With the increasing popularity of the PlayStation, Sony released a new line-up of gaming headphones and monitors to complement its latest PlayStation 5 console. We take a look at the affordable and entry-level Sony Inzone H3 gaming headphones for both PS5 and PC users, and here are our thoughts about the device.
Design
With Sony’s existing expertise in audio technologies and headphones, it’s no surprise that the company released a new line-up of headphones as the official accessories for the PlayStation 5. The Inzone H3 features the same white-themed color to match the PS5’s original faceplates. Unfortunately, the device does not come with different color options if you happen to have different PS5 faceplate colors.
The headphone is quite light and weighs hardly around 300g (without including the attached audio cable). For an entry-level model, the wearing comfort is quite good. The device comes with a wide and soft headband cushion that helps to spread the weight evenly around your head if you are concerned about comfortable long-term gameplay. The device also features smooth nylon ear pads that are shaped in a way it minimizes the pressure on your ears. The earpad material also helps in isolating the sound.
The volume dial, the boom microphone, and the wire connection are located on the left earcup. And if you haven’t noticed, the audio cable on this headphone is not detachable. As for the boom microphone, one can mute the audio by simply flipping up the mic, and later folding it down when the need arises to talk. The Inzone H3 is a Discord-Certified headset so it should work well with Discord voice, video, and text communication services.
Sony has designed the Inzone H3 to feature an acoustic structure that is flexible to fit comfortably for different head shapes. Behind the ear pads, there are ducts on the housing of the earcups that helps to control and optimize low-frequency audio reproduction for great bass effects.
The packaging consists of just the Inzone H3 headphone, a reference guide, and a rather unusual USB Audio box that serves as a 3.5mm audio-to-USB converter for PC users. We will mention the purpose of this converter later in the review. Sony also mentions that Inzone H3’s packaging does not include plastics and makes use of recycled materials and non-woven cellulose, indicating the company’s efforts for a greener environment.
Specs & Performance
The Inzone H3 features a closed and dynamic headphone design and each of the earcups come with a 40mm Neodymium dome-type audio driver. It’s very similar to other headphones that the company offers. The device has an impedance of 30 ohms (1kHz) and the frequency response ranged between 10Hz and 20,000Hz.
The device is also capable of handling audio sensitivity of 92dB/mV. The boom microphone is uni-directional and the effective frequency response of the mic is between 100Hz and 8000Hz. It should be noted that the Inzone H3 does not have any wireless capability so it relies on wires to connect to the PS5’s controller or PC. The audio cable of the headphone is 1.2m long.
One of the main selling points of the H3 is its native support for 360 Spatial Sound mode. This can be activated using the PC software called INZONE Hub and the headphone has to be connected to the PC via the USB Audio box connector. Gamers will also be able to choose different presets or create a customized EQ preset. The headphone also works well with the PS5’s 3D Tempest audio technology for those immersive audio effects while gaming.
While the sound quality may not be the best around, we did certainly enjoy our gaming sessions with the Inzone H3 when gaming on the PlayStation 5 and with the 3D Audio enabled. The bass effects are just decent and the sound quality is good for an affordable headphone. We tried the headset while playing games such as Spiderman: Miles Morales and Horizon Forbidden West.
Verdict
The Sony Inzone H3 is a good choice for those looking for good and affordable headphones for both their PS5 console and PC systems. The headphones are lightweight and the design features an acoustic structure that easily fits different user’s head shapes. The soft headband cushion and the smooth nylon ear pads help for a comfortable wearing experience while gaming for hours.
The volume dial is easy to reach and the Discord-certified boom mic can be easily muted and unmuted by just flipping the mic upwards or downwards. Users will be able to also customize the headphone and their EQ settings via the Inzone Hub PC application. The sound quality is good with decent bass and 3D audio effects while gaming on the PlayStation 5 console.