Trying to find a Bluetooth gaming headset

[cheesemoo]

I've been searching for a good bluetooth headset to replace my wired one. I was looking for something comfortable to wear for hours at a time, etc... and then I read about bluetooth profiles on wikipedia. From what I understand, all bluetooth devices must support one or more "profiles". These profiles dictate what the device can do. This is apparently to keep all bluetooth devices working happily together, and so you don't have to go download new drivers every time you get a new headset for your phone or whatever.

Anyway! It seems that the bottom line, for now, is that there are only two profiles that might be useful for gaming. One, A2DP, allows for high-quality stereo audio to be transmitted from a source (mp3 player, phone, etc) to your headset. This is good, but when in this profile, the headset cannot transmit audio from its microphone. This profile would essentially give me wireless headphones, but I would not be able to talk to teammates in TF2 or what have you. There are two other profiles, which seem essentially the same from what I can see on wikipedia: headset and hands-free modes. They allow for transmission of one lower-quality mono channel to the headset, and voice from the headset to your device. So I could talk to teammates in TF2, but my audio quality would be crappy and mono. To be able to replace my current wired headset, I would need a bluetooth headset that had both high quality stereo audio and voice transmission. Since this profile does not seem to exist, is it safe to assume that there will be no bluetooth devices with the capabilities I'm looking for any time in the near future?


I've been thinking of ways to get around this. I suppose that I could just set a wired mic on my desk when I'm gaming and use the bluetooth headset in A2DP mode for stereo audio. I'd rather not though - seems to defeat the purpose of having a wireless headset in the first place.


One last question: where does bluetooth get its audio from if it's connected to my computer? I have an Audigy, so ideally it would do all the audio processing work, then somehow pass the output to a usb bluetooth dongle. I'm not sure if this is how bluetooth works, however. I suspect that it acts as a separate "sound card" which would not only make my CPU do all the work, but I'd miss out on my Audigy's effects and whatnot. I've seen bluetooth adapters that plug into a stereo output and then transmit to a bluetooth headset. This would let me get my Audigy's proper output, since as far as my computer would be concerned, it would just be talking to a set of speakers. However, I'd rather avoid this since then I would have to get a separate usb bluetooth dongle for my PC to be able to talk to any other Bluetooth devices. And I'd still have to get a wired mic for my desk.

[bswain06]

me too. "call of duty 4" gotcha hooked too??

[cheesemoo]

Nah, I haven't played CoD4 yet. I guess the only real reason I want a mic on my headset is for when I play TF2 (it's the only game I have with voice communication besides WoW).

Audio alone is nice enough on a wireless headset (I didn't notice how much I hated the wires on my headset until they were gone), but I really feel like I'm getting ripped off if I shell out $70+ for a good BT headset, then can't even really use the speakers and headset at the same time.

Anyway, it looks like I'm good and boned for now. There isn't even talk of something like this on the horizon, and goodness knows it will be a while between talk and production.

[wickedgoodtech]

Cheesemoo,

I think you're right...you're kind of stuck between BT profiles. You can hook up some great stereo headsets for sound, with no voice...or have voice with mono sound.

I've spoken with some other gamers and have heard this request before. I've been looking for a setup or unit that would fill the need, but haven't found one yet.

I think there are some wireless units out there, but they are not "Bluetooth". Perhaps that would fit the bill, but it sounds like you want to use your computer with other BT peripherals as well.

I bet someone could find a way to "combine" a Stereo BT unit and a Handsfree kit to get both sound and voice, but there would be a few problems... The unit would essentially have to run 2 BT chips and radios, so pairing might be a pain. Also the battery life might be a big issue.

No real solution here...just that there seems to be a definite need for a unit like this, and there are a few hurdles to making one.

[poLiSen]

I wish I had found this post earlier.

I bought Cardo S-2 bluetooth stereo headset thinking this would be awesome. Finally to be able to get rid of the wired headset that always gets in my way. But I soon found out that I cannot listen to audio with high quality AND speak through the microphone at the same time. So the solution was to get my old wired separate microphone (a very small one) and attach it to my monitor while using the bluetooth headset in "Headphone profile" which gives me the good sound quality.

It's a bit confusing that there seem to be no bluetooth gaming headsets out there, really, it's almost stupid.

If someone reads this, let us know if you happen to find a bluetooth gaming headset.

[doodilydingdongbluetooth]

http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/pro...4&id=8276 321

this doesn't appear to be BT enabled...
but it's a step in the right direction.

[layla17]

I ordered mine through a newer company who is really getting some looks. It's called soundon usa. They have a lot of various types of wireless gaming stuff.

[Elocin]

I am also very curious about getting a Bluetooth headset to work for my cell phone (which is not the problem) and my computer system. Currently I am using onboard sound (ASUS Crosshair MB) to power my desktop speakers where all sound from games and movies and anything else comes from. I then have an Audigy USB adapter where I have a pair of headphones plugged into where I use Teamspeak only through. I essentially want to replace the USB adapter with the Bluetooth adapter. And since I have to by a Bluetooth headset for my cell phone due to certain laws in California I figured I might as well and try and combine the two worlds into one headset.

Anyone have any thoughts on this or which is the best Bluetooth headset to buy.

I would greatly appreciate the help on this.

tia