AudezeMaxwell Wireless Gaming Headset for PlayStation, Mac, PC, and Switch

The media could not be loaded. I don’t buy anything expensive without a deep dive. Hours of research, endless comparisons, maybe even a spreadsheet. But after scrolling through reviews, now that I actually have it I’ve realized a lot of the important details get lost between the hype and the half-baked opinions.So, for my fellow overthinkers, buckle in, and prepare yourself for my ADHD powered review I wish had been here before I bought these. No fluff (mostly), no buyer’s remorse rant, just what actually matters.Let me preface... If you are trying to find a pair of headphones you can unbox and be blown away immediately, these headphones are not it, at all. Why did I rate them 5 stars then? It's quite difficult actually.Right off the bat this is what I will be covering. (Locate the corresponding emoji for specific information and try not to judge how long I spent on this):❓-What are these headphones meant for? What would they not be for? Are they for you?⚠️-How is the sound quality? (actually)•Not the: oMg bEsT heAdphOnes evErrr!!•Or the: these suck don't not sound good at ⠀⠀all not. *insert more lovely grammar here*🚫-How is the noise cancellation? Is it active, passive? How's the "transparency" mode?🎮-What's the difference between the X-box and the PlayStation version?🤓-Annnd what should your decision be? The biggest pro, the biggest con, and my personal suggestions and reasoning.❓What are these for?❓These headphones strike a solid balance between gaming and music. For gaming, they’re decent, maybe not as pinpoint-accurate as dedicated high-end gaming only headsets, but still impressive. In some games, I swear I heard in-game voices in an entirely different way, it was scarily good and weird. That said, they lean more toward music than gaming. They’re well-built, not cheap-feeling, and deliver great directional audio. But if you’re looking for a lightweight, on-the-go pair, these aren’t it. They’re heavy (well-balenced and comfortable), but definitely more of a “wear at home” situation.⚠️The sound quality.(Most important part)⚠️Here we go, the elephant in the room. If I had to sum up the sound quality in 3 words it would be "jaw-dropping beautiful" but if I had to sum it up in 1 word it would be "ugh". What does that mean you ask?They have the POTENTIAL to sound amazing. But when you first put them on, start playing your favorite song, get ready to be underwhelmed. My airpod pro 2's sounded better, no joke. Why?1) These headphones require immense amount of EQ work. I'm a bass lover, and if you are too, get ready to cry with disappointment when you first try them. Then after being sad, open the Audeze EQ and put in the preset I attached in my pictures. That's my bass preset. Gives you an idea of the potential these have, get ready to cry again, and in the best way possible this time.2) Dolby Atmos on PC. Let me save you some time, when you download "Audeze HQ" go ahead and just download "Dolby Access" along with it. It entirely changes the game with these, makes them worth the money. Without it they sound pretty dull and there's less separation of sound profiles.⠀3) Ear pads. This one may be opinion, but the default ear pads do not give your ears much room. Your ears are RIGHT by the drivers, and it can be intense especially for the highs. I bought the Wicked Cushions cooling pads, and it made it more comfortable AND more importantly changed the sound profile entirely. It gave the frequencies room to work their magic, especially with bass. Mess around with this because it could make or break you keeping this headset.That was a long one, but if you're going to take anything away from this review: These have some SERIOUS POTENTIAL, you just have to work with them. It WILL take hours upon hours of messing with EQS, to find or make one that works for you. If you are a music enthusiast this is a phenomenal next step in leveling up your music. Once you get everything situated, it's a beautiful experience, truly. The 90mm planar magnetic drivers are other-worldly when configured right. Good things are never easy am I right?🚫Noise cancellation.🚫This is actually pretty simple. No, it does not have active noise cancellation, yes it has passive noise cancellation. This was a hard one for me to swallow before purchasing. Airpods pro 2 changed my idea of what I require a headset to have (Noise cancellation is close to the top) I'm a pretty little princess now, great. Before these I thought of passive noise cancellation as a joke, but it actually does what you would think passive noise cancellation should do. I'm satisfied which is saying something since I'm so picky. They additionally have "side-tone" which is good for hearing things around you, but it's not amazing at higher volumes (gets too harsh), I prefer it off, or really low.🎮The difference between the Xbox and PlayStation versions?