Ear Force DSS 7.1 Channel Dolby Surround Sound Processor $51.99 @Amazon FS

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Amazon is selling Turtle Beach Ear Force DSS 7.1 Channel Dolby Surround Sound Processor at $51.99 with free shipping. You can randomly find used ones around this price at Amazon Warehouse. But this is the lowest price I ever seen for a new one. Just in case anyone is interested.

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Sweet. I have the X11 headset and have been looking for this sound processor as a stand alone product for some time now. This will be much cheaper than buying the $130 set with headphones.
 
I kind of like this thing, but there is a light hiss that bothers me. Does anyone think changing the optical cable would help?
 
That's what I've heard. I instantly threw Away that cheap cord[quote name='Easystride']I kind of like this thing, but there is a light hiss that bothers me. Does anyone think changing the optical cable would help?[/QUOTE]
 
[quote name='Easystride']I kind of like this thing, but there is a light hiss that bothers me. Does anyone think changing the optical cable would help?[/QUOTE]
i heard that the hiss was normal as someone said turtle beach confirmed it on their website awhile back. don't quote me on that though.
 
I honestly didn't think the hiss was any worse than other headphones (Sony, Koss, etc.) that I've had, and don't notice it.

Son of a bitch, I just bought this last week for another $10 at Amazon. Grr.
 
FRAK FRAK FRAK!!! I was waiting for this to drop for months, finally gave up on waiting and ordered the Sharkoon SP from Amazon this week when it dropped down to $50. FRAAAAK!
 
The little Ear Force DSS box is the most amazing little gizmo ever. I use it along w/ my Sony MDR-V6 cans. Actually KNOWING the gunfire is behind you, from a pair of headphones, is priceless. ;)
 
It is a great little box that can be used with any headset. Anyone looking for turtle beach or surround sound headphone should know this is the main component doing the work in those packages. I got it for $62 a few months ago.
 
[quote name='meta460085']FRAK FRAK FRAK!!! I was waiting for this to drop for months, finally gave up on waiting and ordered the Sharkoon SP from Amazon this week when it dropped down to $50. FRAAAAK![/QUOTE]

I don't think Sharkoon SP can give you the surround sound. You can connect the SP headset with this DSS to achieve that.
 
[quote name='Easystride']I kind of like this thing, but there is a light hiss that bothers me. Does anyone think changing the optical cable would help?[/QUOTE]

It's a digital connection, so the cord has no effect on the quality. The hiss comes from the headset itself due to the amp.
 
Not supposed to need this if I have the X41s, right? I get a sense of stereo separation from the X41s, but never any sense of surround.
 
[quote name='ianoid']Not supposed to need this if I have the X41s, right? I get a sense of stereo separation from the X41s, but never any sense of surround.[/QUOTE]
The X41's are supposed to be 7.1 surround already.
 
I may pick this up when I get paid. I have the X11's which I love, but I yearn for more bass. Obviously it upgrades the sound to 7.1, but can anyone confirm if the bass is noticeable improved on the X11's while using this?
 
[quote name='AFarewell2Arms']I may pick this up when I get paid. I have the X11's which I love, but I yearn for more bass. Obviously it upgrades the sound to 7.1, but can anyone confirm if the bass is noticeable improved on the X11's while using this?[/QUOTE]

Depending on your setup, it may only go up to 5.1 (i.e. 360, PC, etc.). As for the bass, it's GREATLY improved. There's a knob to adjust bass, so you can go crazy and crank it to full blast.
 
[quote name='mac101010']Depending on your setup, it may only go up to 5.1 (i.e. 360, PC, etc.). As for the bass, it's GREATLY improved. There's a knob to adjust bass, so you can go crazy and crank it to full blast.[/QUOTE]

Wouldn't it be 7.1 if I use my X11 and the Earforce DSS plugged into the back of my Xbox slim via the optical cable?
 
This is worth the $50 if you have a nice set of headphones/headset.

Like others have mentioned, the buzz is due to the amp itself. It's not noticeable unless you crank up the volume knob to a medium to high setting. It's negligible if you're able to adjust the volume thru the input rather than the DSS itself. Then again, the buzz really isn't an issue because you only hear it when there's no sound playing.

The bass boost is way too much if you crank it to the max setting. Having it in the middle is plenty, don't go deaf.

