kraychik
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jun 16, 2009
- Posts
- 31
- Likes
- 0
Hey everyone,
I just wanted to share some information with you all regarding 5.1/7.1 headphones when compared to stereo headphones in terms of positional audio performance. I am compelled to make this post in response to many posts from many people on many sites that claim that high-end stereo headphones are the best option for those persons looking for a set of cans to deliver exceptional positional audio when gaming. Anyone who states that stereo headphones deliver better positional audio performance than 5.1/7.1 headphones doesn't understand the process through which the human brain interprets audio information. Specifically, these people do not understand (or have chosen not to consider...) the anatomy of the human ear and how our bodies receive and process audio signals with respect to position. I unfortunately haven't yet had a chance to test out a quality pair of 5.1 or 7.1 cans for gaming, but assuming that they really do have an intelligent speaker setup within the cans themselves, they will absolutely deliver much more accurate audio positioning when it comes to gaming. Without going into details (I'm sure explanations and diagrams online regarding ear/brain anatomy will do a much better job of explaining the matter than I can in this thread), stereo headphones can only do two things, process left vs. right intensity. There is no front or back possibility, here. Stereo headphones absolutely cannot tell you if something is front-left or back-right, or anything like that. Only 5.1 or 7.1 headphones can give you that audio information. I'm unsure if 5.1 or 7.1 headphones can deliver up/down audio cues, though. I'd imagine they cannot.
Anyways, this is important information for those who are looking for headphones primarily for gaming. Don't drink the kool-aid that says high-end stereo headphones (which are the SHIZNIT for music, ya dig!) are superior for gaming. They are absolutely NOT.
It should be noted that I am talking about NON-USB 5.1/7.1 headphones, here, so that you can actually take advantage of your soundcard.
I just wanted to share some information with you all regarding 5.1/7.1 headphones when compared to stereo headphones in terms of positional audio performance. I am compelled to make this post in response to many posts from many people on many sites that claim that high-end stereo headphones are the best option for those persons looking for a set of cans to deliver exceptional positional audio when gaming. Anyone who states that stereo headphones deliver better positional audio performance than 5.1/7.1 headphones doesn't understand the process through which the human brain interprets audio information. Specifically, these people do not understand (or have chosen not to consider...) the anatomy of the human ear and how our bodies receive and process audio signals with respect to position. I unfortunately haven't yet had a chance to test out a quality pair of 5.1 or 7.1 cans for gaming, but assuming that they really do have an intelligent speaker setup within the cans themselves, they will absolutely deliver much more accurate audio positioning when it comes to gaming. Without going into details (I'm sure explanations and diagrams online regarding ear/brain anatomy will do a much better job of explaining the matter than I can in this thread), stereo headphones can only do two things, process left vs. right intensity. There is no front or back possibility, here. Stereo headphones absolutely cannot tell you if something is front-left or back-right, or anything like that. Only 5.1 or 7.1 headphones can give you that audio information. I'm unsure if 5.1 or 7.1 headphones can deliver up/down audio cues, though. I'd imagine they cannot.
Anyways, this is important information for those who are looking for headphones primarily for gaming. Don't drink the kool-aid that says high-end stereo headphones (which are the SHIZNIT for music, ya dig!) are superior for gaming. They are absolutely NOT.
It should be noted that I am talking about NON-USB 5.1/7.1 headphones, here, so that you can actually take advantage of your soundcard.