Perfect headset for my needs with minor annoyances
"I mainly bought the Maxwell 2 ANC version over the non ANC version because I have a very loud fan in my college dorm. I originally tried the Steelseries Arctis Nova Elite headset, which I returned due to the fact that the price was a little more than I thought it was worth ($600). Before both these headsets, I owned a HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless headset, which was what I used while I waited for the Maxwell 2 ANC. I am not in my college dorm yet, as I have not gone back, so I can't tell you if it is any better. I will say, without the ANC, I do still hear my fan back at home (which is much quieter than the one at my dorm), so the ANC is necessary for me. I do like the ANC on this headset. When I first tried it, it was a very tough thing to get used to since there is so much pressure. The Steelseries Arctis Nova Elite had way less pressure when the ANC was on, and same with my other earbuds. That's the only complaint I have with the ANC, it just takes time to get used to the pressure. The ANC gets rid of my keyboard, fan, etc. There is a slight hiss in the headset with ANC on, but it's quiet enough that when I'm playing games or listening to music, it's drowned out. There is also a hiss without ANC that only appears in certain ways, but it's quiet enough to where as long as the audio that caused it is loud enough, you won't hear it easily, and it only lasts for a second after the initial sound that caused it (the most common way I heard it was through the windows beep sound or whatever it is). The weight is one thing I didn't prefer at first. It was definitely noticeable, and was the first thing I noticed when I tried them for the first time. This is the heaviest headset I have ever worn (560g, coming from 322g). I will say though, I have gotten used to it, and I'm completely comfortable with it. I have been wearing these for weeks (arrived July 22nd), and hours nonstop. I once went a whole day without taking these off, and felt comfortable the entire day. I did buy a new headband from Wicked Cushions that arrived yesterday, and It is so much more comfortable when compared to the stock headband. One thing to note, is if you even look up a little bit, or too far down, they have a tendency to fall off your head. The dongle does have decent range, I just wish it was a little further. I also have an issue with multiple connections. I can't get audio from my PC and my phone through Bluetooth to work at the exact same time. I either get one or the other, and it's disappointing because if I get a notification on my phone, all PC audio cuts off for the duration of the notification audio. It would be nice if it was simultaneous, mainly for phone calls, but it's not the end of the world. Speaking of phone calls, the microphone quality, whether you use the external microphones for ANC and transparency more, or the boom microphone, they both work great for me. I use an external microphone on my PC, so phone calls that I want hands-free are the only application for the microphones in my case. The buttons on the headset are also excellent. There is one at the front of the left earcup that changes through transparency mode (which is really, really good, and picks up every little thing) and ANC. The dials on the left one can also be pressed to change their action, whether you want to adjust sidetone, volume, EQ, etc. You can adjust basically everything right through the headset. Overall, even for the price, I'm happy with it. I can't say there is much more I would change besides adding simultaneous audio and reducing the ANC pressure. I tried to make this review at least somewhat in depth because it's the first one on the Audeze website for this headset. I would also try to talk about the audio quality, but I'm just not very knowledgeable with audio quality, I cant even EQ my headset to the way I like with a starting template that I barely adjust. I will say, the audio is incredible, and is much better than my previous headset (but still comparable to the Steelseries headset from my usage). I highly recommend this headset."