Headphones for PC

[sniper360]

HI all,

I'm looking to purchase a set of headphones for light gaming. I don't need a mic or anything spectacular, just a set that may help me hear better in 1st person games. I find that my tri speaker system works ok for this, but I have heard that there are sounds I'm not hearing...? Anyway, I don't know much about specs, so if anyone knows what minimal specs I would need to get what I want it would be a great starting point for me.

Thanks in advanvce

 

[tiny voices]

Audio Technica M50 are the best value for money headphones there are.

 

[link1021l]

Audio Technica M50 are the best value for money headphones there are.

He said light gaming. He doesn't need a $200 headset, he's looking for the minimal that would be needed. =/

Really any would work, if you're on a budget, something like http://www.amazon.com/Sony-MDRZX100-Series-Stereo-Headphones/dp/B004RKQM8I would be fine.

 

[tiny voices]

It is not a $200 headset. It is a $120 headset.

I would not buy those junk Sony's. He said he wants GOOD audio, not headphones that re WORSE than his speaker setup, like those sony's. If he wants to stay under $100, the Noontec Zoro are the best bet. They are a true 100% neutral audiophile headphone for $50. I own a pair and LOVE them. They make dre beats solos look like crap.

 

[VincentP]

What you hear is as much about the headphones as it is about the sound device.
If you use USB headphones the sound device is integrated. These are good for surround headphones and they have a microphone. An example would be the Logitech G35 (wired) or G930 (wireless).
The Corsair Vengeance range are similar.

If you start moving towards high end stereo headphones, you need to look at a decent sound card.
This would be something like the Asus Xonar U7 or the Creative Sound Blaster Z.
The Audio Technica M50 mentioned above looks ok to be used with these.

 

[tiny voices]

I disagree. I have a pair of Audio Technica M80s and I can hear no difference at all between my integrated audio and my roommate's Sound Blaster Z. Games, movies, and youtube all sound identical. The only difference is when listening to a FLAC file.

 

[VincentP]

I disagree. I have a pair of Audio Technica M80s and I can hear no difference at all between my integrated audio and my roommate's Sound Blaster Z. Games, movies, and youtube all sound identical. The only difference is when listening to a FLAC file.

Integrated audio varies a lot from board to board. Some are good, some even have an integrated op amp, while others are just rubbish.
For games, what these sound cards give you is virtual surround sound not possible with onboard audio.
Low impedance head phones are not kind to most onboard solutions either.

 

[tiny voices]

Pretty much any motherboard will support 5.2 or 7.1 surround. It is standard.

My board has 7.1+2 surround audio.

 

[VincentP]

Pretty much any motherboard will support 5.2 or 7.1 surround. It is standard.

My board has 7.1+2 surround audio.

This is not the same thing.

These onboard audio solutions can output decoded surround sound through 5 or 7 channels plus LFE channels. To make of this you need something that can accept all those different channels (front channels through one jack, surround though another, etc.)
These can also output PCM sound to a device that can decode it, like an AV receiver or amplifier. In this case you may only have a single stereo connection from the audio device to the receiver, but this is encoded digital sound.

In order to hear surround sound through a pair of stereo headphones, the audio device needs to decode the surround sound and then create a stereo output to simulate this surround sound.
Asus calls this "Surround virtualizer". I think for creative it is included in SBX Pro Studio.

In terms of relative quality of onboard audio, here is a table of Realtek chipsets with output SNR ranging from 75 dB to 110 dB:
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Audio-Codec-Comparison-Table/520/2

 

[sniper360]

What you hear is as much about the headphones as it is about the sound device.
If you use USB headphones the sound device is integrated. These are good for surround headphones and they have a microphone. An example would be the Logitech G35 (wired) or G930 (wireless).
The Corsair Vengeance range are similar.

If you start moving towards high end stereo headphones, you need to look at a decent sound card.
This would be something like the Asus Xonar U7 or the Creative Sound Blaster Z.
The Audio Technica M50 mentioned above looks ok to be used with these.

