Audio Era: Because Sound Matters

[Jeremiah]

Perhaps there is interest on Era to discuss audio, for games and general use?

Sound is a massive part of the experience in games and provides a competitive advantage in TPS/FPS. Consoles generations come and go, TV's and monitors continue to push higher resolutions, higher frame rates, HDR etc -- good sound can and will stay with you. Best of all, it does not need to cost a lot. If this topic picks up, I'll be more than happy to build recommendations at various price points for:

Headphones
Speakers (jumping the gun with Genelec)
Sound-bars

I spent $900 on my HD800 6 years ago, which comes to $150/year. They will last me many more years, across many more consoles.

For now, I'd like to recommend a few games worthy of your auditory senses:

Games That Melt Your Ears

Hellblade
UC TLL
Alien Isolation
Witcher 3
Battlefield 1
Overwatch
For Honor
CS GO

Resources

Headphones

Headphone Era
RTINGS Reviews

 

[Sun's Resting Place]

A pair of Micca MB42X bookshelf speakers that run into a Dayton DTA-1 amplifier with a volume knob is how I like to roll with my PS4 Pro.

For me, it's a cheaper and better solution than getting a soundbar.

They have several kinds of different stereo bookshelf speakers on sale during Black Friday, so if you can find a nice pair of bookshelf speakers and hook them into a DTA-1 I'd recommend doing it.

I spent about $80 on my Miccas and $35 on the amp.

 

[Deleted member 4346]

I have an Aperion 5 speaker setup- towers up front, center, bookshelves in back, paired with an SVS subwoofer. All this is powered by a Yamaha receiver that supports losses 5.1/7.1 but not Atmos. I grabbed this stuff 9 years ago and haven't felt any temptation to upgrade. It performs just fine for my needs, though I could see perhaps adding a second subwoofer, if my wife wouldn't lose her shit over it.

 

[Arkanius]

I'm rocking an O2 Amp with a pair of Beyerdynamics DT-880 Premium
I also have an X-Fi Titanium for the HRTF algorithm.

Very happy with it. My end game

 

[napoleonic]

Fact : sound tech advancement in games are disappointing...

Demo video from 7 years ago



A newer paper materials regarding real time audio

 

[napoleonic]

You can search on youtube with keyword : real time sound propagation.

Another demo, from microsoft






Basically the audio equivalent of things like ray tracing and physical based rendering...

 

[PurpleMoustache]

My audio setup is kinda bananas right now:

I have a USB 4 port hub that has plugged into it a pair of Audio Engine A2+ speakers, as well as a Schiit Fulla 2 using Sony MDR-V7506 headphones. Sitting underneath the Fulla 2 is a Schiit Magni 2 Uber that is providing a headphone amp/passthrough for a Audio Technica LP-120 turntable that then gets fed into the Audio Engine A2+'s. The USB hub has the table connected so I can record or stream in what I'm listening into games that use external audio sources for gameplay (Polynomial, rhythm games, etc).

I also have a pair of Etymotic HF3's and an adapter for the Fulla, but for whatever reason, recently they stopped playing well with my PC system, whether that be plugged into the laptop directly, or using an adapter for the 1/4th headphone jack. Works fine with Switch, PS4, PSVR, and phone though.

 

[Smash-It Stan]

How would I use my HD 598's on the PS4? Wouldn't plugging them into the controller give me terrible audio quality? That's where an usb amp comes in I believe, but which do I buy? I want as little sound manipulation as possible, so all the bells and whistle stuff I don't want, I want essentially a headphone jack into my PS4 similar to me just plugging my headphones into my computer.

 

[MegaBeefBowl]

My setup is BeyerDynamic DT770 Pro (250ohm) with a Nobsound NS-08E Tube Amp

The amp could stand to be upgraded but I haven't gotten around to it.

 

[abrasivemurk]

I use my Sennheiser HD 558 through the headphone jack on Dualshock 4 but the volume is low. I just bought a FiiO A3 to amp the sound coming from Dualshock, hope it fixes it.

 

[Jeremiah]

How would I use my HD 598's on the PS4? Wouldn't plugging them into the controller give me terrible audio quality? That's where an usb amp comes in I believe, but which do I buy? I want as little sound manipulation as possible, so all the bells and whistle stuff I don't want, I want essentially a headphone jack into my PS4 similar to me just plugging my headphones into my computer.

Click to shrink...

The 598's are awesome headphones! May I ask what your budget is? They have all in one DAC/AMP's which is my initial thought.

 

[Cain]

I also have a pair of DT770 Pro with 250ohm. Are there any good sounding Headsets on the level of the DT? I use a Soundblaster Z as soundcard :)

 

[napoleonic]

Nobody here cares about these sound fx tech? Lol...

