Help for competitive gaming headphones

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relaxedfire

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Hey guys, I play many FPS games at a competitive level (currently BF3) planning to go to CS:GO. I currently own a pair of Razer Megaladons but after much research, these gimmicky surround sound gaming headphones are dumb.

I need some help on deciding on a nice pair of headphones using primarily for gaming. I'm most likely going to pair it with this sound card:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829271001

So first of all, is this a good sound card? And secondly, I need suggestions for a set of headphones for gaming.

Thanks!
 
This sound-card looks better but is far more expensive. Your sound-card is just fine. That said, you are better off getting a good pair of headphones and a mic that attaches to them.
 
If you have to have a headset, and I do not think they are worth the extra $$ charged just to get a attached mic, go with Sennheiser PC350 or 360.

http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-PC-.../dp/B0012XFDWO

http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-PC-...618665&sr=1-15

If you were me, I would get one of these two headphones and the zalman mic. The Samson SR850 is actually a better sounding headphone than any headset on newegg btw. The Brainwavz is as good as any closed headphone you will find under $200. Plus it is built like a tank and comes with a bunch of extra stuff like replacement pads.

http://www.amazon.com/Samson-Semi-Op.../dp/B002LBSEQS

http://www.amazon.com/BRAINWAVZ-HM5-...5618790&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-Zm-Mic1...ref=pd_cp_pc_0
 
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I don't need a headset as you said I can just buy a clip on mike.

I've been reading about the Senn HD598, how are those for gaming?
 
The best sound stage (which is what matters the most for something like competitive gaming) is the AKG Q 701. You can get a mod mic that will attach directly to the speaker magnet so problem solved there. You can find these on Amazon for a pretty reasonable price as well.

The HD598 would not be a great headphone for gaming , they are good cans but they are really tuned more for music.

The Sennheiser PC350 are also excellent for gaming as well. However I found it was still a bit "thin" sounding compared to the AKG.
 
AKG 601 is pretty good too. I had a modded version and it was a bit more "fun" sounding than the 701. You are right about the soundstage too. AKG 501,601, 701 all have HUGE sound stages. Not much bass impact though you can hear it, you won't feel it. Allows for more detail. I would also mention that those headphones need a decent amp to power them. An X-Fi will not get them going to 100% capability.
 
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What exactly do Amps do? I'm a complete audio noob, like I said I have a megaladon which is pretty much just plug and play.

I don't want anything too complicated, just something that sounds great for competitive FPS games and gives me an edge.
 
Exactly how it sounds , an amp "Amplify's" the signal so it can push the headphone speakers to the optimum level they were designed for. Just like regular speakers require amplification.

You don't need a fancy one , in fact the HeadRoom Total AirHead ($99 + $14.95 for the wall wart) will do the trick nicely. It can even run off off 4 AAA batteries for around 25+ hours. It'll amp anything within the 10-300Ohm range which covers many of the headphones out there.

Another option (that also includes a nice little DAC) is the Fiio E10 which is $76 on Amazon but it requires you to use the USB DAC and so you would be bypassing your sound card. The Fiio E10 is considered the sweet spot for many users because its so cheap , sounds great and will push things nicely.

I would not spend more than $100-150 for whatever you end up getting amp wise.
 
Well to keep it simple, I would say the PC350 or 360 as far as headsets go are great.

Honestly though, see my above post, you can't go wrong with the Samson sr850 or the HM5 and the zalman or another cheap mic. For the price? Pretty damn good.Certainly a lot better than what you have now and both will work fine out of a soundcard or the E10.

Get an asus soundcard or the E10 is plenty good for the $$.

Just don't use onboard audio.
 
spaceman said:
Well to keep it simple, I would say the PC350 or 360 as far as headsets go are great.

Honestly though, see my above post, you can't go wrong with the Samson sr850 or the HM5 and the zalman or another cheap mic. For the price? Pretty damn good.Certainly a lot better than what you have now and both will work fine out of a soundcard or the E10.

Get an asus soundcard or the E10 is plenty good for the $$.

Just don't use onboard audio.
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How's the soundcard I have now that I linked earlier?
 
