Caporegime
- Joined
- 21 Jun 2006
- Posts
- 38,372
This is a long read and will be updated as required.
https://www.massdrop.com/r/6HW75F
sign up to the above site to get in on some of the bargains of the century in audiphile equipment as well as other items from lighters, sunglasses to knives and keyboards, etc.
Well I have been trying to find a mid-high end headset solution for my PS4 for as little cost as possible (bang for buck) ever since it came out.
I had these delivered today they only cost me £27 through flubit or normally under £30 from amazon
http://www.head-fi.org/t/571005/the-panasonic-rp-htf600-s-headphones-more-fun-than-the-hd650
http://www.head-fi.org/products/panasonic-rp-htf600-s-step-monitor
they are as you can see headphones not a headset, the reason being gaming headsets are not usually designed with sound quality in mind and if they are they are usually far more expensive than their headphone counterparts. proof of this can be seen through this thread
http://www.head-fi.org/t/534479/mad...ide-update-3-12-2014-monster-dna-on-ear-added
the best headset solution is most likely the A50's they are £250 though which is a lot of money but they are wireless and offer SQ probably comparable with the panasonics i bought for £27. I don't know this for a fact but people have compared A40's to being similar to 558's which are overpriced at £130 (a fair price for them would be around £75 IMO) I expect the A50's to be slightly better than A40's and the panasonics are supposedly a lot better than 558's so they are in a similar ball park I imagine. the difference being one is a set of headphones at 10% of the price of the headset.
if you want headphones which eat the A50's for breakfast then your probably looking at the Philips Fidelio X1 which are around £180 delivered so again £70 cheaper than A50's and offer far better SQ.
So once you have picked a set of headphones which is good for your budget you now need a mic and then figure out the best way to use both the headphones and the mic with the PS4.
What I can assure you is the DS4 is terrible for SQ especially when talking about game sounds, it's okay for voice chat but SQ from the game is absolutely horrible, now this could be down to a combination of 2 things. The first being it is a bluetooth controller device and therefore sound quality was not a priority when designing the DS4, I imagine it has a fairly crap controller. The second thing which could be hampering SQ further is most likely the controller is not powerful enough to drive a set of headphones which if they are decent usually require an AMP.
The only way to test if amping is an issue would be by using in ears which are far easier to drive (I have currently given my in ear sennheisers to the wife and she is away for the weekend so I cannot test until monday evening). If that is where the issue lies (i suspect it's the bluetooth controller though) then you could just buy pair of SoundMAGIC E10 for £28 and use them instead of headphones to get superb SQ if it's a power issue rather than bluetooth sound issue.
Anyway I want to use headphones so therefore the only decent solutions are a mix amp or a DAC/AMP and using the consoles optical feed for game sound and the controller for voice chat.
Some people are using a DAC/AMP for game sound with a set of headphones and then using the free sony earpiece with the controller as their mic and voice chat. IMO this is a crazy way of doing things but if your on a budget it could be an option. Basically they put the earpiece in their ear then put their headphones over their ears. so they have 2 completely different sources of sound to one ear. This will actually give you the Best possible SQ though as a DAC/AMP will be better than a mixamp £ for £ much like headphones being better then headsets £ for £.
So now that I have ruled out the DS4 as my source I have been forced into buying a MixAmp, as good as a DAC/AMP and the sony earpiece would be the idea of using an earpiece within a headphone is just crazy to me, but probably a great option to those who don't use the mic a lot.
So I was looking at mixamps and specifically the reviews in here
http://www.head-fi.org/t/534479/mad...ide-update-3-12-2014-monster-dna-on-ear-added
Astro Mixamp Pro (2013 Edition)
This is the worst Mixamp of all 3 but it is also the newest and it costs £110 brand new from astro. Therefore the other 2 are only available second hand. It is also wired. This creates a huge problem when it comes to getting the wiring correct as you need long enough cables to get it to work, etc. I think it allows USB for voice chat though (not 100% sure but iirc that is correct) so you don't need the Turtle Beach PS4 Chat Lead Cable but it is an option.
Astro Mixamp Pro (2011 Edition)
This is better than the 2013 model. It is also wired but has no option for USB chat and therefore the chat cable is required (available from ebay for £4.99) to connect the DS4 to the mixamp
Astro Mixamp 5.8
This is similar in SQ to the 2011 model but it is the oldest. It is wireless and has a slight amount of background noise due to this. It also requires the Turtle Beach PS4 Chat Lead Cable
Therefore if you want a wired setup get a 2011 Mixamp, wireless then the original 5.8.
Now after choosing a MixAmp there is only one piece of the puzzle left the microphone. There are 2 ways to hook it up though:
the first being using the PC headphone splitter cable (only certain types of splitter work so be careful), which basically splits the audio from the mic and therefore you buy a seperate mic. The cheapest option which gives you good mic quality (so others can hear you clearly) is the Zalman ZMMIC1 Lapel Microphone which is about £7 online. Otherwise you can get a Antlion Modmic for a lot more money if you want the best of the best in this option. With these options you have to be careful
the second option is using a similar type of cable that is that of included sony earpiece where the mic and audio go down the same line, for this you need a mic like the Belkin F8Z605cw, i got one for <£5 off ebay refurb (looked brand new to me) or if you have a compatible set of headphones which allow you to unplug the cable (philips fidelio X1) then you can use something like the BoomPro Microphone from V Moda, it isn't cheap though but probably the highest quality option if you have a compatible headset.
