Sennheiser GSP 301

[Inle]

The Sennheiser GSP 301 is the company's entry-level gaming headset. Even though it comes with a fairly short list of features, especially considering its $100 price, it delivers heaps in all important aspects - sound, microphone quality and wearing comfort are exceptional.

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[EzioAs]

Thanks for the review. Hearing how good the mic sounds (and the bonus of good audio), I might grab this to replace my Steelseries Siberia 200, which is very uncomfortable after about 30 minutes and comes with a really crappy mic. Well, at least it's cheap...

 

[FYFI13]

Really good job Sennheiser, well done. Finally we have a headset with good sounding mic. Been looking for one last few months and ended up buying headphones + standalone mic only because all headsets i tried had pretty bad mics.

 

[Assimilator]

Now make a wireless version!

 

[linoliveira]

Spoiler

please Senheiser, take my damn money!

 

[Mescalamba]

Well, its company that makes great professional microphones, so not that surprised. Way you described sound reminded my of my old HD555, which apart other things were pretty good for gaming (if I dont mind them being open and this is closed design, bit more suitable for gaming).

Nice review, might even consider getting them.

 

[Mescalamba]

Now make a wireless version!

They actually make wireless and with mics. Just not sure how much usable is that mic in it.

 

[Liquid Cool]

I really enjoyed reading(and listening to...) this review of the 301's. Very thorough and well thought out....,

My Regards,

Liquid Cool

 

[Inle]

Thanks guys for your kind words and congrats to anyone who decides to get it - you're getting a great headset

 

[prtskg]

Amazing headphone at amazing price!!!

 

[Tom_]

Does it work on macOS?

 

[Inle]

Does it work on macOS?

Of course.

 

[Agony]

Why they keep making Cabled Products ? Bluetooth is very fast and APTX , Low latency and HD is way more than enough... Even Bose Q30 doesn't use APTX and they sound amazing .

 

[EzioAs]

Just ordered the GSP 300. Can't wait to try em

 

[80-watt Hamster]

Why they keep making Cabled Products ? Bluetooth is very fast and APTX , Low latency and HD is way more than enough... Even Bose Q30 doesn't use APTX and they sound amazing .

I'd wager that the proportion of the target market with a bluetooth-less PC is fairly high. A bluetooth module would also either push the product into the next price bracket or cut into the margin.

 

[Assimilator]

I'd wager that the proportion of the target market with a bluetooth-less PC is fairly high. A bluetooth module would also either push the product into the next price bracket or cut into the margin.

I honestly don't understand why Bluetooth isn't a built-in default on all consumer motherboards.

 

[EzioAs]

I received my GSP 300 2 days ago. As per what most reviewers noted. the headset is really comfortable and the audio is really good as well (needs some more testing on this though).

For the mic though, I still hear a lot of static noise if I listen back to the mic on the headset so it got me to thinking that maybe my motherboard audio chip is really poor. Also, is it common (and necessary) to boost the mic in Recording Devices>Properties>Levels because my friend couldn't really hear me when I tried without boost when we were talking on Discord?

 

[MAXLD]

Been trying them for 2 days now, and I gotta say, personally, I'm not digging them that much...
Two major concerns, in my case:

- Comfort (they feel slightly small):
the headband stretching/adjustment is not enough and it puts a bunch of pressure on the top of my head, while making the positioning of the "V" shape pads a bit higher than my earlobes would like. The ears will still be full inside the pads, but overall the headphones fit it just too tight, making the headband pressure down on my head too much.
The headband top cushion design is also counter intuitive in my point of view, since the foam is cut/interrupted in the middle, which is where there's contact with the head, not the sides where it has the most padding area. Having spent a lot of time with headphones over the years, I now that over time the cushion starts to fade and begins to get thinner, and in this case, having even less on the middle part (+ those slopes), will probably aggravate the situation and just make you feel the solid plastic and pressure even more.

- Sound quality:
while I didn't notice any distortion on low and high pitched frequencies, which is good, the overall sound is quite odd. Having a pair of HD380 Pro's and an X-Fi Fatal1ty Pro series card, the sound of the GSP's is somehow funneled and where it's more critical is when playing a game in a open area... it doesn't sound open, it seems a bunch of sounds are a bit muffled and coming from inside something like a box. Some mids and highs seem overwhelmed and hidden behind the lows and it's just not that pleasant... feels like you're lacking detail and loosing track of some of the sounds (vs HD380's). I guess I can say it sounds like using one of those sound effect presets that you find on the drivers of an onboard sound card.

I did like the volume adjustment and the micro usage, but when the two major factors are not there for you (comfort and sound), then I guess they're not the right ones for me to keep around.

 

[Aquinus]

I like the HD 280s I had before and I love the HD 380s I have now. Sennheiser makes some pretty good products.

