[Ariston]

Hello!

I've been using a pair of Sennheiser PC 360 for about 5 years. Had some troubles with it as far as I can remember, and I'm finally ready for something new and better.

What I'm looking for:
Open design, good for music but also some videos and gaming.
Budget is max $200, preferably under. (edited)
PS! I dont live in the US (Norway), so prices and availability may vary.

I have an Asus Xonar Essence STX which I believe should be powerful enough to power most headphones. Let me know if not.

I feel like I have three options.

1. Something "expensive"
2. Something "cheap" which leaves extra money for a broadcast microphone
3. Easy route, for example Sennheiser G4me One

I've been looking around for a while, but haven't found that much. There's the DT 990, Philips SHP9500.. yeah, thats about everything I've found. Would like to hear what you guys recommend.

Many thanks!

 

[buke9]

HE-400S would be a good pic for me.

 

[serman005]

HD598 would be another reasonable option.

 

[Ariston]

Thanks!

Unfortunately the HE-400S are about $300-350 for me, which is out of my range.
HE4XX has been mentioned elsewhere, but I'm not sure about HIFIMAN in general. Just because I don't have any experience with them, I dont thing they are seen much in my country.

There is a couple HD598 available on Amazon.co.uk. Will consider them.

Both of these are probably available on sites like eBay, but would prefer to buy somewhere else.

 

[Ariston]

I got to try my friends DT 990 Pro 250 Ohms yesterday, with a FiiO E10K.

I'm not that good at noticing different sound stages, highs and lows, comparing etc, which is why I mentioned that I would probably be happy with whatever I end up with.
But I did like them. They had a good amount of bass, in comparison it's basically nonexistent in the Sennheisers. Mids and highs im not sure about. Similar?

I'm a bit worried about the FiiO though. Because it seemed to give more power to both phones than my Essence STX sound card. Does that make sense?
Is my sound card lacking? Do I need an amp?

So I'm kind of thinking about the DT 990 Edition - 250 or 600 Ohm, because of the more comfortable/looser fit. My ears did touch on the inside a bit, but probably not a big deal.

I'm almost useless. Would appreciate any help!

 

[ammthe]

Have you checked out the HD6xx on Massdrop? It i definitely within your budget.

 

[funkisound]

Philips X2 (or X1) has plenty of bass, and seems to be good for games and movies. It is a big headphone though.

 

[Ariston]

Have you checked out the HD6xx on Massdrop? It i definitely within your budget.

I have looked at and considered them, but they come in at around $290 after shipping and taxes into my country.
I may need to lower my budget a bit, at least my max, if I also need a dac/amp.

EDIT: I didn't actually realize I could and should change the gain on my Essence STX. So in theory, it should work fine with higher impedance headphones. Never mind me

Philips X2 (or X1) has plenty of bass, and seems to be good for games and movies. It is a big headphone though.

Yeah, I looked at the X2 last time too. Seems pretty good. Only one retailer sells them, but at least they are available (although they're dangerously close to my max budget).
Also looked at the Philips SHP9500, which is fairly cheap on AliExpress.

I just have a hard time deciding.

 

[PurpleAngel]

I got to try my friends DT 990 Pro 250 Ohms yesterday, with a FiiO E10K.
I'm not that good at noticing different sound stages, highs and lows, comparing etc, which is why I mentioned that I would probably be happy with whatever I end up with.
But I did like them. They had a good amount of bass, in comparison it's basically nonexistent in the Sennheisers. Mids and highs im not sure about. Similar?
I'm a bit worried about the FiiO though. Because it seemed to give more power to both phones than my Essence STX sound card. Does that make sense?
Is my sound card lacking? Do I need an amp?
So I'm kind of thinking about the DT 990 Edition - 250 or 600 Ohm, because of the more comfortable/looser fit. My ears did touch on the inside a bit, but probably not a big deal.
I'm almost useless. Would appreciate any help!

Check out the Soundmagic HP150/HP151, if it's available to you.

I used an Asus Xonar Essence STX for a few years and so far I'm not seeing any good reason for you to replacing it. Maybe you could upgrade the 3 op-amps (operational amplifiers), send $20 to $60.
Also maybe disable the motherboard's on-board audio, in the BIOS and try the United Xonar drivers.
http://uni.maxedtech.com/asus-xonar-unified-drivers/

 

[Confucius Say]

Second the 598 - I don’t use them for gaming but see them recommended for it due to soundstage

 

[CT007]

I have the STX also, and things sound much less bright/harsh, and smoother, using a Modi Multibit DAC instead, even with no amp. There's a surprisingly good amount of volume out of it, from USB.

DT880 sounded the best(most neutral) to me, between 770, 880 and 990. Just make sure you get one of the lower ohm versions, to make sure you don't need a crazy amp. STX works with 600 ohms, tho. It's gonna be hard to go wrong with a HD598. If you can live with a small soundstage(not very good for games), you could also find HD600 for $200. AD900X provide a huge soundstage and are very detailed and open sounding, but comfort is worse than the HD's.

Between these, I would probably choose: AD900X(+lambskin pads) > DT880/HD598. HD598 should be fatigue-free sounding. AD900X will be on the sparkley side.

 

[Confucius Say]

Really good info from CT007

 

[IkSak]

@Ariston the best open headphones for gaming/movies under 200 are the Massdrop AKG K7XX. They have an amazing soundstage, bested only by the likes of the Sennheiser HD800, nice imaging and these features make the K7XX great for gaming. Furthermore, they're comfortable and they sound pretty good. Together with the HD 6XX are the best value under 200.

My recommendation is that to stay under your budget, buy them used here in the forum. I got mine for 110 and it's the best bang for budget money I've spent

 

[FinBenton]

HD58X from massdrop 150usd, they are similar to your old ones in comfort and sound but everything is just a bit better.

 

[prymortal]

What kind of games do you play? (Single player, MMO/MOBA, car racing, FPS, Star Citizen, Flight Sim e.t.c.)
What kind of music do you listen to? just TL:dR this one e.g. Electronic or Strings (Rock, metal e.t.c.)
Do you like Bass?, Do you like Treble? (Cymbals)
^Basicly i'm asking if you want Bassy or V-shaped sound or neutral
Can you go over your budget?