Keep This Headset, Or Get Another?

[Lil Frier]

As a Christmas gift, I got a Steelseries Siberia 800 headset. It's a nice headset, and is just about capable of everything I want to do...just about. Couple of things I don't know about it, and complaints I saw while researching it further:

--It's a wireless headset, but it requires you to wire the headset to a console controller. This isn't terrible, but for the price, I'd like that map to just do the dirty work and leave the controllers alone.

--Tom's Hardware said the headset's limited on audio ports, meaning someone like myself (owner of a PC, XB1S, and a PS4P to use with the headset), there's either an audio quality sacrifice or a requirement that I rewire stuff all the time. That's irritating.

--Some reviews complained that the mic on the 800s is pretty quiet, with one noting he had to meaningfully speak up at time with it. I might not have a problem here, but again, the price tag essentially requires I don't have a problematic mic.

Those are the main things. So, it then leaves me wondering--if the thing's "totally wireless" existence means I'm still wiring my headset to the XB1 and/or PS4 controller, how wireless is it, REALLY? I haven't gotten to see what the cost of a return with this thing it, and that might just make the whole thing moot (if they want something like $30 for return shipping, I'll live with an overpriced, high-quality headset, rather than eat the $30 and get something else).

The alternatives I've considered, with some reading, are either the Arctis 7, also from Steelseries, or Logitech's G933. That's talking about replacing a $240 headset with one that's $140-150. If all 3 end up meaning a wireless headset that's imperfect, then I might prefer to save $100 or so and compromise a little more. The Arctis apparently has the same audio guts as the Siberia, just no amp, but I can live with that (depending on how well it plays with the various devices). Same for the G933--if it isn't a major hassle to switch devices, I will take the pricing over the notoriety of the Siberia.

It just seems like the Siberias are priced high for being flexible and incredibly capable. However, once that starts turning into the same cable-fumbling mess I'm trying to avoid, I'm not sure what I'm even paying for with the things. When the Arctis is $100 less, comes with the same headphones, and still is capable of playing with every device, it's hard to justify the Siberias just for an amp. I'm not sure what else the 800s offer, beyond that and the pair of batteries.

Anyone have/tried these 3 headsets, or have another suggestion (no, thanks, on the $300 A50s!)?

 

[cmdrdredd]

I've looked at wireless headsets before and always found them lacking in one way or another. It seems to me that you sacrifice something when you go wireless. Be it the sound quality, the compatibility and how you have to rig it to work with more than one console, or you have an external amp device you have to work with and have in arm's reach. The Steelseries headset you have and the Astro A50s seem to be the best of them. I still think wired is the way to go. You can get a much better sound quality with a nice pair of headphones and something like a modmic but I understand that running wires to the console might not be workable in all situations, especially if it's a long distance run.

If it were me I'd try to make the one you have work. When it says wireless it probably is referring to the connection to your console which is truly wireless between the console and controller. You should be able to adjust the mic sensitivity in the console's settings on both the PS4 and XB1. You really shouldn't have to speak up/yell to get it to function correctly.

 

[Lil Frier]

I've actually done a lot of talking with a couple of folks and done a lot of personal research of late. I've decided I'll probably send this one back. I'll touch on your points first, though.

Going wired just isn't worth it. More importantly, going with multiple devices to perform the task isn't worth it. Dealing with moving TWO audio devices across platforms just adds to the headache. I'm not that far from my TV, but I still have little interest in getting up to move my headphones and mic from the Xbox to the PC--one is annoying enough. As for wireless, I've traditionally been of a similar mindset. However, there comes a point where you just get sick of a dog chewing up a wire or tripping and pulling a cable out or getting a headset tangled with a controller charger or mouse or keyboard. On top of that, I simply do not have great hearing that can discern the difference from the wired and wireless headsets, same reason I lived on a 720p TV for years and can't honestly tell you if/how Shadow of Mordor's PS4 Pro patch in 4K on this new TV looks better than when I was playing it in 720p on XB1 2+ years ago. This doesn't mean I full-on choose convenience over functionality with everything, but I've gotten a better idea of when I care (desktop over laptop, Logitech's scroll lock, XB1 controller over PS4's) and when I don't (wired vs. wireless mice and headsets, 900p vs. 1080p, 30 FPS vs 60 FPS). There are things that I can factually know are better, but I also factually know that I can't find the difference. I simply can't tell when a game drops from 60 FPS to 55. I can't tell when the resolution shifts in Halo 5's varied-resolution multiplayer. I can't tell you the resolution of Battlefield 1 on my XB1. So, the fact I've not got the ear for high-end earphones is why I don't really worry that I won't have a wired headset. My ears and eyes just suck, I guess!

