Need some advice for headset/microphone

Ibura

Hi all,

I hope I can ask a small question here in this section of the forum about the following problem:

I am looking for the best way to be able to talk in Discord without having to wear a headphone that covers both ears since I need to stay aware of my environment at home too.

I thought about a mono headset for pc, but it seems they are only/mainly used for offices/call centres? So I don't know if these would actually work for gameplay. I have been looking at the Sennheiser PC26 (with noise cancelling and mute).

I also looked at a microphone, but...this would constantly annoy other people on chat with my gamesounds? Or would for example a "Blue Yeti" deal with that problem (sound/source direction)?
Or are they both unsuited for this task?

Any advice would be welcome.

Aisle9

Blue Snowball or a Blue yeti are excellent mics, depending on how much disposable cash you have to throw at them.

I personally use the snowball, but want to upgrade to the yeti as soon as I can.

As for the headphones, I use the Audio-Technica ATH-m50x, excellent as far as sound quality goes, and you can rotate the earcups to cover only 1 ear, but still be able to use both if you want to watch a movie or something.

When I'm working I need to be able to hear what's happening, so I keep 1 earcups on and the other rotated (I try to alternate them to rest 1 ear at the time) so I can hear if there's a delivery, or someone is knocking at my door, but when it's night and I want to relax, I put both on and the soundproofing is awesome.

https://www.bluedesigns.com/products/snowball/
https://www.bluedesigns.com/products/yeti/
https://www.audio-technica.com/cms/headphones/99aff89488ddd6b1/

In alternative, you can use open back studio headphones, and they just aren't soundproofed, you can hear pretty much everything.

https://www.audio-technica.com/cms/headphones/996daf096c12ea16/
https://en-us.sennheiser.com/audiophile-headphones-high-end-around-ear-hd-700

I'm not a fan of open back headphones, and they tend to be more expensive, but that's an option too.

Now, here's the thing, while a good pair of headphones is nice, the only thing you really need is a decent mic, so you can use your phone's earplugs if you like them, just select the external mic (e.g. the yeti) on discord's input settings, and go with whatever you're comfortable with for output.

The important thing is that others can hear you, so as long as you can hear them, whatever works.

But echo is the single most annoying thing that could happen on a voip conversation, so use some kind of headphones or earplugs anyways.

Hope this helps.

Ibura

Thanks for the great info, really appreciated!
So I guess a mic will be the best option then !

kylewwefan

I’m not sure how it works for discord but on PS4 I use a one ear headset with boom mic. It plugs into the controller.

It is kind of like a call center headset, but for same reasons, I got to have one ear free to hear what’s going on around my house.

They’re also very inexpensive. $20 or so.

personman_145

Assuming you're running a PC, you should be able to wear your headphones on your neck, use the mic, and use Windows audio settings to make it so your playback device is your speakers, but your mic on them still works. I can't say for sure because I haven't tried to do it.

pauli133

Ibura wrote: »

I am looking for the best way to be able to talk in Discord without having to wear a headphone that covers both ears since I need to stay aware of my environment at home too.

Regarding this, specifically - open backed headphones will allow you to hear your game as well as what's going on around you.

The tradeoff is that you lose isolation and there is some sound leakage, but I'm a big fan of not being surprised by things I can't hear just because I had headphones on.

Ibura

Thanks all for the responses! I have already ordered a Blue Yeti mic (it has mute too ), hope this will be ok.

And yes, also thought about a mono ear headset , but haven't found yet that they use it for gaming on pc, so not sure that works. First gonna see how things go with the mic alone (crosses fingers), if there is echo I will look out for extra options.

Fleshreaper

Might check out LG Blue Tooth Headsets (around $45 and up). You can leave one ear bud out, I do this all the time. You might also need a Blue Tooth adapter for your PC, usually around $15.

Oreyn_Bearclaw

Well, I will say this. I am a huge Sennheiser fanboy. I use the 373D. Its so comfortable that I forget it's on, and the sound and voice quality is absolutely top of the line. Not what you are after, I get it, but I certainly recommend the brand.

Cryptical

Many people mistakenly think that a full headset will cut off noise from the rest of the house.

If you don’t act like a 17 year old kid drunk with power because they suddenly have sole control over the car volume, then you should be just fine with a full headset.

Just set the game sounds to high enough to keep track of in-game explosions etc, have the voice volume set to a conversational level, and the rest of your house won’t need to overcome the game.

It’s a headset, not a cone of silence.

Kanar

Buy a desktop mic - I have a Logitech that works well - and then a pair of "open ear" headphones. Open headphones let you hear your surroundings. I use audiotechnica ath-ad700 but they're no longer made. If I need better environmental awareness, I prop the headphones only half on my ears. They're still comfy.

Ibura

Cryptical, I understand what you are saying, but I doubt I will hear my small dog scratch the door when he wants to go out, and he doesn't bark for that. And too much scratching doesn't make my door look any better in the end, heh. I like to be there when he needs me
And it is spring, often little birds dive against the windows then, if I go out in time and hold them in my hands to keep them warm, they often regain consciousness and fly away after some time. I even held a young spotted woodpecker once, and he made it, such beautifull birds!

Nestor

Ibura wrote: »

Thanks all for the responses! I have already ordered a Blue Yeti mic (it has mute too ), hope this will be ok.

And yes, also thought about a mono ear headset , but haven't found yet that they use it for gaming on pc, so not sure that works. First gonna see how things go with the mic alone (crosses fingers), if there is echo I will look out for extra options.

There should not be an Echo if you set the Default Communication device to be the Head set. So you hear the peeps through the headset only. It is when you talk into the mic, but listen to the peeps through the PC that the echo happens.

The only other thing that can happen that can annoy other group members, is hearing your game through the headset microphone as I am assuming you will not be setting the headset to be the default audio device too. So, just turn down the audio on the PC if your going to keep that as the sound playback for the game itself. If you set the headset to be default audio and communication, then you don't have to worry about that.