audio-tech

[main spoke]

can anyone recommend any headphones for gaming and movies? for my pc not phone, so dont need bluetooth, but 2.4ghz wireless could be nice, dont need built in mic or anc aswell. just good quality sound and comfort. prefer mesh ear pillow. budget of around £100 thanks

dont know where to start looking if someone could give me a company or something

[civic beacon]

Since you're just getting started, I would see how the following review sites analyze headphones, then apply similar logic to your search for the best headphones for your needs.
https://www.rtings.com/headphones
https://www.soundguys.com/earbuds-headphones/

[main spoke]

thanks man, was just looking at senhiezer purely because it’s a brand i’ve heard of and nothing else

[icy salmon]

ive been testing the Sony WH100XM4s vs the WH1000XM6s, they are quite different and its honestly annoying because there are features on each that would be so much nicer if the other had.

luckily i have two friends that each have both of these, so i got a pair from each of them to test before i buy it

the 6s are overall a direct upgrade and probably what ill end up buying, but here are the things i think the 4s do better
Clamping pressure is lower, more comfortable
build quality feels more premium
smaller travel case
headband has physical clicks to indicate sizing

everything software wise is entirely better on the 6s

[zenith pawn]

clamping pressure? On iems?

what's that even mean

[wheat moss]

IEMs? where?

[zenith pawn]

arent those iems? The xm4 and xm6

[wheat moss]

no?

are you blind?

there's literally a photo

WH is wireless headphones

[zenith pawn]

oh

Lmfao they looked close enough to iems in the photo

[wheat moss]

how??

go get some glasses 😭

[zenith pawn]

there's no scale cues in the photo 😭

and I went in expecting they were iems

[wheat moss]

there's literally a headband??

and they're in a material case??

there's also no XM6 IEMs

[zenith pawn]

It is my deepest regret for not scrutinizing the photo to its tightest details

we're really pinching squirrels here

I forgot what the saying is

[icy salmon]

does sony even make IEMs?

idk man there were a lot of clues there

[zenith pawn]

yeah they're WF instead of WH

[wheat moss]

not when you glance at an image for 0.5s and read half the message

[supple sand]

So

What yall think about the momentum 4s

Xm 4s

And the akg k371bt

Like which one should I get for under 200

There is also beats studio pro

Bose qc

Crusher anc 2

[lone flame]

no beats, no skullcandy

the Bose QC Ultra (over Ear) measure quite well

[wispy gate]

For this price you're gonna get way better sound and comfort out of a wired pair. Its a bit low for wireless

[main spoke]

any specific recommendations?

[lusty sparrow]

Cmf headphones pro or soundcore space one. Im in the uk if wanting to ask about pricing. I travel on busses so anc is crucial

Ive watched the ltt review and the cmfs seem really good but many people like the souncore offering

[violet egret]

is there a jump which is worth the money from pc37x?

[icy salmon]

i havent tried them but i heard the momentum 4s are pretty similar to the xm series for being budget

[green marsh]

yeah buying a separate headphone and mic

[icy salmon]

i havent needed to upgrade my pc audio setup in like 5 years lol

you buy right you buy once

[green marsh]

says the non audiophile

[icy salmon]

hey at least i can play true lossless audio on my setup

[green marsh]

whats your setup

[icy salmon]

i have a scarlet solo 2i2 with my phillips shp 9500s and edifier mr4s through TRS

[violet egret]

yeah but like which one lol

[green marsh]

depends on how much you want to spend

[violet egret]

it's not like they are a gaming headset or something but I also don't know if i'll find something much better if I am not going to spend a hd600 ish kind of money lol

will jumping to hd560s for example be a worthwhile upgrade or should I just stick with them until they kick the bucket

[green marsh]

yeah

[icy salmon]

you are US right?

[wispy gate]

pc38x maybe, i'm not sure how much they are there

[wispy gate]

HD6xx is basically the same but way cheaper than the hd600, can give them a look. Not the best for gaming though. hd560s is better fro gaming

[violet egret]

no, I'm from israel

i basically use amazon us but with import fees and shipping on top lol

[icy salmon]

i see

it may be worth checking ebay for some used stuff too. and then you can just buy new pads and clean em up

[supple sand]

Not the ultra

The normal one

The normal qc

[lone flame]

@supple sand

yes, the ultra

[supple sand]

Not

The

Ultra

Shit too expensive

Ultra is 380 bucks

[lone flame]

[supple sand]

The normal quitecomfort is 200

So momentum 4s

Or the xm4s?

[lone flame]

[supple sand]

[lone flame]

i know some good wireless headphones

[supple sand]

Tell

If they under 200

[dull rover]

What do you guys think of the Galaxy Buds FE as casual on the go buds?

[broken grotto]

fine

kinda what they're made for tbh

[dull rover]

I got them and I'm happy with them, I honestly prefer them to my old Airpods Pro 1st gen

I didn't expect the ANC and transparency to actually be decent

They seem pretty balanced too, at least to my ears

Wouldn't mind if the highs were a bit brighter but overall sound is really decent

[main spoke]

150 eek

[dull rover]

Definitely has an emphasis on bass but not to the point where it's bad

It's still clean

[wispy gate]

Black friday bud, wait a week

[main spoke]

amazon black friday is already happening

https://amzn.eu/d/irhhkvo thoughts on these? going off of nothing but price

[dull rover]

Best buy started here in Canada too

[main spoke]

is open back only good for music and bad for gaming/movies?

[dull rover]

I've heard they're good for games but I could be remembering incorrectly

[lean grove]

no. generally open back is pretty much better for everything, unless you have a noisy environment

recently there have been more good closed backs

but open backs are easier to make good

[broken grotto]

Good headphones are good for anything good headphones are good for which is anything that makes sound

[livid ruin]

good speakers are best

but not everyone can afford to surround themselves in speakers

[elder thistle]

not really. the 560s is quite similar. treble sounds more realistic though

unless it's a gen2 560s. then that's barely the case and it's a lot darker

the hd600 is different, but it's no gaming weapon if you're looking for precise imaging and picking up on quiet sounds

also depends on the game

[violet egret]

Tbh I wanted to upgrade because of the music part

It's a gaming weapon when it comes to the stage but it lacks details when I listen to music

[elder thistle]

I do like it for movies because it's incredibly realistic with real-life sounds and can make explosions and some sound effects hit harder. but it's also got less bass without eq

the 600 I mean

[elder thistle]

what kind of music are you listening to? and in what ways does the shp9500 let you down in music listening

[violet egret]

I have pc37x, and it lets me down when I listen to alternative rock for exmaple

I noticed that the most when I listened to muse

I still haven't developed a preference because the pc37x is my first decent pair

[elder thistle]

closest thing I have is probably the pc38x, but I also don't listen to much alt-rock. I'm picturing music like the offspring - self esteem or nofx - drugs are good

what I'm getting at is you can't charge into the headphone market and expect your music enjoyment to simply grow. you need a plan, which means you need some workable idea of what the headphones should improve. sure, you can throw money at the problem or even just luck, but I'm certain the pc38x is way better at certain things than even $3000 headphones

[violet egret]

I found a new HD 599 se for 120 bucks but I feel like that maybe there isn't a huge difference between the entry level sennheiser headphones, maybe I could be wrong though

[elder thistle]

do you know what parts in a certain song are less enjoyable? or maybe certain instruments?

[violet egret]

I am not even knowledgeable enough to put it into words but it could also partly be psychological 🤣

People online and especially on this server mentioned a lot that the pc37x is lacking when it comes to music because of the lacks of details in the instruments for exmaple.

but their soundstage is great and that's what makes them good for gaming

[elder thistle]

hm

[elder thistle]

well what about this,

do you find alt-rock music more enjoyable in the calmer parts than you do in the louder or more complicated parts

[violet egret]

Calmer

[elder thistle]

would you say that it's painful or spiking up in volume unexpectedly when this happens? or is it instead just not good sounding in a different way

[wispy gate]

if you're not used to open headphones, it'll take a while to get used to the lack of bass

but when you do, they're pretty great for everything unless you have a noisy house

also everyone close by can hear what you're playing lol

[elder thistle]

it would be weird if open backs or closed backs would be generally good for either of these things

[main spoke]

?

so i should avoid the open backs

[elder thistle]

but it would also be weird if most people could agree on what's good in the first place

[elder thistle]

it's not clear what you're trying to use them for or what you value

[main spoke]

i said gaming and films

i value sounding good, i dont value anc or a microphone

[elder thistle]

yes, but there are many kinds of games, and many things someone may want to hear in said games

e.g trying to hear the existence of footsteps in r6s is a very different task from wanting waterfalls to sound realistic in tomb raider

one compromises the other

waterfalls will sound overly wet and give details associated with being much closer to one, but without the game engine simulating the damping and reverb for that distance

it will sound strange

whereas in siege you're now hearing equipment jingling on an enemy's vest that someone with different headphones isn't hearing

