5.1 / 7.1 Headsets - What do you recommend?

andre369 · July 2015

Currently I have a Sennheiser PC 323D, sadly as you can see in the photo. There is a gap on the mic connecting to the headset, which has gotten looser and looser and at the moment I literally have to tape the mic to keep it attached to the headset.

Another bad thing about this one, which I actually discovered on day one of getting it, the volume control on the right ear. Turning it around made sound louder on one ear than the other.

I could of probably just returned it on day one and got a refund. But this was my first 7.1 headset and I liked the sound quite a lot. It has lasted me around two years so I cannot really complain. But then again I have had headsets that have lasted me twice that with zero issues.

Mainly I am looking for a 7.1 headset with a microphone. It does not HAVE to have one.

I prefer a headset that does not have any volume control, or move able mic as the one I linked above. This shit breaks sooner or sooner in my experience.

I do not mind buying a "cheaper" mic that I can put on my desk as long as it does not pick up too much sound from my PC etc, but thats really another topic.

Main thing, I really cant go back from 7.1 now, the sounds are just so much deeper and all.

I am happy to any suggestions you guys have.

Cleffy · July 2015

Personally, I find surround type headsets to be kind of useless unless they can sense head movement. You only have 2 ears and a headset simply cannot produce surround sound the same way speakers can. For sake of longevity, I feel its best to get studio headphones as they tend to be durable, good quality, and comfortable. Then use a desk mic the Blue Yeti or its ilk.

syntax42 · July 2015

Originally posted by Cleffy
Personally, I find surround type headsets to be kind of useless unless they can sense head movement. You only have 2 ears and a headset simply cannot produce surround sound the same way speakers can.

Do you play games while turning your head away from the monitor that has the game on it? Surround sound headsets make the assumption that you're facing your monitor when gaming, which is very reasonable.

I have only used wireless headsets. Also, I can't stand using any headset that touches my ear lobes. That has limited my selection. The best I could find are Logitech's G930 headset. I had one pair break at a weak spot on the plastic when I set them down too hard. Epoxy held them together without any further issues for years after that.

OP: You might want to specify what you're looking for. The type of ear pads and the price range can make a big difference in your selection.

danimal425 · July 2015

Logitech G930 7.1 headphones are the best ive ever owned and i strongly reccomend them because they are,wireless USB and they survive several falls on the ground before they fall apart and cost atleast 100 less then studio headphones

Gdemami · July 2015

Visit some music shop and get some real headphones...

MrSnuffles · July 2015

A 5.1/7.1 headset, are you serious? /smh

It's a marketing gimmick, you can't have real surround sound in a headset, it's physically impossible.

Get a Studio Quality Headset like the AKG HSC 271 if you want clean and crisp sound with crystal clear highs, crispy bass and a Microphone that has pro studio Quality. This headset will last you a lifetime, they are Virtually indestructible.

Originally posted by Gdemami
Visit some music shop and get some real headphones...

EXACTLY

breadm1x · July 2015

Razer Kraken Chroma.

Tried everything else and they all feel like gaming with a brick on your head.

The razer is light and sounds amazing compaired to the rest including senheiser.

Mic is movable and detatchable.

And they are cheap sompaired to the rest

And the eones that say u cant have 7.1 in a head set, need to get their head checked.

And clearly have no clue what they are talking about.

Theutus · July 2015

I second logitech g930. I've had a pair for about 6 months, they're great. Don't forget to dl the software that goes with it.

Gdemami · July 2015

Originally posted by breadm1xAnd the eones that say u cant have 7.1 in a head set, need to get their head checked.And clearly have no clue what they are talking about.

There is no such thing as "surround headphones", it is just marketing gimmick.

It does not matter how many drivers you put in the earcup, surround effect is achieved purely by software enchanced sound and 2 drivers will yield same results.

Look at it from opposite perspective:

In case of surround system, stereo speakers won't produce a surround sound because they are far away from your ear. To compensate the distance, you place multiple speakers around the room.

But headphones? What do you need multiple drivers for when earcups are already so close to your ear?

Look up binaural recording, listen to some samples and learn how it works.

syntax42 · July 2015

Originally posted by MrSnuffles
A 5.1/7.1 headset, are you serious? /smh

It's a marketing gimmick, you can't have real surround sound in a headset, it's physically impossible.

While it seems physically impossible, 7.1 sound does work in headphones using only two speakers. I'm no audio expert, so I can't provide the best explanation for how they do it. Sound is delayed or altered in some way for each ear to produce a simulation of 7.1 sound. The simulation results in the perception of a surround-sound environment.

After using my G930s for years, I can tell exactly where footsteps are coming from in games. Logitech has a software layer between the game and the hardware that presents the headphones as a 7.1 device, then translates the virtual speakers into two channels.

