Introduction

The selection of gaming headsets priced at around $70 is getting extremely crowded. This price bracket gives manufacturers plenty of space to outfit their devices with good audio drivers, a quality microphone, and a wide array of extras, the latter being almost as important to the target audience as the raw performance itself. HyperX, Razer, Logitech, Turtle Beach, and Creative are only some of the big names that will gladly sell you a headset at that price. Is there any room here for Roccat?



The Roccat Cross is not the company's cheapest headset, but it's definitely the most versatile and - as testing confirmed - the best-balanced in terms of price and what it offers. Roccat points out that this is a multi-platform headset: that we can connect it to PCs, gaming consoles (PlayStation 4, Xbox One), but also smartphones. To turn that into something you would actually want to do, the Roccat Cross was made compact - compact enough so you don't look like an idiot on the street. Also, it comes with an additional cable with an in-line microphone and a multi-functional button you can use to answer phone calls, pause music, and skip between songs.



This also means that the cable is detachable, which opens up some possibilities that don't exist with a fixed-cable headset. I've tested the Roccat Cross in all available modes, both at home and on the city streets. Allow me to tell you what I gathered from it.

Specifications

• 50 mm dynamic driver (neodymium magnet)
• 32 Ω impedance
• 20-20,000 Hz frequency response (specified by the manufacturer)
• 98 dB SPL @ 1 kHz
• Closed back, over-ear design
• Detachable boom microphone for PCs and consoles (2.35-meter-long braided cable)
• Detachable iOS/Android compatible microphone and in-line cable remote (1.2-meter-long rubberized cable)
• Weight: 185 g