Yes, i broke my Soundblaster headset, damn fragile plastic parts... So i need a new one. I have my eyes on those 3 below, but anything good and cheapish (under 130€) is ok. -Asus ROG Vulcan Pro 7.1 -Creative Sound Blaster Tactic 3D Rage Wireless -Razer BlackShark Expert 2.0 Gaming Headset
I use an Astro a40, and I love it. It's super comfortable, and it has great quality sound. http://www.astrogaming.com/a40-pc-headset/3AH42-HBX9W-139.html
Headsets are terrible if you want to use them for anything beyond communication. https://wiki.installgentoo.com/images/d/d9/1316372662626.png
Jacob is pretty much right, the very best options for audio quality are generally only available as headphones. There are exceptions that have good quality and a built in microphone but they are the exception. If you don't mind having a seperate mic then they are the way to go. I can speak about the razer black sharks, I've had the battlefield 3 edition since it launched and recently picked up a second standard one for modding. First off ignore all of their marketing about what inspired it. Its inspired by the standard basic flying headset, and primarily a fixed wing headset. Most all helicopter pilots, both military and civilian, wear helmets. The key here is that they were inspired by a flight headset, everything about it is slightly smaller and lighter build quality than the real deal. The sad part is that they are actually the same price as a decent set of flight headsets so you aren't the one seeing the monetary savings in the cheaper build quality. The good: they have good sound along with great noise isolation. Its a passive noise isolation but is great if you have loud roommates. I actually will use them from time to time when mixing sound for live performances where I need to isolate out the ambient noise of the venue or house speaker system. I have no complaints with the microphone on them, granted both of mine have had problems. One wasn't tightened down so it unscrewed itself with use but was repairable by just screwing it back together. The other I bought because the guy thought the mic was bad but it just has a couple of scratchy spots depending on how it is rotated when plugged in. I have to work to get it to mess up most of the time so for $45 it was a good deal. The bad: the headsets are tight. I will pull them off if I'm not in game just to avoid the pressure they put on my head. I've not found a good way to get around this outside of totally taking them apart and bending the metal headband to reduce the tension. If you do want something with a built in microphone take a look at turtle beach, I have an older x11 that I use with my xbox360. It is just a great all around gaming headset. It makes me actually want to buy a Zseven or XPseven to try out their surround style headsets for my computer.
if you want wireless (like I prefer) the Afterglow is what I've been using for the last year or so, after going through about 5 other varieties of wireless headsets (fuckin' cheap plastic parts!) the Afterglow is the only one I've found (for a reasonable price) that has a steel frame through all the way through. (yes I have proved it, it's still got cheap plastic parts, but steel frame keeps those from really compromising the headset when they inevitably break) I'm sure eventually it'll go out, but it if lasts 2 years that's still a year longer than every other wireless headset I've had and that cuts my headset expense in half. Plus it's got a cool glow effect, not really a selling point for me, but hey, it's there. I also like how it's got a dial for scaling the sound between the communications (such as teamspeak) output and the regular sounds, as well as the volume control. It also comes with cables allowing you to use it for multiple other platforms, XBox Ps3/4 and just straight up running it off your phone/tablet/music device with a regular cable.
You cannot get them anymore it seems like, and I am not sure how the new ones are. But the Sennheiser PC360 is a very very good headset. I am not sure what the direct replacement for it is. Every other headset I have ever had that was cheaper then this has been junk. Either they sounded like crap or they were cheaply made, or they were uncomfortable. I can wear my Sennheisers for 10 hours and no even realize they are on. They sound amazing and they are built to last. So, if you can afford some Sennheisers, that would be my suggestion.
Definitely what gizhmo said, I have had the 350s since 08 and I love them. I have seen reviews of the 360s as well but they are open so I imagine they "leak" more sound, in both directions so it's a preference thing. I still see them both now and then here so I think you can find them pretty easily.
I bought both actually, first the 350s and then I sent them back fro the 360s. The closed 350s actually hurt my ears.
Ahh, well as I said. I think it is a preference things. If you are doing the external mic thing that Jacob mentioned I can recommend the ATH-M50s which were actually the headphones used in that picture. I bought them to have at work and I am really happy with them as well.
As many said dont buy a HS. Gaming Gear is usually very overpriced. Having said that I would recommend either the Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro or DT 990 Pro I own the Dt 880 which is priced at about 200€, but Ive also heard only good things about the DT 990 and DT 770. And the best thing about them, which is why I ultimately recommend them apart from their really good sound quality, is their excellent comfort. The Dt 880 which has basically the same chassis as the 770 and 990 is the most comfortable HP I have ever worn and I can use it for hours without feeling any pain or being uncomfortable. Main difference between 770 and 990 is that the 770 is closed while the 990 is open. Meaning, less sound gets trough from the outside and less sound gets out to the area around you while wearing the 770 and the bass is alot stronger. The 990 leaks alot more sound and you can hear sound from outside more too, but they are more clear and bright with a bigger soundstage. So it comes down to your preferences and wether you still want to hear your wife/gf call you to dinner or not. The problem with the Beyerdynamic HPhones is that they need quite some power to drive them loud since they have 250 OHM resistance. So you need a good Soundcard on your motherboard, or a dedicated soundcard or an external AMP. I can still get them to fairly high volume on my laptop which most likely doesnt have a good souncard, so its only really a problem if you want really high volume. If you dont have that and dont want to buy an AMP/Souncard I would recomend the AKG K550 Premium Only has 32 OHM resistance which can basically even be used with Smartphones or MP3-players. However if you have a small head they are kind of out of the question as they need a good seal on the head to sound good. The Audio Technica ATH M-50 has already been mentioned, altough from what Ive read its not quite as comfortable. If you still are dead set on a HS and want to possibly save some money too I recommend the Func HS-260 for 70€. You cant get a better HS, be it in sound quality, comfort or Mic quality for that price. Apparently also one of the few very good Gaming-HS, even better than the Func from what Ive read, but 20€ more expensive, at a price of 90€ are the QPAD QH.90 Closed and QPAD QH-85 Open As you might guess the differences are again the QH-90 being closed and the QH-85 open.
