Sennheiser HD 598 - Review

For years now, I've been itching to get into higher-end audio. I don't know much about music and wouldn't even be pretentious enough to say I'm passionate about it, but bad sound drives me nuts.

Sennheiser has stood out to me during this time as the reviews on the internet are positive and test listening to the limited selection on display at Best Buy has made me a fan. My previous headset had worn out so now was my chance to get in on a good pair and what I purchased was the Sennheiser HD 598.

The Sennheiser HD 598 is an open back, around-the-ear pair of headphones that I would consider entry-level to the high-end audio market for discerning consumers.

Velour ear pads are over-sized to give maximum comfort around the ear while the leather-ish material they call 'leatherette' on the head band gives a mixed message about the quality as it feels cheap and plasticy. An issue some may face with the ear pads is them being this velour fabric. While I personally find it more comfortable than plastic, leather, or leather-like substitute, I'm more cautious when using them because I worry they might soak up moisture.

I purchased the black set, but it also comes in a cream/brown color scheme, but that doesn't suit me all that well. Appearance wise though, I would call the look competent and subtle. Not as flashy as say Beats by Dre or Skullcandy sets, these are classy with flat, almost satin black plastic and chrome accents. The only qualm with appearances would again be the head band being covered in that faux leather. It doesn't look all that good.

The rich tones the set can produce are beautiful if a little absent of bass on smaller devices. This could be a limitation of your audio devices as the power demands are a bit high at an impedance of 50ohms and the open back design that allows your surrounding environment to bleed in almost entirely. This would be good for more casual gaming than say a game where listening is important.

The set comes with 2 removable cables; a longer 3m with a 6.3mm plug and a 1.2m cable with a 3.5mm plug. It also comes with a 3.5mm adapter for those who want a longer cable for their smaller audio devices. I would advise against that though as it creates a large chunk of plastic and copper protruding from the device and while I've been lucky enough not to break it off, I did knock it a few times while testing.

The price for the Sennheiser HD 598 comes in at $150USD on Amazon while from their official store asks $249.95USD. Not the cheapest headset available for the quality it boasts, but it does deliver in comfort and performance while being priced below others, "high-end" sets from Bose and Beats.
If you do chose to invest in these bad-boys, do yourself a favor and buy them thru Amazon.

Bottom line, the Sennheiser HD 598 are a quality pair of headphones that are a good jumping off point into the world of high-end audio. Good for listening to various forms of media and even some gaming within reason. It might not be worth it for some but consider it

Smokin' Nerds - T-Shirt for DFuson

Hey everyone! (Or anyone, really)

Check out this shirt illustration I made for my college buddy David!

He's starting to pick up some steam over on twitch.tv/dfuson and he asked me to make a shirt he and his followers could enjoy! It features a brave undead claiming victory over a certain scaleless dragon from the Dark Souls series.

You can get one of these high-quality shirts for $20US over on TeeSpring at https://teespring.com/smokin-nerds-dfuson if that tickles your fancy!

Aside from that, been just grinding away at game development.

You know, modelling some 3D slums, drawing fierce barbarians, planning some devious dungeons; all the fun stuff!

Check back later this week, I might have a solid update for those willing to listen!

Until next time,
Dave

Design Work - Cyclops Concept 01

Hey there!

I've been trying to stay busy lately with more and more game development and what-not and as a result, I've been making more of pretty much everything.

Currently, I'm working on creating 3D environment assets for 'Blade Born' by Talos Studios.
Our other games 'Corruption Kings' and 'Root Canal' are basically on ice for now until we can revisit and possibly restructure them.

But, that doesn't mean I can't continue working on some of my solo/side projects!

One of my more recent ideas I spewed forth is a more classic, yet comedic barbarian RPG with strong fantasy elements in an isometric perspective. Think Diablo or Fallout 1&2 for a general idea. Depending on how well my test builds go, I'll either be making the game in 3D using Unity, or as a 2D game using Construct 2 or Game Maker Studio.

These concepts are for the cyclops' in the game. I wanted to step away from the classic look they're given with the oddly placed eye and nose and make something that really stands out as a new, unique take on the monster race while still feeling organic.

Hopefully I can get this project off the ground here soon, but in the mean time, I'm going to continue fleshing out my design document and art bible for the game and as I do, I'll keep updating with monsters and shtuff.

