My hyperx cloud 2s have finally given out and im looking for a pair of headphones under $150 that would be used for games and music. My diet of games is varied, however I am most concerned with their performance in a large scale game like battle bit or battlefield 1. Something with a large soundstage is a must. However I am concerned that would sacrifice my immersion in more story driven games, ie The Long Dark. Is there a pair of headphones that could satisfy both in my budget? And would I need an amp or dax to get the most out of your recommendation? I’ve been looking at the thieaudio ghost, and wondering if it would suit my needs.
So i’d the TYGR 300R is the go to, its solid in most things, good sound stage, excellent imaging, doesn’t need an amp (though it will benefit from one), it has a few flaws but nothing major
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what r the flaws?
In terms of build im not a fan of the pads (too warm, their Pro line has much nicer pads) and the attached is annoying. In sound i’d say they are a bit on the sharp and bright side for me but its been a while since ive had a long session listening to them (i mostly use mine for gaming)
The tygr 300r is $200 usd. Would the thieaudio ghost work for me? Or do you have another suggestion.
Ya the ghost is a solid set, i higly recommend swapping out the pads, it greatly improves comfort and sound
https://www.amazon.com/Brainwavz-Angled-Memory-Foam-Earpad/dp/B01J54NLOI?tag=hififorums-20
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Sorry to bother you, but I’d like to drop my budget to either fit better padding or to get a pair that doesn’t need a different one. What’s the headphones with the best soundstage at or under $100? I find that’s what impresses me more in games, being able to “feel” the game.
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pad swapping is not a big deal so dont sweat it (take 2-3 min and when they wear out you still have the stock), at this price bracket, you have to sacrfice something in some case its the pads
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At the 100$ price bracket i’d go for an iem, 100$ is not alot and since headphones cost more than iems to make, you would get a much better deal and much better sound from an IEM (Aside from KPH30Is which are always a winner but they arent what you are looking for).
however at 100$ you can get some solid iems (for example many “influence collabs” which for the most part are pretty great, even at the 100$ price tag you can get some great iems with decent sound stage and imaging - im not a big IEM guy so i cant tell you which ones exactly
Thanks for the assistance, I was able to find an alternative. I bought the pads you suggested as theres a promotion I didn’t see, which reduced them to $5. Also, would I be able to use pads from my Hyperx cloud 2? The ones you recommended say they’re compatible, and my set came with 2 pair. I’d assume they’d also be better than the stock pads.
In terms of comfort im pretty sure it will be much better than the stock pads.
In terms of sound should be fine but keep in mind pad-swapping is not an exact science and there is a lot of testing, meaning Some headphones improve, sometimes they get worse and sometimes they stay the same.
Swapping pads might improve your Hyper x cloud 2, it might not and it might, might even then sound worse - unless someone has tried (with that exact headphone) and can tell you how they react to the pad swap its a bit of gamble (my guess it will improve but im totally guessing)
Take the Ghost for example, when i got them they sounded ok but i saw a review that said they improved after a pad mod (cutting the inner part) , i didnt want to mod them so i tried a bunch of pads, most of them made it sound worse or did not improve the sound, the only ones that made it better were those hybrid ones (and also improved the comfort) . Now the Ghost is a rather extreme scenario in most cases it fairly minor
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