Gaming Headphones? (5.1 Sound)

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[H]ard|Gawd
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Jun 6, 2004
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Im looking into getting some High Quality Gaming Headphones because I play games late at night while my roommate is sleeping and sometimes its almost impossible to play with the sound too low. Games like CS/COD/RS require good sound to know where the enemy are.

I was looking between the Zalman 5.1 and the Ezonics 5.1 Headphones. Which one are better? Pros/Cons?

Are there any other options for gaming headphones? I prefre 5.1 Sound if possible. Price under $100. :eek:

Links:
Ezonics
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=26-106-150&depa=0
Zalman
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=36-501-001&depa=0
 
Unfortunately the terms "high quality" and "5.1 headphones" are mutually exclusive.

Out of curiousity I bought a set of Zalman 5.1s, and while the surround definately works the way you'd hope in games (especially games that really use 5.1well, like Doom3), the actual sound quality is unfortunately pretty bad compared to regular phones (and downright awful next to my lovely Beyer DT770s).

Don't even think about using them to listen to music.

However, I've heard that the Medusa (they may not be availiable in the US) and Kinyo 5.1 offerings are better than the Zalmans.
 
I wont be using the headphones at all to listen to music, only gaming and maybe sometimes some dvd watching.

Since everyone speaks so badly about 5.1 headphones, how are normal 2D headphones in gaming like CS and other games that require good hearing? I really have no experiance with headphone gaming...
 
I really love my plantronic audio 90s, they have a mic too. They really kick ass in CS and are comfy. A lot of "pros" use them. Only 30 bucks at best buy.

Seniesner(sp?) are the best if you can afford them tho. But I know im not willing to pay 100 bucks for headphones but im cheap like that.
 
What soundcard do you have?

For games that use DirectSound3D, the Audigy 2 works pretty well for surround over regular headphones by using special 3D processing on the soundcard. If the game doesn't use DirectSound3D and just outputs directly to 5.1 or 7.1, the Audigy 2 can downmix the 5.1 or 7.1 to headphones using the same headphone 3D processing. Go to www.3dss-forums.com.
 
WAY beyond your funds. but my bose quiet comfort 2 headphones are amazing, best sound i ever heard from a headset
 
I just got a pair of Sennheiser HD 280 Pro 'phones for $90, and they are excellent. They were reccomended to me by the highly knowledgable Mister X, so you should definitely look into them.

And as far as positional audio goes, a decent pair of stereo headphones are just as good for determining sound direction as 5.1 speakers. In some cases, especially games like CS and DoD, closed headphones are ideal because they block outside sounds, allowing you hear softer sounds such as footsteps more clearly.
 
I've also got a pair of Sennheiser HD280pros and they are indeed excellent.

It's important to remember that using stereo phones in games isn't the same as having stereo speakers strapped to your head, the games audio engine as well as gaming soundcards use "clever science" to emulate spatial cues via the phones so you do get surround effects.

Bear in mind that you only have 2 ears (well, that's mostly only an assumption on my part), placed on the sides of your head, so your hearing is basically stereo. Audio source positioning is worked out by your brain in two fundamental ways, first by relative loudness in your left and right ears, which determines the left or rightness (and centreness) of the source, and second, your ears are cleverly designed so that incoming sound bounces around and hits different receptors depending on whether it's coming from in front or behind, for much the same reason that our eyes are on the front of our head, our ears are set up to hear stuff that's in front of us better. So when they get to your brain, rear sounds have a quantifiably different character to front sounds.
A good sound engine cheats by modifying game sound output to mimick the distortion that you'd naturally get from true rear sounds.
So your brain gets a rear spatial cue that isn't really there.

So, good audio engine/good soundcard+decent headphones= good quality headphone surround.
 
Think im gonna pick up the Sennheiser HD280 pro soemtime this week. Thanks for the recommendations.
 
well..forgive my ignorance(if this is a stupid question)...but does anyone make a 5.1 headset that has a mic as well?...i cant recall seeing anything like that...i use what alot of ppl use Plantronic 90's..no complaints..they sound great(on an Audigy 2)...but i wouldnt mind getting something thats much better(100$ or so) with a quality mic
 
I've been using my Sennheiser HD497s for a few years now and when I used to play quake 3 religiously I was quite often accused of wallhacking because of the directional detail the HD497s provided. I like the open air when I want to be able to talk to people around me but I plan on getting some HD280 pros for some peace and quiet and even more attention to gaming, music, movies.
 
