Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. Guides

The best Xbox 360 headsets

By and

If you’re currently looking for a new headset made for the Xbox 360, you might be disappointed to know you’re going to have a hard time. With the Xbox 360 being extremely outdated, the headsets designed specifically for it are not only obsolete, but nearly impossible to find new since the manufacturer doesn’t make them anymore. Along with that, many current headsets aren’t compatible with the Xbox 360, so you’ll have to use one of the older ones that were popular in 2013.

And pretty soon, the Xbox One will be obsolete, too, since the next generation Xbox Series X will be headed to store shelves this holiday.

If you’re still thinking of using a headset from an old era, you might be able to find some used ones online on Amazon or eBay. Don’t hold your breath for a new one, though and if you do find one, it will likely be grossly overpriced. We found one of the headsets on this list for close to $900 brand new.

Related

We could spend hours arguing the merits of a good gaming headset. They are easily one of the best accessories available for the Xbox 360, whether you’re a die-hard Halo devotee or just a casual gamer, ushering in a new era of sound quality and immersion that just wasn’t offered on consoles a decade ago. Although they may not be completely necessary, they represent the best option for those seeking to take Xbox Live chats and in-game strategy to the next level. Plus, they’re a terrific way to retain fantastic sound in those times when overly-sensitive neighbors are likely to come pounding on your door at an explosion’s notice (the nerve of them).

Here are our picks for the best Xbox 360 headsets. We didn’t say they were the cheapest available, but they’re undoubtedly some of the best and worthy of the investment. Also, check out our continually updated best headphones and the overall best gaming headsets lists. For more in-depth reviews, take a look at our gaming headset and headphone review section.

The list below are headsets that were great in 2013. If you can find them, they’ll still worth using, but given the time period, you’ve likely moved onto a much newer piece of hardware like the Xbox One.

Turtle Beach Ear Force XP Seven

Seven 5
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Turtle Beach’s recent partnership with Microsoft for its upcoming console is on the horizon, but Nov. 22 isn’t here quite yet. It’s not surprising the XP Seven was the official licensed headset of the MLG Pro Circuit given its superb build quality and matching sound capabilities. The black-and-white construction is equally modest as it is practical, with soft leatherette ear cups and a rigid, leather-lined band, but it does take a few days to properly break in the headset and ease the default clamping force. The 50-mm drivers help produce clear, natural tones with incredible depth capable of honing in on all aspects of the sound landscape, while offering further customization options via the bundled, programmable digital signal processor (DSP). Bass too low? Crank it up. Treble too piercing? Turn it down. Preset switching is an absolute breeze once properly configured.

The XP Seven has it’s downfalls, such as the less-than-impressive virtual surround and lack of wireless options, but it remains one of our personal favorites for listening to a vast assortment of multimedia despite similarly-equipped offerings from Astro and Tritton. Check out our full, in-depth Turtle Beach Ear Force XP Seven review to find out why.

Turtle Beach Ear Force X12

X12 1
Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you know anything about gaming headset, you know Turtle Beach is a household name and one the premiere manufactures of quality headsets across the price spectrum. The X12, with its equipped 50-mm speakers and customizable built-in amplifier, has long been heralded by tech companies and gaming publications as one of the best budget-based headsets years after its debut. The stiff plastic build is engineered to comfortably withstand normal abuse, along with the bundled 16-foot chord, and the additional microphone monitor for hearing yourself speak into the mic is a welcome addition we only wish could be included in more affordable, close-back headphones. The virtual surround sound isn’t top-notch, but it still provides the user with a keen sense of place and solid voice intelligibility, while the overall sound quality is outstanding considering the headset is actually reasonably priced for the lower-end consumer market.

We admit the Ear Force X12 do not rival the aforementioned XP Seven in terms of sound, but you could almost purchase five pairs of them for the price of merely one of the higher-tiered options on our list. The in-line amp and coupled controls for adjusting game, bass and voice volume rest a bit closes to the head that we would like, but the positives far outweigh our minimal quibbles. Check out our Turtle Beach Ear Force X12 review for more information.

Tritton Warhead 7.1

Tritton Warhead 4
Image used with permission by copyright holder

It appears qualms are kept to a minimal when you design a top-of-the-line gaming headset from the ground up exclusively for the Xbox 360. Tritton’s flagship offering is built like a rock, with comfortable faux leather noise-canceling earpads that fit like a luxurious glove and a battery life capable of lasting nearly 16 hours on a single charge. Although it never lives up to the Dolby Digital 7.1 surround it seeks, the virtual re-creation is superb for both in-game action and chat, while the straightforward pairing via the built-in Microsoft wireless chip more than makes up for the aforementioned drawback. Like many on our roundup, the headset also boasts an assorted myriad of equalizer presets for varied listening — all conveniently located on the back of the device for quick access — that make the already-sterling sound more pleasurable once levels have been properly adjusted for the particular sonic environment in which it’s being utilized.

