Wired vs. Wireless Headsets (Headphones+Mic)

TL;DR: What are the pros and cons of each one (regardless of price and brand).

What I'm more interested in now is the pros and cons between wired and wireless headsets as I've never really considered or heard of wireless headsets for PCs. Or at least I've never heard anything bad or good about wireless headsets

I've gone through 3 Logitech wired headsets (headphones+microphone) in a year and they keep breaking on me because of heavy use. That's not to say Logitech is making cheap stuff. I bought it because it was cheap and did what I wanted it to do. The center volume and microphone mute/unmute fob is what is causing me to go through these headsets. They're cheaply made and rightly so but when they start to go the headphones quickly lose their function and sometimes the sound is trying to be split between the laptop speakers and the headset.

 

Here is the low-down:
Wireless audio is an expensive novelty. Whether it is right for you depends entirely on what you want out of your audio equipment, and how much you are willing to pay for it. Wireless audio will cost you around $125-$150 at a minimum (ignoring sales / rebates), so I will use a budget of $150 as an example for the rest of my post.

If you are a person that cares about audio quality in music above all else, then your best bet would be to buy $150 entry-level wired audiophile headphones. Headphones like Audio Technica ATH-A700, Audio Technica ATH-M50, Grado SR125, or Sennheiser HD555 are good bets here. Those headphones are awesome for 2.0-channel stereo sound for music. They are also fantastic if you are willing to spend a little extra money and combine them with a dedicated external sound device like a DAC (for audiophile-quality 2.0-channel music) or a sound card (for surround sound support in games).

If you care about gaming (specifically, positional surround sound in gaming), and care about bang-for-your-buck budget, then I would recommend you look into $60 - $100 headsets like Corsair HS1 USB headset (not the HS1A analog), Corsair Vengeance 1500 USB headset, GameCom 777 headset, or Logitech G35. Those headsets will not give you the same high-quality music listening experience as the entry-level audiophile headphones I mentioned above. But you will get 5.1 / 7.1 surround sound support for directional sound, which can add a lot of depth and immersion to PC gaming.

The only time I would ever recommend wireless headsets is for people who care about gaming (with positional surround sound support), don't care about budget, don't care about 2.0-channel stereo music listening, and don't care about the drawbacks of wireless (dealing with rechargeable batteries). If you fit that exact buyer profile, then get yourself a Logitech G930 and be done with it. If you do not fit *ALL* of that criteria, then you are better suited for wired audio gear.






Oh, and whatever you do, be gentler on your audio equipment. It was designed to sound good, not to take a beating.

 

To me, the difference between wired and wireless is simple. Wireless means one more thing to charge, and one more thing to be flat when you really want to use it. Furthermore there's usually a performance tradeoff.

So unless I really need it, I stick to wired. Exactly the same with the other peripherals.

Secondly, you buy cheap, you usually get cheap. But you already know this.

I've been pleasantly surprised at how well the Logitech G35 has fared in general, especially given my reservations about the plastic earcup pivot. One required to be run over by a chair before it broke - the rest are fine. Mind you, I don't throw my stuff around as a rule. And when I've had problems - I did early on in the first G35's life - Logitech have come through with fuss-free warranty.

If you want something that'll be with you for a long time, I'd pitch you the Beyerdynamic MMX 300. It's fairly expensive at ~$300, but it has the ~$200 DT770 Premium at it's core, has probably the best consumer-headset mic around, and has a 5-year warranty. Less convenient than the G35 though, especially with the lack of a mic-flip/mute facility, and no surround - which I rate highly on the Logitech.

 

also some wireless headsets (bluetooth based) has delays of 1-3 seconds, so it's pretty much useless in gaming.

however it is useful when jogging or walking with no wires.

 

If you care anything about sound quality i would really avoid wireless headsets, they are absolutely terrible when it comes to that