Another demo

 

[super-famicom]

I use a Dr DAC2 DX TE DAC/amp combo plugged into the PS4 via optical, and PC via USB, with either Audio Technica AD900 or AKG K601. Also a Modmic. But the Dr DAC has been hissing a lot recently, so I'm looking to get a Schiit stack (most likely the Modi 2 Uber DAC and the Magni 3 amp) in the future. I also use a pair of Presonus Eris E5 speakers with the PS4.

If you're looking for good quality sound, I'd recommend against a "gamer" branded headset. Go with a decent pair of headphones and a clip on mic.

Official OT is here:
https://www.resetera.com/threads/he...n-we-remain-lossless.2975/page-3#post-1149347

Edit-
For PC users, if you're looking for an audio mixer, Vinny from Giant Bomb recommended this in a past Beastcast: https://www.vb-audio.com/Voicemeeter/banana.htm

 

[Lockjaw333]

You forgot Witcher 3 in your list of ear melting games. Just superb audio.

I bought a schiit fulla 2 several months ago and it was a revelation for me. First DAC I tried was the fiio E10k, and honestly I wasn't impressed. It sounded better than my crap onboard but not that great. The fulla 2 was instantly a huge Upgrade. For $99 I'd say it's the cheapest way for someone to step into better audio.

I rotate using shp9500s, hd 598 Cs and the Hyperx cloud 2s. The clouds were actually my first wow moment with audio. Had only used typical gaming headsets before getting them, and they blew me away. In fact I still like them the best out of my three cans.

I really want to step up to hd 650s or something, but still working up the nerve to bite the bullet.

 

[Butane]

Just posted yesterday in the headphone thread about getting into some nicer headphones for gaming. I'm most likely going to start out with the shp9500 with a Vmoda boompro, and then get a a dac/amp in case I want to upgrade to something different in the future.

Any suggestions would be welcomed. I'm trying to stay within $150 to $200 for headphones/mic/amp right now.

 

[Smash-It Stan]

The 598's are awesome headphones! May I ask what your budget is? They have all in one DAC/AMP's which is my initial thought.

Click to shrink...

Does a budget really matter? I assumed that there was just a baseline amp I could use that wouldnt degrade the audio quality if used with my PS4. I know Amp's are supposed to just, magically make my audio sound better if I use it with my PC, but I was told unless I get a hd650+ series then my computer would give me the same result. Would a $50 amp really sound that much worse to a $100 amp? Does the wizardry of amps really scale with cost?

 

[Glenn Gould]

I really want to step up to hd 650s or something, but still working up the nerve to bite the bullet.

Click to shrink...

if you haven't already then you should sign up to MassDrop, I've recently had a pair of Sennheiser HD6XXs delivered to me which I paid $200 for. They're a special edition of the HD650s that are exclusive to massDrop, they're a slightly different colour and have a shorter lead but apart from those two details the hardware is identical.

They've listed them a couple of times now and they're really popular so it's best to be quick with them but I'd be amazed if they didn't list them again at some point.

 

[PurpleMoustache]

Just posted yesterday in the headphone thread about getting into some nicer headphones for gaming. I'm most likely going to start out with the shp9500 with a Vmoda boompro, and then get a a dac/amp in case I want to upgrade to something different in the future.

Any suggestions would be welcomed. I'm trying to stay within $150 to $200 for headphones/mic/amp right now.

Click to shrink...

I swear up and down by these guys: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00001WRSJ/?tag=era0f0-20

Or these: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000AJIF4E/?tag=era0f0-20

(borh are the same, but with different stickers on them). It's the best entry level studio headphones, used by boom mic operators, recording artists and more. Great for gaming, comfortable as hell, and inexpensive.

 

[III-V]

Origins has had some excellent surround sound.

 

[PurpleMoustache]

Nobody here cares about these sound fx tech? Lol...

Another demo

Click to shrink...

On the same subject, Valve bought a team working on really good sound propagation tech, and I've used it in a small student project, and it works great. Was able to make a maze that players could navigate in first person with their eyes closed, only relying on sounds.
https://valvesoftware.github.io/steam-audio/

 

[Jeremiah]

Nobody here cares about these sound fx tech? Lol...

Another demo

Click to shrink...

Looks super interesting and will watch once I'm amble.

Does a budget really matter? I assumed that there was just a baseline amp I could use that wouldnt degrade the audio quality if used with my PS4. I know Amp's are supposed to just, magically make my audio sound better if I use it with my PC, but I was told unless I get a hd650+ series then my computer would give me the same result. Would a $50 amp really sound that much worse to a $100 amp? Does the wizardry of amps really scale with cost?

