What gaming headphones to buy? - Page 2

Does anyone here have the Datel that can test this out? This would be great if it works. I'm tempted to just run by CC and buy one just in case it works.. but it would be nice to know ahead of time.

Thought I'd drop in here and say I wasn't that impressed with the sound of the trittons. I agree the space restrictions of fitting 4 drivers in the headphones made them sound weak to me with a definate lack of bass that the rumble just didn't compensate for. Not so bad for game action but you really notice it with dialogue. It made me think of when you go to the drive-in and you are listening to the audio over a cheap car radio. I had wanted to use these headphones to watch dvd's quietly too but no way!

Also, the rumble headset gave me headaches after about 20 minuts of playing and I never could shake that. Just made for an uncomfortable experience and I wished I had just bought a good set of headphones without the gimmicks. Oh and another thing you don't get to hear your own voice when talking over live so sometimes people would tell me I was shouting LOL.

well I was able to sort of test this out. I have an adapter from a cell phone that half-ass fits in the controller.. and an old stand alone mic from a 10 yr old HP system. lol.

While wearing my Pioneers (connected via optical cable) I WAS able to record a instant message voice message, albiet choppy as hell.

So I guess all I was able to prove was that it would appear possible to at least use an independent microphone with digital headphones.

The problem I have with the Datel/Zalman combo is that neither are sold many places and the solution just feels very "ghetto" for lack of a better description. It just seems Microsoft or a reputable 3rd party vendor would recognize this need and roll out a nice all-in-one microphone solution.

sigh...

I guess I'll just stick with the crappy 360 live headset for online gaming and use my Pioneers for offline gaming.

Only on obscure ma and pa web retailers and ebay.. is all I've seen so far. That's the part that makes me skeptical. lol.. By the time i pay for the datel and the overpriced shipping these places charge...and a seperate mic.. I'll be almost 1/2 way buying the Trittons on sale at buy.com.


I really need to use my $369 set of frickin headphones though... be a shame to not be able to use them as good as they sound.

http://www.turtlebeach.com/products/efx3/home.aspx <-- How are those?

I have them as well, they are pretty sick. And their Dolby Headphone capabilities with the wireless headphones provided or its ability to work with any wired headphones is awesome!

I actually bought an extra set of cans so me and my son could watch movies together on the projector after hours when the smaller kids in the house are snoozing. Love em! woot!

on another note... I said f%$k it and bought the Trittons from buy.com... used a new gmail account for $10 more off.. so $59 free shipping after rebate for 5.1 with a working microphone. I'll just use these for online MP and coop.

I just wish somehow the wife would understand when she discovers the charge. lol.

I'm really glad to see this thread. I almost just started another one for audio noobs because I need a little schoolin' on the topic. I've wanted a set of really good 5.1 headphones for ages because I mostly play after the wife goes to sleep and I really miss out on being able to crank up the surround sound (I have to take off work early or work from home to do that anymore).

What I really want to know is what kind of specs do I want to look for in selecting a pair? I see things like "40mm drivers for deep bass, Neodymium magnet, Frequency response: 10Hz - 27kHz Sensitivity: 90dB/mW, Impedance: 32 ohms"

That's all wonderfull, but it means jack squat to me, the layman. I don't really want to pay more than $150-200, but at the same time I want all I can get for my money, and I want to have the surround sound features. Can I do that for under 200? Any suggestions?

Edit: I've been eyballing these badboys(TRITTON AX360 5.1): http://blogcritics.org/archives/2006/06/07/073819.php

If you have a reciever you can plug your 555's into the phone jack & have total control over the volume. Thats what I did before I got my Amp/DAC combo.

Yes. optical goes from the JVC to the 360.. Volume will be controlled with the JVC.. You will need one optical mini adaptor. You are free to have one of mine, or you can get them for 2.00 at monoprice.

Here are the specs, direct from the JVC website. Ignore the price. You can find them cheaper on Amazon.

http://www.jvcservice.com/store/Prod...sp?part=SU-DH1

http://www.buy.com/prod/tritton-ax36...202636837.html

Got these and they are great with the 360. Games sound great as do the videos. They are great. Sound is really clear, and the bass is pretty good, they recreate the bass with rumble in the headphones and it works pretty well.

Yes. These headphones have been discussed.

32 OHM means they can be driven easily from a portable device. Drivers range from 40-53MM. 10HZ-27KHz is the low end to the high end of the frequency response. All companies do differnt things with their drivers, diaphram & housing. Padding & damping material also effects the sound.

5.1 headphones with 8 speakers is a flawed design & is a marketing gimmick per se. Will they give you 5.1 sound? yes. But at the cost of a rumble function instead of true bass, & SQ will be compromised. Any headphone enigneer will tell you this. We have two ears so we need 2 channels, left & right. Let me explain. With convential 5.1 speakers it's different. the sound field engulfs you, & the speakers are placed far enough where its easily to detect wher shots are being fired, etc.. since the speakers are so close together in 5.1 headphones it can be more difficult to figure out the location of shots fired. & stereo headphones have the same benefits that 5.1 makers claim can only be achieved through 'true' 5.1 headphones, minus the out of head experience, but that to can be achieved using DD headphones DSP. Imaging. Clarity. Wide soundstage. incredible detail. Ect. can all be achieved with a good set of stereo headphones.

