Convince me to not use just use my Beats Studio headphones for gaming on PC

[action2288]

Answers that will be rejected:

• 
  ■ It has no mic to use with Ventrilo, Mumble, Teamspeak. (I can just buy an external mic.)
  ■ Beats Studio headphones have too much bass and/or sound bad. (I like it.)

Backstory:

I've owned the Logitech G35 wired headset for 6 or so years. I like them a lot and have used the mic for conference calls many times (meaning it's served me well even for professional use). But they're falling apart. And either I only recently noticed or the last few software versions are screwed up or something, but they do terribly with bass. They break up as if the speaker is blown. So, I decided to retire them and finally give the Logitech G930 wireless headset a try.

Wireless is nice. But the novelty of wireless only lasted a few days. The sound is shit...even worse than my G35s. So, I'm tasked with a few options. Repair my G35s (which I may do anyway), research for a good computer gaming headset, or plug in my 2 1/2 year old Beat Studio headphones and just use those for everything.

I can't believe I've never read this solution soooner. No annoying tinkering with USB ports or all the other issues I read about. Amazing, loud, powerful sound. If I run over the cable or destroy it, I order another one since it's detachable. Why aren't regular headphones + a mic more prevalent for PC? I never read about that setup.

So yeah, convince me why I should use a gaming headset. Because I must be missing something. Scratching my head atm why I ever bothered with gaming headsets as opposed to these.

P.S. I also own the Bose QuietComfort® 25 Acoustic Noise Cancelling® headphones — Samsung and Android™ for airplane travel and train commuting. They're better for voice. So, that's a backup option for Netflix and such.

 

[Kalevra]

I use my JVC HA-RX900 headphones. Razer makes a free software that turns stereo headphones into surround sound headphones which is great for gaming.

 

[cpatel1987]

Nothing to convince, I endorse that decision. If you feel your Beats Studio headphones (or even your Bose headphones) will provide a better sound quality, then by all means do it.

I'd just make sure you mount your microphone carefully and adjust sensitivity accordingly. Nothing more annoying than being in the middle of the game and having to move your head closer to a mic just to speak.

 

[DarkSable]

Regular headphones plus an external microphone are exactly what us audiophiles recommend for high end setups when the user cares about audio quality.

So by all means, go for it!

 

[ssddx]

honestly it is completely your choice as to whether you like beats headphones or not, however, be aware that when compared to other headphones in the price range they fall far short in terms of audio quality. many audiophiles consider them to be garbage or at the very minimum, completely overhyped and overpriced.

there is no reason for us to convince you of anything. if you want something better than beats then i think you can make that decision on your own in which case we can start talking budget and requirements.

possible upgrades you could use:

-soundcard. if you do not already have virtual surround, you can now take advantage of this for gaming. also, compared to onboard there is going to be a a slight increase in audio quality (not sure if you can hear it on beats though).

-modmic. will turn any headphone into a headset. a worthwhile upgrade for any user wanting to use a normal pair of headphones as a headset.

---

the sentiment to avoid gaming headsets is correct though. generally not worth your time unless you absolutely needed an all in one or are on a very low budget.

 

[action2288]

Wow, lots of amazing feedback. This Amazon link below the ones I should get? Also, why would anyone want an un-mutable mic?

ModMic on Amazon

 

[billbishere]

AD700X - THE BEST GAMING HEADPHONES YOU CAN BUY. Sorry for the caps but, no joke. They are amazing!!

 

[action2288]

I use my JVC HA-RX900 headphones. Razer makes a free software that turns stereo headphones into surround sound headphones which is great for gaming.

I hadn't thought of getting external software for my Beats. Good idea. I do like the ability to increase bass for certain games, music, or movies. Are your JVC's open-back or closed-back?

Nothing to convince, I endorse that decision. If you feel your Beats Studio headphones (or even your Bose headphones) will provide a better sound quality, then by all means do it.

I'd just make sure you mount your microphone carefully and adjust sensitivity accordingly. Nothing more annoying than being in the middle of the game and having to move your head closer to a mic just to speak.

Exactly! I'm trying to avoid having to deep throat the mic and having to bob my head back and forth to speak.

Regular headphones plus an external microphone are exactly what us audiophiles recommend for high end setups when the user cares about audio quality.

So by all means, go for it!

I wish I had known this years ago! Every pair of gaming headset that I've used has sounded worse than my regular pairs. However, the mics have always been very good.

Beats are horrendous headphones but they are probably better than 99% of the gaming headsets out there, which are all ripoffs. I suggest you get a modmic for your beats.

I think horrendous is a bit too strong a word. And I know they're overpriced. However, the cost of buying something new is going to be more than the cost of using something that I already own. Additionally, only the popular brands are sold in stores. I got mine on a long layover at an airport because reasons. Go figure. That was my introduction to "expensive" headphones.

As for ModMic, I'm not familiar but have done some Googling the last couple of days. Thanks for that tip.

AD700X - THE BEST GAMING HEADPHONES YOU CAN BUY. Sorry for the caps but, no joke. They are amazing!!

I looked these up. Audio Technica always comes up as a good overall brand whenever I talk to people or read things. I notice these are open-back headphones. How do they do specifically with microphone feedback while gaming?

 

[action2288]

honestly it is completely your choice as to whether you like beats headphones or not, however, be aware that when compared to other headphones in the price range they fall far short in terms of audio quality. many audiophiles consider them to be garbage or at the very minimum, completely overhyped and overpriced.

there is no reason for us to convince you of anything. if you want something better than beats then i think you can make that decision on your own in which case we can start talking budget and requirements.

possible upgrades you could use:

-soundcard. if you do not already have virtual surround, you can now take advantage of this for gaming. also, compared to onboard there is going to be a a slight increase in audio quality (not sure if you can hear it on beats though).

-modmic. will turn any headphone into a headset. a worthwhile upgrade for any user wanting to use a normal pair of headphones as a headset.

---

the sentiment to avoid gaming headsets is correct though. generally not worth your time unless you absolutely needed an all in one or are on a very low budget.

Regarding the sound card, is the one that comes with motherboards no good? It is a separate card.

I like this ModMic idea. It's the second time I see it mentioned in this thread.

And regarding avoiding gaming headsets...that's kind of why I made this thread. I started to get the sense that better sound quality comes from something other than gaming headsets. Good to see someone else mention it. I thought I was just looking at the wrong brands.

And yeah, I'm aware of the Beats hating that goes on.

 

[ssddx]

for clarification, the ad700x you will hate. while they are great headphones they are very bass light. since it seems you enjoy the bassyness of beats they would not be a very good idea for you. if you did ever move to a different set of cans there are sets more in line with your wants.

regarding razer surround software: its a bit buggy (but is free) so if it works you can get virtual surround. it is however one of the least good choices for virtual though again, it is free. the others (dolby headphone and cmss3d/sbx) are better and some are found on motherboards. if they arent on your board, they can be found on cheap soundcards.

onboard sound is generally adequate. i mentioned this with the note that its a good idea if you want virtual surround but your motherboard doesnt already support it (you need to check if it does and decide if you care about virtual).

most people who appreciate good audio will tell you the same thing: go headphones and mic over headsets. this does not mean that headsets are bad (they arent) but that they generally are marketed towards different types of people. you might spend a little more going the separate route but you will also find better quality down that path.

personally i dont hate beats, i just realize what they are and treat them as such. for the money you can do far far better and they are on the verge of being bass-cannons which muddle up all sound just to get more bass. now if you love bass cannon type sound they arent a horrible choice, just overpriced.

 

[DarkSable]

If the motherboard is new, it's probably got a perfectly acceptable sound card. If you're paying enough money for a sound card to make a difference, you're way better off with an external DAC anyways.

I agree with the issue with the AD700x - the non x is a better model anyways, if you can get past its looks.

Just on a personal note, I find that a decent webcam actually has a better mic than the cheap external mics, and it's a lot less fussy. That being said, my computer isn't in a communal room, so there isn't much surrounding noise polution.