Razer hypes their stuff, but my Barracuda set had terrible construction quality and broke.
Zalis Send a noteboard - 13/02/2011 02:53:01 PM
Just in case you were looking at their products. Unless they've vastly improved in the last two years, I can't recommend them. Personally, I'm still using a Plantronics DSP-500 set that was given to me for Christmas 2004. They have some quality products that are worth checking out, too.
Remember three things when selecting a PC Gaming headset:
1) Do you want DSP or ones that plug into your sound card?
The difference here usually comes down to portability. If you don't have a quality, dedicated sound card, I would recommend getting a 'set with DSP. (think sound processing built-in, if you're unfamiliar w/ the term) If you have a high quality sound card that's already going to give you a slight gaming performance advantage, go with regular jack ones. (benchmarks usually only show a few FPS improvement in these cases, but you might as well go that way if you have one)
2) Comfort. Do you wear glasses?
If so, while there's no way to test this while buying online, consider yourself warned. (especially if you do any lan parties or long gaming sessions w/ friends) After an hour or more, some 'sets get downright uncomfortable.
3) Mic quality. "Can you hear me now?"
Some 'sets have good mics, others just don't. It sounds obvious, but you never want to be that guy that nobody can understand. Sometimes, bad mics can be compensated for by minimizing ambient noise, tweaking input volume, etc. Make sure to read lots of user reviews about the mic, if possible. The only thing I can say for sure here is that I DON'T recommend attachable mics. I've not had a good experience w/ them.
You'll notice that I didn't include 5.1/7.1 surround, noise cancellation or sound quality at all. That's because those things are all preferential. Some people swear by them and some say it's not a big difference. Also, a common complaint I've read (and experienced w/ the Barracuda) with 5.1 and up in headsets is that the rear sounds tinny. YMMV, though.
Good luck!
Remember three things when selecting a PC Gaming headset:
1) Do you want DSP or ones that plug into your sound card?
The difference here usually comes down to portability. If you don't have a quality, dedicated sound card, I would recommend getting a 'set with DSP. (think sound processing built-in, if you're unfamiliar w/ the term) If you have a high quality sound card that's already going to give you a slight gaming performance advantage, go with regular jack ones. (benchmarks usually only show a few FPS improvement in these cases, but you might as well go that way if you have one)
2) Comfort. Do you wear glasses?
If so, while there's no way to test this while buying online, consider yourself warned. (especially if you do any lan parties or long gaming sessions w/ friends) After an hour or more, some 'sets get downright uncomfortable.
3) Mic quality. "Can you hear me now?"
Some 'sets have good mics, others just don't. It sounds obvious, but you never want to be that guy that nobody can understand. Sometimes, bad mics can be compensated for by minimizing ambient noise, tweaking input volume, etc. Make sure to read lots of user reviews about the mic, if possible. The only thing I can say for sure here is that I DON'T recommend attachable mics. I've not had a good experience w/ them.
You'll notice that I didn't include 5.1/7.1 surround, noise cancellation or sound quality at all. That's because those things are all preferential. Some people swear by them and some say it's not a big difference. Also, a common complaint I've read (and experienced w/ the Barracuda) with 5.1 and up in headsets is that the rear sounds tinny. YMMV, though.
Good luck!
The sword might be grateful to the forge fire, but never fond of it.
This message last edited by Zalis on 13/02/2011 at 02:54:56 PM
Headphones for gaming?
12/02/2011 10:50:53 AM
- 932 Views
I don't know those or any headphones specifically
12/02/2011 07:22:23 PM
- 632 Views
Yeah looked at more headphones today and the only other set that looked good was also Sennheiser. *NM*
13/02/2011 04:57:27 AM
- 359 Views
I have Steelseries Siberia Neckband, and that's a good one. *NM*
13/02/2011 07:59:06 AM
- 304 Views
I don't think I would be comfortable with the 'head band' going around the back like that. *NM*
14/02/2011 09:49:41 AM
- 346 Views
Razer hypes their stuff, but my Barracuda set had terrible construction quality and broke.
13/02/2011 02:53:01 PM
- 685 Views
Re: Razer hypes their stuff, but my Barracuda set had terrible construction quality and broke.
14/02/2011 06:25:31 AM
- 731 Views
I use Steelseries 5H V2
14/02/2011 02:39:58 AM
- 606 Views
I looked at a set of Steelseries Siberia V2 today and liked them so now its a toss up between:
15/02/2011 08:52:55 AM
- 737 Views
I'm sitting with the back to the door and would always feel like someone sneaking up on me *NM*
15/02/2011 12:37:11 PM
- 301 Views
Same here but I do most of my gaming at night after wife/kids go to bed so can't use speakers. *NM*
15/02/2011 08:35:13 PM
- 357 Views