Premium Gaming Headset Showdown

Many headphone and peripheral manufacturers today are creating headsets with gamers in mind. The higher-end gaming headsets tend to offer features such as simulated surround sound, wireless capabilities, equalizer profiles for different types of games, physical customization, improved comfort, and better sound than their more budget-friendly counterparts. In this article, I will be reviewing several different headsets from multiple companies: Logitech (G930), Sennheiser (G4ME One), SteelSeries (Siberia v3 Prism, Elite Prism, H Wireless), and Turtle Beach (Elite 800).

The headsets in this review range in price from $100 to $300 MSRP, some offer wireless capabilities, optical input, USB input, and 3.5mm. Each headset needed to include a microphone in order to be considered for this article. I tested based on First Impressions (Packaging and Feel), Ease of Setup (Components and Software), and Use (Comfort, Features, Sound Quality, Microphone Quality).

Notes about the Reviewer and Test Setup:

• Male (29 years old)
• Ear Size (bottom of lobe to top of ear): average size [6.5cm]
• Soundcard: Asus Xonar DX (Uni drivers)
• OS: Windows 10 64bit
• Used optical/toslink cable option if available, otherwise used USB/3.5mm
• All headsets were tested using their default ‘Balanced’ equalizer profile setting (if available)

How I Tested:

I wore the headsets for at least 6 hours per day for a minimum of 2 weeks, both during my work day to listen to music and for teleconferencing (with Microsoft Lync/Skype for Business) and also after work while playing games or watching videos.

Music Albums (.flac or blu-ray files):

• Lindsey Stirling – Lindsey Stirling
• Dave Matthews Band – Live at Radio City
• Michael Jackson – Number Ones
• The Eagles – Farewell Tour
• Daft Punk – Random Access Memories

Games:

• The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
• Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
• Far Cry 4

Full Disclosure:

Throughout my testing, I determined that I cannot consider myself an audiophile. I did not have a trained ear to discern subtle differences between the headsets when comparing their highs and mids, although I could tell when sounds felt more muffled or a little off from albums that I consider familiar. As a result, unless there were obvious differences, most of the headsets sounded quite similar in comparison, giving a fairly level playing field for sound quality.

Meet The Competition

Comparison Matrix:

Logitech G930 Wireless

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

First Impressions

Packaging

The Logitech G930 headset arrived in a plastic blister-pack with an outer cardboard sleeve. The packaging wasn’t anything fancy, but you are able to see the headset from the outside and it was perfectly acceptable. Inside the packaging was (of course) the headset, a wireless USB dongle, and a micro-USB charging cable/hub (with a single USB port available on top). The hub is somewhat unique in that the micro-USB cable wraps around the outside of the disk, allowing it to be stored in a clean fashion.

Design

My first impressions of the design of the headset were positive: The materials used are all plastic from what I can tell, with a contrast of shiny plastic accents with matte soft-touch plastic areas. The faux-leather ear cups feel relatively soft and the rectangular shape and area of the inner-ear cup was among the largest of the competition, so those with large ears should likely be able to fit them inside without any significant pinching. Various controls for the headset are located on the outside of the ear cups, including: The power button, a volume wheel, a switch to toggle Dolby surround, 3 programmable buttons, and a button to mute the microphone (if the microphone is in the upwards position it is automatically muted, the button mutes the microphone if it is positioned downward).

Setup

Components

The setup of the headset was relatively simple—I installed the Logitech Gaming Software/Drivers, plugged in the USB hub and wireless dongle (into a USB2.0 port, there’s been many reports of issues when using a USB3.0 port), then turned on the headset. After making sure that Windows set my default playback and recording devices properly, I was up and running.

Software

Regarding the Logitech Gaming Software, I did run into one issue: The headset is designed to automatically turn off when there hasn’t been any audio for 10 minutes in order to save battery power (which is generally appreciated). However, it would do it during the middle of a game, song, phone call, etc, even when there was consistent audio playback. I had to change a setting in an xml file to remove the “power off” feature using these instructions: G930 Disable Auto-Off Feature. I assume that this issue will be patched eventually, but there’s been an active thread on the official Logitech message boards spanning over 2 years regarding this bug. Once installed, the software has many options for one to select, enabling profiles for games to map the G-key buttons, voice emulation, and equalizer customization (but no built-in profiles). I found I had approximately 9-10 hours of use before the headset would shut off from low battery—fortunately the headset can be in use while charging via a micro-USB cable so battery life should not be much of an issue in most circumstances.

