You can feel the bad guys coming. It’s a shame that you can’t hear them or the warnings from you teammates regarding your impending doom due to the fact that your headset is, for lack of a better word, crap. You crank your headset’s single volume control to the max, but all that does is increase the sound distortion so as to make everything inaudible. After this fiasco, it’s probably time to begin your search for the very best Xbox One headset out there.
The new generation of headsets come with a variety of features, from speaker size (size DOES matter, in this instance), to comfort, to mic maneuverability, to separate game and chat volume controls. With all these options, it can be difficult to determine which company produces the best gaming headset for Xbox One. This comparative buyer’s guide will assist you as you make that crucial decision that could determine the fate of your gaming future.
Things to Consider
- Speaker Size. Yes, contained within each headset is a tiny speaker, or speakers, that transmits game sound and voice commands into your brain. And, generally speaking, the larger the speaker, the better the sound quality. Sized in millimeters (mm), most non-surround sound headsets are either of the 40mm or 50mm variety.
- 7.1 Surround Sound. This is another feature that effects the sound quality of the headset. Headsets that offer this feature allow you to pinpoint sound location and distance in order to avoid unexpected surprises that could lead to your ultimate demise. However, not every Xbox game out there has 7.1 surround sound capabilities, especially the older ones. That being the case, consider this option carefully.
- Comfort. If you’re engaged in a mega-marathon gaming session, the last thing you want to be doing is constantly adjusting your ill-fitting headset. The best Xbox One headset for your needs is also the one that you forget even sits atop your head. It’s that comfortable. One of the new comfort features to arrive on the headset scene is memory foam…you know, that mattress stuff that contours to your body, and now, apparently, your head and ears as well.
Best Xbox One Headset Top 10 Chart
[ws_table id=”44″]Benefits of Xbox One Headsets
Come on, are you serious? The obvious benefit to upgrading your Xbox One headset is gaming dominance, the ultimate goal of every true gamer in existence. No longer will you be the butt of your enemy’s jokes as you fall into ambush after ambush because you couldn’t hear the footsteps coming or the warnings of your frantic teammates through your lame, outdated headset.
Now, with a new and improved headset, you can lower the game volume, reducing ambient noise, and boost the chat volume to effectively consult with your team members to plot against enemies real and imagined. You can now become fully immersed in your gaming session, blocking out the annoying calls of family members as they vainly attempt to gain your attention as you game on into the wee hours of the morning.
Below are a few less obvious benefits of Xbox One gaming headsets.
- Overall Coolness. Who wants to show up at a massive gaming tournament, or even a local neighborhood tournament, with a totally funkified, medieval, sucky headset that wasn’t even cool back in 2005 when it was first introduced. Now, they come with lights and replaceable, customizable tags…cool rules!
- Sorta Wireless. “Sorta” because all the best Xbox One headsets are required to be wired into your Xbox controller, but not the game consol. Most come with its own separate volume control adapter that connects straight to your Xbox controller and that’s where the headset plugs into. Hence the term, “sorta” wireless.
- Lightweight. So lightweight, in fact, that they feel like a feather landed on your head and began emitting game sound and chatter. No, not really, but they are light enough to permit you to game on and on without even realizing that you’re wearing a headset until you finally decide to get in the shower and wash your hair.
Reviews of the Top Five Xbox One Headsets
1. HyperX Cloud II Gaming Headset
Extremely comfortable and cool, this best gaming headset for Xbox One provides exceptional sound quality at an exceptional price. Whether you choose black or white, you’ll look stylish while you dominate your competition as the Cloud delivers crisp and clean low, mid, and high tones through its 53mm drivers that are HiFi capable.
Its leatherette, noise isolating ear cups permit totally immersive gaming and the memory foam ear cushions are the main reason why this headset feels as if you’re wearing a cloud. It also comes with a replaceable and washable set of velour ear cushions for added comfort. The Cloud also arrives with a detachable mic and is compatible with a PC, MAC, iPhone, PS4 and Xbox One (with an Xbox One stereo adapter).
With its sleek design, superior sound quality and affordable price, you’d be hard pressed to find anyone talking trash about this excellent gaming headset.
2. ASTRO Gaming A40 TR Wired Headset
This headset delivers everything a serious gamer might need: vivid sound quality, sublime comfort and the Mixamp M80…say what? This unique feature, rather than providing for separate chat and game volume controls, allows you to change the “mix” of each, boosting one while reducing the other with three different EQ modes. It readily attaches to your Xbox controller for easy accessibility.
Its over-the-ear design with cushy ear pads, combines with its lightweight to provide you with the ultimate in comfort. Its mic is detachable and can be swapped from one side to the other for you lefties out there. And, in a nod to customizability, it supports changeable, magnetic side tags so that friends and foes alike can see what you’re into at any given moment.
Go ahead, indulge yourself with these sexy cans that deliver rich, brilliant sound in which every minute detail becomes audible and intimidate your competition the moment you walk in the room.
3. Xbox One Special Edition
Wear a camo gaming uniform along with this camo headset, and you’ll be difficult to see as you’re able to hear the deepest bass as well as the highest treble. As with all the headsets in the top five, this one also provides premium sound quality with exceptional comfort, but it does so at an extremely reasonable price.
The boom mic is unidirectional, which allows for superior voice capture. In other words, your team members will hear your every expletive unless you engage the mics other feature, the mute button. This MS headset also supplies separate chat and game volume controls and requires no extra batteries as it draws power from the Xbox controller.
You don’t need to be a member or veteran of the armed forces to rock this headset. However, they will assist you decimate the bad guys as if you were.
4. Turtle Beach Recon 200 Gaming Headphones
While hardcore audiophiles might snub their noses at this affordable headset, perhaps they should give it a second listen. It hits hard with ear-vibrating bass and vibrant high treble and its noise isolating design permits you to hear all that’s necessary, even in a crowded room full of over-the-top gamers.
Its audio controller allows easy access to the game-chat mix, mic mute, adjustable mic monitoring (so you can hear your own voice through the headset, which prevents unnecessary shouting on your part), bass boost and the master volume control. In other words, you’ll be the omnipotent master of your own audio world as well as your gaming world.
In terms of price and quality, this headset delivers on both, and that’s a rare thing indeed.
5. Ear Force X12
Available for a song (and great for listening to songs as well), this headset’s greatest feature is its affordability and the quality that arrives with it. Its in-line amplifier, which is not connected to the Xbox controller, gives you the power of bass boost, a mic monitor and independent game and chat volume controls.
While it requires an adaptor cable to make it compatible with the Xbox One, the effort and the slight amount of green to acquire one is worth it as your total cost will still be relatively low. The ear pads are large and well cushioned, so comfort isn’t a problem. Although its mic does pick up some background noise and it doesn’t supply high-end noise isolation, this headset is still worth every penny.
If, like most of us, you have no ambitions to earn your living as a professional gamer, this headset will more than meet your needs.