est gaming headsets of 2021

CNN

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A great gaming headset will help you immerse yourself in virtual worlds, chat with friends, and hear enemies coming during hard-fought Call of Duty matches. And when you're not gaming, these headsets double as reliable everyday headphones for taking work calls and listening to music.

CNN Underscored extensively tested 15 of the best gaming headsets (wired and wireless models) to find which models were the most comfortable, sounded the best, offered useful features and reliable microphones, and performed well on multiple consoles and computers. After lots and lots of playing time, here are the three that stood out:

Best Budget Gaming Headset:

Razer Kraken X

Best wired gaming headset:

HyperX Cloud Alpha S

Best Wireless Gaming Headset:

Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2

If your budget is $50 or less, the Razer Kraken X offers the best comfort and sound quality of any affordable wired headset we've tested, with a microphone that stands up to even more expensive options. It also works well with almost any platform, thanks to its versatile 3.5mm wired headphone connection.

The HyperX Cloud Stinger S, in addition to sounding and feeling great, has great controls that made it easy for us to change volume levels and engage surround sound with the push of a button. This wired headset connects via both USB and 3.5mm, giving you great flexibility to use with all consoles and PCs.

The Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2 is the best wireless headset we've tested, thanks to the cooling gel-infused ear cups that kept us comfortable for hours, tons of handy features, and the unique ability to to pair both your console and your phone.

Best budget gaming headset: Razer Kraken X ($49.99;

razer.com

)

Michael Andronico/CNN

Razer Kraken X

Works with :

PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PC (via headphone jack)

The Razer Kraken X clearly stood out among the many budget gaming headsets we tested, thanks to powerful overall sound quality, a clear microphone and, most importantly, a comfortable design that we never wanted to experience. 'to take off.

At just over half a pound and sporting a set of memory foam ear cups, the Kraken X felt good and secure without weighing us down, and it was easy to forget we were wearing it even for ages. game sessions longer than an hour. That sets it apart from budget rivals like the Logitech G432 and Turtle Beach Recon 70, which are just as light but have much stiffer ear cups in comparison.

With a plastic design that we tested in black, the Kraken X is about as understated as it gets aesthetically. That's not necessarily a bad thing - we found it fit well into our gaming setup, and there are black and blue and mercury white options available for those who want a bit more pizzazz.

Razer's headset also keeps things simple in terms of controls, with just a volume rocker and mute button on the back of the left ear. These controls were easy to reach, but sometimes it was hard to tell when we were muted as there's no visual indicator for it up front. We eventually got used to this – you'll know you're muted when that back button is up. But the Logitech and Turtle Beach headsets have a slightly neater flip-to-mute setup where you mute yourself by simply flipping the microphone up.

The sound quality of the Kraken X is the best we've tested at this price point. range, serving up punchy, balanced sound for every game we threw at it. In Overwatch, the sound of gunfire had a satisfying effect, and we could easily hear where the enemy footsteps were coming from.

That same powerful directional sound helped us keep an eye out for other cars while swerving through Rocket League, and made it easy to immerse ourselves in Monster Hunter Rise's lush environmental sounds of wildlife and waterfalls. None of the sub-$50 headsets we tested sounded bad, but competitors from Turtle Beach and Logitech lacked a bit of bass, volume, and clarity by comparison.

The Kraken X has an excellent microphone for the money, producing warm, clear audio recordings with very little background noise. Budget competitors, such as the Recon 70 and Corsair HS50, looked a little fuzzy in comparison. In fact, the Kraken X mic wasn't far off the more detailed audio of the pricier $99 Razer Blackshark V2 headset, and was matched in the budget department only by the equally crisp Logitech G432.

If you're using the Kraken X on a Windows PC, you can enjoy virtual 7.1 surround sound (which adds an extra dimension to your audio) via a companion app. The surround sound effect was subtle but noticeable when we turned it on to watch some Avengers: Endgame, bringing a bit more punch to the sounds of blaster fire while allowing us to better hear the background mayhem during the big battle between the forces of the Avengers and Thanos. The HyperX Cloud Stinger S offers a similar effect, although we found it hollow and too bassy by comparison.

The Kraken X connects via a 3.5mm headphone jack, making it easy to plug into our PS5 and Xbox controllers, Nintendo Switch in handheld mode, and PC. You don't have the USB connectivity option like you do on the Logitech G432 or the $69 Kraken X V3, which gives you the advantage of connecting to the Switch in docked mode while gaming on your TV . But unless that specific use case is an absolute necessity for you, the Kraken X offers the best combination of sound quality, comfort, and compatibility you can find at this low price.

