Finding the magical combination to get eARC working with my television was a giant pain in the ass. And that's between an LG television and an LG soundbar. LG: Our televisions are expensive and don't fucking work with anything, lol.
Now it mostly works, though I do need to use an outlet on a timer to actually force the television to turn on the soundbar when it turns on. But to this day I've only gotten one device that actually sends video over the eARC video in successfully (and it's not HDMI 2.1 so I don't use it anyway). Nothing else ever worked. eARC is basically just "give up an HDMI input to send audio out." At least it's high fidelity.
I only have experience with Samsung televisions, but eArc pisses me off on every level. It sounds just like a great idea! Sound and video through the same cable both ways so I can use the fucking receiver or sound bar or whatever and not introduce another goddamn remote control into the situation.
Then they bury the settings to even turn that thing on somewhere in the "Advanced" section next to a bunch of other HDMI settings. Or maybe we put it in the Picture settings this time.
Then, oh wait, you made sure to check the back of the panel that you had the correct HDMI port. Right? Cause you gotta use one specifically. You can't use just any one.
You do all of that and it doesn't work or at best it works like, at first, then dies.
I say this all as a guy who bought 8K HDMI 2.1 cables directly from monoprice and upgraded every cable on my house.
I got it working with a Samsung television, sound bar, and Roku Ultra and I'll never change the setup because you can do everything with the Roku remote and it's a godsend for my partner.
I came to my LG C1 from a Samsung Q70R (of a few years earlier) shortly before I moved. As far as Reddit and everywhere else I've checked on social media is concerned (and I spent quite a few months on this), while Samsung's compatibility with non-Samsung A/V peripherals is mixed (like Vizio and a few other companies), it's still much fucking better than LG. LG, who are unreliable with their own brand of soundbar because fuck. The situation is infuriating. Would I completely avoid LG televisions for that reason alone? Yes (originally), and no (after I spent a few weeks trying to fix it).
eARC, by contrast, is just a fucking nightmare by design. Or it is with eARC-supporting LG soundbars, at least. My Xbox Series X is the only device I've ever gotten to successfully send video over eARC, which ironically is one that would be inherently limited by the HDMI 2.0 standard. My PS4? No. My Surface Pro? No. My RTX 3080TI-equipped PC? No. Ironically, I've never tried doing so with my Xbox One X because, well, there's very little my Series X can't do that it could, and the newer console does everything else better from a standpoint of HDMI 2.1 support.
The fact that I use a little Google Home-compatible "smartplug" to restart my LG soundbar every day at 7 AM (for precisely one minute) so that the LG television will actually turn it on correctly when I use it in the evening seems like a good metaphor for how half-assed the whole situation is. As oppose to 3 years of my Samsung television turning on my old-ass Vizio soundbar (over S/PDIF) every time. And yes, I'm terrified of unplugging anything. If I want to dust off my soundbar, I have someone else hold it up so it can stay plugged in.
Also, unlike over headphones, Dolby Atmos over the soundbar causes a short but unacceptable delay (maybe 200 MS or so; I don't really have a means to test it), so I use 5.1 instead. But honestly I don't really blame LG for that (or I just don't care after all the pain in the ass).
To build on this past experience: I decided to revisit my HDMI ARC (or eARC or whatever) setup between my LG C1 and SP8YA soundbar an was able to get it working, and thought I would share how. To start, there's been at least one update to the soundbar since then which seem like a requirement, but at least as important was actually making sure the soundbar's own settings were set not to eARC but HDMI ARC (apparently it cannot use these things simultaneously, so you have the choice of either a spare HDMI input or eARC...but then again, I'm guessing you can't send eARC fidelity sound over HDMI ARC anyway), and then to enable HDMI-CEC on the device in question (in this case, an PS4).
