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Headset head-to-head
Head on over...

Introduction

In recent years the gaming industry has exploded, and sales of games across all different markets has grown significantly. It is no surprise then that gaming peripherals have seen similar success. More than just game controllers and joysticks, research and development on devices such as mouses, mouse pads and keyboards have been invested in by gaming companies to keep up with the craze sweeping the globe. Gaming headsets are no exception, and the average gamer now has a wider selection than ever to choose from to complete their gaming setup.

Headphone development though is no new field and recent times have seen few breakthrough developments. Audiophile circles have long appreciated the benefits of headphones and as a result there are already products on the market that are matured, and of excellent quality. Not only are headphones ideal for gaming where speakers are inappropriate/unavailable they are generally considered superior as they make the game more immersive, enclosing the user in sounds of the virtual world.

Strangely enough though, there is a grey area between “gaming headsets” and hi-fi headphones. Originally gaming headsets were cheap accessories that could be bought for very little money. Headsets were basically low quality headphones with a microphone attached to one of the headpieces that made them convenient for in-game communications. Today headsets have developed features such as advanced cable and microphone management; others have lost the attached microphone completely, hence making the distinction rather blurred. It seems it has more come down to the company selling the product and their target market than the design of the product itself.




News Pages:
» Page 1: Introduction In recent years the gaming industry has exploded, and sales of gam...
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» Page 7: Final thoughts and conclusion With such choice available on the market, what ...
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Comments « back ... 1 2 ... next »
1.
5/11/2006 02:26pm
blindside
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great article :)
4.
5/11/2006 02:30pm
Kaned
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cool bananas
5.
5/11/2006 02:31pm
tnyvo
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Nice write up, good read.
PC150's ftw though :P
6.
5/11/2006 02:32pm
spirit
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very good read; thanks
7.
5/11/2006 02:37pm
dc
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damn you guys read quick!
8.
5/11/2006 02:38pm
sabu
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lalalalalalalala
9.
5/11/2006 02:48pm
talon
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n1
10.
5/11/2006 02:49pm
domacle
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tl;dr
11.
5/11/2006 03:03pm
haunted
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nice1 dc :)

would of liked to see some price ranges in there somewhere :o but ty for the effort good read!
12.
5/11/2006 03:03pm
Jastone
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Nice read.
13.
5/11/2006 03:07pm
dc
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haunted: i was thinking of it, but the prices vary so much esp in australia

what i might do is put in the manufacturers' rrp according to each of their online stores

for local prices best to staticice it =)

edit: prices added
14.
5/11/2006 03:22pm
benzino
User Offline
headphones + separate mic fOr ThE WiN
15.
5/11/2006 03:56pm
Clam
User Offline
Nice article.
16.
5/11/2006 04:07pm
haunted
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i figured that was the reason dc :D

ta for the rrps it at least gives people an idea without having to find it themselves hehe (ie. like my lazy ass :D)
17.
5/11/2006 05:02pm
FEZ
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i recommend sennheisers, beyerdynamics, sonys and philips headphones and just adding a mic.. they are the best quality headphones imo
18.
5/11/2006 05:48pm
cam
User Offline
Good Read.

PC150's get the job done =D
19.
5/11/2006 06:02pm
madaajr
User Offline
awesome article. The original steelsound 5H headphones do it for me still =D

/ps/ they good for music aswell :p
20.
5/11/2006 06:33pm
cozeh
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sennheiser pc160's.

Win.
21.
5/11/2006 08:13pm
PfL
User Offline
HD555!
22.
5/11/2006 08:53pm
akabeko
User Offline
nice article, good read.
perhaps you could do a write up of the AKG's, beyerdynamic, sennheiser etc as well some time :) as im sure there's many of us who use those brands, myself included.

/me gives dc the thumbs up
23.
5/11/2006 09:22pm
jnsie
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sure will be getting old mate emma to buy me the steelsound 5H's for christmas !! :)
24.
6/11/2006 12:18am
dc
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well, the problem would be getting hands on audiophile type headphones for evaluation

audio brands wouldn't consider sending review samples to a "gaming" website a worthy investment

whereas you could understand why steel, icemat, razer and everglide would jump at the very opportunity

although truth be told, i did at one stage have in my posession headphones from akg, audiotechnica, grado, beyerdynamic and sennheiser (i currently still own beyers, akgs and senns)

oh, and my little koss clip ons!

also, when you think of it, it's not worth plugging nice headphones into onboard. garbage in, garbage out.
25.
6/11/2006 12:29am
aFganFlyTrap
User Online
hmmm it came across that u didnt like the hp-1?


lol you shitted all over them!
26.
6/11/2006 12:31am
dc
User Offline
mate, they were deadset shocking, the article puts it in as nice words as i possibly could...
27.
6/11/2006 12:51am
aFganFlyTrap
User Online
wish this article was out before i got a pair :P
28.
6/11/2006 10:16am
peki
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where do i buy the 5h v2 dc, i want a pair today
29.
6/11/2006 10:56am
skizm
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http://www.skullcandy.com.au/products/headphones/s...

i love my headphones <3
30.
6/11/2006 11:45am
Serial
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peki, im sure your in melbourne. just call gamerzstuff mate, they have some.
31.
6/11/2006 12:02pm
peki
User Offline
thank you serial.


trying to figure out what you meant by "im sure your in melbourne" >_>
32.
6/11/2006 12:04pm
peki
User Offline
ive called gamerzstuff like twice every 30 mins since 9am


PICK UP ANDY QUAH...PICK UPPPPPPPPPPP
33.
6/11/2006 01:17pm
Serial
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If you are in Sydney and you want them EYO has them in Brisbane and Gold Coast Umart have them. Also in Harveys.
34.
6/11/2006 02:01pm
dc
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peki: http://www.staticice.com.au/cgi-bin/search.cgi?q=s...
35.
6/11/2006 02:43pm
haunted
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lol skizm, awp whoring with them on would be fun
36.
7/11/2006 12:33pm
mOOn-GLaDe
User Offline
icemat siberias ftw
37.
7/11/2006 09:52pm
R0NiN
User Offline
Good stuff man, nice to see an appraisal outside of the normal biased crap you have to sift through.

On the barracudas though, can't say I agree. Used to have some pc150's and recently upgraded. Love the hp-1's to bits,the proper 5.1/7.1 positional has saved my ass more times then I can remember. Agreed their not very lan friendly though. I think they are better then youve rated them though, especially on comfort. Ive fallen asleep while wearing them like 6 times already, then wake up and freak out because I forgot I had them on haha.

Anyways to each their own, great guide nevertheless.


38.
8/11/2006 09:18am
aFganFlyTrap
User Online
this thread just got god status!

glade posted in it.

what is the terroist up to these days andy? :P
39.
8/11/2006 02:41pm
dagz
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good read, siberias ftw
40.
8/11/2006 03:46pm
dc
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hehe, there was a lot not to like about the HP-1s, but the comfort is one thing i didn't hate on lol

it reached god status when dc posted it!
41.
9/11/2006 12:13am
aFganFlyTrap
User Online
tilt train earphones ftw
42.
10/11/2006 12:41pm
merlin
User Offline
agreed sennheiser 160's :)
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