Usage

Comfort (extended period)

Over an extended period of time I never had any major discomfort while wearing the Logitech G930 and the 326 grams of weight never caused any neck soreness. The only real negatives were a bit of sweat buildup around the ear cups and having the expected headset hair dent.

Features

The basic features of the headset worked well, the volume knob was easy to use and responsive, the microphone automatically muting when in the upright position was helpful, and being able to charge the headset while wearing it is a nice plus. One feature I couldn’t find a good use for was the 3 programmable buttons (G-keys). While targeted at a gamer audience, at what point during a game would I want to take my hand off of the keyboard/controller/mouse to push a button on my headset that could be mapped elsewhere? I suppose it could make sense to bind one of the buttons to toggle push-to-talk if I had to walk away from my desk and needed to say something.

Sound Quality

The sound and microphone quality were decent with this headset, but nothing spectacular. If one was inclined to toy with altering the various equalizer settings it could improve the overall sound quality a bit.

Microphone Quality

I found the microphone quality to be the second best of the pack (behind the Sennheiser G4ME One):

Sennheiser G4ME One

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

First Impressions

Packaging

The packaging of the Sennheiser G4ME One is simple and clean: A slide-out cardboard box that flips open to show the headset lying in a form-fitted plastic cover. That’s it—no instructions, software, or stickers. As the headset just uses a 3.5mm analog connection, all of the extra hardware and software included with other headsets are not necessary for this headset do its job.

Design

The design of the G4ME One that I received stands out with a white primary color scheme with red accents (compared to most headsets which are black/gray—although this headset is also available in black). The headset has the standard notching adjustment to fit various head sizes. The microphone head and arm are quite large in comparison with other headsets in this showdown, but it easily folds up and clicks into place to signify that the microphone is muted. There is a dial on the right side of the headset to control volume level. The material is mixture of a hard and soft-touch plastic and the padded ear cups are covered with a soft velour.

Setup

Components

Nothing fancy here, a simple 3.5mm jack splits into the microphone and main audio output that plugs into a sound card or motherboard.

Software (if necessary)

None to install

Use

Comfort

The plush velour ear pads and headband are very soft and comfortable to wear for long stretches of time. The headset weighs approximately 300g so it is very lightweight and the lightness of the headset prevented me from feeling any sort neck discomfort over extended periods.. The ear pads didn’t leave the headset dent my hair (or at least it was not very pronounced) or cause any sweat to build up around my ears which was nice compared to the other headsets that utilized leather for the ear cup padding. The only real negative is dealing with a cord, but it is plenty long to route around most desks to not be in the way.

Features

The G4ME One headset does not come with a lot of extra features, there is no software to install or customization to be done, but the headset uses the same drivers as the very popular Sennheiser HD598 headphones, has an adjustable volume control on the ear cup, and has a quality boom microphone. The open-air design of the headset did allow some sound to escape, but my ears were well encompassed giving a nice surround feeling despite only having two drivers in the headset. Utilizing the Dolby headphones setting with my Asus Xonar DX sound card I was able to create a relatively accurate virtual surround simulation, but ultimately found that the soundstage and a properly configured game for headphones made the virtual surround unnecessary.

Sound quality (music, game, movie)

I found the sound quality from the Sennheiser G4ME One headset to be the best in the showdown. I felt the mids and highs to be accurate and crisp—the bass was the only real area that could use improvement. The bass was audible but there wasn’t any punch to it; that being said, I found it to be acceptable for the styles of music that I listen to regularly and the games I play. If you desire a bit better bass response, consider looking at the closed-back Sennheiser G4ME Zero headset.

