Headphones

[Mike0409]

Alright I'm stuck between these two headphones to snag..

I've head great thing's about the Razer series headset's Link

But then I saw these Link they seem to get great review's and have comparable stat's.

Recommendation from user experiences?


Also I need a good Bluetooth headset that has been causing me a lot of trouble.

Jawbone II, or Blueant...seem to be some of the best, anyone have any other recommendations?

[tomba2k]

I would recommend Creative Labs Fatal1ty.
Its great for gaming and listen to music.
It has long cable, it's very comfortable and its good quality.
Freq range is between 20Hz and 20kHz, and although there are wider fr. range headphones/headsets, those are only frequencies that most of people can hear. (biologically)
I have standard version of headset, and there is usb version too (5.1 with some advanced technologies from creative) which has about 50% higher price.

I don't have any true remark on this headset, and I've been using it for a year, so i would recommend it

Here's some links with info about my version (standard stereo/jack-plugs version):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfhS5jeHY1o
http://www.overclockersclub.com/revi...tal1ty_review/

[DarkEgo]

PLANTRONICS GameCom 367's are very nice. I have had a lot of headsets, and these are one of my favorites.

[Frederik S]

First of all the theoretical frequency range of the drivers used in headphones is absolutely irrelevant, it is the frequency response that is interesting if you want to make a preliminary judgement of whether the headphones are bass heavy/light, top happy etc.. etc... The ideal for gaming is something with a relatively linear frequency response, however, that is a bit dull to listen to so most people go for something that has elevated bass response.

Basically all headphone manufacturers claim something like 20 Hz to 20 kHz, and say nothing about the linearity. It does not matter that the driver begins to vibrate at 20 Hz if the amplification at that frequency is close to zero compared to the SPL@1 kHz, since it will be inaudible.

If you are looking at getting some closed headphones for gaming I would recommend you to look at some of the cheap Ultrasone headphones or even the BeyerDynamic DT770PROs 80 Ohm impedance. If you want open back there are the Sennheiser HD595s or 555s which have a reasonably good sound stage and can be run straight out of a normal sound card.

Most of the sounds that give away other players in games are in the midrange, like footsteps, doors opening, floor creaks etc. So a good midrange is in my opinion essential.

[Mike0409]

Originally Posted by Frederik S

First of all the theoretical frequency range of the drivers used in headphones is absolutely irrelevant, it is the frequency response that is interesting if you want to make a preliminary judgement of whether the headphones are bass heavy/light, top happy etc.. etc... The ideal for gaming is something with a relatively linear frequency response, however, that is a bit dull to listen to so most people go for something that has elevated bass response.

Basically all headphone manufacturers claim something like 20 Hz to 20 kHz, and say nothing about the linearity. It does not matter that the driver begins to vibrate at 20 Hz if the amplification at that frequency is close to zero compared to the SPL@1 kHz, since it will be inaudible.

If you are looking at getting some closed headphones for gaming I would recommend you to look at some of the cheap Ultrasone headphones or even the BeyerDynamic DT770PROs 80 Ohm impedance. If you want open back there are the Sennheiser HD595s or 555s which have a reasonably good sound stage and can be run straight out of a normal sound card.

Most of the sounds that give away other players in games are in the midrange, like footsteps, doors opening, floor creaks etc. So a good midrange is in my opinion essential.

Wow! Thanks man!

Damn good explanition..never knew all that. A lot of people request Sennheiser im just not a fan of the style, and a couple that i have tried hurt my ears after an hour.

I'll take a look at the Ultrasone and BeyerDynamics as well.



Anyone have a Jawbone II that they enjoy? Seem's I might go with this bluetooth seeing it is one of the better ones out there.

[BumbleBee]

if you need a headset for Gaming purchase the Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 if you need a headset for Gaming, Music and Movies purchase the Audio Technica AD700 with Zalman ZM-Mic both are under $100 the Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 doesn't have the quality the Audio Technica AD700 has but it offers positioning and quality bass. I would take the Audio Technica AD700 over the BeyerDynamics DT770 Pro and Sennheiser HD555, you can get the closed version of the Audio Technica AD700 for over $100 I will be buying a pair of these soon to replace my Sennheiser HD515.