If you want to experience it for yourself, look up some Dolby surround sound tests on YouTube. Wear any two-channel headphones. They only have two channels to work with, but they still manage to produce sound that gives the perception of it coming from various directions.

Gestankfaust · July 2015

Originally posted by syntax42
Originally posted by MrSnuffles
A 5.1/7.1 headset, are you serious? /smh

It's a marketing gimmick, you can't have real surround sound in a headset, it's physically impossible.

While it seems physically impossible, 7.1 sound does work in headphones using only two speakers. I'm no audio expert, so I can't provide the best explanation for how they do it. Sound is delayed or altered in some way for each ear to produce a simulation of 7.1 sound. The simulation results in the perception of a surround-sound environment.

After using my G930s for years, I can tell exactly where footsteps are coming from in games. Logitech has a software layer between the game and the hardware that presents the headphones as a 7.1 device, then translates the virtual speakers into two channels.

If you want to experience it for yourself, look up some Dolby surround sound tests on YouTube. Wear any two-channel headphones. They only have two channels to work with, but they still manage to produce sound that gives the perception of it coming from various directions.

It's all in your head....

Surround sound is not 5.1 or 7.1......it's positional audio on headsets and that's all.

Ridelynn · July 2015

There are some nifty math tricks you can do to simulate positional sound using just two drivers.

Is it as good as having 7 drivers? No. But it's impressive and it can beat flat stereo, depending on how and what method is used.

So no, it's not just magic marketing, it's math.

Reizla · July 2015

Originally posted by MrSnuffles
A 5.1/7.1 headset, are you serious? /smh

It's a marketing gimmick, you can't have real surround sound in a headset, it's physically impossible.

Get a Studio Quality Headset like the AKG HSC 271 if you want clean and crisp sound with crystal clear highs, crispy bass and a Microphone that has pro studio Quality. This headset will last you a lifetime, they are Virtually indestructible.

Originally posted by Gdemami
Visit some music shop and get some real headphones...

EXACTLY

Still using my 30-year old BeyerDynamic DT990 (with small to big converter) along with a clip-on mic. Not the best way to make a headset, but the sound is awesome! I'm still looking for a good headset and perhaps that AKG HSC271 might be the one for me - thanks for pointing that one out.

@OP - like most said in this thread - ditch the idea of a surround headset because it's not actual surround AND the quality of those headsets aren't the best. Better spend the same amount of money for a pro/studio headset like the one mentioned by MrSnuffles.

MrSnuffles · July 2015

Originally posted by Ridelynn
There are some nifty math tricks you can do to simulate positional sound using just two drivers.

Is it as good as having 7 drivers? No. But it's impressive and it can beat flat stereo, depending on how and what method is used.

So no, it's not just magic marketing, it's math.

Yes, it is part of Psychoacoustics or what Marketing calls Virtual Surround and works with ANY headset as it uses 2 speakers to simulate a surround sound. You don't need a 5.1 or 7.1 headset for it at all. In fact, a Studio quality Headset like the AKG i linked produces a much better virtual surround image due to their quality compared to "cheap" headsets like logitech, Razor or any other Gaming brand.

Give it a try, once you used a real Studio Headset you will never go back.

booniedog96 · July 2015

Since you only have 2 ear holes you only need 2 drivers and that virtual surround stuff is crap. Two really good drivers can simulate atmosphere just as good if not better than 5.1/7.1 headsets. Spent $35 on a set of Adidas in-ear headphones made by Sennheiser and is better than the 3 gaming headsets that I've purchased in the past.

Asm0deus · July 2015

Originally posted by Cleffy
Personally, I find surround type headsets to be kind of useless unless they can sense head movement. You only have 2 ears and a headset simply cannot produce surround sound the same way speakers can. For sake of longevity, I feel its best to get studio headphones as they tend to be durable, good quality, and comfortable. Then use a desk mic the Blue Yeti or its ilk.

I never got the 7,1 headphone thing either I mean surround sounds depends on having speakers in front, on the side and in back of you and even then you have to take room size/composition into consideration and set up delays properly so how do you really get any kind real benefit here as its right on your ears?

I mean at some point it's just software trickery and that has it's limits.

Maddrox181 · July 2015

G930's are ok but have some issues working around wireless routers, For instance mine takes about 5-10 minutes to connect when i first boot up my PC otherwise it just blinks in my task bar till it does and I can start using it. , Mine also had piss poor battery life but as far as wireless goes its probably your best choice.

about 2 months ago I bought a Tiamat and even with the fact that it's wired I would never look back at my G930

Don't mind wired get a Razor Tiamat ( Bit pricey but i doubt you would regret it )

Want Wireless get G930 ( Google G930 issues first so you know what you are getting into )

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5.1 / 7.1 Headsets - What do you recommend?

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