Best Wired Gaming Headset: HyperX Cloud Alpha S ($128.80;

amazon.com

)

Michael Andronico/CNN

HyperX Cloud Alpha S

Works with:

PlayStation, Nintendo Switch TV mode, PC (via USB); PlayStation, Nintendo Switch handheld mode, Xbox, PC (via 3.5mm headphone jack)

If you're looking for a premium wired headset that sounds great, feels comfortable, works well with all platforms, and has especially great controls, the HyperX Cloud Alpha S excels on all of those fronts. .

The Alpha S sports one of the sleekest and most rugged designs of any headset we've tested, with an understated look. black design consisting of a solid steel frame and cushions covered in soft leatherette. If you want a bit more flair, there are also blue and red options available that add color to the earcups and headband.

The Alpha S's memory foam ear cups immediately stood out among the most comfortable in our test rig the second we put the headphones on. That remained the case for days, as we never felt like taking off the HyperX headset for long hours of business meetings and sneaking out to play a few games.

But the real genius of the Alpha S's design is in the controls. While most headphones require you to fumble with on-ear buttons and dials you can't see, the Alpha S has a handy control panel right on the wire to adjust volume, balance levels gaming and chatting, mute your mic and even turn on 7.1 surround sound.

Michael Andronico/CNN

HyperX Cloud Alpha S 3

Similar headsets, such as the Logitech G Pro X and Razer Blackshark V2, require jumping into an app to activate different sound modes, so being able to instantly amp up our game audio with a single click was very handy.

There's even a handy clip on the panel if you want to clip it to, say, a shirt pocket for easy access. We only have a few minor complaints with this setup - the control panel was very easy to use when we were seated at a desk, but its location towards the middle of the cable made it slightly difficult to reach when we were using the Alpha S on our PS5 and Switch in the living room. You'll also have to forego the panel if you're connecting via the headphone jack and not a USB port, which means there are no additional controls for portable Xbox and Switch players.

While most Alpha S controls sit on the wire, there's a slider on each ear cup to switch between three different levels of bass adjustment. While this is a unique feature that we haven't found on other headsets, we didn't notice a big difference in overall bass levels when we played with them while gaming and were watching movies.

This was not the case. plenty of trouble, though, as the Alpha S sounded great with just about every game genre right out of the box. HyperX's headset particularly stood out amongst competitors when we played Mortal Kombat 11, clearly picking up subtle background details like a cheering crowd while showcasing the sounds of the game's gory deaths in all their visceral details.

Having easy access to 7.1 surround sound was also a boon for most of the games we tested. A single press of the surround button instantly amplified the sounds of nearby bugs and birds in Monster Hunter Rise and made it easy to tell where other cars were coming from in Rocket League.

We received no complaints about the Cloud Alpha S's microphone during frequent use during work calls, and our voice recordings were mostly clean with no noticeable background noise. We got slightly clearer recordings from the Razer Blackshark V2, and the incredibly lucid microphone from the Logitech G Pro X was the best of any we tested. But the Alpha S is more than reliable enough for multiplayer chats and daily meetings.

Those using the Cloud Alpha S on Windows can play with the headset through HyperX's Ngenuity software, which offers much of the same controls you'd find on the physical panel while letting you enable mic monitoring to hear your own voice as you speak. It's not as robust as Logitech's G Hub software, which lets you fine-tune both audio output and microphone with a variety of presets aimed at competitive gamers. But unless you're into the esports crowd, we think the Alpha S's superior comfort and controls make it the best wired headset for most gamers.

Best Wireless Gaming Headset: Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2 ($149.95;

amazon.com

)

Michael Andronico/CNN

Turtle Beach Stealth 700

Works with:

Xbox, PC (Xbox model); PlayStation, Nintendo Switch TV mode, PC (PlayStation model)

We've tested many excellent wireless headsets, but the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2's rugged feature set, best-in-class comfort, and Bluetooth functionality put it at the top for people looking to do without cord.

The Stealth 700 Gen 2 is more comfortable than almost any headset we've tried, with thick and incredibly soft foam ear cushions that engulf our head like a set of pillows. Best of all, those cushions are infused with cooling gel, which means the headset always feels cool on our ears upon first contact and never sweats during longer sessions.