I'm actually quite pleased with the end result: my PS4 can now switch input mods on the soundbar just by switching to it via the guide button (I'm not sure if switching inputs on the TV, by itself, would do it, though turning on the PS4 should), switching back to the Xbox switches back to eARC as intended, and I now have a spare HDMI 2.1 port for any future expansion (the most obvious thing would be a PS5, except if I purchased one, there would not be any reason to keep my PS4 since I pretty much have to buy a PS5 with an optical disc drive--a repeat of my Xbox Series X completely taking over my XB1). Possibly a television set-top box (if I ever get DirecTV service from AT&T), or some other console. Heck, if I ever manage my dream of owning a Pioneer Laserdisc Player, I could plug the output from the necessary analogue to digital convert into it. Or a Neo Geo AES. Having an free port is certainly better than not having one, in any case, and the SP8YA's HDMI 2.0 is more than enough for a base PS4.
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webguy20I spend too much time on the InternetRegistered Userregular
Thump Thump! Picked this 10” Klipsch sub off craigslist for $80 this weekend. So much bass!
Nice! I got a 10" Paradigm and it's amazing. We watched I think Two Towers a while back and the wings of the flying Nazgul filled half the house.
Yea I tuned it yesterday using beastie boys Intergalactic. Even at low volumes you can feel it. I'm glad I don't have any neighbors.
My subwoofers (Home entertainment setup and PC setup) are one of the main reasons I've avoided shared walls/floors over the years. No fun without them, congrats!
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webguy20I spend too much time on the InternetRegistered Userregular
Welp guess I got the bug. With the subwoofer I want a bit more speaker, and have found a nice deal on a new pair of Klipsch 600M speakers, $300 with free shipping. The company must be clearing out because of the model 2s that just came out.
So, building a new house and could use a little input from the more experienced. We're not audiophiles but still figured it would be nice to have them rough in surround sound in the basement. Having a little trouble with the setup because we'd have a projector in the middle of the room (on a cart so it can be moved aside when not in use) and probably can't put the home run for the speaker cables in the pillar the projector will be plugged into.
So I'm thinking we have them run the speaker cables to the spot with the cable outlet (convenient for re-sale if next owner would want a more conventional setup), and then run an HDMI extender thru the wall/ceiling to the pillar to reach the projector. Sounds like we'd want to go for cat7 (future proofing/video quality), but a little unsure on HDMI converters in terms of what constitutes a good one and whether they're a good idea in the first place. Anybody have experience with these? Good one to recommend? Much appreciated.
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webguy20I spend too much time on the InternetRegistered Userregular
edited August 2022
My new Klipsch RP-600M speakers showed up today. They are the one on the right, in comparison to the R51M that are on the left. the R51Ms weren't "big" enough to pair well with the sub. These new ones sound a whole lot better.
So, building a new house and could use a little input from the more experienced. We're not audiophiles but still figured it would be nice to have them rough in surround sound in the basement. Having a little trouble with the setup because we'd have a projector in the middle of the room (on a cart so it can be moved aside when not in use) and probably can't put the home run for the speaker cables in the pillar the projector will be plugged into.
So I'm thinking we have them run the speaker cables to the spot with the cable outlet (convenient for re-sale if next owner would want a more conventional setup), and then run an HDMI extender thru the wall/ceiling to the pillar to reach the projector. Sounds like we'd want to go for cat7 (future proofing/video quality), but a little unsure on HDMI converters in terms of what constitutes a good one and whether they're a good idea in the first place. Anybody have experience with these? Good one to recommend? Much appreciated.
Not much to offer in terms of details, but just some general advice:
Don't bother to much about what may suit a future owner, hitting that is near impossible so instead focus on what you want. Perhaps try make it discrete to not mess up to much future values. Same thing with say fixtures, tiles in the bathrooms and so on.
This one is a personal thing, but I highly suggest using cable tubing (not use that is the right tern in English). As instead of having cables fitted have tubes that allow you to push cables through and thus 'easily' replace the cables, not only does it save you the cost of future proof cables which are likely more expensive than what "just" works now but it also means an easy way to fix possible cable issues.
webguy20I spend too much time on the InternetRegistered Userregular
Picked up a used Schiit Fulla and set of AKG q701 headphones for use at the office, and am waiting for my modmic to come in. If i have to be in the office im gonna listen to some sweet tunes.
