[atHLetic]

I've been looking for gaming / movie(surround) headphones for a while now.. And there has been quite a lot opinions what is good and what is not.
I have really started thinking that it takes too much money for good headphones.
I would really want to know can you make surround sound for good normal headphones with amplifier or have I understood this wrong?
I have not found any headphones that would be actually surround headphones with great quality..
There is multiple options of great headphones example:
AKG K271/K272/K701
Audio-Technica A700/A900
Beyerdynamic DT770/DT880
Denon AH-D2000
Sennheiser HD595 / HD280 PRO

and there is also Grado SR60/80/125/225 and Alessandro MS1 but those are better for music listenin..

I just need good headphones with surround appearance, not the best of them but those which have best price/quality rate.. and can be like upgraded with cheap amplifier or soundcard to great headphones.. Just advice me, I'm a bit confused what should I buy..

 

[troymadison]

If you have ever heard binarual recordings before and really enjoyed them, you could try to get an AKG K1000 and make all normal recordings sound binarual. They cost a lot but are worth every penny. If you want to go on a cheaper route, I'd try an AKG K501 or Sony MDR-F1.

 

[Carter54]

Here is a thread on the Hard Forum just about this topic. There are alot of choices but the below thread emphasizes "bang for your Buck" setups. Take a look and see if it help.

Which Headphones? - [H]ard|Forum

Carter

 

[catscratch]

Most surround-sound and 5.1 headphones are gimmicks and don't actually give you better 3d sound than a pair of quality stereo headphones. There is no point in getting any of them in my opinion, and most of the headphones you've listed yourself will outperform 5.1/surround-sound headsets for gaming applications.

As far as what you should buy - you already listed a lot of quality candidates. I would suggest finding places where you can audition them, or at least buying from some place with a good return policy.

I use the DT770 for gaming/movies, not so much because of the bass but because of the excellent 3d sound placement. But, I'm amping mine; for unamped use I would recommend the A900. I don't think the HD595's sound signature lends itself especially well to games, here you need more of a U-shaped FR with boosted treble and bass, which will bring out stuff like footsteps and armor pickups in FPS games and make explosions more exciting. The 595 has a midrange-heavy FR and is more suited to music. Still, it's a nice headphone for starters.

I haven't done any gaming with closed AKGs save the K340, which is a) semi-open, and b) entirely too resolving to be used for gaming.

Figure out what your priorities are; i.e. do you want open, closed, amped, unamped, etc. This will narrow your choices down. Then, try to audition the ones that are left. I think anything on your list will perform as well as any 5.1 headset, so I doubt you'll go wrong either way.

Don't get the 280 Pro though, not because it won't work out, but because the headbands are defective and tend to crack within a few months.

 

[EugeneK]

I don't think you could get surround sound out of a 2 channel device (left and right).

I believe some computer software can change the pitch/tone of the sound coming out of the headphones to simulate sound coming from different directions. But it won't be true surround sound.

 

[Cecala]

Quote:

Originally Posted by catscratch /img/forum/go_quote.gif Most surround-sound and 5.1 headphones are gimmicks and don't actually give you better 3d sound than a pair of quality stereo headphones. There is no point in getting any of them in my opinion, and most of the headphones you've listed yourself will outperform 5.1/surround-sound headsets for gaming applications. As far as what you should buy - you already listed a lot of quality candidates. I would suggest finding places where you can audition them, or at least buying from some place with a good return policy. I use the DT770 for gaming/movies, not so much because of the bass but because of the excellent 3d sound placement. But, I'm amping mine; for unamped use I would recommend the A900. I don't think the HD595's sound signature lends itself especially well to games, here you need more of a U-shaped FR with boosted treble and bass, which will bring out stuff like footsteps and armor pickups in FPS games and make explosions more exciting. The 595 has a midrange-heavy FR and is more suited to music. Still, it's a nice headphone for starters. I haven't done any gaming with closed AKGs save the K340, which is a) semi-open, and b) entirely too resolving to be used for gaming. Figure out what your priorities are; i.e. do you want open, closed, amped, unamped, etc. This will narrow your choices down. Then, try to audition the ones that are left. I think anything on your list will perform as well as any 5.1 headset, so I doubt you'll go wrong either way. Don't get the 280 Pro though, not because it won't work out, but because the headbands are defective and tend to crack within a few months.

