A while ago I borrowed my friend's legit noise-canceling headphones and was blown away at how different the sound was compared to my bad $10 over the ear headphones.  A few weeks back I lost my bad headphones, so now I have a chance to buy something good.
 
However, I also play a lot of online PC games, so I am searching to buy a mic as well.  Ideally the headphone would come with a mic (headset), but I am not averse to buying headphones with a separate mic if the quality is better (for both the mic and the headphones).
 
Ideally I'd like to spend <= $70, but if there's something amazing for say $80
 
Right now, these are the options I've found:
Razer Carcharias: http://www.amazon.com/Razer-Carcharias-Gaming-Headset-Black/dp/B001PTH0VW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1289716888&sr=8-1
Plantronics 995 (it's wireless): http://www.amazon.com/Plantronics-Audio-995-Wireless-Headset/dp/B001SEQN3U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1287242118&sr=8-1
Creative HS-1000: http://www.amazon.com/Creative-Labs-HS-1000-Fatal1ty-Technology/dp/B001EVBUSK
Creative HS-980: http://www.amazon.com/Creative-Labs-HS-980-Fatal1ty-Professional/dp/B002BH3JDA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1289715162&sr=1-1
 
I'm leaning towards the Carcharias, but a few things are keeping me back
1) Why is the HS-1000 so cheap (it's even cheaper than the HS-980)?  Is there something bad about USB headphones?  One of the reviewers says it didn't work well for him without a powered USB hub.  Is this likely to happen to me too?  I don't have a powered USB hub.
 
2) What does surround sound mean for headphones?I hear a lot about surround sound (i.e. 5.1).  What does surround sound mean on headphones?  I thought the point of surround sound was that you have several speakers positioned around you.  How is surround sound different from stereo (for example, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUDTlvagjJA seems like surround sound even with my normal stereo headphones).
From http://hometheater.about.com/od/headphones/qt/headsurround.htm it seems that surround sound is a feature of software and not hardware (they say surround sound works with any headphones).
 
3) I can read reviews that say individually each of these has good sound, but it's very rare to find comparisons.  Being unable to try all of these myself, I turn to people (this forums) who are experts on this stuff
 
Price range: Under $70 (willing to go slightly over if it calls for it)
Usage: Gaming and Music (all genres)
Other hardware: This will be used on my laptop.  Built-in sound card (realtek high definition or something like that).  No special amplifiers.
 
Sound quality is a priority over microphone quality, but not an overriding priority (i'd still like a good microphone).  Also, comfort is of course a factor. Also a cheaper price is a big plus, but not if it's bad quality.

Can't really help you here... but I have a Logitech G35 and I pretty much don't use it at all. I will stick with my AD700 for games.   ($86 on amazon, still over your budget even without a mic...)
 
By quickly looking at spec, I wold probably go with HS-1000.  Not sure about the realtek chip, but the HS-1000 is usb dac and process3d positioning while the 980 and razer are regular 3.5mm jack and I don't know if your sound card will give you good positioning .  Velour pad is probably more comfortable than the fake leather others have.  The mic is ugly on the Razer. On the HS-1000, the phone is ugly, but atleast the mic is detachable... 
 
Yeah, trivial, but I don't know...
 
Hopefully somebody will actually be able to help you. gluck.

I have been using the Steelseries 4h for about a year, and for me it works flawlessly. One nice feature is the retractable mic, you can just tuck it into the cup when not using it. It is a fairly cheap headset as well. It is rather light, but for long gaming sessions I don't see that as a drawback, quite the opposite.
Also the cord has a built in volume control and mic sensitivity setting which I find useful as you dont have to go into audio settings to lower/raise the volume. The cable is dual entry though which you might compare to the single entry of the creative set. I only play MMO's and RTS so I don't know how good the positioning aspect of the 4h really is.
 
The sound is pretty okay for casual listening. It's actually better than I expected it to be, with a sufficient amount of slam and clear highs. I'm pretty sure there are headsets with better SQ as you move up in budget, but for the price asked you really can't go wrong with these. If I want to listen purely to music I use another can anyways.
 
