HeaDphone Discussions. (Audiophile and Gaming)

[JayDoubleYou]

Can anyone recommend a decent desk arm? Looking at this mic

 

[PandaAttack1]

Can anyone recommend a decent desk arm? Looking at this mic

This looks good: Takealot

Jk jk! Your best bet would probably be to find a USB mic with one included. Unless you have the mic already. Most of these mics are all the same thing basically, so you can shop around a bit.

Any spring based arm is fine. Like this: Takealot. That tip will screw off, then your mic holder will screw onto the boom.

 

[Miz3r]

Do you run broadcast while using a voice chat app? Never tried it before

Ye i use it for pretty much everything, discord, and voice attack programs in games

It literally cancells out any unwanted noises, like mechanical keyboard typing, fan noises, vaping etc, all the things friends complained about, and it only detects voice, so its really amazing

 

[Miz3r]

Can anyone recommend a decent desk arm? Looking at this mic

This is the exact one i got from wootware a few years ago

If you able to find one highly recommended

Fifine Cardioid USB Condenser Microphone Arm Desk Mount Kit T669

 

[Fluke]

Can anyone recommend a decent desk arm? Looking at this mic

Any cheap one will do - they're all kinda the same. If you want to spend $$$ I'd recommend a name-brand pneumatic one, but I don't see the value in the cost increase.

 

[PandaAttack1]

This is the exact one i got from wootware a few years ago

If you able to find one highly recommended

Fifine Cardioid USB Condenser Microphone Arm Desk Mount Kit T669

The second one is the exact one I have on my desk atm.

Thanks for the nvida broadcast hint. Will get it running tonight. I've just been relying on Krips in Discord. Other teamies in game can fo.

 

[Dr. Kraken]

Anyone ever try these or have any recommendations? I'm actually looking around for really compact 2.0 speaker setup for my desk. Would be nice if they're powered from the wall or something so I can just use the passthrough from my headphone amp to output sound to them.

 

[dash09]

I ordered this:
Takealot

It looks to be a few hundred more everywhere else. Instantly regretted ordering it and feel like I should have went with a Fifine but will see how this performs. I have a redragon keyboard and it was good value for the money. Will also give Broadcast a go

 

[goldfritter]

Anyone ever try these or have any recommendations? I'm actually looking around for really compact 2.0 speaker setup for my desk. Would be nice if they're powered from the wall or something so I can just use the passthrough from my headphone amp to output sound to them.

Are these the maximum that your space and budget allows? I've heard good things about the little Creative kit but overall, I wouldn't bother with anything smaller than small studio monitors for music or movies or game audio. Unless it's just for watching people talk on YouTube.

 

[goldfritter]

I ordered this:
Takealot

It looks to be a few hundred more everywhere else. Instantly regretted ordering it and feel like I should have went with a Fifine but will see how this performs. I have a redragon keyboard and it was good value for the money. Will also give Broadcast a go

Doubt you'll be disappointed in it, looks decent, but do report your findings back here.

 

[goldfritter]

Ye i use it for pretty much everything, discord, and voice attack programs in games

It literally cancells out any unwanted noises, like mechanical keyboard typing, fan noises, vaping etc, all the things friends complained about, and it only detects voice, so its really amazing

Question for Broadcast - do you think it would cancel out the sound of another person speaking in the room? I.e. two people both playing together, both in the same voice chat, trying to avoid picking the other person up and causing an echo for the rest of the voice chat.

 

[Miz3r]

Question for Broadcast - do you think it would cancel out the sound of another person speaking in the room? I.e. two people both playing together, both in the same voice chat, trying to avoid picking the other person up and causing an echo for the rest of the voice chat.

TBH i have never tested this,

However, i am pretty sure it would pick it up as there is not an option for say singular voice detection or what not, as cool as that would be,

here mine below of what is on the settings

 

[Dr. Kraken]

Are these the maximum that your space and budget allows? I've heard good things about the little Creative kit but overall, I wouldn't bother with anything smaller than small studio monitors for music or movies or game audio. Unless it's just for watching people talk on YouTube.

