[Joshhat]

G'day all,

I've always been a console gamer ever since I started. I never really got big on the online scene and have never owned a headset. I've tried friends headsets but they have all ways been one of the 'Turtle Beach' series, and for me they have just been horrible.

I'm building my PC on the weekend for gaming and I'm still looking for a method of audio. I'm not a fan of having my music out loud so it'l defiantly be though my set of Apple headphones; my gaming is not so much. Obviously I will need a headset to talk online to other's but is a Surround sound headset such as the Logitech G430 worth $90? Link.

So, Should I buy myself a nice headset for gaming and listening to music, and skimp on the speakers. Because as I said i'd rather have my audio private. I'm looking to spend about $50 or so on a Headset, could maybe stretch if you guy's think it's worth it. Such as the Logitech G430, it looks great.

If you think I should buy a head set, what would some recommendations be with the Headset, what brand? Also, I'm Australian so my Prices are a little higher than over in the US. I shop at shop's such as Mwave.

Thank's in advance!

 

[ep45-ds3l]

I would definitely use a USB headset if you are going to be using your onboard audio. I personally have always used Corsair for my headsets, but that's just me. Price performance and warranty. Currently have a pair of Vengeance 1500's. Got them on sale with a rebate and couldn't be happier. If you are into FPS I would say they help out immensely. And how else can you sound whore?? Lol

 

[DarkFury]

Honestly, for gaming purposes a good headset with a good noise cancelling microphone is a must! (especially if you are playing a team based game.... where communication is key to winning).

I personally use a Logitech G-930... mostly because it is wireless which means that I can be AFK and still hear what's going on in case I need to get back really quick (however, I must warn you that the G930 isn't perfect as it has some nuances that some folks wouldn't tolerate... however it does get the job done and it does make gaming convenient.)

 

[XKaan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkFury

Honestly, for gaming purposes a good headset with a good noise cancelling microphone is a must! (especially if you are playing a team based game.... where communication is key to winning).

I personally use a Logitech G-930... mostly because it is wireless which means that I can be AFK and still hear what's going on in case I need to get back really quick (however, I must warn you that the G930 isn't perfect as it has some nuances that some folks wouldn't tolerate... however it does get the job done and it does make gaming convenient.)

THIS>

I also have the G930 set, and for the money I'm not sure you can do much better. Yes, there are better sounding headphones for much more money, but for convenience, simplicity, good sound and great features, the G930 is awesome.

I've had mine for almost 2 years and the battery lasts just as long as it did day 1.

 

[bread]

These G430s look like a newer vesion of the g35 or something. I used to have a pair of G35s and they were the best thing ever. Great sound, and the mic never played up on me. Ive had a couple of other headsets since and have always had trouble getting the mic working well. Having a good mic makes gaming online a million times better imo.

 

[Mopar63]

Get an over the ear headset, you can get solid products with a low cost from Plantronics, for a few bucks more look at Steelseries and Corsair especially for USB.

As for being a part of gaming, I can say in my experience a good headset is better than a great set of speakers every time. The headset to me is more immersive and it allows me to enjoy my game sounds without disturbing others in the house. Also a good speaker setup needs space for proper placement and separation, a good headset has no space requirements.

 

[DarkFury]

The only problem with a headset is.... you can't really hear yourself getting really loud and then when you look behind you in the room, the rest of your family/roommates are standing there looking at you like you are crazy.... for waking them up from all the screaming and laughing. LOL

 

[nleksan]

Honestly you can get vastly superior sound quality from a separate pair of headphones with a condenser mic than you will get from any ggamingheadset, eespecially if you are talking about anything with more than a single driver per ear.

For the money, the Audio Technica ATH-AD700's are some of the very best gaming headphones around, with an unbelievable soundstage, extremely high positional sound quality, and they are excellent for music as well. I would start with just the headphones, and if you find that you like online gaming, you can pick up a more than adequate mic for Teamspeak with less than $20.

 

[Alonjar]

I have to agree on the Logitech G35s... best headset I've owned.

 

[Joshhat]

Look's like the G930's are $180 here, a little out of my budget.

 

[DarkFury]

They don't cost quite that much here in America... but hey, get the G35s then (those are wired versus wireless)

 

[sterik01]

when i travel i use Bose QC 15's ... love them !!!

