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headphones

slightlyhuman

slightlyhuman

Lifer
what you guys using? any decent surround sound headphones that won't break the bank or are most out there using 2.1 headsets?

time to upgrade my aging zalman 5.1s!



Moved from PC Gaming

Anandtech PC Gaming Moderator
KeithTalent
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I'm using my beloved KOSS Porta Pro, they've been discontinued since many years already, but brand new ones can still be found, I bought mine on eBay from a retail store in the U.S. I've had different headphones over the years but so far only the KPP has the clarity and just amount of bass I like, but in the end it's certainly a matter of personal preferences.
 
Stereo headphones provide good enough surround for me, as long as the game itself doesn't have horrible audio positioning (then again, I almost only played CS:S, which has awesome positioning [with good reason], soo...).

most people will tell you surround sound headsets are utter crap, and instead you should get a nicer stereo set like DT770s, AD700s, etc etc.
 
My current favorite sub $100 headphone is the Sennheiser HD228 (~$75 CAN). For such a small light weight headphone, it takes a $300 headphone to beat it (that I own). Crisp sound quality with good base, ear muffs don't make your ears sweat/pinch them/block out most outside sound, doesn't fall off your head easily and is very lightweight. Drawbacks being a short cord at 5ft and no sound level adjustment on the cord.

Best thing you can do is look up reviews of any headphone before you buy it.
 
I use the Sennheiser hd 280 Pro ones and love them, been using them for like 3 years without a problem. Think they go for around $100 still.
 
When my old pair of Sennheisers gave out, I switched to Audio-Technica. IMO, they are just as good as Sennheiser and cheaper (in general). I still use Sennheiser for earbuds. I have the ATH-AD700 Audio-Technicas and I am completely satisfied, other than the distracting color scheme. Great open-air pair of headphones.
 
I use a pair of Sennheiser HD 555s. Was looking at some 5.1 setups but not really in the mood to spend the money.
 
I have a Beyer DT250 80ohm. Its MSRP is $220, but you can get them for less on ebay. I paid $140 for a new one in 2005. It's a great all-round closed headphone that works well for both games and music, and doesn't need an amp to sound good.

I also like its ergonomics, as it has velour ear pads and a one-sided, coiled and detachable cable. The sub-$50 headphones I had in the past always broke sooner or later when the cable accidentally got pulled too hard.
 
I have a pair of ATH-A700s, the closed version of Schadenfroh's. I love them and don't have any issues with telling where a sound is coming from.
 
multiple driver units are a gimmick..like the zalmans.
many other newer ones that claim 7.1 etc are really just regular headphones with built in hrtf soundcard. quality of headphones matters more than the gimmickry of multiple drivers, quality is quality. there are stereo headsets, and hrtf soundcards hardware or software hrtf. valve games and such have their own software implementation. there is no .1 in headphones.
 
I have hd-555 and ath-a700. I prefer the hd-555 by a wide margin. I've been told that both the less expensive ath-a500 and more expensive ath-a900 are better than the a700. Never tried the D700 (open version of a700) but several folks (including one in this thread) suggest it is golden.
--
Another thing to consider are ear buds (kiplischj s2 are not bad for $50) as well as NuForce N7/N6
 
Sennheiser HD 280 Pro. Never understood why people insist on "surround" sound headphones. The sound difference is not there to me.
 
If you can't tell the difference between a surround sound headphone and a stereo headphone you don't have something set up right. I have a pair or Razer Barracuda's that without a doubt in my mind give the best positional audio you can buy. I will say that they don't have the best sound quality on earth, but I don't care about sound quality in game. I want to know which corner to line up on to prefire some unsuspecting opponent, and then turn around and get the guy behind me that I heard in my rear channels.

If you can't tell the difference between stereo and surround your settings are simply wrong. I have an auzentech xfi prelude driving these things, and I love them.
 
I would avoid the grado headphones unless you are willing to mod them; they have great sound but are horribly uncomfortable.
 
you2 said:
I would avoid the grado headphones unless you are willing to mod them; they have great sound but are horribly uncomfortable.
Click to expand...

I find my sr-60s incredibly comfortable. Everyone's head & ears are different.

The previously mentioned Sennheiser 280s have a ubiquitous problem with the headband cracking. It happens to almost everyone who owns them. Further, they're closed headphones, meaning they can make your ears hot and sweaty. Most phones are open.

I don't do any competitive gaming so I can't really comment on that, but the 5.1 headphones I've seen all look very gimmicky.
 
Yea but the hd-555 hold up very well and can be found for around $95 if one looks...
http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-Sennheiser-...er_MP3_Player_Accessories&hash=item27b21e8c1a
(add 8% cashback form bing to bring it down to around $90)
or
http://www.restockit.com/Sennheiser-HD-555-Headphones-(R35102).html
(add 10% cash back from bing to bring it down to 95)
--
Btw my at700 are cracking around the ears; but the hd-555 is like new and they are a year older...

CKent said:
I find my sr-60s incredibly comfortable. Everyone's head & ears are different.

The previously mentioned Sennheiser 280s have a ubiquitous problem with the headband cracking. It happens to almost everyone who owns them. Further, they're closed headphones, meaning they can make your ears hot and sweaty. Most phones are open.

I don't do any competitive gaming so I can't really comment on that, but the 5.1 headphones I've seen all look very gimmicky.
Click to expand...
 
I would be more interested in trying those surround headphones if one of the standard headphone companies started making them. There is no reason in principle why they can't be good, but all the existing ones I've seen sacrifice sound quality for the positioning.
 
VulgarDisplay said:
If you can't tell the difference between a surround sound headphone and a stereo headphone you don't have something set up right. I have a pair or Razer Barracuda's that without a doubt in my mind give the best positional audio you can buy. I will say that they don't have the best sound quality on earth, but I don't care about sound quality in game. I want to know which corner to line up on to prefire some unsuspecting opponent, and then turn around and get the guy behind me that I heard in my rear channels.

If you can't tell the difference between stereo and surround your settings are simply wrong. I have an auzentech xfi prelude driving these things, and I love them.
Click to expand...

No, you've got it backwards. If you don't get good positional audio from stereo headphones, you're setting them up incorrectly.

Q: How do you think people can place objects in 3D when they only have 2 ears?
A: HRTF

Therefore, since you only have 2 ears, you only need a set of stereo headphones and the appropriate settings to apply the HRTF to the audio. Usually this is accomplished by setting the speaker mode to "headphone".
 
I've got a pair of sennheiser pc-350s (more money than sense when i picked those up .. not anymore unfortunately 😉).

I was bumming around on a thread about modding pc-350s a while back and a bunch of people were raving about these:
http://www.amazon.com/JVC-HARX700-Hi.../dp/B0013OWPV4

I saw someone recommended the higher version of these earlier in the thread but if you're looking to save some dollar these could be a good choice.
 
mfenn said:
No, you've got it backwards. If you don't get good positional audio from stereo headphones, you're setting them up incorrectly.

Q: How do you think people can place objects in 3D when they only have 2 ears?
A: HRTF

Therefore, since you only have 2 ears, you only need a set of stereo headphones and the appropriate settings to apply the HRTF to the audio. Usually this is accomplished by setting the speaker mode to "headphone".
Click to expand...

I know I only have 2 ears. Now if you were to sit in a movie theater with your eyes closed and they played a noise randomly through all the different speakers in that theater you would be able to point to them no matter where they were. I know you can also point to the right or left in stereo, but you don't get the pinpoint accuracy you would with more speakers.
 
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