The Most Amazing Experience

[Bar1975]

For a few years now I've been using a standard Puxing 888 radio and a single ear piece with PTT. I've considered this to be 'good enough' for airsoft and put my money into other things like guns and gun upgrades.

This past weekend a friend of mine let me put on his Helmet with integrated Headset and i was absolutely BLOWN AWAY!!!

The headset was one of those sound amplifying versions (Comtac i believe or some variation) My god.. i was hearing things louder and sharper than with my own two ears!! I felt like a storm trooper that immediately was just given an unfair advantage over the rest of the chumps not wearing this type of gear. It was one of those rare airsoft moments when i thought "damm.. this actually works!!"

Right now i run a full face mask with double layer lenses and fans but want to quickly move towards one of these helmet/headset set ups. For this i'll need the following (let me know if I've missed something)

1. HELMET with side rails (what type/brand should i get?)
2. Headset with Boom mic (sound amp version is a must and needs to hook up to the helmet rails)
3. PTT (all has to work with a Puxing 888.. love my puxing and see no reason to replace it)
4. Connectors to attach the headset to the helmet itself (do these come with the helmets?)
5. Goggles (need a fan in the goggles cause i sweat and fog everything up.. i can add my own fan though)
6. Mesh Mask (i take full face protection very serious)

I have no idea how all of this stuff gets matched up... i assume there are specific headsets for specific helmets? (I understand that the FAST helmet matches well the Comtac headsets?)

What are the good brands/versions of these headsets? I don't want to pay hundreds and hundreds of dollars for this stuff.. (i think my buddies was milspec or something.. not your standard 'available to the masses' stuff)

can i get some pointers from you guys that run similar set ups?

Is this one of those situations where unless i buy the real stuff .. nothing else is worth the money?

[Danke]

Originally Posted by Bar1975

Is this one of those situations where unless i buy the real stuff .. nothing else is worth the money?

You are correct. The fake stuff doesn't come close.

The best fake stuff comes up to the OK for airsoft level.

If you're OK with that then plan A) is a full TRI radio setup. ehobby, eBay, Airsoft Depot. Plan B is a real headset and PTT rewired to run with your current radio.

[daishi]

http://airsoftdepot.ca/catalog/produ...oducts_id=1363
http://airsoftdepot.ca/catalog/produ...oducts_id=2015
http://airsoftdepot.ca/catalog/produ...roducts_id=890
http://airsoftdepot.ca/catalog/index...sort=2a&page=2

PTT, Headset and rail adapters, then choose any helmet. Ive been using these for years. Good thing is...no rewiring necessary. If you live in the Toronto area you can even drive in and get everything try it on in store an ensure everything is working.

[Bar1975]

I visit Charles quite often

[lurkingknight]

the ztacticals will work good enough... probably not as good as the real thing. I have the sordin copies and I'm satisfied that they actually work at cancelling loud noises. They tend to cancel out a lot of loud stuff though, even your AEG.

[R.I.T.Z]

got a pair of Ztac sordins that I mounted to my helmet, I love them.
They do sometimes cut out higher pitch noises and sometimes not noticed its kinda hit and miss. but they are solid. Never used a real pair, so I can't compare the two. But the clones are good enough for airsoft.

[FirestormX]

If you're going to be using your comms frequently, you'll want to invest in a quality PTT and headset. I have several z-tac models, and they're unreliable, and sometimes grainy.
eg I loaned a z-tac PTT and swimmer headset to my buddy at a game this weekend, and when he would push the PTT, it would activate his radio, but most of the time nothing transmitted through his mic.

You may also want to put some thought into the headset before you drop a lot on it, as well. I run real sordins and a real PTT, and I never worry that I'm not transmitting, or that I might miss something over comms. With that said, they get very hot and sweaty. They block out sound and all that you can hear is from the integrated microphone. This makes it difficult to hear someone talking if you're not facing them, and it makes it harder to gauge your own voice levels and clearness in person (think of it like talking with ear plugs in).

They've got a definite cool factor, and if you're shooting real steel, then it's great to have. But for airsoft, you should certainly consider a headset that is open, that lets your ear breath, won't put pressure on your head, and lets you have some natural hearing. You should also consider investing decent money into your headset and PTT (it's not like real gear is a whole order of magnitude more costly or anything). Theoretically, your comms gear isn't just there to look pretty, and just like your sidearm, it should work every single time you need to use it. It's just one more aspect of airsoft where "you buy cheap, you buy twice, and have a frustrating time along the way".

