[Ichinichi]

With the great lineup of upcoming titles, I picked up an xbox360 (again) and have been unable to resolve the problem of how to best set it up. As such, I turn to head-fi.

Objectives:
1080p gaming.
Good sound for gaming (directionality, impact, etc.).
Affordable/recoup-able (if and when I decide to get out of gaming, again)

Haves:
XBOX360 console with HDMI out
22" LCD monitor with available VGA in w/ comfy office chair
Audiophile speaker setup w/ comfy listening chair
Depodded im716
Apartment neighbors separated from my speakers by two panels of drywall with 4" gap in between.

Have-nots:
I have no TV and I cannot afford to drop $1000 on a 42" LCD panel
I have no amplifier for headphones since I sold my MPX3 SLAM SE
I have no full-sized cans since I sold my HD650s

Possible solutions:
Suck it up and buy a 1080p panel (small apartment) and hook up to existing speaker system and sell it in two years when I move across the country at a massive loss, or move it with me at added cost and not buy a new one then.

Buy a classic/resellable amp and headphone combo (MPX3 SLAM SE + HD650) for $$$$ and hope the both Singlepower and Sennheiser do not come out with the MPX4 SUPERMEGASMASH VSE + HD900 in the next two years so as to recoup close to my initial cost.

Buy a new 24" monitor with HDMI + DVI in and headphone out/speaker bar for about $400 (missed the newegg deal yesterday

).

Buy a RCA-1/8 adapter + Cheap(er) Portable Amp (e.g. used GoVibe5) for ~$100 and use my im716s. Resell at a pittance when I move or keep it. This fails to give me 1080p since my monitor is 22", but how would the sound from this setup compare with the sound from the soundbar of monitors or LCD tvs?

Buy a cheap used receiver off of here or Agon or CL or eBay and pickup a cheap 5.1 HT system. (~$250?)

Can someone PLEASE HELP ME?

 

[marvin]

There are few Xbox 360 1080p titles and only one halfway decent one (Virtua Tennis 3). All the rest are scaled from 720p or less (much less in COD4). Visual difference between VGA and HDMI is minimal, so you're not missing out on much at all if you keep with your existing monitor. As for sound, a Cmoy and SR60 would work great for gaming and keep expenses to a minimum. A bit unrefined for hi-fi, but still works great for gaming.

 

[Ichinichi]

wow! several nuggets in that one post, marvin! thanks! so soundwise i'm not gaining much going from a simple cmoy to a ~$100 used portable amp? will the rca-1/8 adapter work?

 

[marvin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ichinichi /img/forum/go_quote.gif wow! several nuggets in that one post, marvin! thanks! so soundwise i'm not gaining much going from a simple cmoy to a ~$100 used portable amp? will the rca-1/8 adapter work?

Pretty much. The Xbox is really going to be the limiting factor, though an inexpensive NJM4556 (A47, RA1-alike) based chip amp would likely synergize better with the Grados.

RCA>1/8 will work fine between the amp and the Xbox.

 

[Ichinichi]

many many thanks!

you wouldn't recommend using the im716 as the headphones in this case?

 

[marvin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ichinichi /img/forum/go_quote.gif many many thanks! you wouldn't recommend using the im716 as the headphones in this case?

It's a user preference thing. Etymotic-based designs don't provide the impact that even inexpensive 'phones like the PortaPro and PX100 do. Gaming, more so than even HT, is heavily biased towards a visceral approach to sound, so my recommendation leans in that direction.

 

[RedLeader]

IEM are not gaming headphones at all, especially not Ety designs. They don't have directionality or slam, at all. And since you have a 22" monitor, if it's decent you'll have 1080p resolution or higher on it anyway. I play xbox/wii/ps2 on a 26" lcd tv with my HD25-1/Paradigm Titan with an old Pioneer speaker amp. $500 for that setup if you shop right, and it works awesome. Try gaming on your monitor, see how you like it.

 

[Ichinichi]

Hi RL!

I've gamed on my Sammy 22" monitor and did like it - but that was with the 360 running through an MPX3 SLAM SE > Equinox > HD650. I sold my older xbox early this year b/c there was a dry spell in titles I wanted to play and the Amp + 650s followed soon after.

I was thinking that since I don't get 1080p on my 22" Samsung226BW, that I'd notice a marked improvement. But given what marvin has shared, there's no real point. You're on a 26" and a 24" has a native res of 1080 (as I understand) - as such I expect that you've got better visuals than I do, irrespective of size. Is this not correct?


Any other gamers with recommendations for good gaming cans? I'm'a go search for that phrase in the HP main forum. But I'd love to see what other gamers here game with.

 

[Ichinichi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by marvin /img/forum/go_quote.gif Pretty much. The Xbox is really going to be the limiting factor, though an inexpensive NJM4556 (A47, RA1-alike) based chip amp would likely synergize better with the Grados. RCA>1/8 will work fine between the amp and the Xbox.

can you (or anyone else) recommend a good gaming amp I should look into. I know NOTHING about opamp chips and protables...

 

[Wired_Gargoyle]

Considering the previous responses, I'd recommend checking out the Tritton AX360 Headset

The directionality is really sweet, it's built very well and no amplifier required (Although you can run it through one if you choose). It's saved my marriage, well it's saved having things thrown at me at 3am when playing Gears of War...

 

[Ichinichi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wired_Gargoyle /img/forum/go_quote.gif Considering the previous responses, I'd recommend checking out the Tritton AX360 Headset The directionality is really sweet, it's built very well and no amplifier required (Although you can run it through one if you choose). It's saved my marriage, well it's saved having things thrown at me at 3am when playing Gears of War...

Reviews are mixed with significant bias towards the positive...

edit: i'm'a gettin it!

 

[marvin]

There's always the portable forum.

Overkill though. Ultimate sound quality for gaming isn't nearly as important as it is for music.

There are a whole slew of small amps that will do what you need. The least expensive of those are going to be of the used DIY type, and anything in the MINT, PIMETA, GoVibe, and Mini3 ranges will work great enough for Grados. With DT880s and Senns though, you might want to look for one of those designs that'll take higher supply voltages (~15V wall wart or 2x 9V range is good). All should be $150 or less.

On the truly low but serviceable end, a 15VDC supply CMoy will work for Senns while a 9V RA-1 clone will work for Grados. These, if you can find them, would probably be correctly priced in the $40-50 range.

 

[Abbadon]

IME, grado's don't work well for gaming - fps or not. I don't find them comfortable for extended periods of time, and the soundstage doesn't work for fps. I've gamed off of a 206bw via vga, and was completely satisfied with the picture quality. I was also fine with the screen's size - when I tried to play halo on a 37" tv, my aim went down the drain.

In terms of sound, I ran optical out through to an entech 205.2/opera and was completely satisfied. I'm not convinced that the sq of games is stellar enough to warrant something as high end as a sp setup, and, as such, i'd recommend you spend less on cans if you're going to be gaming exclusively. This is especially if you're going out of the 360's analog outs.

As for actual headphone recommendations, the search button is your friend

 

[Ichinichi]

Thank you everyone!

Final decision:

Audio: XBOX360 > MS VGA > Belkin AV20000 Optical > Tritton AX360 Dolby 5.1 System
Video: XBOX360 > MS VGA > SAMSUNG 226BW

 

[Mr_Junesequa]

Drop 300 dollars on a second hand 32" lcd.

Buy the VGA cable for the 360 On Ebay.

Go to any chinese ebay store and pick up any half decent speakers...i know i know

chip it.

total cost. 500