The HyperX CloudX Stinger Core Wireless Headset was designed specifically with Xbox usage in mind and is truly well worth the investment. I have had the headset for over a week now and cannot stress enough how game-changing this headset is for me. Before getting too far ahead of ourselves and jumping to the final score and recommendation rating, let’s dive into key categories that we all love to discuss when it comes to our gaming headsets: First Impressions (design & material quality), Comfort, Accessories, Sound Quality, and Unique Gadgets.

First Impressions, Design & Build Quality

Upon opening the box, you'll find the manual, the CloudX Stinger Core headset, and the charging cable. That's it! The packaging is minimal but secure to make sure the headset arrives in great condition, and the contents are minimal as they should be. The first thing I checked was the design. Overall, the headset looks great, and when I was turning it around to see how it looks from different angles, I couldn't help but realize how lightweight it is. In my opinion, this is a major positive because it means longer gaming sessions without feeling the weight of the headset over time. The fact that the headset is this light and has a movable mic makes it extremely portable and easy to store in a bag or tuck away in a drawer when not in use.

This headset certainly doesn’t make sacrifices in the build quality department. It has just the right amount of play when it comes to stretching and contortion without feeling cheap, and definitely feels durable enough for the modest-to-more-severe damage a headset may encounter throughout its lifespan.

A concern I had about this headset was the setup process. As the instructions say in the manual, all you need to do is turn the headset on, press the pairing button on your Xbox to make it discoverable, and simply hold down the pairing button on the Stinger Core headset until the indicator light flashes green. After a few seconds, the indicator light switches back to white and pairs with the Xbox. It's that easy! No software download needed, nothing! Perhaps this is because this headset is an official Xbox licensed headset. Either way, it's honestly the easiest set-up you could ask for!

Comfort

Once I paired the headset, it was time to try it on! Comfort was perhaps my biggest concern before actually receiving the headset for multiple reasons. But the adjustable sizing on the CloudX Stinger Core headset is more than capable of adapting to my head shape and size, and thankfully, the materials used for the ear cushions did not cause any skin irritation. Although these issues may be uncommon, it's great to see that HyperX is cognizant of these issues and designs its headsets accordingly. Perhaps the biggest comfort pro of all is the fact I had absolutely no discomfort gaming while wearing glasses! The leather around the ear cushions and crest of the headset are comfortable and have the perfect balance between squishiness and structure.

Accessories

The most significant accessories include the wireless capability with up to 17 hours of battery, signature memory foam made with premium leatherette, a mic monitoring system, and a built-in headset chat mixer. Among those accessories, this headset actually comes with a 2-year warranty! Obviously, the biggest pro to the signature memory foam is the adaptable comfort that conforms to different head shapes and makes it a pleasure to wear. The mic monitoring system provides you with feedback on your audio inputs to let you know the volume others are hearing on outputs (essentially telling you how loud you can yell without your friends hating you).

Finally, perhaps my favorite accessory on this headset, is the built-in headset chat mixer that allows you to easily favor the sound coming from a voice chat or game by modifying the ratio of the volume between the two with a scrolling wheel located on the headset itself! Instead of having to fiddle around with the game settings to get the perfect balance between your friends’ voices and the game, you can easily modify it in real-time as needed! It's certainly the setting I didn't realize I needed until I started using it!

Sound Quality

Likely what most potential buyers are curious about is the sound quality. I can honestly say that on first use I was shocked at the quality. I had to look up the headset to double-check the price because I barely noticed any difference between the HyperX CloudX Stinger Core Xbox Headset and my HyperX Cloud Alpha Pro Gaming Headset! Considering the popularity of the Cloud Alpha and the higher price, I thought the difference in sound quality would be more apparent.

In testing with both in-game sounds and sound effects, as well as game soundtracks and general music testing, the experience with the Stinger Core is phenomenal! The only real difference that I could notice was in lower frequencies where Cloud Alpha seemed to nail it a little better, but it’s really close and certainly gives the Cloud Alphas a run for its money.

Unique Gadgets

Before we finish up with my concluding thoughts and the final score, let's discuss extra gadgets this headset has that make your experience that much better. First and foremost, what I really enjoyed was the easy and intuitive mute/unmute function on the microphone. Other headsets I have used require you to flip a switch on the cord or the headset, or press a button on the headset. On the CloudX Stinger Core headset, to mute your microphone, simply move the microphone upwards parallel to your headset. Then, to unmute, simply pull the microphone back down towards your headset.

As you would expect, the headset also has adjustable sound using a scrolling wheel on the headset. A really cool feature is a sound that the headset plays to indicate when maximum or minimum volume has been reached. By not having a mechanism that prevents the wheel from spinning once the maximum or minimum volume is reached, there is no chance of pushing the wheel too hard and accidentally breaking it, which I may have done before… Either way, HyperX clearly put a lot of work into designing this headset and it really shows in some of the finer details!

Conclusion

All in all, it is a great design that prioritizes the gamer's comfort which means a lot to me. However, I think a little more could have been added to spice up the design. I do really like the green accents that match the Xbox compatibility, but I think it would have been amazing to see the HyperX logo and branding also accented in that color instead of just the earmuff lining.

I couldn't have been more impressed with the practicality of this headset. I won't go so far as to say it's perfect, but I couldn't find anything about it to complain about, even when being extremely picky about it.

The accessories on this headset are truly awesome and provided me with more features than I thought necessary to put a smile on my face, so it gets a well-deserved 5-star rating!

The sound quality is adaptable and very capable of handling your everyday gaming needs. You honestly have to be really picky to be dissatisfied with this headset.

The overall gaming experience and microphone quality were fantastic. The combination of the comfort over longer play sessions, the practicality of being wireless and lightweight, and the nearly indistinguishable difference from my normal microphone quality make the HyperX CloudX Stinger Core a fantastic option for Xbox players. I am truly impressed with its capabilities and features and I think you will be too!