Anyone here play games using headphones instead of speakers? I'm having a hard time finding good recommendations online for speakers that are high quality but comfortable for long periods of use. The walls in my apartment complex are pretty thin so buying a nice speaker setup seems like a waste, especially since I play well past midnight so often. So, suggestions?
I'm using the Sennheiser HD500 headphones. Very good quality, not too expensive (though not cheap either), and don't require a high output level. That last point is why I don't use my overall favourite headphones, the AKG 240 Monitor, with my soundcard -- they basically require their own power amp!
I use Koss headphones that pack a decent amount of punch. And they've lasted a long time, almost two years.
I believe these are the ones I'm speaking of - they look about the same but the model number isn't displayed on my headphones anywhere.
There are more expensive options listed on Amazon just for Koss headphones alone, but I don't know if you would care unless you're an audiophile looking for as much bass and noise reduction as you can possibly get.
edit: got my sentences out of order
I dunno, I'd have a hard time finding "speakers that are high quality but comfortable for long periods of use."Originally Posted by Mike Cathcart
:)
More to the point, Jason Cross will probably show up and extoll the virtues of Grado headphones. DO NOT LISTEN TO HIM. Grado headphones are incredibly uncomfortable for long periods of time [size=2]although they do sound terrific.[/size]
I sometimes use a pair of Beyers with cloth-covered foam earcups that are incredibly comfortable and sound great. But their original cost was nearly $200. For more modest budgets, I've found Sennheisers to offer a good mix of sound quality and comfort.
As ever,
Loyd Case
Depends on how much you want to spend.
Personally, I don't like the huge headphones that cover your entire ear (aura-nomic or whatever the hell they call it). I say to stick with supra-aural headphones if you can - that's the kind that sit ON your ear, not totally envelope it. I find that when you play games for three hours or so, those ones that cover your whole ear get hot and uncomfortable.
I recommend Grado SR-80 or SR-125 headphones, which will probably run you like $75-100. You'll have to find those at a dedicated audio store or order them online, probably. Any place specializing in home theater/audio and car audio will probably have them. They're very tonally accurate and I find them really comfortable to wear for long periods of time. I have SR-125s at home, and they rock.
Sony makes some good general consumer headphones as well, if you don't want to spend quite that much. Plan to spend like $50 for something pretty decent, though. The MDR-V300 wouldn't be bad. My years-old MDR-V200 headphones cost me $50 and weren't nearly as good, and they're pretty shot now and need replacing. I'll probably buy V300s.
There's a lot of talk in the consumer audio space about how you need a headphone amplifier for REAL headphone listening, and maybe that's true in home audio, but for PC stuff I just don't see the need.
Some sound cards do a better job of the 3D stuff with headphones than others, but in general if you set your card's control panel to headphone output, you'll get a pretty damn immersive experience from headphones. It's a great way to play, often better than speakers.
A word of warning - with quality headphones, you may suddenly find that you hear a lot more distortion and degradation in those 128k MP3s than you used to, especially when you compare to better bitrates or the original CD. It can create an uncontrollable impulse to re-rip CDs at higher bitrates.
plantronics headphones are the absolute best, hands down. I would never touch any other brand
See, now I'm just gonna have to disagree there. I think they're perfectly comfortable. The foam is a little stiffer, but they don't my ears all hot. But I think it's terribly funny how you wrote that WHILE I was writing my reply. I guess I wasn't fast enough. ;)
Sennheisers are good too, but I find their less-expensive models (ie: less than $150) are bettered by other brands.
If you wanna talk like $200+ headphones, I'll admit I have little experience with any brand. It's just not an option for me, so I don't look for them.
Long story short: don't order online, buy from a store where you can put them on and try them out. :)
Err, I'm not much of an audiophile, but I suppose I get at least decent quality (I really couldn't tell you) from the Sony "behind the head" headphones I always use. I've tried others and I don't like them as much. They're not very expensive either! So if you're just looking for some good headphones that are comfortable and don't need super-duper audio perfection, that's what I use.