The one thing I'm having trouble with is, coming from a "surround sound" headset, how does the positional audio on a stereo headphone paired with a good soundcard stand up? I feel like the megaladons actually do a good job on positional audio and I can tell really easily where people are.
 
relaxedfire said:
The one thing I'm having trouble with is, coming from a "surround sound" headset, how does the positional audio on a stereo headphone paired with a good soundcard stand up? I feel like the megaladons actually do a good job on positional audio and I can tell really easily where people are.
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They are ok at it but i don't think they can bead the ath-ad700s for accuracy and soundstage.
 
relaxedfire said:
The one thing I'm having trouble with is, coming from a "surround sound" headset, how does the positional audio on a stereo headphone paired with a good soundcard stand up? I feel like the megaladons actually do a good job on positional audio and I can tell really easily where people are.
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If position headphone audio is your concern you should go with an ASUS Xonar DX , its $87 bucks on Amazon and it'll do Dolby Headphone which does a pretty good job of creating positional audio effects. Some people prefer CMSS (Creatives version) over it but I've always felt Dolby Headphone was quite excellent and superior.

I've never used a positional audio headphone and felt it was superior at all. In fact every one of those branded surround sound headphones I've used have been garbage. Over priced garbage to be honest.

The Xonar DX also comes with a built in headphone amp and a higher grade DAC. So its the best mix of what you need and some positional audio for headphones you can mess around with.
 
Yeah, I mean, audio quality sucks on my megaladon, and even I can tell and I'm a noob.

I like that the Ath-AD700 is quite cheap, but is it the best gaming headphones for the price? Anything worth paying more for?
 
relaxedfire said:
Yeah, I mean, audio quality sucks on my megaladon, and even I can tell and I'm a noob.

I like that the Ath-AD700 is quite cheap, but is it the best gaming headphones for the price? Anything worth paying more for?
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For gaming, they are very good for the price. Excellent positioning with Dolby Headphone or CMSS-3D. They are a little thin, but for gaming it won't matter (and might even help since the bass won't be drowning out footsteps, etc). Very comfortable also.
 
Hm, I see.

I'm reading reviews on the HD598, and some people are saying they are some of the best for gaming, but a little pricey. What else should I look for... so many decisions here lol.
 
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I'm leaning towards the AD-700's since so many people use it for gaming and has lots of great reviews for that purpose.

What is the difference between the ATH-A700 and the AD700's?
 
It's between those and the PC360... what are your guys opinions?

The mic on the pc360 will be more convenient, but it's also more expensive.
 
relaxedfire said:
What is the difference between the ATH-A700 and the AD700's?
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A700s are the closed version of the AD700. Same driver but massive difference in sound signature.

The AD700s are pretty bass anemic but have a massive soundstage and very precise spatial positioning.

The A700s have a much warmer, fuller sound with good solid bass that can even be EQ'ed up to basshead standards. While it's pretty damn good for closed headphones the soundstage on the A700s is smaller than the AD700s.

I personally vastly prefer the closed model for an all around headphone, ESPECIALLY at LANs where there is A LOT of noise, but if you want something that is specifically top of it's class for gaming then you want the AD700.

I see A TON of people recommend the AD700 blindly, and I am guilty of that myself, but if you LAN at all you should really take closed/sealed cans into heavy consideration for the isolation they provide.
 
a good 2.0 pair of anything should be good for gaming, as you said most surround sound ones are gimics, with 2.0 the sound should fade and such from side to side giving you a full range of sound 360 basically, at least i found that with the HD 595's i have owned for years
 
relaxedfire said:
Hm, I see.

I'm reading reviews on the HD598, and some people are saying they are some of the best for gaming, but a little pricey. What else should I look for... so many decisions here lol.
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Too musical , you need something that excels at detail and a huge sound stage. Sennheiser's don't really have massive sound staging (I own the HD650's and they are wonderful) as that's not really what they are known for.

I've found that LAN's are often so loud that sealed cans are point in fact not isolating at all. When everyone is screaming and laughing and messing around with 10-20 computers blowing in a hot room the amount of sound pollution is too much for even the best closed cans to block. You'll want headphones that can get loud without any fatigue so something very comfortable that drowns out other sounds but not to ear shattering levels.

Audio-Tech A700 is a another good choice for gaming headphones I just didn't like them personally because they sounded to artificial and empty and I tend to gravitate towards "fuller" sounding cans.
 
relaxedfire said:
I'm reading reviews on the HD598, and some people are saying they are some of the best for gaming, but a little pricey. What else should I look for... so many decisions here lol.
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Basically what Godmachine said. Their soundstage is small and while they are a fucking wonderful sounding headphone there's too much low end bleed to be really truly accurate for gaming, ie you'll miss quiet footsteps in the midrange.
 
Godmachine said:
Too musical , you need something that excels at detail and a huge sound stage. Sennheiser's don't really have massive sound staging (I own the HD650's and they are wonderful) as that's not really what they are known for.

