Hardware Audio FX Pro 5+1 Gaming Headset

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2008/02/04/audio_fx_pro_5_1_gaming_headset/1

Designed by distinguished modder Ben Heck, the Audio FX is a USB headset that boasts 5.1 channel surround sound, bass boasting force feedback and TeamSpeak certification. Now, we find out if that translates into a decent headset or just a fleet of empty promises.

 

Ah, good! Reading Benheck a lot made me wonder if these were any good. Love the looks.

 

these look appalling! that tan orangy fake leather makes me feel sick, and why the hell would you want the headphones to vibrate?
these things look so cheap and nasty, big and bulky, and by the sounds of the review perform just as bad.
and who the hell is this ben heck guy, his website sucks and barely works, and that little plug he gives the headset is so annoying. who the hell eats pizza while playing games, fat americans i guess, this thing is designed for stupid americans that think it has everything they want, and because it has some guys name on it makes them good.

 

Somebody seriously needs to invent a headset with a built in EQ. All the problems of levels being off would be removed in one fell swoop.

To be honest, as with most 'geek celebrity' tie-ins, this is all trouser and little else. To be honest, as soon as I see a 'famous' name on the box, I run a mile, and with usually good reason.

 

Those suck so much

 

Looks like benheck.com has been slashdotted (or bitteched? ).

Also, the pics all make it look like the mic is on the right cup but the last pic confirms it is indeed on the left.
Had me confused for a while.

 

May be one to consider. I need a new headset.

 

Maybe mr. Benheck is deaf. And now he can actualy hear something. If this is the case then this headset probably is the best thing he has heard.

 

Wheres the sharkoon's, they been out for a while now and Bit havent reviewed them ?

I have them and they are great, can you do a review and show everyone else how great they are ??

 

So the cushions are made of faux leather?
<3 animal friendly products

 

These things are a total piece of junk!!! I have been thru 3 of them because I didnt catch that it wasnt returnable to Newegg for a full refund only replacement. Microphone was very horrid and the audio buzzes constantly. I cant believe these things got any kind of good review. I got suckered dont let yourself be suckered either.

 

Get real headphones. £40 will get you some grado SR60! which are pretty awsome for music aswell as games. Particularly at the old mini gun while listening to hard rock thing

 

Buzzing? Not for me and the mic held up fine. There were problems, but not those.

 

I normally only read the articles and reviews here. But, since I have tried this headset I thought I'd share my experience with you guys. Just a personal opinion though, so you don't have to agree,.. I'm just a newbie on the forums here Here we go...

If you buy a headset mainly because of the looks,.. this might be something for you. It looks nice, and build quality feels pretty good too. I'm not talking about how comfortable the set is when you wear it, but building quality. I think you can drop this thing on the floor without doing much damage to it, if any.

If you buy a 5.1 headset because you want to experience 5.1 surround sound with good quality sound waves,.... you'll end up crying yourself to sleep after every single gaming session. I seriously do NOT understand the "high" ratings in the review. I would have if the product would have been a regular stereo headset with build in vibration. I might even agree with most of the numbers then. I'll try to clarify myself a bit:

The sound while gaming only seems to be clear when you push it up half way. Which is okay I guess,.. but this is where another problem seems to occur; the artificially boosted bass (which I think there is) cancels out other sounds. I have tried this in COD4, several times. With music I experience the same issue. I might be a bit picky, but I question the quality of the cones inside this headset. I think without this very present bass, sounds would have been a lot easier to identify and distinguish.

While I am nagging about the quality of the speakers, I'll slide into something equally important to a 5.1 headset. And that would be true 5.1 sound. It isn't there (as clearly pointed out in the review). There's not enough pinpoint accuracy to put the 5.1 label onto this product. Far from it. Sure,.. if you really try to imagine the place where the sound might come from you can mentally pretend you have pinpointed the source of the sound. That's not nearly good enough when you're playing a game though, one where it matters where the bad guy is inside your virtual little battle ground. If real surround sound is what you expect from a 5.1 headset (and I think anyone should expect that when you can clearly read "5.1") you' will be extremely disappointed with this product. If money is an issue just opt for the cheapest 5.1 speaker surround set you can find, and it will be 100 times better than this. You could even mount them onto a helmet and hang them around your head,.. still heaps better than what this headset provides you with when it comes to surround sound.