I'm not in the 5.1 headphones sound like crap category. They do as advertised, just not partically well..But well enough. & if you never heard a good stereo headphone (same price as the Trittons) I'm sure they will amaze you, & you will be more then happy with them.. But me, personally, I don't want to comprise SQ & true bass for SS effects. I'd recommend a SS adaptor & good stereo headphone to get trhe best of both worlds..

Not for sale yet.

I wonder how those new Turtle Beach ones will be for the casual gamer looking for some headphones. Do they simulate a 5.1 in any way? I wasn't able to find anything out in that regards about them.

I am clueless when it comes to headphones, but I have been really interested in getting some lately. Most of my gaming is done at night after my girlfriend goes to bed and I have basically been playing in silence. Boring. So anyways, I didn't realize there was all the "true" 5.1 phones and 5.1 adapters and DD for phones. I would like to get something that at least gives you some sort of sound direction as I've been playing GOW a lot and forgot what I've been missing until I turned up the surround the other day and completely improved the game and my performance.

So I guess my question is this. I have a cheaper Onkyo 5.1 reciever with DD and DTS decoding. Right now the 360 is input via optical. The reciever has a hefty jack for headphones on the front (by hefty I mean more RCA size, not 3.5 like my ipod). Would I be able to buy a decent pair of stereo headphones to plug in here and get simulated surround sound. The reciever would be decoding and outputing DD but it would not be "DD Headphone."
Then there is the whole xbox Live mic thing.
What would you guys suggest in this situation.

you can pre-order now, 99 with free shipping. no 5.1 just "expanded stereo"

good info in this video... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OPWzVpx5MA

Bigjohn,

I'm in a similar situation as you, most of my gaming is done at night after everyone's turned in. Just get a good set of stereo headphones and you'll be a happy camper. The receiver will downmix the 5.1 output to 2.0.

Provided you get a good set of cans, SQ will still be excellent, with good directionality.

Comfort 8/10

so far. Will know more after a 2 hr gaming session. They are notably heavier than my Pioneer SE-DIR800Cs. But expected I guess.


Sound Quality 8/10

The rumble bass is a neat feature that compliments the vibration in the controller and felt pretty cool while watching 300 with them on. I would probably have gave them a 9/10 had it not for the set of Pioneer SE-DIR800C i have laying here to compare them with. lol.

Ease of use 5/10

There are abig ass bunch of cables to mess with and the controller box has + and - adjustments but no way of knowing the adjustment.. just have to start at default of 0 and count the clicks.

Quality 6/10

Everything seems a little cheap but mostly solid with exception on the little wire that dangles from the headset when your plugged in to your controller. I can see this wire being a point of failure if not gently cared for. They do however come with a nice assortment of cables so you don't have to buy any extra cables to get going.

Overall 7/10

Yes, I reccomend buy them if you can score them for under $100. They aren't the greatest, but they server thier purpose well and offer alot of features for a cheap set of cans. And most importantly, they seem to work as advertised.


PS.. the trick to using an external Mic with LIVE is all in the audio setting within your live profile. Set it to use both for audio.

What Stereo headphones have you compared them too?

The only thing I have besides the Trittons is the Pioneer SE-DIR800Cs.

ah. ok.

I've been using Tritton AX360 since they hit the market (2005? Early 2006? don't recall when).

I like them. Sure there are limitations but I personally like their 8 speaker set up. To the person who said hearing dialogue is tough on movies, I've watched SD-DVD's, HD-DVD's, and Blu-ray with them for sound and dialogue hasn't been a problem. Of course in-line controls have to be tweaked for different inputs, but that is expected.

As far as game play where location of sound is important (Say Halo 2/3), I found this to work well. No complaints, including size as these fit comfortably. I also haven't had trouble with the mic, but it is cheaply made.

What stinks about the product is the lack of DTS decoding. It is disappointing when you have a blu ray risk with Uncomped PCM and DTS-MA tracks, and you have to use the DD 5.1 + track, but the receiver only decodes it as regular dd 5.1. Considering this is for XBOX/XBOX 360 primarily, it makes total sense.

I recently contacted the company to order another set of headphones (the receiver can support up to two at one time but currently the company has not starting selling spare headsets in stores), which they will sell to me directly for $60/each.

Yes, they deliver as advertised..albeit the majority who compared the Trittons to the Pioneers, which use stereo headphones with DD 5.1 DSP, tend to favor the Pioneer in both SQ & SS effects.. So the whole 'true' 5.1 headset is marketing brainwash to me. I'm ultra picky cause headphones are a passion of mine. & I seen, urr, heard how great stereo headphones can sound. I used my friends Zalmans, & they were fun, SS effects were good, but over the long run I'd rather have my stereo headphones that did everything better minus the SS effects, but there are 5.1 adaptors & recievers that support DD headphone jacks.
I also have no problem with location with my stereo headphones. Maybe its because I have hi end headphones? Stereo headphones are capable of giving you a out of head experience. binaural recordings prove this, & it's like audio 3D