 

[pioneerisloud]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nleksan

Honestly you can get vastly superior sound quality from a separate pair of headphones with a condenser mic than you will get from any ggamingheadset, eespecially if you are talking about anything with more than a single driver per ear.

For the money, the Audio Technica ATH-AD700's are some of the very best gaming headphones around, with an unbelievable soundstage, extremely high positional sound quality, and they are excellent for music as well. I would start with just the headphones, and if you find that you like online gaming, you can pick up a more than adequate mic for Teamspeak with less than $20.

This is the only person who's got it right so far lol. You can also spend $30 or so on a xonar dg so you're off on board audio as well.

Get a GOOD pair of headphones and something like the zalman clip on mic. I used to use some rx700s and the zalman mic myself. Really excellent budget setup. I'm not sure if there's better anymore, it's been a long time since I've screwed with headphones.

 

[Erick Silver]

I use a headset for all my needs.

JVC HA-RX700

That headset has great sound quality. The only thing I have done to it is The Foam Mod. The mod has improved the sound quality. I use a simple flexi boom mic on my desk to talk into. Keep in mind that some keyboards have a speaker and mic jack built in and I was using the ones on my Lycosa for a while before switching to my Ducky. Then, if you are gonna play FPS Games go to Razer and download their Surround Sound program. Completely changes the game. You can actually hear people when they try to sneak up on you for a knifing. Pisses them off when you turn and get them first.

 

[DarkFury]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nleksan

Honestly you can get vastly superior sound quality from a separate pair of headphones with a condenser mic than you will get from any ggamingheadset, eespecially if you are talking about anything with more than a single driver per ear.

For the money, the Audio Technica ATH-AD700's are some of the very best gaming headphones around, with an unbelievable soundstage, extremely high positional sound quality, and they are excellent for music as well. I would start with just the headphones, and if you find that you like online gaming, you can pick up a more than adequate mic for Teamspeak with less than $20.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pioneerisloud

This is the only person who's got it right so far lol. You can also spend $30 or so on a xonar dg so you're off on board audio as well.

Get a GOOD pair of headphones and something like the zalman clip on mic. I used to use some rx700s and the zalman mic myself. Really excellent budget setup. I'm not sure if there's better anymore, it's been a long time since I've screwed with headphones.

Wow... i knew the "audiophile club" would get here shortly with the "my headphones are better than yours" attitude.

Anyways... a basic "clip on mic" with no proper noise cancelling is just no good. Yeah, your audio sounds great to you but your voice in the mic sounds crappy to us... plus we hear everything from your breathing to the crunch of your nacho chips in the mic...

On top of that, there is the issue of the "sidetone" where you can actually hear yourself in the mic... through your headphones. When wearing sound deadening headphones, it's actually hard for you to hear yourself speak since your ears are isolated from outside sound... some headphones like the G930s introduce the sidetone so you can hear input from your own mic without causing a reverberation to your outbound transmission. Your average clip on mic with separate headset doesn't do this...

Either way, I'm not gonna get into the whole "well my drivers in my headset are better than yours argument". I"m just talking over overall functionality to getting the job done.... which means: 1) I can hear the game sounds properly 2) my microphone is clearly transmitting and everyone can hear me without interferrence and 3) the unit is comfortable and affordable to my budget for what it does. In that, the other recommendations are just fine... your preference is your preference and I'll allow you that, but please... spare us the whole "audiophile snob" routine. Thanks.

 

[Dunan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkFury

Wow... i knew the "audiophile club" would get here shortly with the "my headphones are better than yours" attitude.

Anyways... a basic "clip on mic" with no proper noise cancelling is just no good. Yeah, your audio sounds great to you but your voice in the mic sounds crappy to us... plus we hear everything from your breathing to the crunch of your nacho chips in the mic...

On top of that, there is the issue of the "sidetone" where you can actually hear yourself in the mic... through your headphones. When wearing sound deadening headphones, it's actually hard for you to hear yourself speak since your ears are isolated from outside sound... some headphones like the G930s introduce the sidetone so you can hear input from your own mic without causing a reverberation to your outbound transmission. Your average clip on mic with separate headset doesn't do this...

Either way, I'm not gonna get into the whole "well my drivers in my headset are better than yours argument". I"m just talking over overall functionality to getting the job done.... which means: 1) I can hear the game sounds properly 2) my microphone is clearly transmitting and everyone can hear me without interferrence and 3) the unit is comfortable and affordable to my budget for what it does. In that, the other recommendations are just fine... your preference is your preference and I'll allow you that, but please... spare us the whole "audiophile snob" routine. Thanks.

