[MusclePharm]

Hello my friends,
 
I have bought last year a Sennheiser PC 363D and I must say that they are the best phones that I have ever owned, I have had a few... razer, siberia (yeah gaming headsets).
A few weeks later my purchase I've read a topic on here, I believe, of people saying that gaming headsets are just scam and not worth the money.
However, unlucky me, I'm using a laptop and my audio inputs are not working, so I had to buy an usb headset. Looking at the price and quality I went for the PC 363D from Sennheiser which seemed the best at the time. I guess they are not that bad, but still I'm looking on how can I upgrade the audio quality without having to spend a lot of money, then I found this Xonar U7 from ASUS (one of my favourite companies) and a lot of good reviews on it, I'm guessing its better than the 3D G4me 1 that comes with the Sennheiser PC 363D, right?
 
Do you guys consider it good for the price? is there anything better in a 100 - 200€ price range?

 

[MusclePharm]

Oh forgot to mention.... They are surround 7.1 headphones, so a 7.1 dac/usb sound card would be a preference.

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Oh forgot to mention.... They are surround 7.1 headphones, so a 7.1 dac/usb sound card would be a preference.

 
Technically the PC363D are stereo headphones (but the label "7.1" helps sell headphones).
The software provided by Sennheiser is what does all the 7.1 surround sound processing, before the audio signal goes thru the USB 3D G4ME 1 (USB sound card) adapter to the PC363D.
So you want to switch from the 3D G4ME 1 USB sound card to the Asus U7 USB sound card (and they both use Dolby Headphone).

 

[MusclePharm]

Exactly, just wanted to know if it is worth it to get a xonar u7? or if i should get any other dac...

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Exactly, just wanted to know if it is worth it to get a Xonar u7? or if i should get any other DAC...

 
I'm fairly sure the CS4398 DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) chip that comes in the U7 is better then whatever DAC chip comes in the 3D G4ME 1.
So with the U7, audio quality should improve, not sure if any "gaming" features will improve.
 
External USB DACs do not come with any headphone surround sound features, USB sound cards do.

 

[MusclePharm]

Oh my mistake, I misunderstood how both work, thanks for clarifying.
Since I'm on a laptop I have to rely on those, then I guess xonar u7 may be the best option for me.
I'm also attempted to get an HD 650, do you think I can get most of its potential with xonar u7?

 

[PurpleAngel]

  Oh my mistake, I misunderstood how both work, thanks for clarifying.
Since I'm on a laptop I have to rely on those, then I guess xonar u7 may be the best option for me.
I'm also attempted to get an HD 650, do you think I can get most of its potential with xonar u7?

 
My personal option, the U7 would not bring out the best in the HD650.
I would assume the HD650 is a better sounding headphone, then the PC363D, but the HD650 would not offer any advantages for gaming (except make the games sound better).
With headphones like the HD650, at a minimum, I would say to get the Hifimediy USB DAC ($65) and the FiiO E11K headphone amplifier ($60) and this setup offers zero headphone surround sound.

 

[MusclePharm]

Ok, for gaming I'm better with Xonar U7 and PC 363D. For music, movies and other stuff I'm better with the HD 650 with a DAC and an Amplifier (which will not give me surround sound capability). Many people say surround sound doesn't bring you any advantage, that it's just placebo effect... but it in a gaming match it will provide you with directional audio, soyou know where you are being shot from, hear footsteps... however for music or movies I don't know if it will actually make any difference, since I always go for surround 7.1 headphones.
Now I will have to figure out wich one would be better for me, the HD 650 setup will be a lot more expensive since I have to buy a brand new headphone with all other components, the PC 363D with Xonar U7 will be a lot cheaper, but is it worth it? will the sound quality between both setups be that different? I already can distinguish different instruments in music with my PC 363D  and just for that I'm amazed...