Update December 1: The Audeze Maxwell has remained on discount but fluctuated in price a little over the weekend. It went up in price slightly to $274.35 but is now down to $267.73 which is cheaper than our originally spotted $269.99 price.
Audeze Maxwell | 90mm planar magnetic drivers | 10 Hz to 50,000 Hz | Wireless |
Well, here it is. The ultimate in , the Audeze Maxwell makes use of a set of planar magnetic drivers to deliver audio quality that makes reviewers gush the world over. It's a bit heavy, and the software isn't great, but otherwise this is a symphony of gaming headset luxury—as we found in
Price check:
Before I joined the team at PC Gamer, I had my own little hardware blog. Being a small fish in a big pond, it was difficult for me to get hardware samples to review, so I used to borrow (steal) recent hardware purchases off of friends for a few days to review—before reluctantly handing them back.
👉 👈
It's still not exactly cheap, mind, but right now I reckon this sonic marvel is still a fantastic Black Friday deal.
It's not just me that thinks so, either. Our hardware overlord Dave James gave it , a score I think is perfectly reflective of its immense abilities.
So what makes it so special? Well, the key here is its planar magnetic drivers, normally the reserve of hyper-expensive audio gear not meant to be purchased by us mere mortals. They are truly fabulous units, capable of stonkingly good bass and sparkly treble in all the right ratios, which is enough to make your ears tingle whether you're music-listening, gaming, or simply kicking back with a movie or two.
Seriously, if you've never heard a pair, you're missing out. But the trick here is encompassing these wonder-drivers in a gaming headset that makes a whole lot of sense no matter which way you look at it.
It's comfy, it's got a choice of a detachable cardioid mic or built-in beamforming units, a 2.4 GHz wireless dongle and Bluetooth 5.3 support for audio on the [[link]] move, and an 80 hour + battery life. Pretty much a shopping list of everything I want in the right there, and oh look, it's our top pick in exactly that category.
Of course, nothing's truly perfect. At 490 g it's a pretty weighty affair, although thanks to an adjustable headband it sits nicely atop your dome over long sessions. The passive noise cancellation is merely fine, not exceptional, and the software could do with some work.
But if you're chasing ultimate sound quality, there's simply no better wireless headset you can buy right [[link]] now. At full price it's just enough money to make me hold back my wallet, but with $30 off? It's seriously tempting.
I get lots of fabulous headsets in to review now, but honestly? [[link]] I'd trade them all for this one, and that's about the best recommendation I could possibly give a set of cans.