Widescreen Gaming Forum

I'm currently looking into getting a 7.1ch Surround Sound headset with a Mic and I was wondering if anyone had any experience with any. I'm currently looking at one of these two, mostly because they're Brands I trust and they have good reviews, but any other opinions are welcome.

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Logitech-G35-Gaming-USB-Headset-PC-71Ch-Surround-Sound-with-MIC
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Corsair-CA-HS1-USB-Gaming-Headset-with-Noise-Cancelling-MIC-50mm-drivers-Dolby-Digital

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"Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality."

I've got a friend who absolutely loves his set.

http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/12/16/review-and-giveaway-steelseries-siberia-v2-surround-sound-headset/

He says that the Logitech ones are really uncomfortable, but that might be because he has a huge head.

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I've got a pair of Zalman 5.1's from years back. No integrated mic, it was a clip-on affair - but I was very happy with those. No idea if they're still available.

I know that doesn't really help much, does it? :oops:

I say get a regular pair of headphones with 2 speakers. A good pair of headphones gives you perfect localization without the extra speakers and it will cost less and be higher quality.

My logic is if a pair of regular headphones cost $100 you can reasonably asume those two drivers are worth about $50.00 each.

Now if you buy a 5.1 set with 6 drivers in it for $100 you know there is no way the company is going to give you 6x $50 drivers for $100 they obviously had to cut the cost and quality of those drivers. In audio quality > quanity

So to keep the same net quality your probably going to have to pay atleast 3x more.

Another thing I recomend is going with headphones instead of a headset. This is another area where manufactures jack up prices. The same pair of headphones without a built in micrphone may cost significatly less, and when it comes to pure varity and selection if your looking only at headsets your losing a lot of choices.

Zalman makes a $6.00 clip on mic that I used for years with no problems with my Audio Technica A700's effectively turning it into a headset.

And just last week I did a mod to them to make them a 100% full blown headset.

Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-dqoM2WWRw

My final and last reasoning to stick with normal headphones is return on investment. Those 5.1 7.1 sets are usually in 2 varieties. One uses the 3x 1.8" headphone ports requiring a surround soundcard on your computer so you cant really use them with any other devices like your cd player, ipod, tv, ect. The other is USB that is driver dependent so it may not work on future OS's, MAC, and it wont work on any device that is not a computer.

If I am spending $100+ on some quality headphones I would like to be able to use them on other devices to enjoy them and not have it locked down to a specific thing like my computer only, and even the computer part may get obsolete like I said if your new comp next year is lacking the proper soundcard or driver support.

Also as a laptop user to use the 1/8 3.5mm kind I would need an expensive external sound card.

So just food for thought, I never had any issues hearing forward/back/left/right/above/below with just 2 speaker headphones, the games engine is smart enough to process the sound in the proper manner to give you the positioning.

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The A700/ AD700 make very good gaming cans.

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The A700/ AD700 make very good gaming cans.

Ironically I am in the process of buying some AD700s from somebody on head-fi right now :D (and of course as you see above I have A700's already)

The A700 are more suited for gaming I think since they can give you some bass, but the AD700 have a very wide and accurate sound stage so if you dont need the bass they offer superb positioning and are also really really good for stuff like classical music.

Using my X-Fi card with 3DCMSS turned on the AD700 was the first time I felt like I was in the game because the sound stage is so wide and the open air design the sounds are not "in your head" but instead around you. Also the AD700 are so freakin comfortable you forget your wearing them and that further enhances the effect of being in music/game your listening too.

I actually split the audio signal and would run a feed to my powered subwoofer to make up for the AD700's lack of bass and that was a good way to get the best of both worlds.

Here soon I will have a buttkicker gamer 2 and see how that enhances the effects of bass when using headphones isntead of the full blown theater setup with the powered sub.

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I tried some A900 cans a while back (at least 2 years ago, I still lived in England) and loved them, but yeah, I do want a pair of AD700 too!!! I hear great things about them.

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You might like the gaming headsets and equipment from Astro. It is a USA company plus they have a UK address,

E5 St Georges Business Park
Sittingbourne, Kent ME10 3TB
Phone: 08450 260189

They also offer duty free shipping to Australia and New Zealand.

Their A30 and A40 headsets are quality components.



When matched with Astro's versatile Dolby Digital Mix Amp the system can be directly connected to console, PC, and entertainment system via TOSlink Digital Optical Cable, Coax Digital Cable, USB, 3.5mm, 1/4 inch, or RCA L and R connections.



The system is PS3 and XBox 360 compatible, providing a dedicated voice channel for team communication. The Mix-Amp has an additional input allowing audio from an mp3 player to mix in with adjustable volume level.



Both the A30 and A40 headsets include carrying case and removable mic, and the A40 mic is switchable Left or Right.



I'm using the A40 Audio System and I find the comfort, versatility, audio quality, sound stage, and sound localization to be top notch.



Have a look.

I'm currently looking into getting a 7.1ch Surround Sound headset with a Mic and I was wondering if anyone had any experience with any. I'm currently looking at one of these two, mostly because they're Brands I trust and they have good reviews, but any other opinions are welcome.

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Logitech-G35-Gaming-USB-Headset-PC-71Ch-Surround-Sound-with-MIC
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Corsair-CA-HS1-USB-Gaming-Headset-with-Noise-Cancelling-MIC-50mm-drivers-Dolby-Digital

I have owned my G35 headset for about 4 weeks now and it is a cracking bit of kit.

Wasnt too sure about using its own onboard sound system as apposed to my Fatality sound card,but don't worry,these sound fantastic.

I also like the way as soon as you plug its USB lead in,the sound stops coming through your speakers and goes straight through your headphones without you having to mess about with anything else.....brilliant !

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