OfficialTechSpace

Driver materials and physical tuning definitely play a big part in terms of the end response, but outright saying driver size will have a minimal effect is plain false. Ignore at least half of what you read on this forum.
 
Your sense of scale and resolution increases with larger drivers, along with stereo imaging capabilities (assuming they're all of the same quality / similar tuning). The more surface area you have to work with, the more you can do with it.
 
Loudspeakers > Headphones > IEMs = for this reason also. Small drivers sound small, and that's indisputable.

Two identical SMSL Sanskrit 10th MKII DACs feeding into two RDL AV-HK1 audio isolation modules, one into an SMSL SP200 THX-888 AAA amplifier, the other to a Mackie MRS10 subwoofer, that then provides a balanced line-out to my Mackie MR524's.
 
I have individual EQ-correction profiles for each of the headphones and IEMs in my arsenal, running off of Equalizer APO and the Peace UI. Nothing crazy, just correcting to comply with my own personal neutral target and fixing any eargain issues (if apparent).
 
I have HiFiMan Ananda's, Sennheiser HD6XX's (since sold, thank goodness. I'm an avid hater of those), Sennheiser HD58X's (sold after becoming obsolete with the purchase of my Ananda's), 7Hz Timeless', Blon BL-03's, and Tin Audio T2's (before they rebranded to Tin HiFi).
 
The Tin Audio T2's are the only set with an upgraded cable. Everything else either didn't need it, or didn't hold a place as close to my heart. I will say though, my HiFiMan Ananda's cable sucks... and 7Hz Timeless' cable is amazing. Especially for a stock cable.
 
All-in, I'm probably approaching $3K just for my desktop audio solutions. Starting the same process for my car. Being an audiophile is expensive! 😭

Proper speakers use RCA, XLR, and TRS connectors. Some other active models do include optical inputs, although these do not. 3.5mm line-outs are more commonly used on desktop speakers.
Just a regular power amp, nothing too extravagant. Although I would recommend the GR Research X-LS Encore's above all else.
 
I'm not sure why everyone seems to be talking about interfaces, the proper item is a DAC. Interfaces have integrated DACs, but are multi-purpose and thereby not ideal for an output-only situation. manufacturers have a set budget to work with, and a target market price. You want something that is single-purpose, so that you know the entire development was focused on having a clean output rather than balanced between many things. Sharing = lesser quality. Less sharing = better.

You shouldn't be running everything off of the same source, they're all designed for their own purposes. An audio interface should be used for a mic exclusively. For speakers and headphones, a dedicated DAC/Amp (if applicable) is preferable. The difference in audible quality is very obvious, because it has one purpose to focus on. It doesn't have to be many things at once.
 
The Scarlett would be perfectly fine for the mic, I use one personally. I'd recommend getting something to the effect of a sub-$200 THX amp for the headphones, and a DAC sporting an AK4493 chip or better to match in quality. I use an SMSL SP200 THX-888 amp, paired with an SMSL Sanskrit 10th MKII DAC. THX made a big splash in the amp industry a few years ago, and were pretty much the go-to amps on a reasonable budget. They've since come down even more in price, and remain a solid option. Also, the $3000 Benchmark amp uses the same THX chip as the SP200.

If you have the money, stick to dedicated solutions. Not just Amps with integrated DACs, but individual DACs and Amps. Unless you're on a tight budget (sub ~$150), that's a bad investment.
 
I've been out of the amp game for a while, but THX is still in the top percentile even years later (at least, at this price category). If you don't need balanced, the THX AAA ONE from Drop is a good, cheap offering. The SMSL SP200 is only marginally more, comes with an updated THX-888 chip, and balaced inputs/outputs.
 
If possible, I like to steer you clear of audiosciencereviews for measurements. They've recently had a spotlight shone on their immoral and technically inaccurate practices. I wouldn't trust them to use their own equipment properly, and GR Research made a very good point as to why. If necessary, I'll direct you to some other site.

