Surround Sound Headsets

I'm looking for a Surround Sound Headset. but I was wondering what are the differences of Virtual Surround Sound that's processed through a mixamp or baystation and a true 5.1/7.1 headset.

 

Virtual surround basically means that the headset itself is only stereo, i.e. one speaker per ear, just like any normal stereo headphone. The surround sound effect is done entirely through software processing, either via driver software or a dedicated sound card/amp. It's entirely a useless gimmick, as any game will simulate the exact same thing with any stereo headphones/headset.

"Real" surround headsets have multiple speakers per ear. I would also avoid these because instead of one good speaker on each ear, you get two or three smaller crappier ones and pay three times as much. And even with multiple speakers, you're only going to get so much sound separation out of them; they're barely a few centimeters apart.

tl;dr - just get a good stereo headset.

 

Virtual surround is where how you hear in 3D is modelled in software before being played back to you. In terms of Dolby Headphone, it's an averaged 'virtual head' that's used to perform the processing - so it works differently for different ears, because your brain has adapted 3D hearing to your specific ears.

In many games it can be very effective, especially when subwoofer emulation is offered (which is a facility of the codec used by either the headphone or the soundcard - usually it's a headphone feature for various reasons). In older titles, not so much.

Anyone who dismisses it as totally a gimmick either:
- has not tried it
- has not tried it in a variety of games
- hasn't got averaged HRTF-compatible hearing / ears (absolutely possible, for the above reasons - if you're way beyond average head for some reason HRTF will be lost on you and it will just sound like muddy echoey stuff)
- Or if you go to 'audiophile' forums, is usually talking out of their behind

As for true 5.1/7.1 phones, there's what Mastershroom said but they are actually not bad for picking up specific direction cues of stationary objects as they sound in specific speakers. Not so great for moving stuff, as the transfer from speaker to speaker is usually not that convincing or helpful once you get to any targets in front. For that reason and because they're heavier too, I prefer virtual surround.

Virtual 7.1 is actually slightly more effective than 'real' surround or stereo in most cases for doing 'front' which is of course pretty key in most games, but it's still all pretty much in your head in most cases - so still not as effective as real surround speakers. However it is usually more effective than just stereo. A lot of gamers also don't run virtual surround because of the CPU overhead they perceive. This is usually absolutely minimal on a modern PC and will not have an appreciable impact on frame rates.

 

You only have two ears. You only need headphones with one speaker by each ear to perfectly emulate sound coming from any direction.

 

I would suggest just picking up a nice pair of stereo headphones. If you live with open cans than there are no better options for soundstage than the open ATH-AD700 off amazon. Though you will have to buy a separate microphone.

 

Why should soundstage (especially a very wide, flat one) be a big deal in gaming?
That's just left/right separation. It doesn't give you any sense of space.

 

Soundstage basically means that you get the feeling that you are right in the middle of the action. Soundstage is especially important for listening to footsteps in FPS's. The better the Soundstage, the better you can tell whether a person is at your 2 o'clock rather than your 12 o'clock. Obviously you need a proper sound card and software to take advantage of a real set of headphones though. It's mostly hype and audiophile jargon but it can make a huge difference if you are serious about your competitive gaming. Either way picking up a legit 5.1/7.1 headset is a bad idea compared to what you can get for a similar price from Sennheiser/AKG/AudioTechnica/Denon/BeyerDynamic/ETC.

 

It's all a gimmick Jeeves--virtual, hyper, whatever catch phrase they use--since you can't get 5.1/7.1 etc with only two speakers.

Still, you might like it. If you do, it's your money; spend it the way you wish.

 

Do you have any idea how your ears work? You have two sound inputs, one on each side of the head. Neither of them alone has any ability to determine the direction of a sound. The only hardware that is required emulate sound coming from any direction is a single isolated speaker at each ear.

Without headphones it is different because each ear can hear every speaker.

 

As I asked, why would a more extreme left-right separation in an otherwise flat (in terms of depth) soundfield help you in determining 2 o clock vs 12 o clock, let alone front and back?

I don't think Qing Dao made the point that clear but yes, the 'Stereo is better in presenting soundstage' types maybe don't understand how our ears work. Dolby Headphone (not *that* well, but certainly better than stereo) models how sounds would arrive in your ear if it came from differently placed sources, as does CMSS, which also tries to do up and down as well. By wearing a regular stereo headphone, all you're doing is to place two audio sources on either side of your head. You might be able to focus mentally on different layers of the sound you're hearing but it's still just a left-right separation.

DH actually does front, side and back. Front is the weakest, since this is all still in your head - but there is a clear distinction of a sense of space. The .1 aspect should also be mentioned in the case of the G35, a feature of the onboard codec of the Logitech - it actually does sub emulation in terms of an almost shaker mode (it does not have a shaker, it's all done using the speakers), *without* disturbing the ability to make out the rest of the sound.

For cost and other reasons, both implementations are based on an average head with average ears - and since our brains are programmed to hear in accurate 3D with the way our specific ears channel the sound to our eardrums, DH/CMSS isn't guaranteed to work well for everyone. But once again, in the vast majority of cases it's a heck of a lot better than stereo. And having it integrated into the headset does have functional advantages.

EDIT: I should point out here that I'm not just fishing answers out of my butt.

 

Actually headphones are a requirement, whether you need them in order to prevent the noisy movie from waking a significant other, or to sneak in a 15 minute gaming session without the kids hearing, or simply to listen to music at a volume that suits you without the neighbors calling the cops. For many scenarios, headphones are simply a better deal than speaker systems and a home soundproofing project.

Beyond mainstream entertainment, businesses save money making calls over headsets on Skype or other VoIP applications. Hardcore gamers love high-quality headsets for their portability and ease of use (they're easy to take to LAN parties, competitions or on the road, and provide good sound quality).

 

No one's putting down headsets, or saying they have no place. I point out simply that they are less natural than a conventional open air speakers.

As someone who does videos (or any busy noisy environment), I know that using headphones are an absolute necessity.

 

If you haven't tried a pair of virtual phones I say give them a shot. My wife got me some G35's for my birthday and I figured even if the surround sound sucks they'll still be fine for online gaming, music, videos etc.

I was pleasantly surprised at how well they work in game. When something is behind me, it sounds like it's behind me. People on here who haven't tried them are going to scoff and say it's all bs and crap but I tell ya, they sound great and the virtual surround works awesome.

 

My Gamecom 777s maybe don't have the sound reproduction of ATHs or Beyerdynamics, but they definitely do tell me where the sound is coming from, which is what I really need to know. And they were only 40 bucks.