headset advice

Hey,
I'm looking for advice on which headset to get and where. I'll be using it primarily for gaming(and talking while playing). I'll also use it some for movies but mainly games.

Thanks for the advice.

 

Get a set of noise reducing headphones from sennheiser and match em to a good quality Microphone.

Otto.

 

I've thought a/b doing that, but I'll be hauling them aruond with my laptop, so the less seperate parts the better. I just use some basic headphoens and s tandalone std jack mic for my desk top. I like that combination, but I was hoping to rid myself of a mic stand for the purposes of travel. Do you have any suggestions where to get the headphones you suggested?

 

For a laptop, a Plantronics USB headset makes a LOT of sense. They released updated models recently. If you want to stick with analog I've had good luck with Altec Lansing's higher-end models.

 

i recommend Sennheiser PC160 or PC165USB's if you are a serious gamer...

 

I find the Senn PC150/160/165 to be rather uncomfortable after an hour or so. They make my ears burn. It's because the earcups don't actually cup around your ear entrely and instead push in on it. However, the sound quality from them is excellent and the mic quality is surprisingly really good, far better than most other headsets on the market.

You may want to consider the Steelsound 5H. A bit pricey but I've heard great things about them.

 

best gaming headset IMO is the Steelsound 5h's. Great headsets, also worn by the US CS team, Complexity when they won 2005's World gaming championships in paris.

 

anyone have any suggetions of online locations to purchase those??

 

buy.com currently has a smoking hot deal for them if you live in the US,

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?loc=101&sku=203026104, 48.99 after rebates, for the 5h v2 with USB soundcard, use google checkout to get another 10 off.

or the plain ones without the usb soundcard:
http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?loc=101&sku=203026103, 34.99 after rebate, use google checkout to get another 10 off

 

WHat is the purpose of the USB sound card?

For one, the V1 never did have such a feature did it?

 

the V1 had it as well. the purpose of the USB card is to ensure the same sound quality, mainly its 7.1 "virtual surround sound" at virtually any computer. mainly useful in gaming lan/tournaments where you can't bring your own computer system.

supposedly the software is hit/miss with some computers, worked fine with mine, works just as advertised makes it easier for me to talk on ventrilo and such on my laptop because i do not have the audigy zs PCMIA card

 

This might be a somewhat difficult question to answer, but have you noticed any hits to your framerates at all when using the USB headset/software when compared to using a dedicated sound card?

 

i have not noticed any reduced framerates, but then again, i don't play such graphic intensive games on my laptop

 

there's no info on the one w/ the usb sound card. Does it use 3.5mm connectors as well or plug into the usb sound card?? I'm a little confused on how it all works/hooks up.

 

also does anyone know, are you still eligible for the rebate if you do the 10 dollar off google purchase?

 

yes you are still eligible to do the rebate if you do google checkout.

yes it has 3.5mm connectors, which connect to either a soundcard, your laptop, or the usb card which has its own 3.5mm connector slots which then hook into a USB port

 

So when it is hooked up through the USB port, it becomes a software-driven headset like any other USB headset, instead of using the system's own sound card?

Has anyone had any experience with those supposed '5.1' USB headsets? How are those?

 

I just purchased a set of the new Logitech's that just came out. They sound great, the mic works perfectly and its a straight USB connection. Plug in and play. Like I said, Perfect!

 

the USB attachment is actually a soundcard in itself. think of it as an external soundcard that attaches through USB. while im not sure how the tech specs work and whatnot, thats how its advertised, and how it seems to work.

The 5.1 USB headsets don't work very well. anything that goes straight through USB is not true 5.1, its all software generated, and it takes a hit on your CPU as well. Headsets that emulate surround sound through a soundcard are better, but it will not give you the true surround sound that you would get from a real speaker setup. The steelsound 5h is a 7.1 virtual surround sound, which is basically what the 5.1 usb headsets do as well

 

In regards to the 'simulated' 7.1 sound, how do you find the directional clarity on the 5H? Easy to determine what direction the sound is meant to be coming from?

 

the ones on page one are the 5h v2 neither just 5h nor 5.1 usb. So your'e saying the 7.1 virtual surround vs 5.1 usb (which is which set?) will sound the same?

 

bumppppppp

 

The 5.1 USB I asked about are just other headphones out there in general. The headphones that advertise and boast 5.1 sound. I was simply asking for a comparison between the 5H and the typical 5.1 USB headset.

 

oh my alot of questions regarding my precious 5h's ill do a review sometime

but, the virtual surround sound is far superior then say a 5.1 headset, but, this is in terms of gaming, not music listening, or movie watching, you want those, get a pair of senns or grado headphones. these are strictly meant for gaming/voip. i find this headset superior to any of the current gaming headsets outthere right now on the market, and at the price i showed you guys, its a steal

 

A review would be nice. I live in Canada and the one retailer I know of that is Canadian (so I won't have to pay import duties) won't be getting it for like a week as it's currently in transit.

 

well here's what i can tell you so far:

Comfort: Very comfortable, the top is a soft cushion? kind of material so it rests nicely on your head, very light, not too heavy. The ear cushions are nice and cover your ear nicely, but they don't exactly suction to your ears so it's not like sound isolating. I can play BF2/War3/CSS for a couple of hours and not get ear cramps or painful ears that I used to get with other headsets.

Mic: It retracts and can hide itself in the left earset for portability, its flexible, and it is very clear. I use the mic for ventrilo, CSS, BF2, and Skype. Everyone has not had a problem with hearing me/static/background noise.

Sound: Ah what everyone cares about I use this in conjunction with a Audigy 2 Value so its not exactly a top of the line card, but I can tell you that it works very well. I can emulate 5.1 and 7.1 using the Creative Audio console and you can tell in games. Though its a bit hard to discern things in your rear, but its noticeably different then compared to my old Logitech headset. Of course, if you wanted true quality you would obviously go for a nice surround PC gaming speaker system, but you can't exactly bring that everywhere can you? So gameplay sound is superior, but when it comes to movies/music playback it falls short. It can't compare to my Grado cans or even my Logitech Z-2300 speaker system when it comes to music and movie playback. But its defintely better then my Viewsonic's LCD monitor speakers and generic brand speakers.

 

the steelsound 5hs are on sale at buy.com with a 30 rebate for 20. if you use google checkout its $10!!! the usb one is like 20 more. just thought i'd let people know.