I think it's a safe assumption that most speakers accept more than just a line-out. If they don't, then it's time for a serious upgrade. There should be options for digital connections to the receiver (if apparent). A line-out connection isn't the cleanest method either. Digital/balanced is the way to go.

We stopped recommending desktop speakers 10-20 years ago. Bookshelf speakers can be had for the same price, and are the superior design. Audio impressions are relative to experience, and with mine I doubt they sound very good at all. Tiny 2-inch coaxial drivers are out of the equation, there's not even a dedicated high-frequency driver.
 
Ignore anyone who fails to mention the three-way Sony CS5's, which can be had for around 100 euros depending on where you look.
There's more to audio than loudness, and bass. We'd normally recommend waiting until one understands more descriptive audio terminologies, and has more experience under their belt before making recommendations. Like I said above, we stopped recommending desktop speakers long ago. They're an inferior design.
 
Bookshelf Edifiers are passable on a massively tight budget, but even they have their own shortcomings.

For you particular use case, I'd recommend the same practically regardless of price. It was just also a seemingly perfect fit to the originally listed budget from the first post. Noise canceling in over-ears doesn't really start to get good until the $250+ range, and even then there aren't any offerings I'd consider worth the price. Not great in terms of sound quality, not even competitive with sub-$100 offerings. I'm not sure why manufacturers have to remove quality with every feature they add. Strange way to balance their products, but that's how they do it. The best you can get is whatever's simplest, because then you can at least be certain it hasn't been compromised to a degree.

any reason why?
 
Because you can get much better audio quality and fidelity from wired headphones.

Could be the headphones, could be the source, could be your right ear has too much earwax. Easy way to test whether it's the headphones is to plug in to multiple other devices and try wearing the headphones backwards and see if the quiet side stays the same or switches.

If you have the money, stick to dedicated solutions. Not just Amps with integrated DACs, but individual DACs and Amps. Unless you're on a tight budget (sub ~$150), that's a bad investment.
 
I've been out of the amp game for a while, but THX is still in the top percentile even years later (at least, at this price category). If you don't need balanced, the THX AAA ONE from Drop is a good, cheap offering. The SMSL SP200 is only marginally more, comes with an updated THX-888 chip, and balaced inputs/outputs.
 
If possible, I like to steer you clear of audiosciencereviews for measurements. They've recently had a spotlight shone on their immoral and technically inaccurate practices. I wouldn't trust them to use their own equipment properly, and GR Research made a very good point as to why. If necessary, I'll direct you to some other site.

I wouldn't recommend any wireless headset, go wired. Convenience is not worth the loss in quality.

To be honest here. Yes sound quality is affected a bit with a wireless solution but if you need the convenience of wireless then the HyperX cloud flights are very good for the price in terms of being wireless and it has good range if that is your NEED in a new headset. If you care about sound quality the most. Go for a pair of headphones with a seperate mic.

I wouldn't recommend any wireless headset, go wired. Convenience is not worth the loss in quality.

They do, they're also still not actually 7.1 surround. They're stereo split into 8 tiny drivers. True 7.1 means having dedicated left front, center front, right front, left side, right side, left rear, and right rear drivers, plus a dedicated subwoofer. Having 8 small drivers placed on either side of your head still isn't 7.1 because nothing's actually in front or behind you. Everything's beside you, just like stereo. Then you have to account for the dead space between the drivers, which at that small of a scale and in close-quarters ruins imaging capabilities.

7.1 means nothing in the headphone world, nor does any form of 3D audio or surround-sound. It's all marketing nonsense made up to compensate for a sh*tty headphone design, trying to make you think it's special by bundling a useless DSP software. It doesn't work, it's all placebo. A headphone with superior stereo imaging/soundstage will win every time, you can't jam 8 channels of audio through 2 stereo channels. 2 is 2, stereo is 2. You can't add drivers using aoftware.

