PC + PS3 + 360 Headphone Amp Question.
Jan 10, 2011 at 1:44 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 9
naturalrhythm

naturalrhythm

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This is coming from a complete noob, I'm really not sure what to do and I've been looking all over for a decent answer but I thought I'd just ask.
 
I recently purchased a pair of Sennheiser HD 555s for my PC and I think they're fantastic. I'm now looking at using them for my PS3/360, but I'm not entirely sure which amp I should get. I use voice chat a little bit but it's not a necessary feature (I have a logitech boom mic). I was looking into the Astro Mixamp, however I live in Canada and the shipping charge is brutal (almost the full cost of the amp.)
 
I was wondering if the Fiio E7 would be a good choice (not really for increasing the audio quality, more to enable me to use my headphones with my consoles) and whether or not I could use a mic with the E7. I can get the E7 for about $90, and I would prefer the cost not to exceed that by much (total cost for the Astro exceeds $200 for me.)
 
Thank you for your time!
 
Jan 10, 2011 at 1:51 AM Post #2 of 9
E7 may be good for music but is terrible for gaming. If you want comparable performance to the Astros, get a Turtle Beach DSS. Same surround sound as Mixamp plus voice chat and supports PS3 and X360. Get a collar boom mic if you want to use your Senns. I use Mixamp + K701 + collar mic with both consoles and my PC.
 
Jan 10, 2011 at 3:03 AM Post #4 of 9
Good point.
OP: An E7 or other usb headamp will not let you use your HD555 with consoles. An amp with toslink in would get audio to your headphones but no mic input for chatting. You likely will not get the answers you are looking for here. Try asking your questions on the Major League Gaming forum.
 
Jan 10, 2011 at 3:05 AM Post #5 of 9
If you want to use your HD 555s with your consoles you're going to want a DAC+amp that has an optical input. AFAIK all PS3's have an optical out, but 360s don't (unless they added it to the new slim black models). The E7 does not have an optical input, therefore it is NOT the way to go if you want to use the Sennheisers with your consoles -- plain and simple.
 
Examples of DAC+amps that have optical inputs are the Zero DAC and Maverick D1. I think the Zero is the cheapest you can find. You probably don't want to spend much but I'd say you have to be willing to shell out at least $150 for a solution.
 
Jan 10, 2011 at 8:01 AM Post #7 of 9
 Yeah go over to MLG. I'm a member over there and there are a bunch of people that know what there talking about and are also audiophiles. I have the razer carcharias, the ad700 hooked up to the astro mixamp. The astro mixamp gets amazing reviews on there. And since I got this set up its been great. The controls from the mixamp are better than any other option ( in game voice volume, reg. volume, etc)
 
Jan 10, 2011 at 8:11 AM Post #8 of 9
Jan 23, 2011 at 12:12 AM Post #9 of 9
It seems if you don't want to go the mixamp route the ear force dss is the best option. It doesn't offer the same abilities of using xbox live chat and adjusting the volume of the game and chat simultaneously but I hear the amp itself is just as good as the mixamp. Not sure if its going to be easier shipping the ear force dss but amazon sells it new for 70$ which isn't bad at all. Personally I just put my xbox head set over my headphones, which I don't notice, and talk like that. It's a bit weird not being able to hear yourself talk like you normally can, but you can still hear the people talking to you. You need to enable live chat over speakers so you can hear what people are saying through your head phones. Good luck. BTW I have a pair of hd555's on the way, and I plan on getting the dss as well.
 
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