[elder thistle]

in films, there are many things someone can admire in the audio. the waterfall example does apply here too, but you may also be concerned about voices sounding realistic and detailed, having enough bass drums and sfx that seem snappy and intense and impactful, having sounds frequently feel like they're in 3d and away from your head

a choice I personally have to make when watching movies is whether I want to prioritize the 3d effect, bass volume, and longer wearing comfort vs more detail, realism, and snap/impact/intensity only when called for

and I do not choose the same thing each time, since movies are not all the same

it's generally either my hifiman edition xs or the mackie mc450

I've decided that those two cover movies to my tastes pretty well

there is a lot fellow audiophiles and I can do to try and help if you're able to be a little more specific

but it'd be irresponsible/very risky to try and recommend something just with what you've said so far

[wispy gate]

for purely fps gaming the 599SE on sale is really solid. The 560S is a decent all-rounder as well. Really depends what sound you prefer, all I can say is the 599SE is extremely good at pinpointing footsteps. Nothing I've tried has come close

movie-wise most people want that deep rumbling bass and more fun exaggerated sound, that's going to be easier to find in a closed headphone. If you want a more natural and realistic sound (closer to speakers), go open

[elder thistle]

that makes me a little curious to what you've tried

for me there's been a point where a headphone is either getting max precision or it isn't. the game is then the next factor that may limit that precision

there are a lot of headphones I'd put as equals with the 560s and pc38x in that regard

[wispy gate]

Pretty much everything from last years lineup of focal, hifiman, sennheiser, B & O, B & W, Audeze

lots of iems, I used to go to meetups

my favorite right now is the philphone

most people aren't audiophiles, I just try and recommend what's in their price range, comfortable, and sounds generally (within a reasonable curve). They don't want to read a page of text just to get a short recommendation. Can't avoid generalizing, that's just the nature of it

599SE just happens to be louder in the areas with sound effects for footsteps and gun fire is my guess. Also well matched, great imaging, and the soundstage is the perfect size to where it isn't artificially big. Planars, especially cheaper ones tend to have more imaging issues because their matching typically not as good, even ones like the HE1000, so do AMT drivers. HD 800S is often cited as a good gaming headphone but it makes things sound artificially far away

Dynamics are the most consistently matched drivers because of how they're made, you just find 2 that match, they're cheap and mass produced easily. With good matching that's going to help you pick an accurate position for cues. At the end of the day I don't think it's worth it to go super expensive just for games, for movies I'd use speakers

[tawdry gale]

philphone is great

[wispy gate]

nothing else like it 🙂

[lone flame]

Open Backs are better in literally anything except
Sound Isolation
Mostly Lower frequencies

also some people dont like that its "hearthrough"

[lone flame]

If you wanna listen to music

HD600 offers probably the best timbre stock tuning aviable

timbre = how realistic instruments sound (as example)

HD600 may have not much bass. But music (literally anything if you don't care about alot of bass) will sound good on HD600 for the most people

[main spoke]

so can’t i just ramp up lower frequencies in software?

[main spoke]

here is what i have at the moment, https://amzn.eu/d/5N2JS62 i get that open back bass won’t be as bad as some other options, but will it be worse than what i already have? if not then it’s still an upgrade

(i have the wired version)

replacing because one ear will randomly get quieter than the other

[warm scarab]

they are better in lower frequencies

its a stupid myth that they aren't

[elder thistle]

that doesn't mean an he400se has more correct or natural timbre compared to a k371

[main spoke]

so many different words and opinions i didn’t know audi people were so passionate

[warm scarab]

you can

[elder thistle]

it does not work that way. every headphone is still an acoustic system with it's own properties, and closed vs open has zero bearing on that

[warm scarab]

people complicating stuff unnecessarily

[main spoke]

are we happy if i narrow it down to the hd 506S or the 599 SE?

they are in my price range

[elder thistle]

there is no basis for simplifying it down to that

[warm scarab]

what is your range

[main spoke]

other options suggested are a bit too expensive

[main spoke]

under £100

[warm scarab]

id get cloud 3s and call it a day

[elder thistle]

and I'm not trying to make things more complicated, I'm asking you to give a little more information so I can simplify for you

[warm scarab]

you can try a pc37x also

[elder thistle]

you may as well find the first result on amazon

you'd have the same odds of liking it

[warm scarab]

bla bla bla

[main spoke]

i don’t know what else i can say lol i’m not an audio guy

[warm scarab]

recommend something instead of yapping

[main spoke]

i like games and films to sound good

and i like spending under 100

[elder thistle]

well for example,

which games are you playing the most

[main spoke]

last of us, cyberpunk, battlefield, skyrim

[main spoke]

what’s good about them? nobody else has mentioned this

[warm scarab]

they are okay and fit into your budget

[elder thistle]

this already gives me some ideas though

[warm scarab]

their saving grace is that they aren't terrible unlike most stuff in your budget

[elder thistle]

hm checking

[warm scarab]

its a generic gaming headphone with a bass shelf

[elder thistle]

I don't think he needs great imaging for these games

dunno about the other stuff with the cloud 3 because I don't have it

[elder thistle]

battlefield maybe, since there's multiplayer for some of them

I have battlefield 1 myself

[main spoke]

better than other 2 options?

[warm scarab]

senn has like 4 headphones maybe worth buying total

[main spoke]

and zero in my budget?

[warm scarab]

yeah more or less

how much is an hd560s

[elder thistle]

wtf

[warm scarab]

or a pc38x

or a pc37x

[elder thistle]

mc450 pricing kicks ass in the u.k

[warm scarab]

doubt they are 100 pounds

[elder thistle]

but probably not as relevant

same with 560s

[main spoke]

90

i was just looking at this

[elder thistle]

do you like the idea of surround sound

[warm scarab]

go for it

[main spoke]

i suppose so

[elder thistle]

because the 560s more or less does something like this

[main spoke]

so yay for 560s?

[warm scarab]

yeah

idk what lead you to the other two senns

[elder thistle]

I don't think it's a very musical headphone imo, as in it's sort of artificial sounding

[warm scarab]

they are kinda shit

did someone recommend it

[elder thistle]

but voices and stuff should be pretty realistic

[main spoke]

will it be any worse than what i have

realistically an upgrade is an upgrade

[elder thistle]

what do you have again?

[warm scarab]

what genre do you listen to

generally

[main spoke]

aphex twin

[elder thistle]

based

[warm scarab]

should work

they aren't very funky headphones

[main spoke]

i just use my airpods 4 for music rn mainly anyways

[warm scarab]

but then again what else can you get at 100

lol

[main spoke]

i guess 560s is it then

thanks all

[warm scarab]

np

[elder thistle]

not sure if you'll like them more than the airpods or not, but in concept I think the 560s makes sense mostly

I put on some aphex twins greatest hits and I know it's a mixed bag for me in terms of how the 560s interprets them

some songs will sound huge and immersive*, others will be super aggressive crammed-into-your-ears

so yeah it's worth a shot

I'm assuming what they're selling on u.k amazon or at least the local warehouse is gen3 and not gen2

[keen cedar]

Which pc speakers should I get with a budget of about 100€

[elder thistle]

wish I was a little more up to date on that one, lots of new 3.5" speakers have come out

[elder thistle]

do you think you'd rather have deep bass, or higher clarity? also do you have space on your desk for traditional speakers (think 13cm x 17cm horizontally)

[keen cedar]

It will be used for music, but primarily story games. So if it is possible to easily add a sub later, then right now I will go for higher clarity. And I have the space on my desk for traditional speakers

[warm scarab]

go up to 120$ for edifier 1280

or mr4

if not stick to creative pebbles

[elder thistle]

what country are you buying in? are you looking for something more natural and spacious, or more aggressive and clear?

[keen cedar]

Denmark, and probably more natural

[elder thistle]

maybe that's some weird combinations, these should really be discussed separately but I don't know a lot of speakers

and edifier is the only thing commonly explored here I think

[keen cedar]

will i need an amplifier to add a sub later, or is it just plug it in, and it works

[lone flame]

Yes But not plenty

[lone flame]

not a myth. i have them. EQd. It works. But mostly not at the amount of Bass that most people prefer

[lone flame]

Cloud III Wireless S (the "S" is important) as Klaus mentioned

[warm scarab]

its not that they cant make it more bassy

just no reason to

[lone flame]

if they make it more bassy. mids and treble would look different

Earpads probably

but that affects WAY more than just Bass

and mostly in a bad way 🙁
(or you prefer the change)

[violet egret]

OK I read up a bit and apparently my pair has the same drivers as hd598

So I guess if I want a meaningful upgrade I should at least invest into hd560s

And I don't know if I feel comfortable dumping that much money just on my headphones because I am using sounblaster play 3

Thanks for helping me kill that upgrade itch lol

[lone flame]

Many headphones use the same driver and sound completly different

thats pretty normal in the audio world

also are you form the USA?