Other Xbox headsets may surpass the Tritton Warhead 7.1 in one category or another, whether it be sound immersion or comfort, but it’s still arguably the most well-rounded gaming headset we’ve ever reviewed for the Xbox 360. The sound is exceptional regardless of your varied listening aesthetics, the one-button setup simplistic to a tee and the comfort admirable even during the most laborious of gaming sessions. Hesitant? Our comprehensive Tritton Warhead 7.1 review has all the deets you need to know.

Astro Gaming A40

A40 2
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The San Francisco-based powerhouse known as Astro Studios has been only been in the headset market for less than a decade, but it has possessed its laudable intuitiveness since day one. The Astro Gaming A40’s space-age design is lightweight and flexible, equipped with comfortable over-the-ear cushions and in-line mic controls, and comes bundled with a swappable mic and cable system among other things. The device is capable, but not overly elaborate, offering additional features like Dolby Digital 7.1 surround sound and customizable speaker tags, along with the coupled MixAmp Pro for quickly adjusting game-to-voice balancing and switching between up to four different EQ modes. The sound, the most crucial aspect in a quality gaming headset, showcases pristine nuances and exceptional balance, rightly flaunting the crisp highs and punchy base with every exhilarating reverberation.

The Astro Gaming A40’s EQ settings don’t always deliver as intended, nor is it completely wireless, but its customizable levels and immersive surround sound help provide ample incentive to at least warrant a proper look. The balance and power is unparalleled, likely why it dons the high price tag, and it retains an element of attractiveness despite its somewhat bulky build. For a closer look at other Astro offerings, check out our Astro A50 review.

Turtle Beach Ear Force XP510

XP510 3
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Turtle Beach Ear Force XP510 is concrete — well plastic anyway — evidence the line designating gaming headsets from our everyday listening peripherals is becoming increasingly blurred with every new model to hit the already-expansive market. The XP510 is tenacious in all the right aspects, built of solid-black plastic and accented with metallic-green lines that run along the inside of the headband and encircle the shell-shaped ear cups. The fabric-encased, 50-mm drivers produce naturally-smooth low end and distinctly-crisp highs, while delivering realistic surround sound and nine discrete EQ presets available when connected via the built-in Wi-Fi transmitter. The equipped padding makes for a comfortably-snug fit despite the headset’s weight, and the 10 additional onboard controls and coupled input options open up a bevy of opportunity when it comes time for on-the-fly, preprogrammed adjustments and simple tasks.

The Ear Force XP510 is certainly not the runt of the litter given its high price point and robust feature set. It’s just as capable when you’re engulfed in the latest tactile shooter as it is while casually listening to your favorite album, and though it’s sensitive auto shutoff and meager call quality leave much to be desired, its phenomenal sound accuracy place it among the best-sounding headsets to date. Need we say more? Well then, take a gander at our Turtle Beach Ear Force XP510 review.

Razer Carcharias

Carcharias 2
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Just because a gaming headset is bulky and cheap, doesn’t mean it can’t be shine with a lightweight build and comfortable aesthetics. Razer has done more than just dabble in the pro-gaming industry, crafting a host of stellar computer mice and keyboards in the process, and the Razer Carcharias is a prime example the company’s foray is paying off. The sleek, all-black headset sports a foam lined headband and earcups, along with a unidirectional capable of bending a full 270 degrees, and touts a lengthy cable measuring that measures just shy of 10 feet. Like many headsets on our list, the Kraken Pro boasts in-line controls for adjusting volume and muting audio, but it doesn’t attempt to create the robust virtual surround sound like the XP Seven or Tritton Warhead. However, the simple plug-and-play setup and resulting audio via the two 40-mm stereo drivers more than make up for the absent features, delivering excellent bass response and matching chat quality. The high-end admittedly does sound a bit muted and the mic lets in a fair amount of outside noise, but not enough you should be swayed if gaming is your primary purpose for the headset.

It’s not the hearty feature set that makes the Razer Carcharias a standout, but the general lack thereof. The sound is exceptional given the price, and the exterior design remains comfortable during extended gaming sessions where others fall short. If the Turtle Beach Ear Force X12 isn’t appealing, then Kraken’s budget offering may be the next best thing.

Insten Gaming Headset

Image used with permission by copyright holder

You can still find a brand new Insten Gaming Headset, specifically made for Xbox 360 in 2020. They plug into the bottom of the controller and serve as a way to listen to in-game audio, as well as giving you the ability to chat with friends. It’s not the fanciest headset for Xbox 360, but it’ll get the job done. Plus, it’s one of the only headsets for the console that you can still purchase new. For $11.99, it isn’t much of an investment.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Brandon Widder
Brandon Widder
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Brandon Widder is a multimedia journalist and a staff writer for Digital Trends where he covers technology news, how-to…
The best developments to get first in Manor Lords
A town in a valley in Manor Lords.

