[Samzon]

I recently bought these - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sennheiser-HD-599-Around-Ear-Headphones-Ivory-Matte-Finish/dp/B01L1IICR2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1511608202&sr=8-1&keywords=hd+599

The problem I'm facing now is when I plug these into my PC the sound is awful. It's like it's not in HD or something. My old headset has a adapter for 7.1 surround sound, should I be using that? It makes no sense. If I didn't have this adapter upon buying my new headphones what should I have done?

 

[TwoCables]

Onboard audio is almost always crappy for quality. It sounds to me like you would be much happier with a good external DAC. Good external DACs are usually much better than most good consumer sound cards, but require a little bit of desk space. For example, I see this one recommended a lot (and yes, the name is pronounced like you think it is - it's intended to be fun): http://www.schiit.com/products/modi-2

You can also get a decent headphone amp, even though you really don't need one for those headphones: http://www.schiit.com/products/magni-3 However, it might help the sound even more. If you want to keep your costs minimized, then you would just get an adapter so that the headphone plug can be converted into the red/white stereo plugs.

Now, I could recommend a sound card, but then you would have to plug the headphones into the back of the computer.

 

[Samzon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

Onboard audio is almost always crappy for quality. It sounds to me like you would be much happier with a good external DAC. Good external DACs are usually much better than most good consumer sound cards, but require a little bit of desk space. For example, I see this one recommended a lot (and yes, the name is pronounced like you think it is - it's intended to be fun): http://www.schiit.com/products/modi-2

You can also get a decent headphone amp, even though you really don't need one for those headphones: http://www.schiit.com/products/magni-3 However, it might help the sound even more. If you want to keep your costs minimized, then you would just get an adapter so that the headphone plug can be converted into the red/white stereo plugs.

Now, I could recommend a sound card, but then you would have to plug the headphones into the back of the computer.

Damnit. I might just take these headphones back lol and just get the upgraded version of my previous headset which would be these https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sennheiser-506080-Acoustic-Gaming-Headset-Black/dp/B00JQDOALC/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1511612242&sr=1-2&keywords=sennheiser+game

Comes with the 7.1 adapter lol, problem solved i think.

 

[TwoCables]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samzon

Damnit. I might just take these headphones back lol and just get the upgraded version of my previous headset which would be these https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sennheiser-506080-Acoustic-Gaming-Headset-Black/dp/B00JQDOALC/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1511612242&sr=1-2&keywords=sennheiser+game

Comes with the 7.1 adapter lol, problem solved i think.

No, because that will not improve audio quality. You're probably finally hearing just how bad your onboard audio really is.

 

[Samzon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

No, because that will not improve audio quality. You're probably finally hearing just how bad your onboard audio really is.

I'm just used to using the integrated volume control on the headset itself and the adapter with it which gives me good sound lol. All this AMP and DAC things just makes me confused.
Getting that headset rather than these headphones I have just seems more convenient and easy.

 

[TwoCables]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samzon

I'm just used to using the integrated volume control on the headset itself and the adapter with it which gives me good sound lol. All this AMP and DAC things just makes me confused.
Getting that headset rather than these headphones I have just seems more convenient and easy.

Huh? What is "good sound" to you? Louder?

It's not more convenient and easy. An external DAC can connect to your computer via USB. That's pretty easy, so what else is there? Well, then you connect speakers or a headphone amp to the external DAC unit. That's not bad, right? If you're using a headphone amp, which you should, then you finish the setup by plugging your headphones into the headphone amp, turn the knob until you get the volume you want, and enjoy.

 

[Samzon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

Huh? What is "good sound" to you? Louder?

It's not more convenient and easy. An external DAC can connect to your computer via USB. That's pretty easy, so what else is there? Well, then you connect speakers or a headphone amp to the external DAC unit. That's not bad, right? If you're using a headphone amp, which you should, then you finish the setup by plugging your headphones into the headphone amp, turn the knob until you get the volume you want, and enjoy.

The less work you're willing to do, the less you will have.

Ok I see. So if I plug the headphones into this AMP I will get the quality I should be like I am with my old headset and it's adapter 7.1 surround sound? Will the AMP give me that surround sound quality? That's what I like.

This is the adapter I'm talking about.

 

[TwoCables]

Surround sound isn't better sound quality. It's just surround sound. Is that all you want? I mean really, if that's all you care about, then just keep using what you had and return these headphones. Or, see if you can buy that 7.1 adapter I guess. I would return the headphones though and use that money on a nice sound card. You'd be amazed by how much better the sound your current headphones produce (the ones you're trying to replace).

 

[Samzon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

Surround sound isn't better sound quality. It's surround sound. Is that all you want? You buy these audiophile headphones and this is all you want?

I'm kind of stupid I know sorry. I bought my headset 3-4 years ago and seeing and using the adapter which came with it the quality was just awesome, I love it.
I love gaming, music and movies. Now with these new headphones I just wasn't aware that I had to use some type of amp or dac.

