[steve1982]

hi
i currently own the sharkoon x-static v2 5.1 headphones.
i have always thought the sound quality was pretty good on these but i have always thought the surround effect quite poor on these and find it quite hard to sense which direction sounds are coming from sometimes so i am looking to upgrade :-).
i do not play many games and if i do i dont use chat so not bothered about the microphone quality i will be mainly just be using them for movies so my only criteria is
:must have optical input
:good sound quality
:a realistic 5.1 effect (i find the sharkoon v2 lacking in this).

i have my eyes on the sharkoon x-tatic v3 and the ear force x4 so does any body have any opinions on either aint bothered if they are wireless or not so will go for the ones which sound best and best surround effect (in movies).
has anybody used the ear force x4 whats the surround effect like on those as its only simulated 5.1 but read some pretty good reviews on those.

so which do you think i should get or am i missing some better ones dont mind upping the budget a bit if needs must lol.
well sorry to woffle lol your views please

[benmbe]

Hi steve1982,

Just another option friend, and I wish that all DVD's, Blu-Ray's had dolby headphone feature's option on their software.

I listened to Pearl Harbour special edition R1 4 disc, and my jaw dropped with the quality of true surround sound that this gave.

In fact' I quickly removed my headphones thinking I hadn't pushed the jack in farenough.......but no it was fine.

Secondly Denon high end amps have the headphone feature built in to their AV amps, which can be added to headphones, music and Film, also can be applied to recordings.

I Genuinely hope that you are able to get the best from your headphones, as I myself am also doing the same.

I look foreward to hearing the results of your searching.

Sincere Regards

[steve1982]

hi benmbe
thanks for your reply, yeah i have just been looking at some of the dolby headphone processing units was looking at a jvc one mixed reviews on that one i found lots of info on google for that but drew a blank when actually tried to find a site selling it grr im hoping to purchase something next week.
im swinging more towards the ear force x4 at the min i think but i dont wanna shell out 130 quid and they end up been crap lol.
its for a bedroom setup and due to noise and space reasons gotta go the headphone route plus i dont want wires trailin round the room lol.
well thanks for your input il tell ya what i think of the ear force x4 if i get them seem to be mostly good reviews about them apart from interference from plasma screens (to do with infrared interference or something) which doesnt effect me as using lcd :-), and a slight hiss when on totally silent scenes which your gonna get on most wireless sets so no big issue either

[benmbe]

Hi steve1982,

You are Genuinely welcome friend,

As I have said in my previous message, I am also trying to get the best surround sound from headphones.

For me personally'' I am happy with having cables, although the after market type (upgrade cost quite a bit,) but are worth having ''Kimber Cable''

The ''ear force x4'' never heard of these and will have to do a search and look at their site.

I am a Sennheiser man and am happy with their product's, but always like to look at what others are producing.

Yes please!...keep in touch as I would be pleased to hear from you in you search.

Sincere Regards

[steve1982]

turtle beach ear force x4 they aint been out too long.
there designed for xbox 360 but can be used with anything with an optical output.
Ear Force X4 Wireless 5.1 Dolby Pro Logic 2 Headset (Xbox 360): Amazon.co.uk: PC & Video Games
oh and the microphone can be removed lol.
i don't mean i mind the wires that come with the headphones lol i just meant i dont want the spaghetti junction that comes with having a proper 5.1 speaker set up lol.
well have a look at those they look quite promising, a bit pricey but not a great deal more than the new sharkoon ones and there wireless too :-)

[benmbe]

Hey steve1982,

Sorry for the reply'' have been busy at work.

Just looked at the headphones you are considering, they look very comfortable.

Wearing headphones for long periods, and late at night is very important(anytime for that matter,) for me it's late at night

Be good to hear how these sound.

Shall look forward to your updates in the coming days, or weeks.

Have a good sleep

sincerest Regards

[Drubbing]

Mate, you should consider a good pair of stereo phones as well. "realistic 5.1' and "headphones" are pretty much mutually exclusive.

THe basic premise of 5.1 phones is more drivers = better/surround sound, but extra drivers mm's from your ears simply can't replicate a room full of spaced speakers.

It's not about more, it's better drivers that create decent soundstage/seperation, and for movies and associated FX, good stereo phones will be just as good, if not much better - all dependent on the limits of the original recording/video.

The free bonus is they sound great for music too. So movie soundtracks sound better, as well as regular music listening.

And they can be bought cheaper as well. The benefits never end!

[steve1982]

benmbe i should be getting these early to mid next week i will try order them tomorrow or over weekend so i shall keep you posted on my thoughts of them.