[Mike0409]

Originally Posted by BumbleBee

if you need a headset for Gaming purchase the Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 if you need a headset for Gaming, Music and Movies purchase the Audio Technica AD700 with Zalman ZM-Mic both are under $100 the Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 doesn't have the quality the Audio Technica AD700 has but it offers positioning and quality bass. I would take the Audio Technica AD700 over the BeyerDynamics DT770 Pro and Sennheiser HD555, you can get the closed version of the Audio Technica AD700 for over $100 I will be buying a pair of these soon to replace my Sennheiser HD515.

I have a set of Edemensionals right now that are USB and I'm not a fan of software emulation for sound. The quality is ok, but they have been acting funny as of late, crackling, popping one side loses audio.

I have a mic already left over from my Icemat Syberias.

The BeyerDynamics DT770's are out of my pricerange. I like those Audio Technica's AD700's. And they have the 3.5mm jack which is what i want.

For some reason I dont like how the Sennheiser's feel. Couple of friend's I have use them and I don't like em'.

[BumbleBee]

Sennheisers look and feel cheap but they are not. the Audio Technica AD700 have incredible bass. I own the Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 headset and it is by far one of the best compared to the Zalman 5.1, Tritton 5.1 Series and eDimensional AudioFX 5.1 even with Dolby or CMSS 3D still not good as having multiple drivers so like I said it depends what you plan on using them for.

[Kursah]

Not sure what your budget is, but my Turtle Beach HPA2's have treated me effing amazingly. They are 5.1, detatchable mic, very comfy, built in amp w/level control for each channel + master volume, sounds damn good for movies, music and gaming, mic pics up loud and clear on TS/Vent/etc. I've had 2 versions, one that used the wall outlet for power (rv1), I ended up giving those to a good friend who had dog issues with his last headset, the rev2's I got are USB powered but actually sounded better to my ears. They work great with onboard and add-in sound cards, I'm sure they're not Senn quality, but they do kick ass, very comfy for hours of use, they go louder than I can stand, which makes up for not being able to crank my Logitech X-230's in my apartment.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...20Beach%20HPA2

Not saying they're the best, but they sound great to me, a little level tuning and then some EQ tuning on my X-Fi and they sound damn great in everything to my ears.

[tomba2k]

Originally Posted by Frederik S

First of all the theoretical frequency range of the drivers used in headphones is absolutely irrelevant, it is the frequency response that is interesting if you want to make a preliminary judgement of whether the headphones are bass heavy/light, top happy etc.. etc... The ideal for gaming is something with a relatively linear frequency response, however, that is a bit dull to listen to so most people go for something that has elevated bass response.

Basically all headphone manufacturers claim something like 20 Hz to 20 kHz, and say nothing about the linearity. It does not matter that the driver begins to vibrate at 20 Hz if the amplification at that frequency is close to zero compared to the SPL@1 kHz, since it will be inaudible.

If you are looking at getting some closed headphones for gaming I would recommend you to look at some of the cheap Ultrasone headphones or even the BeyerDynamic DT770PROs 80 Ohm impedance. If you want open back there are the Sennheiser HD595s or 555s which have a reasonably good sound stage and can be run straight out of a normal sound card.

Most of the sounds that give away other players in games are in the midrange, like footsteps, doors opening, floor creaks etc. So a good midrange is in my opinion essential.

Read conclusion here:
http://www.overclockersclub.com/revi...y_review/7.htm
Note that this is my version (stereo plugs, not usb)

If headphones are not true professional headphones, they are not even close to linear.
Gaming headphones are not linear at all.
There is no such thing to be precise.
Every sound source has its own parabolic chart of frequency response.
It seems you copy-pasted your info from somewhere:S
Otherwise, you would know mentioned problematic of frequency response charts, and characteristics of real sound sources.
Bass elevation is just second peak in a chart, and it cannot be truly achieved without multiple drivers in headphones!