The vibrating stuff is fun. Not useful, it seriously won't help you,... didn't add an extra dimension for me anyways. I'd rather see a set without the sex-toys build in, but with good (doesn't even have to be perfect, considering the price range) surround sound of decent quality. The microphone appears to be good. I didn't have anyone complaining about not being able to hear me,.. sometimes people asked me to stop screaming,.. which was a side-effect of having to turn the sound up to be able to hear things clearly, and not being able to hear yourself talk properly when things get loud "around" your ears.

It's a try-out toy for fun purposes. For anyone that takes either movies, music or gaming slightly serious (yes, some people do that), this device will most likely end up on your head,.. only if it's freezing outside, or inside, and you want to keep your ears warm. I can't find any other purpose for it. But I am quite sure it will do a good job at keeping your ears warm.

If this product would have been sold as a "Stereo Gaming Vibrator with Imaginary Virtual Surround Sound" I would have given it a 7/10. Now I can't rate it higher than a 3/10, and that's me being generous. So buy this one only if you have low expectations of surround sound experiences, find it kinky to have an artificial concussion while going deaf,.. or if you suffer from ever lasting cold ears.


-slightly off topic-:

I would not use Mp3's to test any sound producing device. A compressed audio format that is both lossy and contains high fidelity quality does not exist. If you want to test speakers or headphones you should throw the best you can find at them when it comes to quality. Using Mp3's is a bit like taking a Formula One car and putting ordinary gasoline in it. Yes it will most likely move, but you can't really test the extremes of the vehicle because the fuel is the limiting factor.

You might want to say "Yeah, but this is not really a top-product of the high end range." Might be very true, but if your Mp3's are not pushing the device to its limits, you can't really give it a rating, because the sound source is the limiting factor.

But, that's just my opinion of course. I enjoyed reading this review, and many others. Thanks.

 

i bought this headset a few months back, and here's how i found them

1) Force feedback- Genius. Not necessary by any means but just like subtle graphical effects make me stop gaming for a second and just appreciate them (such as the waterfall in crysis, with the rainbow spray), this feature made me smile while my squad and i were getting blown to smithereens under an artillery barrage in battlefield 2

2) Surround- Meh, its alright, not worth buying the headset over, if you really need 5.1 get some z-540s for a little more, they're brilliant

3) Volume- Joe, your spot on

4) Mic- I found it too quiet in TF2, but others haven't, i might have the settings wrong or something. Sounds fine in normal sound recorder

5) Sound quality- For music, a little blunt, watered down from what i normally get through my z-540s. Had to play around with the equalizer quite a bit to get it worthy of led zep. For gaming though it's spot on (don't know why theres a contrast) and thanks to the feedback, explosions really sound like explosions

 

This looks like it's just a beefed up version of an old Altec Lansing stereo headset design.

 

Agree with Bdodo... Anyone who hopes to get 5.1 positional audio with these headphones or any other so-called 3d headphones will be sorely disappointed. I have tried a number of 3d headsets that use multiple drivers in each ear to create what they claim is 3d positional sound. Quite simply it doesn't work. No surround headphones I have tested can project the sound in front of you. When tested with 3d positional audio, you can't distinguish any difference when the sound is in front of you versus behind. Surround headphones are only able to project sound between your ears, to the sides or behind. If the sound is in front of you, it appears to be behind. 5.1 headphones simply can't project sound accurately and you will NEVER hear sound in front of you.

I recently ditched my surround headphones for some Logitech X-540 speakers. They absolutely kill even the best so-called surround headphones such as the Psyko 5.1. The X-540 even sound great for music. The positional audio is mind-blowing. Headphones are convenient but forget it if you want real surround sound!