[violet egret]

I'm from Israel actually

We don't have our own Amazon so I have to use amazon us, so I am affected by the American prices though

[violet egret]

That's true but can't I technically say that going with hd599 for exmaple would be a side grade at best?

It's not like the jump that I had, I previously used cloud stinger and a bunch of razer headsets that killed themselves lol

[lone flame]

Audio is a bit tricky

it is only an upgrade if you like it more.
and probably if it hits your "HRTF" (important for Audio and is absolute individual for everyone)

so Audio is just a "preference" and probably if it hits the "thats how it sounds real" to you thing

could explain but that would be not really needed

in short.
You will notice when it sounds better.
And of that you can have a preference on top

[violet egret]

What I hate about this hobby is that the only way to find my preference is to either return a lot of pairs or buy a lot of them

My first and only serious pair is pc37x so I don't have a taste of my own

[lone flame]

or you go to an audio shop

there you can mostly demo a ton

[violet egret]

They don't exist everywhere

I don't even know a single one in my entire country tbh

The audio shops I know only sell instruments

[elfin cave]

Yo, i want to buy something good to listen music, i currently have air pods pro 2, i was looking to buy Senhieser IE600 (or something better please recommend), could you recommend what DAC/DSP should i get with it to get most out of it

[lean grove]

What's wrong with your airpod pro 2's?

[elfin cave]

they went in water

[lean grove]

im a fan of truthear's offerings. generally they have pretty good stuff, albiet a wide nozzle. for comfort i have yet to find anything better than the meze alba.

im not a huge fan of IEMs so there might be better options out there

[livid ruin]

hard to say

pc37x is a perfectly fine pair of headphones

[livid ruin]

i'd wait maybe, there are many companies pumping out headphones now that compete with sennheiser

[mortal pendant]

can anyone help with my audio its in the tech support channel pls anyone

[chrome salmon]

Hey
so i am thinking of buying a pair of "proper" headphones for when i am gaming but also when i am just chilling watching youtube or a movie
for the past couple of years (4 or 5 years i think) i have been using the steelseries arctis pro and they have been great.
but i dont know which one to get, snice i dont really understand the audio side.
and while i am at it i also wanna get a mic i am have been looking at the Røde podmic.
anybody that can help me out here on which headphones to get and if the røde podmic is a good choice

[mortal pendant]

Hyper x clouds are definetly really good pair of headphones personaly I have the s ones of the hyper cloud the audio is mid but the comfort and sound is really good and you even get two types of material you can change on the microphone but you can definetely search for other reviews of the brand.

but can anyone help with my problem is what I need?

[lean grove]

How much do you wanna spend, are you in a noisy environment, and what do you want from your headphones?

[lean grove]

We don't know what your problem is. How would we know if we can help you with it?

[chrome salmon]

the spending is kinda hard to answear snice i dont live in the USA like most but for the headset i was thinking 200-300 usd if i convert

and i want to try something different then normal gaming headset snice i have heard that proper audio headset give better sound in games not sure if it true or not

and no i am not in noisy environment

[waxen mortar]

so for a 10x10 room, what would be better for the budget of 150 usd. A soundbar or active bookshelf speakers?

this would be for an lg b5 for context

[mortal pendant]

My headset's mic (HyperX cloud s) are really quiet and in most situations even mute but all my settings that i know of even on the hyper x app are maxed out on the microphone. Any ideas how to fix that or how to fix that please let me know!

[lean grove]

my go-to recommendation for an american in that price range would be the HD6XX from drop.com.
they're a cheaper version of the h650 from sennheiser.

but if you dont really know what you want, maybe take a look at the Fiio FT1 pro or the FT1. the FT1 is closed back and has a lot of bass, the ft1 pro is open back and has more neutral bass.

they're below your budget, but they're safe recc's and are probably gonna scratch the itch of "something different and not gaming"

[lean grove]

in discord you can use the "automatically adjust microphone gain" in the settings and that should help

[mortal pendant]

WHERE

[lean grove]

RIGHT HERE

[mortal pendant]

its on already

[lean grove]

sweet 👍

[last nacelle]

Hey Guys, I'm currently looking for a new amp/dac. My top choices are Element IV, TOPPING DX5, FiiO K11/k12 R2R. Current headphones are DT 700 PRO X and ATH-R70x. Mostly want an amp/dac to make sure I get the most out of my headphones, I also plan to start messing with EQ to find my preferences. I'm still new to all this audiophile stuff, so I just want to get any recommendation or opinions on which dac/amp to get. I'm currently leaning on the ElementIV. Also I have a beacn mix, so I dont even know if I can even use the knob on these devices. Currently using apple dongle connected to motherboard. Thank you!!

[dull rover]

After a day of having the Galaxy Buds FE I definitely recommend them to people wanting cheap casual TWS buds. They definitely have a more "fun" sounding default EQ with an emphasis on bass, though still balanced enough to work well with all genres I have tested. The transparency and ANC is comparable enough to my Airpods Pro 1st gen that I don't notice a difference, the fit is way better than I thought it would be, the wingtips hold snug but not uncomfortably. The only slight downside is that the battery life seems a tad lower than my Airpods Pro.

But $90 vs $329, these are by far a way better bang for your buck compared to Apples offerings

I didn't think they'd sound so full with only a 6.5mm driver

[lean grove]

The size of the driver has very little to do with its sound characteristic.

most of it is gonna come down to the tuning and how well it plays with your ears

[dull rover]

I've always just assumed bigger drivers can move more air ig

[dull rover]

Yeah true

I love learning about audio

I have a good ear but I'm still new to audio, I love that it's like computers/Linux, always something new to learn

[lean grove]

generally yes, but inside your ear theres relatively low amounts of air to move

[broken grotto]

also IEM's don't need to move that much in the first place

because they're inside your ear, as nils says

[lean grove]

it matters for making the device, but on the consumer end it means very little because you can safely assume that the engineers who made the headphone designed it with that in mind

[broken grotto]

bahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

"Hey Uh, Lin that driver costs 30 cents more than the 6.5mm one. Can... can we use the 6.5mm one instead? it'll save us 30 cents per unit...."

actual conversation I'd had before working in product R&D.

although that particular conversation was 4 cents per unit.

[lean grove]

Lin: "yeah right-o boss. let me run it through my comsol and see if it works."

im assuming you did that right

you didnt just drop it in and crossed your fingers?

[broken grotto]

it's less seeing if it works, and instead making it work.

once the bean counter sees it, you don't really have the option to push back.

[lean grove]

that sounds like the final design had that aspect in mind then

[broken grotto]

normally it's just adjusting passives that cost about the same regardless.

[broken grotto]

yeah, but you normally make compromises adjusting stuff like that. Itll work, and it'd work fine, but it might not have been what I wanted

when I used to do it, it was a lot of double-insulated stuff because they wanted to save the cost of copper wire, and it was more annoying to design that way.

[lean grove]

sure. my point was that the driver size is something that the engineers would hopefully work around. the final design takes it into account.

[broken grotto]

sure

my main point was we might not have designed with it in mind until they wanted to reduce BOM costs

and sometimes, you don't wantn to do a board rev

[lean grove]

initially designed that way? probably not no. finally designed that way? yes.

[broken grotto]

so you really do just slap it in and see if it works xD

and sometimes it might not even be the original designer, either.

they might have some intern or new engineer do it.

kinda depends on companies. I imagine something like Samsung does proper board revs and validation

[lean grove]

one would hope

[broken grotto]

it was on some early IGBT stuff on hybrid cars I had that kept cooking themselves because they swapped transistors without telling me

so they came back to me and asked why they kept dying in testing, and that's when I found out they swapped the IGBT for a transistor I didn't spec for

right

insulated gate bipolar transistor lol

[elder thistle]

the ft1 is not what I'd call a safe headphone nor a normal headphone. its rather unique and closer to how many planars behave, supressing quiet details. crushing medium and louder sounds together, and having unreliable directions of sounds.

if you're mainly concerned with comp fps, this is not a great place to start. what games are you playing the most? and what do you want to hear better in these games (or music)?

[broken grotto]

it took you a very long time to type that

[elder thistle]

my weakness

I am on phone

[lean grove]

use voice to text like a maniac

bonus points if you're on public transportation

[broken grotto]

use them airpods

talk to yourself

I bought IEM's in Korea so that's fun. husband was not amused we spent nearly the entire afternoon in the store lol

but he went all squirrel on me with semi trucks multiple times. so it's payback.

