Context:
Having just been introduced to the world of audiophiles, I spent days doing research on pretty much everything I might need to know. Now I am by no means an audiophile; not yet anyway. But I do appreciate good sound, and I'd like to start experimenting with audiophile grade audio and equipment.
I am a gamer, and I will mostly use these headphones for gaming. I enjoy a variety of genres; I plan on playing games like The Witcher 3/Skyrim, but also games like CS:GO while on Discord with my friends. So I need something that's good all-round, for most genres. Preferably something that can immerse me in games like TW3 or Skyrim.
Besides gaming I also plan on listening to music with these headphones. I enjoy pretty much all genres, from chill to heavy metal. One hour I'd listen to rap music, and the next I'd listen to jazz, or house, or reggae, or EDM, and the list goes on.
I don't mind if they're not completely flat, and I don't mind that they don't produce strong bass, as long as they produce good, clear audio that's fun/enjoyable to listen to.
TL;DR:
Which is best for gaming (The Witcher 3, Skyrim, CS:GO, etc) and music (all genres) from these 3?
I narrowed my list down to these 3 open-back headphones:
Audio-Technica AD900X
These are the ones I'm leaning the most to. I am aware that their bass might not be the best, and that comfort-wise I might have to use the rubber band mod to improve it, but I don't really mind. I'd buy a separate microphone to go with this. This seems like the best choice for me from what I've read, but I'd still like to explore any other options.
Sennheiser HD 598
I read a lot of good things about this. However, I've heard that they might not be as enjoyable to listen to as the AD900X. As with the AD900X, I'd buy a separate microphone to go with this.
Sennheiser PC 373D
This is the only headset with an included microphone from this list. I've heard a lot of good things about this, but because of all that I've read about gaming headsets, I'm a bit reluctant when it comes to the PC 373D. If I get this headset, I'll just use the microphone that comes with it.
Conclusion:
Please let me know which of these headphones would be the best choice for me. Also, let's just assume that money isn't an issue here, or that all of these headphones cost the same amount. I want to know which is the best from these, I don't mind if its a bit more expensive than the rest.
I plan on buying a Creative Labs AE-5 sound card to plug these headphones into. I want the best experience possible for my needs.
I also plan on doing research on more comfortable replacement earpads that manage to keep the original sound quality of the headphones.
Also, I already own a pair of Razer Kraken Forged edition headphones, so I can just use those for bass when I need to, which is why I'm not too concerned about bass.
I'll take any suggestions, however I'd prefer to stick with these 3 headphones in particular.
Thanks in advance.