With regards to the Siberia, it's another matter of what I care about more (mic quality vs. flexibility). Multiple reviews noted that the Siberia 800 headset has a pretty disappointing mic. Some said it's "meh," some said it's average, some said it's terrible, some said they had to noticeably speak up to be heard. Basically, it's just not a good mic. That got me pretty concerned, having a headset around $250 that can't even take chat input properly, and doesn't have a way to increase the gain on consoles to make it good (I imagine chat software on PC can handle that just fine, as it has in the past for me). Another complaint was that you don't even get true 7.1 with every device, if you use too many. Since I have an XB1, PS4, and PC, I think I would have to dump the high-end audio form one, or switch cables back and forth on the base. Again, at $250, having noticeable compromises like that is more of a negative factor. As for the Astros, they have console-specific models, from what I gather, so I couldn't get a single headset for all 3 platforms I use.

What I have been leaning towards (and I'm still looking for answers on a few things) is sending back the Siberias for the Arctis 7, also from Steelseries. The Arctis line (even the $80 Arctis 3s) have the same headphone drivers as the $250 Siberia 800 and 840. The A7s are the wireless version of the Arctis line, where you get the same headphones as the $250 Siberas, but for $150. What's more, they put a much better mic (from all comparisons I've read between the A7 and S800) in the A7s that are $100 cheaper. The negative is that you don't get that base to switch between devices. This means I probably have to have a wireless adapter that I plug into the PC, then move that thing to a console. That, and I'm not sure what, if any, surround sound I'd get on the consoles. That compromise is much easier to live with on a $150 headset than a $250 one, though. I've also seen pros and cons for both sets of ear padding, as the Siberias have what sounded like better padding for larger ears (some said the A7s let their ears press on the drivers a bit too much), while the Arctis has a more breathable fabric (Which lets a bit more sound in, but keeps your head less sweaty).

I'm not 100% what I'll do, but I've pretty much just got it between the S800 and A7 options. I went to Best Buy yesterday, but they don't have a Steelseries headset to try on (though they had a stand to put one on for display, it seemed...). I tried on Razer's Man O' War, but felt the ear pieces aren't good. I tried on the G633 from Logitech, and it was better, but one of the earcups also felt a bit broken (they rotate to be put on, and while the right one stopped fine, the left had some give that gave me pause).

So, I've basically got to decide:

a) Is the laziness of not switching a dongle worth $100?
b) Do I care more about mic quality or the multi-device flexibility?
c) How important is surround sound to me (if the Arctis loses it on consoles entirely)?

 

[cmdrdredd]

The older Astro mixamp works on anything with an optical output. The optical cable is run to the mixamp and then your headset connects to the mixamp. I use an astro mixamp with my sennheiser headset for my PS4, XB1, and PC. For the PS4 and PC it uses USB for voice and everything else comes from optical. For the Xbox it needs a chat cable to the controller. The new TR version changed this. They use USB through the Xbox now so you don't need a chat cable to the controller which means that the Xbox version won't work on PS4 but will work on PC and the same goes for the PS4 version which won't work on Xbox. It's due to some licensing stuff just like arcade sticks need to be licensed and an Xbox arcade stick won't function directly on PS4 without a mod or adapter of some type. It's unfortunate that they changed it because it was a good solution to pair up with a different headset or headphone/mic combo. You can still find the old model on ebay pulled from old stock A40 headsets that come with all the cables to make it work with any platform for about $65 (I paid around $150 for mine a couple years ago). It's not a wireless solution though, but it's the best setup I've found. I simply bought a couple extra optical to mini-TOSLink cables and have them hooked up ready to just plug in to the mixamp from whatever devices I intend to use.

