With technology progressing as fast as it is these days things are getting better and better. Recently the portable audio market has exploded with MP3 players like Apple’s iPod. There have also been huge improvements and advances with portable DVD players, computer audio, home theater systems, and game consoles. As these pieces of equipment evolve the audio that they can offer evolves as well.
Of course these higher quality audio devices are nothing without a output for them. Traditionally headphones were a simple pair of speakers which did their job just fine. Today people demand more than the usual and want the biggest and best on the market.
If you would have told me a few years ago I would be seeing 5.1 headphones I probably would have called you nuts. Well, 5.1 headphones are now available from many manufactures and are becoming the standard of quality. HC Technology recently introduced their DH-720G 5.1 Dolby Headphones to the market that we will be looking at today.
Dobly Digital
Dolby Digital is the standard for 5.1 surround sound in almost every industry today. Dolby Digital is a highly sophisticated audio encoding/decoding technology that can transmit mono, stereo, and 5.1 surround sound. Audio from media such as a DVD is encoded with a 5.1 digital audio track that is created during production. Doing this allows the sound to be placed in such a way that it will sound like it is coming from specific locations. Dolby Digital 5.1 can be implemented into just about anything these days including movies, TV, video games, music, and much more. Below is an illustration on how Dolby Digital is transmitted from the media to the speakers.
Dolby headphone
When you listen to a normal 5.1 speaker system your ears receive sound from each speaker as well as reflections of that sound from the walls and other furnishings. By the time it gets to you each sound has a unique signature that you can detect. When your brain processes these sounds you can tell the size and properties of the room as well as the speakers locations. Traditionally headphones use a two regular speakers that simply produce a two channel audio fed directly into your ears. Using the conventional design audio simply has a left and right channel which makes listening to 5.1 encoded audio less enjoyable. Dolby Headphone electronically creates up to five virtual loudspeakers in a virtual room while the subwoofer is equally mixed into the left and right channels.
Dolby Pro Logic II
Dolby Pro Logic II processes any high quality stereo (two-channel) audio into five channels of surround sound. Dolby Pro Logic II works by detecting the directional cues that happen in stereo audio and uses them to create five-channel surround sound. This technology is ideal for applications such as PCs, game consoles, portable MP3 players, and anything else encoded with only two-channel sound.
Hopefully now you have an understanding of the technology these headphones offer. Below are the technical specifications that were pulled from HC Technology’s website. One of the things I liked in the specs was the frequency response which is very good starting at 20Hz and ranging all the way up to 20,000Hz. With this range of frequencies the bass will kick nicely while the mids and highs remain very clear.
Technical Specifications
– Audio Mode Support: Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic II
– Dolby Headphone Mode: Dolby Headphone and Stereo
– Audio Input: Optical and Analog Line-In
– Headphone driver: 40mm
– Frequency Response: 20Hz – 20kHz
– Power: DC 3V (AAA battery x 2) or analog signal detection
– Can still be used as a stereo headphone if power off.
– Automatic input digital or analog signal detection.
The box was much larger than I thought it would be for a pair of headphones. However, when I opened up the first flap I could see why a large box was needed. The underside of the first flap explains the benefits of Dolby Digital headphones and what they can do. You can also get a glimpse of the Dolby headphone decoder box provided as well as the headphones. Overall I’m impressed with the packaging of these headphones and am anxious to see everything else inside.
The Dolby headphone decoder box has a dual headphone connector, allowing you to connect two sets of headphones to one source. This decoder box is powered by two rechargeable AAA batteries which can be recharged by plugging the charge adapter into the side of the box.
Unfortunately the sample I received did not come with these rechargeable batteries needed to power it so I had to pickup some regular ones. I talked with HC Technology and they said that all these headphones do come with the batteries and that they checked all of the other boxes to make sure they were included.
All of the necessary cables for the decoder box were provided and include: one short optical cable (0.5m), one long optical cable (2.5m), one optical adapter, one stereo to stereo cable (0.5m), and one RCA to stereo cable (2.5m). All of these cables plug into the top of the decoder box allowing you to plug your headphones into any audio device.
A nice pull string bag is provided to keep these headphones and accessories in mint condition and in a single location. The users manual provided gave the basic layout of the decoder box and how to hook up most equipment. Normally much wouldn’t have to be said about a regular set of headphones since the usage is simple. However for a nice set of headphones like these it would have been nice to see a little more detail and explanation put into the manual.
And now we come to the main attraction of this review, the headphones! The instant I took these out of the boxed I was amazed with the ascetic quality and professional feel of the headphones. These aren’t your everyday pair of headphones to listen to low quality music, but a product an audiophile and professional would appreciate. The drivers are 40mm in diameter which is large enough to completely cover your ears. The head strap is covered in a very nice material which will prevent irritation and soak up any excess sweat. The pictures speak for themselves better than I can I think, so ill leave you with the two pictures below.