Sennheiser's are awsome but run expensive for the better ones. if youd like to further check out higher quality headphones id suggest head-fi.org . if you browse through their fourms you may change your mind about 5.1 headfones and instead opt for higherquality hi-fi headfones
 
I like my Zalman's 5.1 but definitely only for gaming (and some movies). Would I prefer surround headphones to non-surround headphones in movies? Yes because it actually has a center channel which helps for speech.

Music - not a good choice but you can always pick up a different set for music.
 
For movies, Dolby Headphone with good stereo headphones beats "5.1" headphones hands down. Try it and you'll see. Most software DVD players include a Dolby Headphone mode. Creative CMSS technolgy (especially CMSS2) is similar to Dolby Headphone in that it downmixes 5 channels to 2. Set your software DVD to 5/6/7/8 speaker mode and select headphone mode in Creative settings, and turn on CMSS/CMSS2. Sensaura Headphone Theater is yet another solution, althogh I haven't tried it.

"5.1" headphones don't solve the fatigue problem. The 5.1 movie track is mixed assuming the speakers are placed at a distance. When the drivers are right up on your ears, it can confuse your brain because everything sounds inside your head. This can be uncomfortable for some people, including me. Dolby Headphone fixes this problem, and you get a good 5.1 (well, maybe not .1) effect with stereo headphones.

BTW, this fatigue issue applies to games as well. This is one of the reasons why you hear people railing against "5.1" headphones, although I haven't heard it mentioned much. Soundcard 3D audio SHOULD place sounds outside your head if it works well.
 
Newbify2 said:
I've been using my Sennheiser HD497s for a few years now and when I used to play quake 3 religiously I was quite often accused of wallhacking because of the directional detail the HD497s provided. I like the open air when I want to be able to talk to people around me but I plan on getting some HD280 pros for some peace and quiet and even more attention to gaming, music, movies.
Click to expand...
HD497's are awesome.

I own a pair of HD477's and they're just about the exact same product, very good headphones. I've heard a lot of crappy reviews about the Zalman 5.1's...
 
I have some Sennheiser's 570's and they are perfect for games. the positional audio isn't great, but they sound awesome, and they are so comfy you can easily forget they are on your head..
 
I also have a set of Senn HD497s (when people tell you that exploring the world of headphones gets expensive, they aren't kidding), and they are indeed brilliant and suitable for just about anything.
 
the Zalmans are generally accepted as the worst sounding 5.1 headphones out there, yet they are what people generally have heard and thus set bias's agains all surround headphones.

The Kinyo's are acceptable, and I think the medusa's are the same headphones with different casing (but dont hold me to that). They are available in the US: www.medusa-usa.com

If you would like find several more brands of surround headphones, you can go to this thread since I do not feel like listing them all: http://www.videohelp.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=1162755

While generally 5.1 headphones do not have high quality driver's such as a pair of senn's, many people buy senns and crank up the bass and consider it "good quality" or buy them because people say they are good, and cannot really hear a difference. Quality is relative and it all depends on what you are comparing to.

Also, there are beginning to be "higher quality" sets coming out, as you will see in the thread linked to above..

Do not listen to me or anybody else as this is likely to start a huge war over stereo vs 5.1, just try a pair of each and decide for yourself, and see if it fits your uses.

I continue to use the Kinyo's because I feel the directional audio is invaluable in games. I do not have room in the dorm room for a set of decent speakers, although I use very nice speakers when I am at home. Using the headphones I also watch many movies with DD/ DTS tracks and am pleased with the results, although obviously prefer my speakers. For music, I use the headphones with DTS: Neo6 upmixing and have no complaints. It is my opinion that you can find higher quality sounding headphones, but these are not bad, especially if you are space constrained or on a budget. Yes, they may not have a range from 2hz to 2000000000hz but who can actually hear that anyways?
 
