kingofthenet on 24/3/2006 at 23:20
I am intrested in peoples thoughts as to which is better for personal home listening? I personally prefer headphones over full sized speakers, not those chessy Ipod Earbuds, but big 55mm Closed Air Full size headphones, something like the Koss Pro 4A's, or my current ones the JVC HA-G77's great Fideality, but the cheap "Leather" over the cups is disintergrating, really pisses me off, but some say you can only get a "True" experience with speakers, any thoughts?
Zerker on 25/3/2006 at 00:10
My personal preference is speakers for most things, headphones when at work (obviously), and for games like Thief & System Shock 2, where positional sound is very important. Those games are just MADE for headphones.
RocketMan on 25/3/2006 at 00:13
Am I the only one who sees a contradiction in what you just said?
theBlackman on 25/3/2006 at 00:41
Quote Posted by RocketMan
Am I the only one who sees a contradiction in what you just said?
No. ;)
Aja on 25/3/2006 at 00:53
Unless you need a quiet environment, I generally prefer speakers. However, the price/quality ratio on speakers and headphones is not equal at all. A decent pair of headphones can cost between one and two hundred dollars, but a good set of stereo monitors will be significantly more.
That said, Logitech makes great systems for the price. They're not the best for music (adequate, at least), but for movies and games they can't be beat when you factor in the price.
RocketMan on 25/3/2006 at 03:16
I think i know what you mean....logitech seems to be a sturdy design with good bass response....however if you look at the technical specs, the sound fidelity isn't as high as creative for example.
Zerker on 25/3/2006 at 03:57
And with the contradiction: you only have two ears :) I find a good 3D sound card with a pair of regular headphones gives BETTER positional sound than 4.1 speakers. Believe me, I have both, and I much prefer headphones for Thief. The sound is definately more natural and easier to focus on. Sure you can get those weird 5.1 headphones too, but I REALLY don't see the need for those.
Aja on 25/3/2006 at 09:34
Quote Posted by RocketMan
I think i know what you mean....logitech seems to be a sturdy design with good bass response....however if you look at the technical specs, the sound fidelity isn't as high as creative for example.
I've compared a set of Creative 5.1s to Logitech 5.1s, and the Logitechs win hands down. The frequency response is a useless measurement - my Sony headphones have a greater frequency response than my Grados, but the Grados sound at least twice as good.
RyushiBlade on 25/3/2006 at 09:41
I'm paranoid, so speakers for me. People can sneak up on me far too easily if I have some fancy speakers. Before I know it, I'd get a blackjack to the head and wake up with my body thrown down the nearest hole. :erm:
(Seriously, I don't like people sneaking up on me.)
theBlackman on 25/3/2006 at 09:44
The new technology does make a good set of earphones better than they used to be. The blocking of ambient sound is a plus.
But, as far as "surround" sound to give you right/left, front/rear, sound it fails in earphones -at the moment-. The focus is directly into the center of your ear. Right/left is ok, but Front/Rear are very poor compared to a set of speakers behind you and a set in front of you.
You tell direction by the strength of the signal. If you have a sound in front (a dynamo as in THIEF) and a guard walking behind you the earphones don't give you the discrimination that tells you the guard is behind you and not on the other side of the machinery in front of you.
The sound might be more vivid, cleaner and more "life-like", but suffers badly for "directionality", other than close or far away on the right or left.
