7.1 surround vs 5.1 surround for gaming and headset/headphones

[megustarad114]

so i am thinking about getting some good headphones help me choose please i am not a audio geek .( steelseries siberia V2 usb 7.1 surround ) headphones cost 100 usd  and the other option is getting a ( razer  kraken PRO) with a  sound card which can simulate 5.1 surround cost 100 usd  or get a (steelseries siberia V2 non 7.1 version with asus sound card which can simulate virtual 5.1 cost IS 110 !!!! usd ) ... 

 I am confused between getting the  7.1 surround or the 5.1 surround . will there be a difference between 7.1 & 5.1  ??
is the steelseries  siberia V2  better or worse than the razer kraken pro  ???!                                               

        (^^50 mm drivers ^^)                                        (^^40mm drivers^) 

Q1.should i get the siberia v2 7.1 or the siberia v2 with sound card pci-e  with 5.1 surround or usb with 7.1?

Q2.so should i get the razer kraken pro or the steelseries siberia v2 7.1 or steelseries siberia v2 non 7.1 ??

Q3.if the answer to question 2 is not steelseries siberia v2 7.1 then which sound card should i buy the asus xonar dg pci-e which simulates 5.1 surround or  asus xonar u3 usb which can simulate 7.1 surround sound ?

Q4. if there is better head phones then the steelseries siberia v2 and the razer kraken pro ???
Q5.i am a competitive cod/bf3 player so i must have surround but the question is  which one 7.1 or 5.1 ???

...... YES i know about razer surround and currently use it but after december this year they will take 20 usd ... i don't want to use razer surround ... If you don't know about any thing abou headphones and know about sound cards and 7.1 vs 5.1 please leave a answer and this is vice versa if you thing  about head phones and sound cards answer these 100 questions of mine :P

 

LINKS to these headphones and the sound card :-

1.steelseries siberia V2 usb (7.1) surround :  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002Q8IHEK

2. razer kraken pro with on asus xonar dg 5.1:http://www.amazon.com/Razer-Kraken-Analog-Headset-RZ04-00870300-R3U1/dp/B009SJR2BE/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1374705497&sr=1-2&keywords=razer+kraken+pro

 

3.steelseries siberia V2..( 5.1) with asus xonar dg 5.1: http://www.amazon.com/SteelSeries-Siberia-Full-Size-Gaming-Headset/dp/B002Q8IHDQ

4. asus xonar dg 5.1 sound card : http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-XONAR-Headphone-Audio-Card/dp/B0045JHJSS

 

OR SHOULD I GET THE ASUS XONAR U3 SOUND CARD WHICH SUPPORTS 7.1  ??  
5. asus xonar u3 usb sound.card with 7.1: http://www.amazon.com/ASUS-Xonar-Sound-Cards-XONAR_U3/dp/B0054L8GVK

 

hope this is in the right section of the forum and ps i am also posting this on peripherals section of the forum please admin/moderator  do not delete it  because this is both a audio and peripherals question .. ps linus or slick if u saw thi post i watch you guys from 2011 maybe  not slick from 2011 but linus from 2011

[SSOB]

7.1 is Useless... Get 5.1 and you'll be fine

[megustarad114]

 but all the gaming headphones come with 7.1 and is 7.1 better than 5.1 or they are the same 

[SSOB]

 

7.1 is Useless... Get 5.1 and you'll be but all the gaming headphones come with 7.1 :)

 

Still , If it was for me i would get 2.1 , TBH all the 5.1 and 7.1 is just bullshit.. but it doesn't really matter i guess but i'm not an audio expert so i would wait for a real expert to anwser this..

[t0wer]

7.1 and 5.1 are Useless... Get 2.0 and you'll be fine

ftfy

 

your better off buying a headphone and a mic separately than almost any headset.

and with cans around the price you're talking, just stick with onboard.

[megustarad114]

Still , If it was for me i would get 2.1 , TBH all the 5.1 and 7.1 is just bullshit.. but it doesn't really matter i guess but i'm not an audio expert so i would wait for a real expert to anwser this..

thanks but i hear a a difference between 2.1 and 7.1(razer surround ) not sure about 5.1 and hearing foot steps is good in cod and bf3 

[SSOB]

thanks but i hear a a difference between 2.1 and 7.1(razer surround ) not sure about 5.1 and hearing foot steps is good in cod and bf3 

Basically it's all drivers 

[megustarad114]

ftfy

 

your better off buying a headphone and a mic separately than almost any headset.

and with cans around the price you're talking, just stick with onboard.

i would use onboard audio but i want 5.1 or 7.1 surround and dont know which os better 

[Aphexx]

the numbers are arbitrary 7.1 5.1 all that is the marketing department trying to extract stuff from your pockets. the sound virtualizations are just reverb and echo effects.

 

 

in the peripherals section you stated you wanted to be competitive in fps games. for positional audio you really want soundstage...

 

the key word you want to look for is SOUNDSTAGE the idiots that run gaming companies label it with 5.1 or 7.1 which is just plain arbitrary real audio companies real headphone companies call it soundstage. also look for audio companies and not gaming peripheral companies. there is a lot of research and development that has to go into the making of these audio devices and I'd be leery of any of these gimicky gaming peripherals companies. 

 

True soundstage optimized headphones are usually open backed in design where the outside cups are ventilated to the outside and not sealed off. 

