Looking for a good set of headphones w/mic for computer

[Hobbun]

I have a set of Turtle Beach headphones for my computer and they have served me well as I bought them back in 2012. But I am starting to notice some feedback on sound with videos and have a feeling they are on their way out. They certainly lasted me a lot longer than I anticipated!

So I am looking into purchasing a good set of headphones, and having a mic is important as I do use it for speaking with my friends while we game. We don't actually do video games on PC, but play Pathfinder via Roll20 and speak through Discord. It actually works quite well, but anyways.

I am looking at spending no more than $100, but if there is a unaminous 'best one' for just over that, I am willing to go a little more. What does everyone recommend for good, comfortable headphone w/mic? All suggestions are appreciated!

 

[shadowhaxor]

HyperX Cloud Alpha - $100 and below. I will always recommend these. Great sounding, comfortable, and the no-frills design keeps the price down. The mic is decent as well.

SteelSeries Arctis 5 - $100. Great sound, good mic and they're cheaper now as they're on sale.

Logitech G Pro - $100. The best out of what I've listed. I use the wireless version of these and I love them.

 

[Hobbun]

HyperX Cloud Alpha - $100 and below. I will always recommend these. Great sounding, comfortable, and the no-frills design keeps the price down. The mic is decent as well.

SteelSeries Arctis 5 - $100. Great sound, good mic and they're cheaper now as they're on sale.

Logitech G Pro - $100. The best out of what I've listed. I use the wireless version of these and I love them.

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I had looked on both the HyperX and SteelSeries headphones and found complaints on the mic or sometimes feedback with sound. Not overwhelming amount of complaints, but I get nervous when I start to see a handful of them.

This is the first I had read up on the Logitech G Pro. Now is the Pro X the wireless version? Is that one of the biggest differences between the Pro and Pro X? With the normal G Pro I only saw wired.

 

[Firebrand]

PC 37x is $90 on Drop atm. https://drop.com/buy/massdrop-x-sennheiser-pc37x-gaming-headset

 

[Oublieux]

PC 37x is $90 on Drop atm. https://drop.com/buy/massdrop-x-sennheiser-pc37x-gaming-headset

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Solid recommendation right here.

 

[Hobbun]

PC 37x is $90 on Drop atm. https://drop.com/buy/massdrop-x-sennheiser-pc37x-gaming-headset

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Is this supposed to be a good headset? Why do you like this one?

 

[Firebrand]

Is this supposed to be a good headset? Why do you like this one?

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I have the GAME ONE version which is essentially the same. Decent sound, and mic, comfortable though clamping force perhaps a bit high. Also like that you can mute the mic by just rotating it up.

They're open-back which I greatly prefer but if you want sound isolation maybe look at HyperX Cloud or Arctis.

 

[Duxxy3]

PC 37x is $90 on Drop atm. https://drop.com/buy/massdrop-x-sennheiser-pc37x-gaming-headset

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Definitely worth it. This is what I'd recommend right now.

 

[Gabe]

Quality wise i feel like when you step over the price barrier, the flagships or any of the "not cheap" ones, pretty much equate to each other.
But for my personal 2 cents: of all the ones i tried, i gotta say the Razer Kraken has been the most comfortable by far during long sessions.

EDIT: forgot to specify, the Razer Kraken TE version. I have no clue about the standard ones.

 

[shadowhaxor]

I had looked on both the HyperX and SteelSeries headphones and found complaints on the mic or sometimes feedback with sound. Not overwhelming amount of complaints, but I get nervous when I start to see a handful of them.

This is the first I had read up on the Logitech G Pro. Now is the Pro X the wireless version? Is that one of the biggest differences between the Pro and Pro X? With the normal G Pro I only saw wired.

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There are actually 3 of them. The Logitech G Pro, Pro X, and Pro X wireless. The Pro X and Pro X wireless are the same.

The differences between the G Pro and Pro X is the G is stereo and the X is 7.1.

 

[neilyadig]

I had looked on both the HyperX and SteelSeries headphones and found complaints on the mic or sometimes feedback with sound. Not overwhelming amount of complaints, but I get nervous when I start to see a handful of them.

This is the first I had read up on the Logitech G Pro. Now is the Pro X the wireless version? Is that one of the biggest differences between the Pro and Pro X? With the normal G Pro I only saw wired.

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HyperX Cloud Alpha is solid and reliable. I play online with multiple people who use them, the mic quality is excellent over Discord, the headphones are very comfortable over long periods, the sound quality is good.

 

[Hobbun]

Ok, so it sounds like the PC37x is the winning one so far. I have started to read the reviews on the site and the only concern I have is the repeated clamping complaints I have read. But I am guessing that has a lot to do on size of head. Not sure if my head is considered big or not. :)

There are actually 3 of them. The Logitech G Pro, Pro X, and Pro X wireless. The Pro X and Pro X wireless are the same.