Hope you have good luck with yours. I am on Fulla 3 #3 (first one lasted a year, the second after a refurb three months) Both just totally shit the bed in the microphone jack and stopped capturing input. Here's hoping the third one lasts.
Hope you have good luck with yours. I am on Fulla 3 #3 (first one lasted a year, the second after a refurb three months) Both just totally shit the bed in the microphone jack and stopped capturing input. Here's hoping the third one lasts.
Yup. USB C. Ive definitely heard some issues with them. This one seems to work fine right now though.
surrealitychecklonely, but not unloveddreaming of faulty keys and latchesRegistered Userregular
my much-loved fidelio x2s are coming to the end of their tether - does anybody have a suggestion for a superior replacement at roughly the same price point? big over-ear headphones with nice sound quality and no extras
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webguy20I spend too much time on the InternetRegistered Userregular
my much-loved fidelio x2s are coming to the end of their tether - does anybody have a suggestion for a superior replacement at roughly the same price point? big over-ear headphones with nice sound quality and no extras
I don't know if its superior, but the Senheiser Hd58x Jubilee and the 6xx are both highly considered, depending how much you're willing to spend.
minor incidentexpert in a dying fieldnjRegistered Userregular
FWIW, from everything I've heard (reviews, and from one buddy who picked them up), the x3 is a huge downgrade from the x2. Both in build quality and sound quality.
Ah, it stinks, it sucks, it's anthropologically unjust
yeah they do look a bit naff. at half the price i still use the phillips SHP9500s daily and don't really feel like i'm missing out. they really win on comfort.
my much-loved fidelio x2s are coming to the end of their tether - does anybody have a suggestion for a superior replacement at roughly the same price point? big over-ear headphones with nice sound quality and no extras
I really like my m50x's with Brainwavz pads. They're very comfortable and they change the sound signature (for me in a good way) of the headphones to be a little more roomy/open-sounding and less right-against-your-ear.
Picked up a used Schiit Fulla and set of AKG q701 headphones for use at the office, and am waiting for my modmic to come in. If i have to be in the office im gonna listen to some sweet tunes.
*snip!*
Are those bad boys open back? Just that your Co workers might not be enormous fans if they're sat close to you 😅.
Picked up a used Schiit Fulla and set of AKG q701 headphones for use at the office, and am waiting for my modmic to come in. If i have to be in the office im gonna listen to some sweet tunes.
*snip!*
Are those bad boys open back? Just that your Co workers might not be enormous fans if they're sat close to you 😅.
They are partially open back. Honestly at the lower levels of volume I listen to at the office they aren't audible at all past about 3ft and even at two feet or so they blend into the air filter. So its not too bad. I did tell them to let me know though, and I'll bring in closed backs if it is an issue. The closest person is like 10ft and a cubicle wall away though.
surrealitychecklonely, but not unloveddreaming of faulty keys and latchesRegistered Userregular
edited September 2022
yeah I have a pair of monitors 50xs ironically when doing music stuff but the x2s were so good overall I often was too lazy to swap
I knew x3s existed but did wonder if any other company had sneaked out a better “huge open back nice sound” pair worth considering in a similar price range (I got the x2s at like £250 ages ago iirc)
i wear glasses and the x2s didn’t squish the frames at all due to sheer size which was nice
I listen to stuff in a separate room so sound leakage is a non-issue
Does anyone know a reputable source for OEM Sennheiser HD 600 Earpads? My can's pads are pretty worn but the ones listed on Amazon vs what I got shipped were not the same thing so it looks like I'm up shit creek cause I'm striking out on another source but wanna be sure before I do something silly.
Oh those rat bastards have any entirely separate spare parts website? I went to the regular senny page and the HD 600 product only had a couple bits listed for accessories so I was like ?????????
Thanks a lot! Looks like the US page is out of stock and while the EU site has em, it won't let me get em shipped to me.
Not a big fan of replacements that fuck with the sound signature but looks like the hybrids fuck with it the least so I'll give those a whirl for now and keep an eye out for the OEMs coming back. My current pads are three and a half years old and fucking shot cause this is my daily driver.