My 5.8 MixAmp hasn't arrived yet but when it does I will update on how good it is.
You have to be really careful when picking a solution that you get all the right options, some are incompatible with each other and some are stupid when it comes to cable lengths required, etc. e.g. the zalman mic is only an option if the mixamp or the receiver is close to you, so I shall make some example setups below for different budgets.
Top End
Mixamp - ANY (will need a long toslink cable with 2011 version as well as ps4 chat cable from turtle beach for all MIXAMPS but the 2013 version)
Headphones - Philips Fidelio X1
Mic - V Moda Boom Pro
This is probably the most straight forward and best setup you can get for the money, your talking £250-£300 for everything. Make sure you research the mixamps to know how they all work (they are all completely different and therefore set up different with different lengths of cable, etc required as well as different types of mics, etc).
Mid End
MixAmp - 5.8 wireless (need ps4 chat cable)
Headphones - Panasonic HTF600
Mic - Zalman (you will need the correct type of splitter for this to work)
£100-£120 ish for this setup which is better than the £250 A50's most likely for SQ. I have this setup but using Belkin mic instead of Zalman, IMO the Zalman is the better way to do it.
Low End
Headphones - Panasonic HTF600 connected to your TV for game sound
Mic - Sony Earpiece set up for audio chat only connected to DS4
£27 for this setup through flubit but you need to wear the headphones over the earpiece.
As for the panasonic HTF600 they are brilliant for £27 delivered, only downside is no removable cable (so cannot use boompro mic) and that the cable is really long, other than that I cannot grumble for the price. A long cable can become a nuisance as in I only really need a 2 foot cable but it's about 12 foot long. You therefore have a choice to make spend a lot more money to get headphones which are similar in SQ but have a short cable or try and shorten the cable yourself, or tie it up or spend less money and sacrifice SQ for cans with a shorter cable.
If your not interested in a mic or chatting online and just want a set of headphones. Pick one for your budget from the head fi link or try the panasonics out. You will most likely require a DAC/AMP though for the best possible sound quality and connect that to the optical out.
Any questions are welcome as is more detailed info, pictures of your own setups, corrections, etc.
https://www.massdrop.com/r/6HW75F
sign up to the above site to get in on some of the bargains of the century in audiphile equipment as well as other items from lighters, sunglasses to knives and keyboards, etc.
Well I have been trying to find a mid-high end headset solution for my PS4 for as little cost as possible (bang for buck) ever since it came out.
I had these delivered today they only cost me £27 through flubit or normally under £30 from amazon
http://www.head-fi.org/t/571005/the-panasonic-rp-htf600-s-headphones-more-fun-than-the-hd650
http://www.head-fi.org/products/panasonic-rp-htf600-s-step-monitor
they are as you can see headphones not a headset, the reason being gaming headsets are not usually designed with sound quality in mind and if they are they are usually far more expensive than their headphone counterparts. proof of this can be seen through this thread
http://www.head-fi.org/t/534479/mad...ide-update-3-12-2014-monster-dna-on-ear-added
the best headset solution is most likely the A50's they are £250 though which is a lot of money but they are wireless and offer SQ probably comparable with the panasonics i bought for £27. I don't know this for a fact but people have compared A40's to being similar to 558's which are overpriced at £130 (a fair price for them would be around £75 IMO) I expect the A50's to be slightly better than A40's and the panasonics are supposedly a lot better than 558's so they are in a similar ball park I imagine. the difference being one is a set of headphones at 10% of the price of the headset.
if you want headphones which eat the A50's for breakfast then your probably looking at the Philips Fidelio X1 which are around £180 delivered so again £70 cheaper than A50's and offer far better SQ.
So once you have picked a set of headphones which is good for your budget you now need a mic and then figure out the best way to use both the headphones and the mic with the PS4.
What I can assure you is the DS4 is terrible for SQ especially when talking about game sounds, it's okay for voice chat but SQ from the game is absolutely horrible, now this could be down to a combination of 2 things. The first being it is a bluetooth controller device and therefore sound quality was not a priority when designing the DS4, I imagine it has a fairly crap controller. The second thing which could be hampering SQ further is most likely the controller is not powerful enough to drive a set of headphones which if they are decent usually require an AMP.
The only way to test if amping is an issue would be by using in ears which are far easier to drive (I have currently given my in ear sennheisers to the wife and she is away for the weekend so I cannot test until monday evening). If that is where the issue lies (i suspect it's the bluetooth controller though) then you could just buy pair of SoundMAGIC E10 for £28 and use them instead of headphones to get superb SQ if it's a power issue rather than bluetooth sound issue.