Both are just software trickery to try to emulate a surround sound result (usually poorly).
The actual hardware is no different at all.

They do, they're also still not actually 7.1 surround. They're stereo split into 8 tiny drivers. True 7.1 means having dedicated left front, center front, right front, left side, right side, left rear, and right rear drivers, plus a dedicated subwoofer. Having 8 small drivers placed on either side of your head still isn't 7.1 because nothing's actually in front or behind you. Everything's beside you, just like stereo. Then you have to account for the dead space between the drivers, which at that small of a scale and in close-quarters ruins imaging capabilities.

I think this cooler is just a bit of a turd. Here's a photo:
 

 
This cooler is 2 cm thick and the fan tops out at ~2500 RPM! I'm honestly surprised it does as well as it does. Before I replaced it (with a DeepCool AK620 I'm idling around 34 C, load high 80s C, 22 C ambient, solved my bluescreening issue) I checked the thermal paste application (stock AMD paste), checked mount, tested with and without case (Antec P5) open, and got the same results with the stock cooler.
 
I suspect the cooler being a couple inches away from an MSI 1080ti in a case meant for shorter cards was pushing it over the edge too bluescreening. But come on! This cooler is 2 cm thick.
 
 
HAhaa, I had forgotten about that. Back when I signed up it was a thing for a short time to put a fake meme build in your profile. Thankfully I don't have a Xigmatek Recon and never have. I did almost buy a L337 Gaming GANK DRONE Z87H3-A3X back then tho.

Pretty sure your single intake fan on that decade old case has something to do with it. Due for an upgrade and-a-half. Unless, the case listed on your profile is different.

I also recommend the HiFiMan Sundara, I have found they are good for more than just games with their wide sound stage. Planars have a sort of nice roundness to them but also accurate, hard to describe. The HD800S sound like doodoo in my opinion and stay away from any USB headset.

Intro:
We’re in an unfortunate position in the audio world as it stands today. Manufacturers are putting in a minimal amount of effort on the engineering side, and a lot of consumers are either too dim-witted or lazy to do their research. This has led to the mass production of a wide variety of trash-tier audio products, which are also receiving high praise from their ill-informed customers. It’s existent throughout the industry, but seemingly fuels the gaming headset market second-to-none. Gimmicky surround-sound and 3D audio claims are part of the issue, the other is an apparent inability for engineers to identify what exactly could be gained from a properly tuned headphone. They bottleneck their own stereo imaging capabilities by using cheap drivers, and rolling off the top-end. In an attempt to combat this, they “design” a surround-sound DSP that supposedly improves the physical limitations of said product… I’m continuously bewildered by the fact people can be so ignorant to such insufficiencies, and how we’ve propped-up / given a platform to such knowledgeless influencers.
 
With that said, here’s a short review / initial impressions on the Pulse 3D headset from Sony. I was able to put my frustration aside, and review it as objectively as possible for the time being. I also managed to bypass my hatred of wireless audio by using the headset passively in wired-mode on my SMSL SP200. If you’re wondering what a reference-grade amp was able to add to this headset… it wasn’t a lot, if anything.
 

 
Tonality:
Before taking a look at measurements or conducting my own, I decided to open MS Paint and draw out what I thought I was hearing as I shuffled through my test tracks. Starting with bass, and slowly working my way up through the response, I immediately identified:
a) Rolled-off subbass
b) Midbass hump
c) Recessed highs
Which by the way, is a lot to identify in the first 30 seconds of listening. Not a great start.
 

Impressions of response. Test track: ‘Slowed-Down Bass Attack’ by Bass 305. Used to measure sub and midbass throughput. Contains deep wafts + midbass kick, varying bass notes.
 
Moving onto the next track, we found much of the same. Although, now we were greeted by some additional peaks in the treble response. How pleasant.
 

