As you may know I play a lot of Xbox, especially Battlefield 3 and Fifa 12 and wanted to upgrade my headphones for a better pair. When searching online I came across the Turtle Beach Ear Force DSS which is a surround sound processor that changes any stereo head set into a surround sound one and I had to give it a go.

I also ordered a set of Turtle Beach X12 headphone to go with it and have been trying them out today. Here are my first impression of both the DSS and X12 together.

Set Up

The DSS is easy to set up, simply plug the optical cable from your Xbox to the processor and plug the headphones 3.5mm jack and USB into the front and its ready. You can control the volume and bass from the DSS as well as turn the surround sound processor on and off. The X12’s also have a bass boost as well as game volume and chat volume and a mic on/off switch.

Sound

The sound is amazing, in Battlefield 3 I can now hear where different sounds are coming from and whether someone is sneaking up behind me and the crowd chats in Fifa also sound great.

I turned the bass boost down on my headphones and used the bass from the processor as having both on is a bit overpowering.

I also tried the DSS with my old XLC headphones and it still sound good, but to be honest the X12’s are far better.

I would definitely recommend the Turtle Beach DSS for anyone who wants to experience surround sound without annoying the neighbours and although it sounds good even with a set of cheap headphones I’d also recommend getting a decent pair to begin with.

Since I got my new workbench I’ve made a few standard jewellery boxes, but I now want to make some unusual looking boxes. I don’t have access to a bandsaw or scroll saw so I decided that I would get some router templates made.

After doing a search on the internet I came across a website called razorlab.co.uk, they offer laser cutting services in a range of different materials and software that you can upload you files, get an instant quote and order with a couple of clicks of the mouse.

To upload your design, a couple of steps must be taken so that the Razorlab software can recognise the parts, the website has a number of handy tutorials to help you get your design right including design tips for Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw and Inkscape.

Once you have your design how you want it, simply upload it onto the website, choose the material that you want to use and how thick and the software will give you an instant quote.

The router templates that I uploaded worked out a just over £50 on 5mm thick acrylic which isn’t that bad as I’ll be making lots of these unusually shaped boxes in the future.

Why not check out razorlab.co.uk today and get designing your own stuff today.

The hosting on my blog is about to end and I’m thinking of hosting it with a specialist WordPress hosting company. I’ve had a look around and found a company called 34SP.com who specialise in hosting and WordPress hosting.

Plans start at just £.95 a month and you also get access to custom WordPress themes, so it might just be the time to update the style of this blog. 34SP.com has dedicated servers and the best thing is the first month is free, so if I don’t like it I can cancel it and it’ll cost me nothing.

Check out their website, it has everything you need to know about getting started and even a full page of WordPress sample sites for you to have a look at. They can even install WordPress for you if it’s a brand new blog and set it up for you too.

Android users are benefitting greatly from some of the new free smartphone sat nav apps that are now available. These sat nav apps are some of the best in the industry and are available to Android users free of charge. One of the newest Android sat nav applications is Navfree, an on-board satellite system that can easily and quickly be accessed on a smartphone. This new application provides detailed mapping data that has been provided by more than 3.7 million iPhone users.

While Navfree was originally designed for the iPhone, the application is now available to Android OS users on such models as the LG Optimus 2X and the LG Optimus Black. The app is completely free and is available to users in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, India, South Africa, Latin America and North America.

Users will find Android sat nav apps like Navfree very useful. Since this is an on-board application, all data and mapping will be stored, allowing access without a signal. This is one of the most advanced navigation applications and is already being used by millions around the world.

Using Android sat nav apps that are on-board will help to reduce data charges that can be incurred, which is another reason Navfree has quickly become one of the top applications for Android. The download is fast and free and constant updates are made available. With users around the world, all mapping data is always up to date. This GPS system is one of the most popular free Android sat nav apps on the market.

The internet is a great tool, use it to look up any information you want to know, download the latest music or videos and do your shopping on it. Christmas used to be a stressful time for me and my wife as we would be frantically searching the high street for the families presents, only to find out that some of them were out of stock.

Now we use the internet to do all of our Christmas shopping and together with saving money, we don’t have to trawl around in the cold on a busy high street.

The internet is also a great place to get inspiration for presents and has many unique shops selling great stuff that you wouldn’t of even thought of, making Christmas day a great experience as someone opens there novelty gift.

