@BSC14

Hey dude.. I can't thank you enough for chiming into this thread! I owe you a good beer... or wódka ;)

So i got my ASUS DX sound card... and WOW! SOOO MUCH BETTER than any other surround sound head-sets.. even the Turtle Beach DSS processors. No HISS. Max sample rate... even my crappy arse headphones sound great! Aww yeah!

The surround sound sound is much better too! I'm very happy with the decision. I can't even IMAGINE how good this will sound with a good pair of headphones!!!

Its kinda funny.. but i guess I was doing it wrong this whole time :)

Hehe, I hear ya, but new egg has them refurbed for about $140 now.

So what do you use for a mike?

I just got back from BestBuy and i tried the Klipsch One headphones. From all the headphones they had on display, they sounded the best! :O)

Also, the Turtle Beach MW3 Delta headset is the same thing as the PX5 for only $190 at BB.

Honestly, what i like about the PX5/Delta headphones is the comfort and the fact that they are solid as compared to others and they fit my big ears. They also have an open ear (i know, most people hate that 'cause the outside sound gets in) BUT! This makes the sound seem more real IMO because it blends with the "real world" sounds and makes the game sounds much more realistic... ya know what i mean? Its like this is really happening in the room. Secondly, i used to play with a friend a lot side by side and we'd always have to take one ear off to hear eachother. This way i can hear others.

I'm still testing/comparing and i think i'm most likely going to do this:
Keep the ASUS sound card (coming tomorrow!) and use a normal PC/Mike type of headset (for the microphone). My last test will be with the TB's X32. These are radio wireless (not BlueTooth), look like the same design as the PX5/Delta's.

@BSC14

That's why i liked the TB's PX5 or Deltas so much... I even enjoyed the open-ear design (lets sound through) and i think that's what made it seem more real as it blended in with the surrounding environment. If they'd only make the same exact headset but wired... or RF mike :)

I'll think I'll be near BB to try them on - sadly i really want/need cicrumaural (over the ear) headphones.

Oh wow.. the beats are $200? Dayummmnnn... :shock: go figure...

...

In the back of my mind, i'm still considering if i should just get the PX5 type of headset anyway :). Lets see how the sound card compares. (hopefully i'll get it tomorrow, they're packaging it now :D )

@ferret-gamer

Those sound cards don't support Dolby.. i think. The DX and D1 are nice. Seems like X = PCI-e. G = fiber?

I've pretty much confirmed that bluetooth microphones use the crappy HSP profile (Hands Free Profile). The sampling rate on such a device is very low - its of "telephone" quality (at BEST). In short, bluetooth mikes for gaming = NO.

hahahah! Yeah, i live in NYC and i see eeeeveryone is wearing them, very popular. How are they btw? I've wondered. I tried a demo setup in a store once, but the volume was soooo f'n loud i couldn't even listen. Sounded like they're full (stuffed with?) of bass, but again, i coudln't even put them on all the way.

And... ehh.... you know... i just might buy the Klipsch One :|
lol.. so would they fit over big ears? Are the ear cups comfortable? The leather? I'd consider buying replacement PX5 pads and putting them on the Klipsch One. Do you think they'd fit or is the Klipsch One bigger? I really like the feature where you can answer your phone?? Rly? So i can hook it up to my Droid (or iPhone) and still talk if i needed to! wow small things man...

I'm pretty much convinced that this will be the set... but.. what do you use for the microphone? I suppose one could somehow split off and use the mike that's built in...

Right, i know that regarding Fiber-Out, i was just hoping to have it for connecting other devices like home stereo etc, but i already have it in the build in card.. and i think they give you an adapter (asus).

So... I've decided to go with the same card you linked actually - the Asus DX 7.1, especially so since it comes down to like $56 after rebate. From there, i'll have to decide on a head set - i'll probably buy a nominal one for now.. but who knows.. i'll probably get excited and drop $ on a $150 set :P

Now if i only put in this much effort into picking up girls xD

No no, i tottaly got you :)

Like i've said in the previous post, one option is to go with a sound card that does the "dolby headphone" effect skipping the "surround sound" headset (they come with a tiny external soundcard that does "dolby headphone".

So i've been looking at cards - i'm just bummed a lot of them don't have fiber out :\
But yeah, i've been comparing the Asus cards since they mention the Dolby stuff... I'm on the same page. And thanks! Glad you chimed in to the thread :)

@BSC14

I'm 'getting it' more and more. I do like the SS however - the reason is that i can very easily and naturally immerse myself into the action. In shooters (tribes2) i can play a LOT better with SS. I just know where everything is by audio. Do you miss SS for any such reasons?

@NailedGR

If that was the case, then what's the difference between forward and rear? Lets pretend that left ear hears it 1 second sooner (obviously made up values). How does that get interpreted into front/back? I bet if i placed a person in a symmetrical sound room, blind folded them and immobilized their head, they would not be able to hear if a sound was in front or back. I think the moment you move your head just a tiny bit, then the positioning kicks in because then your brain can compare the angles/timings and all and figure out the position.

------------------
OK... So i've done more experimenting. The DSS processor from Turtle beach: i plugged in my crappy headphones and my dr.dre earbuds. There is a button that disables the DSS and you can hear the stereo - very good as a comparison. There's still that hiss, but if there's any sound, you don't notice it. I feel as if the surround sound is fine, but the audio quality seemed better with the big headphones (PX5 or Delta).

Also, i noticed that most of these "surround sound" headsets do come with an external USB sound card! Its the Dolby Digital / Headphone processor.

So in the end, it seems that:

• You need a sound card that's capable of Dolby Digital and a headset that comes with a Dolby Digital Headphone procesor (they're usually tiny)
• You need a good soundcard that in addition to DD has Dolby Headphone built in. This allows you to get the effects straigth from the card.
• You can buy the Turtle Beach "DSS2" sound processor (what i've been experimenting with). This is an in-between of the above 2 points. This is if you have a sound card with Dolby Digital and standard headphones. It will connect the 2 and provide you with DD/SS.

Another way to break down the primary components:

Dolby Digital* --> Dolby Headphone --> Headphones

* There are various flavors of DD like Pro Logic II etc...

Duh.. if i'd only look at the other tabs of the link i provided the other day:
http://www.dolby.com/us/en/consumer/technology/home-theater/dolby-headphone.html

In the How it works tab, it explains how Dolby Headphone interpreds DD or DDPL II - read this.. this is good stuff

@NailedGR

I remember thinking that before :) And i agree that it would make sense that these small speakers would be crappy. I'm not really sure how humans interpret front/back (i think its probably shape of ears or more likely the fact that our head can rotate on all axes thus pint point the sond). I think its interesting how they can reproduce the end result quite realistically.