Sennheiser PC 150 Headset

Sennheiser is a well-known manufacturer of headphones with a reputation for quality. Their product line includes high-end and mainstream headphones, aviation headsets, and what we're interested in today: PC gamer's headsets.

OVERVIEW
The Sennheiser PC150 is a gamer's headset priced to appeal to the mainstream (commonly found at about 40 dollars). Featuring noise-cancellation in the microphone and padded ear-cups and headband, it is intended for gamers who use voice-chat to coordinate their teams in online gaming. With this product, Sennheiser marketing has emphasized comfort and voice sound quality.

Features include a long cord (over 10 feet) with an inline volume adjustment and microphone mute switch, and the ability for the microphone to flip up out of the way.

NOTE CAREFULLY: The term "noise cancellation" in reference to the PC150 is for the microphone, NOT the headphones. Sennheiser is clear about this, but some people nonetheless might not be paying attention and be expecting something else.

Okay, what's good and bad about the PC150?

THE OUTSTANDING - SOUND QUALITY
Sennheiser's bread-and-butter is headphones. Ignoring its microphone, let's take a listen to how well it sounds.

I was astonished at how good these headphones sound. I had expected decent playback, but what I heard just floored me. The sound was nearly as good as the Sennheiser HD580s I use for music listening.

It may seem I'm overstating things a little here, but I'm not. The frequency response is excellent, you have to push the volume to near-painful levels before any bass distortion begins to creep in, and music has a light "airy" quality to it that is common to almost all of Sennheiser's line of headphones. Its imaging is not quite the equal of Sennheiser's headphone-only products, but it's still quite good. I would confidently match the PC150 against any other headset in its price range... be it microphone-equipped or not... for sound quality.

The PC150 do not do much in blocking outside sound. This is not surprising, given that the ear cups do not fully surround the ears and that open-cell foam padding is used. Whether this is good or bad is entirely subjective, but to my way of thinking it is a complete non-issue.

THE GOOD - COMFORT
Comfort is an underrated aspect of gamer's headsets. You're going to be wearing them for hours at a time under stressful (but fun) conditions, and any lack in comfort is going to make itself known.

Unlike many mainstream PC headsets, the PC150 is fully padded. The earcups and headband both have velour-covered foam pads, and there are no pressure-points or rub-spots to ruin your fragfest. The velour surface of the pads also gives good slip-resistance, so you won't have to be continually readjusting them.

This is not to say that comfort could not be improved. I would have preferred that the foam be a little softer, similar in feel to the HD580s. It's probably the same foam, but given that the earcups are smaller, they have a subjectively-firmer feeling to them. The "clamping" force is fairly light, but I feel it could be even a touch lighter. I have a fat head (ask anyone who knows me!), so this is not surprising to me.

THE GOOD (MOSTLY) - THE MICROPHONE
Voice quality is good. The noise cancellation works well; there is no "hiss" that I or my friends who listen to my rantings can detect. Obviously, a great deal depends upon the quality of the sound card which you use this headset with, and this headset will certainly not be the weak link in the chain.

I do have a couple of quibbles with the microphone, though. First, the flip-up boom is not sufficiently adjustable. You cannot position it in the ideal location (just below your lower lip), and the mike rests near the left corner of your mouth. Secondly, no foam "wind sock" is included; this would help reduce pops from "P"-sounds (not really much of an issue, but still non-zero). And thirdly, the microphone is sensitive enough to pick up not just your voice, but everything around you in amazing clarity. It's not directional, and these extra sounds can be distracting.

THE GOOD - BUILD QUALITY
Physical quality is quite good. The pieces fit well together, the headset is rugged, and will put up with travel and the occasional dash-to-the-floor-in-disgust when one of your teammates does something stupid like step on a marked land mine. There is a strain relief boot where the cable enters the headset too.

I would have liked to see the cable have a quick-disconnect like the HD570's I used to have, but that would probably add expense that this price-segment would not bear well.

The headband pad also is a simple adhesive-backed stick-on, and mine arrived loose on one side. I pressed it back into place, but it still occasionally starts to peel up (adhesives don't re-tack well). No big deal, just a minor annoyance.

I would also like the volume-adjust wheel on the inline controller be stiffer. As it is, I occasionally will accidentally turn up or down the volume by brushing against the inline controller. Also, the mike mute switch is a smooth-surfaced slider; I would prefer either a textured slider that won't slip under sweaty hands or a push-on-push-off button. Again, very minor points.

One almost-irrelevant piece of praise: the packaging does not use that annoying heat-sealed "blister pack" packaging so common for electronic doo-dads like this. You can actually cut yourself on blister-packs, and Sennheiser has thoughtfully packaged this headset in a manner that won't rip at your hangnails. I appreciate this!

SUMMARY
This headset is an amazing deal for the money. Outstanding sound quality (good enough to be your main headphones if you're on a budget), good comfort and voice quality, and durability all stand in its favor. The areas I would like to see improved are minor issues at best, and perhaps are not realistic for a forty-dollar headset; I am by no means unhappy with my purchase. In fact, I gave several of these to my teammates as holiday gifts, and every one of them has commented favorably on the quality.

This one's a clear winner.