Simon
Right. I've got no actual sound 'card' seeing as i;ve got a built in one.
I've got no hope of upgrading it- as i havent actually got a PCI slot. only agp.
SO...
I'm using terrible over-the-ear headphones that i got from the local supermarket at the moment- i chose these because i found that my two speakers just simply weren't delivering any bass.
What i;ve got not isnt exactly terrible, but i just want to know if i'll get the sound quality close to that of speakers+subwoofer.
so i switched to those...
but now i'm wonding, will i get any better sound quality with more expensive headphones?
seeing as though they're just going to connect to my comp via the same headphone jack socket thingy.
Any1 got any ideas?
(looking to do some Cubase stuff laer on, with a usb keyboard- thats how i'll get around the sound card thing)
Thanks muchly.
OH yeah, 10 points for best answer, i'll be checking up on it every 5 mins or so.
ta.
Yeah, its a crappy old compaq- onboard sound chip- so i can;t connect a subwoofer. :(
Answer
The headphones you have can make a HUGE difference to the sound quality. Just like speakers - higher quality means better sound reproduction. There is a but coming though - the quality offered by the listening equipment can never exceed the quality of the output (from your computer).
Consider though, many on board audio chipsets are the same. (There are two or three manufacturer's used that I can think of). My laptop for instance has an ESS audio chipshet. The laptop speakers sound very tinny and lack lustre however, if I connect my Creative Labs speaker system the sound is much clearer and deeper. The same is true of headphones. I have a set of in-ear Sony headphones which I use for my Mini-Disk which produce great sound from my laptop, the basic headphone/microphone set I have for VoIP use sounds pretty mediocre in comparrison. Finally I have a set of headphones for one of my gaming machines which I bought about 6 years ago which have an in built woofer (and audio vibration feedback system) and sound incredible.
It all depends on what you want to pay, but a decent set of Sony/Philips headphones will sound incredible next to what you are hearing right now.
Equally, if you get yourself a set of Creative Labs speakers with a sub woofer set the sound will be dramatically improved.
Good luck.
(UPDATE) It is worth noting that many of the Creative Labs PC speaker sets simply require a stereo input to be able to operate an effective sub-woofer.
Take a look at the Inspire T3100 set (see the sources list) - great sound quality for under $50.
If you have money to burn the Aurvana Live (sources) headphones are great, but $150. If not the Fatal1ty headphones will give you fantastic sound (and a microphone) for $50.
The headphones you have can make a HUGE difference to the sound quality. Just like speakers - higher quality means better sound reproduction. There is a but coming though - the quality offered by the listening equipment can never exceed the quality of the output (from your computer).
Consider though, many on board audio chipsets are the same. (There are two or three manufacturer's used that I can think of). My laptop for instance has an ESS audio chipshet. The laptop speakers sound very tinny and lack lustre however, if I connect my Creative Labs speaker system the sound is much clearer and deeper. The same is true of headphones. I have a set of in-ear Sony headphones which I use for my Mini-Disk which produce great sound from my laptop, the basic headphone/microphone set I have for VoIP use sounds pretty mediocre in comparrison. Finally I have a set of headphones for one of my gaming machines which I bought about 6 years ago which have an in built woofer (and audio vibration feedback system) and sound incredible.
It all depends on what you want to pay, but a decent set of Sony/Philips headphones will sound incredible next to what you are hearing right now.
Equally, if you get yourself a set of Creative Labs speakers with a sub woofer set the sound will be dramatically improved.
Good luck.
(UPDATE) It is worth noting that many of the Creative Labs PC speaker sets simply require a stereo input to be able to operate an effective sub-woofer.
Take a look at the Inspire T3100 set (see the sources list) - great sound quality for under $50.
If you have money to burn the Aurvana Live (sources) headphones are great, but $150. If not the Fatal1ty headphones will give you fantastic sound (and a microphone) for $50.
Best headphone brands with really good sound quality?
Why Hello
I've done my research and I've already heard that Beats, Skullcandy, and Bose aren't worth it. Instead, I've seen a lot of good reviews on Sennheiser, Grado, Denon, Shure, Audio Technica, etc, but I can't seem to decide from which brand I should buy over-the-ear headphones from. I don't really care too much about the price, as long as it's under $500. In your experience, which brand would you say is the best in delivering high-quality sound?