No, space and budget can go slightly bigger, but standard size bookshelf speakers are too large. I'd use my headphones mainly for music and games, this would be for the occasional podcast or stream for when I'm sleeping or relaxing since I went completely speaker free a year ago.

 

[Crouchinglee]

Thank you to who-ever recommended the KZ ZS10 Pro - I've had my set for a while now and they are still my go to dailies.

 

[PandaAttack1]

Thank you to who-ever recommended the KZ ZS10 Pro - I've had my set for a while now and they are still my go to dailies.

They punch way above their price point. So good.

 

[Signor65]

I've noticed what I thought was my headphones distorting on certain bass-heavy tracks, but it seems to actually be my amp.

Running straight out my PC's awful 3.5mm jack I get no issues, but with my Audioengine D1 it's obvious. It seems to happen at any volume level low or high, whether that be on the amp itself, or Windows volume, or my music player software's volume. Whenever there is heavy bass, I hear crackles and pops in other portions of the audio spectrum. Example track:

The start of this track is almost exclusively bass and subbass. Yet, I hear obvious high pitched crackles and pops, on both my DT770 and DT1990, when played from my Audioengine D1.

Is my little DAC doomed? Time for a replacement?

 

[Chevez]

I've noticed what I thought was my headphones distorting on certain bass-heavy tracks, but it seems to actually be my amp.

Running straight out my PC's awful 3.5mm jack I get no issues, but with my Audioengine D1 it's obvious. It seems to happen at any volume level low or high, whether that be on the amp itself, or Windows volume, or my music player software's volume. Whenever there is heavy bass, I hear crackles and pops in other portions of the audio spectrum. Example track:

The start of this track is almost exclusively bass and subbass. Yet, I hear obvious high pitched crackles and pops, on both my DT770 and DT1990, when played from my Audioengine D1.

Is my little DAC doomed? Time for a replacement?

A quick Google search comes up with this:

MQA crackling when in Exclusive mode on Audioengine D1

Running a Audioengine D1 and using Tidal MQA through Roon. When ever the D1 is in non-exclusive mode, there is no cracking, when in in Exclusive mode there are pops and crackles. Running the D1 on Tidal’s native software has no crackle. Using a Focusrite ad/da converter has no crackle. Thoughts?

community.roonlabs.com

 

[Signor65]

A quick Google search comes up with this:

MQA crackling when in Exclusive mode on Audioengine D1

Running a Audioengine D1 and using Tidal MQA through Roon. When ever the D1 is in non-exclusive mode, there is no cracking, when in in Exclusive mode there are pops and crackles. Running the D1 on Tidal’s native software has no crackle. Using a Focusrite ad/da converter has no crackle. Thoughts?

community.roonlabs.com

Interesting, I'm not using MQA but I guess it's just a limitation of the device itself when playing hi-res audio. I'll try playing with the buffer settings and see if I can get anything out of it. Thanks.

 

[lil_nap]

I've replaced my Audio Engine HD3 exactly for the same reason where it would crackle a lot. I tried to isolate as much as possible, happened via the various inputs as well. Eventually just decided to get different speakers.

 

[dash09]

Just an update on my microphone experience (in case anyone else is looking for one), I bought the Redragon Blazar while it was on sale for R1200.

​

1. 0 issues setting it up and it works perfectly, people can hear me quite clearly while I have it sitting on my desk and I'm leaning back using a controller.
2. The shock mount and stand are not great, cheaply built plastic but they do what they're supposed to. Mic itself is solid and seems to be good build quality. Usb cable is good enough length. It comes with a sock which I've just kept on, not sure what difference it would make to my use case if I take it off.
3. I've been running nvidia broadcast by default for all comms and mostly used discord, also tried it on my work laptop without broadcast for teams and it was perfect

A decent option imo for anyone looking

 

[Crouchinglee]

Once again I come to this discussion for advice.
Keep in mind that I have a limited budget and a weird scenario surrounding my current setup.

I need to get an external DAC and a decent set of headies for Gaming/Movies/Music.

