[sam314159]

Guys I'm very new to this forum and I tried to do a little searching but coudn't find a similar thread.
 
I just bought a Senn PC-161 headset and all the reviews I read said it will sound amazing so I had some pretty high expectations!
 
I recieved it yesterday and I plugged it into my integrated audio card (3.5mm connector to the back) and it sounded very weak and tinny. I had my volume turned all the way up on my headphones and in my system tray.
 
1. You think maybe the headphones I received are defective or do you think it can be my crappy integrated sound?
 
2. Can a cheap integrated sound card actually make a good headset sound that bad?
 
3. I tested a USB headset before and it sounded very powerful and loud. Why is there a difference?
 
4. Is there a fix? I guess I can just go back to the USB headset but the Senns are supposed to be much better, I just wanted to experience them before I return.
 
Thanks in advance for the help. Sorry if this is a redundant thread.
 
 
 

 

[CastanonY]

Hello and welcome to headfi....sorry for your wallet.
 
You can try plugging them to different sources, generally onboard is not enough to drive headphones properly. 
Get a soundcard. 

 

[sam314159]

Thanks.
 
I did a more research, I am a complete audio newb btw, and now I am even more confused.
 
From what I've read you gain two primary things with a dedicated sound card:
 
1. Better SNR since the dedicated card is further away from all the mother board electromagentic interference. I never hear any buzzing, clicking, popping or hissing from the integrated sound card so I don't feel like this is a problem. I have a pretty new high-end motherboard so I think I have a pretty good on-board card.
 
2. Dedicated sound cards free up your CPU since it won't have to process sound any more. I don't have any slow down issues.
 
 
I don't feel like a dedicated sound card will help me since my problem is not quality it's more "quantity". It just doesn't sound loud enough.
 
With the ABS USB set I can not bear to have them on and turn volume all the way up. With the Senns, full volume sounds normal, not very loud.
 
Do you think they're defective? Is there anything I can do to boost sound?

 

[CastanonY]

Quote:

 
With the ABS USB set I can not bear to have them on and turn volume all the way up. With the Senns, full volume sounds normal, not very loud.
 
Do you think they're defective? Is there anything I can do to boost sound?

I understand what you mean...
They are not defective, they just need more power. 
You have different choices...you can get a soundcard with an integrated headamp (Asus xonar essence stx) or a headphone amp. 
Try playing with the settings of your soundcard also...sometimes it helps. 

 

[sam314159]

 I was doing a bit more research and I found this explanation on another forum. Does everyone pretty mcuh agree with this? I never really heard of this before but it sounds feasible.
 
Quote:

Most headphone outputs from S/Cards (and MoBo's) are "LINE OUT" voltage levels (600mV) with an output impedance of 1 kilo-ohm and usually only a few milli-amps. These are usually meant to go into other, more powerful, amplifiers. Most headphones these days have impedances of 8 - 200 ohms. Basically this means that the headphones are like a heavy load on the LINE-OUT levels and effectively cut (or load down) the voltage available to the H/Phones. This results in lowered volume. Because of the limited voltage and current available on the H/Phone out socket, you would barely see 1/2 watt output anyway (hardly more than your telephone's ear piece).
 
As mentioned by others, the USB headphones usually have a small amplifier built-in and get their power from the USB port. Otherwise, use an external (powered) amplifier.