Headphones for the Xbox Series consoles

Gaming
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41

I want clear and crisp sound. Any recommendations ?

At the moment I have 3 headsets: Astro A50 Gen1, TB 700 Stealth Gen1 and a pair of Sony Gold.

I haven’t tried the A50’s in over a year or so due to all the cable clutter. I switched to the TB700 because they were the first using the Xbox Wireless Protocol. It works great, but I do not like the sound of the TB700. As you said, they sound muddled muddy, like someone is talking with his hand in front of his mouth.

The Sony Gold is a left over from my PS4. I sold the PS4 about 6 months ago (it was pure and only for Uncharted Series) but I kept the headset so I could use it with my iPad.

When I connect the Sony to my Elite controllers with the 3.5mm cable, they sound great. I mean really great. They sound crisp and clear. So I started testing on the Battlefield 5 test range with both the Sony Gold and the TB700. Man, that is a big difference in favour of the Sony Gold headset.

Now I’m looking to replace the TB700 due to the fact that:

  1. They sound very bass like/muddled muddy so to speak;
  2. They are not comfortable. When I shake my head, they come loose and it feels like a different headset;
  3. The buttons are a mess;
  4. When I lower the volume, they start to make a cracky sound.

So because I’m also buying a PS5 I am looking for one headset to use with both consoles.

Furthermore, when I read the LucidSound page about using a dongle or not: LS50X – Why Use a Dongle? – lucidsound

It says:

Since the launch of the LS50X Snoop Dogg Edition, several people have asked us why the LS50X uses a dongle instead of the direct connect technology in our LS35X or competing headsets like the Steelseries 9X. The short answer is that we wanted to deliver the most interference-free wireless connection possible.

I do not know if the above is true, but they may a valid point. Furthermore the Astro A20 Gen2 headset comes at a price of $€119 including one dongle. For cross platform connectivity Astro offers a seperate dongle for PS5 for just $€19

The A20 is a stereo headset, but with the Dolby Atmos app on Xbox, you can get virtual surround sound.

Unfortunately the A20 Gen2 have just been released so there are very few reviews on Youtube. Also I do not know if they will sound as crisp and clear as the Sony Gold. Anyone any thoughts on the Astro’s A20’s or how they might sound ?

42

I have the Astro A50 Gen 3’s and just bought the new A20 Gen 2’s.

I can only say how I hear things - but the A20 gen 2’s sound absolutely great to me. I compared with the A50’s and sound wise I really don’t hear a difference using Dolby Atmos (as we’ll have to next gen given optical cable is out - I’ve updated my A50’s so they have the sound via USB update for fairness).

The A20’s to me sound every bit as good as the A50’s and they have the Astro Audio V2 tuning too so in theory are improved…

Now build quality and comfort you take a hit on…but most what you pay for with A50s is the mixamp that does dolby digital via optical…which isn’t going to happen next gen. So I do really like the A20’s. Very plug and play and have that lovely astro clarity you get. I can’t compare with the Sony Gold because I don’t own them.

I sort of wish I’d just bought the A40’s though and gone with the wire because whilst the A20’s are really great I don’t need wireless anymore…but there we are…you live and learn.

43

Thanks for the video. How credible is this guy? When showing the 7.1 settings, he says that it’s not surround sound but that’s exactly what 7.1 is. Also when turning off the 7.1 setting, does that put the headset into stereo mode? Since I use the Atmos app, I don’t use the built in SS modes since Atmos requires your headset to be in stereo mode. Unfortunately the mic doesn’t seem to be that great, at least compared to my existing headset.

Really wish MS and Sony kept the optical ports in their next gen consoles. :frowning_face:

44

You’re welcome! Tbh I just posted it cause I know tthe Arctic 9 is the last in the series if I’m not mistaken and it was in my yt recommendation lol. I would say I don’t know enough if he is really reliable on the rest. :sweat_smile:

However if you are looking at other products I can recommend you the RIG Plantronics. I have the RIG 400HX for now, I am satisfied with it, and plan to upgrade towards the 800LX really soon.

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45

Good choice, the 800LX is the most comfortable headset I’ve ever worn, and I’ve had a few!

