STACK #180 Oct 2019

GAMES FEATURE

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Top-of-the- line cans

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directional audio, which is particularly useful for sweaty shooter fans. These versatile cans are just as great for everyday use as

This headset tier is for those who are serious about their

flat storage on a desk or chest. The 50mm audio drivers offer a respectable vertical soundscape, particularly the mids and highs, while configuration is as painless as inserting the included USB dongle and waiting for Windows to recognise it. The Turtle Beach Stealth

gaming and understand that a few hundred bucks spent on cans is a worthy investment in their kill/ death ratio.

gaming, with 15 hours of battery life.

For the same pricepoint, you can also invest in a set of Razer Nari Ultimate Wireless cans, which are fully focused on the gaming front, most notably with the inclusion of inbuilt haptics. This means you can

That investment consideration starts with the Logitech G935 . The earcup/headband

600 wireless cans are primarily targeted at Xbox One gamers, but work great with a PC as long as you combo them with the Xbox Wireless Adapter. This aural investment also includes virtual 7.1 surround sound, powered by Windows Sonic. Combo excellent sound design, like the lifelike audio of Rainbow Six Siege , with this feature and you’re basically tapping into audio wall hacks. You can also independently boost or lower in-game audio with a dial that’s mercifully separate from the voice chat. Just before we crack into the upper echelon, the Plantronics RIG 700HD sits at the top of mid-range. This is a great step into competitive

design combos firm-fitting comfort with innate noise cancelling to drown out IRL distractions. Tactile buttons for mute and even macros, as well as an on/ off switch and an audio dial, make groping for adjustments incredibly intuitive. The impressive 3D sound is complemented by deep bass, which means the G935s

get subwoofer-like vibration from your headset. Included THX Spatial Sound does a great job of surround-sound simulation, most notably for audio above and below your avatar. The padding is thick in all the right ways, which means this headset is comfy, even for bespectacled gamers. Hardware-wise, these are a sound choice, further

are as apt for online competitive advantages as they are for music and movie playback. Kill the RGB lighting for a few more hours of battery life, and find the DTS preset that best suits your play style via the Logitech G HUB software. Though branded for Xbox One, the

complemented by Razer’s popular Synapse software for user-friendly tweaking of audio EQ. No matter which end of the headset scale you’re targeting, you’ll definitely notice the gains of ditching those frayed old phone earbuds in favour of game-centric aural delights.

SteelSeries Arctis 9X is another cross-platform headset for the gamer who frags across Microsoft’s console and Windows 10

Wired savings Though wireless is a popular

headset choice these days, there are bucks to be saved by opting for cheaper (usually wired) equivalents of higher-end cans. Though not all features may be present, the

OS (with the Xbox Wireless Adapter). SteelSeries’ reputation for

comfy cups rings true with the 9X. Bluetooth

HyperX Cloud Stinger , Razer Nari Essential Wireless , and Audio

connectivity boosts pairing options, while battery life sits at an impressive 20 hours. There are four EQ presets to cycle through with a tap of the power button, and the bidirectional noise-cancelling microphone is the silent gift your buddies won’t even know to thank you for. The AudioTechnica G1WL utilises

Technica G1 are three examples of models that offer a cheaper taste of

headset territory. Pop the earcups into one of three slots to match your noggin on a durable headset that’s also comfy during epic play sessions. Accurate zero-lag audio combined with Windows Sonic surround sound mean you’ll hear your prey before you see them. Lost in spatial Virtual surround sound options are common in more expensive headsets today. Windows Sonic, Dolby Atmos, DTS and THX are the big names. Their job is to basically fool your ears into hearing sounds coming from in front, behind, beside, above and below you. Configured correctly, these spatial surround bolt-ons can help accurately pinpoint player locations in shooters.

their more expensive siblings.

studio-quality headphone design and combos it with the kind of high-end features you expect from a top-tier wireless headset. In short, this means the G1WL is built for the part-time gamer, full-time audiophile who can lecture you on the differences between FLAC music playback over MP3. In gaming terms, this translates to accurate

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OCTOBER 2019

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