Ready for the reasons? You'll be astounded at the depth behind my purchasing decisions:
1) They look much cooler than other headphones and don't make you feel like an eskimo when you wear them!
2) They don't mess up your hair! I have a streak roll hairstyle, so that's a major point for me. ;) I wear headphones all the time and I don't want to recomb my hair every 20 minutes.
-Kitsune
Sennheiser HD580s. Don't bother wtih the full kit, just get the headphones and a small amp. The headphones alone will never have you going back to speakers or anything other than a higher-model Sennheiser. The amp... well... it's like switching from alcohol to heroine.
Thanks for the replies. I should have mentioned that, since I'm looking to get headphones instead of a nice speaker setup, I don't mind spending a few dollars. At least this gets me started and now I know what to look for. I usually trust Loyd, but I'll definitely consider what Jason has to say. Thanks again!
Kitsune, I agree that those Sony headphones are nice, but they really hurt my ear after a while (I think it's because I wear glasses so there's too much going on behind my ear). Also, not to be a snob, but I'm looking for some better quality sound :)
Mike...
Check out Plantronics: http://www.plantronics.com/north_ame...eId=cat1430032
This headset kicks ass. It's digital, usb and you get a mic also. You can find the headset online (at other retailers) for about $70.00 Don't purchase the set from Plantronics website.
These are the ones I use : Plantronics DSP-500
As Jakub noted, the HD580's are great. They're pricey ($250 list price, I think), but you can find them on the web for around $150-170.
Loyd Case
Plantronics are a very common item among the CS hardcore. I use the Koss SB-40 because I needed sealed headphones and a mic.
Heh. In that case consider my Koss choice as probably way way way too cheap. I bought them since I wasn't at all worried about getting top-notch quality, instead just wanting something that didn't suck and would last a while. Another thing that made me like them was that it's impossible for anyone but the user to hear them even at high volumes. I need that since I'm not allowed to disturb coworkers with my music, but that's probably not a selling point for you since you seem to be talking about home usage more than anything.
So I would like to switch my recommendation to agree with the Sennheiser HD580 fans. One of my friends has these and never fails to remind me about how good they are, a fact that I'm already well-aware and insanely jealous of after experiencing Serious Sam while using those bad boys.
Opps... thanks Derek. Actually I use the 500 series also. They are an awesome headset. Very comfortable.
I've been using Sennheiser 535's and they've performed superbly. They're also extremely comfortable. I paid about $65-75 on Ubid.com a year ago or so...
Those are what I have at the office. The headphone jack in my Mac G4 has enough oomph to drive them to a moderate level, but my Dell PCs don't. 600 ohms impedence is a lot (standard headphone impedence is 80 ohms).
Surround sound headphones...
What happened to surround sound headphones? You know, the ones with the DSP chips for aureal spacialization?
uhm, go to posts up. Assuming we're talking about the same thing :D
Anything made by Sennheiser that retails for over $40 is a good bet.
Heres the Newegg page for Sennheiser headphones. It contains customer reviews for each product as well.
if you can find them the HD-280 pro are excellent (though they're discontinued). they are Circumaural (fit completely over your ears) are extremely comfortable with zero break in period with great sound.
Loyd, would these be the Beyers you're talking about? The HD580s also look nice. I'll probably try to hunt down those two first. I found a few reviews of the Grados and they just look painful, but I'll give them a try before passing judgement.
Slightly newer model, but essentially the same.
As someone else noted, at least try going to a store and giving any headphones a listen (and also to see how they feel) before buying.
Loyd
Sony headphones suck. I'm sorry, but they do. All they have going for them is mainstream brand name appeal. For the same money you can get a set of Sennheisers that are superior in every way. Their studio headphones are good, but nobody is going to spend $1200 for a set to use in gaming.