[lean grove]

married a car guy 👎

[elder thistle]

that does not mean I endorse the mr4's though. they sound more like my latter explanation

for something warm and spacious I've liked the behringer truth 3.5's

they're quite different from the other speakers I've tried. full-sounding too

as for a sub, you dont need to buy an amp later

[broken grotto]

he's more into heavy duty.

[elder thistle]

as long as the sub is also an active/self powered sub, you can use an aux splitter and 2 3.5mm-to-dual-rca cables

[broken grotto]

semi trucks, heavy diesel

[elder thistle]

this is true of the other small speakers too

[lean grove]

tolerable

https://tenor.com/view/monkey-snob-scolding-ape-dongood-next-time-whatevert-want-to-hear-nonever-gif-20786055

[lone flame]

idk why u keep sayin that a headphone has something todo with soundstage...

you can fix that "hearing steps" pretty easly with EQ

[broken grotto]

his main hobby is actually blacksmithing!

he makes cool stuff.

[lone flame]

ew.. Combustion engines

[lean grove]

https://tenor.com/view/vince-mcmahon-excited-gif-27408104

[broken grotto]

there's a lot worse that he could have as a hobby

like headphones

[lone flame]

Furry

[lean grove]

heavy duty diesel trucks are also pretty hard to accumulate

like one, maybe two, max.

[lone flame]

idk why USA dont have European stucks

[lean grove]

idk why USA dont have european stucks

[lone flame]

have seen so much video where Merican truckers drove an Scania or so and fell in love

comfort, noise, easy to use.

[broken grotto]

because honestly american trucks are just cooler

[lone flame]

turn radius is the same as the earts rotation around the sun

[lean grove]

i like the fact that you can actually see whats in front of you while driving

[broken grotto]

doesn't really matter when half of the USA turns their little pickup trucks like they are semi's

[lone flame]

with the european ones hm?

[lone flame]

USA people just can't drive
look at Mustang drivers

[lean grove]

of course

[lone flame]

"aerodynamic" and still eats WAY more per 60 miles

[lean grove]

yeah but when gasoline flows like water why would you need a more efficient engine?

[broken grotto]

honestly, as someone who took a trip from the midwest to the west coast in a '74 kenworth, I can say that I totally see why american trucks are the way they are.

[elder thistle]

does it really need aerodynamics if it weighs so much?

[lone flame]

to make it even cheaper? xD

[lone flame]

yes

[lean grove]

whats that?
an over reliance and inelastic demand of gasoline causing huge distortions in transportation costs?
deep investments on a fundimnetally limited natural resource??
climate change???

[lone flame]

also in europe we have smaller engines with more power ❤️

and you guys just dont put effort in an engine

[broken grotto]

modern semi trucks are miles different from the ones you see in movies.

[elder thistle]

sus

[broken grotto]

my husband's truck has basically a bulldozer engine (quite literally, it's put into bulldozers.)

they don't really do that anymore.

[lone flame]

https://tenor.com/view/zaunvi-caitvitwt-gif-1251875630135871970

[lean grove]

ew.. Combustion engines

Our combustion engines are better ❤️

pick a lane, bozo

[broken grotto]

heavy-haul trucks usually had larger hoods and not cabover because if you're trying to move a 53-foot container across the country, once you hit those mountains those little scania trucks would've strugged in the 70s annd 80s.

cooling was everything

because the USA does have cabovers.

[elder thistle]

the only way america would have worse diesel engine tech than the rest of the world would be out of manipulation from oil companies forcing them to buy more fuel

and that doesnt happen with cars

gas cars, I should say

[broken grotto]

i honestly didn't realize just how big the USA was until I moved here and we did that trip lol

[lone flame]

i can hate them but still say that ours here are better

but combustion engines are old tech

no need for them anymore

[elder thistle]

wat

[lean grove]

ehhh. kinda? its complicated.
in a way yes. in some ways no.

more efficient engines are more expensive to make. so theres a higher upfront cost. if you look at fuel prices, it makes sense because most of europe doesnt really produce its own fuel.
the US also has a lot of stuff to make foreign cars less competitive and to protect american-made cars. tarriffs, regulations, etc.
so pair cheaper engine with cheaper gas price, and everything outside being more expensive, the shittier less efficient tech makes more sense in the short and mid-term.

the united states has put a lot of work into propping up the american auto industry, that has resulted in us having worse cars.

[broken grotto]

imo it's kinda cultural, too.

[lean grove]

also its worth adding that some of the regulations around car efficiency standards has created an incentive for car manufacturers to make bigger less efficient cars.

[broken grotto]

at least on the car side, many people feel that the V8's are just power, where inline 4's and such are far too weak

even though a little 4 cylinder will outpace their 1970's V8's any day.

[elder thistle]

these trucks are moving millions of miles

[lean grove]

yeah. american car culture sucks.

[broken grotto]

it really does

I used to be a car girl but gosh when I moved here I couldn't stand it

[elder thistle]

diesel cost is really the only factor that matters

[lean grove]

its a part of it.
not the whole picture

[broken grotto]

eh, not really.

that's even the same as people who think that their gas cost is the only thing that matters

so when gas is cheap, buy that giant pickup

well, except you're spending a factor more on maintenance, insurance, and the cost of the truck in the first place.

you see it all the time with first-time truck owners; they don't realize that they can't really get a set of tires for $400 anymore.

hence why every third pickup you see has balder tires than joe rogan

[elder thistle]

the problem with maintainence costs is that it isnt burning diesel if the truck is broken

[broken grotto]

truck is down, burning money not being productive + the cost of repairs.

[elder thistle]

all costs must converge into the price of diesel

[lean grove]

you can easily factor the cost of repairs per mile as a price on top of the fuel

there's tax incentives to incorporate the wear and tear on the final value of the truck too.

[broken grotto]

fuel is the largest expense, but it's not the whole business model.

[elder thistle]

its a matter of perspective

[broken grotto]

ie, fuel matters a lot when you move an entire truck + freight across the country, but not as much when you're looking at local delivery.

or heavy haul, for example, where fuel is practically irrelevant because of the massive difference with axle gearing and durability are king

[elder thistle]

maintainence costs exist and are added to diesel costs, but the ability to burn fuel is the ability to make money

whatever decision is made in terms of reliability is in the best interest of making that fuel turn into work

[lean grove]

i dont see the point in lumping them together. they are entirely different variables that factor in the final cost per mile. they operate largely independently and can change from numerous factors.
tariffs would disproportionally effect a car with foreign parts, but the diesel stays the same.

[broken grotto]

my husband said he's looking at trucking from the window of his high-rise apartment with a pair of binoculars that aren't in focus.

i'll take his word for it considering he worked at a diesel shop lol

[wispy gate]

Apple dongle is good enough

[lean grove]

hey this is #truck-tech

get your stinkin audio out of here

[wispy gate]

😆

[broken grotto]

real trucks, no pickups here.

[elder thistle]

I may be stupid on second thought

[elder thistle]

I cant say an efficient and broken truck is inefficiently using fuel costs

the fuel efficiency is infinity when not moving

[wispy gate]

For these headphones, element 4. Reason: its cheaper, and R2R lags on pc. Id go even cheaper and get a schiit stack though or a simpler jds stack

I am using the element 4 right now, the EQ is handy but its not going to make your headphones sound much better, if at all

[broken grotto]

what

[lean grove]

its undefined. 0 divided by 0

[elder thistle]

ye

[lean grove]

(this also assumes that fuel doesnt go bad)

[lean grove]

element 4 is not cheaper than the K11

i think its the most expensive option of the list now that i think about it

[wispy gate]

Like I said, R2R lags on pc

[lean grove]

does it

[broken grotto]

downtime kills fleets.

[elder thistle]

how is that possible

[broken grotto]

what R2R lags on PC?

that's a new one.

[elder thistle]

ye

[lean grove]

because they're not stored perfectly. the goo will turn into gunk. oil will solidify. parts will stick together.

[wispy gate]

Yea its the design itself, also, I can never recommend a DX5 thats the only.amp thats ever broken on me

[elder thistle]

no the r2r thing

[lean grove]

ah

i got confused. too much truck talk

my b

[broken grotto]

I'm always confused

[lean grove]

never heard of R2R's adding much lag.

[elder thistle]

r2r is a simultaneous/ parallel loaded input circuit. all bits are loaded at once

[broken grotto]

i put money on a driver

[lean grove]

does it use a buffer

[white gate]

wdym?

[lean grove]

how long you been lurking

[elder thistle]

this means usb serial data has to be prepared and put in a register beforehand

OS cant change the need for serial to parallel conversion

[broken grotto]

it was the trucks

nobody can resist those american diesel behemoths

[elder thistle]

it does not distinguish itself from serial-only dac designs

[wispy gate]

Lol is that goldensound?