With the mixamp it takes the dolby digital signal from the console or PC via optical and processes it for the headset or any headphones you plug in. I didn't buy a surround headset specifically (almost all of them are just using processing for directional audio to stereo headphones) but I can still get directional audio from it. Just another option to consider.

 

[Lil Frier]

Just to check, I assume you mean one of these? http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Astro-A...856629?hash=item211c02a6f5:g:DXQAAOSwukdXcEwx

I'm not quite sure what I am looking at on the base for it, though. What are the "MP3" and "STREAM" ports? What are all of the outputs on the front (two show speakers, one a headset, and one a controller)? I'm curious as to what this solution would give me for a setup--how does device switching go, what connects to what, and what can I expect for a feature set when connected to each device?

 

[cmdrdredd]

Just to check, I assume you mean one of these? http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Astro-A...856629?hash=item211c02a6f5:g:DXQAAOSwukdXcEwx

I'm not quite sure what I am looking at on the base for it, though. What are the "MP3" and "STREAM" ports? What are all of the outputs on the front (two show speakers, one a headset, and one a controller)? I'm curious as to what this solution would give me for a setup--how does device switching go, what connects to what, and what can I expect for a feature set when connected to each device?

Yes that's the one I have. The MP3 port allows you to plug in a music player and while you are gaming, have audio playback through your headset. The Stream port is for sending the audio out to something like a PC for broadcasting live. The front ports are daisy chain ports on the far ends(look like speakers) where you can interconnect multiple mixamps in a lan party or tournament situation where you want your chat audio more private bypassing PSN or XBL party chat. The headphone port is self explanatory and the mixamp comes with an adapter to run a PC headset (with separate audio and microphone hookups) or you could use the adapter for a separate headphone and microphone. The controller port is for Xbox voice audio input.

For the PS4 you will have optical to the mixamp and set the output to dolby digital bitstream. The USB cable goes into the PS4 for power and voice communications. You will be able to select between 4 different audio modes and turn on or off directional audio processing. You control the volume with the mixamp and can balance between voice and game audio with the mixamp as well so you never have to go into the menus to do it. I set the volume to max on the PS4 device setup and use the mixamp to control the actual volume to my headset. I also set the balance to the middle on the PS4 menu options and use the mixamp to balance it the way I want it.

For the Xbox One the setup is similar except that you connect the controller audio out port to the mixamp for chat audio while the USB connection is for power only. You will need a 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapter for the controller. I had one because I bought the original Xbox One headset adapter before the 3.5mm port was added to the controller. This basically allows you to use a headset from the 360 which uses 2.5mm on the xbox one.The adapter you would need is this. It's 99 cents. plug it into your XB1 controller and then the chat cable between it and the mixamp.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/122197152932?lpid=82&chn=ps&ul_noapp=true

For PC you have two options. Optical or simple USB. USB will give you game and chat audio through the mixamp but the balance control won't function. If you run optical it will work the same way as it does on consoles.

So what I did was buy extra optical to mini TOSLink cables(link below) and leave them plugged into my devices all the time. I labeled the ends so I know which is which and I simply plug the appropriate cable into the mixamp before I start playing. The mixamp has a mini toslink plug and obviously optical comes from the rear of the console or computer. You will be getting positional audio processing, volume control on the mixamp itself, party and game chat through the mixamp with adjustable game/chat audio balancing, music play through capability, streaming capability for twitch or similar to a computer. This will work with Windows, Mac, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3 and PS4.

TOSLink cable for connection between mixamp and console.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...cNFXbOdJzN1IT9qeiwwi5wuYbP0R2i4UnlxoC30fw_wcB


I like this setup because it works with everything, I'm not limited to a specific headset and can use any headphones and microphone combo I choose, and I control everything related to the audio right from the mixamp which is within arm's reach.