The s-500 are big and scary headphones.  I'm not talking gas-mask scary, but definitely sci-fi movie scary for sure.  They are designed and constructed by Everglide with some care though, and have an understated yet quality feel to them.  They are headphones tailored for the PC gamer, but they are almost too professional.  They have the features that make them work quite well for gaming, the 2.5mm plug, sealed-back design with good noise isolation, and big comfy cushions on the earpads and headband for extended play time.

For gaming, the s-500 is quite good.  The isolation will help you get focused on the game, and the sound quality will keep you in the game.  During extended gaming sessions of BF2142, about 4 hours into it, I found the s-500 only slightly fatiguing on my right ear.  Go figure.  Paired with a fine sound card like an X-Fi, the sound quality during games is pretty good, but we found it difficult to hear other players in a LAN party setting, strictly because of the isolation.

However, I would have appreciated the included microphone not be clip-on, but on a boom like normal sane headphones have.  Then we don't have to contend with a second wire for the mic, which leads to frustration when the little thin wire gets sucked up into the wheels of your chair.  The mic itself is rather good and sensitive during gaming.

For music, the s-500 suffer the same problem that every other sealed headphones do, resonance in the earcups.  It is like putting two plastic cups over your ears.  Although the s-500 measured roughly the same as the Grado SR-125’s (a high-quality open-back headphone) using an ASIO signal generator, the resonance was noticeable in everything from games to music.  The good news is that the resonance isn't all that bad.  You get used to it after an hour or two and don’t think about it so much.  After you're acclimated, you just sink your ears into that plush leather interior and enjoy the comfort.

Above Average.

Stuff that is Always at the End

Special thanks to Karen at Everglide for setting up this review, and to his effervescent Himself, Hilbert for letting me be in his band.  Get some rest, my friend!   I would also like to thank the internet tubes for bringing this review to You, The People.

http://www.everglide.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=18&Itemid=44

 

http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/03/19/1432227

http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=137646

http://www.soundstage.com/gettingtechnical/gettingtechnical200409.htm

 

http://www4.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=39923

http://www.ambiophonics.org/Ch_3_ambiophonics_2nd_edit.htm

http://www.magma.ca/~gtaylor/ASIOTestSigGen.htm

 

http://www.dansdata.com/canalphones.htm

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/music/pianof.html

 

http://www.planet-science.com/outthere/index.html?page=/outthere/environ/hall_shame.html

http://www.google.com/search?q=unnecessary+packaging+hall+of+shame (interesting, no?)

 

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/games/learnmore/progaming.mspx

 

http://www.j-wavemusic.com/

 

This review brought to you by the letter T.  But I don't remember why.

Our moment of Zen:

+++BAM