Michael Andronico/CNN

Aside from the comfortable ear cups, the Stealth sports a simple yet premium-looking black design that's accented by sleek silver stripes. This headset also sports an absolute assortment of controls on the left ear, which is both a blessing and a curse.

You will find separate dials for overall volume as well as game/chat balance, a power button, a button to change sound modes, a button to activate Bluetooth and a button to connect to Xbox Wireless on our Xbox model . While it's nice to have so much control at our fingertips, we constantly found ourselves setting the wrong volume or hitting the Bluetooth button when we wanted to change sound modes. We finally figured things out after spending more time with the headset, but we wish the controls weren't so close together.

Thankfully, that problem is mitigated slightly by Turtle Beach's Audio Hub app for iOS and Android, which lets you customize what many of those buttons do while putting even more control at your fingertips. Here you can program the mode button and secondary volume rocker to perform various functions, as well as enable mic monitoring or enable chat amplification to make your voice louder. You can also switch between a variety of sound modes, including Bass Boost and Vocal Boost, and toggle a noise gate to prevent your voice from clipping the mic if you get too loud. This makes the Stealth 700 Gen 2 one of the most feature-rich headsets we've tested, and we found the ability to customize it directly from our phones much more convenient than the PC-based apps that many use. headsets build.

Even if you don't play around with many of these settings, you'll still get great sound from the Stealth 700 Gen 2 out of the box. The Turtle Beach headset was a great companion for shooters like Overwatch, as we could clearly hear enemy footsteps coming while enjoying the satisfying low-pitched sounds of gunfire and explosions.

The Stealth was even more impressive when turned on. Superhuman Hearing (which is designed to raise specific frequencies for competitive titles), while footsteps and distant gunfire have become much clearer. The feature doesn't shine in every title – we found the default setting to be sharper in sports and fighting games – but if your game rotation is heavy on Fortnite and Call of Duty, you'll get a lot out of it. 'usefulness.

The Stealth 700 Gen 2's microphone is good, if not the best in its class. While we could clearly hear our voice when replaying recordings, our chatter had a slight fuzzy quality and there was audible background noise. The Gen 2 outperformed the Blackshark V2 Pro in overall quality, but we got sharper recordings from the SteelSeries Arctis 7X and HyperX Cloud II Wireless.

Although the Stealth feels and sounds great, its wireless capabilities are really what sets it apart. We tested the Xbox version of the headset, which has Xbox Wireless functionality, meaning you can pair it to your Xbox One or Xbox Series X/S without needing a dongle. By pressing the pairing button on the headset and our Xbox Series S, we connected in seconds.

The Stealth is also one of the few gaming headsets with Bluetooth capabilities, meaning we were able to pair the headset to our phone and Xbox at the same time. This feature was incredibly handy, especially on many online movie nights where we streamed HBO Max from our Xbox while chatting with our friends on Discord.

If you want to be able to easily listen to music and podcasts while you game, or talk to friends on other consoles while playing cross-platform games, you'll likely get plenty of mileage with this feature. Microsoft's $99 Xbox Wireless Headset also has the same useful dual-pairing feature, but the Stealth's much better comfort, sound, and features are worth it. It's also rated for 20 hours of battery life versus 15 for the Xbox Wireless Headset, which largely matches our testing. We were only able to drain the battery to just under 50% after almost a week of continuous use, while Microsoft's headset gave a low battery warning after a few days.

There's an important caveat here - the Stealth 700 Gen 2 doesn't come in just one unique model, so you'll need to make sure you buy the one that best suits your gaming habits. The Xbox model we we tested is designed primarily for Xbox consoles, although you can use it with a PC if you have an Xbox Wireless Adapter handy. The PlayStation model is more versatile, as it connects via a USB dongle and can be used with PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

If you want a single wireless headset that can work with all major consoles as well as PC, you'll want to consider the $149 SteelSeries Arctis 7X Wireless. But we found Turtle Beach's headset to be much more comfortable while producing richer sound and offering more features, making it the best wireless headset you can buy, as long as it fits in the configuration of your console of choice.

How we tested

As you might expect, our quest to find the best gaming headsets has required us to play lots and lots of video games. We tested every headset in our pool on every platform it would work with, connecting each to a

playstation5

, a

Xbox Series S p>

, a

nintendo-switch

and one

Windows-PC

where possible to assess overall compatibility. p>

To get an idea of ​​how each headset would hold up for different genres, we focused primarily on four test games: Mortal Kombat 11 (combat), Overwatch (shooting), Rocket League (sports and racing), and Monster Hunter Rise (action). -adventure). For each title, we noted how well each headset handled loud, punchy sounds, such as gunfire and explosions, as well as more subtle environmental sounds that are important for competitive play, such as footsteps.

