Suitable upgrade for competitive gaming (and a little music)

So a couple months ago I upgraded from a pair of superlux hd668b (with brainwavz hm5 pads) to a pair of AKG K712, with a Topping E30 and a Schitt Magni Heresy. Since then I swapped back the Superlux (albeit it still using the E30/Heresy Combo), since the K712, despite being absurdly comfortable, were far far too bassy, and felt far more “claustrophobic”, while not necessarily being much more accurate.

It’s my birthday today, and I’ve decided I’m gonna get another pair of headphones as a proper upgrade to the Superlux. I’ll note here that I suffer very badly from tinnitus, and have never noticed the Superlux to be sibilant.

I’ve looked towards the DT880 600 Ohm as a potential choice, but am wondering what else I should be looking at. They will mostly be used for competitive gaming, and well as some music listening (mostly rock/pop punk like Muse, Rise against, etc). I’ve come to the conclusion I’m very much allergic to bass (maybe it’s just bass done poorly). For example, I disliked my girlfriends m40x and my status audio cb-1 due to bass (obviously these are closed back, so slightly different use case), and well as disliking a friends Fidelio X2’s. I’m not sure if thats just my bad tinnitus is causing problems.

So tldr, want new competitive gaming headphones, have E30 and Heresy, hate bass, what are the options?

hmm, well the k712 definitely isn’t a very bassy headphone imo however, if you wanted a less bassy variation to the k712 with more accuracy perhaps the k702 would be better since it has less bass and is the more analytical headphone. Another alternative here would be the AD700x, AD900x, or AD1000x all of which have recessed bass and great for competitive gaming despite the build quality and comfort leaving something to be desired. The dt880s do have some low end to them but I don’t think it’s much to be concerned with this is another really great all rounder headphone though it is bright. Another budget friendly yet bright alternative would be the SHP9500 which isn’t anywhere near as bassy as the fidelio x2 hr. For competitives you don’t really want a rumbly bass ideally anyway so this kind of works out in your favor. Another recommendation would be 58x jubilee or HD 598/599 as these are more of a balanced sound and are good for gaming as well as music nothing over the top

I agree they are great for gaming, comfort is very dependant on the wearers head size, light on clamp and light overall.
Build quality is good-enough in my books.

1 Like

I think my biggest complaint is that it feels extremely cheap with thin rackety plastic and the headband is strange and uncomfortable to me. That however, is my opinion.