 

[MAXLD]

I like the HD 280s I had before and I love the HD 380s I have now. Sennheiser makes some pretty good products.

With the exception of the pads, they do. But the pad quality (specially from the 380s) are utter garbage... they start to disintegrate within months of normal daily use. First is the outer layer that leaves you with black confetti on your hair, and then the inner stitching/glue goes bananas, making the inner foam dissolve and sprinkle your ears with black dust. I've used 2 models from Technics for more than 3 yrs each (at least) and I've never had anything like this, their pads are still normal even today.

Basically you have to spend 20~30€ to get another pair of pads from Sennheiser, which are exactly the same and will destroy themselves the exact same way. For the price and reputation of this brand, one would expect issues to be fixed at least on the spare parts. Nope. Pay another 20~30 and off you go, until next time. Frustrating, to say the least. Not for the accounting department, of course... selling you spare parts at premium price and around 1/4 of the original phones, is a great "issue" to have and not that convenient to solve.

 

[Aquinus]

With the exception of the pads, they do. But the pad quality (specially from the 380s) are utter garbage... they start to disintegrate within months of normal daily use. First is the outer layer that leaves you with black confetti on your hair, and then the inner stitching/glue goes bananas, making the inner foam dissolve and sprinkle your ears with black dust. I've used 2 models from Technics for more than 3 yrs each (at least) and I've never had anything like this, their pads are still normal even today.

Basically you have to spend 20~30€ to get another pair of pads from Sennheiser, which are exactly the same and will destroy themselves the exact same way. For the price and reputation of this brand, one would expect issues to be fixed at least on the spare parts. Nope. Pay another 20~30 and off you go, until next time. Frustrating, to say the least. Not for the accounting department, of course... selling you spare parts at premium price and around 1/4 of the original phones, is a great "issue" to have and not that convenient to solve.

Really? I've had my 380s for almost 2 years now and the pads are still in excellent shape, not falling apart or anything. This is definitely the issue I had with the 280s but, that didn't really start becoming a problem until I owned them for almost 4-5 years. I use mine almost every day too and it travels with me to and from work. For what it's worth, I do put the headphones in the case when I'm transporting them which might help but, I usually get fairly good life out of the pads considering the amount of use.

 

[MAXLD]

Really? I've had my 380s for almost 2 years now and the pads are still in excellent shape, not falling apart or anything. This is definitely the issue I had with the 280s but, that didn't really start becoming a problem until I owned them for almost 4-5 years. I use mine almost every day too and it travels with me to and from work. For what it's worth, I do put the headphones in the case when I'm transporting them which might help but, I usually get fairly good life out of the pads considering the amount of use.

Y, several people even on Sennheiser's own website (down below on Reviews zone) complain about the same thing (pads gone after ~1yr or so):
https://en-us.sennheiser.com/monitoring-headphone-studio-professional-audio-hd-380-pro

And it's not 280/380 specific either, as other (and more expensive) Sennheiser models seem to suffer from the same fate:
"amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R3OE90NNG42BI1/ref=cm_cr_dp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00GWU8FTK"

 

[Mighty-Lu-Bu]

I have tried a lot of gaming headsets and for the price, this is the best headset I have ever used. I got it on sale direct from Sennheiser for $80 and it also came with a headphone holder that attaches to a desk. Ridiculously comfortable and the sound quality is really great. This is also the exact same headset is the GSP 300, but the GSP 301 is a special black and white limited edition. There is also a GSP 302 that is all black.

 

[Folterknecht]

I received my GSP 300 2 days ago. As per what most reviewers noted. the headset is really comfortable and the audio is really good as well (needs some more testing on this though).

For the mic though, I still hear a lot of static noise if I listen back to the mic on the headset so it got me to thinking that maybe my motherboard audio chip is really poor. Also, is it common (and necessary) to boost the mic in Recording Devices>Properties>Levels because my friend couldn't really hear me when I tried without boost when we were talking on Discord?

Here is a cheap solution for your problems with the Mic-in on your motherboard.
https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/...ds-suck-a-solution-for-8.236406/#post-3714716

 

[Folterknecht]

@Inle

Got the GSP 303 yesterday ... and I already send them back :-(

They are too small for my head:

1) Head band barely fit. Had to set them to max size on both sides and it was tight. I ve helmet size 60 (germany) - sure that's on the bigger side of things, but not huge.
2) Ear cushions are "too tight". Sure they go over my ears and their is no noticable clamping force on my head. But the problem for me was, that the cushions were to narrow and applied light pressure on the edges of my ears - irritating as fuck.

My old Corsair Vengeance 1500 which are starting to fail after ~4 years don't have these problems. The ear cups are bigger and while I have set the bands to max also, it's a comfortable fit not a tight one.

Would be interesting to know what your helmet size is ... .