Gaming headsets

Update on the sennheiser gsp600s. I have sorted out the comfort/tightness issue.

Overall, this is a quality headset, but I will say that the price tag is heavy-for mine on sale for $200, and there are a few improvements over the gsp300, but whether they are worth $150 more than the 300s would depend on the gamer.

The headband being wider and the ability to adjust it is nice, the boom mic seems better, and the hybrid material in the head cups is more comfortable than the faux leather material of 300s.

I still don’t think I have enough time logged to have burned these in yet. They are not comfortable enough for me to use for movies-only because I have so many options at my disposal.

The sound seems improved as well with stronger bass, but I honestly could not say for sure because I only used the 300s for two weeks before ordering these and then selling them.

If I knew that I would have to wait almost two months for them to be delivered, and with the improvements over the previous model, I am not sure I would order these again.

I just prefer my Phillips shp9500’s in every way-but I will say that the noise canceling qualities and tight fit seem to make me focus more on the game, and I play a bit better, but i like being able to listen to music while playing and with these, that is hard.
 
nhbbear said:
Just so long as you are not getting the flights(hyper x wireless)for Xbox-not wireless for Xbox and the chat does not work unless on wireless mode. This made me pretty disappointed with hyper x, and I loved my cloud 2’s.


I have really liked my plantronics rig 800s. Pretty good sound for gaming headsets, 24 hour battery life, comfy as all hell.

Other than those, I tried the steelseries arctic 7, but I found those much too quiet and the sound seemed muffled(explosions and such). And I had the Astro a50 version 3 for about a month. My two biggest complaints were the mic did not always want to work and i would have to restart everything and the $300 price tag, which now that i use actual headphones, seems so ridiculously high.
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Sorta gave up on the Wifi Headset and bought the HyperX Cloud II since most people seem to like it.

thanks
 
Okay, I love these HyperX Clouds, and they're definitely my go-to gaming headsets, but I missed my babies too long, the Sennheiser HD 600, and now I have a pair of their successors on the way:
https://en-us.sennheiser.com/high-quality-headphones-around-ear-audio-surround-hd-650


1416412475118.png



Made with the hands of sweet Irish labor. These have a successor themselves in the Sennheiser HD 660S:
Sennheiser HD 660S - Audiophile Open Back Headphone
 

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Not too happy about going to war and all that, but otherwise it's been a good day:

IMG_20180413_112740.jpg
 
Madmick said:
Not too happy about going to war and all that, but otherwise it's been a good day:

View attachment 368301
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Ok, I am jealous. Have you had a chance to use them yet? I am considering getting a pair of the 600s. I am also circling the monoprice 560s(planar magnetic), but I could get a used set of 600s for I Lt a little more, so I am not sure I could pass that up.

So i have the 598s, are the 600s a big improvement over the 500 series?
 
nhbbear said:
Ok, I am jealous. Have you had a chance to use them yet?
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I'm wearing them right now.
I am considering getting a pair of the 600s. I am also circling the monoprice 560s(planar magnetic), but I could get a used set of 600s for I Lt a little more, so I am not sure I could pass that up.

So i have the 598s, are the 600s a big improvement over the 500 series?
Click to expand...
Yeah, the HD 6xx & 7xx series are sort of a tier above the HD 598, but I definitely doubt they're so much better it would be worth the $285 to buy them. Some who have owned both offer detailed side-by-sides don't seem to be that impressed with the HD 600:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sennheiser-hd598-vs-hd600.571752/#post-7754531
Others disagree, and appreciate the HD 600:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sennheiser-hd598-vs-hd600.571752/#post-10272822

I'm in the group of listeners who adore "neutrality" in sound balancing, and love the HD 600's for that quality. Principally even those who diss the HD 600 seem to believe or acknowledge that the HD 600 is a tier above, but only with a powerful headphone amp and DAC combo to drive it, with the "cheap" combos they mention costing $75-$100+.
 
Madmick said:
I'm wearing them right now.

