XPG Precog Studio gaming headset review
Sometimes you feel a bit spoilt in this job. While it's no easy task sorting through the mountains of marketing fluff and specs sheets on the daily, you do end up getting your hands on some lovely equipment, some of it priced well beyond your own means. This isn't to boast, merely to say that when a more modest bit of gear shows up, it can actually feel a bit refreshing.
Which is why I was keen to open the box when the XPG Precog Studio gaming headset turned up. I've reviewed some expensive headsets recently, and this more reasonably-priced option has some specs that suggest it might be a bit of a budget wonder.
Available for around $60/£58, it boasts 50 mm drivers with a 20-20,000 Hz frequency response, and a DAC adapter that takes its 4.4 mm balanced Pentaconn audio connector (alongside its more traditional 3.5 mm mic jack) and amplifies the signal, resulting in a USB Type-C input that XPG hopes will sound more «studio-like» than its competition.
Balanced signals? In-wire DAC adaptor? $60? I had to give it a look. Those are the sort of features that you'd expect to see on a boutique set of headphones, not a relatively budget gaming headset. However, all it took was pulling the Precog Studio from its packaging to dispel any illusions that this might be an under-priced premium headset in disguise.
Style: Closed back
Drivers: 2x50 mm dynamic
Frequency response: 20 to 20,000 Hz
Microphone: Cardioid condenser, non-detachable, omnidirectional
Connection: Wired,1x 4.4 mm jack plug + 1x 3.5 mm jack to DAC adapter to USB Type-C
Weight: 300 g
Price: $60 | £58
The outer earcup plastic is tinny. I mean, really tinny. Tapping a fingernail against it creates a shiver of ick down my spine. On the left earcup is a volume dial, along with a dedicated mute switch, and both manage to feel somehow overly stiff yet worryingly flimsy at the same time like tolerances really weren't a consideration at the factory.
Most worrying of all, though, is the inner headband. The fabric material
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