Looking for a pair of 7.1 surround sound headphones with the following specs.

[AnchorMan]

Wasn't really sure what forum to put this question in i hope this is ok here...


I'm looking for a pair of 5.1 or 7.1 *TRUE* (actual drivers driving the sound through a actual speaker) surround sound headphones.


- S/PDIF (optical) both In AND out( And NOT passthrough )

- Decent design and good build quality.

IMPORTANT:
- Ability to wear them over my neck and not on top of my head.
So that the sound channels are still in the place where they should be for surround sound.
Like depicted in the following picture.
http://www.corbisimages.com/images/67/7EA491A8-AEA4-4029-97F7-EF8DF444CA76/42-16588656.jpg

- Reasonably affordable (nothing over 300$)
I really need to be able to justify the cost, the fact of the matter is i can't comprehend anyone spending extravagant amounts of money on hardware unless its something revolutionary.

- Nothing gimmicky like virtual surround sound or wireless boxes sending signals.

- Either Dolby Digital w/THX or Dolby Pro logic II w/THX certified.
THX and Dolby Digital preferred.



So far the closest thing i could find is the Kave 's by ROCCAT .
The only issue with these are they don't use optical connections.
Build quality on the headphones however is pretty decent, and they are not completely over priced at about 100$.


Another good example of half way decent build quality are these .
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-MDR-DS600.../dp/B000EGJTL6
They use *Virtual* 5.1 channel surround sound and run 2-300. boo.



I like the controls on the Razer Megalodon 7.1 Surround Sound Gaming Headset , however they also use some virtualization and are USB based (which i frankly don't like).


Was also looking at the Astro A40's + mixamp option which does have optical in and out, however it looks like the connection between the wireless receiver and the headphones is a detachable jack. ugh




My ideal headphones would be the sony build quality and base with the megalodon controls, banshee "APM" feature, LED mic mute feature of the Kave's , and true 7.1 BOSE THX sound.
Wireless would be a plus as well, especially something i could connect to multiple devices and softdock the connections right from the headphones themselves.

One can dream



All information and thoughts are helpful!





NOTE:
PLEASE NO USB based suggestions. (unless its only for power use) , wireless would be a plus but not completely necessary.

 

[zerocool84]

Every surround headset I've seen is over the head. Have never seen one around the neck so don't know where you're going to find one like that.

The only headphone I've ever seen with "True" surround sound that you want are the Tritton AX Pro. Everything else out there is going to have regular two drivers with sound processing. You're never going to find anything with the requirements you have.

http://www.amazon.com/Tritton-Digita...8095128&sr=1-2

 

[Spicedaddy]

What's the point of having separate drivers when they're all going to be half an inch from your ears?

Just get a good pair of headphones and use an amp or receiver. Real 5.1/7.1 is meant for speakers, not headphones.

 

[AnchorMan]

Thanks guys, but im looking for a more impartial answer.

@spicedaddy, the point is for the simple added convenience..
Headphones are a lot easier to carry around than 5-10 speakers/subwoofer would be.

From the video reviews i've watched everything tells me that most Tritton products are very virtual and have only moderate build quality.

 

[AnchorMan]

Another option i just came across for about 150$ is the Turtle Beach Ear Force X41 system, however its really designed for the xBox.

The problems with this solution however is

..I would need to purchase A firewire to USB adapter because i've completely run out of USB ports.

..I'm not 100% convinced it would be worth the 150$ gamble because while my card can indeed output 5.1 and probably 7.1 as well, not only does windows 7 have issues with the 7.1 driver capabilities the 5.1 output might only be virtual in itself.


That Razer Megalodon is looking more and more attractive as time goes by :-/


What I *can* say for sure is i might be able to switch the audio inputs with the Kave's to the sound card so that i can wear them over my neck. It might be as simple as a single channel manipulation.

A roundup of the video reviews for this unit is here.
http://www.roccat.org/Products/Gaming-Sound/ROCCAT-Kave-5-1/#crb_5

I haven't seen to many reviews on the unit itself, so build quality is questionable but it looks good so far. That and 7.1 is off the table.

 

[nsafreak]

The basic problem that you're going to run into no matter which headphones you look at the actual part that holds the headphones speakers is going to be heavy since it'll be holding seven of them. The Roccats sure do look nice but the sheer size of them indicates that they're heavy and would not work well as over the neck headphones. Just to experiment I tried wearing my Turtle Beach Ear Force HPA2s in this fashion and after a while they began to drag downward a bit and they weren't too comfortable.

I can understand what you're trying to do from a comfort standpoint I just don't see any headphones out their that meet your requirements that are 7.1 channel. Your other option would be to get a good set of 2 channel headphones that you can either wear behind the neck or you simply don't notice are sitting on top of your head. My Audio Technica ATH-AD700s give very good sound imaging with the two channels that they have and I really don't notice that they're sitting on top of my head because of the wing system that Audio Technica has for their headphones. Just something to consider.

 

[AnchorMan]

The basic problem that you're going to run into no matter which headphones you look at the actual part that holds the headphones speakers is going to be heavy since it'll be holding seven of them. The Roccats sure do look nice but the sheer size of them indicates that they're heavy and would not work well as over the neck headphones. Just to experiment I tried wearing my Turtle Beach Ear Force HPA2s in this fashion and after a while they began to drag downward a bit and they weren't too comfortable.

I can understand what you're trying to do from a comfort standpoint I just don't see any headphones out their that meet your requirements that are 7.1 channel. Your other option would be to get a good set of 2 channel headphones that you can either wear behind the neck or you simply don't notice are sitting on top of your head. My Audio Technica ATH-AD700s give very good sound imaging with the two channels that they have and I really don't notice that they're sitting on top of my head because of the wing system that Audio Technica has for their headphones. Just something to consider.

Well, in all fairness it did come down to either getting a better pair of stereo earbuds or getting a awesome surround sound setup. And since im going to be doing editing in the future as well as watching a lot of good movies on the go i decided that im going to need a portable solution. A big surround sound setup isn't something i want to lug around on the road. If the issue of weight is as bad as you say then that might be something i will pay more attention to.

As for a decent set of earbuds go, i picked up some v-moda vibes that haven't done me wrong yet.
Its now time to upgrade