Also, you want as low impedance as possible in your headphones, if they are not ultra high quality (pro), 80 Ohms is just too much!
Cyber Snipa Sonar and Creative Labs Fatal1ty have normal 32 Ohms impedance.

Sennheiser are really good products, but if you don't need pro headphones, you could find some other product that has lower price with even better characteristics in mainstream category.
It just depends on your needs

Originally Posted by BumbleBee

Sennheisers look and feel cheap but they are not. the Audio Technica AD700 have incredible bass. I own the Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 headset and it is by far one of the best compared to the Zalman 5.1, Tritton 5.1 Series and eDimensional AudioFX 5.1 even with Dolby or CMSS 3D still not good as having multiple drivers so like I said it depends what you plan on using them for.

Well, try to compare it to Fatal1ty Headset.
I'm interested in result

Originally Posted by Mike0409

I have a set of Edemensionals right now that are USB and I'm not a fan of software emulation for sound. The quality is ok, but they have been acting funny as of late, crackling, popping one side loses audio....

Every usb-only headphones have integrated sound card.
It all depends on quality of sound card.
If all advanced options on usb headset are software emulated, that can't be good.
But if hardware support is good (like it is by Creative Labs: ) that is totaly different.

[welly321]

Dont fall for the gimmick of 5.1 headphones. Stereo headphones have the same if not better positioning than 5.1 . Dont believe me ? check it out here on OCN
http://www.overclock.net/sound-cards...-headsets.html
Also listen to "Virtual Haircut" with stereo headphones on. You will realize stereo is just as good for positioning

[Frederik S]

Originally Posted by tomba2k

Read conclusion here:
http://www.overclockersclub.com/revi...y_review/7.htm

Close to linear frequency response is a relative term but you can get quite close to the ideal from a pair of headphones.

The ER-4P are very close to the ideal. And as you can see getting a set of headphones to produce absurd levels of bass is totally possible just have a glance at the frequency response chart for the Denon D5000 headphones or that of the Sennheiser IE8's. All of these headphones have just one driver per cup. No need for multiple drivers. Multiple drivers in headphones will cause a bunch of problems, for one you have phase coherency, then there is the issue with signal degradation of the crossover.

http://www.headphone.com/technical/p...are+Headphones

Above is from the HeadRoom site which feature close to ideal frequency response charts for a lot of headphones. They even do the measurements on a Head Acoustic artificial head which emulates the bone and flesh structures of a regular human head.

80 Ohms impedance is elevated but not too high to cause a problem. What is important is that the efficiency is high not if the impedance is 80 Ohms or 32 Ohms for that matter. As long as it is far away from the extremes.

I have played a mini tournament here in Denmark using the Fatality headphones you mention, and those are quite frankly far from the best set of gaming headphones you can get, they are grossly overpriced.

Also you mention "pro" headphones? Professional headphones are mostly about retaining details so that you can tell whether the stuff you are mixing or mastering is going to sound well. All of the headphones discussed in this thread are either gaming headphones, or high quality headphones made with normal consumers or audiophiles in mind. The Sennheiser HD555s or BeyerDynamic headphones are geared towards the home listening crowd the PRO version of the BeyerDynamic are made for use in the studio which means they are a completely closed design which gives you some noise attenuation, which is good when it comes to gaming headphones because you sometimes sit and play in a noisy environment.

You claim that source have a parabolic shaped frequency response chart, that is only the case when you have applied and equalizer or there is something wrong with the card. A good high quality source will have a response chart similar to this: http://www.stereophile.com/images/ar...007MARFIG1.jpg
Stereophiles measurements of the Marantz SA8001 SACD player.

A normal Creative X-Fi's response chart: http://img.tomshardware.com/us/2005/...ive_x/fr96.png
Which is also quite close to linear. The edges are only rolled off at inaudible frequencies at least to humans although you can still bug your dog with it if you had a set of speakers able to output upwards 30 kHz.

