[chicolom]

I see the CALs are back down to $65 on amazon.  That's a very good price an about as low as they ever go (most of the time they stay at $99)
 

 

[Youcan1]

Quote:

No wonder you dont want virtual surround. That Turtle Beach demo is absolutely WORTHLESS. Trust me, do not take that into account at all. Trust me, its worthwhile getting a virtual surround amp first, and something cheap like the KSC75 first.
Also most good headphones havs 40mm drivers. Driver size does not equal quality.

True that having larger drivers doesn't mean it will automatically sound better, but a lot of the top of the line headphones that I've seen have 50mm or larger drivers(even a lot of the highly rated cheap phones like the Monoprice DJ and Superlux phones). I'm certainly not against getting smaller driver headphones if the quality is better. I can see the appeal of directional audio and I would consider getting an amp if I really like the regular stereo setup. I would think better headphones would benefit from the surround processing a lot more than a cheap clip-on set. Hopefully more reviews of the Monoprice pop up soon. I'm kind of skeptical of the actual headphones themselves, they have smaller drivers than the Monorice DJ set and I kind of get the feeling that Monoprice cut corners on the headset itself to include all of the extra goodies.  
 
Edit - Nevermind all that, I just caved and bought the Monoprice 7.1 headset. Hopefully I can cancel the splitter cable I ordered since I won't have any use for it.

 

[burritoboy9984]

Quote:

True that having larger drivers doesn't mean it will automatically sound better, but a lot of the top of the line headphones that I've seen have 50mm or larger drivers(even a lot of the highly rated cheap phones like the Monoprice DJ and Superlux phones). I'm certainly not against getting smaller driver headphones if the quality is better. I can see the appeal of directional audio and I would consider getting an amp if I really like the regular stereo setup. I would think better headphones would benefit from the surround processing a lot more than a cheap clip-on set. Hopefully more reviews of the Monoprice pop up soon. I'm kind of skeptical of the actual headphones themselves, they have smaller drivers than the Monorice DJ set and I kind of get the feeling that Monoprice cut corners on the headset itself to include all of the extra goodies.  
 
Edit - Nevermind all that, I just caved and bought the Monoprice 7.1 headset. Hopefully I can cancel the splitter cable I ordered since I won't have any use for it.

I still have a LOT of testing to do. But one MAJOR disadvantage so far is that when talking on xbox live, I get a TON of feedback.
 
As far as game SQ, if the Astro mixamp is a 10, this is probably an ~8.5 when set on the music setting. When on default setting, it seems VERY muddy, and even on the music setting there is slight muddiness and the rear cues seem lacking. These will most likely be getting returned due to the Xbox Live feedback..
 
More tomorrow, we have a 1 week old baby that needs tending to.
 
-Erik

 

[Youcan1]

Quote:

I still have a LOT of testing to do. But one MAJOR disadvantage so far is that when talking on xbox live, I get a TON of feedback.
 
As far as game SQ, if the Astro mixamp is a 10, this is probably an ~8.5 when set on the music setting. When on default setting, it seems VERY muddy, and even on the music setting there is slight muddiness and the rear cues seem lacking. These will most likely be getting returned due to the Xbox Live feedback..
 
More tomorrow, we have a 1 week old baby that needs tending to.
 
-Erik

 
This review says it compares favorably with other headsets:
http://www.electronista.com/reviews/monoprice-7.1-wired-gaming-headset.html 
It also mentions some problems with Xbox Live chat and a sensitive mic, which isn't a problem for me since I don't even own the 360 anymore, just PS3. Considering the Astro set costs more than double what this set costs I would assume it would sound a little better.

 

[ruuku]

I'd be really interested to hear how it compares to the Tritton headsets/decoders... as it resembles that headset more than any other... inline remote with the same 7-pin plug, microphone molding, ect... and at least in the above linked review, came across the same microphone/ground hiss that my 5.1s suffered from.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Again driver size has nothing to do with audio fidelity. Plenty of high end headphones with 40mm drivers. If youre not spending hundreds, upon hundreds of dollars, driver size is the last thing you need to be worried about.

 

[clem84]

Hey everyone. I read the entire first post of this thread which was very informative, thank you MLE. I've made my decision as to what headphones I was going to get (he-400), but I'm not sure which virtual surround device is right for me. They all seem to have pretty big cons. I'm looking for something that sounds great above all else, and wired if possible. Most of the devices don't seem to decode DTS natively. The Beyerdynamic seems to have everything but yeah, little pricy.
 
What I'm wondering is, if I don't mind paying a little extra and getting a receiver (I have to get a new receiver for my home theater anyway), would an AV receiver that supports virtual surround do a decent job? Which would produce the best sound quality? One of the virtual surround device listed at the beginning of this thread like the Astro mixamp pro, or a Yamaha/Harman Kardon receiver? Would love to hear opinions from those who have tried both.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

Quite sure an older HK receiver with Dolby Headphone would suit the HE400 best. The new HK receivers dont have DH, but use HK's own virtual surround which I have no idea what they do.

The HE400 is pretty good for immersive gaming, but arent the best for competitive. Just keep that in mind.

 

[clem84]

Well I was looking for a pair of headphones that was good for both but, mainly for sound quality. I very rarely play online.

 

[Mad Lust Envy]

The HE400 fits that purpose.

 

[burritoboy9984]

The review that someone linked to above said there were problems with certain xbox controllers (if this is the case, I'll be keeping it and for newbies this would be an awesome way to get into the world of DH, with some upgradability). I will try a couple of different controllers tomorrow when I am messing with it more and see if that helps or not. Anything you guys want to know/see about the headset itself?
 
-Erik

 

[clem84]

I noticed that in your guide you gave a few 9 to different headphones for "fun". The one 10 you gave is for a discontinued model. So among those 9s, if you had to pick only one as the most immersive pair of headphones, which would it be?

 

[PurpleAngel]

Quote:

Quite sure an older HK receiver with Dolby Headphone would suit the HE400 best. The new HK receivers dont have DH, but use HK's own virtual surround which I have no idea what they do.
The HE400 is pretty good for immersive gaming, but arent the best for competitive. Just keep that in mind.

If your talking about Harman Kardon "Logic 7 processing" it appear to be something that takes 2-channels and can expand it to (I think) a 7.1 surround sound.
So maybe something like the old Dolby Surround, but without the multi channel encoding that Dolby Surround uses.
It started off as something Harman/kardon started off using in their car audio.
At least that's all the info i've been able to find.

 

[ronswanson]

The review that someone linked to above said there were problems with certain xbox controllers (if this is the case, I'll be keeping it and for newbies this would be an awesome way to get into the world of DH, with some upgradability). I will try a couple of different controllers tomorrow when I am messing with it more and see if that helps or not. Anything you guys want to know/see about the headset itself?

-Erik

Other than the controller feedback, do you hear any hiss or buzzing?

Can you test it on a ps3 too?

 

[calpis]

Quote:

If your talking about Harman Kardon "Logic 7 processing" it appear to be something that takes 2-channels and can expand it to (I think) a 7.1 surround sound.
So maybe something like the old Dolby Surround, but without the multi channel encoding that Dolby Surround uses.
It started off as something Harman/kardon started off using in their car audio.
At least that's all the info i've been able to find.

Nah, he's talking about real Dolby Headphone. The last line of their receivers that HK had licensed Dolby Headphone were the AVR*54 series of receivers.I have the AVR247 which is the *54's previous years model and it does in fact have DH. The benefit of getting these is that they will decode DTS tracks and convert them to DH with no issue whatsoever. They also push a lot of power out to speakers too.