As any of you who are following me on twitter know I ordered the beautiful, sleek and very white Soundblaster Arena headset last week from newegg and today I moseyed my way down to Puralator to pick em up!  Happy happy joy joy.

Seeing as there are little no reviews of these kind of things specific to linux I thought I would share my thoughts on the first day with my new lover and how they react to my other lover: Ubuntu.  I’m not going to go over packaging and all the other nitty gritty details that most reviews dive into, I’ll just let you know the one thing you care about: How do they sound?

Well up until now I’ve been using  a pair of Panasonic earbuds (Best pair of ear buds I have ever owned for bass which is saying a lot as these cost me 30,000 pesos – 15$ – in Colombia and they out perform my $200.00 Bose buds sitting in my room) and the sound has been fairly impressive up until this point so it would take something pretty special to really make me say ‘wow’.  Obviously an over ear headset is going to outperform buds but the quality of those buds was so high with the music I listen to that I wasn’t sure at how much to expect.

If you want to skip the review and just get to the goods I’ll lay it out right here: Do NOT waste your money on these headphones.  Without the bullshit proprietary drivers that run only in windows these headphones will consistently disappoint you at absolutely every turn.  The same can probably be said for all USB headphones I would imagine and these are no exception.  So until creative gets out of the last century and open sources their drivers these headphones will no doubt be put to use as a paper weight versus anything else.

First Impressions

In linux, to be honest, the difference isn’t astronomical as far as what they are delivering.. Clearly these things are 10 times the size of ear buds so the overall sound is a lot richer and a bit boomier when it comes to the progressive house I listen to.  Putting on classical the sound is a fair bit cleaner although it going to take something at 320k to really hear the difference in sound.  Again because it’s an over ear experience the sound comes through richer as well.

In windows you can take everything written above and multiply it by 10.  The sound is insanely deep and booming when the equalizer is adjusted.  These things rattled on my head and massaged my soul with amazing thumping beats.  It’s enough to make me almost want to go into Windows to do as much work as I can.  Shit that sound was impressive..  I made sure only to take a taste of it though, just a few seconds or else I would probably be in Windows right now.  So keep in mind non of the limitations I describe here have anything to do with the hardware, this is a badass headset.  It all comes down to the lack of proper support and drivers for linux.  GGAHHH!!!

Volume

Now this is a USB only headset and I am guessing that is playing a part into why I am unable to really crank these things.  I mean don’t get me wrong it goes moderately loud but it doesn’t pound my head like when I had my Bose set which plug directly into the audio jacks.  I mean I can feel the beats but it’s not leaving my ears ringing after a long session of Jan Waterman which is the only way to listen to such brilliance. I am able to amp it up more through pulse for classical music than I was with my buds but with trance it starts to distort when I dance around 170%.

As you can guess it the same cannot be said for the windows experience.  These things fucking exploded on my head.  It was so loud, so deep and so bloody distortion free that I had to shed a little tear for not being able to experience that in linux.

The Microphone:

Truth be told one of the main reasons I’m buying this is the mic.  I haven’t done an IndustryBroadcast in months and months and month because my old usb mic kicked the bucket.  So a critical criteria was mic quality and most of the reviews had nothing but good things to say about the mic.

First thing that rocks about it is that it is detachable.  So if I’m out or whatever and don’t need it, I don’t need to have it sticking off my head.  Definitely like that.  The quality of the sound is decent.  It’s nothing amazing by any stretch, and this has nothing to do with the software as it sounds the same in windows.  My voice comes across as really damn deep, almost unnaturally so for those who are used to hearing me through my built in lappy mic, and while they claim this is a noise canceling mic, when I was in windows with the proper drivers loaded and software running I really didn’t pick up a crystal clean sound even though all windows were closed and appliances off in my surrounding area.  It was dead quiet in my apartment and i was still getting a bit of noise that I had to clean up with Audacity.  So overall the mic works decently but I wouldn’t buy these just for that.. If you’re doing podcasting you’re better off getting a proper mic and a proper pair of headphones.  If you’re gaming then these will definitely do the trick and make you sound like a manly man while you’re at it.