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46

Yep I have eyes on it since a while and was really already satisfied with the 400HX.

The only downside for me was having a wire lol. I broke 2 headsets because of that lol. This one is my 3rd haha. With all the money I wasted on replacing it I would rather directly upgrade lol.

I like having a headset wire free. The 800LX is perfect for me.

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47

No worries and thank you for the recommendation, I’ll definitely look into it!

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48

Uhm Amazon let you try anything and you can still give it back

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49

I hope you have more luck than me. A few years ago I bought a pair and while I loved the sound, there was this constant crackle in the sound on several EQ presets. There was one that gave a great balance between the highs, mids and lows but it had a crackling noise with each gun shot, explosion etc.

I returned it for another pair, exact same story. I went on Reddit and found similar experiences. Maybe it has been patched since. I was sad to return it because the comfort is indeed great and the sound too but I can’t deal with that distortion in the audio.

50

You’re welcome!:+1: Hope you’ll find what suits you best!

@Staffy you mean the 800LX? Yes I have heard a while ago but heard too it was fixed apparently. I will need to check by myself to be sure. The HX400 is really good for its price and is really comfortable. The 800LX is above in terms of quality like you know.

51

If you go for the LX, be sure to let us know if it has been fixed because I can see myself getting it again if it’s truly fixed. Because man…that was the only issue.

Well, I love a seperate game audio slider button/wheel and for party chat too. Not all of them have that.

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52

No prob. Yes it is a great product.

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53

I know this is sacrilegious to admit, but I’ve never been a big headset guy. I’ve always just used the headset that comes with the console. My mates all talked about Turtle Beach back on the 360, saying how amazing they are and the advantage a good headset gives you. So I got a pair of TB PX4’s for the PS4 launch and I’ve been using and loving them since. However, with the XSX and PS5 doing away with optical input they are now redundant, so I’ve been looking at the TB Stealth 700’s Gen 2. They seem great in the couple of videos and reviews that I’ve watched and read, so I’ll probably order them.

54

I’m still using the LX, I used to get the distortion/crackling when I first bought them, The work around at the time was not to have them too loud, hence I can’t tell you exactly when it was fixed, but I haven’t heard that Noise for a long time now, that’s with them maxed out too. I presume they must of been stealth fixed at some point.

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55

Interesting .

I recall that not every preset had this crackling, only a few but for me those were the ones with the best bass and treble balance.

56

I ended up returning my TB Elite 800x because of the sound cut off issues, it was just too often. The store can’t repair them, so they gave me my money back. Ordered the TB Stealth 700 gen 2 and with a little luck they arrive this week. Gonna demo them thoroughly and if they are great I’ll keep em.

57

I got the Steelseries Arctis 7x cuz I wanted a Wireless headset that would work with my PS5 as well as the Series X. Not sure about the 9x, but I’m sure they’re pretty good too. The 7x’s are amazing tho. Easily one of the most comfortable headsets I’ve worn and they sound great. Highly recommended from me. I’ve used Turtle Beach in the past, was using Sennheiser wired headphones for a bit but got tired of the wires. I highly recommend looking into the Arctis series if you’re wanting a wireless headset. The only downside is there’s no bluetooth, but I think the 9x does have bluetooth (they just only work on Xbox and I needed ones that would work on PS5 as well.) :slight_smile:

58

Arctis 7x was my first choice but it was gonna run me $250+ due to lack of rrtailers carrying it in Canada, so opted for the 3D Pulse.

Works great wired with the One S and takes full advantage of Atmos. Works wireless on my laptop and again does great with Atmos. And of course they are optimized for PS5.

You can certainly do worse for the price, and if you’re willing to forego wireless on Xbox, it’s a damn good multiplat set. Mics are suprisingly great too and it’s stupid comfortable.

59

Nice!

And is the balance between bass and treble good? I need a very strong bass but it shouldn’t drown the other sounds.

60

It doesn’t have as much bass as Turtle Beach from what I remember, but it has enough for me. I’m not a super audiophile, but I think it has enough bass and treble balance. Everything seems to be pretty balanced honestly. Voices are slightly quieter than I’m used to from my Sennheisers, but that’s about it. They’re still audible tho.

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