Which headphones should I buy? (more details inside)

newn · May 12, 2014

Currently I'm using Roccat Kave - amazing headset due to the multiple speakers - it's very immersive when watching movies or playing games, and I like how it encloses my ears so that I'm sort of isolated from the outside noises when listening to music (and doing the things above).

However it's broken and is held together by tape, so I'm looking to buy something new. I thought why not wireless? I like walking around while talking to people on Skype, articulating and all, and there isn't going to be that annoying wire that'll keep me from moving freely.

I have a few concerns though: while I'm low on budget (maybe up to $150-175?), I like high quality (and I'm sensitive to it - able to see the difference without trying), which Roccat Kave was able to provide me with compared to all the other headphones I had before that. Wireless however, may be limited in quality due to it being wireless, not to mention that it may have latency when playing competitive games (battlefield, red orchestra, counter strike), although I'm not sure if those things are true.

So here are some bullet points:

■ I'm gonna listen to music, play games (including competitive where reaction is very important) and watch movies
■ Currently I've a 5.1 headset with multiple speakers on each side (Roccat Kave) and I love how immersive it is - that being said, I want something that'd provide me with at least somewhat similar experience
■ I need a microphone - I often use Skype
■ Despite my budget being low, I like and notice high quality - Roccat Kave was able to provide me with that so far.
■ I hate headphones that don't cover my ears - I want it to cover my ears and "isolate" me from the environment (like Roccat Kave)
■ Wireless is a nice extra, but if it's impossible - I'd settle for wired

Note: My prices would be around the same as those at amazon.co.uk, I'm not from the US.

ttimberlak443 · May 12, 2014

With wireless headsets, you're generally going to be paying more than what they're worth. Headsets like the Logitech G930's sound alright at low volumes, but the low end becomes a distorted mess when you raise the volume to a fairly high level. I never noticed any latency issues with any of the wireless headsets that I've used, but the sound isn't the best.

If you aren't opposed to keeping a wired headset and don't mind the idea of an open ear design, I would strongly suggest looking for some Sennheiser PC360's. They have recently been replaced by the G4ME ONE, but internally they appear to be identical. With that being said, you could probably find a pair on Amazon in your price range.

They are rated at 50 ohms, so a sound card would be nice to have, but you don't need to get one immediately if you don't want to. As long as you have a fairly new motherboard, the on-board shouldn't be so bad that they can't drive these.

This is the headset that I'm using right now and they sound great with amazing directional sound right off the bat. The mic is more than good enough for Skype.

If you don't want an open design, the PC350's are their closed counterpart. They are rated at 150 ohms, though, so a sound card (even something cheaper like the Xonar DGX) would be recommended. The mic is identical on both models.

newn · May 12, 2014

ttimberlak443 :

Sennheiser PC360 here costs almost $300, around $10-20 less than G4ME ONE, same as PC350s. I hate how big the price differences are in Europe sometimes - shipping can cost almost as much as the item itself.

Appreciate the suggestion though, and also I'm curious about the ohms - as I understand it means that the speakers are more powerful, which means they need more power regulation, which essentially means an amp, and an on-board amp wouldn't offer that. Do I understand it correctly? Also, Roccat Kave is rated for 32 ohms and it sounds so powerful to me compared to any other headphones I had - I wonder how the 150 ohm ones would sound!

shotgunz · May 12, 2014

If the price is too much, the sennheiser hd558/598 give the same sound quality but sadly do not come with a microphone.

Open headphones do not block out sound but the interaction with the air behind the driver gives the headphone lower distortion, has a bigger sound stage so can place sounds farther away from your ears so you can hear each instrument in songs more clearly and hear what's going on in fps games better.

shotgunz · May 12, 2014

Since you are interested about the ohms, I'll explain why headphones have different ohm ratings.

The higher amount of ohms a headphone has, the better the damping factor or control over its driver as it is able to generate a stronger magnetic field to move the drivers (the part that makes sound)

Notice the lower amount of resonations with the higher ohm versions

Most things you will plug your headphones into will have around 10ohms of output impedance. The lower the output impedance, the higher the damping factor ratio will be. Here's how 10 ohms of output impedance can change the frequency response of an in-earphone with 23 ohms of impedance from its original frequency response.

Plug in an 120 ohm headphone into the same source and you will have a much lower variance in its original frequency response. But you may not get enough volume if your source is not powerful enough.

I have a dedicated DAC+headphone amp with an output impedance of under 0.3 ohms so i do not have to worry as much about the ohm rating on a headphone.

Edited due to pictures not showing up*

ttimberlak443 · May 12, 2014

Well, it would seem that some of the more powerful options are out of your price range. Shotgunz gave a very good explanation of ohms though.

If you would really like something wireless, the Logitech G930's aren't terrible and I have heard good things about the Corsair Vengeance 2000's. Of those two headsets, I have only used the G930's. As I mentioned above, they sound pretty good at lower volumes (still not quite up to par with the PC360, which is to be expected), but once you start to raise the volume or there is a good deal of low end in a game, it becomes extremely distorted.

I haven't listened to them for more than 5 minutes, but I have heard great things about the Plantronic GameCom 780's. I believe they are a USB headset that can give you simulated 7.1 surround sound. The little bit that I listened to them, I remember being pleasantly surprised, although I didn't have time to truly test them out. Just about everywhere I look, though, people seem to like them. I would maybe give those a look. You wouldn't have to worry about any sound card since they do everything over USB and that shouldn't be a problem as long as they stay with the computer.

daverichards1 · May 14, 2014

Hello,
Sennheiser headphones are the best, especially the wireless headphones. you can the outstanding headphones, earphones, headsets at an reasonable price.
For more details visit their official webstore: http

/www.tomshardware.com/forum/125266-13-best-gamer-headset#12966842

Search

Which headphones should I buy? (more details inside)

newn

Distinguished

ttimberlak443

Honorable

newn

Distinguished

shotgunz

Distinguished

shotgunz

Distinguished

ttimberlak443

Honorable

daverichards1

Honorable

Similar threads

TRENDING THREADS

Share this page