recommendation for $150~$200 sound set up (headphones and soundcard)

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Jimi_Shuffler

[H]ard|Gawd
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Sep 26, 2009
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hey guys I need a recommendation for A $150~$200 sound set up (headphones and soundcard)

I currently use on-board audio on my gigabyte m68m-s2 motherboard and my current headset is siberia neckband gaming headset I just hate it mainly cause it droops down my ears all the time.

specs for my headset:

Frequency response: 18 – 28.000 Hzm
Impedance: 40 Ohm
SPL@ 1kHz, 1 Vrms: 104 dB
Cable length: 1,2 + 1,5 = 2,7 m (8.9 ft.)
Jacks: 3,5 mm (6,3 mm converter incl.)

Microphone

Frequency response: 80 – 15.000 Hz
Pick up pattern: Uni-directional
Sensitivity: -38 dB
Impedance: 2K Ohm

---

I was looking to buy the sony MDR XB500 headphones $50~, I tried them out and I found them really comfortable. can anyone recommend anything better than these headphones while not destroying my budget? I also am looking for a decent sound card at the moment. if I buy both at the same time, I can spend up to $150. but if I just get the soundcard first, probably $125 shipped and after tax. and headphones if I buy later, probably $75 max. and microphone wise, I can just use one of my zalman clip on mic that I have laying around so microphone isnt an issue at all.

Gaming (pc games and DTXmania, stepmania) would be priority, then music then music creation (FL studio mainly) then lastly movies.

any help would be great, thanks!
 
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I'd spend more money on headphones and less on the soundcard. With your budget, I think the no brainer is an Asus Xonar DG for ~$25.

With ~$125-175 for headphones, you have tons of great choices.

Are you looking for closed or open headphones? How important is isolation? How important is portability? Do you have a preference for on-ear vs. around-ear? Do you need to wear them for 12 hour sessions or a couple hours at a time? Do you play games where you need to know precisely where the sound is coming from? Or is sound more for ambiance? What kind of music do listen to the most? Is a lot of bass important?
 
havermeyer said:
I'd spend more money on headphones and less on the soundcard. With your budget, I think the no brainer is an Asus Xonar DG for ~$25.

With ~$125-175 for headphones, you have tons of great choices.

Are you looking for closed or open headphones? How important is isolation? How important is portability? Do you have a preference for on-ear vs. around-ear? Do you need to wear them for 12 hour sessions or a couple hours at a time? Do you play games where you need to know precisely where the sound is coming from? Or is sound more for ambiance? What kind of music do listen to the most? Is a lot of bass important?
Click to expand...

thanks, I will keep that in mind, I was also looking at Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD Internal Sound Card with THX SB1270 I preferrably would like over the ear, big cups that won't strain my ears for about 3-12 hours at a time, for some games yes it does matter so i can tell where the enemies are at, I mainly listen to punk, ska, pop punk, electro, house and hardstyle so bass is important but nothing incredibly overpowering. Portability isn't an issue at all, I will be using this at home, mainly in my room will also be using the headphones on an electronic drumkit. are 7.1ch sound cards worth it? or not right now?
 
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Jimi_Shuffler said:
thanks, I will keep that in mind, I was also looking at Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD Internal Sound Card with THX SB1270 I preferrably would like over the ear, big cups that won't strain my ears for about 3-12 hours at a time, for some games yes it does matter so i can tell where the enemies are at, I mainly listen to punk, ska, pop punk, electro, house and hardstyle so bass is important but nothing incredibly overpowering. Portability isn't an issue at all, I will be using this at home, mainly in my room will also be using the headphones on an electronic drumkit. are 7.1ch sound cards worth it? or not right now?
Click to expand...


I agree with Poster above completely. You'll be much more satisfied with the sound quality of a good set of headphones and a cheaper sound card than the other way around. I use an Asus DG myself and am very satisfied with it. It is specifically well known as a good headphone card. I would suggest you look at some over the ear sennheiser or Audio-Technica headphones as there are a few models well within that price range and in my humble opinion sound amazing.
I myself use Audiotechnica ATH-M50s and can't find anything to complain about.
http://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-ATH-M50-Professional-Monitor-Headphones/dp/B000ULAP4U

Regarding a 7.1 sound card... I just can't find any use for it if you're just running headphones and a standard PC speaker setup. If you were going to use it as an HTPC with a good surround setup, that'd be different.
 
