[nicolasete]

I have a few more questions.
 
I have been burning the headphones for a couple of days now, i dont find any substantial change but they sound good overal. But:
 
1) Grasping basses in some songs or loud volumes are due to the headphones not-that-great quality, to the file or to my bad onboard audio setup with no dedicated components? (i dont know if grasp is the correct word in english, you know, its like that sound you make when you are trying to get mucus out of your throat) ghghghghg.
 
2) Not a single game i've tryed has a "dolby-headphone" option, there is only stereo and the rest are 5.1ish options. Do i have to enable that feature outside the games with another application? if not, does anybody know any other game or application in wich i can test my headphones positioning?
 
3) Are the creative Aurvana Live supposed to withstand high volumes and deep vibrating basses? In my setup the bass and high volumes (even not that high, i dont have an amp) grasp and sound bad. I cant really find a way to test to what level my quality limitations are due to my cheap setup or to the headphones.
 
4) i have flac and mp3 versions of the very same songs, i play the mp3s in winamp and they sound fine, with less clarity but certainly fine, clear bass etc. The flacs played in winamp sound exactly the same, but if i play them in VLC media player (wich i dont know way allows a lot more loud volume) the sound is quite more detailed but the basses sound awfully bad (grasp again, ihope thats the word) in relatively high volumes. Am i doing someting wrong? is that due to the file or am i using a bad config/player?
 
5) any of the hardware improvements you mentino (amp, dac/amp or soundcard) would make the basses to be more "vibrating"? i find them clear but certainly unimmersive. (And dont know why, that happens specially in Battlefield Bad Company 2, wich is supposed to be one of the games with the best sound design out there, and wich sounds worse but a lot more immersive in my cheap desk speakers)
 
 
Thanks in advance, feel free to answer the points you like =)

 

[nicolasete]

bump

 

[joelpearce]

It sounds to me like you're getting distortion.  This makes the most sense with VLC.  VLC allows you to go well above 100% volume, but when you go above 100% it is trying to boost the sound, which is going to make it eventually clip.  You want to make sure that the system volume, soundcard volume and application volume are all at reasonable levels.  If one is pushed too high, that's when you can get distortion.
 
Are you plugging your headphones into a headphone plug, directly into the line out of the computer, or the headphone jack of your desktop speakers?  If you aren't plugging the headphones into an actual headphone jack, that could also explain your lack of sound quality.  Line outs are quite different, and will cause distortion when you use them to drive headphones.  If your ultimate goal is to get high quality surround sound gaming experiences, you really should get a gaming sound card, if you haven't already.  They will allow the games to think they are outputting in 5.1, then virtualizing it down to headphones for you.

 

[wmf]

 
Quote:

 
Check ^^. I just found out that i have a lot more mp3 than flacs, but the ones i have in flac are great. Pink Floyd's Atom Heart Mother Suite is impressive. Anyways i'll try to get everything in flac from now on.
 
Music is nice, its gaming wich i still find quite underwhelming. BFBC2 sounds detailed but not immersive, not deep and the pinpointing is quite basic, it sounds more immersive in my extremely cheap 2.1 labtec speakers (except for the details and the pinpointing). Bioshock 2 sounds horrible, don't really know why. Arma 2 sounds exactly the same and i'm going to make the last try with Mass Effect 2 (since i can't find my Batman Arkham Asylum cd). Anyways, it seems like i'm gonna have to buy more hardware pieces...
 

 
 
on the gaming side, i think a dedicated soundcard will definately help  .... 
 
on a side note, any particular reason you chose the Creative Aurvana headphones  ?
 
 
 
 

 

[nicolasete]

Quote:

 
 
on a side note, any particular reason you chose the Creative Aurvana headphones  ?

 
 
Well the DT150s were more expensive (120€+shipping) and needed a lot of other also expensive hardware (amps etc) to sound right, and since i had not tested a single audiophile piece of hardware (inc headphones) i did not want to risk 300€ in something that maybe is not what i was looking for. It went the same way for the DT250 (120-140€ +shipping) and the DT770 80 (130€+shipping) (wich i also got compared with the aurvana).
 
In the thread i was trying to decide, i got recommended the Aurvanas a couple of times, so i read some reviews of them and everybody says that they are really good for the price, that perform great in movies games and music, that does not need an amp to shine and since i found them for 70€ free shipping on the very Creative site i just went for that. Its half the price of the other options and im not supposed to need more hardware to power them (although i will probably end buying some, since im a bit dissapointed with them and i want to ensure its my setup and not the headphones).
 
Also they were supposed to have a great soundstage for gaming, but i'm yet to test that (i dont have a dedicated soundcard).
 
 
 
 
 
Quote:

 
Are you plugging your headphones into a headphone plug, directly into the line out of the computer, or the headphone jack of your desktop speakers?

I'm pluging them directly into my motherboard's headphone jack (the green one). About geting a soundcard... it took me one year to buy the headphones, i hope i dont spend another one reading the forums trying to decide between dac, soundcard etc

I usually overthink when reserching to make a choice =)
 
Also, could that distortion damage the headphones?
 
 

 
Quote:

when you go above 100% it is trying to boost the sound,

 
Mmm just came to my mind, is that 100% volume determined by the headphones, the system or both? Will the headphones withstand an higher volume barrier (and bass vibration) without distortion when i get the additional dedicated hardware? (dac soundcard etc).