Yeah, the HD 6xx & 7xx series are sort of a tier above the HD 598, but I definitely doubt they're so much better it would be worth the $285 to buy them. Some who have owned both offer detailed side-by-sides don't seem to be that impressed with the HD 600:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sennheiser-hd598-vs-hd600.571752/#post-7754531
Others disagree, and appreciate the HD 600:
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/sennheiser-hd598-vs-hd600.571752/#post-10272822

I'm in the group of listeners who adore "neutrality" in sound balancing, and love the HD 600's for that quality. Principally even those who diss the HD 600 seem to believe or acknowledge that the HD 600 is a tier above, but only with a powerful headphone amp and DAC combo to drive it, with the "cheap" combos they mention costing $75-$100+.
Click to expand...

That is on my list, to get a good dac and amp, but I don’t listen via computer, phone and iPod only, so i do t know if the amp will work with a phone.

I ran a thread on reddit, but i got no responses. I am leaning toward the hifi 400is because they are so different from every thing else that i have. I told my wife, and she said “ you are a grown man, and I am not going to tell you not to, but you realize you have a problem, right?” When I start giving handjobs for headphones(great name for a band) then i will admit my problem. But headphones just give me joy, Damn’t!
 
So, I couldn’t decide which headphones to get. The Phillips x2 fidelio jumped in price by $117, so they were out of the running.

So I decided on the monoprice 560 for $145 used. Then the price on the hifi man 400i dropped almost $50, so I bought those and then tried to cancel the monoprice, but I was not able to cancel-even though it was less than an hour later. It was some shady shit, so I now have both headphones en route.

The hifi arrive tonight. The monoprice sometime next week. My wife is less than thrilled and she does not buy my conspiracy theory about not being able to cancel the order. Hell, she has adopted my sennheiser 598s to use when nursing the baby.
 
nhbbear said:
So, I couldn’t decide which headphones to get. The Phillips x2 fidelio jumped in price by $117, so they were out of the running.

So I decided on the monoprice 560 for $145 used. Then the price on the hifi man 400i dropped almost $50, so I bought those and then tried to cancel the monoprice, but I was not able to cancel-even though it was less than an hour later. It was some shady shit, so I now have both headphones en route.

The hifi arrive tonight. The monoprice sometime next week. My wife is less than thrilled and she does not buy my conspiracy theory about not being able to cancel the order. Hell, she has adopted my sennheiser 598s to use when nursing the baby.
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The HiFi Man 400i and AKG K702 are the #1 and #2 headsets respectively under $450 for gaming I devised based on the objective measurements from the Rtings lab. Only the HifiMan Edition X, HiFiMan Sundara, Sennheiser HD 800 S, and Sennheiser HD 700 score higher using my theoretical evaluation for optimal directional accuracy and overall sound (i.e. Sound Quality, Soundstage, Imaging).

I'm particularly interested to see what you think of the HiFiMan because it's a Planar Magnetic headset.
 
I've been using a PS4 gold headset for the past couple of years and it worked really well for both my PC and PS4. One of the hinges broke a year or so ago and I've been getting by through using gorilla glue and duct tape but now the other side also broke and I do not feel like repairing it again because it will no longer fit well.

My PC has some issues in that the audio jack in the front does not work. The port in the back works. The Gold headset worked well for me because the wireless connector goes in the USB slot.

Anyways, anyone have recommendation for a headset for both PC/PS4 and ideally that uses USB and also in the range of $150 and below? I would go with the Gold again but apparently the hinges breaking is a common issue so I would rather not deal with that again. Aside frtom that I loved the headset
 
Minnja said:
I've been using a PS4 gold headset for the past couple of years and it worked really well for both my PC and PS4. One of the hinges broke a year or so ago and I've been getting by through using gorilla glue and duct tape but now the other side also broke and I do not feel like repairing it again because it will no longer fit well.

My PC has some issues in that the audio jack in the front does not work. The port in the back works. The Gold headset worked well for me because the wireless connector goes in the USB slot.

Anyways, anyone have recommendation for a headset for both PC/PS4 and ideally that uses USB and also in the range of $150 and below? I would go with the Gold again but apparently the hinges breaking is a common issue so I would rather not deal with that again. Aside frtom that I loved the headset
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I don't know for which of these the wireless base station connectors uses USB, if any, I hadn't checked, but these are the top wireless PC/PS4 headsets for under $150:
  1. Steelseries Arctis 7
  2. Logitech G533
  3. Turtle Beach Stealth 600 (PS4 version)
  4. Corsair Void Pro RGB
 
I have now acquired a pair of phillips x2 fidelios. The price has hovered over $300 for months and finally dropped to $250, so I snagged a pair and I love them. They are now my primary gaming headset and the hifi man 400i are my primary movie headsets.