I agree with you on this. I have heard Dolby Headphone and find the sound artificial at best. It sounds muddied and clearly been 'played with'. Using a quality phone and amp will give you satisfaction. You will be amazed at the detail and what you've been missing out on when listening through regular speakers.
But.... if you really must have unbelievable 3D or surround sound read this
http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f11/sm...phones-323219/

Its soon to be on the market and I for one have plans to acquire one. I have been using headphones for watching films for close to 20 years now and would'nt have it anyway else.

 

[Peter Pinna]

Catscratch,
Since when do the DT 770's have a 3D sound stage? I've heard them a number of times for extended periods and, as far as I can discern, IMO, they do not have a 3D sound stage but instead, are
typical of the "normal" sound stage of most headphones. Perhaps the 3D effect you are hearing is a property of your amp?

 

[genclaymore]

I used to use 5.1 headphones while they did gave you surround sound, But there sound quailty was meh. They did there job But I got tired of owning ones that had one flaw after another.
I got rid of the barracuda HP1 because it didnt have rear bass and when things blew up behind me. There was no Boom, only ooom. Theres few that actually works with surround sound, then those ones that doesnt. I had quite a few that actually worked. While one that didnt.surround 5.1 headphones are not worth it since the small drivers in it has poor Sound quailty. And for their price thats a rip off.

Their right you can get better surround with a real pair of headphones, I didnt belive it til I tried my AD700.Some people use CMSS3D with there headphones, I dont since I have no need for it.
I have no problems hearing around me with my HFI-780's and when I was using it my AD700. Depending on the user CMSS3D and DH works very well and better then 5.1 headphones when used with stereo headphones.

 

[Foe-hammer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cecala /img/forum/go_quote.gif I agree with you on this. I have heard Dolby Headphone and find the sound artificial at best. It sounds muddied and clearly been 'played with'. Using a quality phone and amp will give you satisfaction. You will be amazed at the detail and what you've been missing out on when listening through regular speakers. But.... if you really must have unbelievable 3D or surround sound read this http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f11/sm...phones-323219/ Its soon to be on the market and I for one have plans to acquire one. I have been using headphones for watching films for close to 20 years now and would'nt have it anyway else.

I couldn't disagree with you more.

Dolby Headphone Technology (DH) works exceptionally well, when used in conjunction with good spatial audiophile headphones, and a dedicated headphone amp.

I use DH with my AKG K601s and Beyer DT880 '05s, and a VHP-2 desktop amp. These are two of the best dynamic headphones for gaming/movies. What DH does is add speaker like soundstage to these already great soundstage headphones, and gives me pinpoint accurate 3D surround.

 

[ourfpshero]

i've tried several 5.1 headphones and they generally have pretty lousy sound quality. some are actually good at positioning sound though.

however - for gaming -on a pc -positional sound you want an x-fi and some 'real' headphones. on supported games it blows away all competitors for a 3d sound field. all the eax2/dolby headphone stuff sounds lousy in comparison. also an x-fi puts out about as much power as a portable amp-it will drive up to 150 ohm cans well.

for movies its pretty equal between dolby headphone sound cards and cmss sound cards (x-fi and audigy) for converting 5.1 soundtracks to headphone 3d sound

 

[rodentdog]

If you want closed cans for not too much money, consider beyerdynamic DT-250-80. don't need to be amp'ed to sound good.

 

[longie11]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Foe-hammer /img/forum/go_quote.gif I use DH with my AKG K601s and Beyer DT880 '05s, and a VHP-2 desktop amp. These are two of the best dynamic headphones for gaming/movies. What DH does is add speaker like soundstage to these already great soundstage headphones, and gives me pinpoint accurate 3D surround.

I had the similar thread to this one and you also recommended me the DT880 '05 . I've actually been trying to find some used but just now heard you talk about the AKG K601s. How are those compared to the Beyers and do you feel one is better than another.