It feels a little bit like cheating in Manor Lords, but the development upgrades you can get can do some powerful things to improve your settlement. However, to balance things out, the development points you need to unlock these enhancements are given out very sparingly. In fact, you won't get even close to the amount needed to unlock everything on the sphere grid. To make matters even more stressful, there's no way to undo a choice you make, so any point spent in error is locked in until you start a new game. There's none that can make your game harder, but if you pick one that offers no benefit to your current settlement or goals, it might as well be a negative in terms of the opportunity cost. For the best experience, here are the developments you should invest in first.
How to get development points
Before you can spend any development points in Manor Lords, you have to earn them. This is a slightly obfuscated system that you may not fully understand if you're not paying close attention, but it does make sense once you know what's going on. Development points are tied to you reaching new settlement levels. You can incrementally grow to a small village, a medium village, a large village, a small town, a medium town, and -- finally -- a large town. Each one requires a larger number of burgage plots and for you to upgrade more of them to higher levels. In any one settlement, you can earn six development points.
Best developments to get first

The development tree is broken down into four segments: farming, trade, gathering, and industry. Here are some of the best ones you can unlock early.
Heavy Plow
No settlement can survive only on hunting and foraging for food. Farming is the only way to make sure your storehouses are well stocked with food, but even a fully staffed farm is painfully slow to harvest. The Heavy Plow upgrade adds a plowing station to your farms so you can make use of an ox to not only make plowing your fields far faster, but also tospeed up transporting your crops to the storehouse.
Charcoal Burning
Preparing for winter is your primary concern for your first year, if not the first two, in Manor Lords. Lack of food is one thing, but if you run out of fuel to keep your population warm, they won't last long. Firewood is your basic form of fuel, but it is very inefficient. This development lets you build a charcoal kiln that gives you two charcoal for every one firewood you feed into it. That will double your potential fuel reserves in a snap.
Deep Mining
All natural resources will eventually run dry. While you can regrow trees and let berries regrow, ore deposits only have so much material for you to mine before they're tapped out. You can break the laws of nature with the Deep Mining development that lets you upgrade any mine into a deep mine that somehow never runs out of ore. This only works on the slightly rare rich deposits, but is still incredibly powerful to have an unending source of ore to build or sell.
Sheepbreeding
Speaking of getting an unending source of materials and money, Sheepbreeding makes something that you would expect to happen, but by default does not, actually occur. If you have a sheep farm, those sheep will be completely uninterested in mating and having more sheep babies. Snag this development to let nature take its course and get yourself an infinite supply of sheep for materials and to trade for quite a high price.
Better Deals
And while you're trading, unlock better deals to keep from getting ripped off. There's a tariff on anything you import in Manor Lords of 10 regional wealth, but this perk waives that annoying fee. Since you never quite know what resources you will have and what you will need to import to build your next structure or upgrade, importing is essential for reaching the late game. The earlier you invest in this, the more you'll save in the long run.

Read more
Best video game deals: PlayStation 5, Xbox S and X, Nintendo Switch

There are a lot of excellent games out there for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and  Nintendo Switch, and if you want to fill your library with a good back log, then you should absolutely take advantage of game deals as they pop up. That's why we've gone out and found some of our favorite video game deals out there, with some of the games below being features on our list of best PS5 games, best Xbox Series X games, or best Nintendo Switch games. Between the co-op madness of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and the time-traveling loop madness of Deathloop, there are a ton of options to pick from.

Best PS5 game deals
Deathloop -- $30, was $60

Read more
Best Alienware deals: Gaming PCs, laptops, and monitors
Alienware Aurora R15 placed at an angle on a table.

If you're not familiar with Alienware, its a brand that's been around almost since the inception of PC gaming, creating some of the first proper gaming laptops on the market. Of course, it's expanded a lot since then, with products across the gaming range like gaming laptops, gaming PCs, headsets, or even a gaming chairs. That said, Alienware products are quite expensive, which is why you'll likely want to go for one of the Alienware deals we've collected below. Alternatively, check out some of the best gaming laptop deals and the best gaming PC deals we've been able to find.
Alienware AW720H wireless gaming headset -- $120, was $150

A gaming headset is a great way to keep in touch with your friends while you play. The Alienware AW720H gaming headset lets you do so without the burden of wires, as it connects to your gaming setup via Bluetooth. It has a built-in microphone for outgoing communications, as well as Dolby Atmos, Surround Sound, and Stereo Sound options to help immerse you in the game and incoming communications.

Read more