Skip This: I got a pair of Turtle Beach xbox headphones years ago, and also purchased a best buy warranty for 8 dollars. The problem was that, while their audio quality wasn't terrible and I appreciate the bass boost, the earphones were attached to the rest of the metal headband with a little piece of plastic that inevitably broke. 3 times. Considering I could just pick up a new pair, and rebuy the (now) discontinued warranty for another 8 bucks, I just kept getting them. They broke again earlier this summer, and I had the option to just get a gift card instead of replacing them, and I did that and sold it.

Now I've got $60 to $120 (lower is better) to spend on a new gaming headset. I like big over the ear cups that don't touch. I have a pair of Bose for music and audio editing, so this isn't my primary listening device, but I also don't mind bass. I've never really had a stellar mic, so that'd be nice. Bonus for a usb only option, as I have a speaker system that will be hooked up to this machine taking all of its audio jacks soon, but support for console is appreciated. My main goal is to find a pair that's a little more sturdy, and I'm willing to pay a little more if they're going to last me that much longer.

(It's not like I put them through too much wear though, because my Bose that I take with me everywhere look brand new. Those Turtle Beaches seemed deliberately cheap in construction to me.)

Any suggestions? Personal experience would be appreciated, thanks!

Ew, Bose. Get yourself something good and toss that ****.

Try something from Sennheiser? I got the PC350's for $150 but unfortunately they're not around anymore. The model they replaced it with is much more. That said, they do have cheaper models.

The Bose were a Christmas gift, and they're quite expensive, so I wouldn't really feel right replacing them, at least not while I am in the same city as my parents. They're finicky like that and ask about things they gift -_-. Because they're bad gift givers.

I looked at the Sennheisers, I guess I'm worried about getting one of the more inexpensive models without someone specifically vetting them. To be honest, I wanted to get an even cheaper 40 dollar pair because I could use the extra cash right now, but at the same time I don't want to spend 40 dollars now and then just end up getting the 120 dollar pair later because the cheap pair sucked/broke/whatever.

Hey Kirbs,

To be honest I didn't read through this thread because I'm on my lunch break at work but need to be heading back in a few minutes, but I do have a great recommendation for you.

Plantronics Gamecom 780

A lot of people may look at these and say "Ewwww, Plantronics!" blah blah blah. All I can tell you is that I've had 2 pairs of these headsets (the first pair I broke but was my own fault after I stepped on them with a boot at night and broke them in half) and neither of them have disappointed. This headset is amazing. It has incredible built-in surround sound (which I know again some people will roll their eyes to this because it's a headset and thus is an "imitation" of surround sound). However, I set my sound in windows to 7.1 surround sound on the headphones and it works flawlessly. I can tell you though, that the sound quality is excellent. The bass is excellent (it comes with a bass amplifier option that makes playing games and stuff far more immersive). Also, I'm not sure that this headset is fully noise-cancelling, but it does the job as it should. It removes out any background noise but also not to the point that you are completely numb to your surroundings.

The microphone is another great feature. The arm that extends (and also can fold up securely into the headset) is sturdy and isn't cumbersome. The quality of the mic is great as well, no weird background noise and it's clear and not scratchy.

Comfortablity is the best I've ever worn, and I've had over a dozen headsets in my gaming lifetime. It honestly feels like there's nothing even there, in fact sometimes I even forget I'm wearing them (no joke).

Finally, the headset itself is extremely durable. Don't let the fact that I broke the first pair deceive you. Not much could stand up to a 6'2" person weighing 185 lbs stepping with their full weight while wearing boots. It's built out of quality materials and feels sturdy, not cheap. Also, the cord is thicker than most headset cords, which means less of that crap you have sometimes where the wire begins to tear or short out.

All in all, this is an excellent headset. I have literally no complaints.

I'm no audiophile (I havent used an add-on soundcard in years, onboard has been good enough for me), so I wont be hurt if this post is ignored completely but I've always like Logitech's USB offerings. I used the ClearChat Pro for awhile. I think that's been discontinued for awhile but I think I'm using the H390 now and it seems like it's basically the same product. The H540 looks decent too.

These might be awful choices if you are used to highend audio, fortunately I can't tell the difference and my wallet thanks me.

I think Dark__Knight picked a winner, I just had a couple quick questions: Does it have support for consoles via a jack? If not that's not a big deal, because I only really use headsets for consoles when someone brings one over. Otherwise, it looks like the cups might be a tad shallow from pictures, and that's kind of a big deal for me with my overly sensitive cauliflower ears (And why your suggestion is immediately eliminated Triscuit: Those pads would drive me insane.) and I'm wondering if your ears ever touch or might if they had a bump on them. Otherwise, looks like it fits my needs perfectly, and is right in my price range.

I have a decade or so old Gamecon 1, it's pretty great.

I can say: do not get the "surround sound" bull****. You are literally throwing money away on that. Headphones have performed perfect surround sound effects since like... the 90's. The "surround" headphones are really a gimmick.

Anytime anyone tells me their surround headphones sound better somehow, I link them to this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUDTlvagjJA and call bull****.

I'm not sure about it having console support to be honest. I'm sure there's some kind of adapter or something if it didn't inherently work. As for the cups, they're deeper than they appear to be on the images. They're very very comfortable. Besides, if you ordered on Amazon you can always return the item within 30 days for a full refund even after using it and you don't have to pay for return shipping either.

Hey while we're on topic, is there any way to get a 3.5mm headset to work, audio only, on a console like the PS3?

Rca y adapter with rca to 3.5 adapter.

You lose fidelity, and it won't be megadickhurtz digital audio quality, but it will get the job done.

More importantly you'll probably lose volume control. Make sure your headset has in-line volume.

It does, thanks for the info.
All I want is a basic thing so I can play GTA5 in the middle of the night with a reasonably decent volume.
Also can anybody tell me if it's worth it to buy a new set over the Plantronics Gamecon 1 I have? I've looked up specs and it still seems to stack up well, and it works, but **** me I know nothing about headsets.

Game menu.

But yeah, this isn't the best solution. Just one that works.

Ideally you'd go fiber to amp to studio phones.