Welcome back folks to Part Two of the Tritton Ghost Recon 7.1 Headset Review. Let’s jump right into it.
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Playstation 3
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Hooking the Headset up to the Playstation is as easy as 1,2,3. Simply plug the included Digital Optical Cable into the back of the PS3, plug in the included USB, and turn the headset on. From there you just have to tell the PS3 to output sound via Digital Optical. For testing the Playstation 3, I chose to go with a few different titles that would either support the advertised features, or that wouldn’t at all, to test the headset when used to it’s maximum potential, and to see what it can do when stripped down to Stereo sound.
- God of War HD Collection
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Uncharted 1/2/3
God of War HD Collection
For anybody who hasn’t played the God of War series, you are seriously missing out on some the most fun, button mashing action games ever made. The HD remakes done by Sony a few years back for the previous generation titles, God of War, and God of War II are amazing. Not only were they able to bring Kratos’ first two bloody adventures into full 720P, but they were also able to fix the tinny sound that Playstation 2-era games are notorious for. I chose this title due to the fact that it supports Dolby Digital, but it doesn’t support Dolby Pro Logic IIx which means that this headset was ran in Dolby Stereo and in Dolby Stereo with the included Decoder box mimicking 7.1 via Dolby Headphones. Both ways the headphones felt a bit hollow, but overall the sound reproduction was top notch. I didn’t hear any noticeable gaps in the Sound Stage, which led to an immersive experience.
Dolby Stereo
Sound Quality: B+
Sound Stage Quality: A-
Positional Clarity: A-
Dolby Headphones
Sound Quality: B
Sound Stage Quality: A
Positional Clarity: A+
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Though, as many of you know, I am not a huge fan of the Call of Duty series due to the lack of innovation in the last few installments, that doesn’t change the fact that the sound design is superb. Running through an hour or two of the campaign (so like 65% of it) revealed to me that the technology that drives the Tritton Ghost Recon 7.1 Headset is truly amazing. Playing through the level with the massive thunderstorms caused me to actually jump when the thunder would crack in the game. The immersion was 100% effective with the headphones when running as Dolby Pro Logic IIx and in Dolby Headphones.
Moving into the Multiplayer led me to the same conclusions. Never once was an opponent ever able to sneak up on me with his knife. Here is where Dolby Headphones really shines. Yes Dolby Pro Logic IIx gives an excellent 5.1 experience, but if you’re going to virtualize surround sound, why not go big or go home — which is exactly what Dolby Headphones does.
Dolby Pro Logic IIx
Sound Quality: A
Sound Stage Quality: A+
Positional Clarity: A
Dolby Headphones
Sound Quality: A
Sound Stage Quality: A+
Positional Clarity: A+
Uncharted 1/2/3
I know that some of you are thinking, “how can you rate all three games at once?” Very easily you will see. Yes every Uncharted game is totally different, and the quality of every facet of the game has gotten better with each successive entry, but what lies underneath is still the same audio technology (Dolby Digital…). Playing the titles with either Dolby Pro Logic IIx or Dolby Headphones delivered the same result — excellent audio. Honestly the Sound Quality was at its’ best out of any of the Playstation titles I tested, though at the cost of the Positional Clarity.
As I’ve said many times. You can gauge the quality of headphones or a decoder box, but in the end, it all comes down to personal preference on what sounds good and what doesn’t. I can say that the jungles, snowy mountains, and desert really come alive with the Tritton Ghost Recon 7.1 Headset on, that’s a fact.
Dolby Pro Logic IIx
Sound Quality: A+
Sound Stage Quality: A
Positional Clarity: B+
Dolby Headphones:
Sound Quality: A+
Sound Stage Quality: A
Positional Clarity: A-
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Xbox 360
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For the 360, I chose to test a few Xbox classics.
- Red Dead Redemption
Gears of War
Halo Reach
Red Dead Redemption
It amazes me that there is still people out there who have not played Red Dead Redemption. It’s arguably the greatest game Rockstar has ever created, and is in fact one of the best games ever made. Period.
Playing through Red Dead Redemption with the Tritton Ghost Recon 7.1 Headset breathed even more life into what is already a very lively game. With Red Dead Redemption supporting all of the different modes the decoder box supports, I saw no reason to screw with the formula of testing Dolby Pro Logic IIx and Dolby Headphones. The sound quality was phenomenal, with the desert becoming a place full of all sorts of different sounds.
Sadly the Sound Stage Quality and Positional Clarity felt a bit weak in all the Xbox 360 titles. I think when it comes down to it, it’s the sound mixing for the Xbox 360, not the headset.
Dolby Pro Logic IIx
Sound Quality: A+
Sound Stage Quality: B+
Positional Clarity: B-
Dolby Headphones
Sound Quality: A+
Sound Stage Quality: A-
Positional Clarity: B
Gears of War
When Epic Games decided to get away from the Unreal series and release instead, an Xbox-Exclusive title named Gears of War, many, including myself, wondered how the game would stack up to Epic’s other excellent titles. Needless to say Gears of War is the greatest series Epic has ever created (yes even over Unreal Tournament). Choosing to play an older Xbox 360 title like Gears of War shows how far Audio Quality has come since 2006 (six years ago, sheesh time flies). The sound quality, sound stage quality, and Positional clarity are by far the worst of any title tested on either console. Honestly most of this feels like it’s the mixing of the game rather than the headset itself, but then again a $150+ headset should be able to carry a title with poor sound by today’s standards.
Dolby Pro Logic IIx
Sound Quality: B
Sound Stage Quality: B
Positional Clarity: B-
Dolby Headphones
Sound Quality: B
Sound Stage Quality: B+
Positional Clarity: B
Halo Reach
Who doesn’t love themselves a little Halo Reach (rhetorical question, don’t answer that)? I wasn’t a huge fan of Halo Reach’s multiplayer, but the game itself is quite a feat for the technological front of the 360. The graphics, audio, and gameplay push the 360 towards its limits for sure. Playing through the campaign, and a bit of the multiplayer showed me that no matter what setting the Tritton Ghost Recon 7.1 Headset is used on, it will produce a very immersive experience with Halo Reach.
Dolby Pro Logic IIx
Sound Quality: A
Sound Stage Quality: A-
Positional Clarity: A+
Dolby Headphones
Sound Quality: A
Sound Stage Quality: A
Positional Clarity: A+
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Conclusion
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Overall, using the Tritton Ghost Recon 7.1 Headset was an all around pleasurable experience. Though the headset is not the most comfortable headset when initially put on. It eventually breaks in and becomes quite comfortable for many hours of use.
Across the board using Dolby Headphones resulted in better Sound Stage Quality and Positional Clarity. On the rare occasion it also made the Sound Quality in general better, but that was rare. If you were to pick up this headset, I would recommend sticking to Dolby Headphones for everything except listening to music or watching movies, because it leads to a non-organic sound field with music or movies. In reality you can use this headset for anything you want — but it’s painfully obvious that this is a headset that is 100% made for Gaming, which there is not anything wrong with.
Whether you are thinking of picking this headset up for your Playstation 3 or Xbox 360, you will not regret it. Don’t let the folks over at Turtle Beach fool you into thinking that their products are ten times better, because they’re not. Anything that Turtle Beach can do, Tritton can also do. This headset does work with the PC, though it is not made for such a purpose, therefore I don’t recommend it (just letting you know in case you’re in a pinch and need PC audio).
With only 40mm drivers, the headset does lack the low-end of some of its’ competitors. Luckily the drivers that are used are high-quality, which helps alleviate some of the bass-deficiency with tight Highs and decent mids. Throughout the entire testing period though, I noticed that the sound quality can be a bit cavernous. When listening everything sounds great, but it’s just like it sounds great in a gigantic room, if that makes any sense. It’s something that is a bit irritating, but it doesn’t ruin the sound quality in the long run.
When using the microphone, I actually got compliments on how clear and focused the sound from the microphone was. It doesn’t pick up background noise, and is detachable, which is an added bonus in my book. The In-Line Volume is super intuitive and feels like it can withstand a beating.
Sadly I didn’t have Ghost Recon Future Soldier available to me at the time of review, so I didn’t get to test the title that headset is actually modeled after, but after using this headset, and reading Kevin’s review of the game, I think that Tritton and Ubisoft were in-sync with these two products, because they both offer an immersive, excellent experience.
This is definitely a headset built for those who don’t care how much they spend on their listening equipment, that is for sure. I can recommend this headset on the quality of the headset and the quality of the drivers, but I cannot recommend this headset to those who are on a tight budget. This is a helluva a commodity, but that’s exactly it, a commodity.
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A quick explanation of the award system. We have the main award category with three awards; Bronze (Good Overall Product), Silver (Great Overall Product), and Gold (Excellent/Near Perfect Overall Product) as the highest. Then we have two different Sub-Categories, Internal Hardware Awards for performance; Yellow (Low-End Performer), Orange (Mid-Range Performer), and Red (High-End Performer) as the highest. The third and final Sub-Category is for both Internal Hardware and External Peripherals; Black (Enthusiast/Gamer Qualities), Blue (Exceptional Build and Design), Green (Terrific Dollar To Performance Ratio), White (Innovative But Flawed)
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Pros:
- Great Sound Quality Through Dolby Headphones
- Decoder Box Supports Multiple Different Sound Settings (Dolby Headphones, Pro Logic IIx, Dolby Digital)
- The Build Quality Ff The Headset Is Excellent, With Nothing Feeling Cheap Or Under-Polished
- The Ghost Recon Bling Is Actually Quite Appealing
- The Cable For The Headset Is Thick And Super-Durable
Cons:
- Price Is Only For Those Who Are Not On A Budget
- The Decoder Box Stand is Useless Because The Box Is Too Top Heavy
- Low-End Lacks Punch Thanks To 40mm Drivers
- Sound Feels A Bit Cavernous
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If you are on the richer side of the fence, then please do not hesitate to pick up the excellent Tritton Ghost Recon 7.1 Headset here.
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