The best High end gaming headphones

[PhaKin_A]

I’m currently torn between the Astro A40’s with Mix amp and the Steelseries Arctis Pro with GameDAC. 
 

I have had a pair of Astro A50’s for the better part of 8 years and was impressed with the build quality and sound. Just looking for other options if there is anything better? 

[rice guru]

Thereus definitely better stuff it's just a matter of of how much you wanna spend

[PhaKin_A]

I’m willing to spend $400

[The Flying Sloth]

13 hours ago, PhaKin_A said:

I’m willing to spend $400

The best option is to just buy real high-end headphones and use an external mic (modmic, studio or otherwise)
 

[Tz000]

On 4/3/2020 at 1:00 PM, PhaKin_A said:

I’m willing to spend $400

Stay away from anything that says "gaming" if your willing to spend 400.00$  Buy yourself a really nice set of stereo headphones, a headphone amp/dac & a mod mic.  If your into all the surround sound stuff there is software that you can download that will do that for you.

 

Checkout massdrop for great headphone choices and prices.

[rice guru]

foro $400 I would reccomend the dt 990 or dt 880 600 ohm paired with a monoprice liquid spark adn a topping e30 or topping d10. and if you really into virtual suround sound as @Tz000 there is software for that. 

[PhaKin_A]

Thanks for all the recommendations! You folks are great! 

[HumdrumPenguin]

On 4/3/2020 at 1:36 PM, PhaKin_A said:

I’m currently torn between the Astro A40’s with Mix amp and the Steelseries Arctis Pro with GameDAC. 
 

I have had a pair of Astro A50’s for the better part of 8 years and was impressed with the build quality and sound. Just looking for other options if there is anything better? 

Stay away from ANY gaming brands for anything sound related.

By the way you mention in your next post, it sounds to me that you think $400 of an investment in sound will bring you angels to sing in your ear. To put it lightly, it's not the case. Assuming you do your research, it will definitely bring you a better experience than the Astros though. My advice is to start by spending USD200-300 on amp + dac, and USD200ish on the headphones. After that, if you feel like being adventurous, go big instead of going through small improvements.

Whatever you end up with, I hope you like it, but I'd STRONGLY recommend for you to try sound gear for yourself before getting to any conclusions, no matter what kind of "online" credibility a given person may have when telling you what to buy and what not to. Most haven't even heard what they are recommending. Pay a visit to a nearby audio shop and have fun listening to what they have. It will definitely open your eyes a bit.

Edited April 7, 2020 by HumdrumPenguin

[an actual squirrel]

You can just buy any headphone that is well regarded, like the massdrop 58x. For the surround sound/hrtf side of things, you could do it with hesuvi for free, but there is something to be said for how accessible it is with something like the sennheiser gsx 1000, where I think it is considerably easier to set up.

[kokakolia]

I think you need to approach this question more seriously. Are you going to be doing some critical music listening or not? If not, why are you going to buy a $200 DAC/AMP and $300 headphones? I know you want the best, but that's like feeding a dog Wagyu beef. 

 

If you're strictly gaming then spending $75 on Philips SHP 9500 will get the job done with flying colors. But they absolutely suck for music (contrary to popular opinion). 

 

Want something a little better, AKG K612 Pro for $100.

 

Want more bass and better comfort? AKG K7xx or K712. for about $200.