EPOS H6 Pro (Open Back)

I cycle between two pairs of headphones while gaming, depending on my mood and I use either; Audeze Maxwell or Epos H6 Pro Open + Epos Gsx 300. I’d give you the following recommendations: Audeze Maxwell if you want closed back and wireless, Epos H6 Pro Open if you want open back and wired.

Arctis nova pro is garbage in my opinion it just doesn't have any bass even when you EQ it remains very weak and thin sounding in this area however treble comes across very clear and detailled and the imaging is pretty good if you only play competitive gaming it's a solid option. Though if you like to play story games i recommand something like the maxwell it sounds absolutly amazing but the comfort is as bad as it can be if you are really big person with strong neck and very little ears it might be comfy to you but if not the weight of the headphones will kill the back of your neck in less than 2 hours and the shallow pads will hurt your ears and don't even think about changing pads yeah it fixes the depth issue of the pads but it adds even more weight. So as a all rounder headphones i recommand the alienware pro wireless it sounds almost as good as the maxwell and it's way more comfortable however you ears gets very spicy in about a hour because the space inside the ear cups is not really there but it really never bothers me even now with the very hot weather. Edit: Ah yeah and if you are ever interested by wired headphones you have two others headphones that are worth it the pc38x and the epos H6 pro i don't know how the first sound but it gets a lot of praise around the gaming audio community and if you take the h6 pro make sure to take the open back i've tried the closed back and it's not really good sounding headphones compared to the open back which has more bass more detailled sound and it doesn't have this echoing boomy sound that the closed back have

For budget they recommend in ears and a separate mic to get better quality for far less. And to be fair, you almost always do.  But from a gamer perspective, not an audiophile perspective, headsets are way more convenient. Plus, I think you can get good gaming headsets these days, you just have to be selective. HyperX Cloud IIs and now IIIs were some of the first to be decent. But Epos (which used to be Seinheisser) has some great options (like the H3x for $20 or the Open back H6pro for $80)

I got a basically new pair of Game Ones as “used” last year because they didn’t have a cable. Grabbed a cable and gave them to my kid who uses them for Fortnite and loves them. I’ve tried them, and love them as well. Also have tried the PC38X, and they’re fantastic as well, but I ended up going with the EPOS H6Pro Open. They’re so comfy, and sound so good. Either those or my HD6XX with a Modmic. If you love your Game Ones, treat yourself to a new set of the Dekoni Audio pads for them. They’re comfy and maintain the sound signature.

I have found that the EPOS H6Pro (both closed and open) can be had on the cheaper side, and I prefer them to the PC38X as someone that wears glasses , as they have more swivel/pivot and deeper cups, and less of a clamp. They’re also very solid for positional audio, and overall great audio quality with a better build. That’s not to say the 38X is a slouch, as they’re fantastic, I personally prefer the H6Pro. The Blacksharks are comfy and lightweight, decent sound and mic quality, and pretty well priced. I am not a fan of Razer’s plasticky build quality on them.

The EPOS H6Pro closed might fit the bill, but EPOS is out of gaming for 18 months now, so they’re basically secondary market items, but they should be in your price range. Very comfy, very well built, slightly heavy, decent sound (IMO better than the Razers). I highly recommend a pair of wicked cushions cooling pads with them for ultimate comfort (but even heavier than stock). Alternatively, you can try the current budget closed back king, Fiio FT1, with a boom mic cable. I haven’t tried them personally but they rate highly.

Logitech G Pro X (wired) EPOS H6PRO (open or closed) HyperX Cloud Alpha (or Cloud Stinger 2 if on tighter budget) SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3 (wired USB‑C) the EPOS H6PRO is the strongest single recommendation. If you want to save more cash but still avoid trash mics, the Logitech G Pro X (wired) is the next best bet, especially if PC play and Discord are a big part of your usage.

Honestly if you liked the sound of the A50s but hated the comfort, you’re not alone; that headband pressure gets rough over time. If comfort is your main issue, a couple solid options: * **SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7/Pro** – way better headband system (ski goggle style), much lighter feel for long sessions * **Razer BlackShark V2 Pro (2023)** – super comfortable clamp + really solid mic if you care about that * **Sennheiser / EPOS stuff (like Game One / H6Pro)** – best overall sound quality in this range, just less “feature heavy” If you’re playing FPS, I’d actually lean toward something with cleaner tuning rather than bass-heavy “gaming” sound, makes footsteps way easier to pick out. Also worth mentioning: a lot of headsets sound wildly different depending on EQ. Even something like the Nova or BlackShark can go from “meh” to insanely good for footsteps with the right setup. Just keep in mind though, any tuned setup is only as good as the current in-game audio. If the game drops a patch and changes audio (which happens a lot), you’ll usually need to tweak things again. If you want, I can help you dial in a setup specifically for the games you play

They're effectively the old Sennheiser Gaming One with some tweaks, which were, indeed, great headphones. No idea why Sennheiser stopped making them in favour handing most of the branding to drop and going about doing something else. I've got the GSP 600, PC38X and a H6 Pro - all these are similar and they're all great.