Click to shrink...

I'm not entirely sure whether this product works on the PS4, but I've heard it on my friends PC. It's $100 and functions as both a AMP and DAC: http://www.schiit.com/products/fulla-2

It will provide a noticeable sound upgrade to your HD598... especially when comparing the audio out from the DS4, the difference will be like SD to HD lol.

You forgot Witcher 3 in your list of ear melting games. Just superb audio.

I really want to step up to hd 650s or something, but still working up the nerve to bite the bullet.

Click to shrink...

How could I forget... added it.

Okay being straight up here, the HD 650 can be an end game headphone, in my opinion at least. The difference was hugely noticeable for me when I made the jump from 598 to 650, less so from 650 to 800. Feed it a good source and it will keep up.

 

[Wiped]

Sound: LG SH7 sound bar. Man, it is incredible, bassy and powerful yet clear.

Headphones: V-mods LP2s. Man they sound amazing, plug these in and forget the world.

 

[Deleted member 3925]

How would I use my HD 598's on the PS4? Wouldn't plugging them into the controller give me terrible audio quality? That's where an usb amp comes in I believe, but which do I buy? I want as little sound manipulation as possible, so all the bells and whistle stuff I don't want, I want essentially a headphone jack into my PS4 similar to me just plugging my headphones into my computer.

Click to shrink...

I have the 598's! What I use is a Turtle Beach Dolby Sound Processor (DSS). Much better than the controller, and isn't too expensive.

Note that your PS4 needs an optical port (Slim doesn't have that I believe). Or you can plug it into your TV.

 

[LanceX2]

Onkyo 646 7.1 with pioneer FS series towers and center and two three eay ceiling speakers.

The ceiling speakers arent exactly where Atmos wants them because a Fan is in the way but i turned volune up on them and Atmos sounds fantastic.

Eventually ill do a 7.1.2 when I get new receiver and add 2 on front of me more where atmos wants

 

[Conkerkid11]

I've had a pair of Astro A50s that have lasted me like the past 6 years, but I keep browsing around looking at dedicated headphones and attachable mics.

 

[stryke]

First I laughed at the notion of spending $900 on headphones as per OP - then I realised I've probably spent slightly under that amount on 3 different headphones.

 

[MrH]

I don't know anything about headphones or their specs so I'll ask here, I currently have a very old pair of Sennheiser PC161's which have served me well for many years but I'm wondering how much of an upgrade would a more modern solution be? I play a lot of competitive shooters so hearing footsteps is my biggest concern, closely followed by comfort, it doesn't even feel like I'm wearing my 161's.

Their full specs: https://www.cnet.com/products/sennheiser-pc-161-headset-series/specs/

I'm using an Asus DG 5.1 sound card.

EDIT: I'm looking at the Corsair Stinger, how much of an upgrade would they be? https://www.cnet.com/products/hyperx-cloud-stinger-headset/specs/

 

[Xx 720]

Av receiver is onkyo txsr575, andrew jones 5.1 speakers ( pioneer, 2nd gen) onkyo atmos speakers. Best video games in terms of positional audio - killing floor 2, assassins creed origins (has actual atmos spundtrack), and any uhd blu ray. For videogames that don't have an atmos soundtrack, I use the "dts neural X" setting, makes the best virtual 5.1.2 audio, when the dragons fly overhead in BotW or the helicopter in forza 7, it's spine tingling.

 

[Donuts]

I swear up and down by these guys: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00001WRSJ/?tag=era0f0-20

Or these: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000AJIF4E/?tag=era0f0-20

(borh are the same, but with different stickers on them). It's the best entry level studio headphones, used by boom mic operators, recording artists and more. Great for gaming, comfortable as hell, and inexpensive.

Click to shrink...

What mic do you use with those headphones? Im currently using the shp9500 / boompro combo and I'm digging the boompro. Those headphones you linked don't have a detachable cable so I'm a bit hesitant

 

[Last Jon Standing]

For the players who are on a budget and want a good headset: the Tritton Ax Pro+ is a really good one for an affordable price.

 

[Nintendo]

I recommend Rainbow Six Siege for ear melting needs. Sound is key in that game and it's super well done.

 

[LightKiosk]

Bad Company 2 was the first game that really made me appreciate sound.

As far as listening devices, I've had a really good experience with my HyperX Cloud's. When I'm not using those, I have an older SONY soundbar that came with a subwoofer. It gets plenty loud and beefy when I need it to.