If you really don't mind spending a nice chunk of change, get the Sennheiser HD600s and an amp. Most amps require individual stereo output jacks, so get a Hercules GameTheater XP card with the big blue box. Trust me, you will not regret it.
I'm pretty much tone-deaf and have difficulty distinguishing between a $500 and $5000 set of speakers, but the Sennheisers are really in a different class altogether. Grados sound just as good, but the comfort is not there.
-Jakub (unabashed Sennheiser whore)
if you don't need a mic i recommend the sony rf940 wireless head phones or their newest model. You might also want to look for some binaural headsets. Binaural gives you the feeling of surround with only two speakers. I don't know if the recording has to be binaural or not.
In anti-Jakub fashion, I recommend Sony headphones from the "Studio Monitor" series (link here) (I have model MDR-V500DJ near the bottom of the page). These headphones have excellent quality. I am a completel music/sound quality freak (I can hear the difference between 128, 160, 192, and 256k MP3 rips) and these kick teh ass. They'll run you about $80 at a Fry's or other rape-your-ass electronics outfit. Also they have a nice long cable so you don't have to sit with your head tilted down towards your PC.
Actual e-mail from Jason Cross to me dated October, 2001:A word of warning - with quality headphones, you may suddenly find that you hear a lot more distortion and degradation in those 128k MP3s than you used to, especially when you compare to better bitrates or the original CD. It can create an uncontrollable impulse to re-rip CDs at higher bitrates.
Uh, yeah.Okay, I gave it a listen. Granted, Ben Folds Five isn't my favorite, but I listened intently anyway.
Equipment: Used Grado SR-125 headphones plugged directly into a SB Audigy. I listened to all tracks with Winamp (2.76) and again with Windows Media Player XP.
CBR 128 MP3 - sucks the poo from the poo tree.
VBR ~128 MP3 - can't tell the difference from the WAV.
CBR 128 WMA8 - also can't tell the difference from the WAV.
Just to be sure I loaded up the WAV and all three compressed formats for one song into a playlist, hit the random button, and hit the back/forward track shortcut keys a lot without looking at the screen. I honestly could hear NO discernable difference between the VBR MP3, CBR WMA8, and WAV. I couldn't pick out which one was playing. The CBR MP3 sounded like...mud.
I guess we could hypothesize that you have a dog's hearing and your
Sennheisers are just worlds better than my Grados, but I just don't see how, even then, there's enough room in there for a MAJOR difference. Even if I assume you've got both much better headphones AND hearing, I can't believe the difference would be anything more than minor.
Anyway. Variable bit rate (VBR) is a dramatic improvement in MP3 sound quality-- at least when ripping using LAME. I typically go for VBR that ends up around 160kb/sec average, but it can vary pretty widely (from 120kb/sec to nearly 200kb/sec) depending on the song. VBR is clearly superior; the dynamic range of the music is captured so much better when you can use (duh) more bits for the difficult sections and less bits for the silent/easy sections.
128kbps MP3s are definitely nowhere near CD quality, though you may or may not be able to tell depending on your sound setup. But with nice headphones, there's no excuse.
Also, I vote for any Sennheiser model. You may or may not need an amp with the fancy $300+ model. I find that I don't typically need one, but I have to turn the volume WAY up-- to around the 80% level. That's usually enough range to get way louder than you would ever need anyhow.
I use Sony MDR-V600 headphones; they cover the entire ear, blocking external noise and sound great.
Does anyone else think it's pretty tacky to post someone's email without asking them first, regardless of what is said?
SIGH...
Does anyone else think it's creepy that wumpus still has (and remembered that he has) two-year old emails from Jason Cross, whom he barely even knows?
I'm getting a mental image of wumpus hunched over his keyboard, perusing his vast database of Everything That Everyone I've Ever Met has Ever Said, cross-referencing files on the off-chance that someday he can use them in an argument.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote