New member - console setup advice needed
Oct 3, 2017 at 6:52 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 36
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MrB1989

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Hello everybody. I am a new member. I have been doing a lot of research and decided to make an account to help expand my knowledge. For now, I have an inquiry. I currently use an Astro Wireless mixamp (I think they only made them in 2011/2012). I have a few different headsets that I have tried with them.

Astro A40
Razer Kraken
Steel Series v2/200
And more recently, Sennheiser G4me zero.

I had noticed that the Astro mixamp is too weak to power the G4me zeros due to the impedance impedance level. Through research I found that to benefit most from the headset I should get an additional amp. With that being said, I have considered getting the schiit stack.

My question is: if I get the schiit stack with the modi 2 uber, will that provide me with virtual surround sound or do I still need to use the Astro mixamp for that? I use my headset for gaming on console and I only play FPS games so being able to hear footsteps and pinpointing the direction is key for me. Any advice is greatly appreciated and I thank you all in advance!
 
Oct 3, 2017 at 7:08 PM Post #2 of 36
The Schiit stacks don't have an option for virtual surround sound, VSS tbh is not worth it, whilst it will give a feeling of being surrounded, it does it at the expense of sound quality. You have 2 ears and the headphones have 2 drivers, stereo is a lot better than VSS because even in stereo you can hear in 360°. I've used closed back headphones on my console with no VSS or any other effects added, just the 2 headphone drivers working in stereo and it works great at pinpointing enemy footsteps in games like BO3 and BF1.

IF you can afford it I recommend getting a Schiit Stack with open back headphones, the Schiit Stack will power anything you throw at it and the open back headphones will have soundstage and imaging which is SO much better than VSS.

The Sennheiser G4ME Zeroes are the best headphones in that list by far, a schiit stack will eat them for breakfast. Get a schiit stack and use the G4ME Zeroes which is the cheapest option. Don't worry about the whole VSS crap, stereo is FAR superior trust me, I've been through this entire thing multiple times and I will never use VSS again.
 
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Oct 3, 2017 at 7:14 PM Post #3 of 36
Unfortunately I am not a fan of open back headphones. I know most people swear by them but, for whatever reason, my ears do not agree with them. Same thing goes for stereo headphones without virtual surround sound. I've tried gaming with stereo headphones and I just didn't get the same experience I did with the virtual surround sound.
 
Oct 3, 2017 at 7:19 PM Post #4 of 36
You need to allow yourself to get mentally used to it, if you've ever heard of people recommending to others to "break-in" their headphones, that's what it means. You have to listen to it for hours for your brain to get used to the sound signature. I went through the same thing and now I use stereo only, if I turn on VSS then it sounds like complete and total garbage.

If you REALLY want VSS however then look at the Sennheiser GSX series of amps, they're pricey but they have VSS and other features too like sound modes and reverb. Whatever dac/amp you choose just make sure to use the G4ME Zeroes, they destroy the other 3 that you mentioned.
 
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Oct 3, 2017 at 7:24 PM Post #5 of 36
I really did give the stereo headphones a chance. I played with them for weeks on end. It was just never the same experience. Couldn't even put them on the same scale.

So, from my understanding, the Astro mixamp is a dac/amp all in one, correct? This provides me VSS. Is there a reason why the modi 2 uber would not provide VSS if it is connected through an optical cable?
 
Oct 3, 2017 at 7:26 PM Post #6 of 36
The Astro mixamp is a dac/amp combo yes. VSS is software based and the dac in the modi 2 doesn't have it and neither does the dac in the PS4. Using an optical cable won't do anything, it'll just transmit the audio.
 
Oct 3, 2017 at 8:35 PM Post #9 of 36
So I am thinking I can hook up I can hook up the DAC to the console using an optical cable, then purchase a RCA to 3.5mm cable and hook that up from the DAC to the mixamp, then a second RCA to 3.5mm cable from the mixamp to the second amp, and then headset to the second amp
 
Oct 3, 2017 at 9:59 PM Post #10 of 36
Hmm so you will essentially be connecting a DAC to a DAC/AMP to an AMP which might confuse your console/headphones, I've never seen a scenario like this before so I can't really comment on how well it will work.
 
Oct 3, 2017 at 11:07 PM Post #12 of 36
Get a schiit stack and try it first and if it works then yippee, if not return the schitt stack for a refund and sell the Astro mixamp and get a Sennheiser GSX, it will power the G4ME ZERO with ease.

Check this out:
 
Oct 4, 2017 at 7:53 AM Post #13 of 36
Unfortunately, after a little bit of research, I found that the sennheiser GSX is not compatible with the xbox...I would prefer something that works cross platform. I have a 360, xbox one, ps3, ps4, and a gaming desktop.
 
Oct 4, 2017 at 10:43 AM Post #15 of 36
YJX94 said:
Check out the Sound Blaster X7 and also give this a thorough read: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/mad...-18-2016-mrspeakers-ether-c-1-1-added.534479/

You'll be most interested in the Virtual Surround Sound section near the bottom of his post.
Click to expand...

I agree. This is what I use for console gaming with my TH-900 mk2. Battlefield has never sounded more amazing!

I also suggest dropping gaming headsets (they're all crap) and buy some nice headphones, then get a cheap clip-on mic. Have the voices output to the optical, and you got yourself a gaming headset.
 
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