LAS VEGAS - If you want to experience immersive 3D audio in games and movies, you typically have to shell out upwards of thousands of dollars for a high end pair of audiophile headphones.
But with the new HyperX Cloud Orbit, which is launching later this year, you can enjoy positional 3D sound within a $299 gaming headset.
The Cloud Orbit is based on premium audio company Audeze’s $399 Mobius headset, taking the same core design while adding unique flourishes such as a silver HyperX logo on either earcup as well as an understated black-and-silver design. The Orbit’s lower price means you’re not getting the Mobius' Bluetooth support, but you are getting the same sleek, understated look that makes the wired headset perfectly safe to wear on the subway as your daily headphones.
Thanks to its 100mm Planar Magnetic Drivers magnetic drivers and Waves Nx 3D audio tech, the Cloud Orbit allows you to enjoy the kind of positional 3D sound you’d typically need a high-end pair of headphones for. If you spring for the $329 Cloud Orbit S model, you'll also get Waves Nx head tracking technology, which provides even more true-to-life positional audio.
I wore the headset during a quick round of Zombies in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, and was impressed by how clearly I could hear where every creepy undead growl was coming from. I also used the Orbit while watching a clip of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and noticed the sounds of laser blasts and exploding TIE fighters coming from a consistent direction regardless of how I moved my head as the Millennium Falcon evaded the First Order.
Both the Cloud Orbit and Cloud Orbit S offer customizable 3D audio calibration and multiple EQ profiles, and come with the usual HyperX features such as a detachable microphone and multiple detachable cables for your PC, console or phone. The wired headsets require battery power to deliver 3D sound, and are rated for 10 hours of battery life.
The Cloud Orbit could be a compelling entry point into 3D audio for gamers, audiophiles and casual movie junkies, and we look forward to putting it through its paces when it hits later this year.
Credit: Tom's Guide