Size, Shape, Comfort

My ears are totally covered, I picked these up at 2pm today, and outside of a workout and dinner I’ve had them on ever since.  Totally comfortable, no pinching or anything anywhere.  Cushioning is soft and fluffy and I have lots of room inside for my ears

The Design:

See picture above, these things are badass!  I bought these because they received the best overall review of any gaming headset around and they were under $100.00 at New Egg.  I also haven’t bought a SoundBlaster product in 15 years so it felt awesome to support a company that’s done so much to change the audio landscape of the digital world.  But I am not going to lie and say I wasn’t super super stoked to have this gorgeously designed throw-back to 1980′s sci-fi on my head.  I mean if storm troopers are grooving to good tunes they are doing it with the SoundBlaster Arena on their head, and dammit so am I!  This goes for the color and general shape, but these bad boys are sleek and not bulky by any stretch.. I was actually surprised at the small size of the box when I picked them up.  I was expecting, from the pictures, that these things would be much more obtuse and large but they are the perfect size.  That and the black on a white body is brilliant.  Best looking headset on the market in my mind.

So there you have it!  If you want something that just cranks the sound out and you are using linux only I would go for a Senheisser or something else that goes into your audio jacks.

• The sound quality is good in these,  overall decent but nothign to write home about and my ears certainly aren’t going to be bleeding(in the best way possible) anytime soon.  I’m almost considering running VMware all the time just for music because these things absolutely rock in Windows.  So if you’re a windows user put your money into these bad boys, they will rock your world like nothing else.
• Mic is decent, good for gaming, decent enough for podcasting but nothing to write home about at all.  If you’re serious about casting go and buy a professional mic for $70.00 and use a cheaper $30.00 headset.  If you are gaming this is the way to go.  The mic detaches which is a huge plus
• Design rocks the cock, these are wicked looking phones that set your head apart from the rest
• Comfortable as anything else.  But phat padding around the ears with plenty of room will keep the tunes coming for hours and hours without discomfort.

Bottom Line:

Do NOT, and I repeat DO NOT waste your money on these headphones if you plan on using them primarily in linux.  Contrary to the reviews the microphone is nothing out of the ordinary and the sound quality in linux is the same as the $10.00 pair of Earbuds I picked up in Colombia.  These headphones will be a complete waste of money if you cannot use the proper drivers to support them.  Nothing against creative in particular, but USB headphones which require proprietary Windows Only drivers to run will completely underperform and dissapoint you at absolutely every turn.

Hope that helps, if anyone has any suggestions for how to improve the audio quality to something approaching windows I would love you forever!

http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/ippd-dppi.nsf/eng/h_ip01456.html

An interesting study commissioned by the Canadian Government shows evidence that p2p users purchase more music than their non-pirate brethren and at the very least that p2p activity has absolutely no effect on purchasing habits, and consequentially nothing to do with the woe’s of the music industry.

To Quote:

In the aggregate, we are unable to find direct evidence that P2P file-sharing either increases or decreases CD purchases in Canada. That is, in our analysis of the whole Canadian population we are unable to find any relationship between the number of P2P music tracks that were downloaded and the number CD purchases

Among Canadians engaged in P2P file-sharing, we find a positive and statistically significant relationship between the number of music tracks downloaded via P2P networks and the number of CDs purchased (Table 4.3).9 For an increase in the average number of P2P downloads per month of 2.718282, the number of CD purchases per year will increase by 1.212. For an increase in the average number of P2P downloads per month of 1 (ie., 2.718282/2.718282), the number of CD purchases per year will increase by (1.212/2.718282 =) 0.44.

This is almost as good as a 90′s government funded study in the US to find the negative effects of THC on cancer cells which resulted, much to their chagrin, to the findings that pure THC(synthetic or otherwise) is one of the  most effective anti-tumeric chemicals on the planet.  Findings confirmed by a Harvard study in 1997 showing a 50-60% reduction in tumors and legions of cancer riddled mice: http://www.nowpublic.com/thc_marijuana_helps_cure_cancer_says_harvard_study

Are we seeing the slow decline of the age of ignorance which has been the past 50 years for mainstream america/canada ?

Just found her today and immediately fell in love with her style, lyrics and sound.  Her music is as unique as the video is, such a wonderful style in the face of commercial mainstream.  Just watching it makes me smile, but then I started paying attention to the lyrics and it got that much better.  The same is true for the rest of her album.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUYaosyR4bE[/youtube]

I heard her on Q yesterday, and her voice just took me away.. She had this amazing song that was unbelievably haunting.

Béatrice Martin (b. 1989) is a Canadian pop singer-songwriter from Quebec, who performs under the stage name Cœur de pirate.

After a brief stint as keyboardist for Bonjour Brumaire , she released her debut album Cœur de pirate in 2008 on Grosse Boîte. The album was subsequently nominated for Francophone Album of the Year at the 2009 Juno Awards. The single “Comme des enfants” reached #1 on CBC Radio 3‘s R3-30 charts the week of February 19, 2009; it was only the second French language song, following Les Breastfeeders‘ “Pas sans saveur” in 2006, ever to top that chart. She started playing the piano when she was only three years old. After five years of education in art, letters and communications in Montreal she started creating songs in 2007 and putting them on MySpace which is how the band Bonjour Brumaire first got an interest in her. She released her first album, Coeur de pirate, on September 16, 2008.

