[cagriyil]

Hello everyone,
This is my first message in this forum. I'm really happy to join to this comunity.
I've read many topics and reviews but my mind is still complicated.
I want to get a headphone for both gaming and music. I mostly listen pop and dance. On the other hand, I don't like heavy bass. Therefore, I need a "balanced" one...
My budget is 300 USD
The other possibility is to get a headphone for music + a headset for gaming. For this, budget is 400 USD
Lastly, I have creative Z sound card. Please suggest dac or amp if needed...
Many thanks and best wishes
Cagri

 

[kobe22]

The Beyerdynamic DT 880 and Sennheiser HD600 are two great neutralish headphones in that price range. 

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Hello everyone,
This is my first message in this forum. I'm really happy to join to this community.
I've read many topics and reviews but my mind is still complicated.
I want to get a headphone for both gaming and music. I mostly listen pop and dance. On the other hand, I don't like heavy bass. Therefore, I need a "balanced" one...
My budget is 300 USD
The other possibility is to get a headphone for music + a headset for gaming. For this, budget is 400 USD
Lastly, I have creative Z sound card. Please suggest DAC or amp if needed...

 
I do not think you have enough budgeted to get a good external DAC/amp ($200 or more) and headphones.
And better to spend more for one great headphone that does everything well, instead of two decent headphones.
 
The SB-Z comes with a CS4398 DAC chip
and a half-way decent headphone amplifier.
 
To save some cash, there are some used AKG K612 Pro headphones on eBay, $120 or best offer ($9.95 shipping).
http://www.ebay.com/itm/151676488766?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
 
I bought a AKG K7XX headphone a few months back and I think it's worth it's $200 price.

 

[bikerboy94]

 If you could stretch you budgit a little. The Senn HD600 are going in the $229 area. Add a Schiit Mogni/Modi Amp/Dac stack for $200. With shipping $450 range.

 

[cagriyil]

Thankyou all for your detailed answers..
My budget is 500 USD ( headphone + DAC/amp if needed )
Best wishes

 

[cagriyil]

   
I do not think you have enough budgeted to get a good external DAC/amp ($200 or more) and headphones.
And better to spend more for one great headphone that does everything well, instead of two decent headphones.
 
The SB-Z comes with a CS4398 DAC chip
and a half-way decent headphone amplifier.
 
To save some cash, there are some used AKG K612 Pro headphones on eBay, $120 or best offer ($9.95 shipping).
http://www.ebay.com/itm/151676488766?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
 
I bought a AKG K7XX headphone a few months back and I think it's worth it's $200 price.

 
My total budget is 500 USD.

 

[cagriyil]

   
I do not think you have enough budgeted to get a good external DAC/amp ($200 or more) and headphones.
And better to spend more for one great headphone that does everything well, instead of two decent headphones.
 
The SB-Z comes with a CS4398 DAC chip
and a half-way decent headphone amplifier.
 
To save some cash, there are some used AKG K612 Pro headphones on eBay, $120 or best offer ($9.95 shipping).
http://www.ebay.com/itm/151676488766?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
 
I bought a AKG K7XX headphone a few months back and I think it's worth it's $200 price.

 
My total budget is 500 USD.
Thanks

 

[cagriyil]

Can anyone help please?
my total budget is 500 USD for headphone and amp/dac...

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Can anyone help please?
my total budget is 500 USD for headphone and amp/dac...

 
You could just get the AKG K7XX headphones (used $200) and plug them straight into the SB-Z's headphone jack.
 
Or you might get a SMSL SD-192 Pro DAC ($50) and also a FiiO E11K headphone amplifier ($60).
That would leave you with almost $400 for headphones, but you could still get the K7XX, total would just be a little over $300 (DAC/Amp//headphone), leaving you almost $200 that you could leave in the bank.
Philips Fidelio series headphones seem to be well liked.

 

[cagriyil]

   
You could just get the AKG K7XX headphones (used $200) and plug them straight into the SB-Z's headphone jack.
 
Or you might get a SMSL SD-192 Pro DAC ($50) and also a FiiO E11K headphone amplifier ($60).
That would leave you with almost $400 for headphones, but you could still get the K7XX, total would just be a little over $300 (DAC/Amp//headphone), leaving you almost $200 that you could leave in the bank.
Philips Fidelio series headphones seem to be well liked.

 
Thanks for the reply. What about beyer dt880 or sennheiser hd 600 etc?

 

[Steven112]

Hi,
Don’t know if this info helps you out.
I used to run a Sennheiser HD598 with a Creative X-fi HD. And I can tell you, the sound was very nice. A plus with the X-fi was that it supports different gaming settings as well.
Later I got myself a HD600, and that was a nice improvement. Yet important for me to note, that it was not a major improvement. And the HD598 is still very nice to listen to.
I upgraded to a Tube-amp (Darkvoice) and the sound was al whole lot better. But I think this will take you over your budget.
Also got a Schitt Modi, and I can tell you, it’s not worth the money to upgrade from a X-fi HD to a Modi. At least not in my opinion. (there is a very small upgrade though)
So I would say don’t bother getting a DAC, unless you have problems with interference from the computer.
You can drive the HD598 just fine with your Soundblaster.
If you want to spend more money, you could get the HD600, but then (atleast imo) you should also get an amp. The Schiit Magni or the FiiO might be a good option there. I think this will still fit in your budget.

 

[cagriyil]

  Hi,
Don’t know if this info helps you out.
I used to run a Sennheiser HD598 with a Creative X-fi HD. And I can tell you, the sound was very nice. A plus with the X-fi was that it supports different gaming settings as well.
Later I got myself a HD600, and that was a nice improvement. Yet important for me to note, that it was not a major improvement. And the HD598 is still very nice to listen to.
I upgraded to a Tube-amp (Darkvoice) and the sound was al whole lot better. But I think this will take you over your budget.
Also got a Schitt Modi, and I can tell you, it’s not worth the money to upgrade from a X-fi HD to a Modi. At least not in my opinion. (there is a very small upgrade though)
So I would say don’t bother getting a DAC, unless you have problems with interference from the computer.
You can drive the HD598 just fine with your Soundblaster.
If you want to spend more money, you could get the HD600, but then (atleast imo) you should also get an amp. The Schiit Magni or the FiiO might be a good option there. I think this will still fit in your budget.

 
Thanks for your detailed reply!
What kind of music do you listen with those headphones?

 

[Steven112]

I listen to a lot off different music styles. But mostly pop (Michael Jackson, Queen, Lorde, etc) and I like some dance (Deephouse stuff, kygo) some metal/rock (Ozzy) and lately a bit off jazz as well.
 
The HD598 and HD600 sound great, at least for my taste. And as far as I know, you can't really go wrong with either of them.

 

[Shaffer]

The type of music you listen to is irrelevant and even misleading in a sense that we all have our own idea as to what a given genre should sound like. It would be more helpful to you if you described the sonic attributes that you prefer. Good luck.

 

[LNuneek]

The type of music you listen to is irrelevant and even misleading in a sense that we all have our own idea as to what a given genre should sound like. It would be more helpful to you if you described the sonic attributes that you prefer. Good luck.

I thought this at one point, but personally my attitude changed after I had a chance to listen to a bunch of headphones this year. The thing is some genres require some attributes to be listened to properly. For instance, I noticed a lot of highly regarded headphones  couldn't handle the deep kick drums of a lot of Hip Hop and similarly mixed music. Some headphones like Beats are  good for those genres but suck for music that is more melody driven.
 
It really sucks having headphones that don't output the type of music you listen to in a complimentary way. You always feel that something is missing and are never quite satisfied.