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What headphones/earbuds/IEMs do you have?

FrozenIpaq

Justin B / Supp. Editor
Enforcer Team
Was going to get a pair of Ultimate Ears Triple Fi since I lost my old headphones, but my replacement walkman came with a new pair so I don't need a pair of in-ears anymore. I did however recently buy the Astro A30's when they were on sale (might still be) for $99. I needed a nice over-ear pair for the winter at school and these will definitely do the trick.
 

LocutusEstBorg

Active Member
With a PMP driving over-ear headphones I could barely tell the difference between the $15 creative clipons I carry around for outside use and one of the Sony MDR phones my friend had. Though they're good to fall asleep in and subconciously throw aside without risk of damage compared to in-ear phones. Can't really fall asleep with in-ear phones anyway.
 

El Diablo

Member
Are there any usb to 3.5mm converters out there? I have a usb headset but sometimes when I'm mowing the lawn I'd like to try and use them with my ipod for the extra noise cancellation and better sound quality. Anyone know if they make them?
 

FrozenIpaq

Justin B / Supp. Editor
Enforcer Team
Are there any usb to 3.5mm converters out there? I have a usb headset but sometimes when I'm mowing the lawn I'd like to try and use them with my ipod for the extra noise cancellation and better sound quality. Anyone know if they make them?

Sadly that's not possible. I hate it when a headset is tied to USB-only (my Logitech G35 is and I bought a new one to use with my Xbox 360 because there was no way of hooking it up easily). A lot of manufacturers have made 3.5mm to USB adapters for their headsets but sadly it cannot be done the other way
 

LocutusEstBorg

Active Member
Are there any usb to 3.5mm converters out there? I have a usb headset but sometimes when I'm mowing the lawn I'd like to try and use them with my ipod for the extra noise cancellation and better sound quality. Anyone know if they make them?

No, it would need to be actively powered and would need to emulate a USB host.

A lot of manufacturers have made 3.5mm to USB adapters for their headsets but sadly it cannot be done the other way

Those are basically just really cheap USB sound cards. If using them you won't be able to use the processing of your PC's sound card.

Any USB headset basically means you cannot use your sound card.
 

LocutusEstBorg

Active Member
X10i just arrived. Given how tiny they are, the sound they put out is unbelievable. Most recordings don't do it justice and simply don't make use of its wide frequency range. Songs that have strong bass feel like I have a sub-woofer inside my head. The first bass note from Time after the bells was so powerful it was mind-blowing and I could feel the vibration all the while until the note stopped. I think they'll really excel at electronic/tecnho and stuff that's heavy on bass but unfortunately I don't listen to much of that.

Judging by the relative increase in quality from my old Sony MDR-EX90LP, I don't think the premium for the X10/X10i over the X5 may be worth it, and some feel the X5 has more bass. I got the X10i mainly because there was no X5i and I wanted the in-line mic/remote for my future iPhone.

I did notice something odd though. I constantly found myself subconsciously try to walk out of the room to "get away" from what felt like environmental noise. Probably need to get used to the ear gels or something.

If you want a pair of IEMs at (relatively) low cost get these and don't think twice.
 
I use a pair of super-cheap Sony $10 earbuds. They have the same design as the PSP ones, except with normal cables and a black colour scheme.

They get the job done, quality's decent enough and last while i'm on the go. Every other cheap-ish pair i've spent has always died within a few weeks, so it was nice finally getting something that LASTS.
 