This short story is produced by yours truly (and not c/ped from anywhere on the web),
Frederik Skovgaard

[Tau]

If you are looking for a Nice set of headphones that wont break the bank and sound pretty fair (fair being a judgment made by the listener)

the Audio Technica 700 (AD i think) are a nice set at a very reasonable price point as well.

Dont bother looking at anything in the upper range of cans like 555s/595s/ ultrasonne 750/etc. Anything with these kind of power requirements NEEDs amping. PERIOD.

Since i doubt you are looking to invest that much money into a setup for headphones grab a set of headphones that are easy to drive, the abov ementioned AUdioTechnicas sound pretty good for the money. They have an average mid range responce and a surprising top end for the money... only downfall is their lowend bass responce is a bit on the weak side... (again this is were your EQ comes in so you can pick that section up a little bit)

[BumbleBee]

Originally Posted by welly321

Dont fall for the gimmick of 5.1 headphones. Stereo headphones have the same if not better positioning than 5.1 . Dont believe me ? check it out here on OCN
http://www.overclock.net/sound-cards...-headsets.html
Also listen to "Virtual Haircut" with stereo headphones on. You will realize stereo is just as good for positioning

they are not a gimmick, I bought my Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 because they had multiple drivers not because of the quality my Sennheiser HD515 destroy them but my Sennheiser can't do what my Cyber Sniper Sonar 5.1 can and they are terrific in comparison to the other half dozen 5.1 headset/headphones considering they are USB.

Originally Posted by tomba2k

Well, try to compare it to Fatal1ty Headset.
I'm interested in result

I don't think I will be exchanging my Sennheiser HD515 for a Creative Fatal1ty Headset.

Using 5.1 headphones will surely give you exact surround, better surround than stereo headphones, even the best ones, but surround "5.1" headphones have one major weakness, they have to compromise most of the sound quality to get multiple drivers just to make that surround sound. On the other hand using stereo headphones won't give you better positioning than surround headphone

oh look someone agrees I couldn't of worded it any better either.

[Marineborn]

+1 for the fatality, lightweight. amazing sound, usb port=frees up sound port for speakers without splitter can be plugged into keyboard, detachable mic for not when in use, easy setup, reasonably priced, hands down best gaming headset out there

[Tau]

Originally Posted by BumbleBee

they are not a gimmick, I bought my Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 because they had multiple drivers not because of the quality my Sennheiser HD515 destroy them but my Sennheiser can't do what my Cyber Sniper Sonar 5.1 can and they are terrific in comparison to the other half dozen 5.1 headset/headphones considering they are USB.



I don't think I will be exchanging my Sennheiser HD515 for a Creative Fatal1ty Headset.



oh look someone agrees I couldn't of worded it any better either.

I have used a few diffrent sets of 5.1 headphones and IMO their all rubbish (the Zalmans, as well as the highly rated Medusas) Aftering using these as well as a quality set of stereo headphones i will never even look twice at a 5.1 set again. The quality is rubbish, as well as the functionality is mediocre at best. Sure positioning in SOME games is better, but using them for anything else except a handfull of games is worthless.

Your 515's are a decent piece of kit, what do you have driving them?

Even the HD515's are considered entry level pro headphones and they will walk all over any "gaming" headphones. Drive them properly and thats when they really start to shine.

(I have a set of HD500s that i use for gaming and transport and love them to bits)

Originally Posted by Marineborn

+1 for the fatality, lightweight. amazing sound, usb port=frees up sound port for speakers without splitter can be plugged into keyboard, detachable mic for not when in use, easy setup, reasonably priced, hands down best gaming headset out there

If you have a creative card you never need to use splitters you can just map the rear channel output to be another lineout for headphones. (yuck creative)

Also be aware that sound is HIGHLY subjective... what sounds good to one person might sound like crap to another person... and vice versa.

