Headset Review: Sennheiser GSP 670 Wireless Gaming Headset
Renowned audio accessory experts Sennheiser has entered the gaming market and have introduced a premium headset that takes your gaming audio to another level, whether it be music, movies or of course, gaming. In the past I’ve been very happy with my Afterglow AG9’s and my PlayStation Gold Wireless Headset, and I still am, as I like to switch between my headsets from time to time. The Gold Wireless Headset has always in particular been my go-to and the best standard of audio that I have had access too, so with the prospect of the Sennheiser GSP 670 offering something to an even higher standard, I was very excited to hear what all the fuss is about and the results were truly music to my spoiled ears.
All wireless headsets that I’ve used up until now have been via a wireless bluetooth dongle and to be honest, I’ve never had an issue with that what so ever. However, the GSP 670 not only uses bluetooth to connect, but also a low latency dongle. In a nutshell, the benefits of having a low latency dongle over your standard bluetooth, is that the audio from device to user is that ever so slightly faster during its short journey. This may not make much of a difference to a none competitive gamer such as myself, but I can imagine that tiniest of improvements can make all the difference to someone in the competitive gaming world. This aspect helps cut out any audio lag when video chatting on apps such as Skype for example, for those that might be irritated by lip-sync being slightly out of place.
However for me, the biggest benefit of the GSP 670 having both a low latency dongle and bluetooth connectivity, is that you can game and have your devices such as your mobile connected simultaneously. For example and picture the scene. I’m in the middle of an intense Team Deathmatch on Call of Duty, then my phone rings. I know it’s an important phone call, but at the same time, I don’t want to throw away this online match that we’re on the verge of winning. Well worry not, because while your GSP 670 is connected via the low latency dongle (with a range of 10 metres), you can have your mobile phone or tablets connected via the bluetooth function. Meaning that you can carry on gaming and take the call, without putting one or the other down. It may seem like a small feature, but for anyone that has been in this situation, I’m sure you can appreciate having this duel wireless connectivity as a major benefit.
As another major bonus, it’s not just the audio quality coming from your video games or movies that are of such a high standard, because the GSP 670 has quite easily the best gaming mic that I have ever used with any headset. Using my trusty PS4 Gold Wireless Headset as an example, the gaming audio quality of that headset is great, especially for the price. However, the quality coming from the mic for other players to hear you, isn’t the best. Sure you can be heard quite clearly, but the sound clarity isn’t all that great and can sound a bit tinny, if you will. As a result, I went out and purchased a streaming mic, as it offers a far superior quality of audio over my PS4 Gold Wireless Headset by quite some mile.
With the GSP 670, you have the best of both worlds, with the quality of the audio in your ears and the audio from your mouth. I currently use the Blue Yeti Nano Premium as my streaming mic, which offers great quality at a reasonable price (here’s my review), but from what I can tell, the mic on the GSP 670 offers an almost identical level of quality, something that I’ve personally never experienced with any of my headsets that I’ve owned over the years. Sure, I will still have a lot of use with my Blue Yeti Nano, but now in future, if I want to capture some quick gameplay with commentary via my PS4 Share functions, I don’t have to have both my headset and streaming mic connected, because the GSP 670 offers the absolute best of both worlds at ease. You can hear two examples of the difference of audio quality via my two gameplay captures below. The first being a Resident Evil 7 playthrough using my PS4 Gold Wireless Headset and the other being the recent MediEvil remake demo, using the Sennheiser GSP 670 Wireless Headset.
One of the reasons why the has such could clarity, is thanks to the excellent noise cancelling technology, which can even be tinkered with using the supporting desktop app and aided by the soft, none passive ear pads. There’s also extra ease when turning the headset and the mic on and off, as well as adjusting the volume. Rather than having a volume up and down button, like with my PS4 Gold Wireless Headset, this can be quite awkward adjusting on the fly, especially during an online match, without having to take of the headset to check that you’re pressing the correct volume buttons. Instead with the GSP 670, the volume is easily adjusted by rotating the volume wheel located on the outside left ear cup, so there’s no uncertainty whether you’re pressing the right buttons or not. The volume wheel also acts as the headsets on/off function too.
There is also a separate volume wheel for chat audio, located underneath the main volume wheel for added ease. The mic too can also be easily switched on and off, but simply pulling the mic down over your mouth to switch on or lift it back up vertically to switch it off. I find this much easier than having to find a mute button like with most other gaming headsets that I own. On the accompanying app, you have an array of customisable options available to you, from in-game/movie audio, right on through to the level of noise cancellation and even the sound/tone of your voice through the mic. You can also easily switch between profiles via the small button below the volume wheel, from the pre-sets of flat, music, movie or eSports, as well as 2.1 and 7.1 audio.
In terms of battery life, the GSP 670 is also very capable in this department too. On a full charge you can get around 20 hours of battery life by using the bluetooth function or 16 hours when using the low latency dongle. This headset also charges incredibly quick, as when charging from a dead battery, you can get about 2 hours of game time from just a mere 16 minute charge. For added convenience, by a simple press of the button, a handy automated voice will tell you the approximate battery life in % and the headset will also switch itself off if left dormant for too long, which decreases your chances of picking up the headset with a flat battery for those as forgetful as I am.
In terms of comfort, while the ear cups don’t quite have the extended length then my other gaming headsets, it does have a handy slider on the headband that adjusts the tension of the headset, which does help compensate for the lack of proper adjustable length. The ear cups are also very soft and comfortable, though while it’s an improvement over some headsets that I’ve used, while the soft ear pads don’t completely eradicate warm ears, it is very minimal and caused me no issues what-so-ever. This probably has more to do with the headset not being as light as some of my other headsets as it ways 398g, in comparison to my PS4 Gold Wireless Headset which weights only 99.8g.
Most wireless gaming headsets are what they say on the tin, “wireless”, however, pretty much most of them also come with an 3.5mm headset port, but the Sennheiser does not. This is not a major sticking point, but it does restrict you from using this amazing headset on other platforms other then the marketed PC and PlayStation 4. This is a minor sticking point, as I would have thought that this headset would have included a 3.5mm port, as it would have been handy to see how this headset performed on other platforms such as the Xbox One or the Nintendo Switch through the controller/tablet. That said, this is still an amazing headset, but I thought this is information that is needed to know, especially at the premium cost that his headset demands.
All in all, despite the weight and lack of 3.5mm port, the Sennheiser GSP 670 is a premium gaming headset in almost every sense. The headset not only feels quality in the hand, but most importantly the audio quality is unlike anything that I’ve ever experienced, especially when offering such a high standard in not only the audio that you hear, but what others hear from you too. Granted, with an RRP of around £300, this is a very expensive gaming headset, but for that price, you’re getting one of the most premium gaming audio experiences on the market. In a nutshell, the Sennheiser GSP 670 has taken gaming audio to another level with simple quality of life functions that offer a great convenience to the user. If you’re in the market for a premium gaming headset, then the Sennheiser GSP 670 will be an absolute pleasure for your ears, like little else on the market, but of course, it comes at a pricey cost.