Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie
Gaming build at €1200
Options
-
27-12-2011 5:11am#1
Comments
-
I'm tired so I won't go through hardware specs with you and just focus on the headset question:
At that price point the Logitech set is a waste of money (a very blunt review here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/529963/logitech-g35-gaming-headset-review, as you can see very mixed opinions and not many replies. I'd lean towards proven well respected headphones if I'm spending over £100 to be honest). You'd be better off with a good pair of headphones combined with a relatively cheap separate mic. Really mic quality doesn't make a huge difference (above a certain quite basic level) because for gaming your voice will be compressed to **** by whatever software you're using to chat in-game.
Headphones around that price point:
Sennheiser HD 25-IIs: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sennheiser-II-Closed-Headphone-headband/dp/B000TDZOXG/ref=sr_1_29?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1324963207&sr=1-29
I have these, find them excellent for gaming (overkill if anything) but they react well to good amping. I've paired them with an E7 and an E10 from Fiio and found the E10 to be excellent to be honest compared to driving them off a regular PC soundcard or on-board audio. So for the overall package you're talking about a good bit over your initial spend on the Creatives but worth it imho. I'd honestly go with these and go for a DAC/Amp combo down the road. I'm figuring since you are willing to spend 1.2K on a PC that the idea of a £60 DAC/Amp won't throw you.
(To put it in perspective, when I listen to an old song in my library on this E10 + HD25-II set up that I used to listen to on worse gear it's like I'm hearing the song for the first time again).
Sennheiser HD558s: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sennheiser-HD-558-Headphones-Technology/dp/B004FEEY9A/ref=sr_1_41?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1324963500&sr=1-41
I don't own these but they've an excellent reputation for being very good quality open headphones without a big price tag. Issues here: open headphones so sound will leak in and out, not a problem if playing in a quiet room but will be a problem if you want to isolate yourself from outside noise. The main advantage of open headphones is a much bigger sound stage. Not a huge deal in BF3 but in something atmospheric like Skyrim it's nice.
Koss Porta Pros: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Koss-Porta-Pro-Stereo-Headphones/dp/B00001P4ZH/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1324963716&sr=1-1
Don't own these again but these have an absurdly good reputation at their really low price point. I include these so that if you want to save money here you can do it while still getting good sounding headphones.
If you're absolutely dead set on having a headphone/mic combo:
Steelseries Sibera V2s USB version: http://www.amazon.co.uk/SteelSeries-Siberia-Full-Size-Headset/dp/B002Q8IHEK/ref=sr_1_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1324964242&sr=1-1
I own their big brother the 7Hs, but there's a design flaw in the 7Hs that gives people some trouble so I'm slow to recommend them to others. I never had this problem with mine but if you get unlucky with them they stop working properly after a while due to a loose connection which is unacceptable. The Siberia Headphones don't have this problem. Acceptable to good sound depending on your opinion, better than every other gaming headset I've owned (not that many of them to be fair, once I got into proper headphones I never looked back!). Pair with a Siberia USB Soundcard if you want virtual surround sound and don't plan to buy an internal soundcard that delivers it like the Xonar series of cards from Asus and similar.
Other people will have listened to more headphones than me and will have more recommendations. I'd have added Sennheiser HD280s to my list but I can't find them for sale anywhere any more. They were my gaming/music headphones for years and years. Edit: Actually I'm blind, here they are: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sennheiser-HD280pro-Closed-Monitoring-Headphones/dp/B000065BPB/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1325012753&sr=1-1
Not asked for but:
Soundcard options:
Asus Xonar DG: http://www.amazon.co.uk/ASUS-Xonar-PCI-Audio-Card/dp/B003ZXDOL6/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1324964176&sr=1-1-catcorr
Will give you decent sound quality, Dolby Headphone for surround and little driver trouble for cheap. A decent option.
Steelseries Siberia USB Modem: From above, you can get it separately. Ok as soundcards go, can give you virtual 7.1 sound. More expensive than the Xonar though, conversely good if you play games on more than one machine.
Creative X-Fi cards: These will give you EAX and other gamer friendly sound technologies like virtual surround. The problem: the drivers are utterly ****e and very buggy from all accounts. If you absolutely need EAX there are other companies out there that use X-Fi chips but have their own less buggy drivers but they aren't cheap cards generally. Example but pricey: http://www.amazon.co.uk/FORTE71-X-Fi-Forte-Sound-cards/dp/B005BR93KA/ref=sr_1_72?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1324964468&sr=1-72 (you can find it cheaper elsewhere, only linking to Amazon for my convenience!!)
Fiio E10 DAC/Amp: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fiio-E10-USB-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B005VO7LG6/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1324964604&sr=1-1-catcorr
I hesitate a bit about recommending this for the following caveats: It's designed for music not gaming, so no EAX or virtual surround here. It's only worth it with good headphones and if you're pretty into sound quality. Plus side: very good at what it does for the price. Games with excellent soundtracks like Skyrim sound stunning with it paired up with decent headphones. Has line out and coaxial out so it can be paired with a better amp (for high impedance audiophile quality headphones) or powered speakers if you decide to go down that route later.
Onboard audio: Well, I don't like it and find it subpar but some people don't care. If you're one of the latter just get the Koss Porta Pros and a clip on mic and call it a day.
There is no point in investing in good pricey headphones if you're going to use the on-board as an audio source in my (quite biased) opinion. Even the Xonar DG at less than £30 is a substantial upgrade even with not so good gear. You also get no gamer friendly technologies like EAX and virtual surround with on-board which can be a negative if you care about these things.
TL;DR: Cheap, go with Koss Porta Pro (can't be beaten at this price point from all I've read). Expensive go for HD25-IIs (on experience) or Sennheiser HD558s or HD598s (on reputation). Get a separate soundcard or DAC if you go the expensive route. Creative/Forte for EAX, Asus Xonar if all you care about is surround sound, DAC or expensive Xonar if you're concerned about good music reproduction. With any of the above get a decent cheap clip-on mic or desktop mic depending on which you prefer. Go with the Steelseries Siberia V2s if you absolutely must have a headset (based on my experience). You can do better in terms of sound quality though for the kind of money you're willing to spend. Whether this is a big deal for you or nor is the question.
Again, basing all this off you spending quite a bit and asking for recommendations for "good headphones."
Edit: Apologies if this is overlong, going through a bit of a headphone obsession stage at the moment.
0
Advertisement