Sennheiser have been heavily targeting the gaming market recently and we were fortunate enough to have been provided with 3 different headsets to try and establish what genre of gamer they are most suited to.

Sennheiser have been around since 1945 and have always been known for manufacturing some of the best audio equipment on the market. Having specialised in making equipment for the aviation industry, their attention later turned to music as that market grew. Now Sennheiser have started making more and more gaming headsets aimed at all levels of the market.

We had a play around with three of Sennheiser’s current headsets and decided what type of gamer they will appeal to. It should help those looking for a new headset to navigate their way through a crowded marketplace to a product which suits their needs.

The PC230 Headset

PC230 - For Single Player Action Games

This entry level headset is perfect for the solo gamer who wants to blast through an adventure or two between meals and may want to communicate with other gamers in the future, or use internet telephony.

The headset incorporates full stereo sound making it ideal for music but also for games where audio is continuous. Genres such as racing, FPS or beat-em-ups would be ideal for this product as it enables players to enjoy clear and rich sound playback without the need for speakers. Additionally with great audio quality and comfort they create an immersive environment which adds to, rather than detracts from, the gaming experience.

The headset also features a built in volume control facility that allows players to adjust their sound settings without having to break away from the action with the simple layout making it easy to quickly adjust the microphone or volume levels as required.

As with the other headsets discussed today the mic is fully adjustable and features noise cancellation, allowing clear communications with minimal outside interference.

The PC163D Headset

PC 163D - For Team Based Online Gamers

This headset is the perfect entry level headset for someone who needs all the sound functionality associated with multiplayer gaming. That is being able to hear instructions clearly, being able to communicate clearly and being able to interpret in game sound into information to be relayed to fellow players.

Incorporating surround sound technology the headset brings everything to the table you would expect from a Sennheiser headset including some excellent versatility. First person shooter players benefit from being able to pinpoint enemy positions and detect their movement, while those playing MMORPGs can hear what monsters lurk in the dark long before they see them and prepare accordingly.

The design of the headset makes it suitable for wearing for long periods of time, ideal for players that need to put in the hard yards to level up characters or to practice with their team. Not only is the headset lightweight in construction but it has an open mesh over the ear cups that allow air and heat to pass through.

The microphone and boom are fully adjustable as well, something that contributes towards comfort as well as clarity and it also has built in noise cancellation which minimises background noise.

Controlling the volume and mic couldn’t be easier, all being done from one simple to use control centre. Adjust volume as it’s required to ensure that no sound is missed and equally, if you need to break away from communications with your colleagues, the microphone can be muted to prevent any unwanted disturbances at crucial moments.

All of these features are going to be appreciated by someone who settles in for lengthy gaming sessions with other people. It’s light, durable and comfortable but compromises nothing in regards to the sound features that would be found in other, more sizeable headsets.

The PC 333D Headset

PC 333D - For The Competitive FPS player

This headset is perfect for the purposes of anyone who takes their first person shooters seriously and as a result it’s no surprise to see it being endorsed by one of the finest Counter-Strike players in the world, Christoffer Sunde.

This headset has the edge over much of the competition due to the inclusion of 7.1 surround sound, creating a three dimensional audio experience without the need for an expensive home cinema system. This benefits us because in first person shooters being able to pinpoint the exact whereabouts of the enemy based on sound alone is a key skill. Having the right equipment that provides such depth of sound gives us a serious advantage over other players.

The difference in quality between this and other headsets is marked and anyone playing it will find that they can hear sounds from afar in the game environment clearly and with improved definition. It is also easier to get a sense of the direction the sound is coming from as opposed to only left or right. In addition to excellent positional audio the design of the headset makes it much easier to configure while in the heat of competition. Rather than having a fiddly volume control half way up the headset wire that can take time to find the volume control is actually built into the headset itself and can be adjusted quickly and easily. The same is true of the microphone. If it needs to be muted, for whatever reason, there’s no need to find a mute button. If the microphone arm is placed down it is in use, if it is raised it automatically mutes itself.

The smart design doesn’t just stop there. For those moments where players need to communicate with team-mates the headset features a pivoting earpiece that makes it possible to reposition an ear-cup without having to take the whole set off. The earpieces themselves are also closed, creating a tight but comfortable seal to block out the noise of a competitive environment and allow full focus on in game sound. In addition to this they keep sound in, stopping us from annoying anyone in our office, home, workplace…

All in all this is a headset for the serious gamer, the player who already has a good skillset and wants to take it to the next level. It also is designed with LAN environments in mind, offering features which benefit competitive players.