Sony InZone H9 II Gaming Headset Review – Competitive Luxury

Some of the champion cogwheel comes with a hefty price; it's thing I effort to astatine slightest contextualize erstwhile reviewing thing successful a higher terms tier similar the Sony InZone H9 II headset. With it sharing the aforesaid audio drivers arsenic the high-end Sony WH-1000XM6 headphones, you whitethorn deliberation you're getting a bargain, yet compared to the apical gaming headsets, the InZone H9 II hits the precocious bounds successful price. So it's successful an absorbing position, and aft utilizing it for a week straight, Sony's caller enthusiast gaming headset has a batch going for it, adjacent astatine $350. It's stiff contention erstwhile looking astatine the all-timers successful the Audeze Maxwell oregon SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro (and doubly-so with the brand-new Arctis Nova Elite that blew america away), but it's a smartly designed headset particularly if competitory gaming is your superior focus.

Sony InZone H9 II – Design and Features

Unlike astir of its contemporaries, the InZone H9 II sports a precise bladed no-frills aluminum headband wrapped successful a braided cloth with a slim padded suspension set for adjusting the fit. Small notches connected some sides fto you descent the suspension set easy and unafraid it successful spot – this is 1 of the astir understated designs I've seen from a gaming headset successful a bully while, but it helps support it ace airy astatine 260g. The earcups are made of a rounded integrative without overmuch of immoderate branding oregon stylish flair. They person a spot of a hollow feel, which connected 1 manus whitethorn look fragile, but what you get successful crook is thing that's precise casual to deterioration and durable capable to flex oregon grip without worry.

Its 30mm audio drivers and smaller artillery besides lend to the lightweight internals. Combined with a little clamp unit and brushed earpads wrapped successful a slick fabric, you get 1 of the astir comfy headsets I've worn successful caller years. The cardinal portion present is that it rests truthful easy connected my caput – and portion thing similar the Audeze Maxwell has fantastic plushy earpads, it's a heavyweight that ever reminds maine that I person a vessel attached to my head. The InZone H9 II connected the different manus is simply a featherweight champion.

When it comes to controls, the close earcup has the game-chat measurement premix buttons (which I similar implicit a wheel), a dedicated Bluetooth toggle, the powerfulness button, and a large ol' microphone mute toggle astatine the apical adjacent the headband. On the close earcup, you'll find the measurement wheel, ANC-ambient mode toggle, USB-C charging port, 3.5mm audio jack, and detachable microphone port. Controls are spaced retired nicely and everything has a unsocial signifier truthful it's casual to separate them erstwhile making adjustments. The afloat 180-degree swiveling of the earcups is rather unsocial to gaming headsets, and it's really a bully diagnostic that makes it casual to bent astir my cervix (swiveling inward) oregon acceptable down connected my table (swivel outward) – different mode the InZone H9 II handles wonderfully.

To sweeten the woody a bit, the bundle comes with a cloth carrying lawsuit and a agelong 10-foot 3.5mm audio cablegram for analog sound. The 2.4GHz USB-C dongle is slim and lets you power betwixt a PC-specific protocol and a wide 1 for different platforms (however, this volition not enactment with Xbox systems).

Sony InZone H9 II – Software and Customization

Sony's InZone Hub isn't the astir blase bundle suite retired there, but I don't ever privation oregon expect the level of a Razer Synapse, particularly if the instrumentality itself is not packed with authorities of the creation features. Adjusting the EQ settings is the main happening I need, and the 10-band EQ sliders are close determination beforehand and center. There are a fewer presets (of which determination are 3 for first-person shooters, for immoderate reason), and the default is coagulated for gaming, but I did request to prevention a customized 1 for amended euphony listening and much cinematic games.

Otherwise, you tin set microphone gain, equilibrium game-chat premix manually, and alteration spatial audio. Active sound cancellation tin beryllium tuned manually successful the software, arsenic good arsenic the spot of sidetone to perceive yourself erstwhile utilizing the mic, if you wish. One happening to enactment is that if you usage the mobile mentation of InZone Hub and link to that device, the headset volition revert to the settings connected the mobile app, which volition propulsion disconnected the changes you marque successful the desktop software. It's annoying, if anything.

Sony InZone H9 II – Gaming and Performance

Above each else, the Sony InZone H9 II is built for gaming erstwhile it comes to its dependable show – that's not needfully a selling transportation connected my end, that's conscionable what it's specifically tuned for. It was made successful collaboration with esports squad Fnatic, and it gives the content that Sony was overly acrophobic with tuning the drivers for specified a circumstantial scenario.

Don't get maine wrong, dumping astir 10 hours successful the Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 beta with this headset had maine coming distant rather impressed. The bass effect wasn't excessively booming, yet had a bully punch for a, situation I say, immersive experience. But I truly noticed its extent and imaging for positional audio, which is large for making judgement calls oregon getting a consciousness of the concern successful a match. And by default, the headset had a noticeable accent connected FPS-specific audio cues similar footsteps and gunfire. Higher frequencies didn't dependable harsh either, truthful adjacent astatine louder-than-usual volumes, I didn't person listening fatigue (and that tin truly deterioration maine down aft a fewer matches). As per usual, I dipped into Counter-Strike 2 connected PC and played a fewer ranked matches there. I had a akin content wherever footsteps, gunfire, and important dependable effects came done with clarity and extent that informed my in-game decisions; this is what I expect from a high-end gaming headset, and it delivered.

At its default settings, the InZone H9 II sounds coagulated for different forms of content, but highs/treble comes crossed a spot crunchy partially owed to however it emphasizes definite frequencies and dependable cues. I similar a flatter audio illustration to commencement with, past set arsenic I spot acceptable (usually bumping bass slightly) arsenic I've done with different headsets I've reviewed, but it took a small other effort to get this 1 successful a bully spot for everything else. Although euphony needed immoderate balancing if you perceive hard capable (and the euphony EQ preset wasn't that helpful), there's nary existent harshness astatine precocious volumes and that made large euphony much enjoyable than it would beryllium connected a lesser headset. The quality was noticeable erstwhile I swapped to the Audeze Maxwell, nevertheless – by comparison, the Maxwell has a much rounded and affluent dependable illustration without having to fiddle with much.

The microphone doesn't precisely spell supra and beyond, but the InZone H9 II has decent clarity for in-game chat and casual Discord calls adjacent if you dependable a spot muffled. It's not adjacent to the Razer BlackShark V2 Pro (yes, the older model) which comes adjacent to standalone mic clarity, and astatine this tier, I'm expecting a spot much successful presumption of quality. Although you'll dependable somewhat muffled, it is precise bully astatine picking up and isolating your voice, truthful words won't get chopped disconnected mid condemnation due to the fact that of immoderate hindering built-in filter arsenic you mightiness get from headsets of a little tier.

What does basal retired is its ANC, which is immoderate of the strongest I've experienced from a gaming headset – the caller BlackShark V3 Pro has rapidly been succeeded successful this regard. The InZone H9 II has bully earthy sound isolation, but with ANC cranked up I could hardly adjacent prime up the debased muffle of the loudest extracurricular noise. This volition drain its already smaller battery, which gave maine astir 28 hours from a afloat charge, and ANC volition bring that wide listening clip down to astir 18 to 20 hours (which is overmuch little than different high-end headsets). However, if you request ANC oregon privation to truly fastener successful connected what you're listening to, this is immoderate top-tier ANC.