Immerse yourself in the music of games

Sony has already provided PS5 players with a decent pair of cans with the Pulse 3D Headset, but the INZONE line-up aims to elevate the audio experience even further. With three to choose from, the Sony INZONE H9 is the cream of the crop, offering all the bells and whistles whilst looking and feeling the part.

But what is it that makes the H9 so special? What kind of features does it come with? And does the £269 entry price take off some of the shine? We’ve been testing out the INZONE H9 for the last couple of weeks, so let’s get on with our hands-on impressions.

The Sony INZONE H9 is a pair of noise-cancelling headphones that'll go nicely with your PS5. Like the Sony INZONE M9 that we reviewed as well, it comes with a slick black and white design and a host of top-of-the-line features. Those features of course include bluetooth connectivity via a USB stick, noise-cancelling and ambient noise, 360 spatial audio, and overall a premium and comfortable build quality.

As mentioned, the H9s will set you back £269 here in the UK — $299.99 in the U.S — and while, yes, that is certainly a good chunk higher than the other Sony headset, the Pulse 3D, it's pretty in-line with most other noise-cancelling headphones. While the INZONE line-up does come with the cheaper H3 and H7, they lose some of those enticing features like wireless connectivity, and the build quality diminishes.

On paper, the H9 is certainly a step up from most other gaming headsets, and with its tie-in design and 360 spatial audio, it should be the perfect addition to your PS5 set-up.

Opening the box, the H9 has next to no set-up required. You’ll immediately spot the headset itself along with the USB that’ll light up once you’ve connected it to your PS5. In the box you’ll also find a USB-C cable for charging. That is literally it. It’s straight to the point, and you can be bumping up your audio game within a minute of opening the box.

As soon as you put on your H9s, you’ll feel the cosy embrace of a quality pair of headphones. The leather cushioning on both the ear cups and head band are plush and comfortable, and go a long way to close off outside noise - long before any noise cancelling is even activated.

Along the sides you have access to a volume slider, a balancer between both game chat and party chat, a bluetooth connectivity button, a switch between both noise cancelling and ambient noise, and of course the power button. The buttons were never quite as easy to differentiate, and didn’t ever feel exactly in the right place in comparison to the Pulse 3D, which has far more easily accessible controls. However, the H9s make up for this with a physical rotating boom mic, which allows you to pull the mic down to speak, and then push it up to mute. This is perfect for all you gamers out there that have been caught off guard singing into a lobby full of a captive audience.

The adjustable and swivelling arms make for a supremely comfortable gaming experience, and even after hours upon hours of gaming, you’ll still feel just as at ease with the H9s on your head. This goes to show off the H9’s impressive battery life, which Sony claims comes in at 32 hours without noise cancelling. During our review period, we never felt any battery anxiety, and were able to casually charge the headset whenever we had the chance. Wearing the H9s for extended periods of time did reveal a looseness in comparison to other headsets. Even at its tightest, any sudden movements or sneezes would often result in the H9s slipping off our head. For comparison, this has never happened for us with the Pulse 3D.

An additional feature that will certainly elevate the H9s above other headsets, is its ability to wirelessly connect to PC. This is possible with the Pulse 3D but here thanks to the INZONE app you can further customise your audio experience on PC, and customisation is definitely recommended as the default settings are a little lacking in comparison to the PS5. We enjoyed bringing that comfortable H9 experience to PC, ridding ourselves of distractions with its noise cancellation, but we also experienced occasional issues. Digital interference and intermittent disconnection were relatively frequent during our time with the H9, both issues that were completely absent when on PS5.

Coming from the Pulse 3D headset, we were blown away by the immediately noticeable upgrade to sound quality. The noise cancelling for one is completely engrossing, and any loud game will ensure that barely a sound from the outside world makes its way in. If that isn’t quite your thing though, the ambient noise mode allows you to pick up outside sounds, whilst still getting that high quality sound.

The sound itself though is truly sublime. Deep bassy shooters like Modern Warfare 2 were incredibly immersive as you practically felt each and every gunshot and explosion. The 360 spatial audio meant that we were quite often saved purely because we were able to hear enemies before we could see them, which allowed the audio to actively improve our performance, not just our immersion.

However, if big explosions aren’t quite your thing, the noise cancellation meant that games like The Last Of Us: Part I benefitted from the smaller audio details. Nearby grasshoppers, creaky floorboards, clip-clopping horses felt alive and very much real thanks to the H9.

The Sony INZONE H9 is an impressively immersive headset that will undoubtedly improve your gaming experience, no matter the game. It works just as well on the quiet levels as it does in the bombastic, and all while providing a solid and comfortable build quality that will allow you to play for hours while barely even noticing it on your head. The ability to connect to PC is a welcome addition as well, giving the H9 bigger bang for buck. However, it does quickly prove that this is a headset tailored for the PS5.

If you are in the market for a more expensive headset, then we can barely recommend the H9 enough. Unlike the M9 monitor that struggled to warrant its higher price tag, the H9 is a case of getting what you pay for, and in this example it is worth every penny.

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What do you think of Sony's INZONE H9 headset? Do you like a quality pair of cans while you play? Tune out the rest of the world in the comments section below.

