[Anum3ric]

Hey guys,
 
Not going to lie, I know 0 when it comes to headphones... Up until now I have been usually just going with the usual gaming headsets. Now, with BF3 coming out, I want to step it up a bit. I am building a completely new PC and going to be running the Asus Xonar Essence STX 7.1 sound card, but am very lost on what headphones I should go with for the absolute best sound quality for gaming? While the price isn't a HUGE concern, I would like to be able to keep it under $250.
 
So far all recommendations I have received have led to the Audio-Technica ATH-A700 and / or the ATH-AD700's. I want to hear birds chirping, grenades going off, screaming etc... While having some bass. I tried my friends Astro A40's and was very unimpressed, so I figured I would go the dedicated headphone route. Any suggestions other than what has already been suggested to me? And thanks, for helping out another amateur, as I am sure you guys have probably helped many.

 

[jackwess]

Im also a FPS gamer, and im using the Sennheiser pc350's. They are very accurate, and have a decent amount of bass. 

 

[Context91]

Id suggest the Denon AHD-2000's, although I haven't heard them personally. Most people think very highly of them. They aren't hard to power so you wont need an amp for them. Just like to add they are closed headphones so outside noise from your room or whatever wont seep in as easily. Which in my opinion is good for gaming.

EDIT: wait a few days on the Denon's if you plan on buying them. The price is pretty high at the moment. I usually see high 200's, 300 is kind of ridic.

 

[Gwarmi]

AKG K601 gets a bit of love with gamers. Detailed and with a bigger soundstage than most.
I'm no longer a hardcore gamer, having moved over from my aging gaming station to
a 17'' laptop as a music server, but when I was running my Auzentech Bravura 7.1 with
Counterstrike - the K601's did no wrong. Great spatial referencing for picking up
sound locations around you.
 
 

 

[yhzh]

If you are looking mostly for positional audio, the ad700 are far and away the best in their price range.
The amount of space, decent spacial precision, and light/tight bass is perfect for tracking footsteps, hearing reloads, player vocalisations, and the like.
 
At least in BC2, which I assume will be similar audio-wise to BF3, it is easy to hear people around corners/behind walls or coming from behind for a knife.
 
However, once the phones start having some heavy bass, your positioning ability will take a nose dive. Explosions gun shots and other loud/deep noises start to dominate the sound scape, unless the game is something like L4D(2) or MW2 that have really loud footsteps in the mix. 
 
To be honest, the AD700s sound too boring compared to my main phones, ultrasone pro 900s, for music, and I'm too lazy to switch back just to game, so I just game with my pro 900s.
 
The pro 900s have pretty decent soundstage and positioning for closed phones, but like I said before, the bass makes some of the details you want to keep track of hard to hear. I have hd650s too, but I use them pretty much exclusively for music. I don't think I have ever tried gaming with them lol.
 
The k701/702 and dt990 are also very good options that are bandied around for gamers and are at the very edge of your price range (maybe used). I haven't heard them so I can't provide an opinion.
 
Anyways if you want to hear more stuff in your games on a budget, I suggest the AD700s. I will probably be selling mine soon, as I haven't touched them in a few months, but they are incredible gaming phones. The bass is not going to impress anyone, and there are better general head phones for music out here, but they're just so incredibly good for gaming. 
 
On the other hand, BF3 looks pretty similar to BC2, and in BC2, sound is not nearly as much of a factor as it is in COD. If you are getting MW3 too, I think it'll be well worth it though. The audio engine, sound mix and design of each game also play a big role in the overall sonic affect and how the game is played(for competitive shooters at least). In a lot of games, where positional audio is not a major factor, basically any decent headphone will get the job done. My old icemat siberias were perfectly sufficient, and I didn't catch the upgrade bug until I could no longer tolerate how uncomfortable they were after 2-3 hours or so. I think for pure gaming usage, most of the mainstream gaming headset/phones should be alright like the ones from razer, logitech, steel series, etc..
 
Now headphones/IEMs and associated gear have sucked up a very large portion of meager income. 
 
My steam is "contorted", if you want to add me. gl hf

 

 

[fabio-fi]

Get the AD900's which are better than the Ad700's in every aspect.