Headphones recommendation

[Snowy]

Hi!
I purchased some Samson SR850 headphones probably almost 10 years ago now. They've been fantastic, but after so much use (and many drops) I'm starting to hear some crackling at "gaming" volume. Any recommendations for a replacement? I use modmic, so I'd like to stick with a really nice pair of stereo headphones rather than "gaming" headphones. My budget is around $100.
Also, since we're on the discussion of sound... DAC? Worth it?

 

[THUMPer]

I have some Philips Fidelio X2HR without an external DAC amp. Super Comfy. They sound great after tweaking the EQ. They were about $100 a few weeks ago. Other than that Kingston Clouds are good and comfy.

 

[Snowy]

I have some Philips Fidelio X2HR without an external DAC amp. Super Comfy. They sound great after tweaking the EQ. They were about $100 a few weeks ago. Other than that Kingston Clouds are good and comfy.

Thanks for the suggestion. That looks like a nice pair. Is there a good place to attach a mod mic to one of the cans? Also would you describe them as open/closed/semi-open?

 

[THUMPer]

Thanks for the suggestion. That looks like a nice pair. Is there a good place to attach a mod mic to one of the cans? Also would you describe them as open/closed/semi-open?

Oh ya I should have said something about the mic. I'm using a vmoda boom pro mic. Since the 3.5mm cable is detachable. The boom mic works well. As far as modmic, it should work to with their sticky thing. They are open back for sure.

 

[Snowy]

I have some Philips Fidelio X2HR without an external DAC amp. Super Comfy. They sound great after tweaking the EQ. They were about $100 a few weeks ago. Other than that Kingston Clouds are good and comfy.

What did you tweak and how did you do it? My X2HR came in yesterday and they sound great for music (better than my SR850, which were already pretty good), but for gaming I don't seem to get quite the accuracy as my SR850's. It seems as though maybe they're just a bit too heavy on bass.

 

[THUMPer]

What did you tweak and how did you do it? My X2HR came in yesterday and they sound great for music (better than my SR850, which were already pretty good), but for gaming I don't seem to get quite the accuracy as my SR850's. It seems as though maybe they're just a bit too heavy on bass.

They are heavy on the bass.
I'm using onboard realtek. I had a Nu Audio card, and an Asus Xonar. I set the EQ up about the same on all of them.

This is the realtek control panel.
I dropped 31k, and 62 k down .5 . 125k is 0 and the rest go up from there. This brightens them up.

 

[LeRoy_Blanchard]

I got the Astro A40 gaming headset w/ AMP. Easily the best headset I've ever used, but they're around $250 IIRC. Over your budget, but after going through many headsets in the past (sub $100 - $150) I don't believe I'll be needing to replace these for years to come.

 

[Snowy]

I got the Astro A40 gaming headset w/ AMP. Easily the best headset I've ever used, but they're around $250 IIRC. Over your budget, but after going through many headsets in the past (sub $100 - $150) I don't believe I'll be needing to replace these for years to come.

Thanks for the suggestion. I will look into them. Looks like there's a version that comes without an AMP for cheaper... I'm going to send back the X2HR... They definitely sound better for music than my current Samson SR850, but I'm a little underwhelmed with them for gaming. They are so open that I find it's difficult to pinpoint directionality in multiplayer FPS games.

 

[LeRoy_Blanchard]

When playing COD:MW with the A40s I can hear everyone running around. I think the AMP is key to having the best experience with them, I've never used them without the AMP, but it comes with a control center software that allows you to make some tweaks to how they sound.

 

[Snowy]

When playing COD:MW with the A40s I can hear everyone running around. I think the AMP is key to having the best experience with them, I've never used them without the AMP, but it comes with a control center software that allows you to make some tweaks to how they sound.

I noticed they have pretty high ohms which (I think) means they require more power to drive them. Wouldn’t necessarily need to get their AMP versus a DAC I wouldn’t think?

 

[LeRoy_Blanchard]

I am not sure. The AMP they provide has buttons for predefined settings. A good DAC might work and give you the same results, but I'm not sure about how it would interact with their software control center.