Audeze has released 38 headphones since 2008, and though most of those have been audiophile sets, in recent years the Californian company has directed its efforts to the gaming headset space. And for that gamers should rejoice.
Today they've expanded their lineup with the new $449 Maxwell 2 ANC, stepping up the competition from the likes of the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro. But it's hardly a fair fight. The Maxwell series is the bridge between high-end studio performance and zero-latency gaming, and with the new iteration of the Maxwell 2, Audeze has added an advanced adaptive ANC system.
But it's not just about making it one of the best ANC headphones out there, closing out the world around you (which it does as well as any other ANC headphones I've used).
There's actually another very clever reason for adding ANC to one of the best-sounding gaming headsets on sale...
Here comes the science bit
So, what's actually new? The Maxwell 2 ANC takes the fundamentals of the Maxwell 2 and introduces an adaptive hybrid noise cancellation system. Sounds mega, right!? Well it should: It uses feedforward (outside mics) and feedback (mics inside the cups) coupled with AI-controlled ANC parameters, which constantly adjust to noise in real time. That means it targets constant low-frequency noise without messing with positional audio, such as footsteps sneaking up on you.
That's not all. Audeze has added handy voice-activated commands and simultaneous wired and Bluetooth audio playback. To make sure the ANC doesn't distort the headphone’s tuning – which is important to me, as I want to use these to listen to music as well as gaming – they've whacked in a protective audio compressor that ensures the sound profile isn't changed by the ANC.
But way more impressive than all this, the ANC also acts as a regulator of the sound you're hearing. For closed-back headphones to sound their best, it's essential that the user gets a tight seal around their ears with each ear cup – it means you hear the powerful bass explosions as they're meant to be heard.
But what if you wear glasses, or your head shape prevents you from achieving that perfect airtight seal? Well usually that would mean a weak-ass, limp version of the intended powerful sound. However, the microphones in the Maxwell 2 ANC pick up on whether the real life sound within the ear cups drops or spikes, and the DSP instantly compensates. That's pretty cool!
The marketing may tell you that the Maxwell 2 ANC is great for its industry-leading noise-cancellation, and although that is true what really makes it special is that it's found a way to minimise unit variation, bringing all users the same excellent audio that we loved in the Maxwell and Maxwell 2, regardless of poor eyesight or abnormally large heads.
Thanks to Griffin Silver, aka Listener, for telling me about this aspect of the ANC implementation.
Heavy on performance... and on my head
I went to the release party of the Audeze Maxwell 2 ANC yesterday, and got to take a unit home to try out. And there are some obvious things to report.
First, the excellent sound profile of the previous iterations remains unchanged – even when using the ANC.
Audio is clear and punchy and I find I can pick out micro-details from games, whether that's footsteps of bastards trying to kill me, or the calming rustle of trees in a breeze.
However, these remain heavy boys, clocking in at 560 grams – about 70 grams heavier than the already chunky original Maxwell. Then there's the suspension headband. Despite the wider, ventilated strap, it offers only three fixed adjustment settings, as with the other iterations. This lack of adjustability is a definite miss for me, and something that was present in the older iterations, so I'm slightly at a loss why it has remained. Weirdly, the middle setting fits me much better than the same setting on the Maxwell 2, but I'm sure this limited approach to adjustability is going to be an issue for some, so it's worth noting.
Having said all the above, I like the Maxwell 2 ANC a lot. It's not designed to be a casual, lightweight accessory, but rather a powerhouse set for gamers and music fans who want pristine, undisturbed audio above all else.
If you're willing to adapt to its heft, the resulting noise-free immersion is incredibly more than worth it.
