[Ariston]

Thanks for all the replies!
Sorry for the late answers, having some trouble figuring out what to say/do.

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/

Might be available on Amazon or something, but nothing local.
Could you explain upgrading op-amps? Not sure what that means.
EDIT: I can't disable my MB audio since my speakers are hooked up. Also my mic, since I got some noise issues using the STX.

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.

"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."
Could you explain that a bit more? Do you mean it works, but not very good? If the high ohm version sounds better and is cheaper, I would prefer that. But if I'm gonna have trouble powering it, the 250 ohm version is probably better.

HD 598 is the one I want, I think. But since its out of reach, maybe I'll take a look at the 880's instead of 990.

@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

I'll check out the forum sales.

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?

I didnt specify music and games because It's not something specific. Usually play something co-op/multiplayer with my friend, like Civilization or World of Warships. But I also pick up a single-player game once in a while.
Mostly rap I guess, but I do like different genres.
Thanks for adding (cymbals), but didn't help much. I dont know. I like some bass though.
Would actually prefer to stay a bit under my budget. But it all depends.

 

[prymortal]

I need to wait for mine to arrive before i'd recommend them since it been a while since i've listened to a pair but the Massdrop HD6XX might be what you are after. Not sure how they do with rap but others will have experiance so can confirm i'm sure.
The SHP9500 besides being overpriced from currently discontinued are good for TV & a lot of music, but not great for gaming.
Ath-AD900x would be good cheaper alternative to the SHP9500, they are the bassier headphone of the AD series but still bass lite does movies, gaming & music quite well.
The K7XX i dont have experiance with but the K712 Pro i have & its nothing but cymbals hence the (cymbals) note less of an issue with mainly rap genre. I've always assumed the K7XX is similar. Large soundstage but not very accurate in games you need it to be, But for the games you play it would work quite well.

 

[Ariston]

I need to wait for mine to arrive before i'd recommend them since it been a while since i've listened to a pair but the Massdrop HD6XX might be what you are after. Not sure how they do with rap but others will have experiance so can confirm i'm sure.
The SHP9500 besides being overpriced from currently discontinued are good for TV & a lot of music, but not great for gaming.
Ath-AD900x would be good cheaper alternative to the SHP9500, they are the bassier headphone of the AD series but still bass lite does movies, gaming & music quite well.
The K7XX i dont have experiance with but the K712 Pro i have & its nothing but cymbals hence the (cymbals) note less of an issue with mainly rap genre. I've always assumed the K7XX is similar. Large soundstage but not very accurate in games you need it to be, But for the games you play it would work quite well.

Thanks!
Yeah, the HD6xx is tempting, but with shipping its a bit too much for me. Also the drop has ended, not familiar with what happens next with them.
Might be good prices used, but prefer new.

SHP9500 are about 80 bucks on aliexpress, so I have considered them. For that price, they're probably really good.

Price varies it looks like, but I might be able to get the K712 Pro within my budget. Haven't looked at them very much though.

 

[prymortal]

Thanks!
Yeah, the HD6xx is tempting, but with shipping its a bit too much for me. Also the drop has ended, not familiar with what happens next with them.
Might be good prices used, but prefer new.

SHP9500 are about 80 bucks on aliexpress, so I have considered them. For that price, they're probably really good.

Price varies it looks like, but I might be able to get the K712 Pro within my budget. Haven't looked at them very much though.

https://www.massdrop.com/buy/massdrop-x-sennheiser-hd-58x-jubilee-headphones
Might be another worth concidering since the drops back up for "24h" , theres a post on here somewhere about them, i have no experiance with them FYI.
https://www.massdrop.com/buy/massdrop-x-sennheiser-hd-58x-jubilee-headphones/talk/1917437?utm_source=linkshare&referer=9WJC6K

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/massdrop-x-sennheiser-hd-58x-jubilee-review-measurements.867972/

 

[WildStyle-R11]

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.

In terms of those two headphones, I'd say Easy route of Game one is a good option, I found the DT990 to sound very similar to Game one, maybe game one is a bit more raw and tuned towards games, but it was good. Also SHP9500, it's good, but forget it.

 

[Ariston]

https://www.massdrop.com/buy/massdrop-x-sennheiser-hd-58x-jubilee-headphones
Might be another worth concidering since the drops back up for "24h" , theres a post on here somewhere about them, i have no experiance with them FYI.

They haven't reached their goal yet, so they're gonna be available for a little while still.
I'm tempted, actually.

(It is $15 shipping, but there's 25% VAT and $20 customs. I guess it comes down to luck.)

 

[voxie]

SoundMagic HP151 imo

 

[PurpleAngel]

SoundMagic HP151 imo

+1

 

[buke9]

Would also agree with the HP 151’s .

 

[Ariston]

To be honest, I dont think I'm interested in them.

 

[buke9]

Not a problem then.

 

[PurpleAngel]

PS! I dont live in the US, so prices and availability may vary.

Where do you live?

 

[PurpleAngel]

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.

To save some cash, trying buy used Sennehiser HD558 and remove the black rubber tape from inside the cups.
Will give you something almost as good as the HD598 (as the HD558/HD598/PC360/PC363D use the same 50-Ohm drivers/diaphragm).
Then get a Modmic

Here is a nice aftermarket cable for the HD558/HD598, comes with the 3.5mm (1/8") plug and can come in one of five lenghts.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Replacemen...var=560215640802&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

 

[buke9]

Then what do you think you would like. ?

 

[Ariston]

I live in Norway.
The used market is not very big.
Interesting mod there, but I'll keep it simple and look for something new and widely available.

Well, I know I like the Sennheiser comfort as long as it has similar pads as the PC 360.
I tried the DT 990 Pros, but concerned about them being tight and that my ears are just a tad big. I understand the Premium/Edition versions might be more comfortable.
So as a typical wannabe Sennheiser fan, I'm having trouble looking at other headphones. But I'll try my best.

Sorry If I'm making it difficult, I just don't feel like I'm in a hurry, and there's a lot to consider.
I do appreciate every reply!