I've found that LAN's are often so loud that sealed cans are point in fact not isolating at all. When everyone is screaming and laughing and messing around with 10-20 computers blowing in a hot room the amount of sound pollution is too much for even the best closed cans to block. You'll want headphones that can get loud without any fatigue so something very comfortable that drowns out other sounds but not to ear shattering levels.

Audio-Tech A700 is a another good choice for gaming headphones I just didn't like them personally because they sounded to artificial and empty and I tend to gravitate towards "fuller" sounding cans.
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So you reccomend the A700 as well? Sounds like everyone likes these headphones, go ahead with em?
 
I could be proving my ignorance, but why has nobody recommended a headset that can do 5.1 or 7.1? All these recommendations are for stereo headsets. I don't care how good the sound is on a stereo headset, it still can't tell me if the grenade landed behind me, to my right or left, if can't help me pinpoint the location of an enemy helicopter without having to spin in circles. Perhaps I'm being ignorant here, but crisp audio quality is great for listening to music and movies, but I need 3D sound detail for FPS games personally.

Personally I use the Tritton AXPRO headset. I've had it for 3 years and it's been good to me.
 
DMFD-Minister said:
I could be proving my ignorance, but why has nobody recommended a headset that can do 5.1 or 7.1?
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Because simulated surround on a GOOD set of headphones is vastly superior both in sound quality and spatial positioning.

DMFD-Minister said:
All these recommendations are for stereo headsets. I don't care how good the sound is on a stereo headset, it still can't tell me if the grenade landed behind me, to my right or left, if can't help me pinpoint the location of an enemy helicopter without having to spin in circles.
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You're doing it wrong.

DMFD-Minister said:
Perhaps I'm being ignorant here, but crisp audio quality is great for listening to music and movies, but I need 3D sound detail for FPS games personally.
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See above.

DMFD-Minister said:
Personally I use the Tritton AXPRO headset. I've had it for 3 years and it's been good to me.
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Yuck.
 
Damn denon has jacked their prices up. I thought that model used to be around $100?
 
Alright, so since you guys said my sound card is fine, gonna go ahead and place an order on the open ear versions the AD700's. I hope I like it! Thanks guys!
 
relaxedfire said:
Alright, so since you guys said my sound card is fine, gonna go ahead and place an order on the open ear versions the AD700's. I hope I like it! Thanks guys!
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Aww, I was going to confirm the BRAINWAVZ HM5 recommendation. I just got them and used them for MW2, they had a really nice soundstage. The AD700s are good headphones as well so enjoy.
 
onetwenty8k said:
Aww, I was going to confirm the BRAINWAVZ HM5 recommendation. I just got them and used them for MW2, they had a really nice soundstage. The AD700s are good headphones as well so enjoy.
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Yeah I know. Glad to hear the HM5 sound stage is good for you. I think those are some tough ass headphones.
 
guitarslingerchris said:
*Snip*.
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Agreed fully with everything you've said.

To what DMFD-Minister said :

I'm sorry but there are no surround sound headphone that can accurately position the sound of a grenade blowing up "behind me". If you think that's what you are hearing than you are telling yourself to believe it because none of the "Pack a bunch of tiny speakers into a crammed headphone can" headphone types can do this.

I've actually bought the Tritton's and they are horrible. The originals didn't even have a little bass speaker embedded but instead had a small vibrating "motor" that would shake your headphones with zero bass to mimic heavy bass notes , fucking pathetic. I've tried Turtle Beach headphones but they introduce so much "hiss" and "static" popping that it just drives you nuts , they are also built with very cheap materials and never last at all (I've owned 3 pairs of TB headphones for specific use with my Xbox 360 until I stopped wasting money on them).

If you spend $150-$300 on surround sound headphones than you are wasting it entirely on sub-par headphones that don't even sound better than proper stereo cans at 1/4 of the cost.

Regular stereo headphones with a proper sound card can provide convincing positional effects for gaming and also excel at uses for music/movies/production work.
 
Is the sound stage of the HD598s really that small or is that just in relation to the AD700? A lot of people at Head Fi seem to think it has a decent sound stage, even in that one large thread for gaming headphones. Surely it can't be any worse than the presentation of some of the closed cans recommended in this thread, or can it? I mean, don't the PC 360 use essentially the same driver? (i know the driver isn't everything but still)
 
spaceman said:
Damn denon has jacked their prices up. I thought that model used to be around $100?
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thats the newer model, you talking about another AHD 1xxx headphones that are discontinued.

but AHD2000 prices went down, they were $250 brand new on amazon last week.
 
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