Gamers, What's Your Audio Set Up?

[Random Guy Esq.]

I thought I'd start a thread for general gaming audio discussion because I'm bored out of my skull in lockdown curious about what set ups other people are using.

At the moment I have a Creative G6 with Sennheiser 58X Jubilees. My gaming PC is a pretty recent build, but with exams, assignments, and a cocooned parent, I actually haven't had much time to test it that much. Initial impressions are good though, but I need to get stuck into more games next month before I make up my mind on it. Still haven't settled on a mic or desktop speakers yet, but I'm in no rush really. In fact, I may not need them at all depending on what games I get into.

So what are you using? PC, console, both? Speakers, headphones? Stereo or virtual surround? Do you use your set up for music and/or movies too? If you have a headphone collection, do you have different pairs for different types of games, or is it more of a mood thing? What about DACs and amps?

Anyway, let us all know what you're using, and how well it works for you. It might even turn into a nice repository of ideas and suggestions for the rest of us who are less experienced!

 

[rids57]

Gaming: Asus Essence STX sound card -> Beyerdynamic DT1990 headphones ( which prove you can have detail with bass) or Edifier RT1600T mk2 active speakers

Music: PC -> Schiit Modi Multibit DAC -> Schiit Asgard 3 amp -> Beyer DT1990 / HiFiMan HE400i (with Dekoni sheepskin pads) / Sennheiser HD650 headphones

 

[postmanfw]

Sennheiser pc350 here with onboard sound on new motherboard.... Not cutting it in modern warfare though

The olde creative xfi extreme music is retired due to lack of pcie slot now... Stop gap is a xonar dx I had lying about.... Awfull for music compared to on board even but definitely better in game... Though nothing compare to old card.

Soundblaster AE5 in the post

Lockdown is proving to be an expensive experience...

But enjoyable after coming from a 2600k setup from last decade nearly lol....

Just a new monitor required now....

 

[Oh Ed not again.]

PC -> Nad D3020 -> Fidelio X2HR + ModMic Wireless

D3020 also drives a pair of Cambridge Audio Minx XLs, not amazing but pretty decent for the size and the space they're filling.

 

[Random Guy Esq.]

Gaming: Asus Essence STX sound card -> Beyerdynamic DT1990 headphones ( which prove you can have detail with bass) or Edifier RT1600T mk2 active speakers

Music: PC -> Schiit Modi Multibit DAC -> Schiit Asgard 3 amp -> Beyer DT1990 / HiFiMan HE400i (with Dekoni sheepskin pads) / Sennheiser HD650 headphones

Ah I've read so many good reviews for the DT1990 recently. They're definitely on my Most Wanted list.

How do you find the Schiit stuff? I nearly bought the Magni/Modi stack a few years ago (older models than those available now), but circumstances intervened.

Sennheiser pc350 here with onboard sound on new motherboard.... Not cutting it in modern warfare though

The olde creative xfi extreme music is retired due to lack of pcie slot now... Stop gap is a xonar dx I had lying about.... Awfull for music compared to on board even but definitely better in game... Though nothing compare to old card.

Soundblaster AE5 in the post

Lockdown is proving to be an expensive experience...

But enjoyable after coming from a 2600k setup from last decade nearly lol....

Just a new monitor required now....

Yeah, I'd probably have gone for the AE5 except I ended up going with an ITX build eventually. Supposed to be a good card though!

PC -> Nad D3020 -> Fidelio X2HR + ModMic Wireless

D3020 also drives a pair of Cambridge Audio Minx XLs, not amazing but pretty decent for the size and the space they're filling.

Oooh, I had the D3020 recommended to me before. Nice having a quality all in one solution!

How are you finding the MM Wireless? I'm very tempted by it except for the price. I really want the convenience of it, but don't know if I want to pay for it lol.

 

[maj]

General purpose music/gaming: PC -> Topping D10 -> JDS Labs Atom -> AKG K7XX
If the lass complains about sound leakage then: PC -> Topping D10 -> JDS Labs Atom -> DT770 Pro
If I want a break from wearing headphones then: PC -> Topping D10 -> JDS Labs Atom -> Presonus Eris 4.5

 

[Oh Ed not again.]

Oooh, I had the D3020 recommended to me before. Nice having a quality all in one solution!

How are you finding the MM Wireless? I'm very tempted by it except for the price. I really want the convenience of it, but don't know if I want to pay for it lol.