The x2’s are just like the shp9500, but more comfortable, a better and more snug fit, they are sturdier. The sound is a bit better, everything is just more crisp and guitar is nice and crunchy the way I like it. I have not done a full test of all my songs that I use to test music, but what I have listened to(breaking Benjamin) sounds great.

I have almost all the headphones I want at this point. I still would like to get monoprice 1060, and a pair of sennheiser 650, but they are out of my price range at this point. The monoprice are $250, but I can’t go for those having just got the phillips.
 
I have an xbox one x and want blood pumping face melting sound late at night when fam is asleep. I like nice things so I'm willing to spend up, but no more than $300. If there's something that offers 90% of the performance of an expensive headset for less than half the price, I would consider that. I don't care a lot about having ability to chat with people. I never use a mic when I game.

Wireless

Suggestions?
 
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Looking at Corsair Vengeance Void Pro and Phillips SHP9500S. Which one is better? Shp9500s sounds good but I think I prefer wireless.
 
I think Astro A50s are the best headset for Xbox One but some people, like me, get an echo in party chat and have to adjust settings to fix it. The sound quality on the Astros is the best ive ever heard on a headset.

I also have Hyperx cloud 2s but they arent wireless.

The turtle beach stealth 700s are also good and they are wireless and you dont need a base station like the Astros, they connect wirelessly to xbox one automatically.

Sounds like you might want stealth 700s
 
Bumping this thread.

ive been using the ps4 headset but the plastic is now cracked on a few spots and they dont fit well anymore.

Whats a good headset right now? I play mostly solo games and watch tv. I enjoy the finer things in life
 
GarbageGuy said:
Bumping this thread.

ive been using the ps4 headset but the plastic is now cracked on a few spots and they dont fit well anymore.

Whats a good headset right now? I play mostly solo games and watch tv. I enjoy the finer things in life
Click to expand...

Rtings has 248 headphones/headsets reviewed in its backlog, now, and here is the special page devoted to ranking them according to the "Gaming" criteria (where, for example, having a built-in mic scores big points because most gamers don't want to fuss with detachable mics). The downside is they don't separate the big list by native console compatibility:
https://www.rtings.com/headphones/reviews/best/by-usage/gaming

For comparison & contrast here is Amazon's bestseller chart for PS4 Headsets. It's populated by a bunch of unreliable Chinese stuff that is best avoided:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/videogames/6427826011/ref=pd_zg_hrsr_videogames_1_4_last
Noteworthy Bestsellers:
  • #3 HyperX Cloud Stinger
  • #5 Sony Playstation Gold Wireless
  • #11 Turtle Beach Earforce 50p Recon (PS4)
  • #15 Steelseries Arctis 7
  • #16 Turtle Beach Stealth 600
  • #18 Turtle Beach Recon 200
  • #20 HyperX Cloud Alpha
  • #21 Astro A10
  • #31 HyperX Cloud Revolver
  • #32 HyperX Cloud Flight
  • #33 Sony Playstation Platinum Wireless
  • #46 Steelseries Arctis Pro

For PS4 these recommendations I collated from above (which I've copied below) are still probably the best wireless headsets under $100, and all can do double duty if you want to plug them into your PC to game, watch movies, listen to music, or web browse. The Turtle Beach Stealth 700 is an update to the 600, but it's $150 while the 600 is just $100, so I strongly advise purchasing the 600 I have linked below. Headphone technology-- like audio speaker technology-- is matured, and barely advances from year to year. So those will be identical or virtually identical headsets from a sound engineering point of view. It's driver technology and software that is evolving, but that's stupid for a console headset because the PS4 itself more meaningfully handles sound. The +$50 is really for the added Bluetooth antennae which gives it the ability to connect to your smartphone. If that's worth it to you, select the 700 edition from the drop-down menu below the price. The Steelseries Arctis 7 2019 Edition also carries a markup that isn't worth it. Get the Legacy if you choose that headset:
  1. Steelseries Arctis 7 [now over $100, unfortunately]
  2. Logitech G533
  3. Corsair Void Pro RGB
  4. Turtle Beach Stealth 600 (PS4 version)

