Over the past few days I have been considering buying the new 5.1 Zalman headphones. The reviews favor these but there are a few other comparable headphones out that I am considering as well. Please tell me your experiences with the Zalman ZM-RS6Fs, the Grado R60s, and the Sennheiser HD 497s. Also, the headphones will be connected to a Hercules Fortissimo III. If these headphones do not match the sound card, please suggest some that do. Thanks.

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Cower before my blades as I manipulate time to slaughter your pitiful, mortal body.

sHRiKE or Mith

My headphones are held together with duct tape.



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Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.

If you get Sennheisers, pray that they don't arrive broken. They have been "preparing to be returned" for 3 weeks!

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"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." - Edmund Burke

"Never let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what is right." -Isaac Asimov

I like my Grado SR80's.

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[This message has been edited. Deal with it.]

I have the Zalman 5.1's. They are great for games as you can really notice that surround feel which helps when working out where the hell the guy in BF1942 is who is trying to shoot you

They're not too bad for DVDs. Great comfortable design too, you can wear them for ages comfortably. That said, for music they aren't that good IMO. If music is a top priority, get a Sennheiser.

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Cantina Cloud | BCF | The Massassian 1 & 2 | Gonkmeg
Corrupting the kiddies since '97

http://www.headphone.com/layout.php?topicID=3&subTopicID=26

I have the HD 497, they are very good

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"Music is the universal language and the
dialect we speak in is Hip Hop!" - King Solomon

The Zalmans have incredibly poor sound quality. They are not worth the money. HD 497s and SR60s have about equivelant sound quality, and both have comfort woes. The 497s, which I own, have a tight headband, and even after bending it outward (CAREFULLY, it bends very little at first), they are still uncomfortable at times. I've heard the SR60s are similarly uncomfortable with their sort of not good pads. HD 497s you can get refurbished from the Sennheiser site for $50 with no shipping (my refurbs are brand new), and maybe $55-$60 new. I'd check eBay for new. SR60s are a little more but about the same.

But bottom line, I strongly urge that you do not get the Zalmans. They do have 5.1, but the sound quality sucks so much it's not even worth it. EAX (which your card has) is all you need with a good set of cans.

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Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.

I have the HD 497s; like Emon said sometimes they arn't very comfortable (nothing serious) but definatly worth the price in sound quality.

Get AKG

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Gandalv the Gray, recieving bans for Christmas since December 2001

I would recommend AKG. In my experience as a studio recorder and audio contractor, I have never encountered a better set of headphones availiable at such a reasonable price.

[Addendum: I even included the model I like the most.]

[This message has been edited by Hellequin (edited March 22, 2004).]

Gaming: Aopen HS-780

I use it for everything though. They're nice, and cheap. 17 bucks and they have AMAZING sound quality. I didn't think they'd be this good for that cheap, but they are.

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man, I just been using the headphones that came with my cdplayer..