[BumbleBee]

multiple drivers are multiple drivers.. Speakers are Z-5500 and Z-680, Soundcards are Auzentech X-Fi Prelude and Asus Xonar DX, Headphones are Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 and Sennheiser HD515

[tomba2k]

Originally Posted by welly321

Dont fall for the gimmick of 5.1 headphones. Stereo headphones have the same if not better positioning than 5.1 .

i believe you, but it depends on headset. most of 5.1 headsets are just a marketing trick.
either they don't really have more than 2 drivers, either its bad implemented.
also, positioning on stereo headset can be very god, but it cant give you true up/down orientation, only planar 360 degree orientation. (field, not space positioning)
cyber snipa sonar and creative labs fatal1ty are not headphones where 5.1 is just a marketing trick!

Originally Posted by Frederik S

.....The ER-4P are very close to the ideal. And as you can see getting a set of headphones to produce absurd levels of bass is totally possible just have a glance at the frequency response chart for the Denon D5000 headphones or that of the Sennheiser IE8's. All of these headphones have just one driver per cup. No need for multiple drivers. Multiple drivers in headphones will cause a bunch of problems, for one you have phase coherency, then there is the issue with signal degradation of the crossover.
.....
80 Ohms impedance is elevated but not too high to cause a problem. What is important is that the efficiency is high not if the impedance is 80 Ohms or 32 Ohms for that matter. As long as it is far away from the extremes.

I have played a mini tournament here in Denmark using the Fatality headphones you mention, and those are quite frankly far from the best set of gaming headphones you can get, they are grossly overpriced.

You claim that source have a parabolic shaped frequency response chart, that is only the case when you have applied and equalizer or there is something wrong with the card. A good high quality source will have a response chart similar to this: http://www.stereophile.com/images/ar...007MARFIG1.jpg
Stereophiles measurements of the Marantz SA8001 SACD player.

A normal Creative X-Fi's response chart: http://img.tomshardware.com/us/2005/...ive_x/fr96.png
Which is also quite close to linear. The edges are only rolled off at inaudible frequencies at least to humans although you can still bug your dog with it if you had a set of speakers able to output upwards 30 kHz.

This short story is produced by yours truly (and not c/ped from anywhere on the web),
Frederik Skovgaard

http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCom...Type=0&graphID[]=563&graphID[]=743&graphID[]=713&graphID[]=553
you see here that you have "wholes" in freq specter, when you have multiple drivers per cup, those "wholes" are much less present on better headsets, because frequencies are divided between drivers. (again, this isn't related to marketing trick of 5.1 headsets, only true 5.1 hs with some quality)

on http://www.stereophile.com/images/ar...007MARFIG1.jpg its missing part of freq. specter (less than 10Hz) , but even there you have slight parabolic chart. (but that is in quality definitely far away from mainstream category)
point was that every real audio source has its own parabolic chart. (i don't mean on any equalizer here :S )
the closer it is to straight line in audible freqs (20-20.000Hz), to more quality the product is.

i can see now there you're speaking your mind, not c/p it, but we got misunderstood on a idea about parabolic chart.

i don't now which model of fatal1ty you tried, but i payed for my stereo version about 32 pounds in croatia. my model is same generation as fatal1ty HS-1000, but HS-1000 is usb version (5.1 version) and according to http://www.overclockersclub.com/revi...y_review/6.htm they are better than Sennheiser HD437 (and in my expirience, even better than HD500) if you find overclockersclub relevant. (i do: )

[ShadowFold]

Just wanna say the Creative Faltal1ty's are pretty lame compared to my old razer set. I broke them unfortunately..

[tomba2k]

Originally Posted by BumbleBee

they are not a gimmick, I bought my Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 because they had multiple drivers not because of the quality my Sennheiser HD515 destroy them but my Sennheiser can't do what my Cyber Sniper Sonar 5.1 can and they are terrific in comparison to the other half dozen 5.1 headset/headphones considering they are USB.

I don't think I will be exchanging my Sennheiser HD515 for a Creative Fatal1ty Headset.

oh look someone agrees I couldn't of worded it any better either.

totaly agree, that's what i'm saying.
5.1 headsets are mostly bullshit, but there is few which are not!

didn't think to exchange ur hs, i'm just interested in your opinion about them after you try them

yes, that is true, but not all headphones have notable degradation of sound quality.

