Customer Reviews

Sennheiser PC 161 PC Gaming Headset

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am a hard-core gamer. I have owned at least 7 different brands and styles of gaming headphones in search of one that would not wear out in a few months. I have paid as little as $15 and as much as $80 for different headsets.

Look no further for the headset of your dreams. I spend hours gaming and this headset rests very comfortably on the head. The sound quality and microphone are second to none. This headset, while a little more expensive than some is hands-down the best gaming headset on the market. It is worth every penny. I own two. one for my PC at home, and one for the laptop at the office (for working purposes only..of course. ;-) )

VERY VERY Comfortable. Best gaming headset I have owned yet.
Sound is a 7 to 8 (on scale of 10).
I wish the ear pieces were bigger so they were over and around ear instead of on ear.

Microphone is great.

If you are looking for a seclusion style (blocks out ambient sounds) headset. don't get these.

If you are looking for a good sounding comfortable headset at a decent price. Then you are looking at the right ones.

I play a lot of computer games and only use voice communications about half of the time for games like World of Warcraft but I wanted something that would be comfy for long sessions. These gaming headphones/headset are a great purchase for me since they're very comfortable for long periods of time and have even replaced my normal headphones when I'm not using voice communications but just don't want to disturb others (or don't want to be disturbed).

Excellent headset and a great price!

First off the actual sound quality this head set will deliver is fantastic (edit: especially given the price at the time I bought these of $90). Maybe not as good as you get from those ultra high end cans (ie. $200+), but pretty darn good. The mic is also pretty good without picking up too much of the back ground noise, getting some is unavoidable but you will come through loud and clear with just a normal speaking voice so no worries.

My main issue with this headset is the comfort. Perhaps some won't have this problem, but since I wear glasses wearing these hurt the back of my ears after 30-40 min. They press my ears flat into the glasses frame and that causes them to start to ache. It isn't because they're too tight, if anything they're actually a little too loose. The head phones will shift around if I turn my head suddenly forcing me to sit still or make occasional adjustments. I didn't have these issues with my older set, but was because they were of the super huge over-the-entire-ear-rest-on-the-skull variety (Sony MDR XD400 if you must know, very comfy). Perhaps I've been pampered by those...but I also have a set of Sennheiser PX100 headphones that I wear when I jog and those don't hurt my ears one bit and they don't shift around either.

I've had these Sennheiser headphones now for over a week and they still bug my ears. Wearing them a forward so they don't actually rest on the ears themselves (almost flat against the skull forward of my ears) helps but still causes discomfort if I wear them for long periods (hours) at a time. I'll try wearing them for a few days longer and see if the discomfort goes away or I get them positioned right or something, otherwise I'll have to send them back. Its really a shame as these seem to be one of the very few headphones out there with good sound quality and a good mic that don't cost well over $100, at least at the time of this review.

///////////////////////////////////////

UPDATE 8/19/2010: Sent these back a few days after the initial review. Wearing them flat against the skull and very far forward of the ears did the trick as far as comfort went but then I had to crank the audio volume to hear properly (yes, it did work believe it or not). This however threw the mic positioning out of whack and I still had issues with the headphones shifting if I moved, which was aggravated by the way I had to position the headphones. This was all getting to be a little too irritating for me...

Instead I got a separate USB mic (Blue Snowflake) and some more comfortable, wait I mean FAR more comfortable, headphones (Sony XB700). Total price for all that is much higher, paid around $138 after tax + S/H. However I'm also happier with it as far as comfort and mic sensitivity/sound quality (the PC160's mic is still quite good IMO...for a gaming headphone, but the Blue blows it away, I was shocked). That sort of set up isn't practical or affordable for everyone, but if you have the means and money I don't think you can beat it for that bang vs. buck when using it for VOIP/gaming/music. If you're just $20 or $30 bucks short of that I'd recommend saving it up until you can afford it, definitely worth it.

As far as the PC160's go, I'm gonna leave it with 3 stars. Reading other people's reviews it seems like almost no one had the same issues I did (others did seem to say it was too loose however...), and the sound/mic/build quality really was good. Definitely not a bad headset, just not for me.

I bought these for gaming around 2005 in January I believe. I've used them almost daily and they have outlasted 2 PCs and many game trends. I read reviews on other brands and found that Sennheiser offered the best all around comfort and sound quality.
These particular headphones do not have a built in Soundcard. These are just standard 1/8" jacks for output and input. The microphone works really well too, you can be heard clearly with no distortion or garbling sound.
I recommend these if you want some good headphones and are on a budget. I will be getting a second set as a back up.

I've owned Sennheisers from the PC 150 and 160 series. They basically just keep reupdating/releasing the same premise, and
for good reason. These are incredible. They're comfortable enough to wear for 10-15 hours a day (I have) and yet so unintrusive
in their design when on your head, you'll forget you're wearing them a lot of times.

For the money, there are none better in my opinion.

For the average going price, its a steal. They are worth every penny you pay.
The comfort, sound quality, and overall build quality. These should be on the short list of must have
gaming headsets. All the fancy name high buck boutique builders have one thing that these don't, high price.

I was looking for a moderately priced headset that excelled at both sound quality and comfort. This product fulfills both criteria and then some. I use Skype for most of the day and then I usually play MMORPGS about 2hrs/night. I already own the entry level version of this headset and was very pleased with build quality and microphone quality; however, they were a bit uncomfortable (mostly after extended periods of continuous use). So, I decided to fork the money and go for this set. I've to say that I'm fairly impressed. Sound quality rivals that of dedicated Bose headphones (at least to my non-audiophile ears), the microphone quality is superb as usual not one complaint of bad mic yet. The biggest plus this headset has is its amazingly comfortable fit. I have a huge noggin and the headset just sit on my head and ears like a supple glove to hand. I can use them for very long chunks of time and fell absolutely no discomfort. The cable is sturdy and LONG (perhaps a bit too long, IMO). If you're looking for a mid-range headset that deliver quality and comfort comparable to that of high end, high dollar sets.

I bought this headset because I'm taking a class on the internet that requires one. Classes are long (3-4 hours) and overall I'm very pleased with this headset. The comfort is top-notch and the sound quality is very good. The only small gripe I have about the headset is the earcups do not swivel (like the Bose QC 3's) which would provide a little more flexibility for the headset to fit squarely around the ears. However, the around-ear design proves more comfort for long-wear (compared with Bose QC3). The "open-air" allows sound to pass through the earcups from outside, perfect because I want to be able to hear my fiancee talking to me while I'm taking the class. Overall, excellent product!

The headphones had the same quality and features as stated in the product description.

They are comfortable, have great sound quality, look great, etc. The mic has great sound detection and quality, and I have not had any technical difficulties so far.

My overall rating is 10/10.

1) Best voice chat & gaming headset ever for very extended use, you can wear it all day and be comfortable...

2) Quality mic, you will be the most clearly heard in voice chat.

3) This 161 model in particular is perfect for me, because it doesn't totally isolate you from outside sound by completely covering your ear. You can still hear people from another room calling for you if there is some issue.