Impressions of response. Test track: ‘I would for you’ by Nine Inch Nails. Tests for driver speed, and distortion. Contains synth growl + kick, varying bass tones.
 
Even though I’d already identified a ringing midbass hump, I decided to continue on down the list to my next test song. I usually use this track in particular to help identify any annoying resonances. I was met with the same data I’d received from the previous track.
 

Impressions of response. Test track: ‘Lifestyle’s of the Infamous’ by Mobb Deep. Contains dirty midbass ringing + kick, mostly constant tones.
 
Notes:
Since the tonality was an instant fail, I decided to begin testing technical performance and comfort. These are my notes from those tests:
-Peaks are still apparent, along with ringing midbass
-Missing a lot of top-end
-Imaging is very blurred, and presented in a L/C/R fashion
-Pads are very shallow, and there is a lot of pressure uncomfortably pressed against my outer ear
-Soundstage is narrow & condensed
-Midbass ring was present throughout testing (resonance)
-Elevated midbass and recessed highs are contributing to a perceived muddiness.
 

Impressions of technicalities. Test tracks: ‘Letter’ by Yosi Horikawa. Provides a very linear representation of sounds moving from one side to another, and easily discernible subjective data. ‘Dele ala ord og tanker’ and ‘Ved balet’ by Hoff Ensemble. Provide a very natural sense of timbre and decay, along with some additional spatial information, and clear vocals.
 
In conclusion:
For the price, they’re not great at all. The HiFiMan HE400SE costs about the same, and the DT990 / TYGR 300R’s aren’t much more if your main focus is detail/imaging. I can’t recommend them for the price. They’ve got a very typical gaming headset sound, and no discernible benefits or standout features. Spend your money elsewhere, folks.
 

 
These measurements taken by rtings confirm the accuracy of my impressions. Rolled-off subbass, midbass hump, slightly recessed lower-mid midrange, distinct upper midrange/treble peaks, and a steep treble fallout:
 

No problem 👌 anytime. Here's some cheaper offerings in case they're more down your alley.
 
$100-$200
HiFiMan HE400SE (C+)
Beyerdynamic DT990 Pro / TYGR 300R (C)
 
$200-$350
AKG K612 Pro (B-)
Audio Technica ATH-R70x (B-)
 
$350-$500
HiFiMan Sundara (B)
 
$500-$700
HiFiMan Edition XS (B+)

Fractal Torrent is currently king in most regards, although there are other popular offerings. I don't much care for the Corsair oferrings, but they exist too. There's also the Phanteks P360A/P400A/P500A lineup, which I can recommend. I use the P400A personally on my stream encoding rig, and it does the job fine. I wish there was a bit more mounting space at the top of of the chassis though, I couldn't seem to reasonably fit my AIO up there without it interfering with my VRM heatsink. Had to mount the cooler at the front of the case, which now exhausts hot air into the chassis as it doubles as an intake. Not ideal with a 220W TDP FX-9590.
 
The Noctua U12S is a perfectly sufficient air cooler for most CPUs, I'd stick with that unless you'd like to try an AIO. Try just the new case at first though, then decide if you need more. The Scythe Fuma 2 is another good air cooler, but I'd still consider the Noctua NH-D15 king. At that point though, you're entering the AIO price bracket. Plus, all of those top air coolers are still within ~5°C above-ambient variance of your U12S.

It's not complete crap, but for the price it's not great. Which is being polite. Normally we ask these kinds of questions before we make purchases, but we live and learn.
 
I would've recommended the HiFiMan HE400SE's over the HD569's. They're both better and cheaper, in terms of technical performance and tuning. 
Overpriced, and underperforming. I wouldn't recommend spending more than $100 on a closed-back headphone in 2022, you hit diminishing returns very quickly. There are in-betweens that exist between an HD569 and an HD800S. I wouldn't consider the HD800S a viable endgame either, it's not very well-rounded. It has a nice imaging/soundstage party trick, but that's literally it.