Good to know. What if my motherboard has a decent sound system (suppossed to anyway), it's a MSI Z87-GD65 mobo. It states it has Realtek ALC1150 Audio 7.1 Channels. Would I still require a sound card?

 

[VincentP]

What you hear is as much about the headphones as it is about the sound device.
If you use USB headphones the sound device is integrated. These are good for surround headphones and they have a microphone. An example would be the Logitech G35 (wired) or G930 (wireless).
The Corsair Vengeance range are similar.

If you start moving towards high end stereo headphones, you need to look at a decent sound card.
This would be something like the Asus Xonar U7 or the Creative Sound Blaster Z.
The Audio Technica M50 mentioned above looks ok to be used with these.

Good to know. What if my motherboard has a decent sound system (suppossed to anyway), it's a MSI Z87-GD65 mobo. It states it has Realtek ALC1150 Audio 7.1 Channels. Would I still require a sound card?

That motherboard has fantastic audio.
The ALC1150 has an output SNR of 115dB.
Additionally the motherboard has an amplifier built in and support for SBX Pro Studio for virtual surround sound.
You don't need a sound card.

 

[tiny voices]

I have the ALC898, so I might be a bit biased as it was the best onboard chipset when it came out. The ALC1150 is VERY good as well. Basically the best NOW available integrated.

As stated, you have no need for a sound card at all.

 

[sniper360]

So I went to Newegg to check on all the specs, and reading the information it says I could use just regular stereo headphones and get great sound. I'm sure it's great but would it workas good as surround and what's the real difference? So my original question at this point is moot if all I need is stereo headphones.

 

[tiny voices]

If you are buying headphones, not a PC headset, you will not have surround. You need to buy a PC gaming USB headset to get true surround sound in a headset.

The audio quality of the PC gaming headset, no matter how expensive WILL NOT be as good as professional headphones like the Audio Technicas when it comes to pure audio quality.

 

[VincentP]

If you are buying headphones, not a PC headset, you will not have surround. You need to buy a PC gaming USB headset to get true surround sound in a headset.

The audio quality of the PC gaming headset, no matter how expensive WILL NOT be as good as professional headphones like the Audio Technicas when it comes to pure audio quality.

This is not true.
SBX Pro Studio will produce virtual surround through a set of stereo headphones. This will be just as good as any USB headset with virtual surround, better than some. This will work from the cheapest computer headset to the highest end professional headphones, although the better headphones will sound better.

sniper360, any stereo headphones or headset will give you virtual surround sound. The better quality headphones will give you better quality sound for music or games.

 

[sniper360]

So with my motherboard I only really need a good stereo set to get sounds above, below and behind? If so That's the rout I'll be going in. Any suggestions...

 

[VincentP]

Your motherboard and the associated software will create virtual surround sound through a set of stereo headphones.
This is not as good as actually having surround speakers, but it is as good as any headset with virtual surround sound.

As far as headphone suggestions the Audio Technica M50 headphones get good reviews for quality at the price they are.
The Noontec Zoro headphones suggested by tiny voices look pretty good too.
Note that these are both balanced headphones designed to reproduce music as it was recorded.
Some people just like thumping base that drowns out everything else, for that you can look up various headphones raving about how good the base is.
These are both also headphones with no microphone included. A microphone generally means a gaming headset which won't be quite as good for music.

 

[tiny voices]

I love my Zoro's. They are everything the Beats Solo's should be and more. Look great, have a detachable cable, and are very comfy. For the money, they really cannot be beat. My roommate has Beats Solos and he actually prefers my Zoros. The Beats have "louder" bass but it is very muddy and drowns everything out. The Zoros bass, although it is not as loud, hits MUCH "harder". He said it best as the Zoros make you feel like you are at a concert, where the beats make you feel like you are 1 mile away from a concert listening through a $5 microphone.