We have done all of our Christmas shopping now and even with the cost of delivery have saved money.

I know the internet isn’t great for the high street shops which are struggling at the moment, but is it really worth standing in a queue for an hour to get served or trawling around umpteen different shops looking for a place that has what you want.

Personally I like to point, click and wait for it to come in the post.

After playing the Fifa 12 demo for a couple of weeks I decided that it was time to get the real thing. At first I didn’t like the new defensive controls as I thought it ruined the game a bit, but after a bit of practise I think it’s a lot more realistic.

The graphics are a little better than the last one (on the demo anyway) but not a lot of difference really. The two major changes that I’ve noticed are the new defensive controls and the player impact engine. Both seem to add more realism to the game, but can also become frustrating if you need to get a result.

Can’t wait to get the new teams and stats, and with the special edition you also get ultimate team player cards, so I’ll have to give that a go.

A few days ago, Apple announce its newest mobile phone the iPhone 4S and this got me wondering, is it worth upgrading? The iPhone 4S is an upgraded version of the iPhone 4 and boasts a faster processor, an 8 megapixel camera and Siri voice recognition.

The iPhone 4S uses the same case and screen as the iPhone 4, so would someone upgrading from a iPhone 4 notice much difference? Yes the phone would run faster, but is it worth signing up to a 2 year deal and paying £200 for the phone worth it when most of the competitors have similar specked devices for less money.

Yes the Siri voice recognition looks good and the better camera is a bonus, but unless you have an iPhone 3 or 3GS then I wouldn’t upgrade. For those with iPhone 4’s I would wait till next year for the iPhone 5 which could once again break the mould when it comes to smartphones.

Over the weekend I noticed that my broadband kept cutting out; I would reset the router and it would work for around 10 minutes before cutting out again. So instead of faffing around with the internet I decided to go to the local art store and pick up some airbrush supplies.

While I was there I bought an easel, a set of small paint brushes and one of those 12 inch wooden mannequins all for under £15, bargain. I went home and set up the easel in the garage, got all my airbrushing stuff out and started practising.

I am mainly practising my lines and dots at different heights away from the page. This is one of the techniques I learnt in the book I reviewed last week, Airbrush: The Complete Studio Handbook and it really helps you to get a feel for the airbrush.

I also make the shield detailed in the book (see pic below) from some over heat projection film I had laying around and it works great. All in all I spent a couple of hours practising before the kids got back and demanded that I fix the internet.

After about an hour trying to find out what the problem was and phoning BT up, it turned out that one of the pipes had gone down which meant most of the people in my area were suffering from the same problem. Hopefully it will be fixed tomorrow, but if not there is always airbrushing to pass the time.

My wife got an email from one of her good friends the other day saying that she should join xbingo.com. Having played on other bingo sites before she decided to join Xbingo and give it a try.

You get £5 absolutely free for registering and a 300% first deposit bonus. My wife says that the site is really easy to use and chats with her friends effortlessly. She hasn’t won anything yet, but one of her friends won a £200 jackpot last night.

Xbingo.com offers a range of 90 and 75 ball bingo games, as well as slot games and table games like roulette, multihand blackjack and double pin roulette. With prizes up to £1000 on its bingo games, xbingo.com is definitely worth a try.

As you may be aware I like my gaming, especially first person shooters and I’ve been playing the new Battlefield 3 beta. I got access to the beta 48 hours early as I had a copy of Medal of Honor and I have to say that EA and Dice have definitely come up trumps.

The beta contains only one map Operation Metro, but it does show off the stunning visuals and assault game play we are all use to from the battlefield franchise. There aren’t any vehicles unfortunately so we will have to wait for the full release to get them, but it doesn’t detract from the gameplay whatsoever.

The map starts in a park with two control points that you have to either defend or attack. If both command posts are destroyed you move into the subway, then the tube station and finally the city on the other side. The map is huge and a big departure from the close nit maps on Call of Duty: Black Ops.

The fluidity in which you can jump over most objects is a nice touch, as well as the destructible landscape. Throwing a grenade for instance, when it blows up it will take out trees and bits of wall.

The graphics are simply spectacular and really immerse you in the game and I can’t wait to play the full game when it comes out in October. Until then I’ll have a chance to practice at least until the 11th October when the beta ends.