I audibly oo'd and ahh'd while testing this top of the line Sony Inzone H9 II headset, and I'll do it again

When a headset as pricey as the $349.99 / £299 Sony Inzone H9 II comes my way, I try my hardest not to be swayed by its premium allure. Just because it costs a lot doesn't mean it's going to be oozing quality from every inch of its glossy black-textured exterior, but the Inzone H9 II is just that.

The wireless gaming headset is a nicer upgrade to the H9, ditching the RGB-lit-up yokes for a unique rope-like headband, which makes this one of the lightest $300+ headsets I've tested to date. It's missing a packed battery life, but the combination of its heavenly comfort, high-quality 30mm audio drivers, active noise canceling, EQ audio settings, and inclusion of one of the best microphones I've ever tested in my many years as a tech reviewer makes it a new contender for my favorite cups to date.

It's subpar up to 30 hour of battery life, however, is hard to ignore. It feels even less impressive when you stack it up against similarly priced premium headsets like the SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless and its hot-swappable batteries that make charging almost obsolete. Where the H9 II reigns supreme is not in its battery, but its ability to be almost as feature-full as its high-end rivals while keeping things as optimally lightweight and comfortable as possible. If comfort is key, this 260g premium headset is worth your attention, but I'd maybe wait for a future round of tech discounts to get it for less.

Key specs

Design

This over-ear closed-back headset comes equipped with the same extremely glossy ear cups just likes its Sony Inzone H9 predecessor, with some design changes that are most definitely for the better.

Instead of a long plastic headband with foam padding, the Inzone H9 II features a leather strap sitting under a rope-like band. This new design results in one of the lightest headsets I've ever tested at just 260g. Which is pretty remarkable, when you consider that similarly priced high-end headsets like the Corsair Virtuoso Max and the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless weigh in at 417g and 339g, respectively.

The band also connects to the yokes of the H9 II in a pretty unique way. There are two textured oval buttons on each side of the headset, which, when pressed and held, allow the band to move up and down. They remind me of something you'd find on a raincoat, and not on a headset, but the fact that they help keep things light and comfortable, and are tactile and easy to press, automatically makes me a fan.

Overall, the H9 II feels like a much more understated and comfortable step up from what came before.

The glossy cups fit perfectly in each palm of my hand, and are super lightweight and comfortable to hold, though they are easily prone to marks and smudges. Comfort is what the design of this headset excels at.

The leather-coated earcups have been replaced with a soft-to-the-touch fabric mesh, but there's also some leather coating on the inner rim, so you get a bit of both worlds. The detachable microphone is also light as a feather, and can be stored easily in the pocket of the sack case, which accompanies the headset - a nice touch but something that feels appropriate given the H9 II's expensive price tag.

Features

The Inzone H9 II is equipped with simultaneous Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless audio, Sony's WH-1000XM6 driver unit with a 30mm carbon composite speaker driver, EQ audio customization, an up to 30-hour battery life, active noise canceling, and a detachable super wide band cardioid microphone.

The all-black pair of cups is also decked with intuitive onboard controls, which include a mic mute button, which is textured so you can easily find it when deeply immersed in a PS5 game, on the left cup.

On the same left cup, you can also find the volume dial and the ANC/ambient mode button. The ambient mode basically heightens the sound around your headset, so you can still chat away with your partner with the headset on, or just keep yourself more spatially aware when using the headset outside.

This left cup is also home to the USB-C port for charging, and two 3.5 mm-sized ports, one to provide an option wired connection (the cable for which is provided in the box) and the other for the detachable super wide-band microphone. On the right ear cup, you can find the remaining on-board controls, which include the game and chat mix buttons, Bluetooth/2.4GHz button, and the power button. The latter of which provides a perfectly shaped crevice for my thumb - a tiny feature that makes a great difference when it comes to the overall comfort and ease of use of this Sony headset.

When it comes to sound customization, the Inzone H9 II can be customized in two ways, via the Sound Connect app, or the Inzone Hub software available to download from the Sony website. If you're worried about adding bloat to your PC, you can use a browser-based version of Inzone Hub instead, which is a nice touch on Sony's part.

Connecting to the Sound Connect app will give you a rundown of your headsets' available battery life, allow you to easily switch between ANC and ambient sound mode, give you access to a range of eight sound presets and two custom EQ slots, and even a mini-player of your latest played Spotify track. To connect to the PC software, you will need to have the 2.4GHz dongle at hand and have it set to PC mode.

Performance

The high-end headset came my way just as Silent Hill f launched, which was perfect timing. The Inzone H9 II had no trouble making the decaying streets of 1960s Ebisugaoka sound just as eerie as they appeared on screen. Right out of the box, the headset got loud, which hasn't been the case for plenty of PS5 headsets I've tested. With the right amount of volume, I managed to get immersed in the horrors, even with the big light on, which is a rarity for me. For any spooky game, I usually need to sit in complete darkness before I start appreciating the scares.

The 30mm carbon composite drivers did a great job at making every change in Akira Yamaoka's eerie score sound just as prevalent as the last, but the bass frequencies did have the tendency to sound a bit overbearing. Without getting into spoiler territory, after being chased through a house by a monster, there was a repeating bass line that sounded a bit muddy with the headset's default audio settings. However, by connecting to the Sound Connect app, I was able to flip on the 'heavy' preset, which helped enhance the bass frequencies and aided the carbon drivers in coping with the changes in the score.