Ngl tho, I'm kinda eyeballing those HD 800s for my gaming rig <_<
They sit the cans further away from my head giving the bass a little more room to flex so the Dekoni pads end up with a slightly rounder lower end but the highs don't feel fucked with. Idk if I'm phrasing this right but since they're also physically placing the speakers away from the ears more the sound feels less claustrophobic which is the one complaint I've always had about these cans. They're just very auditorily tight around the ears outta the box so I do like having the breathing room between the cans and my ears. Also the increased material around the ears and sheepskin/interior exterior gives them a much more positive seal which I do like just from a comfort stance. I'll have to see how I feel about that once summer swings back around though.
Overall I think, at least in the case of the HD 600s, the Dekoni Hybrids are a pretty good shout. They do give the cans a smidge of a lean towards more of fun sound but that may actually be a good thing for a lot of people because the 600s are pretty notorious for having a bit of a sterile low end and the dekoni pads warm them up a little without ruining anything. I've only been goofing with them for an hour or so though and got some cooking to do but these things are my PC's daily drivers so I'll be interested to see how they break in over time.
*salutes his three and a half year old worn out original pads and prepares them for a viking funeral*
I would be careful with slapping these on any old set of cans tho and would definitely check adjusted frequency response curves if you can because Dekoni pads will tweak the sound of your headphones just due to sheer physics.
EDIT: Just for reference as to what I'm doing for a lazy setup to drive the 600s
Three and a half year old HD600s before they did the refresh of this model so they've got the classic blue mottled design -> ASUS Xonar STX II in hi-fi mode -> PEACE for easy AutoEQign
The Sennheiser Game Zero are $50 to $100 more than the Artic 1 (depending on wired vs wireless). So they are probably better. But sound signature tends to be kind of personal. Since you have both, just throw on games, movies, and music and see one you like more.
Posts
To build on this past experience: I decided to revisit my HDMI ARC (or eARC or whatever) setup between my LG C1 and SP8YA soundbar an was able to get it working, and thought I would share how. To start, there's been at least one update to the soundbar since then which seem like a requirement, but at least as important was actually making sure the soundbar's own settings were set not to eARC but HDMI ARC (apparently it cannot use these things simultaneously, so you have the choice of either a spare HDMI input or eARC...but then again, I'm guessing you can't send eARC fidelity sound over HDMI ARC anyway), and then to enable HDMI-CEC on the device in question (in this case, an PS4).
I'm actually quite pleased with the end result: my PS4 can now switch input mods on the soundbar just by switching to it via the guide button (I'm not sure if switching inputs on the TV, by itself, would do it, though turning on the PS4 should), switching back to the Xbox switches back to eARC as intended, and I now have a spare HDMI 2.1 port for any future expansion (the most obvious thing would be a PS5, except if I purchased one, there would not be any reason to keep my PS4 since I pretty much have to buy a PS5 with an optical disc drive--a repeat of my Xbox Series X completely taking over my XB1). Possibly a television set-top box (if I ever get DirecTV service from AT&T), or some other console. Heck, if I ever manage my dream of owning a Pioneer Laserdisc Player, I could plug the output from the necessary analogue to digital convert into it. Or a Neo Geo AES. Having an free port is certainly better than not having one, in any case, and the SP8YA's HDMI 2.0 is more than enough for a base PS4.
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
Yea I tuned it yesterday using beastie boys Intergalactic. Even at low volumes you can feel it. I'm glad I don't have any neighbors.
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
My subwoofers (Home entertainment setup and PC setup) are one of the main reasons I've avoided shared walls/floors over the years. No fun without them, congrats!
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
So I'm thinking we have them run the speaker cables to the spot with the cable outlet (convenient for re-sale if next owner would want a more conventional setup), and then run an HDMI extender thru the wall/ceiling to the pillar to reach the projector. Sounds like we'd want to go for cat7 (future proofing/video quality), but a little unsure on HDMI converters in terms of what constitutes a good one and whether they're a good idea in the first place. Anybody have experience with these? Good one to recommend? Much appreciated.
