Best PC Gaming headset for under $500 bucks

reddragonz34

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Ok so I've been in the market for a new pc gaming headset and I really need some help so provide me with some pc gaming headset configurations. P.S.- Keep in mind that I live in Canada.
 
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Ytyoussef

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Maru777

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Ytyoussef

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Reddragon, I strongly suggest you have a look a the guide I posted above.
Anyway, the sennheiser AG1s are not that great from the reviews I've read, the PC 360 on the other hand is great for competitive gaming, but doesn't give you the best overall experience.
 

chferg91

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The G930 is a good headset but they are VERY hit or miss in terms of wireless reception. Mine would cut out randomly and frequently no matter where I positioned the USB receiver. I sent mine back to Logitech for a replacement and the new pair still had the same issue. I have a Maximus VI board with a dedicated sound card and no other headphones I've used have had an issue. Driver reinstalls and repairs also didn't fix the issue. If you dig around on Logitech's forums you'll notice this is a pretty common problem with this headset. A shame because they are very well built and are priced extremely competitively.

I finally bit the bullet and got the Astro A50 and it's been lightyears better-no wireless/reception issues at all. They're expensive ($300) but are compatible across all platforms and have fantastic sound quality and a strong microphone. The Dolby 7.1 sounds the business. Battery life is also quite a bit better than on the G930. If you don't care about the wireless functionality the A40 is a solid choice too.

 
for $500 i would suggest getting...

a soundcard (if you want virtual surround) or an external dac+amp (if you dont want virtual surround)
either a modmic (if you like mics on the headphones) or a good desk mic (if you dont)
a good pair of studio headphones (which fit your sound profile requirements)

you need to let us know a few things...

-what type of sound profile do you like? (heavy bass low treble, low bass heavy treble, heavy treble and bass recessed mids, neutral, mid focused)
-do you prefer open or closed? (read "types of headphones" in my guide in my signature)
-do you have large ears or find smaller headphones uncomfortable?
-do you want/need virtual surround? (theres a test on the headfi envy's guide to the different types)
-do they need to be used on a portable device for any reason?
-are you on a desktop or laptop? (if desktop, what soundcard or motherboard?)
-do you want a desk mic or boom mic?

are the sennheiser pc363d and beyerdynamic mmx300 good? sure. however they are also $70-100 overpriced and are rather bass-light and very crisp almost sibilent on the highs. some people might not like them if they dont like really sharp crisp highs.

for example the 363 runs $300 but considering you can get the ad700x $150 and modmic for $50 that leaves $100 for getting a better soundcard than is onboard the 363. or to compare sennheiser with sennheiser you could get the better 598 with modmic for $230 and have $70 for a soundcard while having better sound quality.

the above are just examples of how the headset is overpriced and the specific recommendations for you are going to be based on your answers to the questions above and may differ.

then, there are products like the astro a50 and the mixamp. while certainly solid products they are also certainly ovepriced for what they are. a good choice if you want a self contained setup however there are better sounding options available. the mixamp however can be used with some headphones if you want an external dac/amp which provides dolby surround and is one of the few options available if you game on a laptop and require it. however, it is of less quality than similar non-virtual externals.
 

reddragonz34

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1. Heavy bass low treble( I am using the headset for gaming and music)
2. I prefer closed
3. Yes I have pretty big ears
4. Yes I would like virtual surround
5. No they do not need to be used on a portable device.
6. I am on a desktop and the motherboard I have is a MSI Z87 g45 gaming motherboard
7. I would like a boom mic
 
my first choice for suggestions would be....
(but see notes afterwards about possible alternatives)

microphone:
cad$87 modmic you can get from their main site http://www.modmic.com/
its an excellent microphone for the price and is completely removeable and adjustable. audio quality is as good as or better than a good headsets and is compareable with some desk mics in that price range.

