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Nikelu
111
Jan 17, 2016
Is this a good headset for music too?I play games too but I would like it for casual use too.
lvince95
248
Jan 18, 2016
NikeluDefinitely not.
Nikelu
111
Jan 18, 2016
lvince95Which one would be an okay one.Not looking for the best,but a medium low budget one
lvince95
248
Jan 18, 2016
NikeluThe best recommendation I have for you in this price range would be the Takstar Pro 80 for gaming. A very good entry headphone. You can get these for ~$60-80 USD I believe. I heard that they're also quite similar to the Hyper Cloud X.
If you stretch your budget by just a little bit more, I recommend the Philips SHP9500 at ~$93 USD on Amazon right now for music. As long as bass is not that important in all of your music you couldn't go wrong with the SHP9500. They have a similar sound signature to the Sennheiser HD600, but have better soundstage and maybe a bit more bass (can't remember anymore). But of course, the HD600 is much better in other areas.
Gaming headsets tend to have exaggerated and muddy bass and not much of anything else. If you're used to that, you will probably not like the SHP9500 on the first try. I don't want you to feel like you wasted your money if that indeed happens to you, as it takes time to get used to a more neutral and much clearer sound especially if you're coming from gaming headsets. I always find that gaming headsets sound really muddy and always lack clarity in my limited experience with gaming headsets.
For instance, the Razer Kraken 7.1 that my cousin has is one of the worst headsets I've ever heard in my life for the premium price they command. Sound quality wise, I would value them at $20. And that headset can only be used via a USB connection, and has no 3.5mm plug! Not sure if you can use a USB to 3.5mm adapter, but it's still just absolutely ridiculous nonetheless. This problem can be even worse with noisy USB ports.
The Takstar Pro 80 would be a better fit for now I reckon. It has good soundstage for your gaming needs, and also has decent-good clarity for both gaming and music.
Nikelu
111
Jan 19, 2016
lvince95Had a cheap "gaming" headset from a noname brand of my country couple years ago.I am checking right now for that phillips in europe.Any other brands you would recommend for great audio sound?
lvince95
248
Jan 19, 2016
NikeluFor below $100, go for the Koss Porta Pro, Takstar 80 or Philips SHP9500 I would say. The Philips are good for the money, and I've also read great things about the Koss (really good price/performance ratio).
Anything above $100 would probably be above your budget, and if you stretch it to $150-200 it becomes a totally different ballgame.
Nikelu
111
Jan 20, 2016
lvince95Is the philips Fidelio x2 running right now a great buy?I hear a lot of good reviews for it. I said medium budget probably because I have seen earbuds that cost 2000 here. So I think I can stretch it till 200,if this will last for a looooong time
lvince95
248
Jan 20, 2016
NikeluOh, I had no idea you could stretch to 200. I gave some recommendations assuming you're in the <$100 range. Short answer, yes it's a fantastic buy at $200, probably the best for your needs.
1. It has a very wide soundstage for gaming, music and movies, and it's open-backed (doesn't isolate noise and leaks sound, so it won't be ideal in noisy environments).
2. It has a somewhat V-shaped, more U-shaped like sound signature actually, which is perfect for modern music like pop/EDM/rap etc. It's mids also aren't as recessed as other V-shaped headphones like the DT990.
3. It has low impedance and high sensitivity, which means you don't have to buy an external DAC/amp to realize it's full potential (unless you have a crappy motherboard). If that's the case, you still wouldn't need to spend much more (something cheap like the Fiio E10k which goes for $60 here is more than sufficient) because the X2 doesn't need much power to be driven well.
Only con is that it has some QC issues at the moment, and that may be why MD managed to get a deal this good to offload bad stock. You should look up on the QC issues (glued pads, channel imbalance, different sound etc.) before buying.
But IF you get a good pair or the QC issue is solved, this is actually the best one that I would suggest for $200. They are still well worth the money at $300 and they compete with the likes of the HD600 and HD650, and at $200, they're an absolute steal. I've owned a pair of these before as well, and would recommend them without a doubt.
Jumping to the X2 from gaming headsets would be the equivalent of going from 360p to 720p/1080p
Nikelu
111
Jan 21, 2016
lvince95Damn you are so helpful,and have so much knowledge. Thank you for your time.
lvince95
248
Jan 21, 2016
NikeluNo problem, I had someone help me too when I just started out years ago. It gets boring at work anyway.
Cheers.
Nikelu
111
Jan 22, 2016
lvince95and lastly,you can fix how they stand on your head right? Like the length etc. Also do I have to buy an adapter or do they fit in regular holes.example my pc audio in
skyraze
8
Jan 23, 2016
lvince95you seem very experienced, im pretty new too. I put down some serious money a bit ago and i feel it was a bad investment. I got the steelseries Siberia elite prism. Compared to my gamecom 788, they dont seem to have as much fidelity. But granted I've used gamecoms for 6 years, i might have a biased, untrained ear. (I could use the USB DAC it comes with, but i also have a very powerful audio driver on my Mobo; X99S gaming 7)
lvince95
248
Jan 23, 2016
NikeluI'm not sure if the X2 has adjustable headband length, I can't remember really. I think there wasn't, but you won't need to adjust length anyway because it has a suspension strap in place. It should fit most heads fine with the suspension system, and I've never seen people complaining about the fit.
