In the world of gaming audio, consumers are mostly used to household endemic names such as Logitech, HyperX, or SteelSeries, to name a few. Some might turn to nicher brands such as Sony’s INZONE or the now-defunct EPOS, but the vast majority of players use headphones created by gaming and PC peripheral manufacturers.
But what about brands with dozens of years of history in the audio realm? Companies that produce products not just for entertainment purposes, but for studios and live music shows. In this article, Esports Insider highlights high-end audio brands that also create specialised products for gamers and esports players.
These headsets are preferred by those who use their headsets to listen to music when not playing games and are usually created with the same drivers and specifications as other gear the companies produce. Alongside decades of audio-focused innovation and experience, these products still include most of the features required for gaming, such as microphones and some form of surround sound.
Bose
Bose is an American audio equipment brand created in 1964 in Massachusetts. It’s most known for producing headphones and home audio equipment, such as speakers. Its line of noise-cancelling headphones, called Quiet Comfort, is widely regarded as being some of the best in the market.
With the company’s impressive noise-cancelling technology, it made sense for Bose to create a headset that would be used for gamers. This led to the creation of the Bose QuietComfort 35 series of headsets, which are both wired and wireless and feature the company’s signature sound and technology. The headset is also recognisably Bose and does not give into the ‘gaming aesthetic’, which is sometimes preferred by users.
The headsets proved to be a very good choice for large LAN tournaments because of their noise-cancelling technology. Bose even partnered with Riot Games to be an official partner for the League of Legends World Championship in the past.
The QuietComfort 35 usually retails at around £150.
Beyerdynamic
If you’ve ever watched a Twitch stream and wondered what brand the large headphones with fleece earcups were, well, they’re created by Beyerdynamic, one of the world’s most-regarded consumer audio brands. The company was created in Berlin over 100 years ago and is most known for its studio headphones from the DT series, such as the DT 770 PRO, which were released in 1985 and are regarded to be a staple in music production and audio engineering.
Beyerdynamic also produces gaming-focused gear outside of its standard lineup of products, which includes headphones and headsets, as well as microphones. Contrary to the Bose headphones mentioned above, Beyerdynamic does give in to the gaming aesthetic a bit, with a cleaner design and subtle colour accents on its MMX series of headsets and the subtle hints of colour on its TYGR range (the name itself is something you’d never find on a studio headphone).
The MMX 300 retails at around £200, while the TYGR 300 retails at around £160.
Audio-Technica
A Japanese brand first created in the 1960s, Audio-Technica is known for its headphones, microphones and turntables, as well as turntable cartridges. Out of all the brands in this list, the Japanese giant has one of the most diverse lineups of products which includes different types of headphones and earphones, ranging from wireless in-ear models to studio equipment and gaming headsets.
Just as expected from a high-end audio brand, Audio-Technica headsets, such as the ATH-G1, are more focused on sound clarity than aesthetics, but are still distinctively influenced by gaming products, with the G1 offering splashes of blue colour throughout. Interestingly, Audio-Technica produces a creator-focused headset called the ATH-M50x which comes in digital and analogue versions.
The product also comes with a custom-created microphone to provide some of the best possible sound quality that can come from a headset.
The ATH-G1 retails for around £150.
Audeze
On the upper parts of gaming headset offerings sits Audeze, a company known for its planar magnetic headsets that can cost more than a thousand dollars (some models can cost even five times as much). Audeze is an American company launched in 2008 as a no-compromise venture to pursue the best in sound quality. This also includes creating gaming headsets.
Known for their approach to building audio, a good-quality pair of Audeze headphones is not something that is stumbled upon often. However, the company’s gaming products are a bit more approachable while still offering exceptional sound quality.
The Audeze Maxwell headphones are the company’s most popular gaming product, featuring 90mm planar magnetic drivers and a set of high-end features that only those very interested in audio will cherish. But the true star of the lineup is the LCD-GX headset, which is probably the most high-end audio product with a built-in microphone you can get your hands on.
The LCD-GX retails at around £900, while the Maxwell models retail between £320 and £350, depending on specification.
