Audio-Technica - ATH-AD700X

My PC audio setup is a wild ride. I use the onboard audio to drive a headphone jack I attached to my desk. When I don't want to wear my large open back headphones I plug a set of Faaeal flat head earbuds. I don't like the isolation feeling from rubber tipped earbuds and they are super comfortable and I can wear them for hours. I use the optical out from my onboard audio to drive a pretty good LG sound bar and I use this when I'm home alone and want to game at my PC but with good audio without headphones I use a Soundblaster Z to drive a set of audio Technica ATH-700x open back headphones, these are amazing value headphones with a fantastic sound stage and positional sound imaging for FPS games. Finally my PC is also directly around the corner from my TV and home theater sound system so I have my TV connected as a second monitor via my Sony 5.1 home theatre amp which allows me to have HD home theatre audio over HDMI from my 9070xt when I want to play games sitting on the couch like a console on my big TV and home theatre level surround. I also the mic from my Wii Guitar Hero game on a boom arm. It's actually a pretty good quality USB Logitech mic and it works amazingly for comms.

2 main reasons, I originally thought I would need the amp to drive them but I have since learned that they are actually really easy to power and don't need lots of power like some audiophile headphones to sound good. Also on my previous motherboard I had a little bit of electrical noise bleed when I used them with the onboard audio but with a discrete card the sound is clean. They are really sensitive which is why I think you could hear it in them but not my earbuds. The reason I didn't start just using the onboard audio for them after I upgraded is kind of just because I didn't want to have too many connectors between them and the audio jack. I modded them to have a removable cable when the factory wire broke so using the desk plug would mean 3 separate connections that could get worn or dirty to cause noise between them and the source so I just kept the sound blaster since I already had it. I originally wanted to use the pod that comes with the Soundblaster as my mic and the ports on it so that I could have a volume knob but the mic really wasn't great so I don't use the pod.

The Phillips headphones aren't great, listened to them at a bud's home. His $20 iems sounded better. My suggestion is that you go over to r/AVexchange and buy the highest quality pair of headphones or iems that fit within your budget. If I were you, I'd buy me some used ATH-AD700x's off of ebay or another website, I've seen them listed online for $30-50 frequently. They're very nice, comfortable, and lightweight open back headphones that I can swear by. IEM vs Headphones is completely preference. As for spatial awareness, etc, don't worry about that sort of stuff. The pros often use sponsored equipment which has worse audio performance than studio grade stuff that they could easily afford. It's all in the EQ, you can just alter your iems/headphones to focus more on footsteps if that's what you really wanted. Buy for media consumption rather than gaming, because any headphone/iem that's not complete trash will do you right. Mechanical aim and utility usage matter far more in Valorant. Keep in mind that IEMs may potentially be damaging for your hearing as they're inserted into your ear canal. That's why I don't like them as much.

I would recommend getting him studio headphones and a microphone separately, rather than these gaming headsets. What is your budget? I imagine it's around \~$150-200 judging by the price of some of these? Shame you didn't ask before Prime Day... The 560S would have been on sale in that range. You could go with the **Sennheiser HD 599** for $116. A good option. **Audio-Technica ATHAD700X** for $120 is another good one. (My only issue with the Audio Technicas are, I have to use a large-ish hair tie on the headband to wear these comfortably. Otherwise it's too loose. But I still love these headphones.) Beyerdynamics headphones sometimes go on sale for $130, but I'm not seeing any right now that low. They also can be harder to drive, so that's probably ok to avoid for now. I didn't for the 990's in Val, but maybe that was just me. And for a microphone. I own quite a few, but one of the best one you can buy right now without spending a $100+ is the **EPOS Gaming B20** for $23. I consider it a premium sounding mic, but its discontinued so it's been super cheap. Punches way above it's pirce. I use it over my Blue Yeti, but not over my Wave3... both $100+ mics. So that in total ballparks around $150 for something I'd consider better than gaming accessories.

I really like my ATH-ad700x from Audio technica. Just remember that open back headphones bleed sound. So you will most likely have to mess with your mic settings to limit the headphones picking up the mic

I honestly don’t know to be completely honest. I just really like them. Edit: I like that they’re very crisp and clear as well as don’t really have bass boost. Which you don’t want for footstep audio. They’re not reference, but they’re close. Also they have a really wide sound stage

I forgot the wing thing. I have a big ole noodle, so yeah I didn’t even think about that. My bad 🤣

Planars are great. But if gaming is your main criteria, stick with dynamic drivers. Beyerdynamic 9 series (900 pro X, 990 pro, 1990 pro) Sennheiser 600 series ( hd600, 650, 660, 660s, 660s2, and including the 490pro) and 500 series ( hd560s is one of the most recommended options for gaming around here), Some of the audio technica ath-ad models. Specifically for competitive fps games, these are pretty much the best options out there at reasonable prices. Adding an amp like the Fiio k5 you mentioned is also a good idea with most of these. I personally like Sennheiser more because I listen to more music than I play video games, but I occasionally get called a cheater in r6 with my old hd600 + Fiio k11. If you don’t care about music or other media, the beyers should technically be even better.

I own all of the ones you mentioned here, only thing to consider here is if you head is big enough for ad700 The wing design can bother some people with smaller head sizes, but it can be modded with something as cheap as an elastic band or a hair tie. Otherwise the headphones are great.

Id say they do a slightly better job for competitive gaming. But pc38x, 560s and ad700x are all great options honestly.

Follow this person’s advice. A long LONG time ago I went from a logitech “7.1” headset to Audio Technica ATH AD700 and it was such a shocking difference. If directional audio cues are your most important feature, look for ones with open back design. These tend to have a wider soundstage and can help directional audio a lot. Since then I have gone with ATH, ATK, Sennheiser, all while still trying “gamer” headsets from friends and just for own curiosity. I ALWAYS came back to the audiophile brands because it wasn’t even close. I am currently using a Sennheiser 490pro after using a 560s for the last couple years and they are the most comfortable pair of headphones I have ever worn. I can wear them for literally 16 hours a day and never feel fatigued, tired, or feel like my ears hurt or anything. The soundstage is insanely good, I can pinpoint exact directional sound better than any gimmick “7.1 surround” gamer headphone. They also sound way better for music, movies, etc. So it is a win win to just go with audiophile headphones.

You can find a used 560s on avexchange or ebay underneath that. Could go for the audio technica ad adh700x which is a good price for what it gives. Big drivers, low bass so you can hear footsteps a bit better too.

You can probably find a Sennheiser 599/560s used for under that budget easily. If you must have something new, the Audio Technica ATH-AD700X is $104 atm and that's a good deal. Downsides are that you can't replace the cable, but it has a very good soundstage due to the big earpads. #