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PC Audio Suggestions Please

  • Thread starter Deleted member 96510
  • Start date
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Deleted member 96510

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First off, I'm no audiophile, but I know and appreciated quality. I don't mind spending a little extra if it's a worthwhile improvement. So. Here is the story.

Looking for three things:

1) PCIe Sound card w/ front panel connector
2) Headphones
3) 2.0 or 2.1 speakers

I'm looking for the best bang for the buck for all three. Ideal budget for everything would be ~$200. I can go higher if it's a worthwhile bump in quality.

Currently using a Xonar U3 + Koss KSC-75. I'm OK with this, but it's serviceable, not great. I have the following requirements:

Warm sounding with tight bass response
Open headphones where I can hear the baby crying but my wife not hear what I listen to across the room
Big soundstage
Headphones should be comfortable and not make me ears sweat too much
Speakers should mute when I plug in headphones to front panel
Speakers will probably be mounted on a wall, so a sub/satellite system will work
 
That's a pretty tall order for $200. My initial thought would be the DT 990 for headphones but that eats your entire budget buying them used.
 
This is actually do-able. Are you okay with used gear?
 
wolfofsin said:
I can go higher if you tell me why I should. I assume you are talking about these:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0..._m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1P1YY2C27NPATTS6BB2Q

Tell me why these are not overkill. What is your experience with them? Is it worth it for me to pay $200 for them?

I heard a lot about Grado SR60i, but I hear they leak out too much. Why spend 2-3X more?
Click to expand...

Those are close enough to what I meant, Pro vs Premium. As far as the Grados go, I have both the SR-60i and SR-325is and both of them leak sound like it's going out of style. They have by far the worst leakage of any headphone I own, which is many, so those shouldn't be on your short list based on your requirements.

The DT 990s may be overkill for you quality-wise but they have a warm sound signature with strong bass for an open headphone. They don't leak sound nearly as bad as something like Grados but their isolation is pretty weak so you can hear people talking to you.

I'm sure someone will have a better pick for less money but strong, tight bass and open don't generally go together in the sub-$200 headphone market.
 
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Tell me why these are not overkill
Click to expand...

There's no such thing as overkill when it comes to luxury, audio, etc. It is definitely possible to have a video card way more powerful than necessary to allow you to max out your games and run at good FPS. Same with CPU and other parts.

But audio stuff is not the same. It is not as if sound "caps at 60 fps" at a certain price of headphone, and then anything more expensive is wasted and unnecessary, like a triple SLI videocard setup to play Unreal Tournament 2004 would be wasted. Know what I mean? It is an imperfect analogy.

The only thing that matters is your personal preference and you personal standards. Headphones/speakers do not necessarily scale linearly upwards in comfort and sound quality, but it does not take a particularly trained ear to appreciate the differences between, say, an HD650 and an HD800.

I would suggest trying some things for yourself if you have any opportunity to do so - maybe the dt990 is the perfect headphone for you. It is certainly a clear-sounding and comfortable set for its price. But then again, maybe you really prefer just a tinge more or less bass, a different kind of soundstage, or something like that. There could be cheaper headphones that are superior to you in some ways, and there could be more expensive headphones that get some aspects incorrect/different from what you would prefer to hear.

There might be a "best" video card or processor, but there is no such thing as the best speaker/headphone for audio. put 100 music lovers in a room with 100 sets of speakers and ask them to rank each speaker 1-100: you'll most likely get 100 different lists, with some common trends but probably no absolute matches between peoples' preferences.


Aaaaaaand I am not sure why I rambled this long about this. I hope at least some bit was relevant and useful.
 
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I actually want to hear someone talking to me. That is my dilemma. I need to hear my wife call me or my son cry in the next room. I don't want total isolation? With the Grado's my concern is others in the room hearing what's going on. These are also mainly for gaming which is why my budget is such.
 
What you are asking for really doesn't exist. My advice would be to listen at a lower volume.

You could try getting a semi-open headphone like the AKG K240S. It's about $88 on Amazon right now.
 
450 said:
What you are asking for really doesn't exist. My advice would be to listen at a lower volume.

You could try getting a semi-open headphone like the AKG K240S. It's about $88 on Amazon right now.
Click to expand...

I don't think it's that impossible. The Koss KSC75s are perfect in that aspect. I just want an higher grade can. I just can't be totally isolated. I don't run a high volume anyway. So it seems I'm between:

Audio Technica ATH-AD700 ( I hear bass is real lite)
Grade SR60i (Too much leakage)
AKG K240S

Please share experiences on these. The DT990s sound like a nice option, but I need to do some soul searching for a $200 headphone just for gaming. That being said, would a Xonar DX suffice for the listed headphones. I feel like an Essence STX would be warranted for the DT990s, but I feel like the soundcard shouldn't cost more than the headphones.
 
The sound card and amplification aren't that important for the headphones mentioned.

Yes, a pricier sound card could make things sound better, but my advice is to skip the sound card for now. The U3 isn't awful. Back in the day, we lived with much worse.

The AD700 isn't bad. I actually like the bass. Doesn't muddy up the rest of the sound.

Here is what I would do wolfofsin...
Go on craigslist and get a receiver with an OPTICAL input. Spend $75 or LESS.
This will act as your DAC and headphone amp. Lucky for you, the U3 has S/PDIF output via the headphone jack via an adapter. Receivers aren't the best headphone amps in the world, but they can be alright.

Speakers, well... Just get a set of something you think sounds great and works in your space. Spend about $75 for the bookshelf speakers. Less is okay too. Craigslist and clearance sales are your friend.

Finally, headphones, you'll need about $75-100 depending on what you want.

$75 - Receiver
$75 - Speakers
$100 - Headphones

This is about $250 total, however I listed the worst case scenario prices. You can easily get a cheaper receiver and speakers. Try to get new-ish headphones or new headphones all together as replacement pads and other parts are very expensive compared to the price of the overall headphone.
 
I have an HTPC hooked up to a Denon AVR1912. My desk space is small, so another receiver is not going to happen. If the U3 is fine, I will stick with it and focus on headphones.
 
wolfofsin said:
I don't think it's that impossible. The Koss KSC75s are perfect in that aspect. I just want an higher grade can. I just can't be totally isolated. I don't run a high volume anyway. So it seems I'm between:
Click to expand...

It's more likely that your use of terms doesn't line up with ours than what you want to find is impossible, perspective is everything and lots of people here like myself run $1000+ headphones/amps.

The AD700 is incredibly bass light and it's more neutral than warm but otherwise it's what you're after. The K240 won't be as accurate but it's still comfy and overall would be okay but given the two, I have owned both, I'd pick the AD700.

You could always do this since you like the KSC 75s :)
 
guitarslingerchris said:
It's more likely that your use of terms doesn't line up with ours than what you want to find is impossible, perspective is everything and lots of people here like myself run $1000+ headphones/amps.

The AD700 is incredibly bass light and it's more neutral than warm but otherwise it's what you're after. The K240 won't be as accurate but it's still comfy and overall would be okay but given the two, I have owned both, I'd pick the AD700.

You could always do this since you like the KSC 75s :)
Click to expand...

Thanks. I'm getting a better perspective. If I knew of someplace near where I live now, I would go and listen to a few. Just moved to Baltimore and don't know of any place wher I can audition some cans.

If I had more time to enjoy them I would have no issue spending on a high-end setup, but knowing how I will use them $100 is what I could personally justify. Especially since it's for mostly gaming for 5-10hrs a week if I'm lucky.
 
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