The differences between the G Pro and Pro X is the G is stereo and the X is 7.1.

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Ok, so is there not a G Pro wireless, then?

 

[shadowhaxor]

Ok, so it sounds like the PC37x is the winning one so far. I have started to read the reviews on the site and the only concern I have is the repeated clamping complaints I have read. But I am guessing that has a lot to do on size of head. Not sure if my head is considered big or not. :)



Ok, so is there not a G Pro wireless, then?

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Nope.

 

[Hobbun]

HyperX Cloud Alpha is solid and reliable. I play online with multiple people who use them, the mic quality is excellent over Discord, the headphones are very comfortable over long periods, the sound quality is good.

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All factors I am looking for. A definite possibility. Sound quality good for gaming/watching videos? I do know another factor on that is the sound card, but I do have a good sound card.

Nope.

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Ok, thank you.

 

[Hobbun]

Went ahead and ordered the HyperX Cloud Alpha.

There were some negatives here and there on reviews, but seems to have everything I am looking for. Hope I'm happy with it!

 

[Hobbun]

I just got my new HyperX Cloud Alpha headset in. Haven't tried it out yet but I noticed it doesn't required a USB plug-in, only ones for the audio and microphone jacks.

Is that pretty standard now for headphones (barring wireless ones)? Where they only require the plug-ins for audio and microphone (and not a USB one, as well)?

Sorry if it's a dumb question, just haven't bought a headset in a long time. And I guess I was just surprised it didn't use USB again. Not really sure what the difference is on using it and not using it is.

 

[DieH@rd]

Cooler Master MH751, which is a optimized version of Takstar Pro82.

They are great.

 

[Hobbun]

Cooler Master MH751, which is a optimized version of Takstar Pro82.

They are great.

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I already bought the headset. But will pass that onto my roommate. Thanks.

 

[DOtherOneLives]

If you don't care about wireless I would strongly recommend the razer blackshark v2
Price vs quality is very good
59$ / 60€ for the "X" version (slightly worst) or ~100 € for the v2

 

[Hobbun]

All, please read the current posts. I appreciate the recommendations, but I have purchased a new headset already. But what my new question is this:

I just got my new HyperX Cloud Alpha headset in. Haven't tried it out yet but I noticed it doesn't required a USB plug-in, only ones for the audio and microphone jacks.

Is that pretty standard now for headphones (barring wireless ones)? Where they only require the plug-ins for audio and microphone (and not a USB one, as well)?

Sorry if it's a dumb question, just haven't bought a headset in a long time. And I guess I was just surprised it didn't use USB again. Not really sure what the difference is on using it and not using it is.

Click to shrink...

 

[XR.]

All, please read the current posts. I appreciate the recommendations, but I have purchased a new headset already. But what my new question is this:

I just got my new HyperX Cloud Alpha headset in. Haven't tried it out yet but I noticed it doesn't required a USB plug-in, only ones for the audio and microphone jacks.

Is that pretty standard now for headphones (barring wireless ones)? Where they only require the plug-ins for audio and microphone (and not a USB one, as well)?

Sorry if it's a dumb question, just haven't bought a headset in a long time. And I guess I was just surprised it didn't use USB again. Not really sure what the difference is on using it and not using it is.

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I know it's a late reply, but I thought you'd be interested in knowing the difference between a USB and 3.5mm connection!

USB is all digital which means the digital signal needs to be converted to analogue at some point through a DAC (digital-to-analogue converter), which means this process needs to be part of the headset as opposed to the PC or an external DAC. If your headset has an analogue connection, i.e. a 3.5mm connection, you're using the sound card in the PC (or external DAC) that converts the digital signal instead.

What produces the best sound is dependent on the hardware/headset. If you have a good sound card or are using a good quality external DAC, it's probably better to use a headset with analogue input since that way you'll make use of your good quality DAC. If you don't have a good sound card/DAC, it doesn't matter much because I don't think there's any noticeable difference between on-board sound and a built-in DAC in a headset.

 

[Hobbun]

I know it's a late reply, but I thought you'd be interested in knowing the difference between USB and 3.5mm cables.

USB is all digital which means the digital signal needs to be converted to analogue through a DAC, and in the case for headsets there needs to be a DAC inside the headset (or separately on the cable connection). If your headset is analogue, i.e. 3.5mm, you're reliant on the sound card of the PC that converts the digital signal instead.

What's best is dependant on the hardware/headset. If you have a good sound card or are using an external DAC, it's probably better to use a headset with analogue input. If you don't have that, it doesn't matter much because I doubt there's any noticeable difference between on-board sound and a built-in DAC in a headset.

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Ok thanks for the explanation.

As for my headset, they are good quality, but are a bit tight on the head. Definitely prefer my previous headset in that regards (had more room). But the quality does seem better.