[Headfonenut123]

Just offering some personal thoughts on my ad900s I got recently.

For gaming especially competitive they are just amazing, the soundstage is so large you can really pick up those separate noises in black ops, positioning and depth is excellent, I can pick out enemies prepping grenades and stickys in the Kowloon map which has so much ambient noise with the pouring rain etc so is an amazing feat to the ad 900 which get a big thumbs up, bass isn't ear rattling but I've come from the turtle beach hpx1 and the ad 900 still has a very punchy and tight hit the spot bass response.the detail and clarity in the game sound effects itself is second to none and I suppose at this point it is down to the game developers to make sone nice high-end uncompressed audio for these headphones to take advantage of.I know that alot of xbox360 titles audio is compressed to some degree and would love to own a ps3 and hear what games like god of war 3 sound like through these. For music they also come into their own, on kasabian's shoot the runner I can hear the plectrum hitting the guitar strings in detail (I had to google that it was called plectrum lol), classical music is just a joy for the ears, urban music is surprisingly good, as said bass isn't blow ya head off levels but on wretch 32's traktor it is very tight and punchy and you still get a decent amount of immersion. I tried out some Thom Yorke and radiohead and for me the ad 900 were great for these songs, I love analyse from the prestige film and it's like going from a basement and someone giving you the keys to the concert hall upstairs.I look forward to trying other headphones in the future but the ad 900 are a treat to listen with. Sorry for rambling a bit too much there

 

[somebodysb2]

My friend, Black Ops has such terrible audio cues, not even a HD 800 with the finest amp in the world can tell footsteps through the background music/noise of Black Ops, the only "soundwhoring" CoD games are CoD4, WaW and MW2.

 

[somebodysb2]

@ACDOAN
 
He has so much Hi-Fi equipment that his Audio Research amps are "sidelined"
 
Gotta make way for FM acoustics, aka the best amps in the world

 

[ACDOAN]

Quote:

@ACDOAN
 
He has so much Hi-Fi equipment that his Audio Research amps are "sidelined"
 
Gotta make way for FM acoustics, aka the best amps in the world

Great !  For over 30 years playing with my own hi-end gear and my buddy who owns a hi-end audio store, I have heard some very good systems from Audio Research, Krell, Bryston, Cary audio...I have not yet found the best amp/ pre-amp yet so I call it "quit". If you think FM  acoustic makes the best amp in the world, I take your word for it but I have never owned or heard them,
You're a lucky lad. 

 

[Headfonenut123]

i was aware of that, just because the audio isnt at the level of older COD titles doesnt mean it isnt there at all, im telling you i CAN hear people AND grenades through all the shitloads of ambient noises clogging up the sound

 

[eltebe]

Personally I own SHR-840(office use/sometimes outdoor) and ath-ad700 paired with Xonar Essence STX(gaming/music from pc)
Generally I don't know if AD900 is much better compared to AD700, but those are perfectly fine for gaming. You hear everything and have good sense of incoming sound direction etc.
Closed phones are good for short periods and when you need to cut off ambient noise. Longer usage can be tiresome in my case at least.
With ath-ad700/900 you can play/listen for hours. They are very comfortable. Also ear pads make you sweat a lot less during hot summer days/nights.
Go with ad700 and save some cash or just go and check if you hear any difference. The build quality is top notch.

 

[somebodysb2]

I'm sure you can hear me sneaking up on you while your'e planting the bomb in the train map.......

 

[somebodysb2]

Can someone tell me if the XB1000 are real leather and good for music/gaming? those 70mm drivers are crazy 

 

[Headfonenut123]

If you got ninja and you don't make any noises to give yourself away then I won't but any noise you make I'll spot ya

We've all been spoilt by the over the top footsteps etc in older cod titles and unless the next cod title goes back to the old ways then this is something we are going to have to get used to

I'm just telling you what I hear in black ops and I always get the jump on the majority of people before they see me

 

[somebodysb2]

I never really got soundwhoring, game's audio is here to make you feel that you are there, COD doesn't do that, only Battlefield.

 

[drez]

Quote:

My friend, Black Ops has such terrible audio cues, not even a HD 800 with the finest amp in the world can tell footsteps through the background music/noise of Black Ops, the only "soundwhoring" CoD games are CoD4, WaW and MW2.

 
agree 100% guess i can try rename miles folder again?  Agree also Battlefied has some really nice sound.  XB1000 I've read has better soundstage than xb700 but that has pretty ordinary soundstage.  If you're a serous gamer you probably don't want too much bass anyway as it will distract from footsteps.  xb series will have pretty ordinary detail and speed, so discerning audio cues will be even harder.  Depends how keen you are, or how much u like being backstabbed by noobs.
 