Microphone quality

I (and my coworkers) found the microphone quality to be the best among the rest of the headsets, the sound was very clear and crisp. Please listen to the attached audio sample for comparison:

SteelSeries Siberia v3 Prism

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

First Impressions

Packaging

The SteelSeries Siberia v3 Prism headset arrived in a cardboard slidebox covering a nice-looking cardboard clamshell box which opens to display the headset. Packaged with the headset were a couple of SteelSeries stickers and a small instruction pamphlet showing the location of the microphone mute/on switch and instructions to download the SteelSeries Steel Engine software package.

Design

The overall design of the headset is aesthetically pleasing, assuming you like having the outside of the ear cups illuminate to whatever solid color you desire (patterns/designs are not available). The main headset is a dark matte gray plastic, while the ear covers are a glossy black plastic. The headband is made of a leather-like fabric which has the SteelSeries logo printed on top. All of the SteelSeries headsets utilize a small retractable unidirectional microphone. A couple design flaws that I noticed include a USB cable that is only about 4 feet long and the lack of an in-line or on-headset volume control; this model’s big brothers (the Siberia Elite Prism and Wireless H) both offer the aforementioned volume control on one of their ear cups.

Setup

Components

Setting up the headset was pretty simple: Plug in the USB cable and the headset is available for usage.

Software

In order to change sound profiles, colors, etc, installing the SteelSeries Engine software was required.

Use

Comfort

The lightest weight headset of the bunch (280 grams) was overall comfortable to wear. The unique Suspension Design head fitting mechanism utilizes a pair of stiff wires for the headband to glide across, allowing for adjustment to be simple and instantly comfortable. The ear pads are a soft round memory foam with a faux-leather fabric that can cause some sweat to build up over long periods. My entire ears were unable to fit inside of the ear cups (my ear lobes were pressed against the leather foam cushion), but it didn’t detract from the overall comfort of the headset. My wife and I both agreed that it had the lightest clamping pressure on our heads compared to the rest of the competition, but it was not loose enough that it would fall off when leaning forward/backward, and we never felt any significant pressure around our ears.

Features

The headset hits most of what would be requested/required by a standard user except for the lack of any form of volume control. On the common occasion where increasing/decreasing volume for a particular movie/song/game is needed, it can be somewhat frustrating if you don’t have a keyboard that has those controls built in and you’re forced to change the volume inside the application or in Windows. Beyond that issue, the retractable microphone is convenient (with a simple switch to turn the microphone on/off), and the various customization settings that can be changed in the SteelSeries SteelEngine software allow you to personalize (or disable) the color scheme via the LED lights on the outside of the ear cups.

Sound Quality

The sound quality is acceptable on the Siberia v3 Prism, but nothing special. Without changing equalizer settings, I found that the bass was muddy and overemphasized while listening to various forms of media. The highs stood out (such as guitar riffs) but the vocals seemed to be lost in the background in multiple songs/genres.

Microphone Quality

The retractable microphone quality sounded a little empty compared to headsets that had a boom microphone, as demonstrated here:

SteelSeries Siberia Elite Prism

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

First Impressions

Packaging

The SteelSeries Siberia Elite Prism (henceforth referred to as the Siberia Elite) arrived in a slide box cover that removed to reveal a nice looking cardboard clamshell box which opened to display the headset. Underneath the headset was a small box which contained every cable needed to attach the headset to the computer. The Siberia Elite came with a USB sound card which has 3 plugs available: A proprietary micro USB-esque port for the headset and two additional 3.5mm ports (one for audio out and one for microphone). The headset also came with a 6 foot extension cable to reach the sound card, as the default headset-connected cable is only about 4 feet long (fine for using on a laptop, but for reaching ports on a case the extension is a necessity).

Design

The design of the headset is similar to its little brother, the Siberia v3 Prism, but improved in almost every way. The rubberized headband (featuring the same automatic adjustment system) has memory foam pads across it, the band above the headband is a sturdy metal instead of the plastic on the v3 Prism (this is due to the fact that the wiring between the ear cups occurs in the headband instead of the outer band as seen in the Siberia v3 Prism), the toggle-able ear cup illumination is done in concentric circles instead of dots to allow some additional customization, and the ear cup padding is much thicker and looks and feels more like real leather with stitching. The Siberia Elite also has the same retractable microphone as seen in the Siberia V3 and the H Wireless headsets.

