Virtual Surround Stereo Headphones

[Corpsecreate]

Hey guys whats up. Everything tells me this is the place to go if I want to bypass any marketing nonsense, biased reviews or people that simply dont know what they're talking about. Hopefully I've come to the right place!
 
So, I am in the market for an all-round set of headphones. If I were to rate how I would use the headphones it would be something like:
 
Games: 60%
Music: 30%
Movies: 10%
 
My budget is around the $150 US mark and while I know this won't get me the greatest headphones in the universe, they should be good enough for me (they will be a huge upgrade from what I have now at least). I have read up about how "5.1 headphones are a scam" and while I can sort of understand why, I still have a few questions about this topic so bear with me.
 
1. I understand that 5.1 headphones have 6 drivers and this causes low price headphones to have to cram together low quality drivers thus reducing sound quality compared with equivalently priced stereo headphones. This makes sense to me. However, while the sound quality may suffer, how is the ability to hear directional sound and how does it compare with virtual surround sound? Remember, im purely talking about perceived direction, not sound quality.
 
2. Is virtual surround sound the same thing as binaural audio? Are they different, and if so whats different about them? Can any stereo audio be converted to virtual 5.1 or only some? Can video games be converted to virtual 5.1? If they can, how do I go about doing this using stereo headphones?
 
3. If I have a true 5.1 audio track (from a blu-ray movie lets say), is it possible for me to convert the true 5.1 to a virtual 5.1 track that can then be heard on stereo headphones? Is this conversion necessary in the first place?
 
4. I have heard about stereo headphones that come with an amp/converter of some kind (not sure what the official name of this is) that converts 2 channel audio to virtual 5.1. Is there any headphones within my price range that I should consider looking at that come with this adapter? Also, is it possible to buy a set of headphones on their own and then buy the amp/box separately? Is this a most cost effect option?
 
I apologise for the numerous questions. My understand of the audio world is a little jumbled up so its very possible I have asked something that is completely stupid so please forgive me, I am trying to learn. I appreciate any help you can give.
 

 

[ZARIM]

The Ultrasone headphones offers natural virtual surround sound effect and they sound crisp clear with great imaging.

 

[CharliyuAndCo]

To answer question 4, I think you are referring to the Smyth A8 Realizer, maybe not as it is way, way, way out of your price range ($3360). 
Not sure if there is anything else, but from what people have said, it is amazing (never tried it myself).
 
Can't answer your other questions, as I'm still a n00b too.
 
Cheers!

 

[Staal]

Somewhere around here a guy did a review of a substantial number of headphones from a used-for-gaming perspective. I don't recall the topic name, hopefully someone else will.
 
Do you really need surround sound? I used to play Counter-Strike at a very high level, and I never had any issues mentally positioning the enemies with a stereo headset.
 
Also, do you need one with a mic or will something like a ModMic suffice?
 
A few buddies of mine who are still hardcore gamers all recommend the Sennheiser PC 360 G4ME. Quite a pricey one though and well above your budget, but you might be able to find it used.

 

[DrGroove]

USB headsets use their own integrated sound processing, which is bad. You want to get good headphones and something to convert digital stereo into simulated surround sound. This is done by a soundcard in your computer, or through an external USB device, such as the Astro Mixamp ($130, uses dolby headphone), Turtle Beach Ear Force DSS ($90, uses dolby headphone), or Creative's new Recon 3D ($130, creative's own system). A sound card is the cheapest option, I'm pretty sure there are cards with dolby headphone in the sub-$50 range. The USB devices give you the option of using them with consoles or whatever else.
 
Pair one of these with headphones like Audio Techinca AD700 ($110), Sennheiser HD558 ($135), JVC HARX700 or 900 ($50-70). 
 
Get a zalman or other mic to attach if you need one.

 

[PurpleAngel]

Sennheiser HD-558s, open, 50-Ohm
Go to the Electronics Expo website, put the HD-558s in the shopping cart, use the coupon code "BOUNTII"
Price should be around $123.
 
Asus Xonar DG sound card (PCI), $20-$30, headphone amplifier rated up to 150-Ohm.
Comes with Dolby Digital (Dolby Virtual Headphone 5.1 surround sound), great for movies and helps with games.