New Audio Setup - Need Suggestions

[Shade98]

Hi guys, i was wondering if i could get some suggestion on how to improve my audio setup

I was currently looking at getting:

• Beyerdynamic DT990 or HD6XX
• Desktop Microphone like a rode nt for example
• KRK Rokit 6 G3
• Some kind of audio interface or external dac like focusrite scarlette 2i2

My goals are to:

• Be able to easily switch between the speakers and headphones for music, gaming, and movies
• Be able to play console sound through pc or amp (Creative Sound Blaster X7 for example but im not sure)
• have good quality sound and low latency

I was just wondering if some people could provide a few suggestions to improve the quality or help me figure out how i will do this

Thank You

 

[Shiv78]

6 minutes ago, Shade98 said:

HD6XX

I don't know much about audio equipment besides headphones. Order these before they are sold out, I guarantee there is no better value for this price range

[Shade98]

Yeh i was leaning towards those a fair bit trying to get some money together to get them as soon as possible

[KaminKevCrew]

6 hours ago, Shiv78 said:

I don't know much about audio equipment besides headphones. Order these before they are sold out, I guarantee there is no better value for this price range

I... What? They sold out in like 2 hours (This was DAYS ago). you can't get them until the next drop, or when people get them in their hands and sell them...

 

@OP, why are you wanting the KRK speakers? Why not just grab a pair of JBL LSR305? They're about $100 cheaper, and just as good a speaker, if not better.

 

Also, what's your total budget for this whole setup? That will make it a lot easier to give you a good recommendation on gear.

[Shiv78]

3 minutes ago, KaminKevCrew said:

I... What? They sold out in like 2 hours (This was DAYS ago). you can't get them until the next drop, or when people get them in their hands and sell them...

 

oops I didn't check if they were still there my bad 

[Shade98]

Ok budget for the whole setup $1000 to $2000 (mic, headphones, speakers, etc)

And i was just looking at the KRKs as a basis for suggestion

[KaminKevCrew]

12 hours ago, Shade98 said:

Ok budget for the whole setup $1000 to $2000 (mic, headphones, speakers, etc)

And i was just looking at the KRKs as a basis for suggestion

That's a pretty darn healthy budget. 

 

Where is the mic going to be used? At a desk only, or out and about? What is your use case for it?

[Shade98]

Desk only mainly for gaming and the odd recording music and some productions. 

 

Edit: Realistically it will closer to the $1000 side of the budget

[KaminKevCrew]

28 minutes ago, Shade98 said:

Desk only mainly for gaming and the odd recording music and some productions. 

Sweet! So, total cost here for this stuff is going to be $1550 (excluding cables for everything) 

-Focusrite Scarlett 18i8; If I'm honest, I don't know a ton about audio interfaces, but this one can do everything you will need it to, and a buddy of mine who does know something about them pretty much swears by the rack version of this that runs on firewire (the sapphire line). It has an optical input (for your console) and USB for the PC. I think you should be able to mix those within the software that comes with this.

-JBL LSR308

-JBL LSR310S; These two are because the 308 are supposed to have a more linear response than the 305, which means that they are better for monitoring, if you have the budget to add a sub.

-Sony MDR-7506; A fantastic monitoring headphone, one of the industry standards. You'll want to replace the pads with velour ones, but other than that, they will last essentially forever. (A buddy has a pair of MDR-V6, which are the same headphone, minus the metal used in the magnet, and they've been going for over 30 years of abuse.)

-Shure SM57; A very famous, and extremely high quality dynamic mic. Pretty much what you would want to have for recording spoken voice, and some vocals, depending on how much of a low end you want to catch. Dynamic mics are also generally good at only picking up sounds from what's right in front of them, which is good for desk use where there might be a noisy keyboard nearby.

-Matched pair of Rode M5; These would be excellent if you're going to want to record stereo audio, since the mics are matched, it means they will sound the same, which is a good thing. Condenser mics are good for recording most instruments (AFAIK) because they have wide frequency response, and they are more sensitive than dynamic mics, so they can pick up quieter sounds than dynamic mics, and don't have to be right up next to the source of the sound.

 

Cables that you would need: USB A to B cable (most people have these), 1/4" TRS patch cable (x2) in your preferred length and color. These will run from the interface to the sub. 3 pin XLR (x2) in your chosen length. These will run from the sub to the monitors. 3 pin XLR (x3+) in your chosen lengths. This will be for the mics. Other than that, you can add what you want, but those are the bare minimum. Oh, also, you'd need stands for the mics, if you don't have them already.

 

Total overall would likely be around $1600, including cables. That being said, you could (of course) get different headphones, if you want something that has a more enjoyable sound. Similarly, if you're not too worried about having stereo condenser mics, you could always get one of them, or even just the Shure mic, if you're not worried about recording instruments in the immediate future. Prices will vary depending on where you decide to shop, I just chose to look at Sweetwater, because I knew that they would have everything that I would list. 

 

If you want to hit the (roughly) $1000 mark, take out the LSR308, and the sub, and replace them both with the LSR305. Let me know if there's anything more that I need to clarify!

[Shade98]

I'll probably switch out the MDR-7506 and go for the HD6XX if i am lucky enough to get some but apart from that thanks

[KaminKevCrew]

4 hours ago, Shade98 said:

I'll probably switch out the MDR-7506 and go for the HD6XX if i am lucky enough to get some but apart from that thanks

No problem! I figured you might, but when I was figuring out everything, I wasn't sure how much it would all cost together, so I thought I start with a basic recommendation, and let you change out what you wanted. 

 

You could also just get an HD650 and paint them to be whatever color you like if you're so inclined.

[Shade98]

Price tag of the HD650 is the main point that turns me off haha

[KaminKevCrew]

4 hours ago, Shade98 said:

Price tag of the HD650 is the main point that turns me off haha

I mean, by all accounts, they're absolutely more than worth the price. On amazon right now, they're a bit over $300, which is an absolute steal of a deal for them.

[Shade98]

Yeh but im australian so the price of alot of things vary quite heavily with some being cheaper and some being more expensive. Hopefully now that auspost has a depot in america i can get some stuff cheap