Setup

Components

The setup of the headset was pretty much identical to the Siberia V3 Prism, plugging into the USB port and utilizing the SteelSeries Engine software to configure the various customization options.

Software

In order to change sound profiles, colors, etc, installing the SteelSeries Engine software was required. The Elite Prism has a few additional choices beyond what was seen in the V3 Prism, such as toggling Dolby Headphone surround emulation and configuring how much (if any) pass-through the microphone will make into your headset to hear yourself speaking.

Use

Comfort

The Siberia Elite is the heaviest headset of the shootout, weighing in at 400 grams. Upon first putting the headset on it feels comfortable, but I found the headset clamp tightness to be a bit too strong (my wife agreed—this was the first thing she pointed out when trying on the Elite Prism). After wearing the headset for a day or so I got used to the tight clamp, but it was still less comfortable to wear for longer periods of time than some of the other headphone options. Due to the nature of leather ear cups and because of the strength of the clamp there wasn’t much breathing around my ears causing sweat to build up on hotter days and during extended (3+ hour) sessions.

Features

Similar to the Siberia v3 Prism the customization of the headset is all accomplished via the SteelEngine software suite. Where the two headsets differentiate is that the Siberia Elite has volume control (by turning the inner circle of the right ear cup) and the headset has an extension cable to increase the default 4 foot cable length to approximately 10 feet. The Siberia Elite also comes with a USB sound card with 3 plugs – one for the proprietary cable that goes with the Siberia Elite and two 3.5mm (audio and microphone) which allow for equalizer settings to be applied via the SteelEngine software. I found the Dolby Surround function to work in some cases, but distort sound in others (especially in music).

Sound Quality

I felt the sound quality was similar but a little better on the Elite when compared to the v3 Prism; while there was still muddier bass and deemphasized vocals overall, I heard more distinction in the notes and sounds in songs, movies, and games than with the v3 Prism.

Microphone Quality

The microphone quality sounded acceptable and to be about the same as the Siberia v3 Prism:

SteelSeries H Wireless

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

First Impressions

Packaging

The SteelSeries H Wireless headset’s packaging was similar to the Elite Prism headset, with a slide box cover revealing a two-piece cardboard box that opened to display the headset and control pod. Underneath the headset and control pod was a small box which contained universal power adapters and every cable needed to attach the headset and control pod to a computer or other devices.

Design

The design of the headset is sleek and not gaudy, utilizing a combination of matte and shiny black plastic on the ear cups and a rubberized headband embossed with the SteelSeries logo. The headset feels relatively durable with high quality plastic and (p)leather to cover your ears. It uses the same retractable microphone as the Siberia v3 and Elite Prism allowing for a slim-line look unless the microphone is needed. The headset controls are built into the body of the headset so nothing protrudes. The buttons are clickable simple scroll wheel which send commands to the control pod to alter the volume or cycle through any of the menu options on the pod. There are also two more buttons under the right ear cup, using a rocker-switch style activation to toggle power and enable or disable the microphone.

The control pod is a small 4×4 shiny black box with a white LED display, a couple buttons, and a control knob to cycle through and configure pretty much all of the settings for the headset. The device has plugs for Optical In, Optical Out, Auxiliary In, and Chat Out.

Setup

Components

The setup of the headset was straightforward with simple included instructions to follow. Just plug in the correct cords to the labeled plugs on the sound card, control pod, and USB ports and the setup was complete.

Software (if necessary)

Surprisingly, no software was needed. Drivers automatically installed for the control pod, changing the playback and recording device was the only thing that needed to be done in Windows.

Use

Comfort

The H Wireless feels light on my head (weighing approximately 320 grams), not causing any discomfort or noticeable weight to my neck. The headset has a relatively tight clamp at first—I found it could be stretched out a bit by spreading it apart and loosening the head adjustment slider, but it still would feel a bit tight after a day’s worth of usage. However, after wearing the headset 7+ hours per day for a week straight, I never felt I needed a break from the clamp on the ears or from the weight of the headset. The H Wireless did cause some sweat build up around the ears over long sessions, the same as the other leather-bound ear cups because of the lack of breathability in the fabric.