headphones:
cad$240 beyerdynamic dt770-80 you can get on amazon.ca http://www.amazon.ca/Beyerdynamic-DT770-PRO-80-ohm/dp/B0016MNAAI/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1407347382&sr=8-1-spell&keywords=beyerdnamic+dt770+80
good low end bass response including sub-bass levels while still maintaining good clarity for mids/highs. closed design but does have a larger soundstage then its competitor the m50 however not nearly as wide as an open type design which is to be expected. they also have a fairly large circular earcup so fitiment for large ears should not be an isue.

soundcard:
cad$97 creative soundblaster z you can get from amazon.ca http://www.amazon.ca/Creative-Labs-SB1500-Sound-Blaster/dp/B009ISU33E/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1407347199&sr=8-2&keywords=creative+z
a good soundcard for the price which is capable of powering some pretty hefty headphones. it comes with cmss virtual surround.

total: cad$424 + shipping (or usd$388)

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click here http://www.head-fi.org/t/534479/mad-lust-envys-headphone-gaming-guide-update-7-9-2014-ultrasone-hfi-15g-added and listen to the different types of virtual surround to compare. figure out which you like best. the creative z uses cmss while asus xonars use dolby headphone.

if you wanted a cheaper soundcard you could co with a xonar dg for cad$25 which has dolby surround. sound quality isnt going to be better than your onboard motherboard though but it will power hefty headphones because of its amp.

the xonar dx for cad$117 has the same onboard dac as the creative z but uses dolby headphone instead. it can power the headphones however since it doesnt have as powerful of an amp it may not get as boomy or loud.

the xonar stx for cad$204 has dolby headphone and is in essence a xonar dx with a better amp and more options. its overpriced but can power the headphones well and has dolby headphone.

the creative z that i listed before however is the best deal and the one worth going with provided you like cmss3d

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the dt770-80 is bassy but not at the level where it starts to distort all sound. if you want something which is like having a subwoofer next to your ear then you want "bass cannons" and should take a look at this list http://www.head-fi.org/a/the-best-bass-headphones-a-head-fi-wiki however be aware that in order to generate such intense bass the quality of sound will definitely take a huge hit as such headphones are bass at the expense of all else.

if however you wanted to remain at the bassy level and still have it closed there really isnt a whole lot of competition better than the d770 as you can see from threads like this http://www.head-fi.org/t/622473/best-closed-headphone-under-300-dollars

if you did not mind a semi-open or open design then there would be more recommendations i could give you. open would improve soundstage which is a huge plus for gaming and honestly sound leakage is not a huge issue unless you are sitting right next to someone. your choice though.
 

reddragonz34

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I could just get the beyerdynamic mmx 300's instead for $289.99 since they are based on the dt770 and then just get a soundcard
 
well...

except that you're a basshead and dont like treble focused headphones... and the mmx300/pc363d are mid/treble focused headphones with low bass output as far as i know from various reviews and user comparisions that i've read so far. so basically you would be buying something opposite of what you want for more money then what you think.

the mmx is also $399 canadian dollars. http://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=mmx%20300

all of the prices i listed above are in canadian dollars and not us dollars which is why the prices are higher.

if you can buy from the usa on amazon.com and not the amazon.ca site... you could save quite a bit.

$50+$82+$203= $335 usd (365cad) compared with what i said before + shipping of course. i'm not sure how the shipping policies are or if you would need to pay import tax though so i went with the canadian site.
 

reddragonz34

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http://www.ncix.com/detail/beyerdynamic-mmx300-high-end-pc-02-83160-1013.htm
 
well, that doesnt seem like a bad price....however, its also 100% completely against what you seem to be looking for in a pair of headphones unless of course you have completely changed your mind.

- it's bass light (skylab wasn't kidding) but it's missing just the low bass for my taste - it's still there but just very quiet. But what bass it has - it's tight, I like that.

- it's not boomy at all for a closed headphone, and while not having a huge soundstage, it doesn't sound at all like the ATH-M50 and it's studio brethren, it's much better than that. No cloud of bass, no muddiness and lack of detail.

