Packdemon

I heard much good about that ASUS board you can probably reach 4.5GHz!

you can argue that in games Intel is purely better, and pre 2014, you would be right. as games made prior to 2014 that COULD use more then 1-2 threads/cores were few and far between. Come 2014 and A LOT of games started using 4 or more cores. This is not only a growing trend, it is happening. DX12 will have full support and good scaling for up to 6 cores/threads. Meaning any CPU pushing 6 threads or more will see well optimized games.
 
FX sucks at IPC, and in games strictly using 1-2 cores, IPC is king.
however as tasks become more parrallellized, IPC becomes less important then the ability to actually EXECUTE said tasks in parrallell.
For CPUs with fewer threads/cores, IPC and clock speed is what defines their ability to run these games. This is why intels 1,5 year old CPUs are getting more and more competition from the 4 year old bulldozer based architecture. Mind you, FX was pretty MEH even when it came out. However this displays HOW important core/thread count is if the game can use it.
The Witcher 3 sees a FX 6300 creep close to a locked i5, an 8350 would perform more stable then the i5. And while FXs low IPC forbids them ever getting higher FPS then Intel CPUs, their core count lets them execute parrallellized tasks smoother.
 
In professional software using all 8 cores/threads, an i5 will NEVER catch a 8350. Whilst having a staggering 70% stronger cores it still wont beat the 8350 if all 8 cores/threads are being used.
As we see more and more games move towards the trend of using more cores/threads, picking up a FX 6300 over an i3, or a 8320e (get the low wattage version to get cheaper mobos) over an i5 CAN MAKE SENSE.
However if your budget allows you to get an Intel i5 4460 or better, you should do so. Because not every game WILL use more then 4 cores/threads. Some will only use 4, some will still use 2 cores/threads... and in these programs, Intel would be wastly superior.

I was worried, so I asked him if I had a hemorrhage or a concussion, or something. He said I was fine though, and that I was just suffering from a minor case of stupidity

Disclaimer: This is not an official Beyerdynamic product, nor is this a DIY guide.   "A truly high end audiophile grade headset," this is a statement that I sadly have not been able to make about any product. They never seem to have all of the features that Iwant in a high end headset, and they never have what they need to be a high end audiophile grade headset. Most have fairly low resistances which I don't think could be justified for the typical audiophile desktop home setup. Quite a few have semi- or fully- open backed designs, which for me can't be justified with use of a microphone that is next to your face (unless if it has great ambient noise cancellation and your volume is perhaps low with say a semi- and not fully- open backed headphones). And none of them have the detailed sound quality of a T1 or HD800 (none of them are even in that price range), at best there are perhaps headsets that are are par with the Beyerdynamic DT line in terms of detailed sound. And the last thing that makes a pair of headphones into an actual headset: the mic. I'd say that the majority of microphones that are integrated with audiophile grade headsets generally aren't that good, granted when gaming I don't necessarily care how I sound to my friends so long as they can understand me, but I'd still like for there to be a standard set in place for headset mics because I don't like hearing my friends voices being carried as fuzz audio and I know that as fellow audiophiles they think the same thing about my voice. I don't like having add-on solutions like modmic either because I don't like having a second cable and it makes me mad having a magnet so close to my drivers (even if the distortion is very minimal, I already pay top dollar just to not hear that) when they could have designed the modmic to have a clasp or ball-in-socket method of attachment.   High impedance (600 ohms if possible) No noise leakage:Closed-backed An adequate seal:Adequate clamping pressure/force Non-perforated leather earpads Detailed sounding high end drivers with a fairly neutral sound signature A decent sounding mic Mic has to pickup sound below 50Hz to catch all of the overtones of my deep voice No separate mic cable (other that the two heads at the ends) No magnetic attachment mics An overall comfortable design:All non-synthetic materials are preferred  Soft, but dense viscoelastic foams are preferred (e.g. memory foam)   Since nothing like this was out there I decided that I'd just create my own:
 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 



Here's the full list of components used (I ordered most of the individual parts directly from Beyerdynamic Germany): 
 