Features

I really enjoyed having the control pod to easily set volume and other various settings for the equalizer and game/chat mixing.

The headset’s features worked well during usage and the microphone was easy to use and mute/unmute when needed for various calls and chatting with coworkers and friends. The wireless distance was good as well, I was able to listen to music continuously from one end of my house to the other on the same floor, and halfway through the house a floor below.

My favorite feature of the control pod is that it also charges the included backup battery for the headset: This allows you to always have a fully charged battery ready to swap in a matter of seconds if the headset should run out unexpectedly (although the headset and control pod both warn with beeps and flashing, respectively, when the 10ish hour battery life is low).

Sound quality (music, game, movie)

The sound quality of the headset out of the box was pretty good, with overall a crisper sound compared to the other SteelSeries headsets. I found that by changing the equalizer profile to the the type of media I was enjoying the sound quality could even be improved.

Microphone quality

The microphone had acceptable sound quality, similar or the same as the Siberia Elite and Siberia v3 headsets, please refer to the attached sound bite to compare quality:

Turtle Beach Wireless Elite 800

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

First Impressions

Packaging

The packaging for the Turtle Beach Elite 800 headset was an easy-to-open cardboard sleeve over a white smooth cardboard flip-top box that opened with the pull of a silk strap. The box was closed with a magnet, a nice touch over the common circular stickers that have to be cut with a knife or peeled away to reach the contents. Inside the box, the headset was on display next to additional boxes containing all of the necessary cables and the wireless transmitter/charger box.

Design

The overall design of the headset is sleek black with a blue accent to compliment the PS4, as PS4 users are the main target audience of the Elite 800 (although it is also compatible with PCs). The top of the headband is a soft-touch rubber with an engraved Turtle Beach logo and a chrome band connecting the headband to the ear cups. The cushion for the headband is a smooth leather with a bit of give. The same leather with a bit more cushion is positioned in a full circle (oval) around the ear cups. The outside of each ear cup has a swappable plastic cover with several icons for the various shortcuts and features the headset offers (power, microphone mute, volume, bluetooth, profiles, etc).

The charging station/receiver uses magnets to bring the headset into the correct position to make sure that it is aligned properly to charge. It has multiple ports: Optical In and Out and two USB ports (one for signal/driver setup and the other for programming/updating the firmware).

Setup

Components

Setting up the various components of the Turtle Beach Elite 800 was relatively straightforward. The directions that came with the headset have several separate instructions for various setups (PS3, PS4, Xbox360, PC, Mobile) so simply following the guide for PC allowed me to get everything plugged in after a few minutes.

Software (if necessary)

The Turtle Beach Ear Force Audio Hub software was a bit of a mixed bag for me. I initially had an issue where the audio was choppy immediately after turning on the headset, so I decided to update the headset firmware following the included written instructions (attaching the program and transmitter cables separately, etc). Unfortunately, however, mid-update the software froze completely, forcing me to kill the application. This rendered the headset essentially dead and I had to reset it into bootloader mode to reload the firmware (I found a guide in an Amazon review after searching for a solution) – Here is a quoted portion for Reference:

“Here’s how you do it –
(a) Press the mute button for long (about 10 or 15 seconds) till [sic] the power on the headset turns off. (b) Press the Preset button, and while holding it insert the micro-USB. The headset will enter bootloader mode and then the software will reset it to factory settings and update the firmware as needed. Remember that the headset and the base unit need to be connected to the computer at the same time to update the firmware. Also note that the base unit has a different micro-USB slot for updating the firmware.”

Use

Comfort

Overall the Elite 800 headset is comfortable to wear. The memory foam padding allows for a soft yet snug fit against the top of the head and over the ears, the leather is very soft, and the wireless headset is light enough (380 grams) to allow for a long session without any neck strain even though it is one of the heaviest of the bunch. The only issue with comfort I experienced was sweat build up around my ears that was typical of all of the leather-clad headsets. It should be noted, however, that this headset may not be as comfortable for users with larger ears. My ears are average size and just fit inside the ear cups—if you have larger ears they may get compressed or pinched by the ear cups.

