2020’s Best Wireless Gaming Headset
By: Alex Rowe
Tags: Gadgets, Tech, Gaming, Music, Technology

2020’s Best Wireless Gaming Headset

Photo taken by the author.

The wireless sector is where most of the action and excitement is in gaming headsets today. Gamers and peripheral companies are both engaged in an aggressive campaign to get rid of all wires without sacrificing performance, and with the launch of new consoles this year, there’s no sign of that trend slowing down.

Numerous brands released completely new wireless headsets in 2020 to try and win this lucrative market…but for me, the clear winner in this field is the HyperX Cloud II Wireless.

When the headset was first announced, I was skeptical. Was HyperX really going to jam wireless parts into an older model and call it good? After testing it out, my fears were unfounded and silly. This is nowhere near a hasty refresh. In fact, it’s a truly new headset, sharing only a name and a few small details with its predecessor. It has a new industrial design with an improved sound signature, and its comfort, battery life, and performance rival the premium offerings from any other company.

Photo taken by the author.

The HyperX Cloud II Wireless sells for $149.99 (official site here). That’s not an affiliate link, because I think those have no place in reviews. It comes in the classic HyperX red and black color scheme, and it is mainly targeted at PC gamers, though it also works with PlayStation and Nintendo Switch consoles. On PC, you’ll get access to HyperX’s latest 7.1 surround virtualization system with full support for 7.1 audio input from games, and you can use the Ngenuity software to tweak your settings and see your remaining battery. The headset comes with a detachable noise canceling microphone, and features a USB-C charge port with the necessary cable.

With a 30-hour battery life and light 300g weight combined with HyperX’s famous memory foam cushions, it’s a perfect choice for marathon gaming, working, or listening sessions. It’s lighter than many of the wired headsets I reviewed this year, and although it lacks RGB lighting, its long battery life more than makes up for that.

Wireless performance is also surprisingly good. I test wireless signal strength by connecting to the PC in my home office at one end of my apartment, then walking around the building. The Cloud II Wireless is one of the few models I’ve tried where I had essentially full coverage across the run of my apartment, even with multiple walls in the way.

Photo taken by the author.

Sound quality is nigh-on peerless for the gaming space, with my favorite sound signature I’ve ever heard in a HyperX product. It’s clean, balanced, accurate, and powerful. The sound rivals flagship audio products that cost twice as much, and like its wired predecessor it once again proves that you don’t have to spend ludicrous amounts of money to get good audio. The sound is tuned to hit a sweet spot of performance that should please just about everyone. The internal amplifier is more than capable of driving the headset to high volumes, and the sound doesn’t have any obvious digital noise issues.

The lack of a wired backup connection or Bluetooth support means this doesn’t work with Xbox consoles or mobile phones, though HyperX has a history of supporting those platforms and I wouldn’t be shocked if new revisions of this design come out in the future.

If you’d like to read more of my thoughts on this headset, check out my full review. I spent a couple of weeks throwing every test I could think of at this headset, and trying to think of things about it I didn’t like…and all I could come up with is the lack of a wired backup connection, and that it doesn’t come with a carrying bag like some other HyperX models. It continued to impress me no matter what I tried, and in the last two months of continued regular use, I still have no genuine complaints. It’s rare that I can say that about a headset.

Photo taken by the author.

This is easily the best wireless headset I’ve tried this year, and one of the best gaming headsets I’ve ever used. It’s the new standard by which I’ll measure $150 gaming audio products going forward, and it’s a great choice for general listening, gaming, working from home, and any other audio needs you might have as long as you own a compatible platform.

I hope that this is a sign of things to come from HyperX, because this is an exceptional headset that delivers everything you could ask for at this price point. It’s a true return to form, and a standout product in the company’s large product lineup. I feel silly for ever being skeptical about it, and I can’t wait to see what more comes from this newly designed platform going forward.