Lets say I did get this amp or dac will i get the quality as I should be getting like I would with my old headset? Sorry if i'm not making any sense or anything. just so confused right now.
I thought surround sound was the best to get or something. I'm used to it, if I change from it I'm worried I won't like it nor be able to get used to it.

 

[TwoCables]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samzon

I'm kind of stupid I know sorry. I bought my headset 3-4 years ago and seeing and using the adapter which came with it the quality was just awesome, I love it.
I love gaming, music and movies. Now with these new headphones I just wasn't aware that I had to use some type of amp or dac.

Lets say I did get this amp or dac will i get the quality as I should be getting like I would with my old headset? Sorry if i'm not making any sense or anything. just so confused right now.
I thought surround sound was the best to get or something. I'm used to it, if I change from it I'm worried I won't like it nor be able to get used to it.

No, no, no. I was only recommending an external DAC and headphone amp because you were saying the audio quality isn't good. That told me you're using onboard audio and that would be a big audio bottleneck for those headphones and those headphones are so good they would clearly let you hear how bad your onboard audio is.

However, that's not what you were talking about. So, everything I said goes right out the window. Now I know you were saying you want 7.1 audio.

How would you not be able to get used to it? You're a human being and one of the things we always do whether we want to or not is we adapt to changes. I'm not saying you should get away from 7.1. I'm just saying.... well, I don't know what I'm saying. I think you should just find a 7.1 adapter - but that's only if you really do want 7.1. There's no right or wrong. It's only a matter of preference. I think people usually buy the HD 599 because of the "near-audiophile levels of sound quality". That doesn't mean "surround sound".

I'm used to stereo, but you know what, I'd love to have surround sound. My bedroom prevents me from having such a setup though, so hey (I hate wearing headphones).

 

[Samzon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

No, no, no. I was only recommending an external DAC and headphone amp because you were saying the audio quality isn't good. That told me you're using onboard audio and that would be a big audio bottleneck for those headphones and those headphones are so good they would clearly let you hear how bad your onboard audio is.

However, that's not what you were talking about. So, everything I said goes right out the window. Now I know you were saying you want 7.1 audio.

How would you not be able to get used to it? You're a human being and one of the things we always do whether we want to or not is we adapt to changes. I'm not saying you should get away from 7.1. I'm just saying.... well, I don't know what I'm saying. I think you should just find a 7.1 adapter - but that's only if you really do want 7.1. There's no right or wrong. It's only a matter of preference. I think people usually buy the HD 599 because of the "near-audiophile levels of sound quality". That doesn't mean "surround sound".

I'm used to stereo, but you know what, I'd love to have surround sound. My bedroom prevents me from having such a setup though, so hey (I hate wearing headphones).

As you can see I'm a very complicated person.

I would like 7.1 surround sound and as you said I could just use an adapter, specifically the one from my old headset. However, if I did this I'm faced with another problem. I have no way to quickly adjust volume whilst gaming etc whereas my old headset at the integrated volume control on the headphones.

How would I go about controlling volumes lol. Man I'm such a ***** and confused, and I apologize.

 

[TwoCables]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samzon

As you can see I'm a very complicated person.

I would like 7.1 surround sound and as you said I could just use an adapter, specifically the one from my old headset. However, if I did this I'm faced with another problem. I have no way to quickly adjust volume whilst gaming etc whereas my old headset at the integrated volume control on the headphones.

How would I go about controlling volumes lol. Man I'm such a ***** and confused, and I apologize.

I saw the reason why you want new headphones is you need new ear pads. So, maybe that's all you should do is find a way to get new pads. It sounds to me like you're otherwise still quite happy with their sound and performance.

 

[TwoCables]

Sigh. I looked through a couple of your threads, and you know what: I'm a little pissed off at the fact that no one said that all you have to do is get new ear pads even though you made it quite clear that your worn ear pads are the reason why you are trying to buy new headphones.

What the hell, OCN?

Ugh. Anyway...

Samzon, really, all you need to do is buy new ear pads for the Sennheiser PC 363D headphones. They're available for purchase and I'd bet they're easy to install.

 

[Samzon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

I saw the reason why you want new headphones is you need new ear pads. So, maybe that's all you should do is find a way to get new pads. It sounds to me like you're otherwise still quite happy with them.

That is true but I just want a brand new pair at this point. Should I just get the upgraded version of my current pair, that's what I'm thinking.
I just want good sound and be able to change the volume easily. My headset does this and so would the upgraded one.

My HD 599s don't have easily adjustable volume control and as we know it doesn't have good sound because I don't have the stuff required.
Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

Sigh. I looked through a couple of your threads, and you know what: I'm a little pissed off at the fact that no one said that all you have to do is get new ear pads even though you made it quite clear that your worn ear pads are the reason why you are trying to buy new headphones.

