How Much Do Headphones Affect Play?

BugBrain · June 2003

<div class="IPBDescription">Are they better than a sub woofer?</div> What's your opinion?

I got a pair of headphones, volume all the way up, and I must say that I hear incoming enemies much better than speakers, even without the deep base of my sub woofer. Whether it's *taptaptap* or *clankclankclank*, I am surprised much less often than before.

Tyrain · June 2003

You're right. I play much better with headis on.

DethGaunt · June 2003

I always play with Headphones but have very often played with surround sound round my mates houses. i actually find that headphones give a better picture of where the enemies are and teh sound appears to be much clearer.

Zeo · June 2003

How about 5.1 versus headphones?

I was thinking about getting a 5.1 setup later this year for music and what not. Would the headphones trump this?

BigMadSteve · June 2003

I like both. When you play with a big sub woofer you can almost 'feel' the recoil whenever you fire a gun. The only problem is that it disturbs everyone if you have it loud.

I prefer headphones though. They have a mic and you can easily tell where a sound is coming from.

Pege · June 2003

I use Dolby Digital surround system (5 speakers + subwoofer) and Soundblaster Live! Platinum. Basically my NS has to have some faults with sounds, because sound volumes are totally different with headphones on. With stereo, many sounds (welder sound, building, enviroment sounds, FOOTSTEPS etc.) "fade" away. They are just so quiet I can hardly hear them without turning volume to full blast (and then firing etc. is so loud you'll wake up the entire town). I even tested Counter-Strike, Day Of Defeat, Opposing Force and regular Half-Life to see if it's just an NS thing and yes it was. Footstep sounds and other environment sounds work well with other mods, but in NS they don't. UNLESS I put headphones on. Then everything works just perfect: I can easily hear incoming skulks, hear marines building far away and gorges too. It makes NS so much easier. I have no idea why. I updated Live! drivers, turned subwoofer off, tried with only 2 speakers... Nothing worked. Now comes the weird part: when I look demos, the sound volumes are "normal" with stereo. They are then exactly like they are with headphones. (<img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/confused.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='confused.gif'>)

Have I just been too stupid to tweak some little thing or is there a bigger issue behind this?

I posted about this to the Tech Help forum one or two months ago, but didn't get any good advices. I've also reinstalled NS, but it didn't help. Anyone else having similar symptoms?

Frogg2 · June 2003

I think headphones are better than a pair of speakers just because you are getting sound from your left in your left ear only and sound from your right in your right ear only.

barman · June 2003

headphones make it so you have no outside interference when listening in the game.

MMZ_Torak · June 2003

I use 4.1 surround sound and with the speakers positioned right I have the same effect as using headphones.

On a side note, 5.1 stereo is not the best for music. A regular 2 speaker setup is better ( or 2.1 if you prefer) is best for music.

Zeus · June 2003

Yes sound is much easier to detect with headphones on. I switch between cheap in-ear sony phones and a plantronics headset and they both work a treat.

Carling · June 2003

i have

4 point surround sound (and a sub)
1 ear headphone/mic set

i find the headphone is better heh :/ altho i often use headphone and keep the speaks on low.

Marr · June 2003

I'm a sound maniac and I agree that headphones give you a tactical advantage in NS (as well as many other 3D games).

Here's what I want to try next: use headphone and disable my 4.1 setup <b>except</b> the subwoofer. That way I might get the precise positional sound from the headphones and the big thump from the woofer.

Wonder how I could possibly do that, tho...

Jabba_The_Hunt · June 2003

I use 5.1 EAX, and It's far superior to stereo, for telling where enemies (and other events) are around you, but yes stereo headphones are better than stereo speakers as more sound reaches your ears (less from outside) plus the sound is coming from either side rather than infront of you.

meatball · June 2003

I'm not one of those "sound maniacs", but I think as long as you dont have one of those SUPER soundsystems the best option is headphones b/c it is much easier to hear where the sound come from if there are nothing else that disturb you.

Guspaz · June 2003

I recently switched from 4.1 front-digital speakers with a nice sub to a set of Labtec headphones with built in mic. The sound quality is not quite as good, but the immersion is better and it lets me use a comfortable volume without worrying about others in the house. Plus the built-in mic is WAY easier to understand for others than a desktop boom mic.

My only real big complaint? I don't get surround sound in the headphones, so generally if a sound is centered I have NO idea if it's ahead or behind me. Anybody know a way to enable surroundsound on headphones using a SoundBlaster Live?

LazerMane · June 2003

I use headphones myself, and always have in HL, mainly because HL supports some major soundscape that allows me to pinpoint my enemies.... back when i played CS and would listen intently for footsteps and choose the right moment to hop out and frag them, they would always claim i was a "OMG HAX!!1!" and would votekick me for my intelligent use of sound.

Sound isnt just entertaining noise, it is a very crucial part of gameplay. Because in NS the maps wind around like CRAZYGONUTS, i often hear the marines tromping down the hallway long before i see them. With a VCOM alert to my team, we are almost always ready, never ambushed.

Anyway, my soundcard also has a special driver that will put the sounds i get through a resonating filter and then play them to me at slightly different tone/resonance so that now my brain can not only distinguish left from right, but it also knows where he is left, right, forward, backward, even down and up. I am a Skulk with a plan, and if using my awesome soundcard's capabilities is cheating, let me HaX away.