If price is no concern, but you still want to go wireless, then you're after:
  1. Astro A50 PS4 (Gen3)
    1. Special Note: Mod Kit available if you like closed-back sound (meaning it blocks outside noise more aggressively)
  2. Logitech G933
    1. Special note: These are incredibly popular, and yet carry a poor Amazon customer review average (3.3)-- I don't know why, could be troll mill sabotage, so they are worth mentioning

If price is no concern, and you're after ultimate sound quality in a headset optimized for the PS4:
  1. Sennheiser GSP 600
  2. Steelseries Arctis Pro GameDAC
  3. Turtle Beach Elite Pro 2 SuperAmp

Our resident headphone enthusiast has personally reviewed the Sennheiser GSP 600:
nhbbear said:
So, after ordering a pair of these headsets at the beginning of February, I finally got my gsp600s today. I will need some more time with these for a proper opinion, but here are some early thoughts/observations.


The ear cups make for a very tight seal that cuts out almost all external sources of sound. Whether that is good or bad, depends on the person. I like to listen to music while i game, so this wasn’t exactly a negative, but I wish I could hear my music while my phone is next to my ear-you can’t.


The ear cups are small, and even though you can adjust the headband to fit any size head, the small cups always make it feel a little tight.


The look of these things are just simply awesome. So damn sexy and very well made.


The sound is great. I obviously need more time like I said, but two hours of gaming, about 30 mins of music and a movie-10 clover field lane, so I have no complaints about the sound. The music I listened to was breaking Benjamin, a few songs from FUN, and. “Where is my mind” piano cover. I plan to listen to some more songs later.


The volume knob(wallume wheel according to Damir Franc) is nice and stiff and easy to find while wearing and it does not stick out visibly-it looks like part of the design.


The boom mic has the raise to mute feature, which is nice. The boom feels sturdy and stays in place so far.


The headband is highly adjustable with sliding adjustments to fine tune and tweak the tightness.


The headband padding is thin, but soft. It does not matter, though, as it barely touches your head.


The earcup material is soft and pliable, a leather and mesh hybrid. The length of the cup is ample, but the width is just a bit on the small side. There’s a tightness and pressure right behind my ear that i can’t seem to adjust away, And this is my only complaint thus far. Maybe with more time, i will find that sweet spot that makes these perfectly comfortable.


My early thoughts are this: a high quality headset with gorgeous looks, innovative volume control and boom mic. Sound is great, comfort is good, but after 2 hours, they began to hurt just a bit behind the ear. But keep in mind that this is only a few hours of use. I expect them to loosen up and I will get better fine tuning the adjustments.
Click to expand...
 
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Mick,

What’s really sad is that i owned almost all of the 7 best headsets, the only set that I know i did not try was the audeze.

Of that list, I would rank them hyper x(2?when they were nee); the astro a50( pretty good sound for a gaming headset-yuck,i am an audio snob, and one of the most comfortable sets available, and this includes actual headphones, tthough waaaayyyy overpriced); the steel seriesv7( though j found them to be too quiet at times); the Logitech 933(actually comfortable and good sound, but the build quality seemed real shaky, they creaked when I moved and they felt like they would break); next is the Corsair(mostky a pc oriented company, very similar to Logitech imo); the Logitech433(not bad if you are low on cash, but i would go with astro stinger. Like i said, never tried the mobius.

I would add a few more options-rig 800s are even more comfortable than the astros,well it’s pretty close, but they sound good, wireless, and the battery lasts forever. Astro a-40s, less expensive version of the a50, though I never noticed much of a diff-they both run through the same dac. Turtle beach 600-wireless, real good sound, good for footsteps,but the headaets get sweaty, and I often had issues with the party chat-which is why I got rid of them and began my oddessy into headphones-thanks, Mick

And finally, the sennheiser gsp600-really good build, good clear sound, but the earcups are so small and tight and they fit so snug with their closed back, you can’t hear anything outside of the headphones. Great for footstep detection.

If you want more in depth info, check the first few pages
 
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