Having ANC at hand, through the app or the onboard controls, was also a treat, though a feature I expected for a $300+ priced headset. Being able to fight back against outside noise was especially helpful when playing through Marvel Rivals, as my PS5 is located in the same room as my partner's gaming PC. With it toggled on, I drowned out the tippy-tappy key presses of his gaming keyboard, which allowed me to focus on healing my team and less on distractions.

On PC, Marvel Rivals sounded just as wonderful, and the busy soundscape full of overlapping calls as players released their ultimate moves sounded just as clear and full of depth. One of my favorite testing experiences over the past two weeks was undoubtedly replaying Super Mario Galaxy on the Switch 2. The Sony cups were able to make it sound just as wonderful as it did the first time I played it, and I was met with constant rushes of goosebumps that took me back to my childhood.

The Inzone H9 II didn't falter when it came to music either. I got the first glimpse of its music-playing prowess while playing through the Daft Punk Experience on Fortnite. I'm a die-hard fan of the EMD group's second studio album, and the moment Around the World mixed into One More Time, I had a Ratatouille out of body style experience.

The track sounded so wonderful on the headset that I could straight up envision myself listening to the Discovery album for the first time as a pre-teen. Listening to the full album on Spotify sounded just as good, making the Inzone H9 II a great everyday pair of headphones. Better yet, the simultaneous Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless audio meant I could listen to Spotify while completing the latest story quests in Fortnite, or scroll through Tiktok while I waited for my partner to jump on Discord for some duo battle royale action.

While the sound quality was sublime, the microphone quality was even better.

The Sony Inzone H9 II is equipped with a detachable super-wideband cardioid mic, my favorite type found on any gaming headset. Why? It's simple, the wide band means the frequency range is wider than other microphones, which allows the headset to capture a better quality of sound. Its cardioid polar pattern means the mic is most sensitive to sound at the front, so it won't pick up any unnecessary sounds, and in my experience, that lends itself to a warmer and clearer tonality of any voice.

As you can hear via the short audio sample I've provided above, the mic managed to bring out the warmth of my loud, Scottish accent. To date, this microphone remains one of the best I've ever experienced in a headset, rivaling that found on the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Wireless.

The microphone is so great that I've been struggling to test other headsets since. Any time I brought out a new headset, my partner and friends commented on how they wished I were using the Inzone H9 II instead.

The only thing I've been a bit disappointed with is this headset's battery life. For such an expensive pair of cups, I was expecting more than 30 hours of juice. I spent the majority of my testing time with ANC on for playing through Silent Hill f and got around 15 hours before I had to charge it. ANC is known to be a battery drain, but it's unfortunate given its priced similarly to the Corsair Virtuoso Max wireless, but doesn't come close to its up to 60-hour battery life - and that's a headset with ANC and the extra drain of bright RGB lighting too.

Should you buy the Sony Inzone H9 II wireless headset?

At $349.99 / £299, the Sony Inzone H9 II is going to be too expensive for most people, and that's entirely understandable. That's a lot to fork out on an accessory alone.

If you're considering adding the Inzone H9 II to your setup, I can only assume you're set on something more premium from the get-go, and an expensive price point was already expected. Whether it's actually worth every dollar depends on what you prioritize the most in headsets, as this pair of Sony cups doesn't have the best battery life, nor the most premium sound out of all of its high-end rivals.

What it does have is comfort, and loads of it. The fancier the headset, the heavier it tends to be, and similarly priced alternatives like the Corsair Virtuoso Max Wireless or the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Wireless are heavy guys, coming in at 417g and 339g, are a prime example of that. The Inzone H9 II, however, is the lightest premium headset I've tested at just 260g, and still shares similar impressive features like ANC, audio EQ, and a brilliant microphone like its heavier contemporaries.

If comfort is not on the forefront of your mind, it's probably wiser to invest in the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless and its hot swappable batteries that makes worrying about charging a thing of the past.

If you're okay with ditching a better battery life for a headset with a long list of similar high-end features, from ANC, EQ customization, multi-platform support, simultaneous Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless audio, and one of the best microphones I've used on a headset to date, the Sony Inzone H9 II is worth the purchase. If I were you, I'd just maybe wait for the Black Friday and holiday sales to roll around to help make its MSRP more manageable.

How I tested the Sony Inzone H9 II wireless headset?

I tested the Sony Inzone H9 II wireless headset over a period of two weeks, where it became a key part of my everyday gaming and TV-watching setup. I used the Sony cups to predominantly play Marvel Rivals, Fortnite, Silent Hill f, and Master Detective Archives: Rain Code Plus on the PS5.

To compare how it performed on other platforms, I also tested the headset on the PC while playing Marvel Rivals and Counter-Strike 2. Additionally, I tested Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2, and Mario Kart World on the Nintendo Switch 2, and used it to play Slay the Princess on the Steam Deck. When not gaming, I had the headset on while catching up on the TV shows High Potential and Only Murders in the Building via Disney Plus, and used it to listen to a huge variety of music via Spotify, including Daft Punk, the punk-rock Scottish band Slime City, and the soundtrack to the anime series Cowboy Bebop. For more information on how we test gaming headsets, check out the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

Is the Sony Inzone H9 II a little out your price range? Our guides to the best PC headsets for gaming, the best Xbox Series X headsets, and the best Nintendo Switch headsets are full of cheaper priced alternatives for your platform of choice.