If there’s one thing that might hold you back from your next headset purchase being cable-free, then it’s likely to be the battery life. While a good wireless gaming headset unchains you from your desk, it does mean keeping an eye on the battery indicator and rummaging around for charging cables on occasion.
Well, rejoice, because our best wireless gaming headset has a truly monstrous 300-hour battery life, meaning those visits to the wall plug will be much less frequent. I’ve found the HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless for $139 at Amazon, and at that price, it’s an even more obvious pick for cable-free gaming audio.
It’s not just that battery life worth shouting about, either. With a set of 50mm dynamic drivers, the Cloud Alpha Wireless offers a powerful, rich, and well-balanced audio experience, perfectly suited to gaming audio and more than capable of delivering your tunes with gusto as well, as we found in our review.
And while those red accents might look a bit out-there in photos, seeing one in person reveals that it’s a bit more refined. Sure, there’s a little bit of gamer aesthetic going on here, but it’s not outlandish enough to make you look like too much of a dork in a meeting or professional scenario.
Plus, it’s properly comfortable, thanks to some thick padding under the headband and some pleasingly squishy earpads designed to hold the set onto your skull, and over your ears, with aplomb.
Not only that, but they deliver a meaningful amount of passive noise cancellation, too. This isn’t an all-singing, all-dancing ANC model, but for keeping your desk mates, partners, and noisy neighbors at bay they’ll do just fine.
It’s not all roses, of course. The mic is merely acceptable, although it’s still a darned sight better than the scratchy, tinny variety you’ll find on a lot of gaming headsets. And if you’re looking for huge amounts of volume, you might find yourself leaving it at the max setting, which is plenty loud enough for most people but could go a touch higher without caving your eardrums in.
Still, even with the odd compromise, what you get here for under $130 is a headset that will keep going, and going, and going, long after lesser headsets have given up. Several members of the PC Gamer team use this exact headset as a daily driver, and all will attest that it’s a fine example of the form.