[Bar1975]

Originally Posted by FirestormX

If you're going to be using your comms frequently, you'll want to invest in a quality PTT and headset. I have several z-tac models, and they're unreliable, and sometimes grainy.
eg I loaned a z-tac PTT and swimmer headset to my buddy at a game this weekend, and when he would push the PTT, it would activate his radio, but most of the time nothing transmitted through his mic.

You may also want to put some thought into the headset before you drop a lot on it, as well. I run real sordins and a real PTT, and I never worry that I'm not transmitting, or that I might miss something over comms. With that said, they get very hot and sweaty. They block out sound and all that you can hear is from the integrated microphone. This makes it difficult to hear someone talking if you're not facing them, and it makes it harder to gauge your own voice levels and clearness in person (think of it like talking with ear plugs in).

They've got a definite cool factor, and if you're shooting real steel, then it's great to have. But for airsoft, you should certainly consider a headset that is open, that lets your ear breath, won't put pressure on your head, and lets you have some natural hearing. You should also consider investing decent money into your headset and PTT (it's not like real gear is a whole order of magnitude more costly or anything). Theoretically, your comms gear isn't just there to look pretty, and just like your sidearm, it should work every single time you need to use it. It's just one more aspect of airsoft where "you buy cheap, you buy twice, and have a frustrating time along the way".

A very nice response Firestorm...

I do 'want' to use coms more for sure.. but that always depends on how many people i play with having radios..

Right now i have a decent enough set up with the Puxing and the ear piece. Communication is possible.

But the major reason why i want to go with this set up is that i want to get out from using a full face mask (think paintball mask). i want to use a helmet with separate Goggle and mesh mask. With this setup i need something to project my ears... (maybe a larger mesh mask to cover the ear area as well)

i definitely dont want to stick a set of cans over my ears that renders me essentially deaf to the world around me for a 'cool' factor..

If i do decide to pull the trigger on this purchase what would you guys recommend as a headset option..

1. Z-Tac Comtac II or III? (is III much better than II?)
2. Z Tax - Sordins

the reviews iv'e seen set the Sordins ahead of the Comtacs...

Also.. where would i even begin to look for 'real' headsets/PTT's?

[lurkingknight]

seriously? you can't google?

http://www.srstactical.ca/communicat...sa-sordin.html

http://www.srstactical.ca/communicat...tor-__-3m.html

how deep are you pockets? I think most people around here try to find them used on ebay.

[FirestormX]

On the knock-off z-tac side, the comtacs and the sordins are essentially the same, from what I've read. Common sense tells me the same thing.
Z-tac probably just takes its tech from the comtacs and puts them into a sordins case (or vise versa), so it's really just whichever one you like the look of.

In the real steel world, Sordins > Comtac II from what I've read, and Comtac IIIs are on par, if not superior to, Sordins.

As lurkingknight mentioned, if you look on google, you can find headsets for relatively cheap. But you'll need to swap out the mic with a low impedence mic - and depending on your PTT, may need to switch the connector on your headset. They come with a U94 or a 6-pin connector...most 6-pin PTTs are expensive and offer more than you'll need, so you'll want to either purchase a U94 connector, or get a U94 installed.
So drop $150-$250 on a used headset, $40ish on a mic, maybe $60 on a new connector, $40 for gel ear cups (if they don't have them when you purcahse them), and $150 on a PTT (or get one used for cheaper).

You're looking at maybe 4x the cost of a z-tac setup...but I literally have 5 z-tac headsets (I purchased them all used though), and all but two of them are broken. And of those two, their transmission ability is spotty at the PTT level.

I can't stress it enough - comms are a game changer when you're working at the team level. But if your transmissions are unclear (think of a cellphone with bad reception), or you can't receive transmissions clearly, then you're going to get frustrated, and it defeats the purpose.
If your gear doesn't even transmit or receive when you need it to, then you're going to be paranoid and frustrated - and so will your team. If the enemy shows up at your guard post, and you need to radio that in, you need your headset to work, or you're worthless to your team (a little bit of hyperbole there). If you're trying to raise your squad leader over the radio to get the go-ahead to initiate a coordinated assault, your team will be sitting there waiting for you.

But that's just my experience and thinking. You're already running your own comms gear, so I won't get into it further.

[lurkingknight]

I find headsets in general to be a pain in the ass... either you go in ear and can't hear people talking to you, or you go over ear and fancy but be super hot because your ears can't breathe. There doesn't seem to be a happy medium.

[FirestormX]

Why not a cavalry headset, LK?

[lurkingknight]

cause I dont' want to spend any more money lol

Although in the near future if I get a new car and start autocrossing again, I may invest in a set of real ones just for the noise cancellation benefit. Cars can be loud.