Computers & Electronics

Recommend Me A Gaming Headset

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  • Mar 18th, 2012 4:21 pm
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Oct 21, 2006
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York

Recommend Me A Gaming Headset

Switching from speakers to a headset for my gaming needs. I've never used a headset for gaming so i'm at a total loss with all the brands and features. I'll put my budget at $150. If it's really worth it, i'd spend more.

What i'm looking for is:

- Glasses friendly. I don't want the headset to move my glasses or put a weird angle of pressure on them.

- Easy audio switch. I want to continue to use my current 7.1 speaker system for everything else and then flick a switch or something when need be to switch to the headset for gaming. I do not want to have to go to the back of my PC and unplug/replug something every time I want to use a headset. Since my speakers use three of the 3.5mm jacks in the back would this mean i'm looking at a USB or optical headset?

- Noise canceling. More for the mic than for the speakers, a lot of ambient noise in room.

- Amped headset (externally powered)(is that correct terminology?). I'm fine with onboard audio but regular headphones don't seem to go very loud. Not really looking to purchase a sound card.
4 replies
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May 22, 2005
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If you want to use both speakers and a headset frequently, USB headsets may be a better option. They have 'built in' sound drivers, so to switch between speakers/headsets, you just have to go to your sound options and switch the primary sources from speakers to the USB headset. However, this also comes with flaws, for example, programs may be confused on which sound driver to use, which will result in you having to switch them constantly if they default to the wrong sound driver.

With regular headsets (with the 2.5mm male plug), all you have to do is unplug the ports, but as you mentioned, annoying if the ports are at the back of your case. Does your PC case have ports at the front? Or does the speakers have a wired 'remote' with ports?


Have you considered getting headphones and an external mic?
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coriolis wrote: If you want to use both speakers and a headset frequently, USB headsets may be a better option. They have 'built in' sound drivers, so to switch between speakers/headsets, you just have to go to your sound options and switch the primary sources from speakers to the USB headset. However, this also comes with flaws, for example, programs may be confused on which sound driver to use, which will result in you having to switch them constantly if they default to the wrong sound driver.

With regular headsets (with the 2.5mm male plug), all you have to do is unplug the ports, but as you mentioned, annoying if the ports are at the back of your case. Does your PC case have ports at the front? Or does the speakers have a wired 'remote' with ports?


Have you considered getting headphones and an external mic?

The whole driver thing sounds like a big issue. I'll have to research how common that problem occurs. I do keep a USB hub on my table (my keyboard has one too) so plugging and unplugging a USB headset isn't too big of an issue.

My speakers have a audio out but not a mic in. My case does have a audio out and mic in on the front panel but then that would rule out the possibility of 5.1 / 7.1 correct?

I'm not looking to add a external mic on my table. Even doing so still leaves me with the above problem of switching seamlessly between speakers and headset.
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May 22, 2005
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soul_taker wrote: The whole driver thing sounds like a big issue. I'll have to research how common that problem occurs. I do keep a USB hub on my table (my keyboard has one too) so plugging and unplugging a USB headset isn't too big of an issue.

My speakers have a audio out but not a mic in. My case does have a audio out and mic in on the front panel but then that would rule out the possibility of 5.1 / 7.1 correct?

I'm not looking to add a external mic on my table. Even doing so still leaves me with the above problem of switching seamlessly between speakers and headset.

It's not particularly a big issue, but if you juggle around different programs that allows you to choose which sound driver you would like to use, then it becomes an annoyance. I've used USB heatsets (currently use Sennheiser HD555's + desk mic), and I do prefer them (quality-wise).

One example I can think of is when you have different programs out at a time, and you switch from the USB headset to speakers, you would have to close the current program(for example, Media Player classic) to switch the audio drivers because by default it will use the USB drivers. However, in some programs like Ventrilo, all you have to do is go to settings and change the drivers. Some games allow you to switch audio drivers in the audio settings, but this isn't always the case.



I also don't game enough (and if I do, it does not utilize 5.1/7.1) so my point of view is different from yours. In the end, I opted for a soundcard plus speakers and a desk mic, and if I'd like to use the headphones, I just plug it into the front of my case. No need to constantly switch the drivers around, all I have to do is plug and unplug the headphones. Also, with the mic constantly plugged in, I don't have to touch the sound cables in the back at all, and I have the freedom to choose to use my headphones or my speakers along with the mic (I use Ventrilo, Google Talk, etc a lot).
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Dec 29, 2005
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You could do what I do with my headset, I keep the 3.5mm mic always plugged in, then I just plug in the 3.5mm headphone into my speaker control pod when I want to use them. No need to go behind my rig to plug/unplug. I run a 2m long 3.5mm extension to make sure the cable reaches my speaker pod.

Don't worry about the 5.1/7.1, it's all artificial when it comes to games anyways. Either using Dolby/EAX/DTS/DirectSound3d/etc.

As for glasses friendly headsets, might I suggest the affordable Plantronics 777, or the 367's for analog. http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=57792 ... omoid=1360
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