My issues :
My current Phoebus is restricting my GPU airflow (causing it to sit around 70-85 degrees C) - I don't want this, as prolonged exposure to this will limit the GPU's lifespan.
I have tried to get a GPU extension cable to mount it vertically but the power headers are just too big so the soundcard cannot sit behind the GPU.
My current headset (Game Zero Sennheiser) suffer from tattered earcups (so that needs replacement too - If I continue to use them).

What would you recommend and at what price point?

 

[goldfritter]

Once again I come to this discussion for advice.
Keep in mind that I have a limited budget and a weird scenario surrounding my current setup.

I need to get an external DAC and a decent set of headies for Gaming/Movies/Music.

My issues :
My current Phoebus is restricting my GPU airflow (causing it to sit around 70-85 degrees C) - I don't want this, as prolonged exposure to this will limit the GPU's lifespan.
I have tried to get a GPU extension cable to mount it vertically but the power headers are just too big so the soundcard cannot sit behind the GPU.
My current headset (Game Zero Sennheiser) suffer from tattered earcups (so that needs replacement too - If I continue to use them).

What would you recommend and at what price point?

What's your budget?

If around R 1k then get this: [For Sale] - FiiO K3 Type-C USB DAC Headphone Amp - R1200 | Amps & DACs & DAPs

Spoiler

His last bump was previously a price drop to R 1000 which he seems to have edited out. So he may be negotiable.

If higher than 1k... There's a bunch for sale on the forum. The next step up is probably something around an iFi ZenDAC.

If less than 1k you can literally get the Apple USB C to 3.5mm adapter, it sounds dumb but it's way better than on board sound.

 

[Crouchinglee]

What's your budget?

If around R 1k then get this: [For Sale] - FiiO K3 Type-C USB DAC Headphone Amp - R1200 | Amps & DACs & DAPs

Spoiler

His last bump was previously a price drop to R 1000 which he seems to have edited out. So he may be negotiable.

If higher than 1k... There's a bunch for sale on the forum. The next step up is probably something around an iFi ZenDAC.

If less than 1k you can literally get the Apple USB C to 3.5mm adapter, it sounds dumb but it's way better than on board sound.

I am currently looking around the 1-2k mark and then just keep the Game zero's.
For my Birthday my wife will probably buy me the H6pro or something equivalent.

 

[goldfritter]

I am currently looking around the 1-2k mark and then just keep the Game zero's.
For my Birthday my wife will probably buy me the H6pro or something equivalent.

Cool. The K3 is a great option then.

Ooonnnneeee tttthhhiinnggg to keep in mind though. If you're using the mic on the headset with an external amp, and you end up plugging the headset jack into the amp but the mic jack straight into the motherboard, you might run into a ground loop issue. If this happens then a way to solve it is with the aforementioned Apple goodie (R ~250) along with a 3.5mm jack combiner (R ~80). But that bridge you can cross when you get there. There's also the GSX1200 amp which has a mic input too but that's pricier.

 

[iamgigglz]

A random iamgigglz appears. I learned a lesson today and feel the need to share. Apologies for the wall of text.

I've always been a Sennheiser fan; I graduated from various HD2-- and HD3-- models to HD58x and lastly HD6xx. The latter models were always run through various dac/amps including Schitt, Audioengine and some valvey goodness. I loved the open-ness and detail they gave the live acoustic music I listened to, and they offered amazing positioning in stuff like CS:GO.

Turns out I was blinded by the brand.

There's a store called Gear4Music down the road from me in Yorkshire. They mostly sell musical instruments, but they have a wall of headphones, allowing you to test out which is best for you.
Having read & watched countless reviews on all sorts of headphones I walked in fully expecting to walk out with a pair of HD650s.
Seeing the wall, I thought "What the hell, let me see what the others sound like..."

I walked out with a pair of Beyerdynamic DT990 Pros, completely disillusioned with the Sennheiser offerings.

I appreciate the Sennheiser's sound, but listening to the competition re-calibrated my brain. The warmth and bass from the Beyers is amazing for open-backs. Going back to the Sennheisers sounded like a 3yr old had been messing with the EQ sliders...

