1. #1
    Bloodsail Admiral Supakaiser's Avatar
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    Good headphones for gaming (MMO, FPS)

    Hey everyone, with Black Friday and Cyber Monday coming up I was looking to upgrade my audio setup for gaming / streaming. I've grown tired of mediocre mic quality that gaming headsets provide (only because it doesnt sound too great on stream, fine for voip though).

    My last few headsets: Logitech G35 (great, but the cord is awful and 'breaks' itself over time), Logitech G930 (Great when it works 100%, though between janky drivers/software it ends up having audio fading issues. Wireless is nice sometimes though), SteelSeries Siberia v2 (The best headset I've used for a long time, a bit tight on my head, had to replace pads, microphone isn't awful but it's the first time I've had to dramatically lower the volume of my mic for applications and yet still manages to come in way too loud when I laugh or w/e).

    I've decided to go the seperate mic + headphones route and chose the blue yeti for the microphone portion. However, I am a bit undecided when it comes to pure headphones. I see a lot of decent cheap DJ type headphones around but I want to make sure I get something solid for gaming (nice bass but not too much bass for instance). I would prefer closed ear as well.

    One thing to note is that I am not going turbo audiophile or anything, I don't plan on buying a soundcard or amp or any of that, just want to stick with USB.
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  2. #2
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    If you're just going to plug it into your on-board then something like Skullcandy Hesh 2 or Audio Technica M50 will give you exactly what you're looking for. Both have very clear audio with subtle yet effective bass, perfect for gaming and music. For a slightly higher price tag AT-M50 has better comfort by far( Softer pads, not as tight around your head) and slightly better sound quality on high frequencies while Hesh 2 isn't really that comfortable after a 6 hour session it does offer better noise isolation which increases your audio experience significantly if you live in a crowded city or busy street. Personally I prefer Hesh 2 since it has a detachable/replaceable cable(This is usually where headphones break) and better noise isolation.

    However, I'm not an audiophile nor a proper reviewer so if these two sound interesting I recommend you check out some legit reviews.

  3. #3
    I've had a Razer Kraken headset for about a year now, Awesome quality, no issues after about a year of handling, which is a record for me regarding headsets.

    - Providing a link here if you wanna check it out. http://www.razerzone.com/gb-en/gamin...zer-kraken-pro

  4. #4
    There is a good thread that was make a while back that has some nice suggestions for headphones.

    And Razer headsets are a bit hit&miss in regards to quality, not worth the risk imo. Not to mention the drivers they use are meh.
    Last edited by tielknight; 2014-11-23 at 04:00 AM.
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  5. #5
    Bloodsail Admiral Supakaiser's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by tielknight View Post
    There is a good thread that was make a while back that has some nice suggestions for headphones.

    And Razer headsets are a bit hit&miss in regards to quality, not worth the risk imo. Not to mention the drivers they use are meh.
    Thanks for the link! Looks like I'm settling with the CALs
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    Sennheiser makes really nice headphones

    http://en-us.sennheiser.com/headphones

  7. #7
    I will assume you have the same problem with the g930 that i have with the g430 and everyone else generally with the new drivers.

    ftp://ftp.logitech.com/pub/techsupport/gaming/ and download 8.45.88 version before you go and spend money on new things.

    These drivers fixed all my problems with the headphones especially the auto-switching of volume levels depending on what program was on the front.
    Last edited by potis; 2014-11-23 at 01:32 PM.

  8. #8
    I have about 150 sets of headphones and ear buds. I can say from experience that any super high end headphones have little to no impact on gaming so I'll keep the price under 200.
    My favorite Budget can right now is the Takstar HI 2050. They run less than 100 bucks, and I've seen them as low as 50. They're an open back design, so there is NO sound isolation. Great mids and highs and suprizingly great bass, especially in the sub 50hz range. Not boomy. Most comfortable pair of headphones under 200 bucks. Well built.

    Monoprice 108323. These are THE SAME model as the old kicker headphones. Sealed back, good isolation, removable cord, less than 50 bucks. good mids and highs, and fairly clean bass. A tad boomy, but they're sealed, sealed headphones get boomy.

    Superlux HD 681. You get a lot in the box with these, 2 sets of ear pads, 2 detachable cords. less than 60 bucks and outstanding sound. The clamping pressure of these dudes is pretty high, but you can relax them with a bit of stretching. Bit recessed in the mids, but great bass and outstanding highs.

    Audio Technica ATH-M50. Straight up great headphones. The price can be anywhere from 100 bucks to 180+. Sparkly highs, clean bass. Terrible ear pads, but they can be replaced with velour pads that make them straight joyful to wear.

    AKG 240. Good all around headphone. Flat response. 100 bucks. Very solid construction. They've got large ear cups...

    Beyerdynamic Custom One Pro. I love these headphones. ~200 bucks. They're very customizable, with several settings on a slider of each ear cup that make them either open, sealed, or semi-open. Changes the sound quite a bit. Very comfortable. Built like tanks. Overall, great highs and mids, and the slider tends to effect the bass more than anything. It can be very bassy.

    I do not recommend any Sennheiser or Grado headphones under 200 Bucks. All of their models sub 200 have better competitors for less money. With that said. SR 325i(grado) and sennheiser HD650 are some of my favorite cans, but the Grado have stethoscope sized cords, and the senns NEED amplification to sound good. Both are 300+ bucks and really won't add anything to a gaming environment.
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  9. #9
    just bought a pair of Beyer Custom Studio (same as Custom One Pro but w/ 80ohm impedance).. it was a bit pricey, but i love everything about it so far

  10. #10
    I recommend any open back headphones by sennheiser, beyerdynamics, or audio tech. They have superior soundstage for gaming compared to closed ones. Sennheiser hd5xx series or beyer dt series depending on your budget.

  11. #11
    The Unstoppable Force May90's Avatar
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    What budget do you have? From what I've read and heard (not much, but still), I would say go Synnheiser or AKG if you want a clean and "honest" sound or go Beyerdynamic or Phillips (Fidelio series) for more "juicy" sound. Depends on preference. If, as you said, you are not an audiophile and just want as "cool" sound as possible, just choose a model that has good bass (you can learn from reviews what people think about it). If you don't know how much bass you really need, it is safer to go for as strong bass as possible (Fidelio), since most non-audiophiles like their sound better.

    Also, although I am not really a specialist here, I will repeat after "gurus" and say: ignore all those "gaming" headsets. They have poor dynamics in comparison and sound much worse. The only reason to go for them, I would say, is if you want "native" 5.1/7.1 sound - but, with good stereo headphones, you can just use a software like Razer Surround to get a decent 5.1/7.1 simulation with a much better sound.

    I recently bought Synnheiser HD600 for whooping $350. What can I say... The sound is very honest: if the recording is good, then it shines incredibly, I listen to some jazz, and in these headphones it feels like you are really there in the concert hall. However, if recording is bad (like on Youtube videos, for example), then you can hear all imperfections and noises very well. In games, they are great, but the equalizer is almost linear, and there is no native bass boost - I like it, I don't want faked overblown bass in my headphones, but many people will be bored with their sounding. Again, I don't use Razer Surround that often, but when I do, I really can't tell much difference between these headphones and "native" 5.1 headphones.

    As for closed/open ear... From my subjective experience it doesn't really matter, unless you listen to music while drilling or something. I used my "ultra-closed" Sony headphones for 2 years, and now I switched to these HD600 which are open - and I can't tell a difference, I still can't hear much from the outside when I listen to something, and no one can hear what I listen to.

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