Xbox Wireless Headset (2021) Review

Product Manufacturer: Microsoft/Xbox
Price: $149.95
Estimated Time With Gear: 30-40 hours

What Is It?: An official Xbox headset for console and pc gamers
Compatible With: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One & Windows 10 Devices

Xbox’s first in-house headset for the Series X/S generation is a budget-friendly powerhouse of features and performance. If you’re looking for my recommendation when it comes to budget-friendly Xbox/PC headsets, you’ve found my new pick as the Xbox Wireless Headset ticks all of the boxes and then some.

The Xbox Wireless Headset (XWH) is a simple yet effective product. Out of the box, you can connect it to your Xbox with a simple button press and begin playing games or watching movies. There’s no completed connection process or dongle needed for consoles; however, if you want to use the headset via your PC, you’ll either need a Bluetooth connection or the Xbox Wireless Adaptor. Unfortunately, the adaptor isn’t included in the box, but if you plan to use the headset on your PC at all, I’d highly suggest picking one up (they’re only $30 on Amazon). You may already own one as it’s the same adaptor needed to use Xbox controllers on PC.

You can connect the headset to your phone via Bluetooth, but even more than that, you can join it to your phone and console/pc at the same time. This means you can be gaming with friends while also mixing in your favourite Spotify playlist. Getting the perfect level of the audio mix isn’t complicated progress either. Your left ear cup is a dial that controllers the audio mix, and your right a volume controller. Both ear cups have a start and endpoint and the mixer, on your left ear, even has a handy groove to mark the perfect 50/50 audio mix point.

Both the PC and Xbox let you choose between several different EQ’s or create your own. You can also adjust things like the mic’s mute light brightness and update the XWH firmware in the same menu. However, much like the Xbox Controller, there’s no easy way to flick between the connection to a console and PC. Still, it’s a simple connection process if you’re someone who would be using the headset across both devices that takes just a couple of seconds.

The headset’s sound quality was shockingly good—the XWH shoot’s way above its price point, and performance for gaming, music, and movie viewing was fantastic.

Compared to my Bose Quiet Comfort II’s, there’s not quite the same level of soundscape, but it’s pretty darn close. The XWH has a flabby bass which I don’t mind, but you can certainly tighten things up in the EQ settings. There’s no active Noise Cancelling here either, which I’m much accustomed to these days when listening to music, and I did notice that straight away. Music sounded so good through these headphones that I didn’t find any need to switch to my Bose’s at all. I’ll happily keep using them to listen to Spotify while around the house.

Purchasing the headset gets you free access to Dolby Atmos via PC or Xbox until September. After which, it’s $20 to purchase. Given this, I made sure to test out a few Atmos supported games and movies. I spent a significant amount of time with was Dirt 5, which has fantastic sound design as you race around the track with Atmos-enabled. The roar of the cars in front of you and the mix of music and crowd noises as you whip past them makes for a much more engaging and thrilling racer with Dolby Atmos-enabled. I played some Apex Legends because it’s my crux battle royale, and unsurprisingly the headset did a fantastic job of letting me hear footprints around me. Battlefield V also sounded fantastic and is always a great game sound-test.

I chucked on a few 4K Blurays with Dolby Atmos support as well and was as impressed here as I had been in every other category. The initial race scene from Ready Player One is rip-roaring bonkers with sounds of all sorts of vehicles and exploding around you. I also tested Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk, which features a great sound design with its fireworks and Iraq combat scene. Lastly, I chucked on Bladerunner 2049, which has incredible sound design, but most importantly, a lot of rain comes from above for a Dolby Atmos’ showcase.

Back to the gaming side of the headset — the microphone is serviceable. It’s about what you’d expect, but it could have sounded slightly better if the mic’s boom arm had been longer. The mic is also my one major criticism from a design point for the headset. You can’t hide it or remove it at all. Not that it ways you down, but it does mean someone who may have been more likely to take this headset in public to listen to music may not because of the mic. Otherwise, I don’t think the headset looks ‘too gamer,’ although the green trim around each ear cup indeed screams gamer, thanks to Razer. There’s no flashy RGB, though or big obnoxious logos.

If you want to take the headset out with you or chuck it in a bag to take to a friends place, you certainly can safely. The headset seems very strong, and I wouldn’t feel the need to buy any travel case for it.

One major letdown with the headset is the lack of a 3.5mm jack. Meaning you, of course, can’t use it with your PS5 — which I feel is the point — but you also can’t use it with your Nintendo Switch. And I do wish you could, given how nice Xbox and Nintendo have been playing together. Been able to use this on the Nintendo Switch alongside side the PC and Xbox consoles would have been the ultimate headset.

Play

One big red flag that I’m not too worried about, but it is necessary to mention, is my first headset broke. I’d estimated this was after 15-25 hours of use, as I had run the battery dry. The headset just randomly died as I was using it, and no matter of troubleshooting could bring it back to life. Thankfully I could switch it over at EB Games the next day with no issue. I can’t find anyone else reporting problems with the headset dying on them on Twitter, so I’m going to have to believe I had a rare occurrence. I’ve run my replacement headset non-stop to surpass the hours I’d spent with my original headset and it’s still holding up just fine.

If you have the extra money to spend, you can certainly pick up a slightly better headset for anywhere between $50-100 more. But for $150, it’s nearly impossible not to recommend this headset. Yes, the microphone arm length is silly, and the lack of a 3.5mm jack is surprising. But overall it’s just a well-put-together piece of kit that sounds ridiculously good for the price. Within its primary purpose, gaming, it’s spectacular and the best budget headset you can buy for Xbox and PC right now.