 

[Servbot24]

For my computer I have a HiFi-Man 400i fed by Schiit Magni 2 + Modi 2 stack. Unfortunately I have no special set up for my TV. Just the built in Samsung KS8000 speakers. Hoping to find a modest set of speakers for black friday.

 

[Prologue]

What about wireless bose and connecting to the tv through bluetooth? I've noticed im getting more and more annoyed with wires with my laptop

 

[Shin]

Good thread, I have a few questions of my own about a sound setup.
Somewhere down the road I'll build a new computer and use a dedicated soundcard and shelf speakers.
But I'm not tech savvy when it comes to audio at all, I just don't want things to sound like it's coming out of a tin can.

So this is the soundcard I bought some years ago off ebay because it's long been discontinued: https://asia.creative.com/p/sound-blaster/sound-blaster-x-fi-titanium-hd
Till this day it still seems to hold up (I think), anyway they'll go paired with these speakers: https://audioengineusa.com/shop/poweredspeakers/a5-plus-powered-speakers/
And the subwoofer will be from AudioEngline as well though it's not so great I believe or the previous model was better (something like this), S8 subwoofer btw....https://audioengineusa.com/shop/subwoofers/s8-powered-subwoofer/
Then to top it off I'll have this thing connected: https://www.whathifi.com/sony/uda-1/review but here's the problem I have no freaking idea what a DAC does and/or if it will give the desired result with this setup or the speakers/soundcard for that matter.
So any audiophile or tech savvy people can look up everything I just listed and/or their specs and give some pointers?

 

[napoleonic]

Good thread, I have a few questions of my own about a sound setup.
Somewhere down the road I'll build a new computer and use a dedicated soundcard and shelf speakers.
But I'm not tech savvy when it comes to audio at all, I just don't want things to sound like it's coming out of a tin can.

So this is the soundcard I bought some years ago off ebay because it's long been discontinued: https://asia.creative.com/p/sound-blaster/sound-blaster-x-fi-titanium-hd
Till this day it still seems to hold up (I think), anyway they'll go paired with these speakers: https://audioengineusa.com/shop/poweredspeakers/a5-plus-powered-speakers/
And the subwoofer will be from AudioEngline as well though it's not so great I believe or the previous model was better (something like this), S8 subwoofer btw....https://audioengineusa.com/shop/subwoofers/s8-powered-subwoofer/
Then to top it off I'll have this thing connected: https://www.whathifi.com/sony/uda-1/review but here's the problem I have no freaking idea what a DAC does and/or if it will give the desired result with this setup or the speakers/soundcard for that matter.
So any audiophile or tech savvy people can look up everything I just listed and/or their specs and give some pointers?

Click to shrink...

Here is the thing, you don't even need a soundcard or a dedicated hw dac if you already/plan to use av receiver and the lile, simply passthrough the digital audio via spdif or hdmi or the like...

Although I do have one question about it, how do people setup pc to passthrough dtsma/ddhdma/dolby atmos kind of audio to modern receiver in these days? Because I know onboard soundcard don't have hdmi out, so is it via gpu or how?

Explanation please?

 

[Shin]

Here is the thing, you don't even need a soundcard or a dedicated hw dac if you already/plan to use av receiver and the lile, simply passthrough the digital audio via spdif or hdmi or the like...

Although I do have one question about it, how do people setup pc to passthrough dtsma/ddhdma/dolby atmos kind of audio to modern receiver in these days? Because I know onboard soundcard don't have hdmi out, so is it via gpu or how?

Explanation please?

Click to shrink...

No receiver, plus I like the small size of that DAC next or under my computer.
I'll ask around and see what people say since you mentioned some benefits to that setup.

 

[Lucentto]

I'm currently using a pair of Philips Fidelio X1 and a Turtle Beach DSS with my PS4. I'm starting to wonder if there are ways to improve my sound game or there are better headphones around the range of $200. My X1 is top notch though.

 

[napoleonic]

No receiver, plus I like the small size of that DAC next or under my computer.
I'll ask around and see what people say since you mentioned some benefits to that setup.

Click to shrink...

Well after seeing your info, my statement still applies to to your situation, you don't need that soundcard, just connect your onboard sound output to your dac hw.... Dac hw is basically mini receiver.

Soundcard is obsolete, period... Unless they take a step forward in games and start using modern sound propagation audio fx tech like I posted above, when they do that then a new modern sound processor maybe needed once again and soundcard might get relevant again.

 

[super-famicom]

I'm currently using a pair of Philips Fidelio X1 and a Turtle Beach DSS with my PS4. I'm starting to wonder if there are ways to improve my sound game or there are better headphones around the range of $200. My X1 is top notch though.

