After getting these headphones out of the box and putting them on, the first thing you’re going to notice is how comfortable they are.
The free-floating headband creates a perfect fit for any sized head, and the large, soft, memory foam earpads provide the perfect amount of pressure. Strong enough to feel like they’re not going anywhere as you swing your head side to side, and light enough that you’ll barely even notice they’re there after hours of gaming. It’s a good thing they’re wireless actually, because you’ll almost definitely walk away from your desk forgetting they’re on your head – which would result in disaster for any wired headset.
They also look great, and while they certainly do look like a piece of “gamer” equipment, you won’t get any weird looks if you happen to wear them on a work call or in the office – especially with the RGB lights turned off. A simple, sturdy design finished in matte/satin black with some gunmetal accents, and tasteful light-up Corsair symbols on each ear. The only other light is the microphone status indicator, helpfully letting you know whether it is on or off, another thoughtful little touch that shows the depth of care that went into designing the headset. Flip the mic up, the light goes red and it’s off, flip it down and the indicator is white for on.
Incredibly easy to set up, you can either use the included 2.4ghz USB transmitter, or connect via Bluetooth to your PC, PS5, or mobile.
It’s also totally plug-and-play, pop the USB in, turn it on, and immediately enjoy the incredible sound quality. There is more setup you can choose to do, such as working with Corsair iCUE to set different settings on the lights, or downloading Dolby Atmos for further audio setting tweaks, but it’s not necessary if you just want to get in a game or start listening to music.
One thing you really should do, however, is the SoundID setup through iCUE. This performs a series of interactive tests, checking your hearing and preference for sound, and setting up the headphones to suit you specifically. It even shows how healthy your hearing is in each ear – though it also mentions that the results do not constitute medical advice.
After this, you can take advantage of the custom 50mm neodymium audio drivers and the full frequency range of 20Hz – 20kHz. Hear all the highs, lows, and everything in between, exactly the way you want, especially if you can find a high-bit-rate version of your favourite songs. Supertramp, Flac, and the HS80 Max are guaranteed to give anyone goosebumps.
As you’d expect from a gaming headset, they’re great for gaming too. The Dolby software has some great tweaks to improve gaming audio performance, like prioritizing positional accuracy so you know exactly where those footsteps came from. While a lot of it is down to each game’s sound design, playing something like 'Battlefield' or 'Call of Duty' you’ll notice the difference between this headset and others that might choose style over substance. Corsair shows you can have both.
Corsair may have created the holy grail of gaming headsets with the HS80 Max. Great sound customised specific to your taste, unbelievable comfort, great battery life, and wireless on top of everything else.
If you’re in the market for a new headset, do yourself a favour and get this one.