If you have 7.1 headphones and you can force DD through the input, then yes you can get 7.1 instead of 5.1
 
[quote name='emperordahc']The little Ear Force DSS box is the most amazing little gizmo ever. I use it along w/ my Sony MDR-V6 cans. Actually KNOWING the gunfire is behind you, from a pair of headphones, is priceless. ;)[/QUOTE]

I have those same headphones. I'm really tempted to pick this up, especially if my $10 game credit can be applied.
 
[quote name='GlassAgate']So, if I have an old laptop, an want a digital audio card, this
is not what I want, right?[/QUOTE]

Correct.
 
[quote name='kiwimonster']Wouldn't it be 7.1 if I use my X11 and the Earforce DSS plugged into the back of my Xbox slim via the optical cable?[/QUOTE]

The 360 doesn't support Dolby 7.1, so it defaults to 5.1, and the X11 also only supports 5.1. Honestly though, there's not much of a difference at this point, so you need not worry about missing out on extra speakers.
 
[quote name='GlassAgate']So, if I have an old laptop, an want a digital audio card, this
is not what I want, right?[/QUOTE]

You can get the DSS to work on your laptop without a digital audio card.

http://www.amazon.com/Turtle-Beach-...O4X4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1307928043&sr=8-1

I use this myself in conjunction with the DSS, and it works flawlessly. You basically hook an optical cable (not included) to the provided optical-to-stereo plug, and you get Dolby Pro Logic II sound. There's really not much of a difference from Dolby 5.1 (some people say pro logic isn't as great), but I never noticed a difference. Only downside is you have more stuff to buy.
 
+ 1 on the Turtle Beach Audio Advantage Micro II USB Analog & Digital Audio Adapter to convert to optical. Even if you don't get the earforce dss, the micro ii is a big improvement over onboard sound on a laptop/pc. You can plug headphones straight into it and the driver has eq. Some say the sound is better with this by itself than with the earforce dss attached and I think so too(although without surround effect). A lot of bang for your buck in the micro ii.

The earforce dss is very handy to have around, like a portable little stereo receiver for optical devices. I also use it to attach a small pair of computer speakers to the PS3/360 for when I don't want to wear headphones.
 
[quote name='emperordahc']The little Ear Force DSS box is the most amazing little gizmo ever. I use it along w/ my Sony MDR-V6 cans. Actually KNOWING the gunfire is behind you, from a pair of headphones, is priceless. ;)[/QUOTE]

Gah. I got this a couple of weeks ago for $25 more. Oh well. Too bad they no longer have the price guarantee. I also use the DSS with Sony V6s, great little setup. I don't hear a hiss though so I'm not sure what everybody else is talking about. When I had the x41 there was a really annoying hiss in those.
 
[quote name='Phokis']How would you guys compare this to the Astro mixamp? A cheap but awesome alternative?[/QUOTE]

I don't have either of the two, but I'm going to order the mixamp. I can't comment on the sound quality. But I've done research on both. They use the same dolby chip supposedly from what I read so they sound the same or similar. I think the break down is features/inputs both of them have. The Mixamp has more features and inputs you can use than the DSS. Aside from the mixamp not having a bass booster. But it has a voice/game mixer. You can use third party headsets with the mixamp and make it kind of wireless. Good for pets who like to chew on wires. I also travel alot so it will be pretty useful to bring with me. I think you should get which ever fits into your gaming/life style. You can't go wrong with either one if they sound the same. At this price you can use the DSS as a cheap 5.1/7.1 universal surround sound setup for console/pc. Granted if you already own some good headphones.

As for 7.1 the ps3 does support it depending on the game. community.us.playstation.com/thread/1160909 is a pretty good list. I think it tells you on the back of the cases as well. There aren't that many games that support it though.
 
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[quote name='mac101010']The 360 doesn't support Dolby 7.1, so it defaults to 5.1, and the X11 also only supports 5.1. Honestly though, there's not much of a difference at this point, so you need not worry about missing out on extra speakers.[/QUOTE]

Doesn't matter whether the 360/PS3 supports 7.1 or not. Or whether the game has a 7.1 signal or not. The extra processing is done in the amp independent of the source.