Click to shrink...

The X1 are great and don't need an amp since they are low impedance. Getting a dedicated DAC like a Schiit Modi 2 would help out.

 

[Minx]

Surround sound: L and R are RBH R5Bi bookshelf https://youtu.be/cagcahy8xc4 matching center RBH R56Ci. Surrounds are Ascend Acoustics HTM-200SE. Sub is a Power Sound Audio V1500. Things really kicks. Denon 3200 receiver. Looking to get some Dolby atmos speakers soon.

Headphones: Phillips Fidelio X2.

 

[zerocalories]

I use a 5.1 Yamaha receiver with Monoprice 5.1 speaker setup connected via HDMI


It fucking bumps and the accuracy is great in r6:siege

I do get some echo problems everyone and a while for certain games but overall it's a positive experience

I hate wearing headphones

 

[sca]

I was wondering if anyone knew if the Monoprice Desktop Headphone Amp is good? I just received the HD6xx and wanted to drive them with that amp or similar, price-wise.

edit: geez that pic is huge

 

[super-famicom]

Good thread, I have a few questions of my own about a sound setup.
Somewhere down the road I'll build a new computer and use a dedicated soundcard and shelf speakers.
But I'm not tech savvy when it comes to audio at all, I just don't want things to sound like it's coming out of a tin can.

So this is the soundcard I bought some years ago off ebay because it's long been discontinued: https://asia.creative.com/p/sound-blaster/sound-blaster-x-fi-titanium-hd
Till this day it still seems to hold up (I think), anyway they'll go paired with these speakers: https://audioengineusa.com/shop/poweredspeakers/a5-plus-powered-speakers/
And the subwoofer will be from AudioEngline as well though it's not so great I believe or the previous model was better (something like this), S8 subwoofer btw....https://audioengineusa.com/shop/subwoofers/s8-powered-subwoofer/
Then to top it off I'll have this thing connected: https://www.whathifi.com/sony/uda-1/review but here's the problem I have no freaking idea what a DAC does and/or if it will give the desired result with this setup or the speakers/soundcard for that matter.
So any audiophile or tech savvy people can look up everything I just listed and/or their specs and give some pointers?

Click to shrink...

A DAC converts the digital data of a music file into analog sound. A dedicated external model will definitely perform better than onboard sound on the motherboard. A high end sound card may perform similarly to an external DAC, but I'm not well versed in them.

Audioengine a5 are a good mid-range choice.

 

[leng jai]

Hopefully there's proper discussion in here about the sound mixing and design for old and new games as they are released. OT threads are pretty useless got audio impressions.

Also there's a headphone megathread in hangouts if you want advice on what gear to buy.

 

[DieH@rd]

Does anyone know why my PC [Asus B350 Strix mobo and GTX1070] is sending only one audio channel to my Sony XE90 [X900E] TV via HDMI [native TV apps and PS4 Pro are outputing full stereo]? I am planning to eventually upgrade my sound setup to something better, but this issue is complicating my cabling optinos.

 

[Jeremiah]

No receiver, plus I like the small size of that DAC next or under my computer.
I'll ask around and see what people say since you mentioned some benefits to that setup.

Click to shrink...

Hey Shin,

Ideally, you would stop using your sound card, and instead use the DAC. Connect the following way:

PC -> USB Cable -> DAC USB Digital In -> RCA L&R Out -> Into Subwoofer Input-> RCA L&R -> Out of Subwoofer Output -> Into Speakers

This is ideal because the subwoofer will filter and play the low frequencies (lets say anything below 50 hz), and send the rest to your speakers so you don't get double bass.
I'm not familiar with the company, but do try it out.

Hopefully there's proper discussion in here about the sound mixing and design for old and new games as they are released. OT threads are pretty useless got audio impressions.

Also there's a headphone megathread in hangouts if you want advice on what gear to buy.

Click to shrink...

Definitely... I'll be posting my impressions. Also added the Headphone Era link.

I'm currently using a pair of Philips Fidelio X1 and a Turtle Beach DSS with my PS4. I'm starting to wonder if there are ways to improve my sound game or there are better headphones around the range of $200. My X1 is top notch though.

Click to shrink...

I don't have experience with the X1, but if you can score the Massdrop HD 6XX series... they are around $200, and should cost way more: https://www.massdrop.com/buy/massdrop-sennheiser-hd6xx

 

[Deleted member 6350]

_

 

[leng jai]

If you have high end headphones you generally don't want to use "headphone" mode since in most games it is compressed with less dynamic range. If there's a dynamic range setting you always want to set it to maximum. If you look at the audio settings in DICE games it straight up recommends the same thing.