Mad Lust Envy's Headphone Gaming Guide: (8/18/2022: iFi GO Blu Review Added)

[illram]

Massdrop is coming out with the Massdrop X Hifiman Edition XX. Ridiculous Massdrop naming conventions aside it's a $599 Edition X v2 which maybe isn't a bad deal (if you already live in la la Land where $600 headphones can ever be considered "not a bad deal" which is where I somehow ended up).

Anyway I know @mbyrnes has these and loves them for games, specifically vs the HD800. Anyone else tried these out for gaming with virtual surround? Every planar I have ever tried has been great. The 400i and HE560 are some of my favorite gaming headphones as far as imaging and detail go, something about the artificial sound you get with VSS just "works" with these cans. Curious if anyone has any impressions.

 

[HairyHook]

Massdrop is coming out with the Massdrop X Hifiman Edition XX. Ridiculous Massdrop naming conventions aside it's a $599 Edition X v2 which maybe isn't a bad deal (if you already live in la la Land where $600 headphones can ever be considered "not a bad deal" which is where I somehow ended up).

Anyway I know @mbyrnes has these and loves them for games, specifically vs the HD800. Anyone else tried these out for gaming with virtual surround? Every planar I have ever tried has been great. The 400i and HE560 are some of my favorite gaming headphones as far as imaging and detail go, something about the artificial sound you get with VSS just "works" with these cans. Curious if anyone has any impressions.

I'm on the same boat. I have never tried the edition X and I wonder how are they for gaming

 

[WhiteHartMart]

Yep. I was in the party chat while trying to change the Game/Chat balance. If I remember correctly, you can also access the option through party chat.

You may have had this answered already (apologies if so). Got a G6 last week and had a look at this last night. I have my G6 connected by Optical and USB, in the PS4 sound settings I set the G6 to Input Device but Output device to TV/Amp - this then allows chat/game balance options to be accessible on the PS4 menu when in party chat. Only thing I haven't really checked yet is if this has an impact on the main audio from a surround processing point of view?

 

[Clean6eR]

You may have had this answered already (apologies if so). Got a G6 last week and had a look at this last night. I have my G6 connected by Optical and USB, in the PS4 sound settings I set the G6 to Input Device but Output device to TV/Amp - this then allows chat/game balance options to be accessible on the PS4 menu when in party chat. Only thing I haven't really checked yet is if this has an impact on the main audio from a surround processing point of view?

it does
When you output the chat and the main audio via optical it all enters the g6 through the same port, the chat audio is mixed into it, if you enable scout mode the chat audio will also be processed by it.

if in the devices menu options you output to the g6 and not the tv it will enter the g6 on effectively a different channel.

what you could do is switch to that setup and then output only chat audio in that menu. turn the volume in that menu down to the lowest then go load up a game, set the volume on the g6 so your comfy with it. then go back to the devices menu and crank up that volume slider to suit how loud you like your chat. this way you have game audio on optical and chat on usb and a certain level of mixing ability.

there is nothing wrong with the way you have it set now though if you don't mind surround getting applied to chat audio too, the optical out is higher quality than the usb out i find when toggling between the two and listening to a music blu ray (spotify on ps4 sounds like TOTAL trash when you are listening for quality, i worked out for the first time the ps4 doesn't support cds because of this!)

 

[WhiteHartMart]

it does
When you output the chat and the main audio via optical it all enters the g6 through the same port, the chat audio is mixed into it, if you enable scout mode the chat audio will also be processed by it.

if in the devices menu options you output to the g6 and not the tv it will enter the g6 on effectively a different channel.

what you could do is switch to that setup and then output only chat audio in that menu. turn the volume in that menu down to the lowest then go load up a game, set the volume on the g6 so your comfy with it. then go back to the devices menu and crank up that volume slider to suit how loud you like your chat. this way you have game audio on optical and chat on usb and a certain level of mixing ability.

there is nothing wrong with the way you have it set now though if you don't mind surround getting applied to chat audio too, the optical out is higher quality than the usb out i find when toggling between the two and listening to a music blu ray (spotify on ps4 sounds like TOTAL trash when you are listening for quality, i worked out for the first time the ps4 doesn't support cds because of this!)

Thanks for the explanation - I think I can tolerate the processing on the chat just for the convenience of easy chat/game mix control

Glad the Spotify audio issue isn't just me - I've moaned to them on many occasions as it sounds so poor - Xbox sounds so much better (although appreciate neither will hardly be the best source to test our headphones with from an audio perspective

 

[z1ggy]

Can you try playing without the razer software, maybe that's the problem. I'm considering buying ad700x the most right now.

@bwuak I played Fortnite and CSGO last night with both Razer sound on & off, and also the 3D Virtual on and off for CSGO. What I found was that with Fornite, it made no difference if the Razer was on or off. I did actually get into a situation where I was on a roof and a guy was inside a house and I could kind of tell he was below me.. but definitely left v right was easy. Maybe my brain knew the person had to be under me since I was obviously above, so the sound presented as more underneath me. Not sure but either way I was happy with that. PS - Holy crap haven't played Fornite in a while.... what's with these Zombies and pink vortex things???