Drubbing the ear force x4 headphones are actually stereo they contain just two 50mm drivers.
The base unit contains dolby headphone technology but this can be turned off if required and as the unit will take a phono input too they should be pretty good for music also the only bad reviews i could find on these was due to the fact that they picked up interference if sat too close to a plasma tv which i understand is a common problem with infrared headphones but this shouldn't affect me and these are supposed to have a pretty realistic soundstage.

i agree with you about the multi driver thing as the ones i was using had 4 drivers in each ear and while they sounded pretty good i didn't find they had very good channel seperation, thats just my opinion of them some people may prefer them they are just not for me i have had my moneys worth out of them anyway as have been using them for about a year and half so def time for upgrade lol

[steve1982]

Computerwebstore :

i just found them for £100.79 inc vat.
there is a delivery charge on top not sure how much but cant imagine it been too much so that's about 30 quid cheaper than amazon :-)

[benmbe]

Hi Steve,

Great news....and a big saving.

Hope you had a good day otherwise.

Sincere Regards

[Drubbing]

Originally Posted by steve1982

Drubbing the ear force x4 headphones are actually stereo they contain just two 50mm drivers. The base unit contains dolby headphone technology but this can be turned off if required and as the unit will take a phono input too they should be pretty good for music

Good luck with them, but I'd still keep your expectations of SQ realistic, although this may not be that important to you.

They may not be multiple drivers, but there's more 'stuff' included in that price than just a headband and drivers; you pay for wireless and dolby etc, so they probably won't sound as good standalone phones can for the same money.

But hey, if they're better than the 5.1s you had, then you're laughing.

[steve1982]

£112.79 inc delivery so quite bit cheaper than amazon, shall let ya both know what i think once tested

[Uriel]

Dolby Headphone is the most realistic surround over headphones technology I've tried.

I'm very happy with the Dolby Headphone effect I get from my Xonar D2 soundcard with standard stereo headphones. My 5.1 speakers only really get used when other people are around now.

Absolutely destroys the surround effect on my old Speedlink Medusas and I prefer it to Creative's CMSS-3d technology.

[steve1982]

this is good to hear i am actually looking forward to giving the ear force x4 a good testing session now then :-).
hopefully they should be here monday or tuesday at the latest.

im not expecting miracles i just want something that sounds good and can give a realisticish surround effect.

to be honest most of the time with the sharkoons i had it didnt really used to bother me that it wasnt a big soundstage as i find most films dont really have that much sound coming from the rear anyway mostly just ambient sounds but i was watching transformers 2 at the cinema and was blown away by the 5.1 sound of that film so i thought right dig deep its time for an upgrade lol.

oh if anybody has not seen transformers 2 yet then i reccomend you watch it as i thought it was an excellent movie :-)

[steve1982]

Dont anybody use that link for computerwebstore for order still has not been shipped and doing a google search on this company does not exactly fill me with confidence

[bobsmaginty]

I use the Pioneer TRE-D800 head unit with Senn 650s.
Fantastic depth and the feel of surround is very good.

Just demo with the DTS version of the plane crash in Knowing and you will be quite shocked how well this pair perform.

[Maximumbass88]

Any updates matey?

Don't mean to hijack the thread.
Has anyone successfully used the ear force x4 with a plasma screen? I'm really interested in getting these phones. I've read about ways to get around the plasma's IF interference, I'm wondering if anyone's been successful.

[steve1982]

sorry took so long for the update

first off never use computerwebstore they are a complete joke ordered on the 10th and they only shipped today i had already got bored of waiting and ordered off amazon so providing they do actually turn up tomorrow i will be selling a set on amazon so should get most of my cash back!

right now to the headphones lol, first off let me state i havent tried on an xbox 360 yet so havent got a clue about game chat etc.

i have been using these on my dvd player with optical out.

these headphones absolutely trounce the sharkoon headphones i had there seems to be a lot better sense of direction with these and the sharkoon v2s sounded tinny in comparison.
these have a bass boost function but i leave it turned off as you lose some of the high frequency and i honestly dont think it needs to be on there seems to be ample bass with it left off.
they have a stated battery life of 20 hrs but havent ran any batteries flat i have just bought 4 rechargeable aaa batteries and swap them after 5 films this way there should always be enough juice to run these bad boys lol .

right now the only negative aspect is the slight hiss which you get with most infrared headphones but to be honest you soon zone it out and its only really noticable at all on really quiet scenes.

i cant comment what they are like with plasma tvs as i dont have one but ive seen people stating they are ok as long as not sat too close so this is a gamble your going to have to risk if using with plasma screen.

so to top it off i would say im happy with my purchase minus the whole having to mess around with computerwebstore but that looks like its sorted now

[MikeyD]

Can't say I've ever used 5.1 headphones the way they're intended to be used. Are they as good as the hype?

[steve1982]

Well i suppose that depends on your opinion.
Some people prefer them and some people would rather spend the same amount of cash on a really decent pair of stereo headphones but im quite impressed with the ones i have just got