We've tried out all the special features and associated apps that each headset offers, noting how useful their various sound modes and on-ear controls are. We used Audacity to assess each headset's microphone quality, recording clips of ourselves talking on each model while paying attention to things like background noise, echo, and overall clarity. of the voice.

We've also made each headset our daily driver for at least a full day's work, using them to take calls, listen to music, and watch videos while getting a feel for how comfortable they are for hours of sessions.

Other gaming headsets we've tested

SteelSeries Arctis 7X Wireless ($149.99;

steelseries.com

)

An extremely close competitor to our first wireless spot, the SteelSeries Arctis 7X Wireless has a sleek, lightweight design, and works instantly with PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, PC, and even Android phones, thanks to a handy wireless adapter. However, its somewhat chunky ear cups and thinner overall sound put it behind the Stealth 700 Gen 2.

Logitech G Pro X ($129.99;

logitechg.com

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Another headset that almost made it to our list, the Logitech G Pro X is an excellent wired headset with an attractive design, good sound, plenty of customization options, and the best mic of all the headsets we tested. However, it wasn't as comfortable to wear as the Alpha S during longer sessions.

Razer Blackshark V2 ($99.99;

razer.com

)

The Blackshark V2 is one of the best headsets we've tested, with crisp, balanced sound that performs well across all genres. But while we liked its lightweight design, its rougher ear pads kept us coming back to the Alpha S.

Razer Blackshark V2 Pro ($179.99;

razer.com

A wireless version of the V2, the Blackshark V2 Pro has the same great sound as its wired sibling while being able to connect wirelessly to PC, PS5 and Switch. But again, we didn't find its overall comfort to match our top picks, and its microphone quality was lacking, especially at this high price.

Xbox Wireless Headset ($99;

)

A great choice if you want a reliable Xbox headset that doesn't cost a ton, the $99 Xbox Wireless Headset offers good overall sound and some really neat and intuitive dial controls. It also has the ability to pair to your Xbox and your phone at the same time. But if you're in a position to spend more, the Stealth 700 Gen 2 has the same party trick plus much better comfort, sound and features.

HyperX Cloud II Wireless ($149.99;

p>amazon.com

)

One of many high-quality wireless headphones we've tested, the HyperX Cloud II Wireless sound great and have a very sleek design. But it wasn't as comfortable as its competitors during prolonged use, and the fact that it only connects via a wireless USB dongle means it's off limits to Xbox fans.

Razer Kraken V3 X ($69.99;

razer.com

)

An updated version of our favorite budget headset, the Kraken V3 X offers customizable RGB lighting in an essentially similar design for $20 more than the standard Kraken X. However, we didn't find its subtle lighting effects worth the extra premium, and its USB-only connectivity actually makes it more limited than its cheaper sibling in terms of compatibility.

Corsair HS50 Pro ($49.99;

corsair.com

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The Corsair HS50 Pro is one of the nicest and most rugged headsets we've tested in the sub-$50 price bracket. But we found the Kraken X to have an edge in terms of comfort and sound quality.

HyperX Cloud Stinger S ($44.99, originally $59.99,

amazon.com

)

Another strong contender in the budget category, the HyperX Cloud Stinger S offers solid comfort and mic quality for the price. However, we found that its audio quality fell short compared to its competitors, especially when it came to bass and environmental details.

Logitech G432 ($49.99, originally $79.99;

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The Logitech G432 gives you solid sound for the price, USB and 3.5mm connectivity, and a particularly great microphone. But when it comes to comfort, we found its ear cups a little too stiff compared to rivals like the Kraken X and Stinger S.

Logitech G332 ($39.99, originally $59.99;

logitechg.com

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The cheaper sibling of the G432, the G332 offers similar performance but only connects via a 3.5mm headphone jack. It's a totally reliable headset (especially if you buy it on sale), but again we recommend the more comfortable Kraken X.

Turtle Beach Recon 70 ($34.82, originally $39.95;

)

The $39 Recon 70 is one of the most affordable headsets we've tested, but also one of the most lacking in some key areas. Although you get a surprisingly good microphone for the money, the Recon 70's plastic design was a bit too narrow for our tastes, and the audio performance was just okay.