Your gaming companion-The Best Gaming Headsets
Every PC gamer desires the best picture. There is nothing like 4K or a curved ultra-wide monitor after all, to make for a top-notch immersive experience. Another important aspect is sound. To revel in playing your favorite games, a good headset is very crucial. As ‘Thor’ needs his ‘hammer’ to have Godly powers, you definitely need a good headset to feel the sumptuous pleasure of gaming.
Whether you want to enjoy your gaming a little more private so nobody can hear the gunfire through walls or you just want to appreciate every sound effect fully, a good headset is an absolute key to your experience. You might be wondering I have used word ‘good’ many times but it really deserves to be there with headset if you want a cracking level of gaming experience.
Whether you are playing on PC, Xbox One, PS4 or even a Switch on the go, your gaming headset must deliver the ultimate in aural delights. Additionally, it makes multiplayer much easier as you hear your foes sneaking up on you.
Talked about Switch, I feel obliged to tell you that do you know you can now stream to twitch from your Nintendo Switch. If not, feel free to read the article, “How to Stream to Twitch from Nintendo Switch”. It will give you the required information about setting it up and livestreaming.
Now coming back to headsets, you must have been in concord that good headset is very important. But we agree that digging through hundreds of currently available gaming headsets seeking for the right model is a daunting task. We know because it seemed like forever to compile a list of currently sold best gaming headsets from scads of best gaming headsets out there.
In this piece of writing, we have enlisted 5 best gaming headsets considering the following criteria:
Comfort- nothing is important no matter how much price you have paid, if it is not comfortable using. Paying close attention to notes on comfort we scoured the reviews as well as tested ourselves in both instantaneous comfort and long-term comfort on a wide variety of head sizes and shapes.
PC compatibility- when you spend bucks to get the quality, it means you want that to last for a time at least and who doesn’t want their product to be compatible with more than one device. So for PC gamers, PC compatibility was also kept in mind.
Performance- gamers consider good music and movie performance as a bonus whereas there are also others that want their gaming headset to perform well with music and movies.
Value- most people like to spend no more than $100 on a dedicated gaming headset but would spend up to $200 for something special. Though we did our best to constrain our top picks under $100 but you must have to have reasonable amount of leeway evaluating upgrade picks.
Microphone quality- when evaluating microphones, it was made sure that the teammates on other side of Ventrilo connection could understand conversation in the heat of battle.
Some of the best gaming headsets are listed below:
Kingston HyperX Cloud:
The Kingston HyperX Cloud is the best gaming headset for most people because of its excellent long-term comfort, light weight, exceptional build quality, great sound quality or the price and fantastic durability. Unusual among gaming headsets, it relies on a pair of 53mm drivers than the traditional 40mm or 50mm size. It is not sure if that is what offers it a sonic edge over its competitors.
It doesn’t suffer from bass problems unlike many other headsets. With heavy gunfire, large explosions and other hand-hitting actions, it never leaves you underwhelm. It also doesn’t distort or egregiously overemphasize low-frequency sounds.
The frequency response of HyperX Cloud is as true to life as you can expect from a headset less than $100. It is pretty traditional in overall design. So if you are looking for something with flashing LEDs or an aggressive look, this might not be for you. It is a slightly tweaked, reskinned version of QPAD’s QH-90 gaming headset.
It provides only a 3.5mm input for its microphone and audio options. It comes with an in-line volume and microphone control unit, which doubles as a massive cable extension. If you still want more cable, then there is a plain 3.5mm extension cable included. There is a single 3-ringed adaptor for phones, tablets and Mac devices, along with double 3.5mm adaptor.
The detachable microphone has frequency response of 100-12,000 Hz, alongside nominal impedance of 2.2kO. The 53mm drivers offer a frequency response of 15Hz-25,000 Hz with nominal impedance of 600 per system.
Even without the benefit of surround sound, the Kingston HyperX Cloud performs admirably creating a nice sense of space for all the games. The headset also works wonderfully with music-rich games.
The treble response of the HyperX Cloud is slightly less even, its bass is a touch fuller and its midrange is a tiny bit less smooth but its sound is better with games and also with some music and movies. It is more comfortable over long periods of time and it offers better isolation from external noise.
Pros:
Solid metal construction
Comfortable
Fantastic sound for the price
Cons:
Microphone needs tweaking
Bottom Line:
The Kingston HyperX Cloud is the best gaming headset at a cheap price. Its sound quality is second to none in this bracket. It is extremely comfortable with superb build quality.
Kingston HyperX Cloud Revolver:
If you don’t mind spending a little more money, you will find a lot to love about HyperX cloud by Kingston. It has a new design with a self-adjusting headband, a steel frame, a better-sounding microphone and 50 mm drives rather than the 53 mm drivers.
It is far more aggressive-looking than its predecessor and is also potentially more durable. It is very comfortable to use as it features the memory foam, leatherette-covered headband and ear cups. Its steel-suspension frame design adjusts to your head size automatically.
