can anyone recommend a very good gaming headset?

[Stublerone]

I jist can say, that I had a couple of headsets and some months ago, after researching several days on gaming pages and also on hifi forums concerning headsets and soundcards, I am now very confident to make suggestions.

Anybody who got deep into the topic soon gets to know, that:

1.) 5.1 headsets have no advantage in locating sounds ingame. The opposite is the case as more sound drivers for the ear needs more calibration (depending on your ears shape) to make it as accurate as hifi headphones or headsets, where u just have 1 driver for each ear. The headfi forum is a well established community of sound loving guys. Mainly for hearing music, but u can also find topics for headsets. These guys and the industry as well say, that it is just a blender feature to sell new products. Nevertheless the sound of a 5.1 headset mixes up, before it reaches your ear. So it is inaccurate. Professional players play with stereo headsets, although they support 5.1 headsets. The sponsoring money makes it possible. 5.1 -» blender, a stereo is more accurate.

2.) Headsets can have a good microphone and it has the advantage, that it is mounted to the earphone. So it is handy and you can place it very well, where it is needed. -» advantage for a headset!

3.) Bill of material: The main parts of a headet are very often very cheap. Especially the drivers are a problem. I remember, that there was one headaet with a driver similar to a quite good headphone, but I do not remember the name. But in general you can say, that very much headsets with all its plasric parts and cheap technical parts are often way to expensive. -»c clear disadvantage

Finally I came to the result, that I should try a hifi headphone and an additional microphone instead of a headset. My personal preference is after all these years of extensive playing as follows:

Buy a headphone. I have an old akg headphone, which was very unconfortable to wear and I bought a beyerdynamic dt880 (perhaps to expensive for some), which is awesome in soundstage, immersive bass (not to much but with high resolution) and comfort. Now, I recently had a driver issue and haf to send it back for repairing. So I had to stick with the old akg and found out, that it also sound great (this headphone is about 50 eur nowadays. So you can see, that a headphone don't need to be that expensive.

I added a normal zalman clip microphone for 4 eur and it has the same sound quality than good headset microphones. It works as good as it with a very little disadvantage in noise cancelling, because u cannot locate it directly to your mouth and calibrate it.

My advice in short: If you want a competitive headset , which can be compared to a 80 EUR headphone +microphone, you have to pay about double price or more.

If you additionally buy a headphone amp or a soundcard like asus essence stx with a built in amp for headphones, the sound for our gaming needs cannot be better for the money.

Seeing the headsets currently on the market, I will always stick with my headphone + microphone combo!

BTW: To get better and better sound, I spent roughly 600,- EUR for headsets again and again with low improvements. Now, it is simply great and I have no longer any excuse, why I located wrong. It will be my personal fault and not the inaccuracy of my sound.

[Flyby]

thanks for the extra feedback guys. I know when it comes to gaming head-sets, and speakers (for that matter) specs are specs, but what counts is how the headphones actually sound to the listener. I
ll check out the local brick-and-mortar computer store and give a listen to what's available there. If n o joy, I'll start digging a bit deeper. I really appreciate all your input.
Flyby out

[Stublerone]

Good idea and also try to hear some normal headphones. The sound is always up to your preference, but do not get blended by commercial.

Stereo is technically seen the best way to have accurate and clean sound for all purposes (games and music) as othe method could be mixed up in front of your ear in a annoying way. I switched to headphone from my last headset (5.1) and simply was stunned, that I really bought so much plastic sh***t the years before. And trust me: Headphone amps for higher ohm headphones (>250 Ohm) do a stunning job. Even some newer headsets have them implemented to get a good performance. The headsets getting better, but are still more expensive for a similar result.

But decide on your own, because it is about preference. A Dr. Dre Beats headphone sound good for some, but for musicians it mostly sounds too unclear. Just an example.

[Fenrisflyer]

As a comment to the wireless sets,

I tested a wireless logitech set(for mobility) before starting to play COD, but quickly went back to my old cabled set, the wireless had much worse sound quality than my standard low-priced cabled set.
Not sure if that is the norm but at least it's something to consider.

Also, if you are using TrackIR5, the ProClip is cable-connected to your computer so there is really not much benefit from a wireless set anyway.

