DON'T Buy a Gaming Headset Before Watching This!

Choosing the best gaming headset for either your PC, XBox or PS5 can be difficult since there are so many choices out there. And a lot of them come down to personal preference. So let's talk about how to choose the best gaming headset for YOU based on things like earcup size, wireless vs wired, open vs closed back, microphones, overall comfort and more.

Some of the best Gaming Headsets:

WIRELESS

WIRED

TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - Buying Guide BEGINS!
0:23 - Stereo vs Surround! [Big one]
2:05 - Plastic is OK....
3:23 - Headset Specs Don't Matter
5:54 - Closed vs Open Back for Games
7:20 - Sponsor Spot
7:54 - Cross Platform Compatibility
8:41 - COMFORT is KING!
16:53 - Wireless OR Wired or Both?
19:32 - Does Microphone Quality Even Matter?
21:32 - Audio Quality is Subjective

This video is sponsored by be quiet!. As per Hardware Canucks guidelines, no review direction was received from manufacturer. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

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[Unark]

You guys always do a fabulous job of delivering information that is easy to digest and helps us make good consumer decisions.

[alfred]

Closed vs Open also had an impact on your relationship with your SO. The fact that I can hear my SO when they call for help or just try to talk to me saved my relationship countless times. Gaming is important to me but not the most important thing, I couldn't go back to closed design.
Also open design gives audio feedback so it's much easier to control the volume of my voice. My cs2 duo partner tend to shout extremely loud late at night when gaming and it's causing issue with their SO

[SkyBum]

Very helpful guide, covering many considerations which i had never even thought of. I would LOVE to hear what your go to set for playing battlefield would be.

[joshtanks]

I went to you guys before I stuck with my G533 based on all your reviews, and now I'm back here after looking for my next one. Thanks for the work you do!

[Tomiply]

5:31 Actually, you want to set bit depth as high as possible while leaving sample rate at 44.1 or 48 KHz. Having the sample rate at insane numbers can cause issues in certain games and it will resample the audio, which might even lower the quality slightly. It doesn't work like upscaling resolution: the more you upscale audio, the worse it might sound.

[dortot]

CHAT VOLUME: I so appreciate how you break down details and not just manufacturer selling points. I always feel that chat volume vs. game volume does need discussion because it's a big feature for many like me who have lost some of their hearing. It is a such a disappointment to buy what I think is a great headset but then I find out features are negated when I realize I can't adequately adjust that mix.

[shoOoterlegend]

This guide was super helpful. There are many headsets out there and there are a lot of gimmicks out there, I’m happy I can now pick out a new pair and know what to specially look for. You the best D

[codehustler]

2.4 GHz TWS with dedicated dongles for gaming seem to be a fast growing segment. I just bought the Sony inzone buds, compared them before to several others, but they came out on top. The mic of these is not the best, but I use a separate mic. All together a super comfy setup and no lag sound. Wearing big headsets over a long period always caused an indentation on top of my head. Also, in ears look more profess for meetings

[Nyirsh]

Good video but I disagree about the joints. Ears are not "flat" against the head and are slightly angled forward, the swivel makes headphones sit better on them without added pressure (which is a huge game changer for prolonged use), that's where the "marketed comfort" aspect comes from. I understand why people do that, but headphones are not designed to be wrapped/stored/carried around your neck.

[Tripokaridos]

Something that Most people don't know is Open Back VS Closed Back is the Health of your Ear drum . With Closed back the air pressure is all over the ear drum, with Open back the air pressure of the headphones membrane does not destroy the ear drum like Closed back do... That's been proven .

[Kmcornell]

Personally I just bought the HS80 MAX from Corsair and I'd say overall it's pretty good but I did buy the leather ear cups for the better seal/bass and I absolutely had to tune the EQ. It isn't very good on default settings. The battery life is amazing though! It's rated for like 60 hours. I haven't actually checked how long they last, but it's definitely a long time. Multiple game sessions and still plenty of battery left.

[areitz]

Amazing video, covered so much and for anyone looking to isolate what they should be focused on this will undoubtedly help

[Ico]

you already had me at dont buy a gaming headset

[Kira]

Since i found Audeze Maxwell, the end game journey for finding "Gaming headset" is at its time. Simply no delay & can be EQ'ed for mobile game/music (No noticeable delay on Online game), audio on PC with usb dongles is just 😳

[chron]

Got the EPOS H6 Pro Closed a few weeks ago and couldn't be happier!

[naedtrax]

I still reach for my Maxwell's over my other high end headphones, just for the convenience.

[nisx]

I tried a few gaming headsets but i didnt liked any of them so i went and bought a studio headphones (beyerdynamic DT 770pro) which cost almost the same but sound so much better. Using them since 2021 and i love them.

[itisWhatitis]

Comfort is king is so important. My expensive steelseries headset just died after 6-7 months. I put with the huge weight, need to restart headset / replug usb to connect, randomly turning off, random static etc. I went back to my extremely light weight logitech headset that has gone through a lot of rough use and still works. Plus instantly connects when turned on. It's plug and play.

[peckc]

Surround sound in these headsets is mostly marketing.

What they really want is "sound stage" or "separation" which I doubt you are getting in a head "set". You're gonna need a dedicated pair of cans most likely which might get into dac amp setups depending on how high you go. But for me, paired with a modmic, it's well worth it since I listen to a lot of music while working too.

[Yeyy]

some audio/electronic stores have a possibility to try on and test headphones, it is realy good to try out and feel before buying, especially if going high end