A used Custom One Pro (for it's housing, jack, and metal band) Black Leather Beyerdynamic HS 800 aviator headband Black Leather Beyerdynamic HS 800 viscoelastic (memory) foam earpads (that are not perforated) Gen.1 T1 drivers (there was no Gen.2 at the time) T1 ironing bracket and sliding kit (mostly for aesthetics, but it is a little bit more comfortable since the ear cups have greater rotation) Beyerdynamic COP Headset Gear Custom One Pro Microphone cable A few other cables for when I am using my desktop mic or smart phone A Custom Cans Mass Loading and damping kit And a decent 3 channel (R+, R-, and an additional ground) wire cable to route in between the ear cups (I enlarged the wholes to make it fit and sealed it with a rubber gasket)  
These mods weren't done with an absent mind. I understood that since the original T1 driver was designed for a semi-open backed housing, placing the drivers into this housing caused the bass drop significantly. Two things were done to fine tune the bass to increase it back to it's original levels while still being in the COP housing. First, I enlarged the bassports (not too much though, otherwise this would basically still be a semi-open backed headphone) and set the bassport to position 4. Second, those leather earpads are non-perforated memory foam pads that help create a better seal, doing this significantly increases the bass relative to the rest of the sound. After that it was just a matter of fine tuning the bassports until the bass was perfect. This headset actually is dampened, and sounds a lot better than my undampened T1. I found this kit to be the best dampening for this particular build as nothing else work sonically and because of the tight fit:



My impressions on the sound of this compared to a regular T1 is that this sounds quite a bit louder, it has a significant more amount of isolation, the soundstage illusion is a bit less, and they more or less actually sound the same other than the hot treble spikes not being present in the Custom T1. I'd say that overall out of the two this one is far more comfortable.

Since this isn't a DIY guide or anything I won't be posting on how to make this in the comments. I won't be making a DIY thread either unless if you guys were REALLY interested since that would take up quite a bit of my time. If you have any questions, requests, criticisms, or helpful advice about these headphones, then feel free to join the discussion down below.

How big are they? You may want to add a 56K warning.

@TheProfosist I fixed the images, so you can open your eyes now without cringing now  
 
Edit: They seem to be lagging the page a bit when you scroll now, however

If you have the money for an anechoic chamber, you probably have enough to just buy some speakers.

Right here axper

More audio stuff please... Despite that you guys mentioned there would be less of that.

But I could ski down that

I redact my statement. I have only ever listened to the over ear, original momentum. Didn't read through the thread

Top 10 bullshit 2015

Sounds cool.
I would go if it was about 30 hours closer

$1,000,000,000,000 (Zimbabwe Dollars, BTW...)

No.

 
 
However, dont get the M50x. They are not worth it.
 
Do this.

Nice. I don't live in that area, but I recommend anyone that does check it out, it's a great way to hear new headphones.

Feel like I can relate with this guy really well. It's a really great feeling when you build a family member or friend a new PC. I remember the times that I built both my sister and cousin their very own PCs with complete color coordinated setups to go with it. They were both so speechless that it literally took thew a few months to realize what I had given them back on Christmas before they actually thanked me I love that so much, and I can't describe the feeling. It's just so addicting and makes me feel alive. I'm also a big fan ANC and PNI myself, and while I haven't gotten anything expensive or high end yet, but I still think that what I have beats out just about anything in overall levels of noise reduction. Right now I have an AudioTechnica ATH-ANC33iS (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CL3TAOQ) paired with a Browning HDR Hearing Protector (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005ERRM4G) that I wear over them. I replaced the headband of the hearing protector with beyerdynamic leather aviator ones for comfort. The ANC got rid of most of the lower frequencies while the PNI got rid of all the higher ones, so it was perfect harmony.

I'm going to use a similar fallacy later on too, but just because something is more expensive doesn't make it better. Literally, correct me if I'm wrong, but you probably haven't tried any of these headphones have you? I've only tried the T1 out of all those myself, so I personally can't make the comparison. 
 
