Sound blaster g6 upgrade

DT788 · 22 Mar 2022 at 10:21

Hi all,

so I have been running my DT990 pros with the g6 for the past year and have enjoyed the experience, I now however have upgraded to the DT1990 pros with Dekoni fenestrated sheepskin pads and was wondering whether I would get any benefit from upgrading the G6.
Any recommendations appreciated.

should also mention I use the setup mostly for gaming and movies.

cheers

drichardb · 24 Mar 2022 at 19:49

So long as you made the right purchase the biggest difference I would expect is more volume. I would expect the DT1990's are putting a bigger load on the G6's amp reducing the maximum volume.

If your looking for the same sort of surround features that the G6 has then the Creative X7 is the logical upgrade but that also has a speaker amplifier built in too so you could turn it into a hifi system if you wanted.

I've not had experience using dedicated headphone amps so can't offer any recommendations other than to head over to head-fi.org which is a dedicated headphone community and has helped me with a few portable audio purchase decisions over the years.

EsaT · 24 Mar 2022 at 21:36

No need.
Unless you want to get rid of your hearing in even shorter time.

drichardb said:
I would expect the DT1990's are putting a bigger load on the G6's amp reducing the maximum volume.

Newer "Tesla" driver of Amiron/DT1xxx is actually more efficient and needs less power per dB than old DT770-990 serie driver.
(102 vs 96 dB @1mW)

DT788 · 26 Mar 2022 at 17:30

I only run in direct mode, any audio enhancements ruins it for me. Just made me think there may be something else worth trying seeing as I am not using any of the sbx profiles.
One other thing I am struggling to find an eq for these pads, I am guessing they are not as popular as other dekoni pads

leemk · 13 Apr 2022 at 12:10

I would stick with the G6 if its just for games and movies , its what i use with my DT1770 , use a ifi zen stack with HD660s for music .

Guest2 · 14 Apr 2022 at 08:14

DT788 said:
I only run in direct mode, any audio enhancements ruins it for me. Just made me think there may be something else worth trying seeing as I am not using any of the sbx profiles.
One other thing I am struggling to find an eq for these pads, I am guessing they are not as popular as other dekoni pads

Why are you using direct mode (which is primarily for music listening) if you are only gaming / movies?

Direct mode you will not get the Eq or Dolby Atmos
I'm sure direct mode affects the microphone too, either you cant use some of the options like noise reduction or at all with direct mode

Personally I have mine with Beyerdynamic DT1770 pro like this...

brakeinup · 8 Jun 2022 at 16:07

Guest2 said:
Why are you using direct mode (which is primarily for music listening) if you are only gaming / movies?

Direct mode you will not get the Eq or Dolby Atmos
I'm sure direct mode affects the microphone too, either you cant use some of the options like noise reduction or at all with direct mode

Personally I have mine with Beyerdynamic DT1770 pro like this...

Compared to just stereo in gaming do your settings make a significant difference for spatial audio? I have the G6 and a pair of AKG 712 Pro's so will experiment but don't have Dolby Access on the PC (do on Xbox)

SexyGreyFox · 8 Jun 2022 at 16:21

Guest2 said:
Why are you using direct mode (which is primarily for music listening) if you are only gaming / movies?

Direct mode you will not get the Eq or Dolby Atmos
I'm sure direct mode affects the microphone too, either you cant use some of the options like noise reduction or at all with direct mode

Personally I have mine with Beyerdynamic DT1770 pro like this...

What would you say is the best setup in the G6 for listening to music?
I have experimented and I think I've got a good sound but it could be better.

Guest2 · 9 Jun 2022 at 08:12

brakeinup said:
Compared to just stereo in gaming do your settings make a significant difference for spatial audio? I have the G6 and a pair of AKG 712 Pro's so will experiment but don't have Dolby Access on the PC (do on Xbox)

Dolby Atmos for games that support it. When it's off now in Warzone / Modern Warfare I notice, Atmos makes it easier to know where fire / enemies are coming from without the daft 'scout mode'

Guest2 · 9 Jun 2022 at 08:22

SexyGreyFox said:
What would you say is the best setup in the G6 for listening to music?
I have experimented and I think I've got a good sound but it could be better.

I don't do much music listening on my PC as have a Naim Muso unit in the lounge now, but I would have thought direct mode is always the way to go for music.
Unless you like bass / treble heavy instead of how it was supposed to sound when produced.