Thoughts on...

D3020: Loving the compact footprint, plenty powerful and enough inputs. It does get it's knickers in a twist every now and then with W10 not detecting it and requiring a reboot to fix. I need to see if there's a new firmware that may fix. Shop about and you should be able to find then for 180-200 secondhand.

Modmic: Very convenient, sound quality is superb and the battery life is great too. Lasts about a week between recharges. Weirdly it likes to pair to the D3020 so I have to turn the mic on, then the amp.

 

[rids57]

Ah I've read so many good reviews for the DT1990 recently. They're definitely on my Most Wanted list.
How do you find the Schiit stuff? I nearly bought the Magni/Modi stack a few years ago (older models than those available now), but circumstances intervened.

I had the Modi / Magni 2 & 3 - sounded really good but the soundstage isn't great, it's wide but flat, as though everything was in a line through your ears. I upgraded to the Modi Multibit and Vali 2 which produced a far more holographic stage. Only reason I upgraded to the Asgard 3 was the tube rolling was getting out of hand, lol. The Asgard 3 is everything the Vali 2 was plus cleaner imaging, smoother highs and more bass slam.

 

[Rroff]

At my PC my most used audio setup is Soundblaster AE5 + Sennheiser MX585 - though there is a bit of detail lacking compared to some of my other headphones they are very clean, clear and smooth sounding and I can wear them for hours and hours and forget they are in my ears - unless I need to use a mic they are my go to for online gaming and general purpose.

For music/movies I have a pair of Sennheiser HD600 and a custom amp I built myself.

I need to revisit my setup really as I've been too busy to replace some gaps in the setup lately - the AE5 is nice but the sound is a bit clinical which is nice for gaming and actually quite nice for movies but sometimes I like something a bit more mellow with just a touch of warmth for music and not replaced some of my older hardware that for various reasons I don't have any more and while I have an array of alternative headphones (including Sennheiser Momentum and Sony MDRs, etc.) some of which are excellent for single player, etc. but nothing I currently have quite hits the spot for online gaming + addon mic.

 

[Random Guy Esq.]

General purpose music/gaming: PC -> Topping D10 -> JDS Labs Atom -> AKG K7XX
If the lass complains about sound leakage then: PC -> Topping D10 -> JDS Labs Atom -> DT770 Pro
If I want a break from wearing headphones then: PC -> Topping D10 -> JDS Labs Atom -> Presonus Eris 4.5

I see the Atom mentioned a lot on forums. Must be good! How do you find the Presonus speakers? My PC is in a medium sized room, but is positioned to one side, near the adjacent wall. So I don't think it would be worth my while investing in another amp and passive speakers. For my situation, smaller powered speakers seem a more sensible choice.

Modmic: Very convenient, sound quality is superb and the battery life is great too. Lasts about a week between recharges. Weirdly it likes to pair to the D3020 so I have to turn the mic on, then the amp.

Ha, handy tip! I've listened to some sound comparisons online, and while the wireless loses a little quality over the wired versions, it's not night and day. Listened to in isolation, it sounded pretty good to me.

I had the Modi / Magni 2 & 3 - sounded really good but the soundstage isn't great, it's wide but flat, as though everything was in a line through your ears. I upgraded to the Modi Multibit and Vali 2 which produced a far more holographic stage. Only reason I upgraded to the Asgard 3 was the tube rolling was getting out of hand, lol. The Asgard 3 is everything the Vali 2 was plus cleaner imaging, smoother highs and more bass slam.

The Asgard 3 looks like a versatile piece of kit at a very easy to swallow price. Is there a big difference between the standard Modi and the multibit?

For music/movies I have a pair of Sennheiser HD600 and a custom amp I built myself.

Ha, fair play. I wouldn't even know where to start. Years ago I had a flatmate who used to make portable amps in mint tins. I should have paid more attention.

 

[Oh Ed not again.]

CMOY amps are awesome, great little projects.

 

[Radox-0]

Have a mix of gear really. 5.1 system in the PC room, basically repurposed Sony AV kit but works pretty well.

For headphone and gear for gaming will usually use my Solid State Amps.

PC --> Schitt Bifrost multibit --> Asgard 2 / THX AAA 789 Amp valhalla 2

For gaming headphones usually AKG 712's or HD800s when I want a mahoosive soundstage. May use until recently when mic broke hyper X clouds when I need voice.