Originally Posted by Tau

I have used a few diffrent sets of 5.1 headphones and IMO their all rubbish (the Zalmans, as well as the highly rated Medusas) Aftering using these as well as a quality set of stereo headphones i will never even look twice at a 5.1 set again. The quality is rubbish, as well as the functionality is mediocre at best. Sure positioning in SOME games is better, but using them for anything else except a handfull of games is worthless.

Your 515's are a decent piece of kit, what do you have driving them?

Even the HD515's are considered entry level pro headphones and they will walk all over any "gaming" headphones. Drive them properly and thats when they really start to shine.

(I have a set of HD500s that i use for gaming and transport and love them to bits)....

well, there is a notable difference between Creative Labs and Zalman about sound devices (same as you compare Sennheiser and OCZ). in my opinion Fatal1ty (even stereo version) is far better gaming headset than HD500, and at overclockersclub their tests showed that is better than Sennheiser HD437.

Originally Posted by BumbleBee

multiple drivers are multiple drivers.. Speakers are Z-5500 and Z-680, Soundcards are Auzentech X-Fi Prelude and Asus Xonar DX, Headphones are Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 and Sennheiser HD515

thank you.
i don't speak english very often, only online, so sometimes i can't recall the word.
i know i should say that drivers are drivers and not speakers, but your explanation (what is soundcard, headphone etc :S ) is a bit "overdosed", i know what i'm speaking about.

[BumbleBee]

when I said "multiple drivers are multiple drivers.." I meant nothing can replicate the physicality of multiple drivers. my entire choice of purchase of the Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 was based on positioning nothing else. you want to talk about gimmick the new Logitech G35 ($132 USD) is marketed as 7.1 Surround when in reality they use 2 drivers and Dolby technology $56 USD more than the Cyber Snipa Sonar 5.1 ($76 USD) and from the reviews they don't sound all that well. that is my entire audio setup for both computers. i'm not familiar with the HD437 but I know there is a huge difference between even the smallest models like the HD201 and HD202. the Creative Headset has been out at least 2 years now? and this is the first time I have ever heard someone praise it honest to god.

[Tau]

Originally Posted by tomba2k

totaly agree, that's what i'm saying.
5.1 headsets are mostly bullshit, but there is few which are not!

didn't think to exchange ur hs, i'm just interested in your opinion about them after you try them

yes, that is true, but not all headphones have notable degradation of sound quality.

well, there is a notable difference between Creative Labs and Zalman about sound devices (same as you compare Sennheiser and OCZ). in my opinion Fatal1ty (even stereo version) is far better gaming headset than HD500, and at overclockersclub their tests showed that is better than Sennheiser HD437.

thank you.
i don't speak english very often, only online, so sometimes i can't recall the word.
i know i should say that drivers are drivers and not speakers, but your explanation (what is soundcard, headphone etc :S ) is a bit "overdosed", i know what i'm speaking about.

I would argue that is HIGHLY debatable, as gaming performance can vary so much for every person, as well as the game that it is applied to.

Personally i wont be touching a pair of headphones that is not stereo after the experiance i have had with various makes. This is a personal preference though as i much prefer a stereo set.

For gaming its all about what you play and how seriouse about sound you are, for most people medusas, the zalmans, or fatality headphones work great. Also some people would not even notice the diffrence between them or say a set of HD555s or even 595s, these kinda of people should stop reading

I used to play competitive conterstrike on a pro level (winning team on multiple lans, as well as online leagues/tournamnets) and have been using entry level pro gear for ages, granted i started on a set of behind the head sony headphones... that at the time i thought were nice, though uses as well as needs evolve. i quickly moved up through headphones finally ending up with a set of amped HD500s and for gaming these things are perfect. The ability to be good at Counter Strike is primarily based on spacial awareness, with these HD500's (yes they are stere) i can pinpoint exactly were a sound has come from, no matter my orientation in the game.

Granted I am not in the pro circuit anymore this holds true in Cod4 as well i can pinpoint sounds within a 1/4" in the game...