CSGO was totally different though. The Razer being on and CSGO virtual being off made a HUGE difference. With Razer on, sound was more immersive and deep. Call me crazy but I think somehow the sound stage got expanded slightly which was in this case nice because I could hear footsteps a bit further away. The one downside was guys who were maybe like 10ft away and 20ft away therefore sort of sounded the same as far as audible level of noise. However with 3D turned on and Razer off, everything seemed anemic and hollow.... Something was just "missing". I went back and forth between the settings like 10 times and I felt like the Razer was best. Imaging was definitely better. Maybe Razer EQ's the low mids and upper bass to make the sound fuller? Either way, I enjoyed playing more with Razer on.

Now as far as the AD700's vs buying something else... I'll probably slowly start buying headphones and testing them out head to head to see if any will improve the experience.

 

[Xspearo]

Has anyone had experience with the Massdrop HD 58X Jubilee or the HD 6XX? Specifically for gaming.

 

[mbyrnes]

Massdrop is coming out with the Massdrop X Hifiman Edition XX. Ridiculous Massdrop naming conventions aside it's a $599 Edition X v2 which maybe isn't a bad deal (if you already live in la la Land where $600 headphones can ever be considered "not a bad deal" which is where I somehow ended up).

Anyway I know @mbyrnes has these and loves them for games, specifically vs the HD800. Anyone else tried these out for gaming with virtual surround? Every planar I have ever tried has been great. The 400i and HE560 are some of my favorite gaming headphones as far as imaging and detail go, something about the artificial sound you get with VSS just "works" with these cans. Curious if anyone has any impressions.

The pricing of the new Massdrop HE-XX is awesome! I may jump on a second pair down the road. Hope to hear these!

 

[Pairzilla]

eBay or send the owner an email from his website.
X7 needs 4 opamps total:
ss3602 x2
ss3601 x2

Sound is absolutely phenomenal after the upgrade. It’s an investment but if you want the absolute best for gaming/hi res audio all in one, its the best way to go. It’s sound rivals some of my more expensive equipment.

So I just got my sparkos and installing. They stick out and I cant put the door back on. Am I doing something wrong? I took off the extra black connector but it's still too tall.

 

[Clean6eR]

So I just got my sparkos and installing. They stick out and I cant put the door back on. Am I doing something wrong? I took off the extra black connector but it's still too tall.

thats correct!

i put some little feet under mine to give space, i also got the burson vivid singles which are MUCH taller, it looks silly. sounds good though...

 

[mbyrnes]

Has anyone had experience with the Massdrop HD 58X Jubilee or the HD 6XX? Specifically for gaming.

I would personally not buy the HD6XX for gaming. The 5 series is better. It's the worst headphone I have for gaming. I have a lot of headphones.

 

[mbyrnes]

Thinking about it, what alternatives for soundstage exist at $599? Hopefully others can chime in with more recent experience with headphones. So many new releases the last two years, since I've done extensive listening to different models. Is there good competition to the new Massdrop HE-XX? What else? I'm curious, because I think this headphone is a big deal at this price point. If it's your listening style, it's a really nice listening experience. Not as efficient as the HE-X, 10 dB lower. Still in line with most normal Headphones. It's not like the HE-X is portable, and really isn't that easy to drive. Good sacrifice to save money. Most would never know anyway.

 

[Xspearo]

I would personally not buy the HD6XX for gaming. The 5 series is better. It's the worst headphone I have for gaming. I have a lot of headphones.

So I'm guessing go with 58X Jubilee? Or just get the hd 598?

 

[AppleheadMay]

The 6XX like the 580 and 58X Jubilee are awesome (high-end) headphones that perform far above their pricepoint.
But I wouldn't consider them for gaming as well.

Consider the 580 and 58X Jubilee as part of the 600 series, not 500.

The 500 series are the headphones like the 598 and 599 and lower models as well.
And those are better for gaming than the 600 series indeed.

 

[bwuak]

Thinking about it, what alternatives for soundstage exist at $599? Hopefully others can chime in with more recent experience with headphones. So many new releases the last two years, since I've done extensive listening to different models. Is there good competition to the new Massdrop HE-XX? What else? I'm curious, because I think this headphone is a big deal at this price point. If it's your listening style, it's a really nice listening experience. Not as efficient as the HE-X, 10 dB lower. Still in line with most normal Headphones. It's not like the HE-X is portable, and really isn't that easy to drive. Good sacrifice to save money. Most would never know anyway.

From what I hear, for competitive there isn't much better than ad700x, hd 598, akg k702(a bit better? not used as much for gaming because it needs an amp). After that price point you get into more bass and nothing really helpful competitively. However if you look for something more immersive, there's plenty options! I'm a noob that has done a lot of research, so take it however you want.