What the hell, OCN?

Samzon, really, all you need to do is buy new ear pads for the Sennheiser PC 363D headphones. They're available for purchase and I'd bet easy to install.

The headset is in a state on which it looks awful lol. I broke the microphone off it a few years ago due to coming home drunk and falling on it. And my head has stretched the earcups so they don't feel tight anymore, it's all kinds of messed up haha.

 

[TwoCables]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samzon

That is true but I just want a brand new pair at this point. Should I just get the upgraded version of my current pair, that's what I'm thinking.
I just want good sound and be able to change the volume easily. My headset does this and so would the upgraded one.

My HD 599s don't have easily adjustable volume control and as we know it doesn't have good sound because I don't have the stuff required.
The headset is in a state on which it looks awful lol. I broke the microphone off it a few years ago due to coming home drunk and falling on it. And my head has stretched the earcups so they don't feel tight anymore, it's all kinds of messed up haha.

Again, your definition of "good sound" is just "it doesn't have 7.1". Everything I said before is completely invalid because I didn't know at that point that all you were saying was that you don't have 7.1. That doesn't mean you wouldn't appreciate the superior sound quality with a nice external DAC and headphone amplifier. All I'm saying is, I misunderstood you and ended up saying a whole bunch of stuff I never even needed to say.

Stretched the earcups? So, replace them for next to nothing (in comparison to the price of new headphones): https://www.google.com/search?q=Sennheiser+PC+363d+ear+pads

 

[Samzon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

Again, your definition of "good sound" is just "it doesn't have 7.1". Everything I said before is completely invalid because I didn't know at that point that all you were saying was that you don't have 7.1. That doesn't mean you wouldn't appreciate the superior sound quality with a nice external DAC and headphone amplifier. All I'm saying is, I misunderstood you and ended up saying a whole bunch of stuff I never even needed to say.

Stretched the earcups? So, replace them for next to nothing: https://www.google.com/search?q=Sennheiser+PC+363d+ear+pads

You know what. I'm only being a complicated invidual because I thought 7.1 sound was the best, because it's the "best" I've owned so I can't judge.

Lets say I went ahead and purchased this right now - https://www.amazon.co.uk/FiiO-Olympus-Headphone-Amplifier-Black/dp/B00LP3AMC2
This will fix both my problems, right? By both problems I mean being able to adjust the volume easily just like I could when adjusting it on my headset. And the other problem of not having "good" sound from my PC.

This AMP will give me quality sound if not better than this littler adapter which came with my previous headset?

 

[TwoCables]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samzon

You know what. I'm only being a complicated invidual because I thought 7.1 sound was the best, because it's the "best" I've owned so I can't judge.

Lets say I went ahead and purchased this right now - https://www.amazon.co.uk/FiiO-Olympus-Headphone-Amplifier-Black/dp/B00LP3AMC2
This will fix both my problems, right? By both problems I mean being able to adjust the volume easily just like I could when adjusting it on my headset. And the other problem of not having "good" sound from my PC.

This AMP will give me quality sound if not better than this littler adapter which came with my previous headset?

Sound quality and surround sound are 2 completely different things. You define sound quality to be good when you have your 7.1 surround sound through that adapter. Now that you don't have it, you're saying the sound quality is bad. These HD 599s should be giving you much nicer sound quality, but it seems you don't have the "ear" for that. All you're hearing is the lack of 7.1 - and you're not liking it. So, I think the best solution is the simplest one: find a way to keep using that adapter.

 

[Samzon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

Sound quality and surround sound are 2 completely different things.

man i've dedicated 3-4 years to this little 7.1 surround sound dolby adapter lol. At this point I'm happy to buy the AMP I linked above and give it a shot to see if I like it. The AMP overall will be amazing right?

 

[TwoCables]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samzon

man i've dedicated 3-4 years to this little 7.1 surround sound dolby adapter lol. At this point I'm happy to buy the AMP I linked above and give it a shot to see if I like it. The AMP overall will be amazing right?

They're not all the same. There's a reason why some are more expensive.

And "amazing" is extreeeeeeeemely subjective. Extremely! Do you prefer FLACs over 128k MP3s? Or hell, do you prefer 320k MP3s instead of 128k MP3s? I mean, do you hear and appreciate higher fidelity audio? Or is it all the same to you?

 

[Samzon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwoCables

They're not all the same. There's a reason why some are more expensive.

And "amazing" is extreeeeeeeemely subjective. Extremely! Do you prefer FLACs over 128k MP3s? Or hell, do you prefer 320k MP3s instead of 128k MP3s? I mean, do you hear and appreciate higher fidelity audio? Or is it all the same to you?

yeah that means nothing to me I have no idea what they are. i'm trying to figure out how can try get a sample of what sound i will get with using a type of DAC/AMP. i have a speaker amp, would that work?