I didnt hear that attitude in either post....what they say is true as the OP asked if a good headset was part of gaming and to get the total 'experience' yes it is. I read recommendations, not comparisons. Honesty, I'm not sure what you think you read, but their posts certainly didn't come off as snobbish. For the record I agree, the best setup is a noise cancelling clip on Mic and a good set of quality headphones. I use the same setup myself as any set of 'gaming' headphones I've ever tried have been complete trash, sound quality and build quality wise. One was a Razer brand - I think the first ones they made. They are so bad I can't find them on their site anymore, I think they were called barracudas or something. The other were icemat and they were crap too.

 

[TurboKittens]

not a fan of headsets either in terms of sound quality but the siberia v2s are really comfortable. if you decide to go with a pair of headphones and it's within your budget, the antlion modmic is probably the best choice for a microphone to pair up with them under $50

http://v-moda.com/boompro-microphone/

^ another good option ($30) but limited compatibility, you would have to find a pair of headphones that have a detachable cable and maybe an adapter since it uses 3.5mm input

 

[Zorginator]

If they're going to be your primary source for audio, go the "audiophile" route. AD700s are certainly one of the best budget headphones around.
Two things to look for in headphones, one is obviously sound reproduction which the AD700s are ok at and second, particularly in the case of gaming, is soundstage. The AD700s have an amazing soundstage for their enclosure and price. Soundstage is the 3D feeling of the sound if you like, it is the biggest factor in positioning. I've found since getting a decent set of headphones I can turn and shoot based on footsteps much more accurately.

I personally don't like something dangling in front of my face so a standalone mic works better. Your mileage may vary.

My 2cents, though I'm certainly no audiophile so someone please correct me if any of that is wrong.

 

[iamlucky]

I have read great reviews about the QPad QH-90. A lot of the computer mags here in the UK also praise the headphones. Anyone on the forum have a pair and care to share their experience?

 

[nleksan]

I'm in audio production, so I am sorry but I can't help my opinion.... I've heard so many different headphones, microphones, speakers, etc that I would, at this point in my life, feel justified in calling myself "an appropriate source of information". Now, there is always a subjective quality to "what sounds good", but there IS an objective aspect as well. Simply put, having done tear-downs of super-cheap to the most-expensive (sans Sennheiser) "gaming headsets", which can go upwards of $250+, I can tell you right now that:
A) a decent pair of $50-75 headphones from a reputable manufacturer (AT, Beyer, et al) has truly quality drivers, yet even the $250 gaming headset had some of the absolute cheapest drivers I've ever seen, not to mention the supporting components
B) microphones used on "gaming headsets" cost between $0.80 and $4.90 a piece; compare that to a Mod Mic or a Blue Yeti (regular/Pro), the latter currently on sale for $75 @ Woot and is beyond good; I use it for a lot of the recording sessions I do for bands, for their MASTERS
C) the second you put more than one driver in one side of a headphone is the second it loses any semblance of quality... exactly how surround sound works is very complicated, but suffice to say it cannot be reproduced by cramming a bunch of tiny drivers into headphones just a few millimeters apart from another
D) a good sound card like a Titanium HD will further expand on a good set of headphones (AD700's) with something like CMSS-3D which uses binaural audio to create a true surround effect; add the practically unbeatable sound stage of the ATH-AD700's and you get a setup ALMOST as good as "real" 11.2ch surround sound in an acoustically tuned room

Also, I am far from an audiophile... I love music, and I love helping people make music, but to me, "Audiophile" is insulting because, well, I am not some idiot who spends $500 on speaker cables thinking it will do ANYTHING for the quality of the sound. Sure, I have quite a bit of high end gear (i.e. Sonus Faber Cremona Auditors and Auditor M's, Grado RS1i/PS1000/GS1000's, etc), as well as stuff that "audiophiles" turn their nose up at then promptly squat and defecate on (my beloved Cerwin Vega VE12's, RTR Digital V Model 20) but it's for my own enjoyment and I never shove my opinion in people's faces. There are always multiple answers to these kinds of questions.

I have posted a lot of answers to a lot of different questions on these forums, and I really feel at this point I shouldn't have to defend myself... But, still...