Anyway I want to use headphones so therefore the only decent solutions are a mix amp or a DAC/AMP and using the consoles optical feed for game sound and the controller for voice chat.
Some people are using a DAC/AMP for game sound with a set of headphones and then using the free sony earpiece with the controller as their mic and voice chat. IMO this is a crazy way of doing things but if your on a budget it could be an option. Basically they put the earpiece in their ear then put their headphones over their ears. so they have 2 completely different sources of sound to one ear. This will actually give you the Best possible SQ though as a DAC/AMP will be better than a mixamp £ for £ much like headphones being better then headsets £ for £.
So now that I have ruled out the DS4 as my source I have been forced into buying a MixAmp, as good as a DAC/AMP and the sony earpiece would be the idea of using an earpiece within a headphone is just crazy to me, but probably a great option to those who don't use the mic a lot.
So I was looking at mixamps and specifically the reviews in here
http://www.head-fi.org/t/534479/mad...ide-update-3-12-2014-monster-dna-on-ear-added
Astro Mixamp Pro (2013 Edition)
This is the worst Mixamp of all 3 but it is also the newest and it costs £110 brand new from astro. Therefore the other 2 are only available second hand. It is also wired. This creates a huge problem when it comes to getting the wiring correct as you need long enough cables to get it to work, etc. I think it allows USB for voice chat though (not 100% sure but iirc that is correct) so you don't need the Turtle Beach PS4 Chat Lead Cable but it is an option.
Astro Mixamp Pro (2011 Edition)
This is better than the 2013 model. It is also wired but has no option for USB chat and therefore the chat cable is required (available from ebay for £4.99) to connect the DS4 to the mixamp
Astro Mixamp 5.8
This is similar in SQ to the 2011 model but it is the oldest. It is wireless and has a slight amount of background noise due to this. It also requires the Turtle Beach PS4 Chat Lead Cable
Therefore if you want a wired setup get a 2011 Mixamp, wireless then the original 5.8.
Now after choosing a MixAmp there is only one piece of the puzzle left the microphone. There are 2 ways to hook it up though:
the first being using the PC headphone splitter cable (only certain types of splitter work so be careful), which basically splits the audio from the mic and therefore you buy a seperate mic. The cheapest option which gives you good mic quality (so others can hear you clearly) is the Zalman ZMMIC1 Lapel Microphone which is about £7 online. Otherwise you can get a Antlion Modmic for a lot more money if you want the best of the best in this option. With these options you have to be careful
the second option is using a similar type of cable that is that of included sony earpiece where the mic and audio go down the same line, for this you need a mic like the Belkin F8Z605cw, i got one for <£5 off ebay refurb (looked brand new to me) or if you have a compatible set of headphones which allow you to unplug the cable (philips fidelio X1) then you can use something like the BoomPro Microphone from V Moda, it isn't cheap though but probably the highest quality option if you have a compatible headset.
My 5.8 MixAmp hasn't arrived yet but when it does I will update on how good it is.
You have to be really careful when picking a solution that you get all the right options, some are incompatible with each other and some are stupid when it comes to cable lengths required, etc. e.g. the zalman mic is only an option if the mixamp or the receiver is close to you, so I shall make some example setups below for different budgets.
Top End
Mixamp - ANY (will need a long toslink cable with 2011 version as well as ps4 chat cable from turtle beach for all MIXAMPS but the 2013 version)
Headphones - Philips Fidelio X1
Mic - V Moda Boom Pro
This is probably the most straight forward and best setup you can get for the money, your talking £250-£300 for everything. Make sure you research the mixamps to know how they all work (they are all completely different and therefore set up different with different lengths of cable, etc required as well as different types of mics, etc).
Mid End
MixAmp - 5.8 wireless (need ps4 chat cable)
Headphones - Panasonic HTF600
Mic - Zalman (you will need the correct type of splitter for this to work)
£100-£120 ish for this setup which is better than the £250 A50's most likely for SQ. I have this setup but using Belkin mic instead of Zalman, IMO the Zalman is the better way to do it.
Low End
Headphones - Panasonic HTF600 connected to your TV for game sound
Mic - Sony Earpiece set up for audio chat only connected to DS4
£27 for this setup through flubit but you need to wear the headphones over the earpiece.
As for the panasonic HTF600 they are brilliant for £27 delivered, only downside is no removable cable (so cannot use boompro mic) and that the cable is really long, other than that I cannot grumble for the price. A long cable can become a nuisance as in I only really need a 2 foot cable but it's about 12 foot long. You therefore have a choice to make spend a lot more money to get headphones which are similar in SQ but have a short cable or try and shorten the cable yourself, or tie it up or spend less money and sacrifice SQ for cans with a shorter cable.
If your not interested in a mic or chatting online and just want a set of headphones. Pick one for your budget from the head fi link or try the panasonics out. You will most likely require a DAC/AMP though for the best possible sound quality and connect that to the optical out.
Any questions are welcome as is more detailed info, pictures of your own setups, corrections, etc.
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