The HyperX Cloud Revolver, despite the smaller drivers, delivers a more open, detailed and spacious sound than the original. It comes with a wider “studio grade” soundstage than other HyperX range headsets.
Listening to music is a real pleasure with nicely balanced sound signature. Mid-tones are well handled, low-end delivery is forceful and the top-end doesn’t sound sharp. It provides stellar gaming performance. Whether you use it on Xbox One, PC or PS4, it does an excellent job of highlighting everything from subtle movements to thunderous explosions.
It gets you thoroughly immersed in Stars Wars Battlefront. The ironic blaster noises sound crisp and clean and the sounds of thermal detonators blowing to bits pack some serious low-end oomph. Playing Mortal Kombat X, the headsets ability to reproduce horrifyingly brutal voices ranked the HyperX Cloud Revolver high. Every kick and punch resonates with impact.
The revolver comes with a rubber, highly flexible boom microphone, and you can detach it when you want to use the device as a pair of headphones. Its 3-foot long, 3.5mm cable offers you plenty of slck to connect to your mobile device, controller or PC and you can also make it longer by connecting it to the 6.5-foot audio box extension included.
This extra cord features a dongle that enables you adjust the volume, mute your mic and clip the cable to your shirt, and offers separate headphone and microphone jacks for your PC.
Pros:
Universal compatibility
Good audio quality
Very comfortable
Cons:
Headset jiggles when moved
Metal band conducts noise
Bottom Line:
The HyperX Cloud Revolver is one of the best gaming headsets with rich audio within a durable, comfy design. As a headset built for competitive gamers, the Revolver absolutely hits the mark. Its directionally accurate, rich audio makes it easy to pinpoint enemies. Its suspension-frame design and its cozy ear cups make it comfy enough to wear for long. It certainly doesn’t hurt that music sounds great on it.
Sennheiser Game One:
If you are more discerning when it comes to sound quality in movies, games and music, or if your gaming sessions run a bit longer than the norm, go for the Sennheiser Game One. It provides stellar audio performance, fantastic noise-cancelling microphone and exceptional long-term comfort.
The Game One consists entirely of smooth, glossy white plastic with black padded headband and black padding on the ear cups. The glossy plastic is well-constructed and solid and the design is light enough for you to wear for long periods. The headband and the ear cup padding feel fairly plush with a fleece like covering, making the headset extremely comfortable.
There is a boom mic on a flexible arm that flips down from the left ear cup. A volume wheel is located on the right ear cup that enables you easily turn the audio up and down on the headphones. There are no microphone controls but flipping the mic up mutes it automatically.
It is a stereo PC gaming headset primarily, with just two 3.5mm audio connectors for your microphone and headphone jacks. You can’t use it with most game systems without third-party adapters but it does offer a first-party 2 to 1 3.5mm adapter that allows you connect it to your PlayStation 4.
The Game One sounds excellent. It is flat to an audiophile-satisfying sort of processing while most gaming headsets provide modes to prioritize deep bass and mid-highs for dialogue and explosions. It focuses on being as accurate and clean as possible. For games, it sounds similarly excellent. This is purely a stereo headset and its excellent audio quality means both team chat and explosions in Team Fortress 2 are full and clear.
Like all other analog headsets, it is compatible with Macs, PCs and consoles alike. The newest version comes with dual and single 3.5mm cables, so you will not need to purchase a separate adapter.
Pros:
Well-built
Solid noise-cancelling mic
Excellent audio performance
Cons:
Pricey
Lacks included connectors for PS4
Bottom Line:
The Sennheiser Game One is one of the best gaming headsets. It costs more than most people seem to spend but its stunning bass performance; spacious sound and noise-cancelling mic render it worth the premium for serious gamers.
Kingston HyperX Cloud stinger:
With a price-tag of $50, the Kingston HyperX Cloud Stinger is one of the most budget-friendly gaming headsets you are apt to find. The lower price doesn’t mean some cut corners. But build quality is where you feel it most. Though a strip of metal runs through the headband, the chassis is entirely build from inexpensive feeling plastic. The headset, overall, feels durable enough to survive normal use.
The cloud Stinger doesn’t look much different from its pricier siblings, as HyperX works well emulating the look of a high-end device. The HyperX doesn’t trade off its comfort. It can be a bit tight first but loosen up after a few days of use. Both the ear cups and the headband are padded generously with a surprising amount of faux-leather covering.
On the bottom of the right ear cup lays the volume slider. The microphone controls get an upgrade from finicky in-line controls for a simple flip-to-mute. Which means microphone’s up, you are muted, down and you are allowed to talk. The downside is that the microphone of the Cloud stinger is firmly attached to the left side whereas previous HyperX headsets all came with detached microphones.
For $50, it is not fair to expect sound provided by a high-end pair of headphones but it does a decent job. Most of its punch comes from the midrange. You can say 80% of any given game, film or music comes through sounding clean and clear. And this headset gives you a surprising amount of stereo width.