There are a fair number of benefits that you'll have with higher impedance, one of them being (when paired with an amp that has a low output impedance) that you get a higher signal-to-noise ratio which will equate to you getting much cleaner audio with a more detailed bass. There are a lot more, but since I don't have the time to list them all here's a thread that will do a good job of explaining all of the benefits of a higher impedance as well as links to other threads that do the same: http://www.head-fi.org/t/246424/benefits-of-high-impedance-headphones#post_3075111
 
Also, if no one in the audiophile community cared about impedance, then they'd all pretty much just be using 16 ohm headphones paired just with a DAC. I don't think that the whole of the audiophile community is filled with completely rational people who are very knowledgeable about audio (there is definitely a lot of misinformation being passed around as well as a lot of gimmicks), but most of them use high impedance headphones and amps, and that does count for something. I hate using the bandwagon fallacy in conversation, so I am not trying to use that as reasoning to convince you of why I am right. I just hope that it motivates you to do some research on high impedance and amps, since the majority of the community supports it and they have a good reason to. Usually, there is a good reason for why so many people believe in the same thing. So, find out why for yourself, and don't be convinced until your convinced. Sorry for all the redundancies.
 
 
While closed-backed do have some objective benefits over open-backed headphones, the majority of the number of reasons (definitely not how long it takes to explain them though). I use them are either because of a personal preference or accommodation.
 
Objectively, closed-backed headphone have more isolation, and there isn't a place in this world that you can go to that is free of sound. At the very least you will always hear the sound of your heartbeat or breathing. Anything that you hear that is not the signal of the original audio that you are playing will interfere with you listening to it, and will distort your user experience even if it is not the "noise" that is referred to in signal-to-noise ratio. Sound is sound. This is all very true and simple logic. Also, while soundstage does matter, soundstage illusion does not (at least not positively). To not confuse the two, near true-to-life soundstage is created from a binaural audiophile that is recorded with 2 microphones at the same distance that your drivers are away from your ear. Depending on how well closely matched your drivers from your head to how far the microphones were to or in the fake head will affect how accurately you can mentally measure the distance of the audio that you are hearing. It is just as bad as to be over estimating as it is to be under estimating the actual soundstage. Now as for soundstage illusion or distortion or whatever you want to call it. Soundstage illusion is affected by how open your drivers are, how big the room you are standing in is and your placement in said room, the echo in the room, the seal that you are getting in your earcups, and the location that the drivers are playing relative to your ears. Try listening to a binaural video track with a pair of your open-backed headphones in a confined space like a closet and then an open space like your room to test this. While you do that watch the video carefully and try to feel how well you can hear each objects or person's distance relative to yourself, make the careful conclusion as to whether the soundstage is being over- or under- compensated it each situation. Now try the same test, but this time for the test feel the measurement for the distance both while holding both of your earcups equally away from your ears and while having them pushed heavily close towards your ears. You can use this video as the test (remember that the camera is located ~2 feet below the microphones):

 
As for my preferences, there are some times when I take these headphones on the go with me along with my CEntrace DACport Slim amp/DAC when I use my laptop, and I don't want my audio to be leaking in public places. Even if it's not a quiet place like a library (which I do go to a lot) hearing other peoples music usually disturbs me if it contradicts my psyche, so I don't like to circumstantially make someone listen to my garbage music when they think that it is garbage music. There is also the matter of me desiring isolation so I don't hear as much outside "noise" to distort my music. Also, another accommodation is that during a time when I'm not using my desktop microphone while watching a movie or a show, listening to epic bassy music, or playing a campaign/story game I like to close my bassports and plug in my subwoofers (one in front of my footrest, and two on my Aeron Herman Miller chair, one on the back and one on the bottom) and base shakers to my additional outputs. For this specific circumstance I literally needed a headphone with variable bass and isolation, and this was literally perfect for that unique use case scenario.
 
I'd also like to mention as a mix between preference and objective, that since the T1 telsa (magnets) drivers are so powerful, and since I get such a great seal in this closed housing with the non-perforated leather memory foam earpads I can actually get a decent volume on these things even without amplification despite them being 600 ohms. And with them being so loud in general I can set the volume of them much lower than my other 600 ohm headphones (i.e. my 600 ohm DT770s) meaning that I am getting even less distortion in comparison (that being objective). I even use them with my smartphone, which is a very convenient accommodation for me.
 
 
I'm going to be lazy when answering this one, but I pretty much use this as my universal_headphones/headset/daily_driver, not just for when I play games.
 
It doesn't matter if the sound quality is "low" or not "detailed." While it does exist, it's generally impossible to tell the difference between something that is say 16 bit and something that in 24 bit, or between 48kHz and 96kHz. Not sure if that's what you meant by detailed though. I'm already pretty tired. In any case, these headphones paired with my amp/DAC actually makes League of Legends sound pretty great.
 