For music, will usually use the Valhalla 2 tube amp / THX 789 along with 6xx or 800s or until recently 58x which my brother took to his place to "borrow"

 

[Amidar]

PC Gaming --> Schiit HEL -> Sennheiser Game One Headset

PC Music --> Schiit Bifrost 2 -> Schiit Lyr3 -> HiFiMan HE400 - HiFiMan HE-6 - Audeze LCD2-Classic's - Focal Clear Professional's.

 

[luggles]

Music/Gaming - PC -> JDS Labs OL DAC -> JDS Labs Atom -> AKG K7XX

Will probably upgrade the dac to the Atom Dac when that's finally released, if it reviews well and isn't just usb.

Gaming: Asus Essence STX sound card -> Beyerdynamic DT1990 headphones ( which prove you can have detail with bass) or Edifier RT1600T mk2 active speakers

Music: PC -> Schiit Modi Multibit DAC -> Schiit Asgard 3 amp -> Beyer DT1990 / HiFiMan HE400i (with Dekoni sheepskin pads) / Sennheiser HD650 headphones

Did you ever own the 990's or any of the older Beyer models? I have the DT990's and just don't find them comfy for long use, where my AKG's I can wear nearly all day. Wondering if the 1990's are more comfortable, the headband does look more substantial.

 

[Rroff]

CMOY amps are awesome, great little projects.

Yeah I spent many happy hours building variants of CMOYs then progressed to building stuff based around the O2 design then moved to my own designs.

Ha, fair play. I wouldn't even know where to start. Years ago I had a flatmate who used to make portable amps in mint tins. I should have paid more attention.

If you have any experience with a soldering iron and even basic electronics knowledge it is actually really easy to get into https://www.tangentsoft.net/audio/cmoy/ and very hard to master.

 

[rids57]

Did you ever own the 990's or any of the older Beyer models? I have the DT990's and just don't find them comfy for long use, where my AKG's I can wear nearly all day. Wondering if the 1990's are more comfortable, the headband does look more substantial.

Yep, I also have the DT990 and the AKG K702. The 1990s wear pretty much the same as the 990s, so if they don't work for you I doubt the 1990s will either. I'm the opposite, I've been wearing my DT1990s for the last 6 hours working my way through my Eagles collection along with a good few glasses of scotch

 

[Haze]

Pioneer av amp, 5.1 surround system

 

[Quartz]

Only an Astro A50. I live in a flat so keeping the noise down is good.

 

[Timber]

Some nice setups here. For me everything goes through my SoundBlaster X7 which is mainly gaming. If I bought now I possibly consider a different AMP/DAC for PC and G6 for consoles but I love the connectivity of the X7. I'm consciously moving away from PC gaming so having an audio solution that works with consoles is a must.

Headphones I generally love open-back for gaming, so currently own; AKG K702 & K712 Pro, Beyerdynamic DT 990 Pro. I have owned the Sennheiser HD 598s, Fidelio X1's but sold them to clear some space. I also recently purchased the AKG K361 and a Modmic Uni (for a set of Coolermaster MH751's were returned, so I upped the budget on the replacement). I tend to rotate but the K702/712's are my faves. The X7 is hooked up to some Edifier R1600T Studio Plus 2.0 speakers I got from here in a deal in 2013. These are perfect for PC sound when not gaming or using headphones.

For me pure Stereo for gaming is a no-go, and I really like SBX on the X7. Not sure if I had an endgame but I did long to try the 712's for a long-time until I purchased them earlier this year. I think with mostly gaming in mind there is likely diminishing returns on more expensive headphones.

I probably shouldn't own up to this here but I have taken delivery of the Sony PlayStation Platinum Wireless headset in the last few days. It's a total leftfield purchase but I wanted to hear the 3D audio from the (few) Sony supported games and therefore as I had a few vouchers decided to go for them. They aren't overly comfortable, tend to be lacking in comparison to the K361s but the 3D audio on Horizon Zero Dawn is pretty impressive. It's a fantastic game for audio anyway but to hear depth and height in the sound is something else. I am also pretty impressed with the VSS surround on non-3D audio games. Also very convenient when gaming on the PS4.

 

[CaptainRAVE]

Sound blaster Z and DT990s. The positional audio is fantastic, you can pretty much close your eyes and visualise where everything is. It was almost overpowered in metro exodus. My other setup are my trusty Logitech Z5500s.