Roccat Cross
Design and function versatility make this a winner.
The Cross’s relatively unassuming allblack design doesn’t take the ‘mean’ approach that many other gaming headsets adopt (we’re looking at you, Logitech), meaning it’s visually versatile.
These cans are super lightweight, at just 185g, and the earcups are ergonomically shaped internally so as to fit around the ears. The extendable headband is a little stiff but also strong, and the cups offer a fairly generous amount of rotation. The underside of the headband and cups are made with memory foam covered with leatherette — this coupled with their low weight adds up to a pleasant wearing experience for up to a whole day, and you’re likely to forget you’re wearing them.
The Cross features large “studio grade” 50mm neodymium-magnet drivers, which end up making these sound a tad bass heavy, but the mids and highs are still crisp, meaning they work really well for gaming. Plus, this set has some serious punch when listening to certain genres of music, such as industrial — quite unexpected from a unit this compact.
The main drawcard is its versatility in function. The Cross does away with the need for multiple pairs of headphones, as it comes with both a boom-arm mic for gaming and office use (on a 2.35m-long, four-pole dual-jack 3.5mm cable) and a petit inline mic for mobile use (on a shorter 1.2m-long 3.5mm cable). We do wish the inline mic had squeezed in some media controls, though. The two mics are simple to switch out via a port in the left ear cup — but there’s sadly no quick mic mute control, like seen on the Kraken (see left). The left ear cup does include a handy volume control that’s smooth but also stiff enough to avoid being moved accidentally. The mobile mic was adequate, but the boom mic adds noise-cancelling — a benefit for work and play.
If you don’t mind its few tiny flaws, this is a unit that you’ll definitely be happy to show off... both in and out of the house.