Audeze Maxwell Review | The Best… with a Catch or Two
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The Audeze Maxwell is the best sounding gaming headset that I’ve ever heard. I even ranked it #1 in my top gaming headsets of 2023 video.
However, it has some serious flaws such as the heavy weight, buggy software, and suspect build quality of the early production units.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Industry-leading headphone audio quality with planar magnetic drivers.
Includes both a boom mic and integrated microphones.
Fast charging battery with up to 80 hours of life.
4 connectivity options: low latency wireless, Bluetooth, USB-C, and 3.5 mm.
Cons
Headband is susceptile to breaking during normal use - particularly early production units.
Extremely heavy at 490g (1.08 lbs).
Below average microphone audio quality.
No simultaneous Bluetooth + low latency wireless.
Software is quite buggy even after several patches.
Connectivity and Controls
Connectivity
I bought the Xbox version of the Maxwell. If you buy this headset, it’s the better choice simply because it also works on PlayStation and PC. The PlayStation version does not work on Xbox. The Xbox version also comes with Dolby Atmos. I’m not a big fan of Atmos, but the Xbox integration is very good because it gives access to a 10-band equalizer on the Series S|X.
USB-C wireless dongle. A USB-C to USB-A extension cable is included in the box.
The Maxwell can be connected using the wireless dongle, 3.5 mm cable, USB-C, and Bluetooth. It can even do simultaneous aux + Bluetooth. Unfortunately, there’s no simultaneous Bluetooth + USB wireless like the Penrose had.
When the device is connected to both the dongle and a Bluetooth audio source, it will automatically swap between the two when one starts or stops playing media. It’s a frustrating experience and I wish you could swap manually.
Controls
Mic noise suppression button at the top.
The Audeze Maxwell has two main controls: the power button and the headphone volume wheel. The power button is located on the outside of the right earcup and can be used to turn the headset on and off. The volume wheel is located on the back of the right earcup and can be used to adjust the overall volume of the headset.
In addition to these two main controls, the Maxwell also has a game/chat wheel and a mic mute toggle. The game/chat wheel. The mic mute toggle is located above the power button.
Keep in mind that sidetone is easy to accidentally turn on (or leave on) if you press in the game/chat wheel, so make sure to turn that off if you don’t want to hear an annoying feedback even when your mic is muted.
Controls explanation from Audeze’s website.
Headphone Audio Quality
Modern Warfare II with the Maxwell was incredible.
This is the reason to buy the Audeze Maxwell. The headphone audio quality is unmatched in the gaming headset space. It has 90 mm planar magnetic drivers with a far more balanced sound than Audeze’s previous Penrose offering.
The sound separation is excellent, and there’s a satisfying definition to the bass and subbass. The highs don’t screech too hard, and footsteps come through clearly even in chaotic battles.
Vocals cut through a busy mix with ease, but they don’t overpower everything else to an obnoxious degree like the Penrose. The soundstage doesn’t match open-backs, but it’s a bit wider than most other closed-back gaming headsets.
The Maxwell responds favorably to equalization in pretty much every frequency, so once you find the tuning for you, it becomes a very versatile headset for music, games, movies, and mixing audio.
While the detail is accuracy of the Maxwell is great, it is ultimately an audiophile-focused, analytical headset at its core. Hitting specific frequency response and phasing measurements on audio testing rigs is something Audeze really cares about as evidenced by their back-and-forth with RTings.
The point is, this headset isn’t going to be for everyone. If you want fun, immersive bass that makes you feel like you’re inside of Starfield or Fallout, this won’t quite do that. The bass won’t boom or rumble, no matter how hard you try.
If you’re a basshead like me, the best gaming headsets I can recommend for that are the Drop + EPOS PC38X and Astro A50. For everyone else, you’ll love the Maxwell’s sound - especially when you get comfortable dabbling with equalization.
Comfort and Build Quality
This is where we start to get into the weaknesses of the Maxwell. This headset is chunky at 490g. The suspension style headband can be adjusted to different lengths and this helps to distribute the weight evenly. But that’s where I ran into my first major issue.
I bought my original Maxwell on launch day and that production run of headsets has a critcal flaw with the welding that can make the headband separate from the earcup hinge completely. Mine broke like this from normal use, and there are several instances of this happening to other people on Reddit. Or just check out the comments on the videos below where I documented my experience.
Audeze claims units after the original production run have had this flaw fixed, and my replacement unit is still intact months later. However, I now use it very sparingly despite the amazing sound quality. “Fool me can’t get fooled again.”
Comment
byu/dize_raw from discussion
inAudeze
The actual chassis materials are a combination of spring steel and aluminum. The ear cushions are pleather with large and thick pads, but they aren’t particularly soft. Still, they do well at isolating noise.
Overall, I give these a B- in comfort. You can get used to them, but you’ll never fully forget about them like the HyperX Cloud III. Build quality and durabilty gets a giant “?”. It feels solid and sturdy, but my original unit broke and was rendered useless. Your mileage may vary…
Microphone Audio Quality
Whether used wired or wireless, the boom mic sounds muffled and lacks detail in the midrange. Ironically, it rejects background noise inherently so well that the noise suppression feature isn’t even necessary with it.
The integrated beamforming mics are difficult to listen to with how compressed and staticky they sound. These need the noise suppression much more. I don’t like that feature because it dynamically adjusts the volume of the mic, but it does its job of vocal isolation very well.
In short, the detachable boom mic is passable and the integrated mics are bad. The fact that the latter option exists for use on the go is great.
Software
Audeze HQ for both desktop and mobile is a massive fumble. The software has a lot of potential, but it rivals the Turtle Beach Audio Hub in bugginess.
The way the apps are supposed to work is you can adjust the game/chat mix, sidetone, and 10-band equalizer. You get to make 4 custom presets and there are 6 presets that Audeze doesn’t explicity tell you what they do, but they sound like super minor adjustments to the curve.
How the app works in reality is:
the mobile app simply doesn’t have EQ functionality at all (as of September 2023).
the desktop app is unresponsive, with edits to custom EQs and game/chat mix undoing themselves constantly.
If you were fortunate enough to not update your firmware from a version before July of 2023, I wouldn’t rush. The functionality of the software somehow keeps getting worse for me with updates.
EQ presets on Android broke sometime around July 2023…
Dolby Atmos
The Audeze HQ software is pretty much useless to me at this point, but the Xbox version comes with Dolby Atmos which even works on the Series S|X. Consoles rarely get any sort of EQ support, so you can bypass Audeze HQ and even add a cool virtual surround sound effect with this.
I think virtual surround sound is a funny gimmick, but I never use it myself - artifical reverb and soundstage widening is completely conterproductive for competitive play.
Verdict
The Audeze Maxwell is the best gaming headset that I’ve ever used. I recommend it, and the point of this article is to let you know exactly what you’ll be getting so there aren’t any surprises.
The headphone audio quality is incredible, it has 4 different connectivity options, and the integrated mics and 80 hours of battery life make it viable as everyday headphones as well. If the shortcomings of the heavy build and software don’t deter you, this is the gaming headset to get.