Until next time,
Dave

PS. If you're a bad-ass programmer that wants to team up on some side projects, hit me up and maybe we can churn out some cool stuff!

Enter the Gungeon - 3D Printed Bullet Kin

Hey there everyone!

I know I haven't been posting much lately, but I've been getting back into 3D and working on a more hush, hush kinda project.

In my down time though, I've been playing Dodge Roll's 'Enter the Gungeon' published by Devolver Digital.

I've only gotten to the 5th floor a couple of times, but I f*ckin' love it! It's tough, full of secrets to discover, and has a quirky sense of humor.

But, as I said, I've been doing 3D again and thought it'd be cool to make a Bullet Kin, so I did.

And that wasn't enough! I f*ucking loved it so much, I went ahead and talked my brother-in-law into using his 3D printer and making my own Bullet Kin a reality! I've always wanted to make toys and while I love making games, there's something about having a real life figure.

And here are the results of the print! On his little platform, he only stand about 2.5 inches tall with a hollow body and removable "cap". That's where I hide his little gun for storage.

While he has a foot pin to hold him to the base, he does stand on his own and I know his feet aren't 100% accurate, they're needed to help keep balanced.

I plan on painting him and the base to match the game, and I might make a few more like a Shotgun Kin and Sniper Shell; two other enemies from the game.

Let me know what you think of him! Or maybe some other characters from indie games that you'd like to see in 3D and printed and I'll see what I can do!

Until next time,

Dave

Spellblast now available on Steam Early Access

The game I've been working on, 'Spellblast', by Tonal Recall Games and published by Forever Humble PDX, has finally come to Steam Early Access!

Me and the guys at our studio, Talos Studios were contracted to create art assets for the game with our only limitations being that of the game engine; so nearly complete creative control. Its current build is made with Game Maker Studio Pro, but apprently they're currently rebuilding it in Unity3D, so if the game sees enough support, we can continue to update and expand the game.

'Spellblast' is listed at $0.99 US during early access and projected to go up when complete, but from now until the 29th of February, its an additional 20% OFF, bringing it down to $0.79 US.

My February 2016 Challenge of the Month Submission Process

Its that time again boys and girls for another submission to Jazza's Challenge of the Month!

This time around, we're celebrating love and to a lesser extent, mental health; which as anyone whose been in love can attest, go hand in hand or at the very least, have some correlation.

The subjects of this months challenge are Marvel's Deadpool and DC's Harley Quinn; both 'unstable' personalities that have been on both sides of good and evil. Now we find them breaking lines and finding love in each other.

Okay, enough fluff; here's my process for this months submission!

This time around, I decided to take a little more time to complete my piece and I think it turned out pretty well. I was going for more of a 'Boris Vallejo' kinda vibe and though I used more of a line-art/comic book style, I think the influences can be seen.

Here's a nifty animated gif showing my process! Woot!

Check out the full-size piece over on Newgrounds. Seriously, its pretty cool.

"New Resolution" - Newgrounds Art Contest Submission Progress

So I spotted this video by Jazza about an art contest in my YouTube feed, and since I was busy putting off work on my games, I decided I was going to make a submission!

The theme is "New Resolution" and it means taking an old game (pre-1990) and make a high-res version of it with all the detail you want. The artist has to acknowledge the original copyright owner, include an image of the character they've chosen to re-draw, keep them in the same pose, as well as show some form of progress to prove you aren't a dirty thief. (That's mainly what this post is; proof)

I chose to do an illustration of one of the knights in "Joust" by Williams Electronics.

This was easily one of my favorite games to play as a kid (before we got that Larry Byrd vs Michael Jordan game for the Atari; that shit was dope, yo!) and figured I'd have to do it.

The following is some progress and maybe even some of my process...

First, the planning stage...

Then, I ink the thing. Usually takes the longest...

Next, I plan my color scheme by blocking in color.
I don't usually do this step..

And finally, I shade that shit!
Once I'm happy with the results, I bring it into Photoshop and do a little color correction and clean up some goofs, but its done.

And that's that! My "process" and all! Now, I don't know if I'll win anything in this competition, but working on this was a nice distraction and helped me work on something away from my normal dev shtuff.

Check it out and some of my other work over at Newgrounds.com and look around; its a pretty cool place.  http://www.newgrounds.com/art/view/davetroyer/joust-knight-new-resolution-entry 

Until next time,
Dave