If you can stretch your budget the best combination of soudnstage and bass response would probably be the beyerdynamic dt880 and dt990.  I can't personally recommend either, but id say that the dt880 has the edge from what ive read eg: http://www.overclock.net/hi-fi-gear/868288-dt990s-gaming.html.  But both of these need an amp to sound their best regardless of quoted impedance, so I might be missing the point.  Dt880 is also apparently not "bass heavy" but has more bass than say an ad900.
 
In terms of immersion, personally I think soundstage should not be overlooked, but its hard to explain unless you have experienced it.  In the end it would be ideal to have both.  One option might be ultrasones, as these are closed but large in soundstage.  Imaging might be iffy, but if you are after immersion more than location, these might be a good choice.  Even their closed models have decent soundstage thanks to their "S-Logic surround sound".  The bass quality will literally walk all over any sony XB series and they are definitely not lacking in bass.  Overall the ultrasones might be a good choice if you can live with the upfront smashing_you_in_the_face treble that some of them have, the tradeoff being better overall sound quality and soundstage vs sony (at least in the pro750 i had for a while.)  But the treble only really bugged me when listening to rock music; for electronica it was actually strangely appropriate and not bothersome at all.
 
You can hunt down pro750 for less than $300 a while ago.  They have amazing bass impact, drive and speed, and are slightly bass heavy if thats what you want.  BUT please try before you buy - and in the end make your own decision.  I don't want to be responsible for you buying a headphone you don't like.

 

[Headfonenut123]

Kudos to that battlefield is fantastic for audio immersion and battlefield 3 looks amazing

 

[NRWalker]

I own the AD700 and SRH840 and use them to listen to a range of music and play counter-strike competitively. I guess that qualifies me quite well to answer your question...
 
Pros/cons of the AD700: for some genres of music I'd give this the slight edge over the Shure and find the airy sound signature works especially well in multi-layered music because it creates plenty of space for all the instruments. For gaming the sound signature again works in its favour because it is bass light so footsteps are clear and directional cues are decent (I think the limiting factor here is the old half-life engine, not the headphones). But they are not at all portable and the open design is a pretty major disadvantage if you ever intend to use them outside a quiet room (e.g. at LANs). Another issue is that they are very large and will not fit people with a small-medium sized head very well.
 
Pros/cons of the SRH840: the flatter sound signature means these work well for all music (whereas the Audio Technica lacks some bass energy for electronica, rock, or hip-hop). For gaming, I think the soundstage is perfectly adequate being better than most closed cans, but the slightly bassier signature will obscure some subtler cues - I'm sure a simple solution to this would be to EQ down the bass. Since these are closed cans and a bit less unwieldy (although still large) they can just about be used portable. Fit has also been an issue for some people with the SRH840, but I found them fine, and the adjustable headband helps.
 
Round-up: the AD700 is excellent for some types of music and very good for games - if those are the only things that matter to you then I'd suggest you go for this one. However, the SRH840 is good for a wider range of genres and should still satisfy your gaming needs unless you're playing competitively - I wouldn't underestimate how useful the closed/folding design can be for portability and if I could only buy one can for all my needs, it'd be this one.
 
Hope that helps 

 

[somebodysb2]

I got a new budget, 300 dollars. Whats the best headphone(s) for that kind of $?
I'm looking @ the:
 
AD1000

AD900

AD700

K701

K702

K601

HD600

HD598

HD558

PC350

PC360

SRH940

SRH840


Quote:

I own the AD700 and SRH840 and use them to listen to a range of music and play counter-strike competitively. I guess that qualifies me quite well to answer your question...
 
Pros/cons of the AD700: for some genres of music I'd give this the slight edge over the Shure and find the airy sound signature works especially well in multi-layered music because it creates plenty of space for all the instruments. For gaming the sound signature again works in its favour because it is bass light so footsteps are clear and directional cues are decent (I think the limiting factor here is the old half-life engine, not the headphones). But they are not at all portable and the open design is a pretty major disadvantage if you ever intend to use them outside a quiet room (e.g. at LANs). Another issue is that they are very large and will not fit people with a small-medium sized head very well.
 
Pros/cons of the SRH840: the flatter sound signature means these work well for all music (whereas the Audio Technica lacks some bass energy for electronica, rock, or hip-hop). For gaming, I think the soundstage is perfectly adequate being better than most closed cans, but the slightly bassier signature will obscure some subtler cues - I'm sure a simple solution to this would be to EQ down the bass. Since these are closed cans and a bit less unwieldy (although still large) they can just about be used portable. Fit has also been an issue for some people with the SRH840, but I found them fine, and the adjustable headband helps.
 
Round-up: the AD700 is excellent for some types of music and very good for games - if those are the only things that matter to you then I'd suggest you go for this one. However, the SRH840 is good for a wider range of genres and should still satisfy your gaming needs unless you're playing competitively - I wouldn't underestimate how useful the closed/folding design can be for portability and if I could only buy one can for all my needs, it'd be this one.
 
Hope that helps