Computer Setup

Sweet mic. Which one is that?

How has it been treating you? I'm considering getting one and the only thing that's holding me back is that I saw in reviews the nobs are loose and the fact that it amplifies sounds like typing or something bumping the desk it sits on... :/

The nobs are a bit loose, which gives them sort of a weird feeling when you're turning them. But the quality is fine. And yes, it amplifies a lot of the noises from the desk because the stand it comes with it kind of sucks. Mostly keys bottoming out and I tend to swipe, pickup, then slap my mouse down for quick movements. Not in a particularly violent way, but the mouse hitting the mousepad makes a fairly distinctive hollow thump sound. I might get a hold of some memory foam as someone mentioned here to alleviate that.

Getting a good XLR mic with a sound card or interface definitely produces cleaner sound than any USB microphone, in my experience.

Would you happen to have any details on your speakers, and are the stands part of them, or separate things? :)

Speakers are Audioengine A5+, the stands are Audioengine DS2, sold separately.

I was looking at the A2's. No budget for the A5's since they are double the price haha.

I have them and they are pretty nice. Wish I could afford a sub to go with them since they dont have much base. Great for computer listening though.

Yeah I'm planning to switch to actives from my Sony ss-b3000s that I have currently. Just for computer listening and I don't really need a sub personally.

How do you power your headphones? A good DAC/Amp, I hope.

I have a Schiit Modi/Magni stack, but using that at work right now. I'm powering it off of a Creative ZX sound card, which is fine, neither the D2000 or the ATH-AD900x are high impedence so they are easy to drive.

Finally a nice, clean station. It gets tiring seeing everyone with tacky ricer goliathus mousepads and neon green keyboard leds.

Agreed, also irks me when people have messy stations, I'm not a neat freak but still think if you're going to take pics and show off your station you should at-least tidy up a bit.

I see that you have what looks like a block of wood in front of your KB for a wrist rest. How is that working for you? I have been curious about wrist rests for a while, and I want to know if you find them worthwhile.

Hey I have this too!

It's actually a slab of acrylic, got it in a group buy on Geekhack. I didn't notice a difference at first, but now I can't use a keyboard without one.

I use that wallpaper everywhere. :)

That's amazing! Love you google!

Nice. Yeah, I was gonna try to find the best resolution...but I don't actually want it myself hah.

What case are you using?

Fractal Design R4, pretty popular around r/gaming setups and r/buidapc. I actually wanted to use the new NZXT H630, but got a good deal on the R4.

Hmm, slightly more than I'm looking to spend. Thanks anyway. :)

Looks like a Fractal Design R4

The headphones sitting next to the X-Wing are Denon D2000, other pair is Audio Technica ATH-AD900x.

You're really lucky to have the D2K's - They are now discontinued and Denon has replaced with with utter crap. :(

<3 dota 2. Best game ever made imo, with SC2 a close second :D

The Blue Yeti is great mic. Good addition to any battle/recording/skype station!

It's pretty great, although I think I might need a shock mount, since I tend to bottom out on my keyboard or bang my mouse around, and it picks those sounds up through the base. Unfortunately the only one that fits is the OEM one that Blue sells, but I've heard a lot of bad things about the threading not matching, so hesitant to buy it.

Yeah I was thinking of buying the Yeti but have the same concerns. I don't have room to have a full sized floor boom stand either so I don't know what to do for a mic >_<

I hear good things about the Audio-Technica AT2020. That's the one I'm planning on getting.

The AT2020 is a very good alternative, and you don't have to worry about getting a specific shock mount.

Yeah I had heard about the different options but for me the compatibility and sound quality have sort of sold me on it. Also I like the construction and way it looks plus I'm just going to use it for chatting with friends while gaming and family while skyping so all the different modes aren't as necessary for me. My only worry is if it will pick up the sound of my mech keyboard behind it.

I would go with the Yeti if you aren't recording music. The stand is way more convenient, and those simulated polar pattern settings could actually help not pick up ambients from your mech keyboard.

I have the same mic as OP and I don't have any problem with it picking up my keyboard (Cherry MX Blue Switch, so it's a pretty loud keyboard.)

What do you use the mic for specifically?

Where is your desk lamp from? Ikea?

Damn I love that UCS X-Wing

Hey, I just completed a build with the same Fractal R4 case yesterday. Did you have any issues with the front bottom fan? Mine kept clicking against the front panel and I had to pop it partially out of place to get it to stop and function quietly.

No issues, maybe try swapping the fan with the exhaust fan (they are the same) or moving it elsewhere to see if it's a problem with the fan or the fan bracket.

I get a feeling the problem lies with the fan.. it seems like the very end of the blades extend ever so slightly outside the bounds of the back of the outer case.

What kind of speakers do you have?

I only recently began streaming. Mostly higher level DotA 2 solo/stack matchmaking, although I'll play other games as well.

What's that sitting up by the power button on your case?

It's a Lacie Porsche Design external hard drive. I left the lens cap of my camera on top of that while taking pictures.

Ohhh... I see it now. Very nice looking backup drive. :)

It was actually a poor decision in retrospect to buy haha, sure it looks pretty sexy, but the edges are sharp corners, so it tends to get caught on the pouch that I carry it around in.

How do you like the Sammy Ultrabook? I've been looking at them for my wife.

15" Sseries 9. It's fantastic for anything but heavy graphics. Boots up insanely fast (Windows 8 it boots up in like...3 seconds). Also very thin. If you have any specific questions I can try to answer them.

Mostly concerned about the trackpad. She hates Apple but loves their trackpad. So we are trying to get as close to that as possible while still getting a quality laptop.

I haven't used the trackpad much to be honest, since I use the Performance MX as well 99% of the time. As far as I have seen the trackpad is fine, the few gestures I've used seem fine. The trackpad is pretty large also.

What keyboard is that, it looks like a TK of some sort.

Gorgeous single screen setup. So clean.

Yamakasi Catleap Q270 2560x1440 @ 120hz, Ergotron MX arm

Love the desk, what is it?

Galant from Ikea. Pretty standard.

I raise my blue yeti as well, otherwise it picks up the mechanical keyboards 'thud'... mine is sitting on a piece of memory foam

I'm trying to find some memory foam on eBay/Amazon UK but can't find anything that would fit the Yeti. Any ideas?

I don't play under that name, so probably not.

Holy shit that cafe in your wallpaper is right next to my apartment! It's shut now sadly :(

Bookmark for denon and audio technica

I really hate this "streaming station" shit. It doesn't even make sense. You're running a background program to broadcast what's going on in your PC. That doesn't require a station of any kind.

If you're going to argue syntax, none of these are 'computer setups' either. But to stream games on high settings with good frames requires a better computer than just playing a game with the same settings.

Not to mention a webcam if you're going to be showing your face (which people like), a good microphone, a good processor with decent multithreaded performance since streaming can be a huge CPU hog, a clean area behind you so people don't see your clutter, a green screen if you want to chromakey it... I could go on and on. A streaming station requires a lot more specialized equipment and setup than a gaming station.

Previous | Next