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
Not much to offer in terms of details, but just some general advice:
Time to get the vacuum to suck out the dent!
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
Hope you have good luck with yours. I am on Fulla 3 #3 (first one lasted a year, the second after a refurb three months) Both just totally shit the bed in the microphone jack and stopped capturing input. Here's hoping the third one lasts.
Yup. USB C. Ive definitely heard some issues with them. This one seems to work fine right now though.
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
I don't know if its superior, but the Senheiser Hd58x Jubilee and the 6xx are both highly considered, depending how much you're willing to spend.
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
I really like my m50x's with Brainwavz pads. They're very comfortable and they change the sound signature (for me in a good way) of the headphones to be a little more roomy/open-sounding and less right-against-your-ear.
https://www.amazon.com/Brainwavz-Philips-Replacement-Earpads-Headphones/dp/B00MFDT894
Are those bad boys open back? Just that your Co workers might not be enormous fans if they're sat close to you 😅.
http://steamcommunity.com/id/pablocampy
They are partially open back. Honestly at the lower levels of volume I listen to at the office they aren't audible at all past about 3ft and even at two feet or so they blend into the air filter. So its not too bad. I did tell them to let me know though, and I'll bring in closed backs if it is an issue. The closest person is like 10ft and a cubicle wall away though.
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
http://steamcommunity.com/id/pablocampy
I knew x3s existed but did wonder if any other company had sneaked out a better “huge open back nice sound” pair worth considering in a similar price range (I got the x2s at like £250 ages ago iirc)
i wear glasses and the x2s didn’t squish the frames at all due to sheer size which was nice
I listen to stuff in a separate room so sound leakage is a non-issue
Oh for sure. I'm a 100% open back fan. I love my Grados. I have a nice pair of Sony MDR7506 closed backs for when I need that isolation.
Origin ID: Discgolfer27
Untappd ID: Discgolfer1981
Senny themselves?
Oh those rat bastards have any entirely separate spare parts website? I went to the regular senny page and the HD 600 product only had a couple bits listed for accessories so I was like ?????????
Thanks a lot! Looks like the US page is out of stock and while the EU site has em, it won't let me get em shipped to me.
Bastaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaards
Ngl tho, I'm kinda eyeballing those HD 800s for my gaming rig <_<
They sit the cans further away from my head giving the bass a little more room to flex so the Dekoni pads end up with a slightly rounder lower end but the highs don't feel fucked with. Idk if I'm phrasing this right but since they're also physically placing the speakers away from the ears more the sound feels less claustrophobic which is the one complaint I've always had about these cans. They're just very auditorily tight around the ears outta the box so I do like having the breathing room between the cans and my ears. Also the increased material around the ears and sheepskin/interior exterior gives them a much more positive seal which I do like just from a comfort stance. I'll have to see how I feel about that once summer swings back around though.
Overall I think, at least in the case of the HD 600s, the Dekoni Hybrids are a pretty good shout. They do give the cans a smidge of a lean towards more of fun sound but that may actually be a good thing for a lot of people because the 600s are pretty notorious for having a bit of a sterile low end and the dekoni pads warm them up a little without ruining anything. I've only been goofing with them for an hour or so though and got some cooking to do but these things are my PC's daily drivers so I'll be interested to see how they break in over time.
*salutes his three and a half year old worn out original pads and prepares them for a viking funeral*
I would be careful with slapping these on any old set of cans tho and would definitely check adjusted frequency response curves if you can because Dekoni pads will tweak the sound of your headphones just due to sheer physics.
EDIT: Just for reference as to what I'm doing for a lazy setup to drive the 600s
I have acquired a SteelSeries Artic 1 Destiny edition by chance. Is it better or worse than my current headset?
I don’t know the first thing about headsets so I can’t tell jack
that's what you plug the headphones into! usually 3.5mm or 1/4" but adapters can be had
edit:
:wonk:
Then found some GSP 602s for $20 more and said "why not?", so now I'm waiting.