Being a gamer since the 80s, you learn a few things about competitiveness and immersiveness. And how gaming without the proper audio especially in fps games…is almost like playing without a weapon

And how having a proper purpose-built gaming headphones like these new Playstation Pulse Elite Headphones from Sony can turn you into a commando like Arnold Swartznegger.

So, I bought the top 5 most mentioned gaming headsets for PS5 in my previous gaming headset video. I put them through a scoring system, and in the end, I sent 4 of them back & kept the winning one.

I won't ruin the ending of that video for you.

Instead, I'll link it at the end of this one. I will use that same scoring system here and benchmark the pulse elites against the winner from that video and also the original pulse 3Ds.

So, by the end, you'll know if your money is well spent here as opposed to some of the well-known third-party brands like Razer, Logitech Astro, Turtle Beach, and Steel series.

Scoring

So here's how it works, 5 categories scored out of 10. Style, comfort, usability, sound quality, mic test.

The mic test could be the deal breaker as it will be a blind test bringing in a third party to compare the current champ to these new ones from Sony. That will give us an unbiased 2nd opinion via an online game.

Style

Okay, so in regards to the best style to match the original PS5 colours and design, the Pulse Elite is very hard to beat—just like the original 3Ds were.

The materials are pretty much identical to the PS5 shade of white. The contrasting black elements give it that iconic PS5 look. Some say that it’s got those imperial stormtrooper vibes.

Interesting fact, I was a stormtrooper in a Star Wars movie once. When you look closely at the headband's inner side, you will notice the PlayStation monogram pattern that is exactly like the ones on the official controllers.

It's a nice little aesthetic detail that most people probably won't notice. But you aren't like most people. You're a gamer with the eyes of a hawk and the reflexes of a cat. The headband setup is similar to the original Pulse 3d headphones, but the big improvement here is the extension of the headband on both sides. And you'll see why this is an important upgrade in a minute.

Another solid upgrade compared to the regular Pulse 3D is that it is larger and has more oval cutouts in the plush earcups. The originals have smaller circular cutouts, which make them unsuitable for anyone with larger ears or lots of piercings

Overall, these do score high in terms of look and feel and build quality. They get top marks 9 out of 10…and 10 because there's always room for improvement.

For example, the dongle with it is USB A & quite large. A smaller USB C dongle would be an improvement & maybe a more breathable material over the padding.

Usability

Alright, so Sony has made another design upgrade, and it's a big one: the location of the onboard Controls. They're now found on the underside of the extended headband on the right side, making them even more accessible.

There is a learning curve to these. But once you get that muscle memory down, these buttons are much easier to use than buttons and dials built into the ear cups themselves. The buttons are nice and tactile, and it uses a volume rocker as opposed to a dial, so you won't accidentally swipe the wheel and blast your ears into oblivion.

This is something that I can't say for my current gaming headphone champion. It's quite rare, but it can happen—but not here. There's also an audio input jack, which means you can plug these into any audio device with a jack.

I also like that the Elite now has an extending mic with a mute button at the end and an indicator light. This is a massive upgrade. But the greatest thing about this headset is that you can use the mute button on the pad to mute and unmute the headphones. You also get on-screen graphics to display this and a visual volume level, which gives these some usability bonus points.

The battery is a very important usability aspect. You can use it for up to 30 hours on a single charge, hopefully giving you enough time to figure out that age old question “how to kill that that has no life.”

playstation pulse elite power button.jpg

If the battery depletes whilst trying to figure that out, with just 10 minutes you get up to 2 hours of playtime. The last significant usability features are the BT dual connectivity and Sony's proprietary PS link for the Portal.

This outscores the current champ in terms of usability with PS5, primarily due to its seamless integration with the PS5 software, which is 9/10. It would be better if you didn't need the dongle at all.

Sound Quality

Okay, now let's talk about sound, which is at the heart of Sony as a company. These being the Elite, of course, means they will naturally be better than the Pulse 3D. The drivers are more premium and are, in fact, drivers that are typically used on studio monitor headphones.

Sony is going for sound accuracy with these. And when you consider that game designers will be using studio monitor headphones when designing a game's sound, it's hard to argue against this approach.

The sound quality is crystal clear and not at all too powerful in the bass department. You do get a good sense of the booms and explosions, but not as much as others I've tested. And I think for more competitive gaming, you don't want details in the higher and mid frequencies washed away by explosions.

The sound stage is fantastic, and it's important to remember that these are first-party PlayStation headphones. They are one of the few out there that support Sony's own Tempest 3D audio, which is best described as an emulated spatial audio effect. So, these are second to none for directional sound cues.

I'm very pleased with the performance compared to my current go-to PS5 headphones. It's equally as good, but the Tempest 3D gives it even more of an edge. Some may want the extra bass, so I will give them a solid 8.5.

Comfort

Now, comfort is a very important aspect of a set of headphones. The style here is very similar to the Pulse 3D's, with a spring-loaded inner headband. It applies gentle resistance when you put them on, and because they're so lightweight, they feel like they're hovering over your head. So, the downward force feels minimal.

There's a gentle clamping pressure, but they sit firm. The way the earcups enclose my ears holds them in place, and this also dramatically benefits from the passive noise cancelling.

These are very comfortable to wear. In terms of how they could be better, maybe a more breathable material on the earcups. When they're resting around the neck, it'd be nice if they could twist inwards a bit more so they're not wedged under my double chin.

So, 8 out of 10 for comfort, they're excellent.

Mic Test

Alright, now is the moment of truth, the mic test. And the Pulse 3D's lost a lot of points in this department. I think it was mainly because of the position of the mic on the earcup, which meant it was much further away from your mouth…which is a big advantage for any headphones with a boom mic.

This should now be massively improved. Let's test it out. Watch THE MIC TEST HERE

Summary

So the Playstation Pulse Elite is designed with one console and handheld in mind. Other Gaming headphones focus a lot more on PC gaming, which is great, and that does translate well here on PS5…but sometimes, those headphones' best features are reserved for PC gaming.

And with the Pulse Elite, yes, you can use them with PCs and other devices, but their strength is really here oh PS5 or PS Portal. So, if Playstation gaming is your number one use case…these headphones are top tier and well worth the £129 asking price, in my opinion.

Okay, so the overall score for the Playstation Pulse Elite is ___, and now they are my official PS5 champion and my new go-to gaming headphones for PS5. Now, here comes a new challenger

I also have another pair of gaming headphones from another division of Sony. The new Sony Inzone H5. Could these de-throne the Pulse Elites… I don't know. Maybe. Make sure to subscribe to that. Because, I'll be back.

And if you want to consider some other top tier options, here is my original top 5 comparison, which is on screen now.

Learn more