Plantronics Gamecom 777 7.1 Surround Gaming Headset Review

We originally tested the Gamecom 777 5.1 surround headset last year (read the review here) and performed rather well.  Plantronics has updated their headphones to support 7.1 surround, so today we’re going to look at the updated product, the Gamecom 777 7.1 Gaming Headset.

This open-eared headset with 7.1 Dolby Headphone technology gives you an unparalleled audio advantage that lets you hear your opponents before you see them. Connect with the Dolby USB sound card for a true 7.1 experience. But if needed, an analogue connection is also provided. Stay comfortable with a lightweight frame and specially designed ear pods that redistribute pressure. When you’re ready to fire off orders, unveil the hidden, noisecancelling mic boom to strategize clearly with team members. Responses coming in? Adjust audio levels using in-line volume and mic-mute controls.

• Dolby headphone technology delivers a virtual 7-channel audio experience
• Dolby USB sound card is the only way to get the 7.1 experience
• Open-ear design keeps you connected to the game and your surroundings
• Concealed mic boom stays hidden until you’re ready to use it
• Specially designed earpods redistribute pressure for maximum comfort
• In-line volume and mic-mute controls allow for easy audio adjustment
• Noise-cancelling microphone lets you communicate clearly
• Rugged, military-grade design and extra-strength cables make your hardware hardcore

On the next page we open the box and take a look at her goodies…

The box comes with a few coupons for Dolby Axon, a quick-start guide, an installation illustration, a USB soundcard, and the headphones themselves.  The headphones have 2 large earcups that are surrounded by cloth-covered foam.  The headband can extend to 22 notched positions (11 on each side), and the main part of the headband has a thick cloth-covered foam on the underside.

The headphones have a single cord coming from the left earcup, and have several in-line gadgets before the end of the line.  A shirt clip is attached to the cord, which allows you to keep the cord pinched to your shirt collar.  Below this is an in-line remote, which has a large volume-control knob and microphone mute button.  There is plenty of slack in the line before the cable is split out to a 1/8″ stereo jack and microphone jack.

Tucked in the headband of the left earcup is a noise-cancelling microphone.  The microphone folds out from 90 degrees (inside the headband) to about 120 degrees, which is about where most people’s chins would be while wearing the headset.

The in-line remote control with volume knob and microphone mute switch

The included USB sound card has two inputs, one for stereo headphones and another for microphone.  On the right side is a “surround” on and off toggle switch, which illuminates a blue LED when active.  The top of the square device has a short 1-inch USB cable which plugs into any open USB port.  It is recommended that this be plugged into one of your PC’s front USB ports, as it would be difficult to switch the surround field on and off if behind your computer.

The earcups surround each ear, but the low-density foam doesn’t have the natural noise-reducing properties as other over-the-ear headphones we’ve tried.

The quick-start guide basically details that if you plug the headphones directly into your PC or Mac without the included USB adapter then you won’t experience Dolby Headphone IIx technology.  Plugging the headphones into the included square USB adapter and turning it on (indicated by a blue LED) should start the Dolby Headphone IIx 7.1 surround sound.  It also includes a reminder that Dolby Headphone technology is not “true” 7.1 surround, but converts any 2-channel audio source to a virtual 7.1 surround sound experience.  The source audio does not need to provide the individual audio channels to the adapter, and everything is done by the adapter.

The Gamecom 777 is detected by Windows Vista and Windows 7 as a “standard USB Audio Device” and appears to be in stereo only.  The unit is completely plug and play and no configuration is necessary, or even offered.   You cannot adjust the treble and bass, nor can you adjust the virtual sound field.

The included USB sound card converts stereo to a virtual surround field, so any games that you wish to play should be set to “headphone” rather than 5.1 or 7.1 surround speakers.

The extended microphone and USB sound card adapter

We tested these headphones in a variety of games, including Left 4 Dead 2, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Call of Duty 4, and several other games.  We also tested several Blu-ray movies in DTS, Dolby Digital, and Dolby Headphone modes.

Some games are better than others when it comes to surround sound testing.  Batman: Arkham Asylum offers some of the best positional sound testing, as the sounds are highly directional and distiguishable.  When testing the Logitech G930 headphones (review here) I was actually impressed how well the positional audio was, because I’ve never had a good experience with surround headphones before.  I spun the camera around during one of Joker’s monologues, and really could tell no difference in where the voice was coming from.  In pure stereo mode, at least I could tell the left from the right.  Again, I tested in 5.1 mode, 7.1 mode and stereo mode with the Dolby Headphone switch on and off.

Left 4 Dead 2’s positional audio, on the other hand, sounds to me like someone took all of the audio into a meat grinder and squeezed it into a mono track.  I am constantly hearing special undead as if they’re right next to me, and later discover that they were half a mile away, on the other side of the street.  I tried the Gamecom 777 7.1 in 7.1 mode and headphone mode, both with Dolby Headphone enabled and disabled, and honestly it all sounded like a big sphere of sound with no direction.  In Stereo mode I could at least tell if something was coming from the left or the right.

The USB sound card adapter with both headphones and microphone plugged in

We tried a few pre-processed Dolby Headphone surround tests, and in each of the demos the positional sound was actually quite convincing.  The bass response has improved slightly over the 5.1, as the bass frequencies dropped off at around 15 to 20 Hz.

Surround fields coming from DVDs and Blu-Ray movies were rather convincing, but not as obvious as the pre-processed Dolby Headphone surround demos. We tested the headset’s microphone in games such as Left 4 Dead 2 and audio applications like Skype, and in all instances others could hear me loud and clear, even when there was background noise.

The sound from the Gamecom 777 7.1 is very good, with crisp highs and good bass, and has a good energy to it.  In stereo mode, the headphones sound absolutely great for music listening.  Throwing the switch on the included USB soundcard adapter is when things start to go awry, as positional sound is not very convincing most of the time.  Everything sounds more spatial, but just not very directional.  Since all surround is interpolated from a 2-channel stereo source, then the effectiveness of the surround field can be very subjective.

One advantage to these headphones is that they will work on just about any analog device, from iPods to CD players to PCs. The included USB-based surround sound card just isn’t effective beyond making things sounding more ethereal.  This headset retails for $99, but fortunately can be found online for as little as $59. At that price, it’s definitely better than others in that price range.  As a stereo headset, the sound is quite good, but the included surround sound card is a mixed bag.