One thing I remember from years ago was my Marantz amplifier (PM something?) that I had with floor standing speakers, the music sounded so nice and warm. It was really brilliant for tracks like Pink Floyd Marooned. When I changed amps to a NAD it certainly lacked something, but at the same time the NAD was much better at quicker tracks like dance and heavy metal music. It was almost like the Marantz was geared to slow music but sounded fantastic doing so.

I would love to have a sound engineer and with electronics background explain whats going on inside amplifiers (and maybe DACs) that changes the music. Something to do with the components and heat I guess which changes the 'shape' of the music slightly. Sound and electronics people, feel free to step in!

SexyGreyFox · 9 Jun 2022 at 08:29

Guest2 said:
I don't do much music listening on my PC as have a Naim Muso unit in the lounge now, but I would have thought direct mode is always the way to go for music.
Unless you like bass / treble heavy instead of how it was supposed to sound when produced.

One thing I remember from years ago was my Marantz amplifier (PM something?) that I had with floor standing speakers, the music sounded so nice and warm. It was really brilliant for tracks like Pink Floyd Marooned. When I changed amps to a NAD it certainly lacked something, but at the same time the NAD was much better at quicker tracks like dance and heavy metal music. It was almost like the Marantz was geared to slow music but sounded fantastic doing so.

I would love to have a sound engineer and with electronics background explain whats going on inside amplifiers (and maybe DACs) that changes the music. Something to do with the components and heat I guess which changes the 'shape' of the music slightly. Sound and electronics people, feel free to step in!

Thanks

I've never used speakers in my house since 1983, even though I'm a gigging musician I always wear headphones.
My neighbour has never heard my music.

@Lowe may be able to help with your last question

Guest2 · 9 Jun 2022 at 09:03

SexyGreyFox said:
Thanks

I've never used speakers in my house since 1983, even though I'm a gigging musician I always wear headphones.
My neighbour has never heard my music.

May aswell kit the house out, go hard or go home

https://www.funktion-one.com/products/dance-stack-overview/

SexyGreyFox · 9 Jun 2022 at 09:32

Guest2 said:
May aswell kit the house out, go hard or go home https://www.funktion-one.com/products/dance-stack-overview/

I have a 3000 watt Mackie PA system

One side of it -

Guest2 · 9 Jun 2022 at 10:02

SexyGreyFox said:
I have a 3000 watt Mackie PA system
One side of it -

But they have not been used since 1983?

(or do you mean they have just not been used in your house)

SexyGreyFox · 9 Jun 2022 at 10:19

Guest2 said:
But they have not been used since 1983? (or do you mean they have just not been used in your house)

They are used for a 5 piece band with all instruments going through them.
I've never used speakers for music in my home since 1983, I always use headphones so that's why I want the G6 setup to be as perfect as possible.

onek00lj4y · 1 Feb 2024 at 19:49

Guest2 said:
Dolby Atmos for games that support it. When it's off now in Warzone / Modern Warfare I notice, Atmos makes it easier to know where fire / enemies are coming from without the daft 'scout mode'

Scout mode is not daft,it just takes a couple of days to get use to.Once you do it's unbeatable.

onek00lj4y · 1 Feb 2024 at 20:00

DT788 said:
Hi all,

so I have been running my DT990 pros with the g6 for the past year and have enjoyed the experience, I now however have upgraded to the DT1990 pros with Dekoni fenestrated sheepskin pads and was wondering whether I would get any benefit from upgrading the G6.
Any recommendations appreciated.

should also mention I use the setup mostly for gaming and movies.

cheers

The G6 is really hard to beat for gaming.

Guest2 · 2 Feb 2024 at 08:14

onek00lj4y said:
Scout mode is not daft,it just takes a couple of days to get use to.Once you do it's unbeatable.

Game sounds is totally broken in Warzone now. It doesnt matter if you have scout mode, Atmos, £350 headphones or any fancy EQ settings.

shankly1985 · 3 Feb 2024 at 16:14

Guest2 said:
Why are you using direct mode (which is primarily for music listening) if you are only gaming / movies?

Direct mode you will not get the Eq or Dolby Atmos
I'm sure direct mode affects the microphone too, either you cant use some of the options like noise reduction or at all with direct mode

Personally I have mine with Beyerdynamic DT1770 pro like this...

BTW
Dolby Atmos Headphone does work with the G6 on direct Mode.
You will however loose the EQ mode you have set.

docsonic · 6 Feb 2024 at 08:38

Tbh I thought the G6 only worked with Atmos in Direct Mode which is how I'd been using my G6. Also I was messing around with Equaliser APO & Peace this week, makes it very easy if you just want to import one of the community EQ's (I use DT 990 pro's).