only thing is that if you guys get the SportaPro, you won't have the plastic clips. You CAN get the Parts Express though, which is more comfy. The Sportapro headband might be a bit muffled sounding, probably due to the headband covering a bit off the drivers compared to the clips/parts express headband.

BTW, since the parts express headband is metal, it can be bent. I basically bent it in all the way (made a heart). This will make the drivers press against your ears better, for a fuller sound. I no longer need the clips. The KSC35 sounds absolutely stellar. The only problem is that placement is more finicky, whereas the KSC35 clips are optimal in placement 100% of the time.

I wonder how the 75 and 35 will sound with the Sportapro headband, lol.

http://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/headphones-earphones-portable-media-devices-314/introduction-world-headphones-1272241.html

There are pics of the headband swaps between the sportapro and ksc75.

 

[ScottishRunt]

I've been a long time lurker, both of this thread and Head-Fi in general, but I've finally managed to scrape funds together to start getting some aural satisfaction. Hence why I'm signed up, here, and asking for some advice and airing the indecisions that have been swirling around my head for months.
 
I've recently bought a Cambridge Audio amplifier (the 651A), along with a pair of Mezzo 2s. However, I've been headset-less since selling my pair of Tritton AX Pros because I just couldn't get on with them. I cringe just thinking about how wrong they felt to me -- I'm going off on a tangent though. I skipped my way through a few pages, searched through for any morsels on the K702s, HD650s and such, but it's far too time consuming for me to wade through all 800+ pages, as much as I'd like to do so. 
 
My only experience with headphones (I'll discount the SE535s, for being IEMs), thus far, have been my old pair of Sony MDR-V700s (having sensitive ears, their supra-aural nature meant I was crying after half hour's use) and the pair of Grado SR325is that I sat and demoed on the weekend (although they sounded nice, they are also supra-aural and the material of the ear pads was far too scratchy). I'd originally thought I'd be more a fan of warmer signatures, however I feel like I'm leaning more towards a clearer, balanced tone (but not a treble sound that is overly harsh) -- I like being able to dissect what I listen to; blame countless listening papers during my Sixth Form days. Most importantly, I don't want to compromise the time I can listen to audio because of a fatiguing signature and/or crippling discomfort.
 
I don't have quite enough money to warrant several sets of cans for different uses, as much as I'd like to, and so I've given a good look at the 702s and HD650s. I'm leaning towards the AKGs. At the moment I game on both PC and PS3 (FPSs as well as RPGs and such), listen to a variety of genres (just to be a pain), and I've managed to cobbled together a shopping list draught, just to discuss and see if I can do better for my money and needs.  
 

1. AKG K702 | £255 from Thomann (I'm really drawn to these guys because their returns policy is transparent and I know I won't be losing money by returning anything.)
2. Antlion ModMic 2.0 | £27 from AntLion (Once I've checked the price against the exchange rate and added on VAT.)
3. Schiit Magni | £119 from Electro Mod
4. Astro Mixamp Pro | £109 from Limexb360

 
Bringing me to a grand total of £510, without me checking shipping costs, at which point I'm cringing, after spending around £900 over the weekend. I'm looking at other mics and amps and such, just to make the price point a little more palatable. Any price savings would be a Godsend, although I know the better answer may be to simply hoard my pennies for a little longer.
 
Thanks, in advance, for any help!
 
Pip

 

[Naingolann]

Either do that or just get something cheaper, but that would still grant you a much better sound experience than your old headset. I'm thinking about the CAL or Senn. HD 5xx models, which the mixamp alone would be able to drive with no worries.

Even better, there's the PC360, which comes with the mic, so that you wouldn't even need to spend more money on the antilion.

Moreover, you say you're not a fan of warmer signatures...well, I've just heard great things about the Superlux HD668, which also looks like an AKG/ATH. Give a look at that one!

 

[Naked Snake]

Haven't posted here in a while..but looks like Turtle Beach finally has something to go up against the Mixamp, not sold as a standalone yet though.
 
http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/18/turtle-beach-ear-force-xp-seven-headset-review/

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

They already had the DSS though this is definitely more a direct competitor... lol. This is definitely more on the customizable side. I actually prefer simplicity over all that extra stuff, personally. Give me Dolby Headphone, a flat EQ, and plenty of power. I'll let the headphones do everything else.

The ACU looks a bit... difficult....

 

[Naked Snake]

Yea, this is a much more direct competitor to the Mixamp than the DSS. I'm not a fan of anything overly complex either, but it's an option for those that could use the customization. My needs as far as gaming are pretty simple, and I like what the Mixamp provides, but I'm interested to see if there's something this unit can do for me better than the Mixamp (I'm perfectly happy with the Mixamp atm tho)

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Sadly, they're all copying off one another instead of giving us something new. Like hdmi input for lossless audio decoding or something.