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I think some Sennheiser HD598 (currently $173.33 on Amazon) plus the Xonar DG ($25) is your best bet.

They are open headphones, so mediocre at best for the drumming (you'll hear the sticks hitting), but nothing is going to be perfect. You'd need closed cans for best drumming, which are never as comfortable for long periods (both because they need to squeeze to seal and you don't get air flow to your ears) and generally have at least a comparably narrower soundstage.

The HD598 are super comfortable and have a big soundstage. The older HD555 were a cult gaming can, but I haven't seen any for cheap recently. The HD598 are also brighter than the normal darker/warmer Sennheiser "house sound", which is better suited for rock music (ska guitar still sounds best on anything Grado, imo).

For what it's worth, I use the HD598 as my 'general purpose'/gaming headphones (with the Zalman mic) and Grado SR225 for 'rocking out' (which are honestly not comfortable for more than a couple hours and have a very narrow, in-your-face soundstage).

The problem with spending more on a soundcard is there just isn't very many that can drive decent headphones (somewhat) properly (i.e. an integrated headphone amp). The Xonar DG has one, but then you're into the X-Fi Titanium HD/Xonar ST/STX prices to step up. Unless you <NEED> the full EAX support, you're not getting much for the additional cost for the X-Fi; you won't hear any better sound because you're getting headphones that don't sound as good. And unless you have plans to use 7.1 soon... why bother? I'm sort of a surround sound hater, though (3.1 is good enough for me in movies, though binaural would be killer).

The XB500 you mention do have those big pillows on your ears, but they are known to be quite sweaty after relatively short periods of time. They have lots of (mushy) bass and little else, especially mids. Some people EQ them more flat, though.

Some others you could consider:
Audio Technica AD700: less bass, less of an 'analytical audiophile sound' (i.e. not as good), but great for gaming, known to be comfy, and cheaper.
Sennheisser HD280 Pro: closed, so smaller soundstage(but better than many closed cans)/less comfort, but still brighter-ish for Sennheiser (and cheaper). Sony MDR-V6 are similar with a slightly more 'audiophile sound', but an even smaller soundstage.
Other open Sennheiser (HD555/HD595/HD518/HD558, etc) in your price range: I find Sennehieser's around-the-ear headphones really comfortable, but I don't always like their darker sound (especially for rock) nor do they tend to have great energy (PRaT: Pace, Rhythm and Timing) for fast music. But they are all rather great great for gaming with the nice big soundstage.

With all that being said, if you're not a headphone snob, a little research should find you a good pair even if they aren't up to audiophile snuff. I still listen to my ($15) Koss KSC75 often enough that I sometimes wonder why I need other pairs.:eek: Check out http://www.head-fi.org if you want to be thoroughly confused and get more audiophile nonsense (like this post).
 
alright been reading with what everyone has been saying, I will go with the asus xonar DG.

I was looking at the ad700 as someone mentioned, how does the a700 do? I really like the finish on the a700 so it would also help if it was on par with the ad700, But I am considering that HD598, I just dont like the wood accents.
 
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The a700's are a great set of cans. When my dog destroyed my Sennheiser 555s I was actually deciding between a set of M50s, a700s, or ad700s. I ended up deciding on the M50s because I game more than anything else with my headphones and I wanted the bass. Here are my thoughts on those sets though...

The M50s have MUCH better bass then either of the other two (they're also a little power hungry so the amp on the DG will get some great use). The M50s are much more open than the a700s. This could be a good or bad thing, for me it was a plus as I like an open sound more. A drawback is that I found them less comfortable then either the a700 or the ad700. I slapped mine around a shoebox (to hold them open) for a couple days and they stretched out nicely and are now very comfortable.

The a700s feel more comfortable out of the box, as they're looser. They're not foldable like the M50s so they can be bulky to travel with but they feel more solid then the M50s to me. The a700 are much more closed than the M50s. It's a choice of preference, but to me... it gave them a slightly metallic, artificial sound (in my opinion) when listening to certain music (mainly modern rock).
 
+1 to the HD598 recommendation. Also you can find a set of used 595s which are similar for around $90. Also there are many external DAC/Amp combos that you may want to consider like the Fiio E10.
 
on 2nd though, I would want closed, I don't know how I would feel with open. so i'm really considering the H598, and anything else like it.
 
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