Thanks.
Answer
Just like loudspeakers all headphones have completely different sound quality's, so we cannot hear for you and its hard to hear every model as most headphones are not available for audition.
So our best bet is to go by reviews. This also is were it gets tricky as there are only a handful of audio specialist I would trust their opinions so choose your resources very carefully.
The best place to get good advice and reviews is Absolute Sound, and Stereophile. The reviewers are very knowledgeable, know good sound, and have years of experience. They also review the better headphones on the market. I will include a link to their sites, and Absolute sound also has some really good 'free" down-loadable user guides and reviews on headphones I think you will find very use full.
"but" before you run out and buy the best headphones you think are going to have the sound you want, understand the requirements of the headphones to get good sound. Most high quality headphones benefit largely from a good headphone amplifier. Granted on many headphones you can always add one down the line, but its important to know so you aren't to disappointed in the sound you get when you first get them.
Second is to understand the importance in the source material. Forget about playing Mp3's its a waist of time and will sound like crap on even the best headphones. You need to ether play cd's or high resolution music downloads, or even analog records.
Keep in mind if your wanting to use them with a ipod you can burn Cd's at full resolution onto itunes, which will give you cd quality music on your ipod.
As for brands and your price range, Absolutely Sennheiser are great I own a pair of HD650's which I think are excellent, and they can work directly with a ipod, you wont get really high volumes, but sound good. Sennheiser do sound better with a headphone amplifier as do most but they are not bad. They are a dat shy in the low bass in my opinion but the bass is very detailed and articulate. You might check out the HD600's they have alittle more punch in the bass certainly not as accurate in the bass and not as detailed but they might have more the sound your after.
There are many other brands you certainly want to look into, Hifiman, AKG, Grado's, Beyerdynamics,
My all time favorites are still the Stax but are very expensive and must be driven by a high quality headphone amplifier. The Hifiman are getting all the hot reviews right now but have no dealers so you have to buy direct.
Kevin
40 years high end audio video specialist
Just like loudspeakers all headphones have completely different sound quality's, so we cannot hear for you and its hard to hear every model as most headphones are not available for audition.
So our best bet is to go by reviews. This also is were it gets tricky as there are only a handful of audio specialist I would trust their opinions so choose your resources very carefully.
The best place to get good advice and reviews is Absolute Sound, and Stereophile. The reviewers are very knowledgeable, know good sound, and have years of experience. They also review the better headphones on the market. I will include a link to their sites, and Absolute sound also has some really good 'free" down-loadable user guides and reviews on headphones I think you will find very use full.
"but" before you run out and buy the best headphones you think are going to have the sound you want, understand the requirements of the headphones to get good sound. Most high quality headphones benefit largely from a good headphone amplifier. Granted on many headphones you can always add one down the line, but its important to know so you aren't to disappointed in the sound you get when you first get them.
Second is to understand the importance in the source material. Forget about playing Mp3's its a waist of time and will sound like crap on even the best headphones. You need to ether play cd's or high resolution music downloads, or even analog records.
Keep in mind if your wanting to use them with a ipod you can burn Cd's at full resolution onto itunes, which will give you cd quality music on your ipod.
As for brands and your price range, Absolutely Sennheiser are great I own a pair of HD650's which I think are excellent, and they can work directly with a ipod, you wont get really high volumes, but sound good. Sennheiser do sound better with a headphone amplifier as do most but they are not bad. They are a dat shy in the low bass in my opinion but the bass is very detailed and articulate. You might check out the HD600's they have alittle more punch in the bass certainly not as accurate in the bass and not as detailed but they might have more the sound your after.
There are many other brands you certainly want to look into, Hifiman, AKG, Grado's, Beyerdynamics,
My all time favorites are still the Stax but are very expensive and must be driven by a high quality headphone amplifier. The Hifiman are getting all the hot reviews right now but have no dealers so you have to buy direct.
Kevin
40 years high end audio video specialist
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