[AxelCloris]

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Contract security. Pay is based on a site by site basis. I'm basically getting paid less than when I started with the company 8 years ago. Rather not think about at the moment.

 
Have you tried to apply for a license to carry? When you have those with security based jobs the pay you get is always higher. The trade off is that the jobs that require those licenses are harder to get.

 

[Evshrug]

Hey again my HD558's arn't here yet, but I want to know will a headphone amp like the fiio E6 work with consoles?
I use this steelseries cross platform audio mixer to use headphones for consoles, but I hear a hiss on higher volumes and its pretty annoying

Also sorry if this is the wrong place to ask this. I did not think it was worth making a whole thread for.

I used my FiiO E5, along with RCA to 3.5mm/headphone/P2 adapters, to play my Xbox 360 with headphones for a long time. It works, but you need to buy separate adapters (the E6 wasn't made to hook up to the 360), and I would Recommend at least a small step-up in amp quality to better match with your HD 558, and not be useless down the road (barely use the E5 now, E6 is very similar to this amp).

A better amp need not be majorly expensive - you can get a FiiO E11 or similar for $60, and in the long run it will still be useful and a distinct advantage while the E6 mostly helps boost volume.

 

[NamelessPFG]

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Please give us your impressions of the Uptown's when you get them. They were down to $40 for a while on slickdeals which is like 73% off (they started at $150). I was going to try these out as my first serious cans since I'm using a free pair of HD 435 atm. They got a pretty good review from Manveru (Head-Fi Linky), just make sure that you leave the volume slider at full and adjust volume at the source.

 
But of course! Why wouldn't I give impressions of anything I buy?
 
Unfortunately, I missed the initial $40 Slickdeals mention, but then saw the 1SaleADay offer for $65 shipped, did some quick Googling, and found that it was still the lowest price around at the time, so I bit the bullet. Took them over a week to ship it, but they eventually did.
 
Everything I've been reading about them suggests that they're at least a decent closed, isolating headphone for the money, if you don't mind the poor in-line volume control. (I wonder if anyone's cracked that little part open specifically to bypass the crude potentiometer they put in there with a little wiring...

 

[Mjonir]

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Unfortunately, using PCs with sound cards that have S/PDIF inputs to act as headphone surround processors for consoles has proven to be impractical, as several people have already tried. The main problem is that they're meant to take stereo PCM signals only, not encoded Dolby Digital or DTS streams.
 
You can probably thank the MPAA and RIAA for that, the same groups that thought putting HDCP on HDMI and generally making things inconvenient for end users is a good idea. Seems like there's this SCMS flag for S/PDIF Dolby Digital and DTS sources that works similarly to HDCP in that if the other end isn't compliant, you either get silence or a downgraded (in this case, stereo PCM) signal.

 
Damn, why is it so hard to get hardware that does everything it's supposed to ^^'
 
I guess I'll have to drop the Xbox compatibility for good, or buy TurtleBeach's DSS2 later.
 
 
 
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As I offered before, if you want that X-Fi hardware at anywhere near US prices, I'll order it and ship it to you if you can cover the costs.
 
On the flip side, you have reasonably priced Xonar DG cards in your area. You'd lose out where DirectSound3D, OpenAL, and EAX support are concerned relative to proper X-Fi hardware, but they're still very capable cards for the price. I'll let you decide how to spend your money.

 
One thing I overlooked comparing costs is that when shipping from outside EU there are important customs fees. I checked and the difference in price wouldn't probably be worth it, but thanks a lot for the offer.
 
I'm really ready to invest on the sound card since I'll be keeping it a long while, so I wouldn't like to miss on those capabilities.
 
 
One last question to be sure before I'm decided: Will the X-Fi Titanium be enough to drive to DT770 80ohm to full capacity? What about the 250ohm version?
 
Also if somebody knows: If I'm to buy TurtleBeach's DSS2: Does it amp enough or will I need to add a second amp on this?
 
 
Thanks again, I couldn't have done this alone

 

[NamelessPFG]

A DT770, direct from a sound card?
 