Your sponsored Amazon link for the H9 headphones is wrong somehow. The headphones are £219 not £269 👍

Also this is grammatically confusing..'If you are in the market for a more expensive headset, then we can barely recommend the H9 enough'

When you can 'barely' recommend something it's a negative. You 'can barely recommend something enough', doesn't make sense if you're trying to say you 'can't recommend something enough', as in it is highly recommended. What you've done is similar to when Americans say ' I could care less' when they couldn't care less 😆

£270...i think i'll stay put with my gold headset as its easily the most comfortable headset i've ever used and the audio is still stunning..

I'm curious how these compare to something like the last-gen Sony WH-1000XM4 headphones, which aren't specifically for gaming but are among the best noise cancelling headphones out there for about the same price. Would the H9 work for commuting or a plane ride, or does the stick mic relegate this to at-home use, only?

Does anybody use the WH-1000XM4 or WH-1000XM5 for gaming? I've been considering getting one of those for conference calls, music at work, and the occasional flight, and I could see using them with the PS5, too, either wired to the controller or wireless with Bluetooth - how would that compare to the H9?

oooh I can see these being very handy in Hunt: Showdown, I'm very very tempted!

@riceNpea Site is increasingly American by the day.

As a PS5 and Series X owner does this work on both? Looking to upgrade my Steel Series 7x.

@RobN I have the WH-1000XM4 and they do not connect wirelessly with the PS5. I then tried with my tv but the audio ends up going out of sync. Mainly got them for movies late at night to not wake up the whole house but they turned out to be a total bust. There’s a $50 adapter for tv’s for stronger Bluetooth but dump that. I ended up buying the Logitech G PRO X Wireless Lightspeed Gaming Headset and they have worked out awesomely. They’re $200 on Amazon, Hope this helps.

@Wolfie_Pie Just a thought... If you're having issues finding the right headphones you could get a set that has replaceable pads and then buy 3rd party ones that are deeper and more spacious. Might sort your issue.

I wonder how H3 compares to pulse 3d, they almost same price, but H3 aren't wireless.

So Sony's official ps5 headset is crap then ? Lol

@Wolfie_Pie There we go. I think there's a few companies that do them. So I'm sure you'd be able to find something that'll suit your needs. They're bound to make ones for people with very large ears which would then give you that space you're looking for. Good luck.

I bought these to go with my PS5. I can barely hardly recommend these enoughly! But for reals, these headphones are AMAZING. I had them on next to an laundry machine and dryer, both were on, and I couldn't hear a thing.

I would buy these but that mic is awful and a real deal - breaker.

@Dan_ozzzy189 I wasn't crazy about the antenna-like mic either, but it works very well and isn't in the way in any position.

Could the mods please get rid of all of these (at times xenophobic) grammar and spelling wardens? Has nothing whatsoever to do with the headphones in question.

I've quite enjoyed using my pulse headset, but the foam on the ear cups is dissolving, looks like this will be a good upgrade down the line!

@AaronBayne it's not correct that the Pulse wireless function is PS5 exclusive. I can connect the dongle to my Switch Dock and can use the Headset wirelessly. I would be surprised if this will not work for PC as well...

I am increasingly more pleased Sony is making equipment for the PC space. The more Sony stuff that exists, the better. They make great things. I've been wanting to replace my aging Razer headsets for a year or so. This just may be the ticket and will look quite nice next to a Sony M9 monitor when my current Samsung dies.

@Jaxx420 Nah. I want to upgrade my 7X too but I’m probably going for new Nova line (Arctis Nova 7X Wireless).

@RobN hi, i have the xm4 headset, and use it for my ps5 wired to the controller. I got it last year thanks to someone on push square who convinced me to get them. I did have the pulse headset and thought they were good, but once i tried the xm4 then it was like wow these are great. I use them everyday for music and gaming, although i mostly play offline, so mot sure about the online chat. But i would highly recommend the xm4, one of the best headsets available , the sound and noise cancelling are amazing. Expensive but worth every penny. Oh and amazing battery life too.

That white is so ugly.

I'd expect those things to be just the normal wireless NC headphones with a mic I'd guess. Supposedly they're not bad.

I use a pair of Bose something or others and they're fine.

What's the audio like when watching tv and films? The Pulse 3D wireless ones are rubbish for anything other than gaming.

@mazzel Nice catch and apologies for the mistake. I've just tried this out there and yup, it works on PC wirelessly. The Razer Kaira however, does not. Will make adjustments to the article accordingly!

@Daleaf Interesting. I recently bought a pair of XM4s, and whilst I think they're fantastic for music, I didn't think there was much difference between them and the Pulse 3D for gaming. For convenience, and not having to wire it directly into the controller, I prefer the Pulses.

That is interesting, agree for the music they are fantastic. I found them much better than the pulse for games, i think the pulse are good but sounded a bit tinny in comparison, and think the xm4s pick up a lot more of the smaller sounds. But yea pulse overall are decent and as you say not having them wired is always bonus.

How about instead of making a headset out of most people's grasp let us use our own headphones with ease and not have to coble together contraptions to make them work, I don't need 360 sound or ANC, I have a perfectly good pair of dt770's that do everything I need them to for my gaming needs, but I can't just plug them in and go, that's what we want, not overpriced headsets.

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