The kind of gaming gear you use while playing can have a huge impact on your overall experience. This goes for any kind of video game, it doesn’t matter if you are playing action, adventure, role-playing, sports or a simulator one. The genre determines what needs more attention, but one thing is common, the importance of sound.
Increased Skill and Performance
This title might seem weird at first. “How is a gaming headset supposed to increase my performance?”, you might ask. And it would be the most important question you could form. Because yes, the sound isn’t supposed to play that big of a part in games.
Awareness
This is one of the best things that gaming headsets provide you with. If you are playing with speakers then it can get insanely hard to tell where noises are coming from and when your life is on the line it can get pretty annoying. We’ve all been there in Counter Strike at least once. Especially when you get shot in the back of the head because someone was able to sneak up on you.
If you play Fortnite, Overwatch or Call of Duty regularly then a gaming headset is a must. And if you play Counter Strike, then I must ask… How have you won any game before now?
Communication
Many games require players to talk with their teammates. Or at the very least, it’s highly recommended, as teamwork can give you better chances of winning. For this, you will need a headset with a microphone and unfortunately, no other kind of gear will work. If you have speakers and a mic then your teammates will be able to hear their own voices. Try to talk while you are hearing yourself with a 1-second delay. If you can make coherent sentences, then we applaud you, but most people aren’t capable of doing this. Generally speaking, you should always have the sound going right into your ear and not in an open space.
Besides that, you can socialize a little more if you put some effort into it. Actually talking is much more different than just chatting, so if you have had a long-time friend on a game then it might be time to move things up a notch.
Better overall experience
Has it ever happened to you that your ears randomly unclogged and suddenly you were able to hear everything much better? Getting a gaming headset is the exact same. If you play with speakers or some cheap earbuds then the difference will be astonishing. Not only will you hear things you haven’t before, but the sounds you had already known will amaze you with its depth and quality.
The bass is much stronger and your head will be filled with whatever is coming from the headsets. This creates an experience that you will want to relive every day.
Comfort
Let’s be honest: earbuds aren’t very comfortable after a prolonged period of time. Nor are cheap headsets that are made for listening to music while walking home. These two are very cheap options that were created to be used for a short amount of time, so no wonder the manufacturers don’t spend time and energy on making them comfortable for the everyday user.
But when it comes to gaming headsets it’s a much different situation. They have a piece of foam around the ear parts, so the plastic or metal doesn’t push down on your skin and leave marks. These foams also create a small barrier, so the sound isn’t able to go anywhere but your ear.
Plus they also have this cushiony part at the top, so you can’t feel the weight of the whole headset on the top of your head. Because of this, it will feel like there’s nothing on you at all.
Wired vs Wireless Gaming Headsets
Since every single accessory is becoming wireless you might be tempted to buy a wireless headset. This might be a good or a bad idea, we can’t tell for sure. It depends on your specific situation, which means that we are going to give you the cons and pros of each one, so you will have an easier time deciding.
Wired Headsets
This is the classic way of doing things. Wired headsets have been around for decades, so they are at a point where they are perfectly reliable and can easily last for years, even with extensive use. They are very durable and are the best choice for people who plan on using it on one computer only, but for a long time.
The best part is that they don’t need to be charged. This can save you the trouble of waiting for up to an hour before playing because you forgot to do this task. With wired headsets, you can just plop down on your chair and get on with it. But because of this, they don’t have batteries either and the headset is much lighter. It makes it easier to carry around. Notice that we didn’t say easy, just easier.
The first bad part about wired headsets is that they are usually not very portable. They are often bulky and need a lot of space. But the wire is the worst of it. If you don’t have a cable organizer or a zip tie that you can use then it will be all over the place. It will tangle and if you have anything else beside it then be prepared to try to untangle that mess.
Wireless Headsets
You can probably tell the pros and cons just by what you read a few seconds ago. These headsets are easy to take with you, as they were designed to be with the used all the time. They take up a lot less space because they are much sleeker. Also, there is no tangle problem with cables. You can place it next to a wired mouse, a charger or any other thing that usually dangles. This one won’t cause inconvenience. The bad part is that they need to be charged. This requires a battery, which makes the whole thing a lot heavier. It’s not that awful, but it will definitely flatten your hair.
Where to Buy Gaming Headsets
We highly recommend one specific site that sells headsets. Beyerdynamic. They don’t sell headsets that have the word “gaming” in them, but that’s the exact reason why we think you should choose them. They don’t try to overprice their products by marketing towards gamers. You can get high-quality headsets from them for a very low price compared to other manufacturers.
But if you insist on buying “gaming gear”, then HyperX is a great brand to start with. Their products are very durable and the sound is absolutely perfect. Plus, their headsets aren’t as expensive as Razer’s or Sennheiser’s. The two latter ones are also fine, but be prepared to spend quite a lot of them. The price doesn’t guarantee better quality.
Putting some extra effort into buying yourself some better audio equipment can never be a bad idea. The worst thing that could happen is that you treat yourself to better some better sound quality. Your ears will thank you for it and you will be very glad that you decided to up your game a bit.
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