These headphones can be used without the Dolby headphone decoder box however you will only get two-channel audio. The input on the top of the decoder box will take a stereo or optical cable depending on what you will be plugging into.
The LEDs on the decoder box let you know what input (analog or digital) is being used as well as what decoding (Dolby Pro Logic II, Dolby Headphone, DTS, or stereo) being used. As a note you want the DTS led to turn red when DTS decoding is being used.
There are three buttons on the box; one that mutes the audio, one that changes the output, and one that tests the headphones for 5.1 capabilities. There is also an on/off switch so that you can turn the box on or off. Since I didn’t receive any rechargeable batteries I picked up some name brand AAA so I could test the decoder box.
After a few hours of use the charge LED started to blink letting me know my batteries were almost dead. Knowing this I’m glad HC Technology does include rechargeable with this set of headphones. On the right side of the decoder box is a jack so you can plug the decoder box into the wall that will charge the batteries. Also on the right side of the decoder box is a volume dial which turns the volume up and down as expected.
| Optical cable in Playstation 2 | Optical cable in DVD player with DTS |
Test setup
These headphones were tested on my Gigabyte K8NS Pro which uses the Realtek ALC850 Audio AC’97 Codec for eight-channel audio. I tested MP3 playback and PC games with my computer, my standalone DVD player which has a DTS output test DVD playback, and my Playstation 2 to test console gaming.
MP3s
MP3 playback was provided by my computer using the AC’97 codec. I had the stereo cable hooked to my computer into the decoder box with Dolby Pro Logic II turned on. I started out by listening to Headnoise – Haunting Enigma and the quality was amazing. Punk doesn’t use a lot of bass but the mids and highs were very clear and loud. I also listened to some techno with a lot of bass and with all the songs I listened to the bass had good kick to it and didn’t drown out the mids or highs. I continued listening to more songs from different genres and couldn’t find a thing that made these headphones sound bad.
PC games
PC game testing was done using Counter Strike: Source set to 5.1 and high quality audio. Knowing where sounds are coming from is extremely important while playing a first person shooter like Counter Strike. Knowing where your enemies are can quickly give you an advantage allowing you to get the kill. My normal speaker setup is a set of 2.1 Logitech Z-2200 speakers which are great 2.1 speakers but obviously lack the 5.1 capability. Using these 5.1 HC Technology headphones made game play much better, I was easily able to tell where people were and where gun fire was coming from. The quality produced from the 40mm drivers was exceptional clear and crisp. The bass, mids, and highs were all high quality and didn’t lack a thing.
DVDs
To test DVD playback I used my standalone DVD player to watch Pirates of the Caribbean. I hooked the long optical cable from the DVD player to the digital decoder box input then plugged the headphones into to the box. Before watching the movie I went into the audio setup and changed it to 5.1 DTS for the best quality possible. As soon as the movie started playing I was amazed with the quality of the audio. The quality was almost equal to that of being in a theater, all packed into headphones. I was able to hear every little detail from the DVD and enjoyed it even more than on a regular set of speakers.
Playstation 2
I then moved the optical cable from my DVD player to my Playstation 2 and loaded up Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance. Again the quality was amazing, especially compared to the regular TV speakers which are of course quite weak. Throughout my gaming I was able to pickup sounds that I had never heard before while the normal audio sounded much crisper and more detailed.
Conclusion
These headphones are simply great; there was nothing I could find that I didn’t like with this setup. From the box to the design to the sound quality everything was superb. I have never used a set of headphones that have impressed me this much.
With Dolby Pro Logic II, Dolby Headphone, and DTS you’ll be hard pressed to find something these headphones can’t handle. For an avid gamer wanting a great set of 5.1 headphones for that upcoming LAN party these will have everyone asking you what they are and where you got them. Not only do they offer high quality 5.1 audio but they can be used with almost any audio device on the market.
Keep in mind though with nice technology usually comes a high price tag, these headphones will run you $150 which is somewhat expensive but well worth it.
I really like these headphones and am going to give them a 9.5/10 and award them the OCmodshop Seal of Approval. I would really like to thank HC Technology for the sending these headphones to review, you can buy them from their online store here.
Pros
- Dolby Digital 5.1 headphones
- Dolby Headphone technology
- Dolby Surround Pro Logic II
- DTS 5.1 quality is amazing
- Comes with every cable needed
- Audio quality is amazing
- Very comfortable to wear
- Quality storage bag included
- Excellent design
Cons
- Batteries were missing