 
I already do have a desktop microphone, so I actually use a different cable when I am at home. I'd generally just use that mic cable when I am on my laptop, but I've sometimes used it paired with a headphone adapter splitter for important phone calls when clarity matters. With my phone I'd generally use this type of cable though because it's more convenient: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00K36XWG0
 
Now, I don't mean to sound patronizing when I say this. Normally, I wouldn't care about giving a detailed responses like this, but I felt like you truly deserved one. It's just that you seem to have a such great interest and understanding of audio that I could just give the basic response. If you don't mind me asking, what got you into liking audio this much?

I've already thought and addressed all of those issues when building this headset. The original T1 driver was designed for a semi-open backed housing, placing the drivers into this housing caused the bass drop significantly. Two things were done to fine tune the bass to increase it back to the original levels while still being in the COP housing. First, I enlarged the bassports (not too much though, otherwise this would basically still be a semi-open backed headphone) and set the bassport to position 4. Second, those leather earpads are non-perforated memory foam pads that help create a better seal, doing this significantly increases the bass relative to the rest of the sound. After that it was just a matter of fine tuning the bassports until the bass was perfect. This headset actually is dampened, and sounds a lot better than my undampened  T1. I found this kit to be the best dampening for this particular build as nothing else work sonically and because of the tight fit: 
 
 
Although I do own another T1, this headset was actually made entirely from parts that I ordered from Germany and a used COP. Not including the T1 bracket and sliding kit (I didn't need those really, it was for aesthetics) it only cost me around $580 to make. With the T1 bracket and sliding kit it was like another $100.

Disclaimer: This is not an official Beyerdynamic product, nor is this a DIY guide.   "A truly high end audiophile grade headset," this is a statement that I sadly have not been able to make about any product. They never seem to have all of the features that Iwant in a high end headset, and they never have what they need to be a high end audiophile grade headset. Most have fairly low resistances which I don't think could be justified for the typical audiophile desktop home setup. Quite a few have semi- or fully- open backed designs, which for me can't be justified with use of a microphone that is next to your face (unless if it has great ambient noise cancellation and your volume is perhaps low with say a semi- and not fully- open backed headphones). And none of them have the detailed sound quality of a T1 or HD800 (none of them are even in that price range), at best there are perhaps headsets that are are par with the Beyerdynamic DT line in terms of detailed sound. And the last thing that makes a pair of headphones into an actual headset: the mic. I'd say that the majority of microphones that are integrated with audiophile grade headsets generally aren't that good, granted when gaming I don't necessarily care how I sound to my friends so long as they can understand me, but I'd still like for there to be a standard set in place for headset mics because I don't like hearing my friends voices being carried as fuzz audio and I know that as fellow audiophiles they think the same thing about my voice. I don't like having add-on solutions like modmic either because I don't like having a second cable and it makes me mad having a magnet so close to my drivers (even if the distortion is very minimal, I already pay top dollar just to not hear that) when they could have designed the modmic to have a clasp or ball-in-socket method of attachment.   High impedance (600 ohms if possible) No noise leakage:Closed-backed An adequate seal:Adequate clamping pressure/force Non-perforated leather earpads Detailed sounding high end drivers with a fairly neutral sound signature A decent sounding mic Mic has to pickup sound below 50Hz to catch all of the overtones of my deep voice No separate mic cable (other that the two heads at the ends) No magnetic attachment mics An overall comfortable design:All non-synthetic materials are preferred  Soft, but dense viscoelastic foams are preferred (e.g. memory foam)   Since nothing like this was out there I decided that I'd just create my own:
 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 



Here's the full list of components used (I ordered most of the individual parts directly from Beyerdynamic Germany): 
 
