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vaclissy
5
Mar 17, 2017
Wow my $9 ear plug phones sound better than this. And louder. I have MSI motherboard with Audio Boost 3 which is supposed to drive 600 ohms and this headset is only 50. Do I try and salvage this by buying a DAC?
edit: after close comparison the ear buds sound worse.
MehStrongBadMeh
40
Mar 17, 2017
vaclissyMost of the special audio stuff they advertise on motherboards is meaningless fluff. You'll need a proper DAC or sound card to take full advantage of this headset.
vaclissy
5
Mar 17, 2017
MehStrongBadMehWell this just turned into a $300 headset then. PC users take note I guess.
EinTheVariance
342
Mar 17, 2017
vaclissyare you plugging your headset into the ports on the back?
vaclissy
5
Mar 17, 2017
EinTheVarianceBack and front no difference. My speakers have their own amp with output which I tried. Same with monitor but those were even worse. There may be an audio setting I missed but it's doubt full.
EinTheVariance
342
Mar 17, 2017
vaclissyhow about the volume wheel on the right cup of the headphone? There is a volume setting in Playback Devices on the Levels tab of the device properties (can be accessed by right clicking the audio/volume icon in system tray and choosing Playback Devices.
They should definitely be loud enough without an additional amp, maybe not as loud as your earbuds/IEMs, but those have a lower impedance than headphones typically so it's expected that those go louder. Based on the specs, this should be fine running off a phone even. Hell, give that a try...
vaclissy
5
Mar 17, 2017
EinTheVarianceYes tried all that. With all volume nobs at 100 volume is usually decent but I doubt sound quality is (though no distortion which is strange) The earbuds just sound better. Appreciate the tips though.
I'll try the phone later.
EinTheVariance
342
Mar 17, 2017
vaclissyhmm, the mobo specs must be lying then if it can't drive this 50 ohm headphones to ear bleeding levels. I did find that the sound was quite inferior to the HD 598 with the stock pads (see my review). I believe these are tuned for gaming first and foremost.
SomeTechNoob
466
Mar 18, 2017
vaclissyGenerally onboard audio is good enough, especially for efficient and low impedance cans like this. Give the headset a few days of listening, then switch back to your earbuds. Some people hear an immediate difference. Others require some time to get used to the different sound signature.
Also, generally you want to use the rear audio output on your motherboard. The front panel header picks up a lot of interference.
Also keep in mind that loudness does not equal quality. If an audio device is louder than another, we tend to bias toward the louder device.
vaclissy
5
Mar 18, 2017
SomeTechNoobI installed the MSI Nahimic drivers (separate from the realtek drivers). It has a 200% volume boost option so it's louder now but I still don't think the sound is great.  That's ok but I just noticed the mic cuts out after about a second. Is that normal?
SomeTechNoob
466
Mar 18, 2017
vaclissyDon't bother with any sort of software "improvements". I've demo'd Nahimic stuff back when MSI started putting them in their laptops at Computex 2015. For games, I guess it's not half bad. But it's not meant for music. Just set your audio to 24bit/44.1khz and make sure the "Disable all enhancements" box is checked.
Match the volume level to your ears. Just because one is louder, doesn't mean it's better. Every headphone has different efficiencies. Turn the volume up or down if needed.
The mic cutting in/out is a problem on your computer side, not with the headphones. The PC37X is a simple analog headset.
vaclissy
5
Mar 19, 2017
SomeTechNoobYou're right, I uninstalled Nahimic and the mic fixed itself somehow.  Eh...ok this sound level just isn't cutting it and I tried everything, so if you have a decent soundcard to recommend I appreciate it.
ndunnett
2
Mar 19, 2017
vaclissyIf you can't get them to be uncomfortably loud there is either something wrong with your setup or something wrong with your headphones. I'm using mine with the regular on board sound on my laptop and 100 volume is way too loud for me. You're definitely sure the physical volume knob on the headphones is at maximum?
vaclissy
5
Mar 19, 2017
ndunnettYes the volume is ok really but not "uncomfortable" unless the track is really loud. I guess things are as they are supposed to be. After comparison, the earbuds do sound more "tinny". Probably a good idea to get a DAC/amp anyway.
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