[broken grotto]

yes, you have been blessed

[wispy gate]

Think that means I said something wrong lol. Ive come across several r2r devices with latency issues, my assumption was that its an r2r problem

Chord qutest, cayin ru6, cayin ru7

[lean grove]

i did see him in texas last year. so this tracks.

[elder thistle]

why does that mean you said something wrong

[broken grotto]

nah, R2R adds no meaningful latency. it's on the digial side.

[wispy gate]

Trying to think there was 1 more

Denafrips

[wispy gate]

Ah ok, my bad

[broken grotto]

so it's firmware, which could be the DAC, anywhere from bad microcontrollers to just poor firmware.

I find it hard to believe every single device you've tried has bad firmware, though.

depending what you're doing, that could be adding latency.

could be something as simple as your USB hub.

[wispy gate]

More than 1 device was used

[broken grotto]

I just said that.

oh, i see.

[wispy gate]

Im looking at the cayin ru7, it has oversampling

[broken grotto]

all windows?

[broken grotto]

this can add latency.

[wispy gate]

Phone and pc

Omg they all use oversampling lmao

User error?

[broken grotto]

probably.

problem between the driver seat and the steering wheel

[wispy gate]

I usually set my cayin to dsd256 so thats the issue?

[wispy gate]

For my phone maybe, I had issues with samsung s25 ultra not providing enough power to dac/amp dongles

[steel escarp]

The Gustard R26 was such a big mistake. Everything who gave it a positive review needs to have all their credibility taken away.

Its 400 euro performance max.

Not 1600

[wispy gate]

Whats wrong with it?

[steel escarp]

Its bright with its own internal oversampling. Its actually fatuiging.

And in nos, even with oversampling, everything becomes smeary on busy passages.

[zenith pawn]

as far as i am aware you can technically tune headphones and iems to sound however you want with only an eq

as far as mimicking different passive hardware

[wispy gate]

Its just a lot of work for most people, could be off base but I think the average person just wants plug and play

[steel escarp]

A Chord Mojo 2 sounds like twice as energetic, detailed and open

And even has better bass

Someone I trusted told me to get an R26

My bad for not taking my time to properly evaluate it with my own ears I guess

[zenith pawn]

anytime when the engine is off or cutting fuel i think is the important part here

[lean grove]

in theory, yes. but there's practical limits for using imperfect measurements to reflect a messy reality.

and EQ'ing by ear can be very difficult

[wispy gate]

I like the mojo, great little device. Wish they made it... less ugly

Would it kill them to put a little metal on the outside

[steel escarp]

Being determined to get the best sound you can will mean making compromises in the looks department

Often

[wispy gate]

I guess, its just not for me

[steel escarp]

Not determined enough xD

[wispy gate]

My dumb ass bought so much gear and then uses wireless most of the time

[elder thistle]

the current reality is that some people experience headphones/iems the same when eq'd perfectly to their ears, and others still experience them very different when eq'd perfectly to their ears

[steel escarp]

If Airpod Pro 2 didnt have crazy latency, I'd sell all my gear, even Susvara no questions asked.

Like, you literally wouldn't need anything else.

[elder thistle]

I would not preach what I do about headphones and eq if I was not forced to do it by an overwhelming majority of people having the latter experience with eq

like holy shit do I wish headphones were simpler

that is my purpose when giving advice

[wispy gate]

Ive given up hope after they removed Aptx LL for newer androids, they dont care at all about it in bluetooth space

They add the head tracking feature to so many headphones and its laggy as hell, makes me feel off

[elder thistle]

yes, at least to some extent. it may distort easily if you boost the bass a lot and then play it loud

open backs usually have bass played at lower pressures inside the earpads and outside too

the driver/speaker moves a lot more for the same amount of bass

[wispy gate]

If you have a decent amp you can try reducing all the other frequencies except the bass, sometimes getting better results

More headroom

[elder thistle]

that... is the same thing?

[wispy gate]

For wireless earbuds ive heard distinct differences, maybe this doesnt apply across the board

Not gonna say im right here, just a 'to my ears theres less distortion' kinda thing

[elder thistle]

you may just be confusing the adaptive eq in some of these buds

[wispy gate]

Hm, I did some digging, might be because you cant lower pregain on most wireless device apps

So sacrificing some volume in the mid-high end leaves more headroom for bass on those earbuds

[elder thistle]

that could make sense

I'm a little surprised the apps aren't applying the right pregain reduction automatically

but last I've looked into the wireless earbuds scene, they were all quite volume limited

they could be purposefully leaving the pregain alone as much as possible, then using a limiter that may include saturation/distortion in an attempt to not have the music loudness fluctuate so much

transparent limiters in music production are really cutting edge stuff, and very expensive

[wispy gate]

that makes sense, I noticed it with some smaller companies like Noble (the triumph and mystique), and more consumer crap like galaxy buds 3 pro

[elfin cave]

Apple dongle ?

[zenith pawn]

Apple usb-c to 3.5mm dongle

[elder thistle]

where is your generic usbA-3.5mm

apple dong is 8 years dead

no need to hang onto that 1 model

[balmy shoal]

Hey guys

[steel escarp]

bruh my dac sounding bright was due to the shitty 1.5m long XLR cables I was using

got new basic xlr cables today, but 15cm long instead. treble hotspot is gone

[balmy shoal]

Im using a Sony WH-1000XM3 while its powered on and wired into my computer, i love its bass and punchy feels when im playing shooters

however, its kicked the can and i need a new headphone, i've tried the XM4s but i dont like them for some reason, they're more "clear" but lacking in bass and sometimes feel "muddy" ?

does anyone have any headphone recommendations?

[steel escarp]

very few bluetooth headphones without pretty big delay

kinda feels like manufacturers have given up on adding low latency codecs

Sennheiser HDB 630 have a seperate bluetooth dongle that is pretty good, but they are 500 euros

[balmy shoal]

i see, im looking for one that is detachable cable, since i use wired to eliminate delay

[steel escarp]

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd gen) does it

I heard the 1st gen last week, the tuning was very good, except the bluetooth quality was just mediocre, you could hear compression

and it didnt support playback over usb-c cable

2nd gen does support it

[balmy shoal]

what about these? @steel escarp

[steel escarp]

they dont have a lot of treble

everything will lack clarity

@balmy shoal what is your budget and does it have to be a noise cancelling headpone or closed back

[balmy shoal]

Closed back, features are fine if there is or not, but must have a detachable 3.5mm

[steel escarp]

Fiio FT1 is probably a good choice

[balmy shoal]

I see, i am terrible at audio stuff but what specifically should i be asking someone if i tell them "i want a headphone similar to xm3 in terms of sound/bass"

i heard of terms like treble/mids/lows/siblance but they're all pre confusing for me ngl

[steel escarp]

I think you'll find the Fiio FT1 to be a more coherent sounding headphone overall

@balmy shoal see if you can find a ASTRO A50 X for around 320 euros

[balmy shoal]

astro a50?! isnt that logitech

[steel escarp]

yes

[balmy shoal]

*arent gaming brands bad

[steel escarp]

99%

this is in the 1%

[balmy shoal]

this one?

[steel escarp]

with X in the name

that one has slightly less bass

should look very similar

[balmy shoal]

^ singapore dollars

[steel escarp]

you could order straight from Logitech, which country are you in, I'll send the link

[balmy shoal]

Singapore

[steel escarp]

oh alright then

price seems about right

(for the graph people in this chat)

@balmy shoal the bass station on that thing is what allows wireless with sound quality that doesn't suck, and low latency

[balmy shoal]

what would be the graph for an xm3?

[balmy shoal]

i see, ill probably find a place to try the headphones first

Returns and refund policies are terrible in singapore

[balmy shoal]

oh, they look similar i guess

i know nothing about audio so to the enthusiasts here dont bite me bro

thanks for your help

[steel escarp]

they are not similar at all, but I think you'll enjoy the Astro A50X more

[orchid blaze]

halloo, can anyone help me buy some earbuds?

i have a website but confused by the options

[steel escarp]

what is your budget?

[orchid blaze]

a little conservative

do i show you the website so you can take a look? prices in this country is so bipolar

[steel escarp]

can you name a number, the IEM market is so packed that even 10 dollar difference lands you a different choice

ah you're stuck with buying from that website

[orchid blaze]

yess stuck there

[steel escarp]

you can send the website if you want

I'll take a look

[orchid blaze]

yess

https://bahrain.sharafdg.com/catalogue-bahrain/

here

theres a DG friday deals but we can get to it later

[steel escarp]

I only see wireless earphones

did you want that? or wired

I was assuming the latter since you said IEMs

[wispy gate]

B and W Px7 s3

He wants a lot of bass, give him bass. He doesnt want audiophile balanced stuff. You're gonna hate those other ones if you thought the xm4's were too bass light.

