The Best Xbox One Wired Headset
BY IGN STAFF: Almost two years after the
Xbox One’s launch, the selection of official headsets has finally begun to fill out. Even just a year ago, the offerings were slim and didn’t have enough features to make them worth the outlay, especially if you already owned a set of headphones you liked and could pair with
Microsoft’s headset adapter. You didn’t always sound amazingly clear to your
Xbox Live party, but it worked.
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The best wired headset for
Xbox One is actually one that isn’t out just yet—the
Plantronics Rig Flex LX will launch the first week of October. At
$130 MSRP, it’s on the pricier side for a stereo wired headset, but it managed to snag our top spot due to its combination of comfort, excellent chat quality, and clean, well-balanced audio. You can wear this headset for hours, which you’ll want to do:
even on the most bass-heavy EQ setting, lows are nice and punchy without overwhelming the mids and highs, and it’s very easy to hear both small audio details and what direction they’re coming from.
The Best Xbox One Wireless Headset
If you’ve used the original
Astro A50, you won’t be too surprised by our choice for the best Xbox One wireless headset. The
Xbox One Edition of the
Astro A50 Wireless Headset retains the first model’s fantastic fit and incredible sound, while including a special adapter for chat. Despite being a somewhat heavier pair of cans, you can wear this for marathon sessions of gaming and not feel any pain around your ears or along your jawbone (while wearing glasses, to boot). And though the
A50’s audio skews toward being much warmer than the other contenders, movies, music, and games all sound amazing. Its
virtual surround-sound makes different elements very clear, with that warmth adding a sense of richness to what you hear. You’ll be able to pick out the direction of gunfire or footsteps easily, too.
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That said, these aren’t the perfect wireless headphones. For party chat, you still have to connect an adapter to the controller; it’s a bummer that the
A50 isn’t 100% wireless. These will also set you back $300, though they are also compatible with
PC,
PS4,
PS3, and
Xbox 360. If you’re not a multi-platform gamer, the investment may be too steep.
Note for existing
non-XB1 Edition A50 owners: According to Astro, you can buy the chat dongle separately as an accessory, and improve your chat experience as compared to using a
Microsoft stereo adapter with your
A50. Just in case you were feeling slighted by the
Xbox One Edition hitting shelves long after your purchase.
Best Xbox One Headset Link
