The LucidSound LS50X is a premium headset at a premium price, and it (mostly) delivers on everything that such a product should. Designed and marketed for the Xbox family of consoles, the LS50X is also able to be used on a PC or any other Bluetooth device. I spent my testing time on the PC, so my impressions mostly come from there.
Right out of the box, the LS50X makes a good impression. The packaging itself is solid, and the headset is housed inside a travel case within the box. It is a bit on the heavier side, which makes it feel high quality but ends up becoming a bit of a nuisance during extended play sessions. It is mostly black, with no RGB or external lighting of any kind. It has a semi-skeletal frame around the ear cups, and the earcups themselves are quite large. I have a pretty big head with ears to match, and the headset fits comfortably over both.
Large controls make the LS50X stand out right away. The exteriors of both earcups are rotating dials, which control different aspects of the audio. You can have the headset connected to your PC or console with the wireless USB adapter, and also have a Bluetooth device connected simultaneously. This allows you to play on your console while also being in a voice chat via something like Discord on your PC or your phone. The left dial controls the audio from the wireless adapter while the right dial controls the audio from your Bluetooth device, giving you the ability to fine-tune your sound to balance both. The dials also function as oversized buttons that allow you to mute your game audio, Bluetooth audio, answer phone calls, change audio tracks, and mute your microphone.
The LS50X has two different microphones, a built-in mic that allows for lower profile microphone use, and a removable boom mic for traditional game chat. The boom mic is noticeably better, which is expected, but I was truly surprised by how well my friends could hear me in Discord when using the built-in mic. The noise-canceling is fantastic, and again I was impressed by how little background noise got through when using both the boom and the built-in mic.
The earcups themselves are one of my favorite features of the LS50X. They are made of extremely soft memory foam, with a gel cooling layer above that, all underneath a thin layer of cloth. The gel stays surprisingly cool throughout extended use, which is usually lacking when products include this kind of cooling feature. The padding is soft enough to be comfortable with glasses underneath as well and never dig into the side of your head.
The battery life on the LS50X is another selling point, boasting over 20 hours of continuous use. The headset is recharged with an included USB to USB C cord, and it charges rapidly. Even with the extended battery life, the audio quality is outstanding. With 5 different EQ modes: Bass Boost, Movie Mode, Music Mode, Flat EQ, and Signature Sound, there is an audio setting for everyone. I stuck with Signature Sound for the majority of the time, as I felt it had the best balance of highs and lows with nothing being left out or overrun.
I was thrilled by just how comfortable and clear everything was with the LS50X. I have owned a lot of different headsets throughout the years, from a lot of different brands. The LS50X feels like the best blend of all the things I look for when buying a new headset. The comfortable cooling earcups are fantastic for longer sessions, and the battery life supports that. The audio quality is the best I have heard outside the realm of actual studio headsets getting into the $500+ range. My one complaint is that the headset is a bit heavy, and eventually started to get tiresome on top of my head, but that only happens after long hours wearing them, and I am yet to find a headset that doesn?t do that.
Ultimately, the LS50X is a premium headset, priced accordingly. With an MSRP of $200, this might be a hard sell to gamers who already have a decent headset, or are looking for more features for their money. While the LS50X is incredibly comfortable and delivers outstanding sound quality, it lacks some of the bells and whistles that other similarly priced headsets offer. In a market that seems to get increasingly more crowded every year, more and more companies are forced to add marketing gimmicks or additional features to get their products noticed. I appreciate the simplicity of the LS50X and the bottom line quality that they deliver, and I would personally recommend this headset to anyone who is looking for something new.
Note: LucidSound provided us with a LS50X Headset for review purposes