A used Custom One Pro (for it's housing, jack, and metal band) Black Leather Beyerdynamic HS 800 aviator headband Black Leather Beyerdynamic HS 800 viscoelastic (memory) foam earpads (that are not perforated) Gen.1 T1 drivers (there was no Gen.2 at the time) T1 ironing bracket and sliding kit (mostly for aesthetics, but it is a little bit more comfortable since the ear cups have greater rotation) Beyerdynamic COP Headset Gear Custom One Pro Microphone cable A few other cables for when I am using my desktop mic or smart phone A Custom Cans Mass Loading and damping kit And a decent 3 channel (R+, R-, and an additional ground) wire cable to route in between the ear cups (I enlarged the wholes to make it fit and sealed it with a rubber gasket)  
These mods weren't done with an absent mind. I understood that since the original T1 driver was designed for a semi-open backed housing, placing the drivers into this housing caused the bass drop significantly. Two things were done to fine tune the bass to increase it back to it's original levels while still being in the COP housing. First, I enlarged the bassports (not too much though, otherwise this would basically still be a semi-open backed headphone) and set the bassport to position 4. Second, those leather earpads are non-perforated memory foam pads that help create a better seal, doing this significantly increases the bass relative to the rest of the sound. After that it was just a matter of fine tuning the bassports until the bass was perfect. This headset actually is dampened, and sounds a lot better than my undampened T1. I found this kit to be the best dampening for this particular build as nothing else work sonically and because of the tight fit:



My impressions on the sound of this compared to a regular T1 is that this sounds quite a bit louder, it has a significant more amount of isolation, the soundstage illusion is a bit less, and they more or less actually sound the same other than the hot treble spikes not being present in the Custom T1. I'd say that overall out of the two this one is far more comfortable.

Since this isn't a DIY guide or anything I won't be posting on how to make this in the comments. I won't be making a DIY thread either unless if you guys were REALLY interested since that would take up quite a bit of my time. If you have any questions, requests, criticisms, or helpful advice about these headphones, then feel free to join the discussion down below.

I'm going to use a similar fallacy later on too, but just because something is more expensive doesn't make it better. Literally, correct me if I'm wrong, but you probably haven't tried any of these headphones have you? I've only tried the T1 out of all those myself, so I personally can't make the comparison. 
 
There are a fair number of benefits that you'll have with higher impedance, one of them being (when paired with an amp that has a low output impedance) that you get a higher signal-to-noise ratio which will equate to you getting much cleaner audio with a more detailed bass. There are a lot more, but since I don't have the time to list them all here's a thread that will do a good job of explaining all of the benefits of a higher impedance as well as links to other threads that do the same: http://www.head-fi.org/t/246424/benefits-of-high-impedance-headphones#post_3075111
 
Also, if no one in the audiophile community cared about impedance, then they'd all pretty much just be using 16 ohm headphones paired just with a DAC. I don't think that the whole of the audiophile community is filled with completely rational people who are very knowledgeable about audio (there is definitely a lot of misinformation being passed around as well as a lot of gimmicks), but most of them use high impedance headphones and amps, and that does count for something. I hate using the bandwagon fallacy in conversation, so I am not trying to use that as reasoning to convince you of why I am right. I just hope that it motivates you to do some research on high impedance and amps, since the majority of the community supports it and they have a good reason to. Usually, there is a good reason for why so many people believe in the same thing. So, find out why for yourself, and don't be convinced until your convinced. Sorry for all the redundancies.
 
 
While closed-backed do have some objective benefits over open-backed headphones, the majority of the number of reasons (definitely not how long it takes to explain them though). I use them are either because of a personal preference or accommodation.
 
Objectively, closed-backed headphone have more isolation, and there isn't a place in this world that you can go to that is free of sound. At the very least you will always hear the sound of your heartbeat or breathing. Anything that you hear that is not the signal of the original audio that you are playing will interfere with you listening to it, and will distort your user experience even if it is not the "noise" that is referred to in signal-to-noise ratio. Sound is sound. This is all very true and simple logic. Also, while soundstage does matter, soundstage illusion does not (at least not positively). To not confuse the two, near true-to-life soundstage is created from a binaural audiophile that is recorded with 2 microphones at the same distance that your drivers are away from your ear. Depending on how well closely matched your drivers from your head to how far the microphones were to or in the fake head will affect how accurately you can mentally measure the distance of the audio that you are hearing. It is just as bad as to be over estimating as it is to be under estimating the actual soundstage. Now as for soundstage illusion or distortion or whatever you want to call it. Soundstage illusion is affected by how open your drivers are, how big the room you are standing in is and your placement in said room, the echo in the room, the seal that you are getting in your earcups, and the location that the drivers are playing relative to your ears. Try listening to a binaural video track with a pair of your open-backed headphones in a confined space like a closet and then an open space like your room to test this. While you do that watch the video carefully and try to feel how well you can hear each objects or person's distance relative to yourself, make the careful conclusion as to whether the soundstage is being over- or under- compensated it each situation. Now try the same test, but this time for the test feel the measurement for the distance both while holding both of your earcups equally away from your ears and while having them pushed heavily close towards your ears. You can use this video as the test (remember that the camera is located ~2 feet below the microphones):