You could try it without a dedicated amp to start with, but I'd definitely consider setting aside some money for an Objective2 amp or something else along those lines if you're going to be driving it directly from an X-Fi card.

 

[Mjonir]

Hm, I can't find that reference in any of my usual shops. Is it a unique product I really should get, or is there an equivalent?

 

[NamelessPFG]

The Objective2, you mean? It's just a headphone amp that's been getting a lot of attention lately.
 
JDS Labs sells fully-assembled ones, but I don't know if they ship outside the US.
 
Prior to that, the go-to recommendation for a desktop amp was usually the FiiO E9. I'm not sure if that's still the case.

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

Hm, I can't find that reference in any of my usual shops. Is it a unique product I really should get, or is there an equivalent?

Any chance you could add your location to your community profile?
 
Possible places that might stock the O2

1. YoYoDyne Consulting (Canada)
2. JDS Labs (USA)
3. Epiphany Acoustics (UK)
4. Head-N-HiFi (Switzerland)
5. Audio Poutine (Canada Facebook Page)

Sometimes they are for sale on eBay and sometimes in the Head-fi thread "Amplifiers for Sale"

 

[saladin]

If I am going to be using the SB X-fi titanium with any of these headphones, do I need a mixamp or anything like that?

 

[mrkingdomhearts]

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I used my FiiO E5, along with RCA to 3.5mm/headphone/P2 adapters, to play my Xbox 360 with headphones for a long time. It works, but you need to buy separate adapters (the E6 wasn't made to hook up to the 360), and I would Recommend at least a small step-up in amp quality to better match with your HD 558, and not be useless down the road (barely use the E5 now, E6 is very similar to this amp).
A better amp need not be majorly expensive - you can get a FiiO E11 or similar for $60, and in the long run it will still be useful and a distinct advantage while the E6 mostly helps boost volume.

So the FiiO E11 works with consoles fine?(I use both PS3 and 360). And just how much will the performance improve with the HD 558's useing a good amp?
 
Also is the astro mixamp worth the money?

 

[NamelessPFG]

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If I am going to be using the SB X-fi titanium with any of these headphones, do I need a mixamp or anything like that?

 
You don't need the Mixamp because the X-Fi cards are already quite capable of providing headphone surround with CMSS-3D Headphone.
 
If you're talking about the amp aspect of the Mixamp and not the DAC/DSP part, then you have better options.
 
Quote:

So the FiiO E11 works with consoles fine?(I use both PS3 and 360). And just how much will the performance improve with the HD 558's useing a good amp?
 
Also is the astro mixamp worth the money?

 
Can't speak on how much the HD558 will or won't improve with an amp, but the Mixamp Pro is generally the benchmark Dolby Headphone processor around here. Still in production, good enough audio quality for gaming, and provides chat mixing.
 
The important thing is that you're getting Dolby Headphone and not just plain stereo.

 

[PurpleAngel]

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If I am going to be using the SB X-fi titanium with any of these headphones, do I need a mixamp or anything like that?

SB X-Fi Titanium (non-HD) does all the things the Mix-amp. does.

 

[mrkingdomhearts]

Quote:

 
Can't speak on how much the HD558 will or won't improve with an amp, but the Mixamp Pro is generally the benchmark Dolby Headphone processor around here. Still in production, good enough audio quality for gaming, and provides chat mixing.
 
The important thing is that you're getting Dolby Headphone and not just plain stereo.

I don't really care about chat, I just wonder if it's worth the price for Dolby Headphone and surround sound.(I never used ether myself).

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

In any case, the HD558 won't scale with amping, so its better to get something like the Mixamp.

The E5/E6 are very weak amps to begin with. They're not much amps as they are slight volume boosters.

 

[chicolom]

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yes great thread MLE, many thanks ...
 
whats your take on the HD650s for gaming ?.
 
im currently using either the D7000s, /or the Dt990s for FPS /and gaming in general  ...

 
D7000 and DT990 should be better for gaming then HD650.  I would stick with what you already have.