VIRTUOSO MAX WIRELESS Gaming Headset (PC/PlayStation)

I love my Corsair. It’s pricy, but it’s really good and has lasted me, like…4 years with 0 issues https://www.bestbuy.com/product/corsair-virtuoso-max-wireless-gaming-headset-for-pc-mac-ps5-ps4-and-mobile-carbon/J39TSCH7YQ/sku/6594136?sb_share_source=PDP&ref=app_pdp&loc=pdp_page

Tbh if its immersion, I love the playstation pulse earbuds.  They feel comfortable and the sound is great for me.  Outside of that. Can't go wrong with a pair of corsair virtuoso max's, they are super comfy.  https://www.corsair.com/us/en/p/gaming-headsets/ca-9011372-ww/virtuoso-max-wireless-gaming-headset-carbon-ca-9011372-ww

Ok so I’ll answer the actual question here as I have a bit of experience of high end non gamer and gamer. So on my main set up I use a shure mv7 mic and Sennheiser 800hd with a dac/amp. It’s wired of course and yes the soundstage is excellent. Loads of times I’ve taken them off thinking someone was in the apartment and it was actually a sound in game… some sounds I didn’t know even existed in the game. That’s considered top tier high end and I have it for content creation and gaming. However, prior to that I had the steel series pro wireless (it’s the elite model). Honestly, they were just “ok” and for the money I spent, very disappointing in the sound department. For the money, not worth it at all. The battery swapping was neat, but I think ultimately a gimmick. So for my current gaming laptop that’s set up in the living room I used the Bose QC45 (basically the Bose Ultra in today’s money). You can grab them on sale for like $299. Now these sound great. Great ANC and solid experience and perfect for travelling too. But here’s the issue people forget to mention… if you are connecting wirelessly via Bluetooth, then you’re going get latency, and if you connect the internal mic on top via Bluetooth, then the sound actually changes to that “tin” effect as Bluetooth is unable to do the input and downput stream effectively (I know someone is going to argue the technical aspect here and I hope they do because I know I have that wrong, but Google many of these non gamer headsets over Bluetooth and you’re going to get loads of examples of how the mic fucks it unless you got into a wired connection/seperae mic situation). If that set up works for you then great, if not then you’re ironically back to gamer headsets where many come with a dedicated 2.4ghz dongle for windows/cinsole connection that give a direct signal feed, effectively reducing your latency to almost zero. They just connect with zero issues. So ironically I’m now back on “gamer” headphones for my laptop. I did my research and went for the Corsair Virtuoso MAX. Not something you see in lists that much I know but they are truly excellent… for the price. The issue is they released at $330 or so and tried to put themselves in the high tier gaming bracket with the Audeze and Steelseries. However, I picked some up this week for $199 on sale and at that price I think they are a steal. I can’t believe the sound quality of them wirelessly, and for sure the dedicated dingle makes them better for gaming than my Bose QC headphones that connected via Bluetooth (and sound as good as my Bose). I went Corsair as I already had a high end gaming pair in steelseries and they were crap. And I read the Audeze literally fail after a year from so many Reddit posts. No idea how the corsair will hold up, but the build quality is also great with a fantastic mic boom. I wouldn’t only get them at the $199 sale price though. No way the $330 price. So as other says: - high end wired non gamer headset + mic is gold standard but pricey and not always feasible - if unable to do then something like a Bose/Sonos style headset, but then be real careful on how it’s connected as Bluetooth can bring its own problems so avoid unless wired. - if you do have to connect wirelessly and have a smaller budget, then avoid the expensive gaming headsets and go mid-tier with a sale like the Corsair virtuoso max, which for me sound just as good, if not better than some of the so called high end gaming headsets. Good luck!

After going through more than 10 gaming headsets, including "high end stuff" like the virtuoso max, all of them are honestly just not that good. They have either broken on me due to shoddy materials, or the audio quality is subpar for the price, or the mic is not that great. I understand now why audiophiles who are gamers recommend just getting a cheap Sennheiser headset for the same price as a gaming headset and it will have significantly better audio quality, the only downside is there is no mic attached to them. Basically that's the ONLY upside i see with using a gaming headset, the attached mic. The Virtuoso max does have a really nice attached mic, but it's still really not worth such a massive price especially since the headband snapped on me and the headset starts to hurt your head and ears after a while.

I like my pair, but I had to recently do an RMA with them because the fabric on the headband was pulling away from the headband. So when I sent them back, I sent everything that came with them back to Corsair, but when they sent me my refurbished set, they didn’t send it with a case, so now I don’t have a case for my headphones.

It depends on your budget, but I would suggest you check out the Audeze Maxwell 2. After many years of being a loyal Corsair customer for headsets I switched to the Maxwell 2 after going through 3 Virtuoso Max units. The plastic headbands kept cracking, and Corsair seems to be unwilling to make a design change to accommodate people with adult-sized heads.

Loving my Corsair Virtuoso Maxs

A solid 8. The range could be better & in 2025 they should be compatible with all platforms. There’s currently 2 separate models for pc/ps and xbox/pc. The pc/ps version(the ones i have)has access to a few things the xbox version doesn’t like the pause & skip buttons. Something about the sound control and maybe other features I’m forgetting. The boxes look *extremely* similar so i bought the “wrong” but still better pair as an xbox/pc player & i just don’t think that should be a thing anymore.