[Stublerone]

Jep, exactly. My friend also bought the logitech and said that it is great quality....until he sat on my desk with my headphones. He sold it directly in ebay and bought some headphones and an amp.

I bought a medusa 5.1 headset years ago and always thought, that the sound at least is okay for me, but always had problems in some shooters to get to know the right direction. But thought that sound was still okay from the quality. But I soon bought my headphones and then hwondering myself, why the hell I could think that it was okay. It simply opened my eyes and with the amp, i could also hear on my old akg headphones, that I was totally wrong.

A last tipp: Do not safe money concerning comfort, as this would be the most annoying thing. Too small ear pads of cheaper headsets or very heavy headsets are causing headache within half an hour for me.

[Katana1000S]

Right now I have a Logitech G35 USB but find it a bit uncomfortable, for a regular 3.5 mic and sound plug headset I prefer my Sennheiser PC350, this is much more comfortable for my head and also there is a popular bass mod that is simple to do described below that really makes a world of difference.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Senn...C350-bass-mod/

I've been thinking of trying the Asus Vulcan gaming headset, might be worth a look for you, its got some good reviews.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...d=1058&subcat=

[Stublerone]

You see, that "ROG" is in its name and you have to pay more?
good: stereo, detachable mic
bad to me: 32 Ohm and all its disadvantage in sound
Nevertheless, it looks like a better one, comparable to steelseries, roccat, turtle beach, but they still look a bit more quality, than this one.

If you really want a headset, you can also give the beyerdynamic mmx300 a look. It is a bit "pricier"

Personally I did not want a closed headphone like the mmx, because I sometimes want to hear my surrounding. So I decided to buy the dt880, because they are semi open. Less bass, but wider soundstage.

[Katana1000S]

Originally Posted by Stublerone

You see, that "ROG" is in its name and you have to pay more?
good: stereo, detachable mic
bad to me: 32 Ohm and all its disadvantage in sound
Nevertheless, it looks like a better one, comparable to steelseries, roccat, turtle beach, but they still look a bit more quality, than this one.

If you really want a headset, you can also give the beyerdynamic mmx300 a look. It is a bit "pricier"

Personally I did not want a closed headphone like the mmx, because I sometimes want to hear my surrounding. So I decided to buy the dt880, because they are semi open. Less bass, but wider soundstage.

Yep, RoG sometimes means more, but its about 25% cheaper than my Sennheiser PC350 headset and cheaper too than my Logitech G35, its got very good reviews.

When you go to the dedicated PC tech forums they will inevitably suggest dedicated open headphones, and I have a set of those too for appropriate music and movie listening on my AV gear, but I don't think that gear is what your every day PC gamer needs or wants, especially if you add on a clip on mic and associated twin cables running from your head to the PC, we often like a boom mic for teamplay that can be swung up when needed.

You sound like a high end sound purist Stublerone and I can be too, I know where you are coming from

I went through two sets of 5.1 Medusa sets, both snapped at hinge join, compared to the Logi G35 and Senneiiser PC 350, they are poor quality build and sound nowhere near so good ... because i go through so many headsets I'd really like to try the Asus Vulcan, RoG or not The reviews are not so bad for the price IMHO.

Nothings perfect though.

[FFCW_Urizen]

Yeah, already destroyed one (literally ) Medusa 5.1 and my current NX will be replaced shortly, because of its center speaker being nearly dead. and that thing isn´t even 9 months old. so that´s it speedlink, you failed me twice, now pay the price.

As i need my Headset only for gaming purposes, any good tips for headsets in the 50-100€ range. it should be very comfy, because some sessions can last for quite a few hours.

[Katana1000S]

Was looking at these that seem interesting, never been a fan of 5.1 or 7.1 headsets, but maybe these are going in the right direction, USB and 3.5 jacks and the USB is supposedly just to power the drivers in the cans or the big control panel that sits on the desk.

Heard bad things about Razer build quality though? I'm still thinking of buying an Asus Vulcan headset next week, this is quite a bit more and I'll do some more research, see a couple of youtube video reviews out now ... also it looks like it might be awkward attaching a TrackIR?

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...odid=SP-015-RA