It takes the Dolby Digital 5.1 signal it gets from the source and decodes it into simulated 7.1. Basically what it does is take the two surround channels from the 5.1 mix and splits them to simulate 2 extra channels. So you're still getting Dolby Digital 5.1 sound from the 360/PS3 with 2 extra simulated channels added by the DSS, then passed to the headphones.

When fed a stereo signal (2 channels), the DSS uses ProLogic IIx decoding to simulate all 7 channels from 2. This is also done independently of the source.

It turns ANY pair of stereo headphones into simulated 7.1 surround headphones regardless of how many channels are supported by the source. X11's included.

I have a DSS coupled with Sennheiser 555s. It's fantastic.
 
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[quote name='GlassAgate']So, if I have an old laptop, an want a digital audio card, this
is not what I want, right?[/QUOTE]

The product page for the Earforce had a video that showed a USB to digital audio converter that might let you use one of these units. I contemplated getting one for my laptop. Just FYI.

Link:
Advantage Micro II adapter

Oh and by the way, I ordered one too. Damn you CAAAAG! hehe.
 
I would be all over this if I didn't have to power the device via my Xbox/PS3 console.... that always worries me
 
[quote name='uthoria']I would be all over this if I didn't have to power the device via my Xbox/PS3 console.... that always worries me[/QUOTE]

Why is this bad? If you are afraid of potential overheating wouldn't it be the same thing as charging your control while playing? Or is there some other issue with using the USB ports that I am not aware of?

Does anyone know when this sale ends? I'm sending Amazon some textbooks for credit today and was kind of hoping this sale would still be around when I get my credit.
 
[quote name='uthoria']I would be all over this if I didn't have to power the device via my Xbox/PS3 console.... that always worries me[/QUOTE]

I understand your concern, particularly with the older 360s. I now power my Mix Amp using a powered USB hub (the Rock Band one, in this case), since for the 360 the USB connection is only there for power, not audio or voice.
 
I picked up one. I had been wanting one for awhile, but couldn't justify paying so much for it. Since this is the lowest reported for some time though, I couldn't resist.
 
[quote name='uthoria']My order arrived today...

so far, I am not really experiencing a noticeable difference :([/QUOTE]

Got the PX21 yesterday and the DSS today. It really enhances some of the sounds that I've never heard before - like the whizzing of the bullets as they fly by.

The DSS adds a ton of bass - so much that I have to turn it down.

All around, I'm quite happy with my purchase.
 
[quote name='uthoria']My order arrived today...

so far, I am not really experiencing a noticeable difference :([/QUOTE]

Make sure you read the instruction manual and do the right setup. Make sure the LED lights on the processor is set up to the surround sound.
 
[quote name='uthoria']My order arrived today...

so far, I am not really experiencing a noticeable difference :([/QUOTE]

Also, make sure you have the correct settings in the console to output Dolby Digital via optical connection.

This is especially true if you previously used a TV and not an Surround AV receiver as your audio output device.
 
[quote name='foreinter']Make sure you read the instruction manual and do the right setup. Make sure the LED lights on the processor is set up to the surround sound.[/QUOTE]

I have the deice set up properly with my Xbox 360 (and yes I have it turned on). But when I go back and forth via the Dolby bypass button I dont really hear a big difference.

When I get the chance ill test it out with a different game (Im currently playing Divinity 2) but so far im pretty disappointed considering I could have put that $50 to better use.
 
[quote name='uthoria'] (Im currently playing Divinity 2)[/QUOTE]

That's your problem. Test it out in a game where dolby matters, like Black Ops.
 
[quote name='aceattorney']That's your problem. Test it out in a game where dolby matters, like Black Ops.[/QUOTE]

This. Playing Battlefield on my Panasonic stereo (which, while not surround, does a nice job of bass-thumping wall shaking when people aren't sleeping) and playing it on my headphones were totally different experiences, but I prefer the headphones for FPS now. You just hear more. On BFBC2 the biggest improvement I've had is locating enemies and vehicles on the move. Very impressed, fingers cross the PX21+DSS hold up durability wise.
 
this is crazy.

theres a gold box deal with this description:
"Transform any stereo headset into full, immersive surround sound"

it feels like its for this.. but they just dropped the price recently.. i kind of regret buying it 3 weeks early now -____-
 
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