She attracted wider media attention in February 2009 when François Vachon, a photographer from Quebec City, used her song “Ensemble” as the soundtrack to a popular YouTube video depicting his baby son playing with toys, leading to coverage on Good Morning America and a favourable review from blogger Perez Hilton

I haven’t been able to find it to embed in this post but you can go to http://podcast.cbc.ca/mp3/qpodcast_20090619_17230.mp3 and download the episode of Q that she was in

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpyN9osDwUw[/youtube]

Added Multiwinia to the top because A.) I’ve got mad respect for Introversion and their products but this trailer is just a bold brilliant move.  The piano makes you instantly sad for the suffering and pain of war.  The brilliance lies that you feel, albeit only slightly, this tinge of sadness for the scenes you are witnessing, when the scenes and the game multiwinia itself is so abstact that normally you would never feel this.  Great GREAT game, great company, wicked use of music and to make a trailer that essentially tells you nothing about the game who’s purpose is only to illicit an emotional response well that takes balls and brains, cause they pulled it off.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccWrbGEFgI8[/youtube]

Such a beautiful song that lends itself surprisingly well to the trailer, a testament to those who created it.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYWF2-WkDvU[/youtube]

You have to give them credit, the boys over at the M$ marketing department know better than anyone how to create a compelling experience with audio in a game trailer

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoppHGwCQNc[/youtube]

Original WoW trailer.  The song on the soundtrack is called ‘A Call to Arms’(are at least it’s similar enough to see it was used) and is one of the most powerful game pieces ever written.  It’s too bad the song is slightly muted, worth listening to it all on it’s own here

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RGzvZ1Epy4[/youtube]

I had to bring in a trailer from AITD as the 2008 OST is definitely one of the more powerful soundtracks created in recent years.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIRPcICB-iY[/youtube]

How many companies offer remixes of their commercials? I mean come on, the musical component in itself might not be worthy of a mention but it’s use and the fact that money was spent to pump this out sure as hell is.  Plus it might have the best last line for any trailer ever

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0q68UkYOezY[/youtube]

One of the most recognizable pieces of music from any game trailer without a doubt.  I dare you not to get goose bumps from this.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ftej190O4U[/youtube]

Bravo!  When faced with the challenge of how to represent visually the music of the Beatles in a trailer they could have gone down so many cop out, traditional routes but instead they put their balls out there and made something beautiful and creative.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asF5sIDQ9eY[/youtube]

Beautiful song for sure, good call Ubisoft

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPXIO0LarJw[/youtube]

I’ve had no choice but to smile ear to ear with every trailer for this game, but the music in this one makes me more than otheres

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gv3XmD7-rk&feature=fvsr[/youtube]

There can be no denying the brilliant pairing of Big Band style music with the visual style presented in TF2.  Both compliment and strengthen each other so well that one viewing of a TF2 commercial and it’ll be in your head for days.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wv9nGDE78fE[/youtube]

The mellow guitar riff beautifully juxtaposes what is going on in the scene.  Plus the big band sounding theme for TF2 itself is brilliant.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2N1TJP1cxmo[/youtube]

The song just makes everything seem so serene and graceful, even when it involves violence.  I imagine that being the point EA was going for to describe the way the character in mirrors edge moves and acts

Got some more that I missed here?  By all means lets hear it!

***Additional Suggestions I Missed***

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pf39bQ2nMz8[/youtube]

Brilliant, again the use of music to juxtapose what is happening in the music has such a great impact I am surprised we aren’t seeing this technique more

The act of playing music with people of different cultures, religions, economics and politics is a powerful statement. It shows that we can find ways of working together and sharing our experiences with one another in a positive way. Music has the power to break down the walls between cultures, to raise the level of human understanding.
~ Mark Johnson, founder, Playing for Change

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us-TVg40ExM[/youtube]

http://assassinscreed.us.ubi.com/soundtrack/index.php

Password is ‘Target’ (case sensitive)

My question here is why oh why isn’t there more?  God this soundtrack is absolutely mouth wateringly beautiful.. Plus it is all in high quality Wav’s so hardly any compression.  I could listen to this for days.

Also got my hands on the Prince of Persia Soundtracks yesterday and I am inlove with these middle-eastern themed games.  Such beautiful sounds