The lesson I learned was that sound is SUPER subjective. Yes, the DT990's 8~9kHz peak that reviews have pointed out is very much there (although I've EQ'd it out very successfully with Oratory1990's APO curve) but whether it bugs you can really only be judged in person.
If you're looking to invest in sound equipment of any sort and can't easily return what you've bought, it's worth taking the time to try and find a way of auditioning the equipment you're looking at. If buying second hand, ask the seller for an opportunity to try out what you're buying with the option of noping out.

Also, @goldfritter your signature is amazing. Great job.
Also also, the onboard audio on my Asus X670E-A motherboard handled my 250ohm headphones just fine, although the Topping amp definitely sounds...better somehow.

Cheers

 

[Dr. Kraken]

The lesson I learned was that sound is SUPER subjective. Yes, the DT990's 8~9kHz peak that reviews have pointed out is very much there (although I've EQ'd it out very successfully with Oratory1990's APO curve)

Did you use the AutoEQ button in Peace or did you get it from his PDF for EQ? Cause the two are different. AutoEQ profiles for APO aren't actually done by Oratory, best to use the PDF and enter those into APO. Enjoy the purchase

 

[iamgigglz]

Did you use the AutoEQ button in Peace or did you get it from his PDF for EQ? Cause the two are different. AutoEQ profiles for APO aren't actually done by Oratory, best to use the PDF and enter those into APO. Enjoy the purchase

I copied the values from the PDF. I then made a tweaked version for gaming with extra bass and voice. APO is a game-changer.

 

[lil_nap]

Good afternoon, I know this isn't related to headphones so I apologize for that, but I tend to get really good advice on this thread.
I'm looking to upgrade to a passive speaker system for my desktop, I currently have a pair of Edifier R2000Db.
I've been looking at the Wharfedale Diamond 12.2 as an option because the reviews that I've seen seems good for the specific price range.

I see that they also have a combo where you get a AMP + the speakers (Amp speaker bundle) , but I'm not too sure if I will in the future be able to add in a sub with that current setup.

I've also thought about buying the speakers with the following amp FOSI BT30D Pro and using it together with my Fiio K7 as the DAC.

So my question is, will the above be worth it or should I rather look at alternative solutions?

I'm open to any suggestion as well on speakers as well.

 

[dash09]

I am currently looking around the 1-2k mark and then just keep the Game zero's.
For my Birthday my wife will probably buy me the H6pro or something equivalent.

Budget option since you gaming with the same set of headphones would be the gsx1200. I'm not 1 for virtual 7.1 but this actually does a good job at it. For music the 2.0 is good enough. Its a good unit for both uses

 

[PandaAttack1]

Good afternoon, I know this isn't related to headphones so I apologize for that, but I tend to get really good advice on this thread.
I'm looking to upgrade to a passive speaker system for my desktop, I currently have a pair of Edifier R2000Db.
I've been looking at the Wharfedale Diamond 12.2 as an option because the reviews that I've seen seems good for the specific price range.

I see that they also have a combo where you get a AMP + the speakers (Amp speaker bundle) , but I'm not too sure if I will in the future be able to add in a sub with that current setup.

I've also thought about buying the speakers with the following amp FOSI BT30D Pro and using it together with my Fiio K7 as the DAC.

So my question is, will the above be worth it or should I rather look at alternative solutions?

I'm open to any suggestion as well on speakers as well.

So I don't think this is the same audio quality as the Diamond 12's, but I am currently running a JBL 2.1 Deep Bass Sound Bar (Takealot) under my monitors. I couldn't get speakers situated properly with my monitor configuration, so did an impulse buy in a Stax store.

I've been using it for about 2 years now, and I am quite content with the performance. For movies and shows it is really fun, but sometimes you have to put it a bit louder than talking volume. For music it is is also quite okay, especially for casual listening. For everything else I use my headphones anyway. I mostly use the bar when I am researching or programming at night or over weekends.

I know this is not quite what you asked for, but thought it is worth a mention.