El Diablo

Member
Hey I remember on MfM somewhere in some thread there was a post (Maybe Abe or Frozen?) and they had just gotten a new headset that was pretty nice and they did a little unboxing/minireview type video for it. Does anyone remember this post I'm talking about and remember where it was/what headset it was? (I know it's not all that descriptive or specific >.>)
 

FrozenIpaq

Justin B / Supp. Editor
Enforcer Team
Hey I remember on MfM somewhere in some thread there was a post (Maybe Abe or Frozen?) and they had just gotten a new headset that was pretty nice and they did a little unboxing/minireview type video for it. Does anyone remember this post I'm talking about and remember where it was/what headset it was? (I know it's not all that descriptive or specific >.>)

Yeah Abe bought the Astro A30's for his Xbox 360. I have a pair too and they're awesome, use them for both my computer and PC
 

El Diablo

Member
How good is the sound quality on them compared to over the ear headsets? I mean when I used an over the ear headset I can hear footsteps and every noise blah blah etc etc, and block out all of the sound from the outside world. Do the A30s provide the same type of sound quality (being able to hear almost everything) and block out most other sound? Also, is the amp really necessary to make them very good or is it something you can wait on and buy later.

I want a new headset, one to use with my iPod and other stuff as well preferably, but the a40 headset is crazy expensive, and even more with the amp, where as the A30 I think is more affordable but still ends up costing a pretty penny with the amp.
 

FrozenIpaq

Justin B / Supp. Editor
Enforcer Team
How good is the sound quality on them compared to over the ear headsets? I mean when I used an over the ear headset I can hear footsteps and every noise blah blah etc etc, and block out all of the sound from the outside world. Do the A30s provide the same type of sound quality (being able to hear almost everything) and block out most other sound? Also, is the amp really necessary to make them very good or is it something you can wait on and buy later.

I want a new headset, one to use with my iPod and other stuff as well preferably, but the a40 headset is crazy expensive, and even more with the amp, where as the A30 I think is more affordable but still ends up costing a pretty penny with the amp.

Yeah the A30 is perfect if you want to use it on-the-go (I have a pair as well). The amp and headset is a bit expensive but it's well worth it. You can easily make out footsteps and the direction they are coming from. I basically use it as a radar and it's pretty good at it
 

El Diablo

Member
Have you tried gaming without the amp and is it still pretty good? I'm thinking about buying the headset and then the amp later on because I don't have a lot of cash to just go throwing around at once.
 

FrozenIpaq

Justin B / Supp. Editor
Enforcer Team
Have you tried gaming without the amp and is it still pretty good? I'm thinking about buying the headset and then the amp later on because I don't have a lot of cash to just go throwing around at once.

I've only used the amp before, and otherwise you'll only get 2 channels of sound and i would most likely be like all other standard headphones.
 

El Diablo

Member
Thanks Frozen, definitely think I'm going to pick it up hopefully soon when I have the money.
 

El Diablo

Member
Hey Frozen one last question, what is the optical cable for? Some reviews and what not I have seen for the headphones/mixamp (or maybe just the mixamp really) is that it doesn't come with an optical cable and that they charge 15 or 20 dollars or something on their website for one. I was just wondering what exactly that's for? Is it actually necessary to use the mixamp with the headset or is it just some optional thing you don't really need?
 

FrozenIpaq

Justin B / Supp. Editor
Enforcer Team
Hey Frozen one last question, what is the optical cable for? Some reviews and what not I have seen for the headphones/mixamp (or maybe just the mixamp really) is that it doesn't come with an optical cable and that they charge 15 or 20 dollars or something on their website for one. I was just wondering what exactly that's for? Is it actually necessary to use the mixamp with the headset or is it just some optional thing you don't really need?

Optical cable is to get audio (5.1) from your Xbox 360 to the Mixamp. I don't think one comes with the amp but you can easily buy one online for a few bucks (2-5$). It's something you'll want if you want to emulate the 5.1 surround sound with your headset, otherwise you can hookup the red/white cables (RCA) to a 3.5mm adapter and then from there plug it into the "mp3" port on your Amp or to your headset directly (with the help of a 3.5mm audio coupler)
 

El Xando

"Dam whippersnapper"
I have X41s that I use at home for all things. For going out I just have some earphones that came with my phone... used to have ipod earphones but they broke.
 

El Diablo

Member
Damn, after doing some more research on their forums I found out to be able to get 5.1 with the mixamp, you need a soundcard that puts out DDL which astro fails to mention on their website. I might have to keep looking for another headset :(.
 
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