 
As for my preferences, there are some times when I take these headphones on the go with me along with my CEntrace DACport Slim amp/DAC when I use my laptop, and I don't want my audio to be leaking in public places. Even if it's not a quiet place like a library (which I do go to a lot) hearing other peoples music usually disturbs me if it contradicts my psyche, so I don't like to circumstantially make someone listen to my garbage music when they think that it is garbage music. There is also the matter of me desiring isolation so I don't hear as much outside "noise" to distort my music. Also, another accommodation is that during a time when I'm not using my desktop microphone while watching a movie or a show, listening to epic bassy music, or playing a campaign/story game I like to close my bassports and plug in my subwoofers (one in front of my footrest, and two on my Aeron Herman Miller chair, one on the back and one on the bottom) and base shakers to my additional outputs. For this specific circumstance I literally needed a headphone with variable bass and isolation, and this was literally perfect for that unique use case scenario.
 
I'd also like to mention as a mix between preference and objective, that since the T1 telsa (magnets) drivers are so powerful, and since I get such a great seal in this closed housing with the non-perforated leather memory foam earpads I can actually get a decent volume on these things even without amplification despite them being 600 ohms. And with them being so loud in general I can set the volume of them much lower than my other 600 ohm headphones (i.e. my 600 ohm DT770s) meaning that I am getting even less distortion in comparison (that being objective). I even use them with my smartphone, which is a very convenient accommodation for me.
 
 
I'm going to be lazy when answering this one, but I pretty much use this as my universal_headphones/headset/daily_driver, not just for when I play games.
 
It doesn't matter if the sound quality is "low" or not "detailed." While it does exist, it's generally impossible to tell the difference between something that is say 16 bit and something that in 24 bit, or between 48kHz and 96kHz. Not sure if that's what you meant by detailed though. I'm already pretty tired. In any case, these headphones paired with my amp/DAC actually makes League of Legends sound pretty great.
 
 
I already do have a desktop microphone, so I actually use a different cable when I am at home. I'd generally just use that mic cable when I am on my laptop, but I've sometimes used it paired with a headphone adapter splitter for important phone calls when clarity matters. With my phone I'd generally use this type of cable though because it's more convenient: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00K36XWG0
 
Now, I don't mean to sound patronizing when I say this. Normally, I wouldn't care about giving a detailed responses like this, but I felt like you truly deserved one. It's just that you seem to have a such great interest and understanding of audio that I could just give the basic response. If you don't mind me asking, what got you into liking audio this much?

The Vmoda BoomPro's mic cable is not as good as the one that I am using: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DHBVUCQ

I've already thought and addressed all of those issues when building this headset. The original T1 driver was designed for a semi-open backed housing, placing the drivers into this housing caused the bass drop significantly. Two things were done to fine tune the bass to increase it back to the original levels while still being in the COP housing. First, I enlarged the bassports (not too much though, otherwise this would basically still be a semi-open backed headphone) and set the bassport to position 4. Second, those leather earpads are non-perforated memory foam pads that help create a better seal, doing this significantly increases the bass relative to the rest of the sound. After that it was just a matter of fine tuning the bassports until the bass was perfect. This headset actually is dampened, and sounds a lot better than my undampened  T1. I found this kit to be the best dampening for this particular build as nothing else work sonically and because of the tight fit: 
 
 
Although I do own another T1, this headset was actually made entirely from parts that I ordered from Germany and a used COP. Not including the T1 bracket and sliding kit (I didn't need those really, it was for aesthetics) it only cost me around $580 to make. With the T1 bracket and sliding kit it was like another $100.