Features

This headset has the most features of any of the other headsets in this shootout, which proved to be a pro and a con simultaneously. It is the only headset in this group that offers active noise cancellation and the only headset that can be paired via Bluetooth to another device. I linked it with my Android phone and wore the headset while mowing the lawn with the noise cancellation setting turned on and it worked very well. It also allows for easy answering of calls just by hitting the Bluetooth button on the side of the headset. The headset has an Android phone app that allows you to change the various equalizer settings and add game-specific profiles to the quick selection menu (cycling through via a button press on the headset). For those that game with their computers and have a PlayStation console, it is compatible out of the box with the PS3, PS4, Phones, and PC – although Xbox Consoles require an adapter. [There’s also a Turtle Beach Elite 800x for those with Xbox One consoles, but there’s no chat support on PS4 or PC with the 800x].

I had a couple issues with the Elite 800 during my testing process – I felt the buttons on the ear cups were too easy to accidentally press while putting on, adjusting, or removing the headset (thus loading a different profile or setting than what was desired and previously set). I also found that even after a week of wearing the headset I still had a tough time remembering what each of the buttons did without pulling off the headset to verify I was going to press the intended one, albeit eventually muscle memory would stick and it wouldn’t be an issue and the most basic buttons I pressed regularly (power and mic on/off) were memorized quickly.

Sound quality (music, game, movie)

The Elite 800’s speaker sound quality is overall pretty good and fits in well with the competition. I found the bass to be more pronounced with the Elite 800 using the default ‘Signature Sound’ equalizer profile when compared to the G4ME One, but it didn’t have quite the clarity in the mids and highs of the Sennheiser set.

Microphone quality

Unfortunately, the Elite 800 was the worst performer for microphone quality. My coworkers and I found the voice quality to be tinny and empty in teleconferencing, during phone calls when paired with my phone, and when using the windows voice recording software.

Conclusions

A good gaming headset can assist with providing (and not breaking) immersion with your entertainment of choice, be it music, games, or movies. I attempted to focus on finding a good all-around headset that can do well with each of the aforementioned mediums. All of the headsets in this showdown have some features or performance at a price that makes them worth considering depending on personal preferences and priorities for certain feature sets.

At the sub-$100 mark (going by prices on amazon.com), one can find the Logitech Wireless G930 and the wired SteelSeries Siberia v3 Prism—given the choice between the two I would recommend the G930 because it is wireless, has many more controls on the headset (like volume control), and offered similar-or-better sound quality.

For under $200, the Siberia Elite Prism and the Sennheiser G4ME One can be considered. I would wholeheartedly recommend the G4ME One between the two because of the excellent sound quality, although if simulated surround and/or visual customization are important to you, or if dual 3.5mm jacks (the green and pink plugs) are not available to you, then the USB-controlled Elite Prism would be a fine option.

At the $300 price point, the companies began to really start throwing features at the headsets. The H Wireless gets my choice here for a comfortable, nice sounding, wireless headset that can be used on a PC, Mac, PS4, and an Xbox One (with an adapter). If you are looking for a device than can go between multiple gaming systems and offers active noise cancellation and uses bluetooth to connect to your mobile device, the Elite 800 is the only one in this roundup that offers that functionality (although the H Wireless can connect via a 3.5mm aux cable to your phone if desired).

Ultimately, when looking at everything together, my favorite of all of the headsets was the Sennheiser G4ME One. I found it to offer the best comfort and sound quality of the bunch (as long as bass is not the focal point of your listening preferences – if you’re waiting for the bass to drop, please look into the closed-back Sennheiser G4ME Zero headset). My favorite wireless headset that I tested was the SteelSeries H Wireless: I found the setup was straightforward without any issues, the sound quality was good, and the ability to swap batteries was quick and painless.

I would like to thank Logitech, Sennheiser, SteelSeries, and Turtle Beach for sending me the review samples.

– Don Fisher (Janus67)