Nacon's RIG brand of gaming headsets is one I particularly like. Like GameSir with controllers, RIG often applies fiercely competitive prices to hardware that punches well above its weight in terms of quality and longevity.
The newly released RIG R5 Spear Pro HS (well, I don't really like the unwieldy name) is a good example. These wired gaming headsets tick almost all the boxes of what I personally look for in a pair of cans that exceed their value: excellent sound quality; comfortable enough for long gaming sessions; a microphone capable of online multiplayer; and a price that makes me reflect in the best possible way.
I have enjoyed several RIG products in the past, namely the brilliant RIG 900 Max HS and the RIG 600 Pro HS; Both are great wireless gaming headsets designed with PlayStation hardware in mind. Being a little older than the R5 Spear Pro, these wireless headphones are probably candidates for a steep discount next Black Friday.
But there are several reasons why I recommend keeping an eye on the RIG R5 Spear Pro HS during the sales period, especially if it will be your first time purchasing a gaming headset for modern platforms.
The price is right
Let's first talk about the retail price of the RIG R5 Spear Pro HS.
At $69.99/£69.99 (around AU$99), it already straddles the line between mid-range and budget prices. This is not unheard of for wired gaming headsets in general. The Razer BlackShark V2
What competing headphones have going for them, a few years after their release, is that they are often subject to incredibly attractive discounts that handily undercut the retail price of the R5 Spear Pro HS. So why should you consider the new RIG headphones if the competition is likely to be cheaper than Black Friday?
I have used these three headphones extensively at various times in my life, for gaming, working and listening to music. On all three fronts, I can confidently say that the RIG R5 Spear Pro HS somewhat outperforms the other two.
The audio quality is some of the clearest and most punchy I've tested on any wired gaming headset here, especially in this price range. Nacon hasn't been shy about advertising the headphones' 40mm graphene drivers, and rightly so. They provide clear audio with very little distortion or muddiness at higher volumes.
The audio works much better overall than the BlackShark V2 X, especially. While it has excellent build quality, as is typical of Razer products, it's very much a “gets the job done” headset for those simply looking for something cheap and cheerful to connect with friends.
Of course, there's nothing wrong with that, but the overall audio experience is much more powerful with the R5 Spear Pro HS, whether for online multiplayer or diving into some stellar single-player adventures.
A cut above
Comfort and customization are two other strong points of the R5 Spear Pro HS. The headset relies on comfortable plush materials for its earcups and headband, accommodating extended gaming sessions by design. I usually prefer this to the cheap synthetic leather material as it's not as irritating and doesn't get as hot over long sessions.
You can also customize the headphones with official magnetic modification plates. These are sold separately, but allow you to swap out the (included) PlayStation-focused defaults for something more custom. I'm a big fan of EVO tournament design, as someone who especially loves fighting games as my preferred competitive genre.
One sticking point you may have with the R5 Spear Pro is that it is a strictly wired headset. However, for me that's not too big a problem. Wired means that the headphones are completely platform independent, something that is rarer with wireless headphones due to specific connectivity requirements. Being wired, the R5 Spear Pro works on PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, PC and most other devices with a 3.5mm headphone port.
While you may be tempted to buy other wired gaming headsets during Black Friday if they go on sale, I think you should consider keeping an eye out for discounts on the RIG R5 Spear Pro HS. The price drops here aren't likely to be as steep as the competition, given its relative newness (probably around 10-20% at most), but if it falls below the $60/£60 mark during the sales period, I'll almost certainly write about it during Black Friday week.
I highly recommend you buy the RIG R5 Spear Pro HS to enjoy the best PS5 games, the best Xbox Series X games, the best Switch 2 games, or whatever platform you primarily play on.
Best wired gaming headsets
