Quality Gaming Headset

FrenziedMuffin

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Aug 19, 2008
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Hello all! I'm currently in headset hell right now and I just cannot find a pair I like. I've used a old pair of Turtle Beaches for a good two years. They ended up dying so I went out to get something better that really impressed me. I tried both the Corsair Vengeance 1500 and Creative Soundblaster Tatic 3D. Both I was not impressed with. Now I'm stuck in RMA hell. I just can't find a good sounding pair of "gaming" headsets. Now I don't know why but those two headsets just did not perform well. Is this because I'm coming from a 3.5mm jacked headset to these emulated USB headsets?

The Corsair's sounded great but when they were idle they caused a hum that was unbearable. I did all the troubleshooting in the world to resolve it but Corsair in the end dubbed it a hardware fault with the headset.

I decided to try the Soundblasters. They also sound great. They have more bass then the corsair which is great for gaming, but the quality of the mic is garbage and it is uncomfortable after a few hours of gaming. My ears feel numb and get red because of these things. I'm keeping these for now as a backup headset \ LAN headset.

Now that said I want to get serious and move to a soundcard \ jacked headset solution. I will be purchasing the HT Omega Striker (Or similar) card for this headset. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829271001

Right now I want to know firstly... Should I invest in these newer "surround sound" headsets or stick with the more generic quality stereo set? With that said these are the headsets I've been looking at. Please keep in mind I'm looking for a 3.5mm jacked headset. I'm done messing with these USB things.

1. Razer Tiamat http://www.razerzone.com/tiamat/en
2. Psyko Carbon http://www.psykoaudio.com/GetPsyko/PsykoCarbon#axzz1pPjDwpDM
3. Roccat Kave http://www.roccat.org/Products/Gaming-Sound/ROCCAT-Kave-5-1/
4. Sennheiser PC360 (I know they are 2x 3.5 mm)

Has anyone had any experience with these sets? Anyone have other recommendations? I'm not totally dismissing the idea of using a pair of nice headphones with a clip on mic.

Thanks!
 

FrenziedMuffin

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Aug 19, 2008
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Just to add to the thread are my worries with these sets...

1. Tiamat - This set is brand new and currently sold out. I have seen very little in the way of reviews for the things so it makes it a pretty scary buy. I'd be taking a shot in the dark with them.
2. Psyko Carbon - I've heard these things sound great, but like my soundblaster I'm concern with the comfort of them. They aren't circumaural which scares me. I also am having a hard time finding reviews for these. The reviews I have found only speak of the sound it produces and nothing of mic quality or comfort.
3. Roccat Kave - These things are heavy, but I've heard good things about them. The LED's look really annoying though. I don't need a blue light in my face.
4. Sennheiser PC360 - Premium price and I feel like I'd be investing in something quality but behind in the times....
 

Dickstar

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Sep 22, 2008
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Stereo vs surround doesn't have anything to do with behind in the times or not. It's two different kind of products that you can't really compare. It's a matter of preference.

A good stereo headset will always sound better when listening to music than a surround headset. A surround headset will give you a better sense of directional audio. That's the end of that story. Surround sound in your headphones is pretty cool, but you gotta ask yourself if you value that over a more solid overall sound.

I stood for the same dilemma as you not too long ago and I tried a bunch of different sets. I kept going back to the stereo headsets because I just liked the type of sound of them better. Generally they sounded more precise and tight to me. It's the same with choosing a HiFi set. A 5.1 set is cool for movies and games, but if you're going to listen to some serious music, you're better off with a good 2.0 set.


By the way, you simply can't go wrong with Sennheiser. I'd take their products over anything else in the same price range. These guys have many, many years of experience with personal audio products. Gaming headsets that look cool don't necessarily sound good or sit comfortable on your head.

I ended up getting the Sennheiser HS PC 350 and I love everything about it, I can recommend it to anyone.

But choose what sounds the best to YOU. Everyone's different.
 

Innerman77

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Jan 19, 2013
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You are referring to virtual/digital 5.1/7.1 headsets correct? My understanding is that if you get a analog 5.1/7.1 headset with analog surround sound connectors plugged into a high end 5.1/7.1 sound card you will have the same quality as what you are referring to as a stereo headset. The Tiamat is an analog headset with 5 drivers/speakers in each earpiece. Anything with a USB connector is going to emulate surround sound through software and will, at times, sound funky if the original source is was not created with 5/7 channels at the time of creation/recording.

Basically if you get a headset with the 5.1 analog connectors and your sound card does analog 5.1 sound, you will get the same outstanding quality sound a stereo headset gives.

On a side note:

- most of the high end USB/emulated headsets have a quick switch or setting to disable virtual sound processing and produce stereo quality sound instead.

- The Tiamat also has a USB connector in addition to the analog sound connectors. The USB connector is to actually power the headset since 10 speakers needs a little extra power boost. So if you don't have an open USB connector on the back of your system you might think twice about buying this headset, or upgrading your motherboard :sol: