Customer Reviews

Ear Force X4 Dolby Digital Wireless (Headphones)

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(27)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I just received my Ear Force X4 a few days ago and have been busy "testing" it for several days now. I have played with it in Gears of War, COD4, Battlefield:BC, Rock Band, Guitar Hero 3, and more. I have played online and off, with voice and without. After all this, I am finally ready to give my opinion on if it was $200 well spent, or a costly mistake.

First, let me say that I have a bit more experience with 5.1 headphones than the average consumer. I have owned many, made by everyone from Kinyo to Zalman and Tritton. With this knowledge it carries some weight when I say these offer some of the richest and clearest sound of any of them. I hear details in the sound and a wider range than with any of my previous headsets. The 5.1 is also quite good, I can pinpoint where sound is coming from pretty easily, and the sound fields sound a lot more balanced than with something like the Tritton AX360. Finally, the bass is very good even without the boost enabled, with it on it can almost be overpowering. The sound continues to impress even when watching movies or TV, and the Pro Logic 2 is nice when you only have a 2 channel source. The X4's are easy to hook up, with Optical in and RCA in you can easily hook up any audio source for use with them.

Overall, I would say the sound is some of the best I have heard from a 5.1 headset. That isn't to say it's perfect, there is a very slight hiss at all times when the headphones are on. You can only hear it when there is no other sound so it's not detrimental, as you don't notice it while using them, but it is there. Honestly though, I'm not sure if it is really anymore prevalent than the hiss found in most of the other headphones I have tried. It seems like they all had this to some extent. As for the wireless, it works very well and I haven't had any problems with it, the hiss doesn't really seem to be associated with the wireless, because if I cover the receivers on the headset I get different white noise.

The headphones themselves are very comfortable, easily half the weight of the AX360 and don't make my ears get nearly as hot. It is easy to forget they are even there.

The thing that really sets these headphones apart is not the great sound or comfortable design; it's the expert implementation of voice chat. Unlike the AX360 and every other 5.1 headset the X4 allows you to adjust the chat volume independently of the other sound. This works very well, you can clearly hear people talking even over a cacophony of other noise. On the AX360 I would have to turn the in-game music off, and lower all the other sound to be able to hear the other players reliably, the X4 takes care of all that. The microphone for speaking to other players is good and clear, it is easy to remove and attach. Additionally, some of your voice is transmitted back into the headset, so you can more easily hear yourself speak, and thus speak normally unlike with other headphones.

However, as great as the voice is, it also is not perfect. When you hook the voice up the hiss I mentioned before intensifies significantly, I attribute this to the controller putting out some white noise, but it is noticeable. It won't bother you while you are talking and playing, but I found myself unplugging the voice when no one was talking because the hiss was a bit disruptive. I wouldn't call this a deal breaker, but it is a minor imperfection and worth mentioning. Even with that small problem, the X4 is easily the best implementation of voice in a 5.1 headset, and a must own if you plan to play multiplayer while using your headphones.

Overall, the X4 is a very good attempt at a gaming centric pair of 5.1 headphones. The wireless is great and does not seem to degrade the audio. The headphones are comfortable and provide clear and rich sound, with good sound fields for the 5.1 support. The voice implementation is the best found anywhere, and works great aside from some slight background noise. I would recommend the X4 headphones to anyone wanting a great pair of headphones for use with their Xbox 360 and other game consoles and audio sources. With gaming in mind they are the best solution available. However, if you do not own a 360, I can't really recommend the X4 over other headphones, because the thing that really sets them apart is the voice support. They are very good headphones in their own right, but for less you could get a similar pair of headphones for movies and music and such without the voice that would sound just as good.

I will first mention that I have the Earforce X3's and had an issue with hissing that was attributed to the microphone feedback "feature" which allows you to hear how loud you are talking. The amount of feedback is not user adjustable so I sent them back to Turtle Beach to be tweaked. When I got them back the hissing was decreased but still present (I would have preferred they turn off the feature altogether).

I bought the X4's hoping they would have addressed the hissing and they had not. That being said the X4's have very good 5.1 sound. The hissing is at its loudest when the cable from the puck is plugged into the headphones. If I'm playing single player games I do not plug it in and they sound great. Even with the cable plugged in the hissing is only detremental when there is no game sounds or in a lobby and hardly noticeable in the heat of action.

A nice feature is the fact that I can receive 5.1 surround on my X4's and X3's at the same time which is nice for watching movies with the wife and not waking up the baby (and yes the X4's do sound better than the X3's in a side by side comparison over 5.1). Another nice feature is that it has an optical out so if I want to play the sound through my receiver and surround speakers I just turn on the receiver without rewiring.

Bottom line is for the price and the fact they work flawlessly through xbox live these are a great wireless option.

I have been a user of Turtle Beach headsets for a long while now. I love the Ear Force X1 headset for my PC so i decided to try this headset for my 360.

I received this in the mail yesterday and was completely blown away by the product. The earcups are very soft and comfortable. The setup took all of about 5 minutes from start to finish (You just need to remove the plug from the "Digital In" port on the receiver which took me about 2 minutes to figure out... yeah, I'm not too bright! :P) Of course, if you only have an analog A/V connection, you can work with that as well but the digital input is the way to go

I decided to break this in with another new investment I made: Guitar Hero III and let me tell you I was in awe by the sound! I then decided to watch my Wrestlemania 24 DVD and the 5.1 sound was crisp and clear. In fact, you could say it was too good as I completely lost track of time and before I knew it, it was after 11pm!

There is only 1 drawback I have noticed so far, you need to be in a clear line to the receiver otherwise you hear a little interference (Like white noise) in the right earphone. Once I turned the receiver, the interference promptly stopped.

Of course price is a factor ($200 is quite an investment), but this is quite possibly, the last headset you will EVER have to buy! I wholehearted recommend the Turtle Beach Ear Force X4 Headphones!

I have used the Ear Force X1, X2, X3 and now the X4's.
Each new model offers needed and welcomed enhancements over the previous. The X3's were nearly perfect to me. So I figure why not try the X4!

Pros:
-Earcups are more comfy than the X3
-If you are watching Dolby Digital, Pro Logic, Headphone profiles they will enhance the sound.

Cons:
-The Stand, it can ONLY stand up. And the little headphone holder sticking out of the top can NOT be removed
-For anyone watching Movies that are in DTS, or pretty much anything on Blu-Ray or HD-DVD, these will not do a thing for you besides give you stereo. Audio can ONLY be in Dolby formats, but not Dolby HD that is on new bluray and HD-DVD.
-The sound is not very noticeably different than the X3's.

For half the price, go with the X3 and get equal quality.

I bought these so I could game without disturbing others or be disturbed. Nothing worse than not being able to hear your teammates online at a critical moment. These headphones were all I'd hoped for with just a few minor annoyances which I'll list below.

Pros -
1. Sound Quality. Great sound, especially when hooked up to the digital output of my xbox. (minor problem with hiss, see cons). Playing games with these headphones seems almost unfair. Hearing the location of the competition without seeing them is a huge advantage and leaves them clueless on how you got the jump on them.

2. Chat Function. Game chat is near perfect, greatly improved over the standard headset. Chat is clearer in both directions and the auto volume level helps keep chat intelligable over loud game audio. The separate chat volume is great for fine tuning. The plug/puck for connecting to the xbox headset is a great design, puts the mute switch and volume control right on the controller within thumbs reach and the jack stays connected, unlike the standard headset plug.

3. Comfort. Headset is very comfortable with a few minor issues (see below). The ear pads are very soft cloth and the head band is well padded. There are a few small issues. First, they are a bit heavy and you will notice this after long periods of use. Second, the pressure applied to hold them to your ears is a bit to much for my liking. Would have been nice to have a little adjustment, also they won't adjust small enough for children to wear at all.

4. Good design and well built, other head phones feel like they might break if your to hard on them, these feel very solid.

5. Range. You can go just about anywhere in the room and keep a good signal as long as you maintain line of site. My family room is good sized and no issues at all. One minor issue is the transmitter needs to be high up. I originally had it down low (less than 1 ft. above floor) and if you tip you head back the signal degrades and you get a loud hiss in you ears. Placing the transmitter higher than waist level helped quite a bit.

Cons -
1. Price. At $180 they are very expensive. I'm happy I have them, but feel they are over priced and the X3's may have been more cost effective.

2. Hiss. There is a constant hiss from the IR transmitter which is very noticable when game sounds are absent and the volume is high. When game sounds are active you don't notice it so much. Some people will be bothered more than others by this. I find it very annoying and will actually play games at a lower volume to reduce it as much as possible. For the $$ they should have addressed this.

3. Isolation. Whether by design or not, they do not block out ambient noise very well. I can still hear sounds in the room very easily. This is a con for me, maybe a pro for others?

Lightweight and everything as advertised. I wish the ear cups were a little larger, but the wireless feature is a huge blessing. I recommend if you can afford them. I have had two other 5.1 headphones, and these are the best.

BUYER BEWARE... The unit itself works PERFECTLY until.... it breaks! I gently used mine for about 5 total hours when my xbox live mic became inoperable... I did not drop it nor bend the mic in anyway... it just broke... I contacted Turtle Beach via e-mail (the only way to reach them) and they said it was the cord that runs from my controller to the headset they sent the part and it arrived about a week later... I swapped it out and it didn't fix it, so I e-mailed them again and they gave me an RMA # to send it back along with a note describing my problem... I did so, spent about $11 on shipping... and about 3 weeks later I receive my same headset in the SAME broken condition... They DID NOT provide a reason or explanation... I subsequently e-mailed and asked why they sent me back my headset unfixed... THEY HAVE NOT RETURNED MY E-MAIL!!! I sent two e-mails, no reply... These guys are so CHEAP that they don't even want to replace my defective headset... I'm a principled person and that is why I'm taking the time to inform all of you of this seemingly small, immature, unethical company...

I've had my Ear Force X4's for a few weeks now and they've been okay. Sound quality is fairly good although I'm not convinced that they really reproduce surround sound. If you're playing video games, however, they suffice as you learn quickly to localize sounds (as in COD4) by turning slightly and tracking how the sounds move. The headphones are somewhat heavy and after a couple of hours are somewhat uncomfortable for me. Wireless reception is really good and you can get 20 feet away and at odd angles and it will still work. There is, as many have noticed, a moderately loud hiss that you won't notice if there is sound going on, but once its quiet, you will hear it. This hiss has nothing to do with whether or not you have a plasma TV, which apparently causes a different type of interference with the wireless IR connection. Battery life seems to be good and overall build quality of the headphones seems appropriate for the price.

I have used a few different headsets in the past, but this one is by far the best one yet. You get great 5.1 surround sound. So good that I can hear people sneaking up behind me on COD 5 as well as the type of granade that is being thrown at me. I hear sounds now that I didnt even know where in the game.

On the flip side...

Connecting it to the Xbox 360 is a little tricky. This was the only downside to the headset. I have an Xbox 360 Elite so it was easy for me. I run HDMI output for both sounds and video. Because this, if you dont have a sterio receiver that can convert the audio (I researched this and it seems that only the $2000+ receivers have this ability) you will not be able to connect the headset to the Xbox 360. The white cover Xbox 360 comes with this large HD / TV switch plug that makes it too big to plug in the HDMI cable and this cable to have a digital audio output. The Elite comes with a digitall audio plug that fits into the slot while still allowing an HDMI cable to be plugged into it as well.

This is very important because if you do not have an Xbox 360 Elite you will need to get a special cable from Gamestop or another video game store in order to get the headset to work. Once you do get it connected though, it will all be worth it. I was never told about this connection issue when I bought it so I wanted to make sure I left feedback so others would be warrned about this issue that they WILL come up with. It is fixable, but does take some planning and maybe a few new parts.

Basically, the thing works as advertised. Wireless is nice for sound and they are comfortable and light.

They do a good job at reproducing full surround sound. Not as good as a 5 speaker matched 5.1 system but about as close as you can get with just 2 speakers. You can certainly tell when something is in front of you as behind which is important in FPS and horror games etc. More good news, the digital pass through is there so you can just leave it hooked up all the time.

Here is the deal, for the guy who wants to play games late at night without disturbing the neighbors or the wife, these are probably the best, if not a bit pricey solution. Nice to have wire free headphones that are light and conmforatable. You can probably do just about as good with the X3s for about 1/2 the price but if you want the best surround sound reproduction, these are it.

There is a small bit if hiss introduced but I found that if you sit directly in the sweet spot, which is easy to do, the hiss reduces to a very low level and when you are gaming, its not noticeable. I am a bit of an audiophile and at first, I was a bit put off by the appearance of any hiss. But I soon realized, as long as are not playing Yohan Sebastian, you will be good to go. And red faction explosions sound great so no worries.

For multi-player, there is an unfortunate added amount of hiss. As soon as you connect the microphone to the headphones the hiss increases to a level that is no longer unnoticeable. Its not terrible, but for a product that seems geared to online play, thats a bit dissapointing. That being said, the sound quality of the game is still good but you have that extra level of noise to deal with.

So, for the single player guy (or gal) who wants the best surround sound, wireless headphones, these are pretty sweet. For multi-player, they are pretty solid but all that wireless comes with a minor cost of some noise.

As far as build quality, they are pretty good. The headphone cups are solid and will last a while (not sure if you can order replacements). The top band around the top is a bit too plastic and cheap feeling but it will probably last. If it does'nt I am sure some tape can keep it from falling apart. What I am saying is that the build quality is decent but it aint no leather. And for the price, it would have been nice if the build quality of the top strap were a bit better.

In summary, its probably the best wireless headphone, but its pretty pricey. If you expect good sound but not perfect, you will be very happy to be able to fully enjoy 360 games at late hours without waking everyone and thats what its all about.

WARNING: If you have a plasma display, you may want to hold off. The manual clearly states that there are some IR interference issues with some plasmas. I have an LCD so IR interference is not an issue but some plasma TVs will cause problems with these IR headphones. Not much can be done here because plasma displays put out some IR that interferes with these headphones. It may work well for some, but not others. LDCs are fine though.

NOTE: I read here that there is lag introduced by these headphones. That is 100% false as far as I can tell. I play rock band on expert and have calibrated with a number of sound source, TV (80ms) , receiver (30ms), etc. When using these headphones the lag is (5ms) which is better than most surround 5.1 receivers and most TV sound output.