Fixing/replacing computer headphones

Commander Zoom

A few years back, I was gifted a Steelseries 5H v2 headset, and it's served me well for most of that time; I like the over-the-ear form factor, though I no longer go to many/any LANs, and so the "break down for easy transport" feature (which I hardly ever used even then) and even the (extendable/retractable) mic are not as important to me. I mostly use them just as a set of stereo headphones for all-hours gaming and listening to music, YouTube videos, etc without disturbing the neighbors.

Last night, in the middle of a gaming session, I noticed a distinct change in sound quality. I'd been watching videos, etc as well as gaming, so I shut everything else down to verify that it wasn't simply a case of one program interfering with another, but the problem persisted even after a reboot. Further experimentation revealed that while sound was both coming through both cups/side channels, the center or front channel was almost entirely muted; when turning my character/panning the camera around, sounds from directly ahead were only faintly audible, while those directly to the sides or 'over the shoulder' were clear. A fire in front of me fades out, then roars back to life when I turn to the side, and when I get a phone call, I hear only the post-processing "echo" rather than the voice proper. Playback in Media Player, etc, has a similarly hollow or tinny quality, and a headphones test page gave me clear sound on "Left Channel" and "Right Channel" but very faint on "Both Channels".

I don't think that I bumped or pulled anything (like the headphone cable/connectors etc), and have unplugged and replugged a few times to be sure. I also don't believe I fat-fingered any changes to software mixing settings, but so far my poking at same have only allowed me to observe/identify the problem, not positively diagnose or fix it. I'm trying to lay my hands on another headset I can borrow, just to confirm this is - as I suspect and fear - a case of old hardware going bad, isolated to the headphones themselves. Assuming that it is, can anyone offer suggestions for either kicking the center mix back to life, or a suitable replacement?

As I said above, I'm not a "serious" gamer (or audiophile), and not looking to spend $100-$200 on something super deluxe; on the other hand, I do end up wearing these a lot, prefer the comfort of the over-the-ear form factor over on-the-ear or buds, and am not looking at the super-cheap models except maybe as a stopgap or immediate replacement. Even the mic may be optional... though if I can find one that comes with, and doesn't stick it out on a rigid boom that can't be tucked away or whatever, that'd be fine.

Donnicton

A few years is actually about how much you can expect to get out of it with regular use - with heavy use(like me) they'll fail much more quickly. The main point of failure with a standard headset is the cord, as much as you're bending it all over the place as you move it it becomes increasingly likely for some part of the cord to fail from the stress regardless of whether you've explicitly yanked or pulled anything. The common hallmarks are a drop in sound quality or sudden loss of sound in one side of the headset.

You'll want to try it on another computer and/or try another headset on the same computer to be absolutely sure, but otherwise since you can't easily be sure where it failed on the cord, it's not really worth attempting to repair it unless you're prepared to try and disassemble and remove/solder a whole new cord and contacts, just replace the headset entirely. Your particular model is no longer on the market, but a mid-range one will run you around $30-50, or the higher end le pro gamer esports headsets C9 let's go will run you ~$100.

The higher end ones typically aren't worth it unless you're especially discerning about sound quality(you could simply be paying for the label instead), but otherwise the two main considerations you want to pay attention to first are whether you want a 3.5mm headset or a USB headset. 3.5mm headsets will run through your machine's sound card, so what you get out of it depends on the features and quality of your sound card. USB headsets have their own built in audio devices so they can be more fiddly with quality/features, but they aren't dependent on what kind of sound card you have.

If I were to make a recommendation though I would say try to get a headset with virtual surround(USB or capable sound cards only). It auto-adjusts how the sound plays in the headset to give you a simulated directional sound, vastly improving your experience with games where sound direction can be important, such as FPSes.

Angel_of_Bacon

I don't know if you can find any in your price range/with the specific features you want, but if you're looking for a something you won't have to replace for a long time, I'd suggested looking for headsets that have coiled, telephone-style cords rather than straight cords. I'm lucky to get 1 year of use out of straight corded headsets/earbuds before I stretch a cord and one of the sounds channels goes out; but the 2 pairs of coiled corded headphones I've had* have lasted like 5 years apiece so far- and I'd still probably still be using the first pair now, had I not sat on them accidentally.

*They were both Sennheiser 280HD Pros ($79 USD) if you're curious- they don't have any sort of special features at all, they're not meant for gaming specifically, I don't know how they stack up against other comparable headsets in the same price range RE:sound quality, etc.- I just know that they've proven to be pretty rock solidly reliable for me (other than having to replace the pads every so often), and they're what Guitar Center had in stock when I went looking for coiled cord headphones.

Commander Zoom

Have now managed to borrow a Sony stereo headset from a neighbor long enough to confirm that, yeah, it's not the settings, it's the headphones. So, looks like I'll be shopping.

Donnicton - great advice, and my current set is exactly the sort of USB setup you describe. It's neat. Aside from that, all I have is the usual Realtek onboard chipset. Any mid-range model(s) you'd recommend?

Angel of Bacon - your point on straight vs. coiled cords is well-taken (and I've had to untangle the cord(s) many times already), but that doesn't seem to be the proximate cause of this failure, and I did get 5 years of pretty steady use out of 'em, so... *shrug* I'll have a look at the 280HDs you mention, though.

Commander Zoom

I have Been Informed that Santa (i.e. my brothers) will be taking care of this matter for me, and so I believe this thread is now moot.
My thanks again to those who offered their advice and knowledge.