The new pads they use in their recent batches might be a bit itchy though, no idea :/. It's confirmed by MD themselves that the X2 they are selling will come with glued pads.
Make an informed decision before purchasing the X2. You can roll the dice along with the other 200+ people. Chances are you get a perfectly sounding pair with glued pads, or a bad sounding pair with glued pads.
lvince95
248
Jan 23, 2016
skyrazeI guess I'm somewhat experienced hah, not overly experienced though. I've not ventured into the realm of $1000+ yet, because that's where diminishing returns kick in hard and I'm not comfortable spending that amount of money for smaller improvements just yet. All my components in my setup cost <$1000 (but they total up to >$1000 haha). During my 'journey' I've tried, bought and returned quite a number of headphones and DAC/Amps before settling on my current end-game. I'm in university and work part-time instead of drinking to fund this money-siphoning hobby which I let myself get sucked into.
Well, if you're happy with the Gamescom, then that's all that matters for now! If you ever feel the need to upgrade, do not get more gaming headsets. I can personally assure you from experience that most gaming headsets especially from companies like razer, steelseries etc. will not be worth the money. At $150-200ish you can definitely find much better options. Things like the beyerdynamic DT990/770. AKG Q701/K7XX, and others will probably be a significant upgrade over the gamescom and steelseries.
Granted, I'm not sure how good the gamescom is, but I'm gonna have to assume it's like other gaming headsets. The only decent gaming headset I know that is worth the money is the Takstar/Hyper Cloud II. Also have no idea how your mobo's performance is like. I only know that most mobos are *usually* bad, unless you have a Macbook which generally have good DACs. Or if you have the ASUS Essence STX which is not a bad option for audiophiles who game. I have no experience with mobos sorry, and I've not seen anyone use mobos in the forums I frequent.
TL;DR: If you want to upgrade headphones in the future for higher fidelity, look for headphones made by headphone companies, and not gaming companies.
skyraze
8
Jan 23, 2016
lvince95thought as much. I was looking at V Moda M-100 or the fidelio X2, i have a bit that i can budget. As far as the mobo goes, i'm actually quite surprised, compared to the USB dongle that comes with the headsets, its pretty good. Barely any electrical noise compared to the dongle, and sound quality is pretty crisp too. I don't know too much about sound, but the built in amp/dac has its own dedicated power source, so that would remove most of that noise you get from other mobo's.
lvince95
248
Jan 23, 2016
skyrazeWhat will your main use of them be? Portable or home?
I never liked using IEMs because they dig too deep into my ears in the winter when I need to cover my ears with a beanie. I actually have the M-100 (http://imgur.com/4K7H0j4) right now that I use as dedicated ear-muffs for the winter. I don't have to use a beanie now haha.
I don't really care if my music sounds fantastic when I'm on the go. As long as it sounds decent-good and isolates, it's good enough for me. If you're not looking for portability, I would take the X2>>>>>M-100.
I bought the M-100 at $150, and I honestly wouldn't pay $200-$300 for them. It has surprisingly cleaner bass then I expected though, but if you're looking for higher fidelity, it will probably be an improvement over the Gamescom but would be worse than the X2. The mids and treble on the V-Moda are recessed as fuck, and there are some weird peaks in the already veiled treble which makes it sound unnaturally. They're something like 'Beats for audiophiles' I would say.
I had both the X2 and the M-100 at the same time before, and switching to the X2 from the M-100 is akin to removing a veil covering the mids and treble on the M-100. Everything just seems clearer and cleaner, and soundstage expanded significantly obviously (it's open vs closed so it's not really a fair comparison though). They have similar sound signatures, but the X2 just does everything better except for bass quantity. The X2 has a mid-bass hump but rolls off the sub-bass somewhat quickly.
Why do I have the M-100 and not the X2 anymore? Well, I have much better headphones for home and work use now. However, I don't have a portable headphone other than the V-Moda and don't want to spend more on portables, so there's that.
TL;DR: Home (music, gaming, movies, etc.) = X2 >>>>> M-100 If you need portability or want to use them on-the-go = V-Moda M-100
skyraze
8
Jan 23, 2016
lvince95they will be next to my computer most of the time, so i think the X2 will be my option then. Bass isn't the most important thing, but i do like being able to feel the boom of it. I'm good with IEM's, i got a little pair of Sony's from a walgreens a while back, things are not bad at all and they have those sports clips on the ears so they dont get yanked off. great for work and walking. Other than that, i have digital silence IEM's w/ sound cancellation, they are great for travel purposes, not the greatest quality, and sound cancelling slightly lowers fidelity of the music, but worth the isolation. thanks for the help.
Also, I did a bit of testing and found i prefer my onboard sound better than the USB option for my current headphone. it's louder and gives amazing mids.
lvince95
248
Jan 23, 2016
skyrazeX2 will deliver on bass and fits your bill as long as you have a good source.