LM

Maus · June 2003

Even the cheapest pair of earphones will improve your playing - it's much easier to tell where enemies are coming from with them. Really good headphones come about as close as you'll get to having a legal wallhack. Headphones > Subwoofer.

Talesin · June 2003

Well, honestly it depends if you're going for entertainment, or competition.

Entertainment, I have a surround-sound setup with a subwoofer (haven't gotten the 'fading' problem, BTW) which is great as it's really immersive. I'm waiting to pick up a set of 3D shutter glasses so I can even get further into the game. You can hear where they are (ESPECIALLY handy when Skulking, and a Marine is just busily crack-bouncing around you) and catch little hints from distant footsteps. This option usually is only day-playable, as you DO need to have it up pretty good to get the full effect.

Competition, I have a pair of Koss Optimus PRO-50MX boom-mic headphones. They're sealed to keep out interfering noise, so when in a wait-fest against the Marine around the corner, I'll pick up on if he slips up in the slightest. Same with hearing distant Onii, and picking out where those Lerk Spikes are coming from (in v1.1).

In short, each has their strengths. Maximum fun-factor, surround is the way to go. Effective smackdown should utilize headphones... unless you can somehow swing a soundproofed room. At that point you're good to crank the surround, and enjoy (though a noise-cancelling mic would become a neccessity).

Iced_Eagle · June 2003

I just bought a 5.1 Creative system and an Audigy Gamer and well..... the sounds are different and take a while getting used to, but to find skulks and gorges building is really really easy now.... also it sounds different because it is much more open and immersive than headphones. Is there any special sounds for EAX users at all??? i doubt it tho

Speed_2_Dave · June 2003

we're talking about halflife here.. you know, something like an 8-year-old engine built on an older engine? Yeah, headphones are probably the best bet, although skulk chomps are mighty loud if you're on the giving end.

Guspaz · June 2003

Anybody know how to get surround sound on headphones on a SoundBlaster Live! ?

CplDavis · June 2003

I would say I get good 3d sound with my head phones. Especially in DOD when I turn aroudn I can hear the sounds and the direction every thing comes from. Still like they say bevore, i like the rumle my sub woofer gives me when I shoot a gun. I can feel the nade explosions rumble my desk lol.

Dihard · June 2003

</span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Talesin @ Jun 6 2003, 05:31 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> I'm waiting to pick up a set of 3D shutter glasses so I can even get further into the game.  </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> 
I haven't used them myself yet, but I heard those glasses give you horrible headaches.

Jabba_The_Hunt · June 2003

</span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Guspaz @ Jun 7 2003, 01:03 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Anybody know how to get surround sound on headphones on a SoundBlaster Live! ?  </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> 
You want to look for something called pseudo surround sound, it will change the frequencies of the sound so that your brain can tell where they are coming from, not quite as good as 5.1 but it will help.

CplHicks · June 2003

A lot!
When I hook my 'puter to my HiFi (when I have visitors... well it's kinda boring to watch a mute game) I don't hear when a pesky skulk tries to sneak up on me in carefully tapping forward..

With my cheapass mono headset I even hear that. Mostly, since sometimes ambience prohibits.

I'd say NS is about the only mod where it is REALLY important to listen to your surroundings.
And to be really silent if appropriate. I could freak out at Marines switching through their weapons while we secretly try to secure a hive. Usually this "coolness bada$$" behaviour results in a coordinated rush spoiling our Hivehead.

Couple days ago COMM dropped a RT at Cargobay, I was already there and knew a skulk was hiding somewhere near me. I didn't start to build as I knew he would go for me as soon the crackling sound of building starts. So I waited and told the COMM I heard something, so he left me alone for now. I waited 30 seconds...
Well Skulky obviosuly thought I was already gone in case he heard me... I heard a careful *clik*.....*clikclik...*
then he came for the RT.. and directly into my line of fire <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/asrifle.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='asrifle.gif'> <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/skulk.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='skulk.gif'> <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/marine.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='marine.gif'>

Bottom line:
No headset, and you can't play to your personal max.

Daxx · June 2003

I use my speakers for pleasure, my headphones (with mic) for business.

0blique · June 2003

I personally like to use head phones because it makes it so much more easier to hear all those quiet sounds (like skulk footsteps, gorge building). Plus, it's also a lot easier to hear where the sounds are coming from when they're being played close to you. It's also a lot cheaper then buying a set of speakers.

NegaBenji · June 2003

Of course it sounds better through headphones - the sound is being piped directly into your ears

porp · June 2003

Given a choice between a $50 subwoofer and $50 headphones, of course you'd want the headphones. What the heck did low-end bass do for anyone in a FPS?

Abe_Froman · June 2003

5.1 sound is the best for any FPS, period. Being able to hear more than 4 directions, and triangulate directional sound is almost like cheating. I got called a hacker in CS all the time because I knew EXACTLY what direction steps were coming from. 5.1 pones

taboofires · June 2003

Bass will not help your game. Headphones will.

5.1 will only help you if you've got good ears. If you can't tell what direction a sound is coming from other than left or right anyway, just go with the headphones.

How Much Do Headphones Affect Play?

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