- the main fault for my taste is the brightness ... it feels like this headphone has the 7-11khz range way too emphasized for my ears. It's much worse than Grados - not the HF2, that's a dark headphone, the normal Grados like the SR80.
from http://www.head-fi.org/t/523417/beyerdynamic-mmx-300-dt770-premium-manufaktur-sound-tuning-pads-and-modding-thread

you said you dont want "bright" (specifically said you wanted less high end) but the mmx is very bright on the highs and very treble focused.
you said you wanted "bass" however the mmx is bass light. what little it has is tight and good but it certainly is lacking for a basshead.

basically the mmx300 is similar in nature to the dt770-32 premium line which is bass light and treble focused and not the pro line which has less bright treble but wider low end.

completely your choice of course... i'm just letting you know that your choice seems completely opposite of what you wanted.
 

reddragonz34

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on the ncix website it says "The craftsmanship of the MMX 300 is the best in the test" "The voice quality is excellent," "clear treble, combined with very rich bass" (Hardwareluxx)
 
if you are so convinced of their superiority then go ahead and purchase them to try them out yourself. if you dont like them, you can try to adjust the eq. or, you could always just return them and just lose out on shipping costs.

i dont have your ears. my opinion on sound might be different then yours. i'm just letting you know what i've heard about them and other headphones from reading hundreds of user posts on such things and my own take on it. its up to you to decipher this and to do your own research to make your own decision.
 

reddragonz34

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Ok so lemme change my answer. I want bass but I don't want bass to the point were blows my ear drum out. Just a little bit above that and from what I understand is that the mmx 300's have bass but not ultimate heavy bass because I just want bass that I can at least notice because with the headset that I currently own (http://www.turtlebeach.com/product-detail/call-of-duty-headsets/ear-force-x-ray/67) the bass is absolutely non-existence
 
bass where it blows your eardrums out would be "bass cannon" and i did not recommend any of those.

bass which is strong enough to where you can listen to things such as dubstep, electronica, rap, r&b and such things and get that nice bass kick but without distorting highs would be "bassy headphones" and is what the dt770 is classified as.

then you have headphones such as the hd598, dt880 which are in a category which while not "bassy" still have enough hint of bass where they cannot be said to have no-bass.

above that are headphones like ad700x which while excellent on the highs and mids have a rather poor bass presence. enough to make some say they have no bass.

honestly though the categories are not set in stone. if you prefer light amounts of bass then one step up from "bassy" headphones is likely to be your cup of tea. if you like enough bass for dubstep and that kind of music however then you want to remain with bassy.

honestly i could not compare the mmx300 to the turtle beaches as i do not personally own both pairs and it would be impossible for me to own all headphones. i'm just letting you know what i've heard around from users who have had them and what they say as well as adding my own opinion.

i cannot make the call for you on whether or not the 300 is going to be too bass light for you or if you will like it. that depends on "how much" bass is ideal for you and that is hard to quantify.
 

reddragonz34

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ok, so I think I'm gonna go with the dt770 pro's but I don't know which ohm impedance I should go with and I don't know If I'm gonna actually get a sound card because apparently the on board sound with my msi z87 g45 motherboard is pretty decent.
 
difference between the dt770 models http://www.head-fi.org/t/513393/guide-sonic-differences-between-dt770-dt990-models-more

the 32 is not as punchy on bass, while the 80 is the heaviest hitting for bass. the 250 is a bit more refined and clear than the 80 but with not quite as much bass.

you can certainly try them out with your onboard sound as it seems like (at least on the product page) it says they support studio headphones up to 600ohm. i cannot say how well it will drive them or how good they will sound however you can at least give it a try if you like.

high quality onboard sound is about equal to low quality soundcards such as the xonar dg at $30
 

reddragonz34

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ok so I think I will go with the 80 ohms version but is this still also good for gaming?