Disclaimer: This is not an official Beyerdynamic product, nor is this a DIY guide.   "A truly high end audiophile grade headset," this is a statement that I sadly have not been able to make about any product. They never seem to have all of the features that Iwant in a high end headset, and they never have what they need to be a high end audiophile grade headset. Most have fairly low resistances which I don't think could be justified for the typical audiophile desktop home setup. Quite a few have semi- or fully- open backed designs, which for me can't be justified with use of a microphone that is next to your face (unless if it has great ambient noise cancellation and your volume is perhaps low with say a semi- and not fully- open backed headphones). And none of them have the detailed sound quality of a T1 or HD800 (none of them are even in that price range), at best there are perhaps headsets that are are par with the Beyerdynamic DT line in terms of detailed sound. And the last thing that makes a pair of headphones into an actual headset: the mic. I'd say that the majority of microphones that are integrated with audiophile grade headsets generally aren't that good, granted when gaming I don't necessarily care how I sound to my friends so long as they can understand me, but I'd still like for there to be a standard set in place for headset mics because I don't like hearing my friends voices being carried as fuzz audio and I know that as fellow audiophiles they think the same thing about my voice. I don't like having add-on solutions like modmic either because I don't like having a second cable and it makes me mad having a magnet so close to my drivers (even if the distortion is very minimal, I already pay top dollar just to not hear that) when they could have designed the modmic to have a clasp or ball-in-socket method of attachment.   High impedance (600 ohms if possible) No noise leakage:Closed-backed An adequate seal:Adequate clamping pressure/force Non-perforated leather earpads Detailed sounding high end drivers with a fairly neutral sound signature A decent sounding mic Mic has to pickup sound below 50Hz to catch all of the overtones of my deep voice No separate mic cable (other that the two heads at the ends) No magnetic attachment mics An overall comfortable design:All non-synthetic materials are preferred  Soft, but dense viscoelastic foams are preferred (e.g. memory foam)   Since nothing like this was out there I decided that I'd just create my own:
 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 



Here's the full list of components used (I ordered most of the individual parts directly from Beyerdynamic Germany): 
 
A used Custom One Pro (for it's housing, jack, and metal band) Black Leather Beyerdynamic HS 800 aviator headband Black Leather Beyerdynamic HS 800 viscoelastic (memory) foam earpads (that are not perforated) Gen.1 T1 drivers (there was no Gen.2 at the time) T1 ironing bracket and sliding kit (mostly for aesthetics, but it is a little bit more comfortable since the ear cups have greater rotation) Beyerdynamic COP Headset Gear Custom One Pro Microphone cable A few other cables for when I am using my desktop mic or smart phone A Custom Cans Mass Loading and damping kit And a decent 3 channel (R+, R-, and an additional ground) wire cable to route in between the ear cups (I enlarged the wholes to make it fit and sealed it with a rubber gasket)  
These mods weren't done with an absent mind. I understood that since the original T1 driver was designed for a semi-open backed housing, placing the drivers into this housing caused the bass drop significantly. Two things were done to fine tune the bass to increase it back to it's original levels while still being in the COP housing. First, I enlarged the bassports (not too much though, otherwise this would basically still be a semi-open backed headphone) and set the bassport to position 4. Second, those leather earpads are non-perforated memory foam pads that help create a better seal, doing this significantly increases the bass relative to the rest of the sound. After that it was just a matter of fine tuning the bassports until the bass was perfect. This headset actually is dampened, and sounds a lot better than my undampened T1. I found this kit to be the best dampening for this particular build as nothing else work sonically and because of the tight fit:



My impressions on the sound of this compared to a regular T1 is that this sounds quite a bit louder, it has a significant more amount of isolation, the soundstage illusion is a bit less, and they more or less actually sound the same other than the hot treble spikes not being present in the Custom T1. I'd say that overall out of the two this one is far more comfortable.

Since this isn't a DIY guide or anything I won't be posting on how to make this in the comments. I won't be making a DIY thread either unless if you guys were REALLY interested since that would take up quite a bit of my time. If you have any questions, requests, criticisms, or helpful advice about these headphones, then feel free to join the discussion down below.

He really was one hell of a guy. He got me a game for my PC one time, and my PC couldn't run it. So he bought me a graphics card. That didn't fit in my low profile Dell case, so what did he do? He bought me a whole new PC, literally just so I could play one stupid little game. (It was the original Race Driver: GRID.)
 
It makes me sad... I only knew him for 3 years or so, before he passed... 
 
He was kinda funny about audio though, because he was a huge fan of Active Noise Cancelling in headphones. I think that's due to all of the business trips he used to go on, and that when he wasn't in a plane, and wanted to listen to music, he would either be in his car, or at the house.