Look at the graph of what hes asking for vs what you're recommending

You can plug it into your pc as well

[balmy shoal]

Yes, the bass does sound a little better with ANC turned on my XM4, but dont use ANC everytime because i hate that pressurised feeling, i dont use the ambient mode either, i just power them on to have better sound, ANC only when my background is noisy which is some parts of the day only

[tawdry gale]

what is ur budget

[balmy shoal]

What would be a good budget?

[tawdry gale]

I want to recommend u a bass cannon headphone that costs 1.1k usd

Philphone Closed

[lean grove]

https://auribusacoustics.com/products/sierra-open-monitor

If we're reppin the homies

[balmy shoal]

Right, that puts me right back into the budget discussion

[balmy shoal]

$350 singapore dollars

[wispy gate]

My bad the px7 s3 is somehow was more expensive in your country

[balmy shoal]

i dont need a mic at all, since im running a arm with seperate mic

Just a good headphone which sounds like XM3 and is detachable cable

Heck, would be even better if it has features like a dongle which would allow me to use it on valorant wirelessly, i play valorant competitively so no delay audio is very important

[balmy shoal]

ahh i see

[tawdry gale]

go to the audio shops and demo everything, ur in Singapore, the land of audio

[balmy shoal]

The land of audio?!

[tawdry gale]

yes

singapore has the most audio shops + largest variety of audio gear in the world

go try everything

[wispy gate]

If you're not sure you can also just grab another xm3 🙂

There isnt a lot of stuff with that much bass tbh

The bose qc series perhaps

[tawdry gale]

there is one within the budget, meze 99 classics(the old version)

[wispy gate]

Oh yea the 99 classic, good pick. Rip its overbudget

[balmy shoal]

Right this, theres nowhere which sells new, and used market... well lets just say i have some concerns

oh btw, if it matters at all, i have these plugged into my G PRO X DAC aswell

it makes the audio sound better (to me!)

and nope, i dont have their g hub software installed, the ghub drivers ruin the audio and make it super muddy

this little thing

I've also tried the XM6s, they're good but siblance is so sharp my ears hurt and i got migraines from it

[wispy gate]

Ill keep looking for something within your budget

[tawdry gale]

which audio stores have u been to in singapore

[balmy shoal]

good question

none.

[tawdry gale]

https://sg.e1personalaudio.com/
https://stereo.com.sg/
https://store.jaben.com/
http://www.lendmeurears.com/
http://store.treoo.com/
https://music-sanctuary.com/
https://www.euphoriaaudio.com.sg/
https://www.connect-it.com.sg/
http://av1group.com.sg/
https://www.null-audio.com/

these are some of them

ahh too many links

[balmy shoal]

audio devices i've always used were

chinese branded gaming headset > Logitech G Pro X > Razer blackshark V2 Pro > Blackshark V2 X > Sony XM3 > Sony XM4 > Sony XM6

I've hated all razer ones, sony xm4 is the closest to XM3, but still feels "empty" or "muddy" at times, XM6 is uncomfortable to wear and also gives hearing fatigue

[tawdry gale]

can I dm u the store links

[balmy shoal]

Yeah sure!

[wispy gate]

Ok the momentum 4

Within your budget, pretty smooth, heavy bass but less than xm3, 3.5mm connection, wireless as well

Other option, hyper x cloud 3 s wireless. It wont have enough bass you'll have to EQ it with the included software

[wispy gate]

just being real here, all these people are really into audio, which means they've lost touch with reality about what a budget is (oh you want to spend $300, how about these $1100 headphones?). Don't double or triple your budget to buy the headphones they personally like, or the sound that they like. It's about you

[tawdry gale]

he doesnt need advice from us, he has audio stores

most people dont have any access to audio shops

[wispy gate]

ok so he gets to the audio store, theres 200 headphones on the wall and he doesn't know where to start

now what

[tawdry gale]

ask the store staff

[wispy gate]

and they upsell him

lol

[tawdry gale]

well if he doesnt like the headphone, he can move on to the next thing

[wispy gate]

I'm offering a decent and reasonable starting point, the first headphones you recommended were over $1000

that is not reasonable!

[tawdry gale]

a "good budget" is highly subjective

[wispy gate]

no it is fking now

not

how much money you have is NOT subjective, period

end of story

[tawdry gale]

there are a lot of people on headfi who think 1k is budget

4k is midrange

[wispy gate]

no one cares what they think

[tawdry gale]

and 6k is highend

[wispy gate]

you think a non audiophile who wants xm3 cares that 1k is budget for someone with a spending problem

smh

people got bills to pay, this is what I mean by losing touch with reality

[tawdry gale]

yes, I've met a guy on discord blind buying 3 kilobuck iems in 2 months and they were his first iems

[wispy gate]

he's a moron

[tawdry gale]

no prior experience

[wispy gate]

a moron with no prior experience

I met a guy who sold his car to buy an audiophile setup he's never heard, was that a good decision

he sold me his gear for 40% of what he paid, buyers remorse

[balmy shoal]

About that, uhh i do play valorant alot how do i test the headphones though? i can only do that comfortably at my home

u reckon i should just bring a recording of my game?

[tawdry gale]

you can do that

but any competent headphone will be good enough for gaming

personally I cant tell the difference between a 25 usd headphone and kilobuck headphone in gaming

the limiting factor is often the game sound engine, most arent any good

[wispy gate]

yea thats a good way of doing it, or just download a youtube video of gameplay and use that

[elder thistle]

yes

keep in mind that valorant portrays distance of sounds via muffling them

it's pretty unusual for a game to rely on muffling sounds to that extent

in more technical terms, it's a lowpass filter with a cutoff that rises in frequency as sounds are closer

a relatively flat frequency response makes more sense here than other games

[balmy shoal]

Ngl, i've been using my friend's XM4 temporaily for like 3 hours right now, its slowly growing onto me

perhaps i need time to get used to "new audio"

[wispy gate]

typically if you find it too harsh, you won't get used to that. But if it sounds different from what you're used to maybe give it some time

[balmy shoal]

Yes, the XM6 one was impossible to get used to

[broken grotto]

that's a little harsh

I will spend money on expensive IEM's because they're practically jewelry at a certain point

some people just like nice things.

the XM's on the other hand just make you feel like a statistic buying another consumer product.

people value different things.

and, the truth is, depending on where you are in the world, "budget," does mean different things.

some things are much cheaper in place x than place y, and this infuences your budget if you live in place y.

not to mention, if you are maidenless with no children living at home with not many other bills, you have more expendable income.

you are right. you shouldn't spend 1k on headphones if you've got bills to pay yet.

you just probably shouldn't be buying any if it's that much of a concern.

[sturdy wigeon]

Any recommendations for soundbar system as audio setup for living room? Budget around 500$

[wispy gate]

I think it's fair to say that jumping into the $1k category of ear jewelry immediately is not a sound financial decision or a good example of rational thinking

encouraging others to do the same is harmful, especially when they clearly state their budget

[broken grotto]

the people you recommend that stuff to aren't going to even entertain the idea of buying the kilobuck IEM's if they only have $200.

[wispy gate]

he didn't say I want a budget headphone, he said I want a headphone for $____ exact price or lower

[broken grotto]

this was merely an example of why I might purchase IEM's of a certain caliber.

I get it, I just think jumping as far as to call people that buy the expensive ones a moron a bit daft.

[wispy gate]

if it's their first purchase and they skipped over the extremely good $500-900 price range of much better sounding iems with no research, I do think they are a moron, but that's just my opinion

[broken grotto]

even $500 is too much for good IEM's.

[wispy gate]

true!

I will shill the xenns top though, it's my favourite between $500-$5000

[broken grotto]

but you might be drawn to the $500 ones for many many other reasons, aesthetics, looks, feel, whatever it is.

and then you shall make the decision of if that money is worth it to you or not

[wispy gate]

if you have the room, you'll probably get better results out of a cheaper pair of powered bookshelf speakers

[wispy gate]

the part that bothers me is the constant need to upsell people in here, you can scroll through the past couple days of people ignoring budgets and telling them to get something more expensive. I think it's very irresponsible and it's kind of like addict behavior.

I actually left the previous audio group I was in because people kept DMing me and telling me to buy stuff despite saying I was saving money many times

[sturdy wigeon]

Why?

[wispy gate]

for speakers the bigger the better, the volume of the cabinet is important

there's an expert here maybe he can give you a better answer @white gate sir if you don't mind

[lean grove]

Sound bars are kind of an awkward form factor.

Most speakers need a substantial rear volume to get the bass to perform well. Without it you wind up having to do some tricks. Some of those tricks are pretty clever, some are bandaid solutions.

