Gaming, music, movies: Jaycar Pro Monitor, Hi2050, SR850?
Jul 31, 2013 6:09:37 GMT
Post by hatchinsteelhead on Jul 31, 2013 6:09:37 GMT
Hi guys,
I'm going to be purchasing my first real set of headphones in the near future and, after quite a bit of research and reading, I've nailed it down to these three: the Jaycar Pro Monitor, the Takstar Hi2050 or the Samson SR850. This headphone will be used primarily for gaming but will also be used for music (i.e. classic rock and electronic) and movies as well (65%, 25%, 10%, respectively). I do not play competitively so a complete lack of bass is not necessary (i.e. AD700). In fact, I would like a little bit of bass for when I listen to music/movies and while I do play lots of FPS', I also play RPG's and MOBA's so I'd prefer a little bass for a more immersive experience. These will be primarily home headphones. If I go over to a friends house to play video games, I will be bringing them along so isolation is important but it's not the highest priority. Up until this point, if I was playing at a friends house, I would just use my laptop speakers so it wasn't like we were playing in complete silence. These will be worn for long periods of time (4+ hours) regularly so comfort is important. I'd probably place comfort second most important after sound quality. SQ > Comfort > Isolation > Build Quality
With that said...what do you guys think?
I like the Hi2050's a lot and hear that they have a great soundstage and good locational cues/positioning. I hear they leak ~90% at normal listening levels but I'm not quite sure how loud that actually is since these will be my first set of headphones. Don't really have anything to reference that too. Would it be enough to disturb one of the friends that I'm playing with? Would my girlfriend be able to hear them over the movie that she's watching across the room? I've also heard that they're pretty darn comfy. And they seem like the obvious pick for gaming since they're open. Leakage is pretty much the only thing keeping me from pulling the trigger. If they really are that loud, I might pass solely on that.
The SR850 is a very, very close second (I'm not crazy about the styling and I heard they aren't quite as comfortable as the Hi2050's). I've heard only good things about them. Sure, it's semi-open but I heard that the isolation is not bad. I'm not worried about leakage with the Samson. I was about to pull the trigger on this but thought I'd come see what you guys thought first. If I go with the SR850 I'll be getting AKG velour pads for it.
Finally the Jaycar, I wasn't seriously considering this one in the beginning but thought I should have a closed headphone in the running. Again, I have no experience with it...but all I've heard are good things. Obviously the soundstage won't be quite as good since it's closed but I heard it's respectable. Heard they are pretty comfortable though.
As far as my source goes, I'll be running these from my laptop. I was planning on picking up a external sound car/DAC along with an amp (if one is necessary). I was hoping you guys could actually recommend me some that would be well suited with whatever headphone you think is best. I would like to keep my total budget around $100-150 (USD) if possible. Cheaper the better obviously but I'm willing to spend more if it's worth it. With that said, I've heard good things about the ELE DAC and the FiiO E7. What do you guys think?
If there is a headphone, DAC/amp combo that you think would serve my purposes better than the one's I mentioned, please let me know! I'm not 100% dead set on any of these.
Thank you for all the help and I look forward to your replies. Much appreciated.
Edit: I'm thinking about throwing the Takstar Pro 80 (Gemini HSR-1000) along with the Superlux HD661 in to the mix if anyone has any experience with any of those either.
I'm going to be purchasing my first real set of headphones in the near future and, after quite a bit of research and reading, I've nailed it down to these three: the Jaycar Pro Monitor, the Takstar Hi2050 or the Samson SR850. This headphone will be used primarily for gaming but will also be used for music (i.e. classic rock and electronic) and movies as well (65%, 25%, 10%, respectively). I do not play competitively so a complete lack of bass is not necessary (i.e. AD700). In fact, I would like a little bit of bass for when I listen to music/movies and while I do play lots of FPS', I also play RPG's and MOBA's so I'd prefer a little bass for a more immersive experience. These will be primarily home headphones. If I go over to a friends house to play video games, I will be bringing them along so isolation is important but it's not the highest priority. Up until this point, if I was playing at a friends house, I would just use my laptop speakers so it wasn't like we were playing in complete silence. These will be worn for long periods of time (4+ hours) regularly so comfort is important. I'd probably place comfort second most important after sound quality. SQ > Comfort > Isolation > Build Quality
With that said...what do you guys think?
I like the Hi2050's a lot and hear that they have a great soundstage and good locational cues/positioning. I hear they leak ~90% at normal listening levels but I'm not quite sure how loud that actually is since these will be my first set of headphones. Don't really have anything to reference that too. Would it be enough to disturb one of the friends that I'm playing with? Would my girlfriend be able to hear them over the movie that she's watching across the room? I've also heard that they're pretty darn comfy. And they seem like the obvious pick for gaming since they're open. Leakage is pretty much the only thing keeping me from pulling the trigger. If they really are that loud, I might pass solely on that.
The SR850 is a very, very close second (I'm not crazy about the styling and I heard they aren't quite as comfortable as the Hi2050's). I've heard only good things about them. Sure, it's semi-open but I heard that the isolation is not bad. I'm not worried about leakage with the Samson. I was about to pull the trigger on this but thought I'd come see what you guys thought first. If I go with the SR850 I'll be getting AKG velour pads for it.
Finally the Jaycar, I wasn't seriously considering this one in the beginning but thought I should have a closed headphone in the running. Again, I have no experience with it...but all I've heard are good things. Obviously the soundstage won't be quite as good since it's closed but I heard it's respectable. Heard they are pretty comfortable though.
As far as my source goes, I'll be running these from my laptop. I was planning on picking up a external sound car/DAC along with an amp (if one is necessary). I was hoping you guys could actually recommend me some that would be well suited with whatever headphone you think is best. I would like to keep my total budget around $100-150 (USD) if possible. Cheaper the better obviously but I'm willing to spend more if it's worth it. With that said, I've heard good things about the ELE DAC and the FiiO E7. What do you guys think?
If there is a headphone, DAC/amp combo that you think would serve my purposes better than the one's I mentioned, please let me know! I'm not 100% dead set on any of these.
Thank you for all the help and I look forward to your replies. Much appreciated.
Edit: I'm thinking about throwing the Takstar Pro 80 (Gemini HSR-1000) along with the Superlux HD661 in to the mix if anyone has any experience with any of those either.