I tried the IOMagic Sound Assault. These look like the Kinyo phones in that it comes with an amp. There are also 4 separate inline volume controls (separate from the amp) to control center, front, rear, and "sub". I had the amp at full most of the time. It doesn't really seem to be able to amplify the signal above what your soundcard can put out, but it can reduce the amplitude. There is a loud hiss if the inline volume controls go above 8, so you have to increase the sound card output volume to compensate. One major complaint that applies to these specific headphones is the cups killed my ears. The look like they want to be circumaural, but the problem is that the padding around the edges of the ear cup is so minimal that instead of it resting on my head AROUND my ears, the thin outer foam covering of the chamber itself pushes directly on my ears. It was as if the padding wasn't there at all.

First I tried movies. I compared the Sound Assault to my $20 Aiwa HP-X222 w/ Dolby Headphone in PowerDVD (the Aiwas are circumaural and very comfortable BTW). I found that I like the Dolby Headphone with stereo headphones combinations better because the quality was better (ambiance, texture of instruments in background music, etc.), and more importantly, it placed sounds outside of my head. The only consolation is that the rear sounds with the Sound Asaults are a bit more pronounced. However, it doesn't sound "behind" me so much as it sounds directly behind my ear.

Next, I tried Doom3. Positioning was good, but sounds were slightly muddied and inside my head. I liked Creative CMSS downmix (Virtual Surround) better for the same reasons why I liked Dolby Headphone. I should note that the effectiveness of Virtual Surround can depend on your physical head/ears and the actual headphones. I'll allow that the rear positioning with the Sound Assaults was a little bit better than the CMSS headphone setting (at least with my Aiwa HP-X222s).

I also tried Call of Duty to compare Directsound3D with 5.1 vs. Directsound3D with headphones. Results were similar to Doom3.

Keep in mind this is all before I got my ATH-A500s (just got them yesterday). Last night, I started up Halo (came with my Audigy 2 ZS Gamer) and the difference from my $20 Aiwas was like night and day. I took off my headphones several times because I thought my wife had dropped something in an adjacent room. Bass is really great as well since the frequency response reaches all the way down to 5Hz. This is my first "good" pair of headphones though, so I can't compare to HD497, HD570, etc. Go to head-fi
 
thats weird about the amp..
the amp on the kinyo's i only have it up 1/3 of the way 1/2 is tolerable but past that its too painful for my ears....
 
Did you find that you needed to reduce the inline volume controls with the Kinyos to reduce hissing? I know people have complained about hissing from the Kinyos....
 
there are no inline volume controls on the Kinyo's. The medusa's have an inline control and appear to have the same amp as the kinyo's, just a different color.

The hissing is very quiet, caused by some interference. I have to sit in a very quiet room and listen hard in order to hear it. If I have them on normally, the fans from my PC drowns out the hiss, and it is not noticeable at all when sound is playing. The amp appears to not be shielded properly. Somebody a little more clever than myself could probably get rid of it.

I wonder if the Medusa's have the same hiss, since the amp appears the same...
 
I dont know if this is considered clever, but if you put a piece of tin foil around the kinyo amp it takes away the interference that it picks up (alot).
it does not take away the hiss though.. its a cheap amp.

i like the positioning alot.. ive been using mine for some time now.. but i personally need better quality drivers.

u really need to EQ these out alot in my experience.
 
when i say poor driver quality, i mean worse than my sony streestyle mdr-g57's.. not the cheapest streetstyles but nothing spectacular in sound quality either.. emphasis is totally on portability/sports.
and the driver sounds alot better to me, so im a bit disappointed with the kinyo quality.

i dont know about the internals of the kinyo drivers, or the sonys.. but they could have at least matched the 57's driver quality.
but then you consider that the 57s cost me about $40 and the kinyos about $50 :D

and you remember: u get what u pay 4.

but the positioning is nice, and undeniable.
 
yeah, look at the cost per driver...
more expensive sets with better drivers are beginning to appear though..
 
Hmm... I have the Zalman 5.1 headphones and I'm pretty pleased with them. For the price you can get them for, they're a steal. Big, comfy (I can wear them for about 7 hours straight without them hurting.). The range is decent but you get used to where the everything is. 3dGameMan did a review on them if you want to check it out.
 
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