🎮 A LOT. Yet no one talks about it. The Xbox version is the only real choice for PC users, especially if you want Dolby Atmos (which I wouldn’t recommend these without). The PlayStation version can connect via Bluetooth or wired, but you’ll need to buy a Dolby Atmos license and use it wired to get decent sound quality. Bluetooth sounds great but has a noticeable drop in volume and quality. If you’re mostly on PlayStation and occasionally on your phone, the PlayStation version works. But if you’re planning to use these on PC, do NOT buy the PlayStation version just because it’s cheaper, you’ll regret it.🤓Annnd what should your decision be?🤓I want you to ask yourself these three questions.1. Are you okay and willing to spend a considerable amount of time setting these headphones up and messing with custom EQS?2. Are you looking at these more for music than competitive gaming?3. Are you looking for portable headphones you can use anytime, on the go?If you answered: 1. Yes 2. Yes 3. NoI would rate these headphones a 9.5/10, for anything else I would honestly only give these headphones a 6/10. These are for a very specific person, if you're willing to learn, or you knew these answers right away; these will be the absolute best headphones you've ever used. That's a guarantee. (Biggest pro is superb sound quality) If you're not sure this is you, I still think they are really good, I'm truly just trying to help set your expectations. These aren't the most intuitive or easy to set up (biggest con), but I think they are worth learning. Just be careful! Hope this was helpful.

I have owned every headset known to man that has been labeled “gaming headset”. I’ve always been disappointed despite the reviews on the internet that state it’s the #1 headset on the market.The audio is always muddied and the volume is never high enough. Even after hours of messing with eq settings the headsets remain muddied.Steelseries, Astro, Corsair, whatever. All muddied.During one of my “best gaming headset 2024” internet searches I came across these. Never heard of it before, but I saw the price and the purple headset, so I went for it. Price = quality right?I was blown away the first time I played a game with these on my head. The immersion was insane. The audio, for the first time in my life, was not muddy AT ALL. It was crystal clear.The bass from explosions was immersive. It didn’t rattle my ear drums at all, but boy did it make the most amazing explosion concussion bass noise I have ever heard in my life.The direction of everything around me was on point using the included Dolby atmos on windows. There was no doubt where the gunfire, explosions, and vehicles were. I knew exactly how far to move my mouse to see what I was hearing. I was doing 180 degree turns to shoot the player running up behind me with a knife.But after saying all of this I ended up returning them for personal reasons. The quality is phenomenal. The build is solid. There’s nothing wrong with them. The best headset I’ve ever owned.Reason for returning:While the direction of sound was amazing in 360 degrees I couldn’t isolate foot step sounds enough. I can’t state this is a con because I do have some hearing issues (small). The steps could have been there but I couldn’t isolate them with eq enough or turn the volume up higher.I considered getting an amp for them but apparently they have a built in amp and hooking an external amp up to them would blow up the headphones.So I returned them despite being the best headphones I’ve ever owned.I’ve since ordered a Hifiman xs with Schitt stack. With the amp I should have all the volume I need, and be able to isolate the footsteps based on my hearing needs.Pros:- the best headset I’ve ever owned-phenomenal sound-crystal clear audio right out of the box- directional sound is flawless-immersive. You are in the game.-Dolby atmos brings these to life. They were made for eachother.-the purple color is gorgeous in real life and worth the extra $- plug and play. Dongle and headset already paired just turn on- download Dolby atmos for windows. Once installed the Dolby app auto recognizes Maxwell. No authentication codes or registering required.Cons:- when you turn the headset on it announces “headset on” in a female voice. Depending on your volume setting this could burst your eardrums, or trigger your ptsd. “Who you screaming at, lady?! Jc!”- they are very fragile.- no clamping force on head- tilting head forward or back will cause the headset to slide.-the ear cups are heavy. If they slide off your head they will hit the floor very hard-despite the heavy weight they are not uncomfortable to wear for long periods of time.-be very careful when removing these from your head. Youre swinging around a sledge hammer.Games played:Star citizen - space never sounded so goodMw3 - not sure it wasn’t real lifeFfxiv- music sounded good. Full body rpg.Music: not my headset of choice. I like lots of bass. This headset has amazing concussion bass for games, but not for music.Audio: movies and YouTube videos I wasn’t a fan.Best gaming headset. For everything else have a different one. Imo.