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Not feedback, FORCE Feedback...
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Xitel Force Feedback Headphones
Finally, a totally legal way to feeeeeeel the music.
November 10, 1999
Product: Xitel Headphones
Classification: Force Feedback Headphones
Price: $40.00
Availability: Very High
Comments: Not enough to just hear the music? Really want to feel those frags? Need a new way to shock a sleeping dog? I thought as much. Well, thankfully I have run across a product that will meet all of these needs and then some: Xitel Force Feedback headphones.
You have probably seen Force Feedback products before: joysticks, for example, that simulate the vibrating motion of, say, a helicopter control. These products bring a previously impossible tactile feel to gaming, or any other application. They are fun. The violent impact of a car crash being imitated by a jolting steering wheel controller can enhance a driving game very nicely.
Xitel, a maker of gaming peripherals and hardware, has incorporated this technology into stereo headphones. These headphones are designed primarily for gamers. Videogame soundtracks are pretty involved affairs these days, often featuring big bands (not big band) and seriously dynamic sound effects. So these headphones are a sensible entry into the gaming accessory market.
The idea is pretty simple. The earpieces vibrate proportionally to the sound. A loud explosion will result in a bigger shock than a pin drop. Pretty funny, huh? The operating levels are all safe and tested, so don't worry about physical danger.
That's not all, though. Like every other piece of consumer electronic equipment, these headphones have a "super-dynamic bass technology." Thankfully, and unlike every other electronics manufacturer, Xitel doesn't have some special name for this secret technology. Basically, the bass is full and thick and turned up and has the ability to loosen dental fillings if you're not careful.
Xitel also made the wise choice to let the user turn off the vibration, allowing the headphones to act like normal models.
Happy rattling.
Mike has Force Feedback PJs.
Have a suggestion for Gearhead? Tell Steven all about it.
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