 

while I don't like what this guy in the vid says in some things he has gone through the different stages and in the end found open backed headphones

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVme7rxdTLk

[whatthe_fuzz]

I have yhe plantronics 780 gamrcon headphones. 7.1 dolby digital surround sound. I prefer to keep the surround off. It's too gimmicky.

[megustarad114]

the numbers are arbitrary 7.1 5.1 all that is the marketing department trying to extract stuff from your pockets. the sound virtualizations are just reverb and echo effects.

 

 

in the peripherals section you stated you wanted to be competitive in fps games. for positional audio you really want soundstage...

 

the key word you want to look for is SOUNDSTAGE the idiots that run gaming companies label it with 5.1 or 7.1 which is just plain arbitrary real audio companies real headphone companies call it soundstage. also look for audio companies and not gaming peripheral companies. there is a lot of research and development that has to go into the making of these audio devices and I'd be leery of any of these gimicky gaming peripherals companies. 

 

True soundstage optimized headphones are usually open backed in design where the outside cups are ventilated to the outside and not sealed off. 

 

while I don't like what this guy in the vid says in some things he has gone through the different stages and in the end found open backed headphones

 

man level cap got new head phones 

and i don't wan to spend over 100 usd on headphones  btw thanks for your comment 

[megustarad114]

I have yhe plantronics 780 gamrcon headphones. 7.1 dolby digital surround sound. I prefer to keep the surround off. It's too gimmicky.

do you hear foot steps better in games with 7.1 ??

[whatthe_fuzz]

do you hear foot steps better in games with 7.1 ??

yes. I mean directional quality is superb but the sound becomes very echo-y. like @Aphexx said, its all reverb. it kinda distorts the actual sound volume.

[Aphexx]

dude honestly I've gone through the journey to open back headphones as well just like that levelcap guy. mine went from turtle beaches to the new corsair vengeance 2000 with 7.1 using both the EAX and Dolby headphone refresh in february and nothing beats an open back soundstage made from a tried and true audio company

 

I turn off all the dolby headphone and razer virtualizers and take in the game sound raw to get positional audio.

 

so its your choice. spend money and climb up the ladder like levelcap and I have done or just trust us and get an open backed headphone.

[megustarad114]

yes. I mean directional quality is superb but the sound becomes very echo-y. like @Aphexx said, its all reverb. it kinda distorts the actual sound volume.

you can turn off the reverb effect on the on the dolby control center if the reverb is no there will the directional quality be good ??

[Aphexx]

you can turn off the reverb effect on the on the dolby control center if the reverb is no there will the directional quality be good ??

no. that's the whole 5.1 7.1   or 11.1 bullshit they are feeding you. its all the reverb. 

[Aphexx]

peace out. I'm done with this thread. till tomorrow

[megustarad114]

dude honestly I've gone through the journey to open back headphones as well just like that levelcap guy. mine went from turtle beaches to the new corsair vengeance 2000 with 7.1 using both the EAX and Dolby headphone refresh in february and nothing beats an open back soundstage made from a tried and true audio company

 

I turn off all the dolby headphone and razer virtualizers and take in the game sound raw to get positional audio.

 

so its your choice. spend money and climb up the ladder like levelcap and I have done or just trust us and get an open backed headphone.

what is an open baked  headphones ?? ps i don't wan to spend more than 100 us dollars man and i trust level cap and if u know frankieonpcin1080p he recommended the astro a40 with the mix amp but i cant get the astro ot the audio technica headphones the cost more than 100 usd 

[t0wer]

you could always buy used.

I've bought lots of used audio equipment.

 

or you could go ad500

just a step behind the ad700's

 

open backed means they don't isolate at all, and you can hear everything around you and hear your music/game.

not so great in a noisy environment, but for a quiet environment hard to beat for positional audio.

[whatthe_fuzz]

you can turn off the reverb effect on the on the dolby control center if the reverb is no there will the directional quality be good ??

I never got the dolby software so I don't know about turning it off. but I did however get the plantronics software which enabled the dolby switch on the headset. I uninstalled it. it was useless and took up space on my ssd.

[Focux]

This is a good thread for me =)

[megustarad114]

you could always buy used.

I've bought lots of used audio equipment.

 

or you could go ad500

just a step behind the ad700's

 

open backed means they don't isolate at all, and you can hear everything around you and hear your music/game.

not so great in a noisy environment, but for a quiet environment hard to beat for positional audio.

man thanks i did not even see the ad500 and i really wan to get the best headphones under 100 usd. thanks bro but still not sure about 7.1 or the 5.1 :( 

[megustarad114]

This is a good thread for me =)

ok  

[ShearMe]

man thanks i did not even see the ad500 and i really wan to get the best headphones under 100 usd. thanks bro but still not sure about 7.1 or the 5.1 :(

 

They label these effects to make you think one is better than the other but in reality IT DOESN'T MATTER. Sure, one might sound better or worse to a particular person, but I can guarantee you there's another person out there that thinks otherwise because their ears are shaped differently or whatever, and that's not even getting into how different pairs of headphones react to these effects.

 

If you want to use virtual surround, knock your socks off, there's plenty of people who prefer it; It's just about picking what works with your ears and your headphones the best for your brain. However, no matter the signal you're sending to your headphones, you're better off picking a good pair of headphones than a headset with more virtual (or worse, physical) speakers crammed inside. Multiple drivers per ear can work in theory, but not in practice so far.

[Focux]

Funny enough, I can tell where enemies are coming from better with 2.1 compared to 7.1