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Ive always secretly been a really big fan of Hyper X and their Hyper X Cloud Alpha gaming headset. For a Hundred Dollar gaming headset I honestly couldn’t ask for more. Since they’re so comfortable and light weight you forget you have them on when you’re gaming. And since they bring extra little touches like a braided cable and a minimal design, over all they’re a great value. So when HyperX announced their new Cloud Mix, a gaming headset that you can also use as a bluetooth headphones… I had to check them out. And even though they do sound pretty good, I think they’re pretty hard to justify.
The Hyper X Cloud Mix currently only comes in an all black color way and retails for $200, making these HyperX’s most expensive headphones in its line up. Where as the Cloud Alpha’s go for $100. If you want to pick either of these headphones up I’ll have links in the description below, and if you use the links it really helps out the channel. And also, checkout the merch shelf down below.
First up, theres a lot to like about the HyperX Cloud Mix. They come included with a very nice feeling carrying pouch, but if you plan on traveling with these headphones I do suggest you get a hardshell carrying case. Just like HyperX’s other headphones, these headphones come included with a removable boom mic, and all of the included cables are braided. You get a 1.3 meter long 3.5 millimeter audio cable cable that you can plug into your controller or phone and this cable also has an inline controller. You also get a 2 meter long PC extension cable so you can directly plug into the Audio and Microphone Jacks on your PC. And finally, the cloud mix also comes included with a micro USB cable for charging. But like I’ve said in past videos, I feel that headphones that are coming out in late 2018 should come included with a USB C Port instead.
The ear cups on the Cloud Mix are also very spacious and should have no problem fitting most ear types, but since the ear cups on the cloud Alpha are slightly larger, they’re also slight more comfortable in comparison. But another problem with the Cloud Mix that I do want to point out is that they offer very little passive noise isolation and they suffer from a lot of sound leakage. Now, passive noise isolation and sound leakage isn’t a big issue for gaming headphones cause you’re mainly going to use them at home when you’re gaming. But for $200 bluetooth headphones noise isolation and sound leakage is a big deal cause you want to be able to hear your music when you’re out in public where it can be noisy and you also don’t want people sitting next to you on the bus complaining that your music is too loud.
When it comes to their sound quality, I cant deny these headphones sound pretty good when listening to music. They have a very similar sound signature to the Bose QC35’s where theres an emphasis on the mids and treble so vocalists are very pronounced. But just like the Bose, even though the bass is present its not going to hit you like the 1000XM3. But unlike the Bose QC35’s no matter how intense the bass gets on these headphones, the bass never bottoms out. Which is great for both listening to music, and for when you’re gaming and an explosion goes off. But something that also impressed me about these headphones is just how loud they manage to get all while suffering very little to no distortion. These are perhaps one of the loudest headphones Ive tested so far and honestly they get so loud that I feel its unsafe. But over all, these headphones sound good for both gaming and for people who like to listen to music with a brighter sound signature.
When it comes to tech specs, HyperX advertises a 20 hour battery life on these headphones which is just a little below average for headphones these days. But obviously when you’re gaming with them you’ll have to use them passively cause these headphones automatically power off as soon as you plug in the audio cable. Now a 20 hour battery life for bluetooth headphones these days is ok, but since these are $200 headphones it does suck that they don’t have fast charging.
Now when it comes to their bluetooth connection, these headphones are rocking bluetooth 4.2. They have about a 30 foot range and they can go through multiple walls without any problems. But they can only be connected to one device at a time. But these headphones have very little latency so these are actually pretty good for watching youtube videos on your phone. The latency is only noticeable if you look for it.
Even though for the most part I do like these headphones for gaming, something that drives me crazy about the Cloud Mix when I look at them as bluetooth headphones are the buttons and their lay out. On the right ear cup you have your power button, and volume rocker. Even though the volume rocker is slightly raised, the power button isn’t. So everytime I go to power these headphones on I have to go hunting for that power button. And even though the volume rocker is slightly raised, since its so hard to tell the volume up and volume down button apart I always have to do this little check to make sure Im pressing the right button. But what I hate most about these headphones is that their multipurpose button is on the left ear cup instead of the right ear cup where all of the other button are. So every time I go to skip a track I reach for the right ear cup by accident. Having the multipurpose button and volume rocker on different ear cups isn’t just weird, I cant think of another pair of headphones that I’ve tested that does this. And honestly, I don’t know what hyperX was thinking when they decided to go with this lay out.
But finally let's talk about the microphones found on the HyperX Cloud Mix. Just like most other bluetooth headphones these headphones have a built in Electret condenser microphone. And the sound quality for phone calls is so so.
But just as you’d expect, when you attach the boom microphone for gaming the difference is out of this world. And this microphone does a very good job of picking up just your voice and avoiding almost everything else.
And over all, I feel the HyperX Cloud Mix are another great performing pair of gaming headphones. They sound very good for listening to music, and they’re very light weight so they’re great for hours and hours for gaming. But when you look at them as $200 bluetooth headphones its very hard to justify dropping all that cash on these headphones cause these headphones don’t perform any better than the $100 Cloud Alpha’s… you’re just paying double for bluetooth connectivity. And as $200 bluetooth headphones, these wouldn’t be my first choice. Putting design and fit aside… the cloud mix offer very little passive noise isolation when used out in public. And when you start looking at headphones in the $200 range, you start seeing headphones that bring other features like an ambient mode, tile integration, a 25 to 30 plus hour battery life with fast charging, a built in app so you can customize your EQ settings, and most importantly Active Noise Cancellation. Personally, I really think you’re better off having your dedicated gaming headset like the HyperX Cloud Alpha, and picking up a dedicated pair bluetooth headphones like Sony WH-CH700N. If you manage to get them on sale then you’ll have two pairs of headphones for just a little more of what the HyperX Cloud Mix sell for. And thats if you want Active Noise Cancellation, cause if not you can pick up a pair of non ANC headphones and Cloud Alpha’s for the same if not less than what the Cloud Mix goes for.