Cloud Stinger provides you enough charm that with music playing, you can pinpoint easily where each instrument resides in the mix and this is something you can’t do with most budget headsets. Same is the case in gaming; you can pinpoint the direction of incoming gunshots as well as enemies.
What might bother more discerning listeners is that the Cloud stinger doesn’t pack much bass at all. The mix sounds are okay at quieter volumes but there is just no oomph to anything at higher volumes. Explosions sound somewhat neutered.
Pros:
Budget friendly
Comes with volume and mic controls
Solid, mid-heavy sound
Cons:
Comfy, but a bit cheap feeling
Weak microphone
Bottom Line:
The Cloud stinger is one of the best budget-friendly gaming headsets. It provides serious comfort, solid sound and an attractive design for anyone who wants a good enough headset without wallet-shock.
LucidSound LS30:
The LucidSound LS30 is big and is fairly comfortable to wear for hours at a time. It has plenty of foam padding in leatherette pads and are large enough to enclose most ears. The headband applies a little bit of pressure on your band but it is generously padded too.
It comes with a wireless dongle that enables the LucidSound LS30’s most important gaming features. Plug this into a Mac/PC or PS3/PS4 and it will take over duties of sound card after a two-minute tweak of the system preference.
One of the minor disappointments of the LucidSound LS30 is that this dongle being 10cm long is fairly large. And you can’t connect it wirelessly to a phone as it doesn’t use Bluetooth. Wireless range and reliability are solid. The signal is flawless within about 5m, cutting out at around 8m. One good thing is that when you come back into range, the LucidSound LS30 links with the dongle almost immediately.
To change the volume and the level of feed from the mic, you use two rotary dials on the cups when using wireless, and a tap on the button backside of the cup cuts out sound to let you just hear the mic feed.
The headset has two mics: a removable boom mic that plugs into a socket at the bottom of the cup and one built into the headset. Using the boom will offer you better voice clarity even if you don’t angle it right by your mouth. Since the LucidSound LS30 mic has a flexible arm, you can wiggle it about freely.
The headset uses a built-in lithium ion battery that powers the wireless side and can be recharged using a microUSB socket. It gives you 15 hours of use which is great for a decent £100-ish headset.
There is also an extra feature relating to sound quality, which is EQ. a button on the right cup allows you switch between extra bass, extra treble modes and normal. It is a good idea to play with these.
LucidSound LS30 provides impressive sound for nearly every genre of gaming. It makes easy to pinpoint gunfire and enemy footsteps in Halo 5 and the sounds of thermal detonator explosions and blaster fire in star Wars: Battlefront were full and rich. And apart from gaming, this is absolutely soothing you can wear on your daily commute because of its curvy aluminum frame. All this brings it in the category of some of the best gaming headsets.
Pros:
Classier than average design
Solid customizable sound
Good wireless performance
Cons:
No in-line remote for mobile use
No surround sound
Bottom Line:
The LucidSound LS30 is one of the best gaming headsets that serve you away from your living room. It is better-made than some headsets around the price and its EQ modes enable you flick between sound modes easily and quickly. But it lacks surround sound audio. However, PS4 and PC gamers not bothered about surround sound are going to like the LucidSound LS30.
Who should get this
Video games are largely played online these days, alone or with friends sitting together in the same room and even complete strangers coming together in virtual spaces in an adventure to share or to blow one another up.
That means it is essential to have one of the best gaming headsets, that is, headphones plus a microphone and also some sort of volume control all built into one device. Although a good gaming headset usually costs a bit more than dedicated headphones delivering equivalent audio performance.
Most gamers express a preference for the often-enhanced bass, convenience and in some cases even the aesthetics of gaming headsets with microphone muting, easy access to volume controls and microphone, all built in.
How we tested:
Gaming headsets are among the most subjective and personal peripherals out there, and as such, as mentioned a bit earlier, we test our gadgets mostly by reading about them as well as using them ourselves.
We have tested the above mentioned headsets with a combo of action/adventure, shooting and fighting games. Games such as Batman: Arkham Knight and Mortal Combat X help evaluate how well each peripheral captures game’s sense of atmosphere and impact, while titles such as Star Wars Battlefront and Overwatch provides sense of the accuracy of each headset’s directionality in a multiplayer setting.
We watch different movies and listen to variety of music with each headset in order to size up its usefulness for consuming media. And for wireless headsets, we keep a log of how long it lasts before the battery completely drains as well as the effect of type of music on battery.
Same is the case with accessing comfort level. It is also important to mention that we always get a second opinion, as what is comfortable to one gamer could be not, for the other.
Biggest pick:
Though the competition is getting stiffer, we consider the Kingston’s original HyperX Cloud to be the best gaming headset for most people. The HyperX Cloud, despite its age provides the best mix of audio performance and also comfort for the money. It is comfortable on a wide variety of heads and is beautifully built and also offers best sound quality in its price range.
We hope that we have provided you with enough information about the best gaming headsets and we also hope that you are going to overcome the hardships you once faced in getting victory in your gaming battlefields and you will find the crème de la crème of the gaming headsets. “May the odds be in your favor.”