The medusas made this a little bit easyer... but they were heavily lacking in quality, and i could only hear for ~40% of the distance as on the 500's.

These facts alone made me return them and neve look back.



It would be good if you could audition a few pairs of headphones first... see if any of your friends have a few diffrent kits/setups and see if they will let you listen to them with some familiar music, as well as your most played games... THis should help you out immensly when picking them out.

IMO my 0.02

[BumbleBee]

well put. when I was a kid the only gaming gear we had was a Microsoft optical mouse and the hope a new Motorola cable modem would come out my cable was so expensive $40 installation fee and $80 a month for 250KB/s downstream and 25 KB/s upstream went from 120-140 to 50-60 ping in Quake and that was if someone in my pool wasn't hogging the bandwidth was terrible during winter way too much downtime once you complained so much they would send out a technician to wand the line and install a new modem. now it's processors, video cards, headsets, mice, keyboard, connection, etc.

one thing I like about the Tritton Series Headsets is the bundles come with 2 kinds of headbands and ear ear cushion (velvet and leather)

[Frederik S]

Originally Posted by tomba2k

i believe you, but it depends on headset. most of 5.1 headsets are just a marketing trick.
either they don't really have more than 2 drivers, either its bad implemented.
also, positioning on stereo headset can be very god, but it cant give you true up/down orientation, only planar 360 degree orientation. (field, not space positioning)
cyber snipa sonar and creative labs fatal1ty are not headphones where 5.1 is just a marketing trick!

http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCom...Type=0&graphID[]=563&graphID[]=743&graphID[]=713&graphID[]=553
you see here that you have "wholes" in freq specter, when you have multiple drivers per cup, those "wholes" are much less present on better headsets, because frequencies are divided between drivers. (again, this isn't related to marketing trick of 5.1 headsets, only true 5.1 hs with some quality)

on http://www.stereophile.com/images/ar...007MARFIG1.jpg its missing part of freq. specter (less than 10Hz) , but even there you have slight parabolic chart. (but that is in quality definitely far away from mainstream category)
point was that every real audio source has its own parabolic chart. (i don't mean on any equalizer here :S )
the closer it is to straight line in audible freqs (20-20.000Hz), to more quality the product is.

i can see now there you're speaking your mind, not c/p it, but we got misunderstood on a idea about parabolic chart.

i don't now which model of fatal1ty you tried, but i payed for my stereo version about 32 pounds in croatia. my model is same generation as fatal1ty HS-1000, but HS-1000 is usb version (5.1 version) and according to http://www.overclockersclub.com/revi...y_review/6.htm they are better than Sennheiser HD437 (and in my expirience, even better than HD500) if you find overclockersclub relevant. (i do: )

You are completely missing the point. 10 Hz is inaudible and hence completely irrelevant. The source as you can see on the chart has an almost linear frequency response from 10 Hz which is well below the audible range to over 20 kHz which is above that.

Even though you have multiple driver you will still have a high number of dips and bumps on a frequency response chart. The ones that come closest to represent linear response as the ones with a slight bump across 1 kHz and then a little elevation near 100 Hz as well (long time since I studied ideal frequency response charts). Headsets with multiple driver are way off the ideal with way to much bass and rolled off highs, the number of drivers is not a quality marker by any means. Most single driver headphones will be closer to the ideal than any the multiple driver headphones manufactured today.

Also you ignore the fact that even a mainstream X-Fi card has a linear frequency response in the audible range which is from ~18hz to ~18 kHz (if you have perfect hearing).

[Binge]

Originally Posted by DarkEgo

PLANTRONICS GameCom 367's are very nice. I have had a lot of headsets, and these are one of my favorites.

I am partial to PLANTRONICS as well but I have to say this model, http://www.plantronics.com/north_ame...YCFEYKAEZXAIV0, is the best headset I've ever owned. They are a nice weight, feel great to wear for long periods of time, durable in the sense that they are made to give a little if weight is put on them where most headsets would crack, and they can push some great quality sound.