Footstep Audio issue with DT990 and obj2 odac

[austio_xv]

I'm having a hard time hearing foot steps in Fortnite. I can locate them from time to time, but most of the time it's really difficult to discern their location in general or gunfire completely drowns them out. I recently bought the beyerdynamic dt 990s and paired them with the obj2 odac from JDS labs, which helped, but not nearly as much as I thought it would. I was wondering if there might be something settings wise that isn't proper and is inhibiting the headphone+odac from reaching their potential?

 

[Frag Maniac]

Too bad you got the 990s. Beyerdynamic designates their headphone model numbers kinda strangely. Instead of issuing a completely different number series for different designs, they just make it look like you're getting a better sounding version of the same thing by using a higher number. Plus impedance matters just as much as the model number.

I bought the DT-770 80 OHm set, and couldn't be happier. Unlike the 990s, they are closed back vs open. This means the footsteps are more distinct because there's no outside noise interference, the game audio is louder since it doesn't bleed into open air, and the direction sounds come from is more distinguishable. I got the 80 Ohm set because they work for a wide range of devices from portables, to powerful amplifiers.

I've had open back Sennheisers before (HD 555), and they were terrible for gaming. Much of it was due sounds not coming from the direction they're supposed to. This is especially the case when you're inside caves. The Catacombs segment of original Far Cry for instance was horrible. Creatures in front of you sounded like they were behind you. I find open designs also color the sound too much, usually in the form of too much echo, too much bass muddiness, or being too faint.

Closed designs have a more realistic sound. If you're in a tunnel, you will still here the echo effect they design in, it just won't be overpowering. You won't hear extended bass rumble with explosions, just a tight, deep boom. Dialog is clear and distinct, and footsteps and banter of enemies is clear in tone, volume, and direction.

 

[austio_xv]

Too bad you got the 990s. Beyerdynamic designates their headphone model numbers kinda strangely. Instead of issuing a completely different number series for different designs, they just make it look like you're getting a better sounding version of the same thing by using a higher number. Plus impedance matters just as much as the model number.

I bought the DT-770 80 OHm set, and couldn't be happier. Unlike the 990s, they are closed back vs open. This means the footsteps are more distinct because there's no outside noise interference, the game audio is louder since it doesn't bleed into open air, and the direction sounds come from is more distinguishable. I got the 80 Ohm set because they work for a wide range of devices from portables, to powerful amplifiers.

I've had open back Sennheisers before (HD 555), and they were terrible for gaming. Much of it was due to being confused as to which direction the sounds were coming from. This is especially the case when you're inside caves. The Catacombs segment of original Far Cry for instance was horrible. Creatures in front of you sounded like they were behind you.

I got the 250 ohm 990's because I had heard the open soundstage actually made footsteps easier to detect. Even if that's not the case, there has to be something I'm not doing to adjust them to perform better. I know Ninja and Nick Eh 30 both use them for Fortnite and in their streams it's pretty apparent that they're not having issues locating opposing players. I just don't know what it is that I have set up wrong, I had been using a40 TRs beforehand, so I'm not all that familiar with audio settings.

 

[Frag Maniac]

Well the quality of what you're plugging them into also matters. I just bought an ASUS MB with a built in audio chip made by Realtek and refined by ASUS. It's based on the ALC 1220 Realtek chip, but ASUS designates it s1220a. It has a 120db SNL (Signal to Noise Ratio), so it's very clean sounding. Even on my previous MB with a much older model Reatek chip though, the sound was very good.

What MB are you using and do you have the latest audio driver for it? I know you're using that fancy accessory audio device, but even with pass through configs, you still make use of quality of the device passing the signal through.

As far as your compadre's opinions, I used to think open designs would yield the best (and most realistic) sound, until via my own experiences I found otherwise. It's also hard to compare your experiences to theirs based on equipment alone. They might have a bit better hearing than you do, or less ambient noise where they're playing. A lot of factors come into play when it comes to audio.