In the case of sound bars, they usually wind up leaning heavily on EQ to get the bass backs, or incorporating specific bass drivers which arent ideal

Usually this results in not being able to play as loud as cleanly

[sturdy wigeon]

What about sound bar with subwoofer ?

[lean grove]

The subwoofer is usually suffering from the same problem. But less worse.

[wispy gate]

the heck

[lean grove]

https://tenor.com/view/fascinating-spock-spok-serious-gif-15696220

Like a sound bar with a subwoofer is gonna be better than a subwoofer without a sound bar 90% of the time.

The only reason I can see to get a sound at is if you don't want to deal with the complications of proper stereo system and you're short on space

@fair knoll use your words, stupid

[wispy gate]

I think they were hacked?

[lean grove]

No I think they're just trying to get attention

If they were hacked they would be telling us about an excellent investment opportunity

[wispy gate]

they're saying nonsense in the tech chat as well

tyler do you have a best buy near you? They have a soundbar section to test out, and a speaker area as well

[sturdy wigeon]

I can’t wall mount and the budget is pretty low so I thought a soundbar would solve the problem for minimum sound system

[fair knoll]

wtf is happening

[sturdy wigeon]

Not located in the us

[lean grove]

You don't wanna wall-mount speakers

Bad idea.

[wispy gate]

it's honestly a huge PITA

if you're a renter forget about it

[lean grove]

It's also terrible for the speaker acoustics

[wispy gate]

better than the landlord taking your deposit

[lean grove]

Take a look at the edifier s350db @sturdy wigeon

[sturdy wigeon]

I’m trying to navigate in canton site but not quite sure what to choose from all the options there

[lean grove]

Really anything in your budget from edifier should be good

[wispy gate]

if that's all you can fit that's fair, you could get speaker stands but if space is limited it is what it is. Unfortunately I don't know any soundbars that are good

speakers are significantly cheaper tho

[sturdy wigeon]

The speakers/soundbar can sit on a cabin like.
The main use is for the tv but if there is extra connectivity features I would like that

[lean grove]

The edifiers have RCA, Bluetooth, and optical/coax

No eARC

[sturdy wigeon]

https://www.canton.de/en/products/type/compact-speaker/smart-gle-3-s2/04244

is this what you aiming for?

[wispy gate]

you don't have to go that expensive if you're on a budget

if the edifiers arent in your region I've heard great things about the JBL 305p MkII's

[sturdy wigeon]

If I would bump up the budget about 200$, do you have any better options? I want to get myself quite good sound system for the living room as I’m using the tv as a relaxation are at the end of day and kinda tired of using the tv speakers

I have saved up and want to treat myself to something good, though I didn’t think that my budget is so low in the sound system world

@wispy gate

[lean grove]

What's wrong with the edifiers?

[wispy gate]

You wont neccessarily get something better for more money, if it helps the JBLs are used by very reputable professionals and should sound great! Heres a video by DMS on their bigger brother the 306p mk2

https://youtu.be/WHzBUHlSlww?si=6j5fFmL72b9ahUD6

Sound panels will make a big difference if you have extra money

[zenith pawn]

That's just the nature of all online communities trying to suggest any type of product in my experience
Especially in this server, LTT

[balmy shore]

hey hi. I'm currently running some hd6xxs but I really want to move to a close backed headphone because of all the noise around me. I like the fit and feel of my sony xm6s but the ANC gives me a headache, so ideally looking for something that has good noise isolation without ANC, good soundstage, and ideally under $550. Any thoughts?

[main spoke]

what if budget was a bit higher, any different? say £170

[warm scarab]

id say to save up even more

dont go from entry to low tier midrange

either do proper upgrades or dont

its just going to damage your wallet more in the longrun

[main spoke]

hmm

[warm scarab]

what I'd recommend is either edition xs with a zen can amp

or 6xx since people seem to like it

[kind hawk]

Are there any low profile inline microphone boosters this one sticks out too much

[broken grotto]

i'll get hate for this 100% but lately I've been digging the Audeze LCD-S20's for ignoring my husband. they isolate pretty good in my experience.

I think they're cheaper than 550 too

[balmy shore]

they look good too. I like seeing the larger size and thick padding. Helps with my earrings/glasses

[broken grotto]

they are pretty chunky, i think people generally argue that they're pretty heavy but

i've never really had any problems

[supple robin]

fiio ft1 i think is a good one, fractal design scape and audeze maxwell

[tawdry gale]

if u have 229 quid, hd600

[broken grotto]

ft1's isolation isn't that great

[supple robin]

ah

[broken grotto]

honestly sick of ft1 being everyone's go to

it's a fine headphone

just not the everything headphone

"I want cheap closed back headphones for under $200." ok, ft1

[wispy gate]

not a lot of good closed backs in that price range with a soundstage tbh, looking at a lot higher or a lot lower

if you're willing do to gaming headphones, the Audeze Maxwell or possibly the Sennheiser HDB 630 (I didn't really like this one though, tough to rec)

[lean grove]

The hd620s has some of the best sound isolation I've heard on a pair of passive headphones. It doesn't sound the best though.

The new meze 99 V2 should also be on your list.

Chasing sound stage though, especially for closed backs, is always going to be a losing battle.

[broken grotto]

oh bro the meze 99 V2's

[wispy gate]

There's the focal azurys but it has this massive peak in the upper midrange, best to try first

[broken grotto]

ty for reminding me

[sage canyon]

how are the fractal scape?

[sturdy wigeon]

I want canton specifically, at my parents house they have full 7.1 channels with multi rooms and such and the sound is actually really impressive

I have about 4 links I’m trying to choose one but not sure which one, I will send these here

https://www.canton.de/en/products/type/compact-speaker/smart-townus-2/04362

https://www.canton.de/en/products/type/compact-speaker/smart-gle-3-s2/04244

https://www.canton.de/en/sound-worlds/multiroom-speaker/smart-soundbar-10/04159

https://www.canton.de/en/sound-worlds/multiroom-speaker/smart-sounddeck-100/04155

[main spoke]

hmm id rather not spend that much, im not an audio guy i just want something nice, nothing better for £100-160?

[tawdry gale]

If u have 179, hd550

[median birch]

Hi guys, I need some help with my XM4s, when I'm on a WhatsApp on my PC, it seems like my audio just get completely cut, I can't hear the peron or any pc sounds, does anyone know why?

[main spoke]

had a similar issue with airpods on windows, if you disable/change the mic input does it fix it?

[main spoke]

i can only see these for £250 hmm

thanks though, maybe the £90 560s is the only option

[lone flame]

better than DT 770 pro 😄

[warm scarab]

brand loyalty doesn't get you better sound

good speakers do

[lean grove]

I've never even heard of Canton so idk how much I can help with picking one out

[sturdy wigeon]

But is reading the specs in the site helps?

[warm scarab]

it really doesn't

[sturdy wigeon]

Not loyalty, it not like buying every iPhone or Apple device just cause it’s Apple, more like I have full system of this company at home and know is very high quality so I’m reasoning that other products there should be good as well

[warm scarab]

yeah that's called brand loyalty

[tawdry gale]

its 179 on the sennheiser site

black friday sale

amazon usually has the highest prices for audio gear

[median birch]

Unfortunately it doesn't

[main spoke]

how bad is the sound leak from open back headphones? i’m not worried about incoming sound, but will my mic be picking up everything i hear/will it be heard by everyone around me?

[graceful marsh]

anyone got iem reccos? the right side of my 7hz zero 2's just died, and im not sure if i should get another as i really loved the sound on it, or something like a chu ii/blues/gates/whatever, wanna spend less than 50 bucks, also, dongle dac reccos are also welcome

[lean grove]

Depends on how loud you listen and which headphones.

I compare it to someone watching a video their phone with low volume

[wispy gate]

speakers over soundbar 100%

if you have the room, speakers will almost always outperform a soundbar

[sturdy wigeon]

Kinda low on space

[wispy gate]

your PC isn't using the right bluetooth codec to transmit mic and audio, PC bluetooth is bad in general

[wispy gate]

maybe speaker stands?

if you want surround sound you're gonna need to have multiple speakers surrounding you for it to do anything

at least 5-7 to be exact

if you buy 2 speakers and put them on surround you're just getting 2.1 sound

[wispy gate]

it's not bad enough that it shows up on microphone, I use one in the studio

just change your noise gate if it picks up

[wispy gate]

Simgot has some great budget iems

[graceful marsh]

Any specific model?

[wispy gate]

are you in canada? usa?