Hope that helped!
 
Maans

How would the sound quality compare for the Creative HS-1000 vs. the SteelSeries 4H, since they're about the same price?  I don't know a lot about audio tech, so I can't really tell from the specifications.  Also I'm still boggled why the HS-1000 is cheaper than the HS-980.

the hs-1000 are the older model, they can be found all over ebay cheap. they use x-fi software which is good, but the headphones themselves are harsh and thudding (like a lot of 'bassy' gaming headsets)
 
i have-and love-the razer. its an open air headset and actually sound like a real headphone
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/452710/razer-carcharias-headset-a-headfi-ers-impressions
 
for a headphone+ mic on abudget get a jvc harx700

Any other head-fiers want to chime in?  Especially on the Plantronic, and the Carcharias vs. Steelseries 4H, etc.

I like plantronics products, they have done nothing but make headsets for like over 10 years, and they are still in business and an industry leader so that counts for something.
 
I am against Razer on the other hand, I find they are like bose, monster, etc that you hear a lot of talk about here.  Meaning overpriced for what you get.
 
Logitech makes some decent ones and often has great sales, with black friday near you may score something on your list way cheaper than MSRP just keep your eyes out for a deal.
 
 
Now my ultimate answer though is get none of them
 
As you can already tell when looking for a "headset" your choices are quite limited and for what you pay you dont get much sound quality compared to an equal priced good pair of headphones.  I think the best thing to do is get some good headphones and then just use a desktop mic or a clip on mic.
 
Zalman makes one that clips right to your headphone cable, and I also just recently did a very simple non destructive mod to my audio technica headphones to add a microphone boom for $10

Get the AD700 + Zalman clip on mic, will cost you about $90 or so. Much better than the ones mentioned. Save up the extra, it'll be worth it.

If I go the headphone + Zalman clip-on mic route, are there any alternatives cheaper than the AD700?  I saw the jvc harx700 mentioned.  Is it the best model in that price range?
 
AD700 + Zalman is over $100, which is a bit out of my price range, but I would be willing to spend the extra money if the audio quality difference is REALLY significant.
 
Will the AD700 still perform well without a custom sound card/amplifier and what not?
 
Also, does anyone have experience using the Zalman mic for gaming?  It's omnidirectional, so I'm a bit hesitant.

Quote:

ourfpshero said:

the hs-1000 are the older model, they can be found all over ebay cheap. they use x-fi software which is good, but the headphones themselves are harsh and thudding (like a lot of 'bassy' gaming headsets)
 
i have-and love-the razer. its an open air headset and actually sound like a real headphone
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/452710/razer-carcharias-headset-a-headfi-ers-impressions
 
for a headphone+ mic on abudget get a jvc harx700

Click to expand...

 
I just noticed that you actually own a jvc harx700.  Can you comment on the sound quality compared to the carcharias?  Which one has better sound quality?
 
Also, how much of a noticeable improvement is the Carcharias boom mike vs. the zalman mic?
 
edit: Also, I have read some places that the JVC HARX700 sounds bad without "Dolby Headphone".  What is Dolby Headphone?  Is it extra software I'd need to buy?
 
edit2: Also, would the JVC HARX700 also not sound as good with my default soundboard?  Is it pointless trying to get good headphones without a good soundcard?

the jvc sounds better than the razer in my opinion. its a bigger, bassier sound.
a zalman mic is an omnidirectional mic- it picks up everything- key taps, kids in next room, etc. most headsets use unidirectional mics and mostly pick up the user only.
 
dolby headphone converts surround sound (like 5.1 speaker output from a game) and converts it into headphone surround. its for games and movies only. certain sound cards-like xonars-have it as a feature. you can get a xonar dg for less than 40$ shipped. it has a built in small amp and dolby headphone

Nothing wrong with omnidirectional, I hope your using push to talk for speech and if so the idea of picking up background is not really important unless your like in the middle of a train station.
 
If your willing to sacrifice your own personal sound quality that you are listing too so you can have a better microphone thats up to you
 
No headset is going to be close to a pair of headphones in that same price range, the markup in cost is substantial.