[graceful marsh]

Eu

[wispy gate]

ooh expensive

https://www.linsoul.com/products/simgot-ew200?srsltid=AfmBOor9G44e_xzrhsulNBvj2UJ7tXKc6X8r5gxzbbQmRVn-iGs83d_Q

on sale rn

[graceful marsh]

Oooh

These look good

[wispy gate]

yea ngl they've been tempting me too lol

[serene surge]

moondrop aria 2, looks great, ignore the mouse it's bad

[graceful marsh]

A bit pricy at 80 bucks through

[serene surge]

ew200 it is then, from my experience every $10 increase in the $10-100 price range gives you a significant enough sound quality improvement, but you do need to have 320kbps or better files to fully take advantage of the audio clarity. youtube and free spotify are 128k & 192kbps, you can hear some differences but not all.

[chrome salmon]

Hey
i have wanting to switch from my Steelseries Arctis pro headset for some time now.
I have been looking at the Massdrop x Sennheiser HD 6XX Headphones and paring with a Røde Podmic and the AI-1
i will mainly using the headset for gaming, yt/netflix and music ofc.
is it a good choice all around or would you guys recommend something else

[lean grove]

Yeah the 6xx is great.

[wispy gate]

my man, that is a sick setup

I like the deathadder, battery on it sux though

[balmy shoal]

Hey guys, im actually starting to get more accustomed to the XM4s now, but of course having to buy a new headphone is still required since this is my friend's.

Anyone got some recommendations for headphones in the price range of the XM4s?

of course i'd still prefer more bass, ill be going down to a store tomorrow to try some headphones out

[lean grove]

See if you can find the audeze maxwells at the store

[balmy shoal]

Quick question here, i read some stuff about using "EQ" to make the headphone sound like how u want it to, is there some sort of "physical hardware" i can just put on the table and adjust it on the fly rather than to have to install softwares?

[wispy gate]

it's all software based, can walk you through the free software if you want, super easy barely an inconvenience

[balmy shoal]

By the way, i always plug my headphones into this, it came with my logitech g pro x headset, (of course the headset isnt in use anymore and was dead long ago)

this DAC makes everything sound way better to me than motherboard audio, i dont need to up my volume that much aswell

I dont use the software/drivers for it though, i remember once i installed it and it made the audio real bad, but it allowed me to set the EQ settings, and when i uninstall the software the sound became better again with the EQ settings applied, i currently have all of it at Neutral, i didnt touch anything

[balmy shoal]

Im assuming equalizer APO with "peace" GUI?

[lean grove]

Yeah. Qudelix 5k would be the best and easiest to use.

It's about $110. And one of the best devices for portable audio, especially if you like to fiddle with settings

[wispy gate]

exactly

[lean grove]

I'm like, 80% sure there's something cheaper out there that does parametric EQ

But I can never remember what it is

[wispy gate]

or wavelet for cell phone

qudelix has bluetooth too, very handy

[balmy shoal]

So like, i eventually ended up installing the software for this to adjust the EQ on the DAC, i did like +5 on the first bar and just uninstalled it (the EQ saves into the DAC itself so i dont need the software)

It sounds even better now, pretty close to XM3's punchy bass feeling

Damn, EQ really is some magic tool 🤣

[wispy gate]

It really is, I dunno why people hate it so much, it's great

[steel escarp]

@lean grove the Final DX3000 is the new closed back recommendation at 600 euro

that thing is better than the new Heddphone D1

Its a bit V-shaped

but man, that thing has no right to sound that good for 600 euros

It runs off anything:
Sensitivity: 96dB/mw
Impedance: 37Ω（1kHz）

only down side with this headphone is that the earpads sit on your earlobs, but it wasn't uncomfortable for me. and I very easily get agitated by uncomfortable earpads.

[lean grove]

D1 has some fancy tricks that make it good aside from just the way it sounds

Final has had half-decent closed backs for a while now

[steel escarp]

the UX3000 was okay from what I remember

donno about any other closed backs from them besides this one

but this is what the fiio ft1 should have been if it was a good closed back

[hasty tide]

guys, im looking @ amazon rn and

Logitech g pro x wireless
vs
Hyper X cloud III s

which one? both are priced similarly rn around 130$ im leaning towards the logi but it seems like its a older product+ no bluetooth/wifi (IK the gen 2's have them but i dont wanna pay 200$ for a headphone)

but if the logi is better ill get it regardless

from the couple review's ive watched: the hyper x software is not as customizable as the logi one for sound tuning

but apparently theres a newer software update coming? if anyone can confirm that/if it can make the hyper x sound alot better, id be down to consider that one esp cuz its a newer product

[civic beacon]

If you want Bluetooth in addition to a 2.4GHz USB dongle and can spend another $30, these are infinitely better than the older G Pro X model. In case it helps, I have the lesser G733 model and have been happy with their sound, battery life, and the software is... acceptable. (All peripheral software sucks.) https://www.amazon.com/Customizable-LIGHTSYNC-Lightspeed-Compatible-Detachable/dp/B08VFCH2HS/

That said, I would peruse sites like https://www.rtings.com/headphones/reviews/best and https://www.soundguys.com/ to make an educated purchase.

[livid ruin]

def not the gpx

[hasty tide]

hmm ok

ty for the site reccomendation

its like the software for the gpx seems so much more customizable, but idk its also a 6 y/o headphone atp, when i can get smth newer

[hasty tide]

i wasnt sure if those ones were good, ty for letting me know

the branding is weird cuz i just assumed the gpx stuff was the top end logitech stuff (that isnt astro's) like best quality for gaming latency features etc

[civic beacon]

Understandable. Logitech has undergone a lot of branding changes over the last 5-10 years, especially when it comes to their acquisition of both Astro and Blue! Microphones. It feels like they've been phasing out their older "gaming" branded products in favor of newer non-"gaming" branded models.

[civic beacon]

I'm absolutely not an "audiophile" expert in the traditional sense. So long as it sounds mostly flat (so I can apply my custom EQ in Voicemeter - see screenshot) I'll be mostly happy with the headphones. That said, I have the Logitech G733 at home, a family member has the G535, and I have the G435 at work.

• The G535 sound pretty much the same as my G733 and have a battery that lasts ~4-8 hours longer, but don't have the "licensing" to use the Blue! Mic software portion of the software.
• The G435 are super lightweight and don't have a boom mic that can get in the way, but for their price I am pleasantly surprised every time I use them in Teams meetings at work.

[hasty tide]

ooooh ok

[fair pawn]

Finally got a decent amp

[willow prairie]

Nice

[queen ether]

I am looking to buy 2 speakers for behind / under my monitor. Does someone have recommendations? I don't know if it is useful but I already own a focusrite scarlet solo

[lean grove]

Only speakers I know of that can fit there are gonna be creative pebbles, or some sort of Bluetooth speaker.

[lone flame]

are u comparing open back with a closed back?

[steel escarp]

yes

[lone flame]

and why?

[steel escarp]

what amp is that

because I can, the Final headphone doesn't even sound closed

its a big compliment to the Final headphone

[lone flame]

closed backs have so much mor variance in sound
also so much more stuff that affects sound than open backs

also i dont find any measurements of those

[steel escarp]

yeah they are brand new

[lone flame]

i wait for some measurements before i drop stuff

[steel escarp]

they are like 35% on ear

[lone flame]

if you have small ears 100% and big ears maybe 50%

[steel escarp]

its mostly your ear lobes

[lone flame]

closed backs vary in sound alot.

[steel escarp]

Fiio FT1 was really bad on my head

so was the Audeze Maxwell

Both were veiled in the treble

[lean grove]

https://headphones.com/blogs/reviews/2

[steel escarp]

yeah just found it out

I tried the Enleum amp-23r

it was mid for Susvara

[steel escarp]

wait how much u pay for that thing???

hopefully not 6k

[fair pawn]

No lol

Some people say 13r sounds better than 23r

[steel escarp]

Did you ever try a Holo Bliss?

[fair pawn]

2.3k

[steel escarp]

ah okay not too bad

The only thing I heard that opened up the Susvara sound stage a lot was the Holo Bliss, it was noticably more narrow on the 23R, also 23R was quite warm

I sold my Susvara and got HE1000 Unveiled

it literally runs fine on the Mojo 2, no need to source gear cope

but you gotta be okay with everything having a really large scale to it when you buy these headphones

[tawdry gale]

Full demo list for today: Moses > Noah > Lux > HEX > Asteria > Lumen > Que > Daybreak

[steel escarp]

IEMs?

[tawdry gale]

yes

[fair pawn]

I will try one very soon

someone in my city bought one

[steel escarp]

cool

have fun

[fair pawn]

ur not gonna get a May?

[steel escarp]

nah

[fair pawn]

it's a great looking stack

[steel escarp]

the Cord Mojo 2 is insanely good

[wispy gate]

iloud speakers. Dont let the looks fool you

They sound better than they appear

[wispy gate]

How does the unveiled stack up to susvara?

[icy salmon]

whats the price range?

[steel escarp]

Everything is huge on them

it does kinda make some stuff unlistenable